During sword practice that afternoon, Lin Zhiyue held her Azure Scale Sword, repeatedly trying to grasp the sensation of condensing sword energy into physical form.
Standing in the center of the field, she thrust and sheathed her sword over and over again. The silver-white glow of energy went from barely visible to gradually forming an outline, but it remained unstable.
Stopping to catch her breath, her gaze fell upon the fine layer of frost condensing on the edge of the blade. Suddenly, a chord seemed to strike in her mind—she recalled the low-temperature plasma beams she had learned about in physics class in her past life. Under low-pressure conditions, an electric field excited gas to form an ionized jet that was extremely thin, incredibly fast, and capable of maintaining a long energy trajectory in the air without dissipating.
Wasn't the essence of sword energy simply compressing the spiritual energy within one's body and releasing it in a specific way?
The principle was almost identical to that of a low-temperature plasma beam—concentrating energy highly onto an extremely small cross-section, allowing it to maintain sufficient kinetic energy in the air without decaying rapidly.
The angle of the strike, the speed of spiritual energy flow, and the ratio between energy density and the release surface—how similar it was to the process of tuning plasma parameters in her previous life!
She raised the Azure Scale Sword once more, translating the formula in her mind into the control and pathing of her spiritual energy.
When she struck a second time, a silver-white beam of sword light erupted from the tip of her blade. It was denser than any of her previous attempts, drawing a straight, slender arc through the air before striking the bluestone ground thirty feet away with a crisp, clear ring. The cut was deep and even, its edges as smooth as if they had been polished.
Looking at the lingering trail of the sword light, she quickly ran through the parameters of her spiritual energy's path in her mind—flow rate, density, cross-sectional distribution, and release timing. Every variable had aligned at a perfect point of balance.
Qi Yan watched from the side, a trace of quiet satisfaction in his eyes. Lin Zhiyue's comprehension had always been high, not only because she was quick-witted and creative, but also because she was willing to quiet her mind and think deeply.
She had not yet fully snapped out of her thoughts when the system's light screen popped up: 【Sword energy initially formed. Reward: Premium Draw Ticket ×5.】
She couldn't help but curl her lips into a smile.
She sheathed her sword, stood still, and looked down at her hands. A wonderful sensation washed over her; to think that the physics knowledge she had learned in her past life could actually be put to use in this cultivation world.
It also happened to be the right time.
She called out a greeting to Qi Yan before heading back to her courtyard.
First, she put out some spirit beast food for Honghong, then added water and snacks for Yuetuan. Once both little creatures were settled, she sat back down at her desk and put the long dress of the Jinyao Fairy set back on.
The gold-threaded phoenixes shimmered softly in the twilight.
Rubbing her hands together, she tapped open the Dusk Rose card pool and slammed down her five Premium Draw Tickets one by one.
The first pull was the parasol, a duplicate. The second was the Rose Bracelet, also a duplicate.
On the third pull, a dark red light condensed into a slender necklace. A silver chain held a drooping, dark red rosebud.
The fourth was the metal petticoat—a frame woven from fine black iron wire, adorned with dark red roses along the edges, looking fresh and dripping with dew.
The fifth pull was the shoes. Dark scarlet matte leather wrapped up to her ankles, with two iron-cast roses entwined across the heels.
All ten regular pieces were now collected. Only the hidden piece, the Gilded Cloud Waves hair, remained unlit with a locked icon.
She flipped through the system's instructions. Under the unlock condition column, it read: "Must trigger a dedicated Story Quest to unlock."
Leaning back in her chair, she stared at the small text. Story Quest again, she thought. Who knows what the conditions are this time.
She packed away the Dusk Rose pieces, unequipped the Jinyao Fairy set, and stored it back into her space.
Without her noticing, Yuetuan had crawled to her feet and was gnawing on the laces of her boots. Lin Zhiyue bent down to scoop him up, stroking his back fur in a good mood, and decided to look into the unlock conditions for the Gilded Cloud Waves tomorrow.
For today, she would simply celebrate having successfully formed sword energy.
The next morning, just as Lin Zhiyue finished putting out breakfast for Yuetuan, there was a knock on her courtyard door from an administrative disciple.
The message was an urgent summons from the sect: all disciples from the late-stage Foundation Establishment to late-stage Golden Core stages were to gather at the main peak's plaza within the time it took for an incense stick to burn.
She changed into a set of practical everyday clothes, hung the Azure Scale Sword at her waist, and headed out. Yuetuan chased her to the door and crouched down to watch her. She turned back to say, “Be good and stay here,” before quickly making her way toward the main peak.
By the time she reached the plaza, a large crowd had already gathered. A quick sweep revealed at least a hundred people standing in small groups on the white stone ground, talking in low voices.
It was worth noting that Jiang Yuezhan, that absolute try-hard, had actually broken through to the late-stage Foundation Establishment Stage as well... Well, she shouldn't expect any less from him.
Standing on the high platform was the Fifth Elder, Ye Qingwu—Venerable Qingwu. She was her master's Senior Sister, who rarely showed her face but was highly efficient in her work, earning her the deep respect of the disciples under her.
The Fifth Elder wore a light green robe today, her hair neatly styled, with a slender green spiritual sword hanging at her waist. Her face was gentle, but her eyes were steady. The fluctuations of spiritual energy around her were deep and restrained; it appeared her cultivation was at least above the Nascent Soul Stage.
Once everyone had arrived, Ye Qingwu spoke. Her voice was not loud, but it spread clearly across the entire plaza. Her tone was steady and concise as she explained that traces of demonic cultivators had appeared in Yunting City, which fell under Tiance Palace's jurisdiction. There was suspected to be a stronghold hidden in the mountainous region outside the city. The city lord had sent a letter requesting assistance, and Tiance Palace needed to dispatch disciples to investigate and eliminate the remaining demonic cultivators.
She would be leading this operation. Any disciple with a cultivation between late-stage Foundation Establishment and late-stage Golden Core could sign up. They only needed twenty people; those willing to go were to step forward.
The moment she finished speaking, many in the crowd began to move. Just as Lin Zhiyue was about to take a step, the system's light screen suddenly popped up: 【Triggered Dusk Rose hidden piece quest: Head to Yunting City to participate in the demonic cultivator elimination operation, and achieve at least one key contribution during the mission. Quest Reward: Unlock Dusk Rose · Gilded Cloud Waves.】
Without a second thought, Lin Zhiyue stepped forward, taking her place at the front of the queue.
She heard someone follow her from behind—turning her head, she saw Cen Xi'er already standing beside her, giving her a nod. Jiang Yuezhan had also stepped forward at some point, standing two rows ahead of her with his back straight. Liu Fengyao was the last to run over, still panting as she squeezed in next to her, whispering, “I'm going too.”
More people had stepped forward than Ye Qingwu had anticipated, easily numbering thirty or forty. Scanning the queue, Ye Qingwu nodded slightly. Without wasting any words, she began selecting people from the very front of the line. By the time she reached Lin Zhiyue, she had chosen twenty-five people and stopped.
She took one last look at the queue and added calmly, “The remaining disciples will have another opportunity next time. Those who were selected, board the boat at the north gate in the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.”
Lin Zhiyue stood near the front-middle of the twenty-five-person group, with Cen Xi'er on her left and Liu Fengyao on her right. Jiang Yuezhan stood further ahead in the queue.
Ye Qingwu walked at the very front, her light green figure moving with swift, steady steps in the sunlight, while the line of disciples followed her quietly and orderly.
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