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

The Wu Gorge is flanked by mountains, with towering cliffs and peaks that obscure the sky and block out the sun, while waterfalls cascade down its slopes.

Mount Emei has the Emei River. The dock boat guilds are on good terms with the Emei Sect and do not prey on the locals or overcharge tourists. Chen Yu and his group traveled on a boat from one of these guilds.

The crew is experienced, and the riverboat is large and sturdy; we are now sailing through the Wu Gorge.

Chen Yu sat upright at the bow of the boat, seemingly admiring the magnificent scenery of "mountains and rivers stretching endlessly, mountains encircling and waters vying to intertwine," but in reality, his mind was filled with the words of Abbess Miejue that Ji Xiaofu had relayed to him in a haphazard manner while he was guarding the mountain.

"Swordsmanship has sword intent, and its moves are alive; otherwise, they are dead and can only be called techniques. The swordsman feels nature and expresses it through meditation; this is called understanding the sword."

"What are you doing, Senior Brother?" Tang Zhihu walked over, sat down next to Chen Yu, and placed the long cloth bag he carried with him on the deck.

Chen Yu's thoughts returned, and he looked at the cloth bag, asking, "Is this a stick?"

"A gun." Tang Zhihu explained before Chen Yu could ask, "I learned martial arts at the escort agency. Few escorts practice swords; they all use knives, spears, and clubs. I've been exposed to this from a young age, and I have a special fondness for guns."

Chen Yu nodded. The Changwei Escort Agency in Guanzhou was the same; most of its escorts were skilled in swords and spears.

"I learned a few spear techniques from Senior Brother Yang. I expect there will be fierce battles when I go down the mountain this time, so I will bring the spear I brought when I joined the sect."

"Master of both spear and sword."

"Thank you for your kind words, Senior Brother." Tang Zhihu laughed heartily.

Chen Yu responded with a smile.

On the other side of the large ship, Ding Minjun looked through the window at Chen Yu and Tang Zhihu.

Li Mingxia said, "Junior Brother Chen is very shrewd and gets along very well with the junior brothers from the outer sect, as well as Senior Sister Bei, Senior Sister Su, and Senior Sister Ji."

"Weren't we chatting and laughing together? He even knocked your sword down at the Sword Washing Ground."

"Senior sister, please don't say that. You can't hit someone who's smiling at you, especially since junior brother is very favored these days."

Ding Minjun looked disdainful. "A fair-weather friend."

Li Mingxia hugged Ding Minjun's arm and said, "I'm on the same page as my senior sister. I think if she carefully considered her words, Master would like her even more."

"Then should she still be called Ding Minjun?"

"It was my fault for being so talkative," Li Mingxia apologized. "Senior sister, have some tea to calm down."

Li Mingxia reached for the teapot, only to find it light and empty. She went out of the room and said, "Junior brother, please fetch me some water so I can brew some tea."

"I'll do it." Tang Zhihu got up and went to Li Mingxia's side to help. Chen Yu's thoughts returned, and he continued to comprehend the sword.

As dawn breaks, the sunlight, cut through the Wu Gorge, casts beams of light onto the river's surface.

As the riverboat cleaved through the waves and shifted its position, the beams of light in Chen Yu's vision appeared as sharp as "Yi shooting down nine suns, and emperors riding dragons in flight."

Chen Yu suddenly thought of moves like "Jade and Stone Burn Together" and "Singing a Sad Song and Striking the Zither" from the "Absolute Sword" manual taught by Miejue.

The sky and clouds linger together, the morning glow is brilliant, and the river surface looks like a golden snake dancing wildly.

Chen Yu then recalled sword moves from "The Extinction Sword" such as "Eagle's Grip and Thunder Strike, A Thousand Miles of Waterfall".

Chen Yu frowned, his mind filled with images of the Extinction Envoy's two sword techniques, Ji Xiaofu's words about sword enlightenment, his own insights into martial arts, and the philosophical principles from the various classic texts he had read. These images swirled and interacted in his mind.

Chen Yu was completely unaware of the passage of time, while Tang Zhihu and Li Mingxia had already brewed fragrant tea.

"Senior brother, have some tea." Tang Zhihu walked over, but received no response from Chen Yu.

"Senior brother?"

Seeing this, Yang An quickly said, "Junior brother, please don't disturb us."

Li Mingxia was also taken aback. "What is he doing?"

"Perhaps he is having an epiphany; do not disturb his mind," Yang An said.

Ding Minjun peeked out the window and muttered to herself, "To achieve enlightenment just by traveling by boat on the river, you must have the same level of understanding as your master, haha."

Ji Xiaofu, Bei Jinyi, and Su Mengqing emerged from another room and looked at Chen Yu at the bow of the ship. Su Mengqing asked, "Junior Brother, what's this?"

"I don't quite understand the reason either, but it must be something extraordinary," Ji Xiaofu said.

"I'll go tell the waiter not to disturb my junior brother."

"Um."

Chen Yu was so engrossed in this realization that he spent the whole day there. As dusk fell, the cries of monkeys echoed incessantly from both banks of the river. He stared blankly at the night sky, which seemed to have been cut into a strip. The bright moon cast silvery light through the gaps between the clouds, and the river wind howled at the bow of the boat, carrying a biting chill.

Chen Yu's eyes gradually brightened.

Whether it's sword intent or sword momentum, it's all about the Dao.

