Subaru Natsuki, who returned from the new Three Kingdoms

Liu Bei probably just took pity on him back then, so he just gave him a random reason to stay by his side and receive a salary without working.

Subaru Natsuki's voice, once filled with passion, was now choked with sobs: "My lord, why... why are you so good to me?"

Liu Bei listened quietly without answering immediately.

He simply stared at Subaru Natsuki's face, contorted with pain, and suddenly asked:

Before I answer you, I also have something I'd like to ask you.

Natsuki Subaru was puzzled by the question.

Liu Bei: "Caiyue, do you still remember my title?"

The question came so suddenly that Subaru Natsuki didn't react for a moment, and subconsciously answered:

"Liu Huangshu?"

Liu Bei nodded at first, but then shook his head:

"That's not it."

"Let me rephrase my question: Do you remember my posthumous title?"

"Emperor Zhaolie of Han." Natsuki Subaru hesitated for a moment, then tentatively answered, taking advantage of the alcohol.

Neither of them cared why the other knew about what happened after death.

"Then let me ask you again, do you know what this posthumous title means?"

Natsuki Subaru opened his mouth, but ultimately shook his head.

Although he had the divine assistance of wine, he was ultimately not an expert in ancient Chinese history. He only knew that a posthumous title was a reflection of an emperor's achievements during his lifetime, but he knew nothing about how to interpret it.

Seeing that he didn't understand, Liu Bei didn't wait for his answer. Instead, he silently raised his head and looked towards the distant city of Hanzhong, shrouded in night, and slowly began to speak:

"Emperor Zhaolie of Han, taking the name from the two characters Zhaolie."

"It means that his virtue is bright and his will is strong."

His voice drifted on the night breeze, its calm tone concealing an unwavering resolve.

"Now, do you understand why I'm still willing to teach you swordsmanship?"

Natsuki Subaru stared blankly at Liu Bei, who calmly uttered these words under the starry night.

It felt as if I had returned to Xuchang that night...

It felt as if I were still that axe-wielder guarding the door...

He suddenly realized that when Liu Bei said he would teach him the sword of benevolence and the sword of righteousness, it was probably because he felt sorry for him because he was always being bullied by Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.

The same thing is happening now...

Realizing that he had always been treated with such kindness, Natsuki Subaru's tears finally broke free.

Liu Bei simply watched this scene calmly, gently patted Natsuki Subaru's head, and said softly, "Cry, cry enough and you won't cry anymore."

"I used to be just like you, crying at the drop of a hat."

Natsuki Subaru choked up for a long time. He knew that time was of the essence and he had no time to release his emotions, but he just couldn't resist the surging emotions in his heart.

"My lord, I, Natsuki Subaru, will never forget your kindness..." After several minutes, he finally managed to speak:

But now...

Natsuki Subaru looked down at his own body.

His arms were broken, and his legs had long since lost all feeling. Life-sustaining magic barely kept him alive, but it couldn't restore his body's mobility.

"All four of my limbs are useless."

His voice lowered.

"I can no longer learn swordsmanship, and besides, I don't have much time left..."

Natsuki Subaru could clearly feel that the pain deep within his body was constantly intensifying.

Every breath felt like a blade scraping through my lungs, every heartbeat felt like striking a block of ice about to shatter.

"I...give up."

Natsuki Subaru closed his eyes.

"Before it's all over, I want to see you one last time and say sorry to you."

"I am already content."

He paused for a moment, his voice as soft as if he were saying goodbye to some distant past.

"My lord, I'm so sorry..."

"How dare you!"

Natsuki Subaru had only spoken halfway when Liu Bei suddenly raised his voice!

"Who said you can't practice swordsmanship? Get up and practice swordsmanship!"

This shout was like a thunderclap, causing the wind around them to stop for a moment.

Natsuki Subaru suddenly felt his body, which had been like mushy mud, tense up abruptly at the shout.

His eyes widened as he felt an irresistible force rise from the depths of his soul, run down his spine, and take over his entire body.

The limbs, which were originally limp and numb, were forcibly dragged up against the laws of physics. The broken bones and flesh showed no signs of healing or healing, and the pain did not lessen at all.

He should have just lay on the ground waiting to die.

But after that voice fell, his body was forcibly straightened.

First the shoulders, then the back, and finally the legs.

Every movement was accompanied by excruciating pain that felt like it was tearing her soul apart. Blood seeped from her pores, dripping down her clothes to the ground.

Anyone who looked at it would think that it was either dead or crippled.

But he... just stood up...

Natsuki Subaru stared wide-eyed as he watched his fingers tighten again.

He wanted to speak.

He wanted to ask Liu Bei what exactly he had done to him.

But no matter how hard he tried, he could only open his lips slightly, and no sound came out of his throat.

It was as if his body no longer belonged to him.

Natsuki Subaru had overheard Cao Ren and others discussing this matter at a banquet.

As the crowd drank and became more animated, they whispered about Liu Bei's mind control, their words tinged with exaggeration.

Now, he finally understood the weight of that rumor and decided to keep it to himself...

"Catch the sword!"

Liu Bei unfastened the two swords from his waist and threw them out.

