The Twelve Trials Starting from Zero

Liuli sat beside him, rolling up his shirt to treat the wound on his waist.

Chang Gu Balun did not reply, but stared intently at Su Qi for a long while before sighing softly and saying in a complicated tone, "You remind me of someone."

"Oh? Who is it?"

“My junior brother, Soichiro.”

Upon hearing the name "Sōichirō", Ruri, who was tending to her wounds, trembled slightly, and a hint of fear flashed in her eyes. Although she recovered immediately, it was easily noticed by Su Qi, who was standing close by.

Then a thought struck him, and he asked, "What kind of person is he?"

“A born swordsman, a monstrous genius…” At this point, Chang Gu Balun glanced at Su Qi, “In this respect, he is very similar to you. Of course, compared to you, a monster among monsters, his progress is still much slower, but it is enough to make ordinary geniuses despair.”

"How is he now?"

“He’s dead.” He said expressionlessly, “Killed by my own hands.”

Chapter Thirty-Four: The Heartless Sword

Su Qi was slightly taken aback. "Why?"

"Because he was too obsessed with swordsmanship, he has already stepped into the demonic path."

“That man has gone mad.” After treating her wounds, Liuli put away her tools and knelt down to the side. Her face was solemn, and a hint of hatred appeared in her eyes. She said coldly, “In order to break through the bottleneck, he first killed his master, then murdered my mother, and even captured me, forcing my father to fight him... If it weren’t for him, we wouldn’t have wandered here, and my father wouldn’t have become like this!”

"Alright, Liuli, it's all in the past now. Aren't we doing well now?"

Chang Gu Balun comforted his daughter for a few moments, then looked at Su Qi and said seriously, "Boy, although it was Liuli who taught you swordsmanship, I am still your nominal master. There is a piece of advice I must give you."

The latter also became serious and said solemnly, "Please speak."

"Remember, wherever you go in the future, do not get lost in desires, do not be too obsessed with power, and wield the sword in your hand with a righteous heart. Never point it at anyone other than your enemy, otherwise... even if it is not me, someone else will surely come to clean house!"

"I've learned a lot." Su Qi nodded slightly, then added, "Although I don't think I'll become like Soichiro, I will keep your teachings in mind."

“Indeed…” Chang Gu Ba Lun stared at Su Qi, “Although you and he both have an extraordinary rate of progress, your sword is completely different from his. His sword is full of madness and ferocity, willing to die for his principles, even at the cost of self-sacrifice, to reach the pinnacle of swordsmanship; while your sword has nothing to do with it, it is merely a tool to achieve a short-term goal.”

"But people are fickle, and you can't predict what kind of person you will become in the future."

Su Qi was slightly taken aback, realizing that the other party had indeed grasped his mindset very accurately. And to be able to glean so much information from just a sparring match was, in his current view, quite astonishing.

"You can learn so much from just one sparring match?" he asked bluntly. "Why can't I see it?"

"Your sword has no 'heart,' so how can it sense the 'heart' of others?"

"Then how can I give my sword a 'heart'?"

Chang Gu Balun did not answer, but straightened his back, standing like a mountain in front of Su Qi. Then he suddenly spoke and asked loudly, "Tell me, what is a sword?!"

The shout, empowered by spiritual energy, was as loud as a great bell, making the entire dojo seem to tremble.

Su Qi was taken aback, then subconsciously replied, "Weapons."

"Tell me again, what is this weapon?!"

He realized what was happening and, without overthinking, answered instinctively, "A weapon of destruction and destruction."

"Third question: What is a sword?!"

"A sword is destruction and killing; conversely, any weapon that destroys and kills can be a sword."

"Four questions: How to wield the sword!?"

"Favorable timing, advantageous location, and harmonious relationships should be consistently applied."

A hint of surprise flashed in Chang Gu's eyes, but he didn't stop talking, "Five questions, what is the first one!?"

"One is the sword, the other... the heart?"

