Chapter Twelve: Mastering the Blade Technique

"Here... here... and here... this one goes here!" Zhou Yi grabbed at the shards of blade energy, piecing them together nimbly on the ground, relying on his quick wits. Piece by piece, he laid them out, and soon an exceptionally smooth panorama appeared on the ground.

"Almost there... almost..." As he worked, Zhou Yi muttered excitedly, barely able to contain his agitation.

...

"Yi, Yi, what's wrong with you?" Outside, Song Hai, having waited a long time without seeing any further movement from Zhou Yi, became concerned. He cautiously turned to look and immediately saw Zhou Yi sitting statue-like behind him, eyes tightly shut, looking as lifeless as a corpse. Alarmed, he called out urgently.

Zhou Yi, engrossed in his puzzle, was just about to complete it when Song Hai's voice interrupted him—like someone banging on the door at the most inopportune moment, maddeningly annoying.

"Stop shouting, just wait! I'm fine!" Zhou Yi opened his eyes and shot Song Hai a glare, offered a brief explanation, then closed his eyes again, resuming his wooden posture.

Thinking of all the effort he was putting in to achieve his goal—while others, like his brother, could simply sleep and wake up having mastered it—Zhou Yi's earlier excitement gave way to a faint irritation. Though he was fond of his brother, he couldn't help a certain competitive feeling. It wasn't jealousy, just something he couldn't quite name.

"Oh!" Song Hai replied obediently and carefully moved aside, watching Zhou Yi with hopeful eyes.

Zhou Yi closed his eyes and returned to his mental world, about to resume his task, when he suddenly recalled the tone he'd just used. He was immediately annoyed with himself—why had he spoken like that? Clearly, he'd let his emotions get the better of him, which he shouldn't have.

"I'm busy, just wait a bit, ha!" With that, Zhou Yi snapped back from his thoughts. Looking at Song Hai, who was watching him with wide, cautious eyes, he offered an apologetic smile and said gently, "Sorry about my tone earlier. I hope you don't mind."

"Huh? It's nothing! Really, it's nothing," Song Hai, startled by Zhou Yi's sudden movement, laughed and waved his hands. "We're brothers, I understand!"

Hearing this, Zhou Yi gazed at Song Hai for a long moment. His eyes suddenly reddened, and to hide his embarrassment, he nodded firmly. "Yes, we are brothers!"

"Just wait for me a moment. I've found something really good. Once I finish sorting it out, I'll tell you about it!" Without looking at Song Hai's reaction, Zhou Yi closed his eyes again, returning to his mental world to continue his great puzzle project.

His movements remained steady, unchanged, but there was a new energy to his body. Even though he wasn't moving faster, there was a lively vigor in his actions that hadn't been there before.

---

"I found something good?" Song Hai stared blankly at Zhou Yi, who had opened his eyes, spoken, and closed them again all in a single smooth motion—before he had time to react, Zhou Yi was back to his statue-like posture.

"What could it be?" A moment later, Song Hai snapped back to himself, recalling what Zhou Yi had said before. Excitement stirred within him, and he murmured quietly.

With a flick, Song Hai sent out a streak of blade energy, striking the cliff and leaving a thumb-sized pit. He stared at the new hole, dumbfounded. "Did I forget to tell him I just learned a new blade technique?"

...

"Haha, I finally finished it!" In his mental world, Zhou Yi stood tall before a vast scroll, shouting in triumph.

"Now, it's time to test my theory." After a moment of laughter, Zhou Yi composed himself, gazing down at the completed scroll and committing every detail to memory. His eyes shone with a steely light.

Breathing steadily, Zhou Yi followed the motions depicted in the scroll, shrinking his body and moving precisely as shown. To his amazement, as he repeated the sequence, he felt a current of energy rising in his chest—building until he had to exhale.

"This really seems to be a blade technique. Even if it isn't, it's certainly no ordinary thing. This is a real find!" Realizing this, Zhou Yi didn't slow down; he moved even faster, each motion steadier than before.

He was secretly delighted. After all, he was only a spiritual construct in this world—he shouldn't be able to sense this energy at all. Yet, he truly felt it—right now!

He could clearly feel a surge of energy boiling in his chest. As he exhaled with a 'whoosh,' then drew his abdomen in and inhaled with a 'hiss,' the flow of energy became stronger and more tangible.

"Breathing technique? Could this be the legendary breathing method? Is the energy in my chest the inner force of legend?"

"Does this mean I've already cultivated inner power?" At that thought, Zhou Yi couldn't help a surge of secret pride. He might not be as much of a genius as his brother, but with hard work, he had achieved results!

There were thousands of movements in the sequence, but actually practicing them proved much simpler. Soon, Zhou Yi had completed the entire set. Eager to see his progress, he immediately opened his attribute panel.

---

Name: Zhou Yi
Spirit: 1
Body: 1.001
Energy: 1.005
Martial Arts: Nameless (Blade Technique)

"My guess was right—it really is a blade technique!" As soon as he opened his attribute panel, Zhou Yi's eyes skipped swiftly over the earlier stats and landed on the newly added martial arts entry. Seeing the words 'Blade Technique,' he broke into a wide grin.

Only after basking in his joy for a while did Zhou Yi think to check the other stats. When he saw that his 'Energy' had increased by 0.005, he was once again delighted.

At the very start, this number might have left him dissatisfied, but after experiencing the previous 0.001 increment, this was a huge improvement—a fivefold increase!

Zhou Yi was very satisfied!

Most importantly, this blade technique was meant for training the physical body. He was only practicing it as a spirit, so an increase of 0.005 was already impressive. If he practiced with his actual body, who knows how much more he might gain? It certainly wouldn't be less than with his spirit!

After all, every discipline has its strengths.

"Wait! Something seems off? Never mind, forget it!" Zhou Yi pondered for a moment, stroking his chin, but quickly pushed the thought aside and exclaimed excitedly, "Now, it's time to go out and show off to my dear brother. This world isn't home to just one genius!"