A man stands before the heavens, his sword emerges from the Emei Mountains.

Chapter 11 Examination, Sharp Tongue

Time flies like an arrow; a season has passed before we even realize it.

Chen Yu practiced diligently day and night, and secretly learned from Yang An the Emei Small Capturing Hand, Emei Fan, Emei Dagger, Iron Lotus Seed Hidden Weapon, Whip Technique, and Nanshan Palm Technique.

He was familiar with the martial arts techniques of many characters in the Condor Trilogy, and knew that the "Nanshan Palm Technique" was the martial art of Nan Xiren, one of the Seven Heroes of Jiangnan, also known as "Nanshan Woodcutter". Based on this, he deduced that the whip technique he learned might have incorporated the Golden Dragon Whip Technique of "Horse King God" Han Baoju. In short, it should be a creation of Guo Xiang by combining the strengths of various schools.

During this period, Yang An began to teach the "Willow Sword Dance in the Wind" to his new disciples. Chen Yu's basic swordsmanship was already extremely solid. By filling in the gaps and making up for the deficiencies, the essence of the swordsmanship that he had previously been unable to grasp became complete and full of vitality due to his improved understanding and internal strength.

Tang Zhihu also made rapid progress.

Yang An was willing to teach in private, and Chen Yu and Tang Zhihu studied diligently, which inspired the newly initiated disciples to practice martial arts diligently "at midnight and before dawn".

Newcomers are eager to improve, and outer disciples who have been in the sect for some time dare not slack off. So, when the bright moon hangs high and the Milky Way stretches far, more and more outer disciples are diligently practicing and training at the Sword Washing Platform on Mount Emei in the evenings.

Abbess Miejue saw this and was delighted.

……

The sun was just about to rise, the sky was high and wide, and the colors were as beautiful as a painting. Chen Yu got up early and practiced a set of "Nanshan Palm Technique". After washing up and having breakfast, he took his green steel sword and headed straight for the Sword Washing Platform.

After walking about a hundred steps, they encountered Tang Zhihu. The man was dressed in the blue robes of an Emei Sect disciple, holding a long sword. He had handsome features and an outstanding demeanor.

Good morning, Junior Brother Chen.

"You look great, senior brother."

"Haha, I hope to do well in today's test so that I can get some guidance from my senior sister in the inner sect."

"Wishing you great success, senior brother."

"I will do my best. My junior brother's talent far surpasses mine. He is proficient in all the basic techniques. If I give it my all, he might win the sect leader's favor and be accepted into the inner sect."

"Working together in harmony."

"Well said."

The two walked side by side, with Ding Minjun, Su Mengqing, Ji Xiaofu, Bei Jinyi, Li Mingxia and others gracefully walking along the blue stone path in the forest behind them, each holding a sword.

"Do you think there's any chance Chen Yu will be accepted into the inner sect after today's examination?" Su Mengqing asked sweetly.

"That can't be right. In the past hundred days, I haven't seen Master give him any guidance at all," Li Mingxia said.

"But Junior Brother was brought up the mountain by Master," Su Mengqing said.

"Senior Sister Ji said that Junior Brother Chen was all alone. Master saw that Junior Brother had a pitiful background and some talent, so it's not surprising that he brought him up the mountain."

"That's true." Su Mengqing chuckled. "Junior Brother Chen is really diligent. I went down the mountain early at the beginning of the month and saw him practicing martial arts diligently by himself."

Bei Jinyi pouted, "It's not just that. For some reason, Junior Brother Yang also started studying hard. New junior brothers and sisters like Tang Zhihu were even more diligent, neglecting to eat and sleep. Later, almost all the outer disciples practiced diligently, which caused us to be scolded by Master for being lazy. In fact, compared to the past, we have become much more diligent."

Ji Xiaofu didn't interrupt, but several times she secretly went to Chen Yu's side and saw him practicing his stances and swordsmanship. She was kind-hearted, and when she heard that Chen Yu had been persecuted and was all alone, she felt sorry for him. However, whenever she saw Chen Yu practicing his skills day and night, with Yang An teaching him by example, she would leave without disturbing him.

Ding Minjun got angry when she heard her master scold her. She had been scolded before. Her master said that she was not diligent in her practice and lacked understanding, and that she had not made any progress. These things only happened after Chen Yu came up the mountain. "I want to see what tricks they have learned."

"I'm looking forward to it too," Su Mengqing said excitedly.

When everyone arrived, Yang An had already been waiting for a long time with the newly recruited outer disciples of Emei.

"Greetings, fellow senior sisters."

After Yang An greeted her, Ding Minjun looked around and lingered on Chen Yu for a moment. She was slightly taken aback, but she noticed that the other man was much more robust and full of energy, which was quite impressive.

With enough food to fill his stomach, enough clothes to cover his body, and enough to sleep on, his body has become much stronger. He's putting on a show of all his might, just to see how good his skills really are, Ding Minjun thought to herself.

"Junior Brother Yang, let's begin."

"good!"

As everyone opened up the area, Abbess Miejue emerged from one end of the forest and observed from afar.