After uttering the last word, Su Qi stood there, lost in thought.

Chang Gu Bayun stopped speaking and remained silent with Liuli, quietly waiting for him to come to his senses.

After a while, Su Qi snapped out of his reverie, let out a soft breath, and frowned, saying, "I seem to understand, but I also seem not to understand."

Chang Gu Ba Lun said, "This is all I can do to help. The rest is up to you to figure out for yourself."

Su Qi bowed slightly, "Thank you for your guidance."

"I just did what a teacher should do." Chang Guyarin waved his hand, paused, and then said, "Kid, have you ever heard of 'Ichi no Tachi'?"

"The First Sword? I seem to have heard of it..." Su Qi thought for a moment and said, "Is it the signature technique of the Sword Saint, Lord Tsukahara Bokuden?"

“That’s right, it is that legendary secret sword…” Changgu Hachirin exclaimed with a look of reminiscence, “When I was young, I was fortunate enough to witness the ‘First Sword’ with my master. It was truly the pinnacle of swordsmanship, a dreamlike sword technique.”

"But what does that have to do with me?"

He gave Su Qi a deep look. “Heaven, Earth, and Man are all interconnected… That lord’s description of the One-Sword is very similar to the sword-wielding method you just mentioned.”

"Well, it's probably just a coincidence."

"Perhaps." He sighed softly, a hint of regret flashing in his eyes. "Although you can grasp the essence of the sword and understand the profound principles of swordsmanship, you are far from achieving it yourself. In my opinion, of the three elements of Heaven, Earth, and Man, you have only barely mastered one 'Man' in battle; and that 'Man' is yourself, not someone else. So, although your strength can be described as first-rate, you have only just begun to understand swordsmanship."

"Yes, I will continue to work hard."

Su Qi nodded in agreement, but felt no pride whatsoever. In reality, his comprehension was far less extraordinary than Chang Gu Ba Lun had imagined; the reason he was able to utter those words was largely due to the information explosion of modern times.

After all, swords are the ultimate weapon for protagonists to show off in novels. Even though the Japanese call swords "tō" (刀), the principle is the same. And in the vast sea of ​​countless novels, there are countless discussions about sword principles. With enough exposure, even a layman can spout a few words. Moreover, he himself had been practicing swordsmanship in the pure white space for who knows how long. His experience and theory were in harmony, so naturally he gained something.

"Alright, I've said what I needed to say. You two can do as you please. I'm going to have a drink now."

As soon as the conversation ended, Chang Gu Balun immediately reverted to his usual carefree and irresponsible demeanor.

“Oh, right…” He took the wine jar back from Liuli, slung it over his shoulder, and was about to leave when he suddenly stopped, turned around and said, “Kid, your use of telekinesis is too crude. Almost all of it is wasted. Let Liuli teach you properly next.”

After saying that, he walked out without looking back.

"Is your use of telekinesis too crude?"

The samurai's so-called psychic power is just another name for spiritual power. Su Qi recalled how he used spiritual power in battle, turned to look at Liuli, and asked doubtfully, "Really? Was my use of spiritual power really that crude?"

The latter nodded and said directly, "Normal beginner level. If you want to learn, I can teach you."

"Then I'll leave it to you."

……

More than half a month later, in the mountains and fields outside the city.

Surrounded by rolling mountains and dense forests, a waterfall cascades down a high cliff, splashing like shattered jade on the rocks and creating a misty haze. The water below is crystal clear, and occasionally small fish can be seen darting among the pebbles. In the sunlight, their shadows are cast on the stones, making them seem to float in the air, without anything to rely on.

Amidst the beautiful scenery and tranquil surroundings, Su Qi, dressed in a single white robe, sat cross-legged on a rock facing the waterfall. Strangely, although the cool spring water cascaded continuously over his head, splashing droplets everywhere, his robe remained completely dry.

"Kenshin, the demon-slaying commission you asked me to keep an eye out for has appeared!"