The Huainanzi states, "The Dao covers heaven and earth, encompasses the four directions, reaches the eight extremes, is immeasurably high and unfathomably deep, envelops heaven and earth, and bestows the formless..."

This means that the Dao covers heaven and earth, extending in all directions. It is so high it cannot be reached, so deep it cannot be fathomed, enveloping heaven and earth, and invisibly nurturing all things…

To appear in the tangible through the intangible. Extinction, grieving the loss of her loved ones, became emaciated. After much reflection, she created the "Extinction Twin Swords," a sword technique whose essence is "one swing and thunder and lightning fly, another shake and demons weep."

Guo Xiang's love life was full of ups and downs. Her first meeting with Yang Guo at Fengling Ferry ruined her life. Therefore, her works "The Wind and Willow Sword" and "The Snow and Cloud Palm" have a sense of ethereal fantasy.

How can I transform the ideas of Miejue and Guo Xiang into my own, and develop my own style?

As Chen Yu pondered deeply, he inevitably became restless and agitated. The jade ruyi on his chest emitted a cool sensation that penetrated his heart, allowing him to quickly clear his mind of distractions and achieve a state of mental focus.

Chen Yu's consciousness returned to the "Huainanzi".

"The spirit, energy, and will, when cultivated in stillness, grow strong; when cultivated in agitation, they wither and age. Therefore, the sage nourishes his spirit, harmonizes his energy, and calms his form... In this way, he will encounter all the transformations of the myriad things and respond to all the changes in all matters."

Got it!

Sword intent is the unity of the swordsman's state of mind, form, spirit, and reason; it arises from the unexpected and is contained within the form itself. Originating in the heart and merging with the sword, the sword comes alive. That is sword intent.

Guo Xiang is Guo Xiang, and Miejue is Miejue. I am Chen Yu, who has lived two lives. Having transmigrated, how can I fail to live up to my manhood? "The sea has no bounds and the sky is the cliff; I climb to the top of the mountain and become the peak." This is my intention and spirit for the Emei martial arts.

With this thought in mind, Chen Yu stood up and drew his sword. With a clang, the sword rang out, chilling the eardrums. He unleashed the "Eagle's Thunder Strike" move from the "Extinction Sword" technique, which resembled a rainbow. Its sharpness was unbroken, and it carried a sense of righteousness. The sword's momentum pushed out a white line several feet long in the thin river mist.

The sound of a sword ringing out rang out, and Ding Minjun, Ji Xiaofu, and the others, who were some distance away, looked over. Ding Minjun pouted and said to Li Mingxia, "After a day of comprehending the sword, I should have been enlightened, but I completely miss the point of the 'Extinction Sword' move. Where is the fierce momentum?"

Li Mingxia's skills were inferior to Ding Minjun's, and she couldn't see the secret. "That's true."

Yang An was the "sweeping monk" among the disciples of the Emei Sect. His mastery of the "Extinction Sword" was extremely profound. He was overjoyed to see that Chen Yu had his own "Extinction Sword". Such talent was truly amazing.

"Senior brother, are you hungry?" Tang Zhihu walked over with a smile.

"Indeed." Chen Yu had spent a day comprehending swordsmanship, which had exhausted his mental energy, and only now did he realize how hungry he was.

"I'll make the fish soup noodles," Su Mengqing said.

The boatman stepped forward and said, "Master Yang, Lady Su, it's foggy tonight and the weather is bad, so it's not suitable for sailing. Why don't you stay overnight at the dock ahead?"

"Okay." Su Mengqing nodded, then smiled and said to Chen Yu, "When we get to the dock, we can have something to eat."

"I'll lend a hand."

"I'll come too," Tang Zhihu said.

There were live fish on the riverboat. Chen Yu and Tang Zhihu were busy taking the fish, cleaning and scaling them. When Su Meng was washing vegetables, Bei Jinyi, who had a round face and dimples, also came over to help.

Once the riverboat docked at the pier, steaming hot fish soup noodles were already laid out in front of everyone.

After Chen Yu, Yang An, Tang Zhihu, and others finished eating at the bow of the boat, Ding Minjun began to give instructions: "The dock is a mixed bag, so we can't be careless. Junior Sister Bei and Junior Brother Tang will be on duty for the first half of the night. Junior Brother Yang and Junior Brother Chen will be on duty for the second half."

Ding Minjun was the eldest, and everyone obeyed him.

"Junior Brother Yang and Junior Brother Chen should be especially careful in the latter half of the night. Master often says, 'It is hard to guarantee that people's hearts are not filled with malice.'"

Chen Yu nodded: "I understand."

Ding Minjun was quite satisfied with everyone's attitude towards her, and turned to rest in the boat cabin on the river.

"Junior Brother has exhausted his mind and energy in his daytime sword practice, so I'll take over his duty," Ji Xiaofu said as she came over.

"No problem. There are still some techniques and secrets that I haven't fully mastered. I'm afraid that my spiritual light will be cut off. It's good to meditate tonight."

Upon hearing Chen Yu's suggestion, Ji Xiaofu nodded, "Alright, remember to wear extra clothes in the evening."

"Thank you, senior sister."

Don't be so polite.

After Ji Xiaofu left, the riverboat soon fell silent.

Bei Jinyi and Tang Zhihu were on duty. Chen Yu was in his room practicing the "Emei Nine Yang Skill" by expelling stale air and absorbing fresh air.

At that moment, several pairs of eyes looked over from the shadows of the dark buildings on the dock.