Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 40: What Meant to Come Will Always Come

The stronghold master’s hut was warmed by a brazier, and inside, there was good wine and good meat.

Looking at Yue Hongling enjoying her food, Zhao Changhe sighed in his heart. If Xia Chichi could enjoy this back then...she would have been very happy.

His main source of income now was idiots giving away their money in vain to challenge him. However, Zhao Changhe felt that, as he got stronger from fighting real battles, there was something missing.

There was no one to guide him. He could not see the big picture.

Whether it was the Xia Family Internal Art, his movement art, or the Vicious Blood Art and Vicious Blood Saber Art, he could only practice them on his own by following the illustrations in their manuals.

Whether he deviated from proper technique, he could not be sure. There was no longer someone like Instructor Sun around to scream “Your saber isn’t accurate enough!” or “You’re twisting your hips too much!”

Whether he could break through to the second heavenly layer—whether he was ready for it—he could only intuit. There was no experienced elder to tell him “You’re pretty much there. Today you can attempt your breakthrough.”

There are many things in life that one only appreciates once they are gone. At the end of the day, it had barely been two months since he’d started training; naturally, he was not at the level where he could correct his own errors. This was why he was lacking in confidence.

However, Yue Hongling had appeared at his doorstep. She was someone that could crush Instructor Sun’s cult leader; she could defeat an entire regiment of Instructor Suns. Rather than concerning himself with Yue Hongling’s gender, he cared only about being able to have someone guide him. This potential teacher was stronger than the sect master.

Do I have any thoughts about this being a relationship between a man and a woman, though? I don’t know. She’s so beautiful... Under normal circumstances, any man would have some ideas.

However, it was the same as living with Xia Chichi. Zhao Changhe felt that if he did not have to bother with this, it would be more convenient and things would go much smoother. Yue Hongling falling into the pit was really a big headache for him. He now had more trifles to deal with for no reason.

She doesn’t bring up any annoying or embarrassing things and only speaks frankly. Is she so straightforward with me because she understands this?

Thus, they could relax around each other, at least on the surface.

If Xia Chichi were here, her eyes would have widened as she burst out laughing and said, “Truly the words of a great man from the jianghu.”

It was as if he could see Xia Chichi’s expression before his very eyes.

She seems jealous of Yue Hongling...but there’s really no reason for that.

Yue Hongling felt good after eating and drinking her fill, and she wiped her mouth. She said unhurriedly, “I’m not your master. There’s no need for you to be so courteous when we’re just interacting as friends.”

“I think you’ve misunderstood something... If I told you I was thinking about women, would you believe me?” Zhao Changhe was expressionless. “Ever since you fell in that hole, that lofty Yue Hongling that I looked up to was no more.”

Yue Hongling almost choked to death hearing that. After a long time, she replied, “I don’t need you to look up to me... I don’t know what kind of strange Yue Hongling is in your heart. Did you think I was very serious the day we met? I remember I even smiled at you that day...”

Zhao Changhe said, “...how touching. You actually smiled at me.”

Yue Hongling could not be bothered entertaining him and returned to talking about important matters. “Let me tell you, the number of your battles that I’ve watched is more than you can imagine.”

Zhao Changhe looked at her.

How can you be so proud as you declare that you’ve been peeping at a man? Were you watching when I was showering... Nevermind?

“You have very solid fundamentals. Where your eye goes, your blade follows; you have full control over the force of your attack. Furthermore, your mind is flexible—you don’t rigidly adhere to the techniques of your saber art. As long as you continue fighting more battles, you’ll accumulate a great deal of experience. Naturally, you’ll then have a greater understanding of your own skills and how to use them. If you’re only talking about technique, there is nothing more I can teach you. What you need is a better saber art.”

Zhao Changhe was suspicious. “Is it really this simple? I have no idea whether I need to correct anything for any move I perform. I’m operating completely on instinct. Do I really not require someone to tell me whether there are ways to improve my technique? That’s the only way I can distill my experience and improve.”