Suddenly, Liuli appeared on the shore, shouting loudly.

It's finally here...

Su Qi slowly opened his eyes, easily stood up despite the water pressure, and then lightly touched the ground with his feet, leaping off the tall boulder and standing steadily on the water.

A long-awaited serious title...

Chapter Thirty-Five is mine, Su Qida!

"Wait, I'll be right there."

As he waved to the girl on the shore, his feet, which were on the water, immediately sank a little.

The skills haven't become second nature; there's still not enough practice...

His eyes narrowed, and he immediately focused his mind, regaining his balance. Then he took a step forward, moving across the water as if it were the ground, without his feet entering the water, only creating ripples beneath his feet.

Walking on water is one of the spiritual energy application techniques Su Qi has been practicing recently. In addition, there are six other techniques: concealing one's breath, silent step, mind's eye, illusory blade, physical enhancement, and sword qi slash.

Different professions use spiritual power in different ways, and each has its own characteristics and strengths and weaknesses.

Compared to the more complex and varied methods and more fantastical effects of magic-based professions such as mages, witches, and monks, the way martial artists use spiritual power is extremely simple, basically involving enhancing their existing abilities.

For example, Breath Concealment enhances the control over physiological phenomena; Silent Step enhances the response to the external environment; Mind's Eye enhances one's own perception; Illusory Blade enhances the intention to distort the perception of others; Physical Enhancement enhances various physical qualities; and Sword Qi Slash enhances the weapon's attack range by using the action of swinging a sword to compress air with spiritual power.

However, simplicity has its advantages. It's quick to learn and quick to apply. Although the methods are relatively simple and can't perform fancy maneuvers like flying or turning stones into gold, in terms of sheer destructive power, it's undoubtedly at the top compared to other professions of the same level, so it's not a bad deal.

"How did the request go? Did Yamada Yasuhiro take it first?"

Su Qi emerged from the water and walked ashore to Liu Li.

"How did you know?" The latter gave him a strange look. "That guy is well-informed, and according to the rules, as the acting instructor, I can't personally go and take on the mission, so he's the main person in charge of that mission now. What, do you really need that mission? Why don't you talk to that guy and see if you can get him to transfer it to you?"

“No need.” Su Qi shook his head and chuckled. “The current situation is perfect. I just need to accept this commission with him, and he shouldn’t refuse me. In addition, I need to bring Ishii as a witness so that he can see for himself how his respected senior can act as a double agent.”

Afterwards, the two returned to the dojo and discussed the mission with Yamada Yasuhiro. As expected, the latter agreed to let Su Qi and Ishii join his team.

The following plot unfolds in much the same way as last week. That night, Su Qi, along with the other two, once again kept watch in the village mansion.

Late at night, Yamada Yasuhiro, just like last week, used the excuse of needing to use the restroom to go out alone.

Su Qi waited for a while, then woke up Shi Jing and got him to come along.

"Heh, you can all stay here and wait to die."

A moment later, Yamada Yasuhiro placed the lit Cold Soul Incense in a corner of the backyard, gave a cold smile, and once again recited the lines from the previous playthrough.

But the plot takes an unexpected turn the next moment.

boom! !

Suddenly, a foot stretched out from the side and slammed down, crushing the incense stick that had just been lit.

"who!?"

The sudden appearance of the figure startled him, and he retreated hastily while demanding an explanation.

"Hmph, even if you didn't ask sincerely, I'll still mercifully tell you..."

Under the moonlight, Su Qi slowly stepped out from the shadows of the trees, a malicious smile on his face. "To prevent daily life from being disrupted, to maintain the peace of the dojo, to uphold justice with love and joy, the handsome and powerful righteous character... that's me, Su Qi!"

"It's you!!"

Yamada Yasuhiro's expression changed, and he asked incredulously, "How did you suddenly appear here?"

"Silly boy, of course I followed you here."

"Impossible! You were following so closely, there was no way I wouldn't have noticed."