AI Cultivation: Reborn as a Sword

Chapter 80: Swordsmanship (4)

In truth, Lan Xiaohui had suspected for a long time now that it was her fundamental swordsmanship that was lacking. Due to the cognitive dissonance of being an existence that can challenge the Foundation realm cultivators and demonic beasts while she was in the Qi Refining realm, no less it was difficult for her to accept this conclusion.

She did not suspect it until she fought Wukong in this very same First Layer that her weakness and flaws began to show themselves.

Wukong could reduce her skeleton to dust with a single punch and to assume that this was because of his profound body and Qi cultivation would be a fatal mistake. It is exactly because of Wukongs fundamental strength his basic punch that he could reach such a deep foundation of power and exceed all existences around him.

Even though he did not practice martial arts or cultivation methods, Wukong was a fearsome monster that, in my estimation, was an apex predator in the entire Forbidden Ancient Hunting Ground.

In order to withstand that punch, Lan Xiaohui first attempted to overcome it with her newly obtained Sword Law, and that failed. Then she tried to use her impressive sword Qi and that also failed. It wasnt until she gave up all these methods and focused on the fundamentals her body positioning, stance rigidity, defense method and so on that she could withstand a punch that shouldve killed her.

In the end, it did kill her, but the purpose of the exam was to survive the initial impact.

This, from Lan Xiaohuis perspective, mustve seemed not as an indicator that her fundamentals were lacking that is certainly not the case but that there are improvements to be made.

It wasnt until Lady Yue said that with her current fundamentals, she would not be able to enter the Galaxy Sword Sect that the knowledge had finally settled in and become an unavoidable conclusion.

Even if her fundamentals were above average, it was not enough to compete with others who may have had the same lifestyle as Lan Xiaohuis did, this new one at least, but for decades or more.

Lan Xiaohuis background coming from a wealthy family did not grant her much experience in combat. One may practice the sword for decades but not be able to achieve the same profound power that one who practices the sword in real life-or-death combat can attain. In that sense, Lan Xiaohuis swordsmanship was only for show until now.

She must realize this as well because as the swarm of monsters descends upon her demonic foxes, wolves, boars, bears, and snakes she does not move from her position. It is reminiscent of her tactic with Wukong where she waited for Wukong to make the move, fully embracing the fact that she is fortunate enough to have the ability to experience the coming agony dozens and dozens of times before she finally learns how to avoid it, without also accepting the true consequences of it.

Though, Lan Xiaohui might consider this to be something other than fortunate.

More importantly, I do not feel her Qi inside my vessel at all, nor her consciousness. To slay one hundred devils, she plans on relying entirely on her fundamental swordsmanship no sword Qi, no sword energy, no profound martial art techniques.

This kind of arrogance is certainly a character flaw like when she pressed her superiority against the Grand Elder, even if it was at her disadvantage. However, this kind of righteousness is also absolutely necessary to a sword cultivator. A large part of a sword cultivators power is the strength of their heart, and this heart must have unshakable convictions whether they are right or wrong.

But a sword cultivator must also learn from their mistakes, and refine their convictions. Luckily, Lan Xiaohui as she makes it evident now is always ready and willing to eliminate her flaws and the mistakes in the foundation of her Dao Heart.

She rushes forward to meet the descending swarm of monsters, reducing the distance from twenty steps to only three and slashes out with my vessel to slay a single-horned boar in the Foundation realm with one strike of her sword.

At her current cultivation, the demonic beasts of the foundation the so-called third rank are no match for her. With my extreme sharpness and the improved strength of her own physique, she can cut the tough hide of such monsters with ease, though some other species will surely prove to be troublesome.

Her image of perfect swordsmanship demands that she immediately step past the boar and strike the next creature to her left, which she does, and when she brings my sword down, the target she picks in this way is one of those Jadeskin Serpents with diamond-like skin.

The effect is very predictable. The last time Lan Xiaohui tried to cut this snake, she used sword energy and sword Qi and barely managed to break the skin. She had to target the joints at the snake's neck, where the skin was less hard, to be able to slay the monster.

This time, my impact against the snake has the same effect as Lan Xiaohui had back then, and this time, had she used sword Qi and sword energy it is entirely likely that she couldve cut off the snakes head.

The moment Lan Xiaohui recoils from her failed attack, another boar slams into her side and its horn pierces her internal organs.

Lan Xiaohui flies away from the impact, rolling on the floor, and leaks her vital essence in a large radius around her, painting the blackness of the void red.

Desperately, she tries to get back to her feet, using my vessel for support, but before she can even make it up to her knees, a black-furred wolf tackles her to the ground, restraining her sword arm by digging its teeth into her armpit.

Another wolf joins in, locking her left leg by biting into her thigh and immobilizing the joint.

Finally, two more wolves join in, locking the rest of her limbs.

Lan Xiaohui screams in pain and continues screaming in pain even when she reappears after the test resets, after being quartered by the wolves.

Being killed in a single punch must be a vastly different experience than feeling the pain of being torn asunder by wolves and it is no surprise that this has a lasting mental impact on Lan Xiaohui.

It takes Lan Xiaohui several minutes to recover from this experience. Each minute in this place is twelve in the world outside.

Perhaps there is a way to disable the haptic feedback, I tell Lan Xiaohui.

Lan Xiaohuis lips quirk into a frown perhaps offended by my suggestion before her features soften and then she shakes her head.

I need to be able to feel my body, she says. I cant feel the sword if I cant feel anything.

Lan Xiaohuis reply is perfectly logical. My suggestion, however, was not for the sake of improving her swordsmanship, but to limit the degradation of her mental state from the unbearable shock of death.

All of the monsters in that test were of the third rank and none of them have the ability to instantly kill Lan Xiaohui.

She must also be aware of this, and, despite that knowledge, she chooses to progress with the pain receptors enabled.

Very well, I tell her. Proceed.

Lan Xiaohui nods, takes a deep breath, and then speaks. I wish to try the same challenge again.

Countless flashes of light in the empty void herald the arrival of a hundred demonic beasts.