Chapter Twenty-Nine: Mastery of Martial Arts

"Blazing Prairie Spear Technique!"

"Gale Blade—Hundred Slashes!"

Within the Lin family’s private courtyard, two figures clashed fiercely. One wielded a long spear, exuding sheer dominance, while the other brandished a broadsword, every stroke as sharp as lightning. The two dueled back and forth, locked in a whirl of martial might.

At last, both shouted in unison, unleashing a flurry of spear shadows and blade light that collided violently.

A thunderous boom resounded—the two figures were forced apart, landing on the ground, panting heavily. They gazed at each other, the fire of battle in their eyes only growing more intense.

"Sun Hao and Qian Jin are improving so quickly—they’ve already reached the stage of Mastery!" In the courtyard, Xiao Shuihan and the others watched Sun Hao and Qian Jin spar, each unable to suppress a sigh of admiration.

Yet, after voicing their amazement, they exchanged confident smiles. They were not far behind; in these past days, they too had crossed the threshold into Mastery.

The levels of martial arts techniques are actually quite simple: Initiate, Adept, Mastery, Proficient, Perfection, and Transcendence. They can also be referred to as Entry, Minor Accomplishment, Major Accomplishment, Small Perfection, and Great Perfection—five realms. Beyond these is the Realm of Intent.

It had now been a month since the day they shared drinks with Brother Fan.

On that day, Brother Fan gifted them several fruits. Although they didn’t know what kind of fruits they were, after consuming them, they all reached the Great Perfection stage of the Body Tempering phase.

During the seven or eight days they spent in Snowfall City fetching Brother Fan’s blade, they had also been training, their strength increasing rapidly. Yet, their gains amounted to only a thousand catties or so, bringing them to around nine thousand in total.

However, just one of Brother Fan’s fruits boosted their strength by another thousand catties, refining their bodies completely. Even the parts they had previously failed to temper were now thoroughly refined, leaving them utterly astonished.

They had no idea how many secrets Brother Fan harbored—secrets hidden from them. Supreme martial skills like Wind and Thunder Force, the Blade Intent, and those miraculous fruits.

At this point, Lin Fan seemed to them like a man shrouded in mist, impossible to see through.

Yet, for all this, they harbored no desire to investigate or compete for his secrets; no schemes surfaced among them. In truth, they guessed that Brother Fan had a peerless master behind him. Otherwise, the Lin family alone could never provide such treasures.

Moreover, Brother Fan had once mentioned being saved by a mysterious master, who taught him certain arts. It was likely this enigmatic figure who bestowed these treasures.

What they could never have imagined was that this so-called master existed only in Lin Fan’s imagination—a fabrication.

At the same time, they disdained using schemes or trickery to vie for their brother’s possessions. In their eyes, Lin Fan was their brother in all but blood—though they hadn’t known him long, their temperaments matched.

A true brother is worth more than any rare treasure!

They knew that, in the families of their birth, true brotherhood was nearly impossible. More often, siblings would turn against each other, suppressing and undermining at every turn.

Thus, they cherished this hard-won bond of brotherhood all the more.

Lin Fan had chosen to befriend them for this reason. Though they were scions of great clans, they lacked the arrogance, the overbearing pride, and the scheming duplicity so common among the elite.

Xiao Shuihan and the others treated him with genuine sincerity. What began as a chance encounter and friendly bout led Lin Fan, upon seeing their character, to teach them the Wind and Thunder Force martial skill.

To him, it was a small matter. Yet they repaid his kindness, knowing he wished to buy a blade—they pooled all their wealth to gift him a treasured sword, repaying his favor.

Because of this, he valued them all the more, offering them Body Tempering Fruits to help them break through to the Great Perfection stage, hoping they would soon reach the Qi Induction realm so he could better guide them.

As he had expected, the refining effects of the Body Tempering Fruit surpassed any pill or natural treasure in this world, offering a thorough transformation.

Not only did it bring them to the peak of Body Tempering, but a few days later, each of them broke through to the Qi Induction realm.

In fact, were they not already at a perfect Body Tempering stage, even a single fruit would have sufficed for their breakthrough.

In his view, the Body Tempering Fruit was far more effective for others than for himself.

For over twenty days, until they broke through to Qi Induction, he had been instructing them in martial arts. Xiao Shuihan, Li Ji, and Shangguan Feihong all practiced swordsmanship.

