Who taught him to practice swordsmanship like this?

Chapter 99 Finding a Suitable Place

Su Baichen went out for a good meal, passed on the sword skills he was supposed to pass on, and had a good time joking around with his fellow disciples. Then, he suddenly had a change of heart.

"Sister Zhaodi, do you know any fun places to visit in Nanshan?"

He found Lin Zhaodi and wanted to find a guide to take him around the mountains.

Lin Zhaodi was taken aback, and quickly pulled her aside and whispered, "There are so many people around, call me by my Taoist name."

Su Baichen chuckled upon hearing this; this older sister was actually shy.

He said, "Okay, Senior Sister Fang Baizhu, could you show me around Nanshan?"

Lin Zhaodi breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Alright, then come with me to the mountains to gather herbs—the South Mountain is full of beautiful scenery, there's plenty to see along the way."

Su Baichen agreed and had no objection to it.

The two of them carried their medicine baskets together and went into the mountains.

The scenery along the way was indeed beautiful, with clear mountains and waters, and everywhere was full of vitality.

When she saw any suitable herbs along the way, Lin Zhaodi would bend down and carefully pick them.

She gathers herbs without cutting off the roots, saying, "That way, I can still have some when I come back next time."

"Junior brother, Master has also entrusted me with the task of regulating your spleen and stomach. This is to pick stomach medicine for you."

Su Baichen felt something was strange when he heard this. It wasn't that he had a bad stomach or indigestion; it was just that his spleen and stomach were damaged and his earth element was insufficient.

Lin Zhaodi didn't care what he thought; whatever she felt was right for Su Baichen, she would do.

This went on for several days, with them going into the mountains at sunrise to collect herbs and returning at sunset to prepare and consume the medicine.

Before I knew it, I had explored all of Nanshan and seen all its beautiful scenery.

To be honest, Su Baichen still had no clue how to comprehend the mysteries of earth element, but his understanding of the "Undying Flame of Nanshan" had become more profound.

To him, all the vitality emanating from this mountainside was a flame of life.

He has spent these days traversing the flames of these lives, which has given him profound insights.

But these are still not what he wants.

He could only ask, "Sister Zhaodi, are there any quiet places in Nanshan with no vegetation?"

Lin Zhaodi hesitated for a moment, then said, "Yes, there is, but it's a cave. I only found it by chance while gathering herbs. It's pitch black there and not fun at all."

Su Baichen said, "Okay, I'll go take a look."

Lin Zhaodi then led Su Baichen towards a mountain stream.

The mountain stream cascades down the mountainside, eventually flowing through Changchun Palace and outwards.

"This is it. See that little waterfall? There's a cave behind the crevice in the rocks."

"However, the entrance to this cave is narrow, so I looked at it from the doorway and didn't go in. After all, herbs don't grow inside."

Su Baichen looked at the cave, which resembled a "water curtain cave," and his heart was already filled with anticipation.

He said, "Okay, I'll go in and take a look. You can go back first, Sister Zhaodi."

Lin Zhaodi hesitated: "I'm a little worried about letting you send me back alone."

Su Baichen chuckled, "It's alright, our Changchun Palace is just at the foot of the mountain, what could possibly happen here?"

Lin Zhaodi hesitated for a moment and said, "I'll go in with you first. I need to know what the inside of this cave is like."

To be honest, someone else might not receive this treatment. But in Lin Zhaodi's heart, among the three people who came out of Hekou Town together back then, Wang Xingyuan and she were already big enough older brothers and sisters, while eight-year-old Su Baichen was the little brother who needed to be taken care of.

Therefore, she absolutely could not leave like this.

Together they walked through the waterfall and saw the narrow crevice in the rock behind the curtain of water.

Lin Zhaodi looked at the crevice in the stone and said, "That's the entrance, but it's a bit narrow, so getting in might be a little troublesome."

As she spoke, she subconsciously glanced at her chest, a fleeting look of embarrassment crossing her face.

Su Baichen snapped out of his daze and realized that perhaps the food at Yangzong was good enough, because Sister Zhaodi, who was as flat as a washboard three years ago, was now quite magnanimous.

He quickly looked away, and without thinking, he pulled out the Spirit Sword Love Engraving.

"Sister Zhaodi, please wait outside for a moment. I'll clear this entrance for you, since I'll be coming and going from here too."

Lin Zhaodi breathed a slight sigh of relief, then stepped out of the water curtain.

Her inner energy shielded her from the water curtain, and not a single drop of water splashed on her.

Su Bai then swiftly drew his sword.

There wasn't much fancy stuff; they simply and cleanly shaved off a large chunk of the stone wall in front of them.

The Xuan Yin sword energy gathered on the mountain carving, and the sword struck silently, cutting through the mountain as easily as cutting tofu.

With just a few sword strikes, the originally narrow entrance was widened into a passage large enough for one person to pass through. Su Baichen sheathed his sword and walked forward.

Upon entering, the space suddenly opened up.

He hadn't expected that such a large cavern existed inside the mountain.

Stalactites were everywhere, and under the light shining through the cave entrance, they faintly reflected a rainbow of colors.

"This is a great place; with some development, it could become a popular tourist attraction."

Su Baichen couldn't help but mutter to himself.

"What did you say?"

Lin Zhaodi followed in and asked curiously.

Su Baichen quickly shook his head: "It's nothing, I just think this cave is nice, it just doesn't look very deep."

A flame ignited in his hand, so bright that it illuminated the cave clearly.

This is the Illusionary Flame, an ability he naturally comprehended after creating the "Undying Flame of Nanshan".

The flames, created through illusion, are nearly realistic and possess all the characteristics of fire.

Unbeknownst to him, Su Baichen's illusionary arts cultivation had already improved significantly, and perhaps in a few more days he would naturally be able to enter the second-grade realm of transforming illusion into reality.

Lin Zhaodi surveyed the cave and then said with relief, "I'm relieved. Are you sure you want to choose to cultivate here?"

Su Baichen nodded and said, "I have to try. Maybe if I don't feel anything, I'll go back this afternoon?"

Lin Zhaodi chuckled, "Alright, I won't bother you anymore, I'm leaving."

He then left, feeling completely relaxed.

She seemed somewhat pleased, as if she had finally helped Su Baichen find the place he wanted.

Su Baichen watched Lin Zhaodi leave, silently composed himself, and then extinguished the illusionary fire in his hand.

However, his spiritual awareness had been fully awakened, and he sat down on a stone platform in the cave, once again entering a state of spiritual enlightenment.

He himself transformed into an insatiable void, and the surrounding mysteries slowly poured in—

This place is indeed completely different from the outside.

Inside the cave, he found that he could hardly sense the life force emanating from the mountain; he only felt an incredibly thick shell separating him from the outside world.

He was overjoyed, feeling that he had finally found a way to understand the earth.

He immediately focused all his attention on practicing the "Spirit Nourishing Technique of Thick Earth," attempting to comprehend the true meaning of the earth contained within the Nanshan cave.