“If this is your mindset right now, then it’s already enough.”

“What?”

“At the beginning there is no doubt you require someone to guide you... But you’re no longer a beginner. Don’t tell me you want a master to give you feedback after every battle you fight? You can only count on yourself. Whether or not you can reflect on your battles, whether or not you can gather up your experiences and learn from them, whether or not you can gain something more out of every battle completely depends on your talent. If this wasn’t the case, then what is a Hidden Dragon? It’s certainly not a slug that sticks to its master’s ass.”

“I’ve only been training for two months!”

Yue Hongling responded calmly, “You are Zhao Changhe the Manslayer. In a single month, you’ve cleaved your way to the first layer of both internal and external arts, entered the Ranking of Hidden Dragons, and inspired fear all across Beimang. Just how many people in the world can achieve all that? Do you really think being the 250th Hidden Dragon is something to scoff at? Do you know how many millions of people would kill to be in your place?”

Zhao Changhe did not know if he should cry or laugh. “Thank you. Right, you said that I need a better saber art. Do you happen to have one I could take a look at?”

“How blunt.” Yue Hongling rolled her eyes. “No, I don’t.”

“Hey!”

“These few years, I’ve challenged and killed many and have indeed obtained many saber art manuals. However, the Vicious Blood Saber Art is really very strong. None of the saber arts I’ve obtained can match up to it. If you want, I can still let you take a look. You can use it to familiarize yourself with other saber arts. For the time being, I’d still suggest that you continue practicing the Vicious Blood Saber.” As Yue Hongling said this, she grabbed a traveling bag from under the table and threw him a few books.

“You even brought along a traveling bag...”

“I’ve already said that I’m here to seek shelter with you. Did you think I was lying?”

“...Hard to say.” Zhao Changhe answered. He felt something was amiss. “You’ve already defeated someone with a higher cultivation that practiced the Blood God Art. The Vicious Blood Art and the complementary Vicious Blood Saber Art are inferior to the Blood God Art, yet you’re saying that they are very strong. Why do I feel like your words are just perfunctory?”

Yue Hongling could not help but laugh. “What I’ve done so far does not guarantee that I can win against the Blood God Art in and of itself.”

With this final point, Zhao Changhe finally understood.

For any martial art, one needed to see who was practicing it. It was the same for the Vicious Blood Art and Vicious Blood Saber. For example, Vice Branch Master Huang had been defeated by Zhao Changhe in three attacks.

So it was not that the Blood God Art was garbage. Cult Leader Xue was just not capable enough...

Yue Hongling continued, “Moreover, the Vicious Blood Art is not necessarily inferior to the Blood God Art. It’s just that it was derived from the Blood God Art as a shortcut. As a result, while the Blood God Art is both an external and internal art, the Vicious Blood Art only focuses on tempering one’s qi and blood. With that said, even though it’s unbalanced, your progress can be faster and easier.

“Among external arts focusing on one’s qi and blood, the Vicious Blood Art is one of the very best. Its only downside is that it lacks an internal art component to balance it out. The side effects are obvious and so not many people can cultivate it to a high level. You should know more about this than me.”

Zhao Changhe nodded. “Indeed, after cultivating it, I feel the Vicious Blood Art is really strong. I thought I was mistaken because I hadn’t seen enough yet and wasn’t familiar with other high-level external arts. Since you said that it’s a strong art, then it must actually be very strong.”

“But...” Yue Hongling hesitated. “Other than affecting your mind and being painful to cultivate, it has other problems.”

Zhao Changhe’s eyes went wide. “Having one downside is already enough. It already fucking has two, and you’re telling me there’s more? How disgusting”

“Yes.” Yue Hongling said, “Haven’t you noticed that the strength of the backlash from this martial art is growing with each person you kill?”

Zhao Changhe was at a loss. This was indeed true. In fact, it was clearly written in the manual for the Vicious Blood Art and also indicated that it was the same for the Blood God Art. Being able to kill people on a whim was fundamental to the Blood God Cult.