Six male and female disciples stood in the arena with their swords. At a command, streaks of sword light suddenly flew up. The disciples moved their feet in unison with their sword movements, and the sword light swirled and rolled around, which was quite a sight to behold.

"I've learned a few parts of it, but as one of the earlier disciples who entered the mountain, my basic skills are much more solid," Abbess Miejue muttered to herself.

Ding Minjun was now as cold as ice. As her disciples finished performing the "Wind and Willow Sword Dance," she said to one of her female disciples, "Your waist twists are more impressive than your swordsmanship. Are you wielding a sword or dancing?"

The female disciple's face flushed, and her eyes instantly became misty.

Ding Minjun dismissed the question with a single sentence, then turned to another male disciple and said, "You're burly, but your swordsmanship is weak and feeble. Your sword strokes are like embroidery. Is your mind only on eating? You should become an embroiderer."

The male disciple was so embarrassed that he wished he could disappear into a crack in the ground.

Su Mengqing whispered to Ji Xiaofu, "Master often praises Senior Sister's skill in this sword technique. What do you think? Junior Sister thinks it's alright."

"What my senior sister said isn't entirely wrong, it's just that..."

"Swords may not hurt, but words can."

"Don't talk nonsense anymore." Su Mengqing stuck out her tongue.

"And you, your body is stiff as a corpse, lacking even a trace of the graceful and agile movements of the 'Willow Sword Dance in the Wind.' And you, when I first entered the sect, I watched you practice this sword technique, yet you showed no improvement whatsoever. Is it that your body is in Emei but your heart is in the mortal world?"

The disciples being disciplined were all around fourteen years old. The excitement they had felt upon entering the Emei sect—the desire to study hard and achieve success—was completely melted away like ice and snow being doused with boiling water, and they all became timid and submissive.

Yang An smiled wryly.

"Next batch."

Chen Yu and six others arrived at the arena, swords in hand.

"start."

Chen Yu slowly lowered his body, turned slightly to the left, and raised his sword upward in an arc with his right hand. He guided his qi with his mind, and the internal energy in his dantian warmed up and flowed into the Hand Taiyang Small Intestine Meridian. The qi surged from the "Yanggu" acupoint on his wrist bone and the "Shaozhe" acupoint on his fingertips. At that moment, he shook his wrist and swung his sword.

With a clear, resonant sound, the steel sword flashed like an arrow, its cold light gleaming like lightning, and thrust out swiftly. It was the opening move of the "Wind and Rain" from the "Willow Dance in the Wind" sword technique.

"Good!" Su Mengqing couldn't help but exclaim. This move was perfect in terms of power, skill, form, and strength, without any flaws. Even if she used it herself, she wouldn't necessarily be more outstanding.

Chen Yu had already drawn his sword and descended from above, the blade spreading out in a fan shape, its brilliance like the moon falling down.

"What a brilliant move, 'Full Moon Over the West Tower'!" Bei Jinyi couldn't help but praise.

Chen Yu moved with agility, as fluid as flowing water. His longsword moved swiftly, sometimes closing and sometimes spitting out light, the sword light like willow branches swaying in the wind, ever-changing, sometimes real and sometimes illusory, making it difficult to distinguish and dazzling the eyes.

Suddenly, a sword flashed like a bolt of lightning, swirling around Chen Yu's body, its blade slicing through the air with a sharp, tearing sound.

"His swordsmanship has become increasingly refined and elegant, and he has already displayed some of the sword intent of 'The chaotic branches have not yet turned yellow, but they become wild with the help of the east wind.' He is a natural-born swordsmanship prodigy."

As Miejue uttered such praise, the sword light in her vision suddenly vanished. The Emei outer disciples watching from the sidelines experienced a sudden shift in their mood, from the previous raging storm to the current gentle breeze.

"Junior Brother Chen is truly a genius. I would find it difficult to use this move, 'A River of Tobacco,' which is truly impressive," Ji Xiaofu thought to herself.

Ding Minjun frowned and said, "I've put in a lot of hard work, but my breathing and sword techniques haven't been perfectly aligned. Instead, it's just showing off."

"I also think that Junior Brother Chen's swordsmanship is flashy but impractical," said Li Mingxia, who has a good relationship with Ding Minjun.

"Senior sister, junior sister, as the saying goes, there is no fixed form for flowers. The same sword technique will be used in different styles by different people. I think Junior Brother Chen has quite a high level of skill in this sword technique," Ji Xiaofu said.

"Does my junior sister mean I'm blind?"

Ji Xiaofu quickly said, "Senior Sister, you've misunderstood."

"Mingxia, spar with him using a wooden sword."

Before Abbess Miejue could finish speaking, she walked out from the woods.

"Greetings, Master."

"Greetings, Sect Leader."

Neither the inner nor outer disciples expected Miejue to appear, and they all bowed in respect.

Li Mingxia hurriedly said, "Master, how can I spar with my junior brother?"

Extinction's cold voice slowly pierced through the dust, "Whether it's flashy or not, you'll know after comparing."

Li Mingxia dared not disobey: "Your disciple obeys."

"Take the sword," Miejue said.

Yang An quickly grabbed two wooden swords made of ironwood, handed one to Zhao Mingxia with both hands, and then strode to Chen Yu.