Qian Jin focused on blade techniques, Sun Hao on the spear, and Ou Hu on fist arts.

Although Xiao Shuihan and the others all practiced swordsmanship, their paths diverged.

Xiao Shuihan honed the Xiao Family’s Thirteen Falling Peaks Sword, each strike as if a mountain descended—a display of overwhelming might.

Li Ji studied the Drifting Rain Sword—when attacking, it was like a furious storm; when defending, a curtain of rain, combining offense and defense in one seamless flow.

Shangguan Feihong’s art was the Flying Swan Sword, named after the technique of his own clan. Its strikes lacked the grandeur of the Thirteen Falling Peaks or the dual aspects of the Drifting Rain, but it was the fastest among their techniques and every move was lethal—a single strike meant either life or death.

The highest level of this sword art bore some resemblance to Lin Fan’s own blade intent when he first glimpsed the Ninefold Heavens.

Sun Hao practiced the Blazing Prairie Spear, passed down from his father and widely used in the army—not an advanced technique, but bold and sweeping, well-suited to the battlefield. Perhaps his father hoped he would someday join the military.

Qian Jin practiced the Gale Blade—a style falling between Li Ji’s Drifting Rain Sword and Shangguan Feihong’s Flying Swan Sword. More aggressive than the Drifting Rain, though less adept at defense, less ruthless than the Flying Swan, but more calculated and precise.

Ou Hu alone did not train with weapons.

Born with immense strength, upon reaching the Qi Induction realm, while others’ physical power plateaued, his continued to soar by another five thousand catties. Purely in terms of strength, he surpassed Xiao Shuihan and the rest by a wide margin.

No weapon felt right in his hands—even a thousand-catty hammer was too light—so he specialized in fist techniques instead.

He practiced the Tiger Devouring Fist—every blow like a raging tiger, exuding unstoppable ferocity.

The martial arts they practiced were all highly regarded in this world, but in Lin Fan’s eyes, they were little more than trash.

Yet he did not teach them higher-level arts, understanding well the adage "a man’s wealth is his own ruin." This was not only for his own protection, but for theirs as well.

Although their families were powerful within their province, in the vast Snow Kingdom—divided into a hundred provinces—their clans were but minor players, not even as far removed from the Lin family as the Lin family was from the great houses.

So, for the sake of his own lineage as well as theirs, Lin Fan withheld more advanced techniques.

Of course, he also believed that, for now, their current martial arts were sufficient.

Without his guidance, reaching the stage of Transcendence with these basic arts would require decades of bitter toil. To achieve the Realm of Intent would be even more difficult.

If he were to teach them stronger techniques, not only would they become targets for their treasures, but with their current foundations, even in a lifetime they could not comprehend them. Transcendence would be out of reach, let alone the Realm of Intent.

It was like traveling toward a distant goal: for now, Xiao Shuihan and the others were running on foot—slow but making steady progress. With proper guidance, they would eventually arrive, no matter how long it took.

But if he gave them an airplane, they could reach their destination in an instant—if only they could fly it. Yet, with their current abilities, not only could they not pilot such a machine, they had never even seen one before. The inevitable result would be destruction.

Some things simply cannot be rushed.

At present, after just over twenty days of training, with his guidance, they had already reached Minor Accomplishment. Compared to the average person—or even most geniuses, who might need three months of hard work to reach this stage—their progress was astonishing.

Moreover, as they continued, their improvement would only accelerate under his tutelage.

It’s often said that higher levels of martial arts become exponentially harder to master. So how could he be making them learn faster and faster?

That’s not wrong, but it depends on the situation.

From the perspective of someone at the Body Tempering stage, the Qi Induction realm is high above. But for a Pulse Unblocking expert, Qi Induction is nothing.

It’s a matter of perspective.

To Lin Fan, even the Realm of Intent was a low realm—anything below that was beneath notice.

He had spent over twenty days before Xiao Shuihan and the others broke through, not because they were dull or because he was holding back, but because he was laying a solid foundation for their future progress.

It’s like learning advanced mathematics—the basics are crucial. If you learn them carelessly, you might luck your way into a high test score, but future study will only become more difficult, or even stagnate altogether.

But if the foundation is thoroughly mastered, progress will come naturally—one step leading to the next, and all obstacles will be surmounted.

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