Vicious Blood did not just consist of qi and blood but also vicious qi. One’s vicious qi grew as they killed more people. A frail scholar using this martial art would not be able to kill as unflinchingly as a bandit.

Am I going to lose more and more of myself as I cultivate the Vicious Blood Art, or am I going to reach a more favorable position... Zhao Changhe was a little speechless. He did not know if this trait of the Vicious Blood Art was a good or bad thing. It was indeed easy to become a demon obsessed with murder like this.

Furthermore, as my vicious qi becomes stronger, will it be easier for me to lose my mind? Right now, Zhao Changhe still had not completely lost his mind using the Vicious Blood Art. He had no doubt it was because his cultivation was still too low, but what about when he reached a higher level?

Zhao Changhe thought for a moment and asked carefully, “Can internal arts solve this problem?”

“There are many types of internal arts. I don’t understand your internal art. It looks like it doesn’t have any special characteristics, so I have no idea if it will be of use for your condition...” Yue Hongling grinned. “Are you perhaps thinking that, after I’ve said all this, there’s no way I can teach you?”

Zhao Changhe was a little speechless. “You should know that better than I do. In any case, you’ve helped me get a better grasp of my situation. That’s already a lot.”

“I can at least teach you three things. Firstly, something will probably go wrong down the road with your internal art. You’re only circulating your qi through your meridians without anyone to guide you on breathing techniques and the crucial parts of mnemonic chants. This isn’t an issue while you’re still at the introductory stages. But as you improve, you’ll definitely feel that there’s something lacking, like you’re missing a key.”

Zhao Changhe immediately understood that his intuition was correct. It was no wonder he felt like there was still something he lacked before he could attempt to break through to the second layer. He really was missing something! Without Yue Hongling, he did not know how long he would be stuck trying to reach the second heavenly layer!

“Can I use your internal art then?

“For everyone, internal arts are virtually the same. They strengthen one’s ability to direct their qi and stabilize one’s heart. You can definitely use my internal art to channel your qi around your meridians. What you’re cultivating will still be that qi of yours. There won’t be any problems.”

Is it like using Fu Junchuo’s Nine Mysteries Art to cultivate the Longevity Technique where, at the end of the day, it’s still cultivating the Longevity Art? Zhao Changhe suddenly felt that if the twin dragons of the Tang immediately began cultivating the Longevity Technique after receiving it, they would have missed something...[1] As this random thought faded away, Zhao Changhe cheerfully said, “Please teach me, big sister.”

“Before that, I’ll teach you how to breathe first. Sit with a stable posture... There’s no need to cross your legs. Sitting normally is fine.”

Zhao Changhe obediently sat down.

Yue Hongling stood up and walked toward him. With some slight hesitation, she bent down and placed her hand on his belly. “First, take a deep breath and expand your stomach. Yes...take a deep breath. Feel the air swelling in your body and merging with your qi...”

With his female master so close to him, caressing his belly with her tender hands as her delicate fragrance lingered around the tip of his nose while the ends of her hair brushed his cheeks, Zhao Changhe’s face was ticklish. His heart also felt ticklish. Zhao Changhe suddenly understood why Yue Hongling was unwilling to take in a disciple back then. If she was tied down by some brat, she was worried about not being able to wander the jianghu. But this was not the only thing she was concerned with... More importantly, she had misgivings about situations like this.

It was hard to avoid getting up close and personal with someone while teaching martial arts. Instructor Sun grabbing Zhao Changhe’s hands while he taught him saber arts was a daily occurrence along with pulling his upper arm, pressing against his hips, and even slapping his ass. With a female master and male disciple around the same age, it was natural to think that such a pairing would not be very suitable for teaching or learning.

“Why are you still so tense while taking deep breaths?” Yue Hongling was expressionless. Her voice sounded like it was coming out from between her teeth. “Don’t tell me you’re thinking about how to toy with me because I’m in your room?”

1. Another reference to The Legend of the Twin Dragons of the Great Tang first referenced in ch.4. ☜