Two streaks of cold light pierced through the night and flew toward Subaru Natsuki.

The speed was so fast that Subaru Natsuki couldn't even see it clearly.

However, Natsuki Subaru's hands rose uncontrollably and caught the twin swords that he himself could not have caught.

The moment the sword touched his hand, the pain surged again. It felt as if countless iron nails had pierced his severed arm simultaneously, and blood trickled down his fingernails.

Liu Bei only said one sentence:

"Raise your sword."

Natsuki Subaru's body then moved.

The first sword slashed diagonally down from the left shoulder, followed closely by the second sword, which swung up from the waist. The two swords moved in tandem, sometimes separate, sometimes together, with no hesitation in their paths.

Despite having never learned this sword technique before, Natsuki Subaru's body naturally under the control of Liu Bei's voice, undergoing transformation after transformation.

The sword in his left hand moved with a calm and serene grace, like a spring breeze sweeping across the earth. Wherever its blade pointed, it first protected the person before him, then the myriad people behind him. It was a sword of benevolence, embracing all living beings and protecting the common people.

The sword in his right hand, its force fierce and resolute, pressed down on the sky like a mountain. Having made a promise, he would fulfill it to the end; having determined right from wrong, he dared to cut through all obstacles. It was a sword of righteousness, upholding promises and never wavering even in the face of death.

One sword protects life, one sword cuts off evil; one sword upholds heaven, one sword bears righteousness.

"Heavy wrist."

Liu Bei's voice came from ahead.

"Leveraging existing trends".

"Returning strike".

With each word spoken, Subaru Natsuki's body underwent a transformation.

The footwork shifted from straight to diagonal, the sword blade slashing in from the front, then deflecting the enemy's force to the side. For the first time, a room for maneuver appeared in what was once an unstoppable sword path.

This is a completely different sword technique from the straightforward Hentian Sword Technique!

During the practice of this sword technique, Natsuki Subaru vaguely touched upon the possibility of further advancement in the Hate no Ten Sword Technique.

But before he could grasp that fleeting inspiration, a sharp pain suddenly shot through his broken bone, abruptly interrupting his thoughts.

It's unclear what methods Sima Yi used. Normally, even with all four limbs severed, Natsuki Subaru could laugh it off thanks to his intoxication and willpower.

But now, as the sword points to the left, a tearing pain shoots through his left shoulder; as the sword strikes down, his spine feels as if it has been pierced by a heavy hammer; as the two swords clash, his newly reattached arm feels as if it has been broken all over again.

The pain was so intense that even Subaru Natsuki could barely concentrate, let alone continue to deduce the Heaven-Hate Sword Technique.

He could only force himself to endure it; Liu Bei could take over his body, but he couldn't bear the pain for him.

You have to walk your own path...

Where the sword tip begins, how the wrist rotates, how the toes land, when the body should pause, and when to use momentum to move forward—all of these were etched into his consciousness with each sharp pain.

Ultimately, what truly remained in Subaru Natsuki's memory was not just the sword techniques themselves, but also his body's reaction to each move.

As the sword swung to the left, the muscles in my shoulder and back throbbed with pain; as my foot landed, the broken bones that had been reconnected felt like they were being crushed all over again.

Every turn, every counterattack, was accompanied by a mournful cry emanating from the depths of his bones.

The alcohol kept him in a daze, and these pains helped him remember the changes in the Twin Swords of Benevolence and Righteousness.

It can truly be said that a desperate army is bound to win.

Despite having all four limbs severed, Subaru Natsuki, through this profound, soul-deep pain, managed to memorize the sword techniques taught by Liu Bei in an extremely short time.

Sima Yi probably never dreamed that the most painful palm strike he unleashed to wear down Subaru Natsuki's soul through repeated deaths would now become an aid.

Even if he had thought of it, at this moment, besides shouting that he had been ridiculed for a hundred years, he had no other recourse.

The sword wind continued, but the further it went, the more Natsuki Subaru's eyelids drooped...

It wasn't that he was immersed in the essence of the swordplay; rather, his body was nearing its limit.

The magic power within his body was running low, and a stagnant dark purple light began to flicker.

The twisted joints in his arms kept breaking and bleeding, and every time his legs landed, it felt like stepping on a red-hot iron plate.

Subaru Natsuki's breaths grew shorter and shorter, and the edges of his vision gradually turned black.

He's going to die again because of a childhood illness...

Natsuki Subaru wanted to stop.

He wanted to tell Liu Bei that he could no longer hold on.

He wanted to take advantage of his ability to speak to fully apologize to and thank Liu Bei.

He also hoped that Liu Bei could send his body to Xuchang through a messenger.

Because he wanted to see Qinghe one more time, to see Cao Cao drunkenly standing at the city gate, and to see the general's mansion in Xuchang City covered with red cloth.

But his body continued to move on.

The sword light pierced the night, like two white lines hanging down from the sky.

Liu Bei stood outside the two beams of sword light, guiding him with a calm voice throughout.

This distance, though small, felt like an insurmountable chasm to Subaru Natsuki at that moment. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't convey his thoughts to Liu Bei.

"I have taught you the sword of benevolence and the sword of righteousness."