Chapter 58 Sword One

The Master sat quietly, a hint of an unfathomable smile playing upon his lips. To the various perplexities raised by Liu An, he gave no definitive answers.

The Master merely waved his hand gently, signaling for Liu An to return first and properly comprehend his own state of cultivation.

Although a trace of disappointment lingered in his heart, Liu An still respectfully bowed to the Master before silently backing out of the room.

He walked slowly along the winding mountain path, his thoughts churning like a rising tide.

At this moment, Liu An carefully attuned himself to the changes within after breaking through to the second realm. He discovered that his five senses had become exceptionally sharp. Subtle landscapes that were once imperceptible now clearly imprinted themselves upon his vision; ordinary sounds now seemed as close as if they were right beside him, and even the rustle of grass stirred by the wind far in the distance could be captured completely. These wondrous experiences filled Liu An with deep emotion.

Unawares, Liu An had already returned to the approach of his own dwelling.

Before he even stepped inside, a joyful shout reached his ears: "Boss, where on earth have you been for a whole day and night!" It was none other than the Qilin-beast, bounding excitedly toward Liu An.

Yet, upon hearing what the Qilin-beast said, Liu An froze in astonishment.

For he clearly felt that he had been away for several months. Faced with the mere one-day time discrepancy mentioned by the Qilin-beast, a wave of shock and bewilderment flooded his mind.

Giving it a second thought, however, he realized that dwelling on this matter would likely only bring him needless vexation. Thus, he resolutely decided to stop pondering this baffling problem.

Liu An simply walked lightly to the bed and composedly sat cross-legged.

Following that, he slowly closed his eyes and began to enter a state of profound meditative cultivation.

Before long, a faint, ethereal layer of sword intent quietly emanated from around his body, enveloping him like a wispy, mist-like veil.

At this moment, the candlelight in the room flickered gently under the influence of a faint breeze, the dancing flames reflecting upon Liu An's resolute and serene face.

With eyes tightly closed, he focused wholeheartedly on adjusting the rhythm of his breathing, every inhalation and exhalation seeming to resonate wondrously with the entire universe.

Simultaneously, the microscopic particles in the air, almost imperceptible to the naked eye, seemed drawn by some mysterious force as they began to swirl and dance around Liu An's form, gradually converging into delicate currents of energy.

As time passed, Liu An's hands, which had originally rested flat upon his knees, slowly began to rise. His fingertips trembled slightly, as though he were cautiously guiding the flow of those energy currents.

Gradually, these energy currents moved obediently along the path directed by Liu An's fingers, ultimately intertwining and merging right at his fingertips. In the blink of an eye, they manifested out of thin air into a delicate, exquisite black-and-white sword.

Time slipped away like a murmuring brook, and in the blink of an eye, a full day had vanished without a trace. Liu An finally emerged from his state of deep comprehension, and his tightly closed eyelids slowly parted, resembling petals gently unfolded by a spring breeze. In that instant, two unusual rays of light flashed from the depths of his eyes, brilliant and dazzling like shooting stars streaking across the night sky.

He let out a gentle breath of stale air, which miraculously transformed into an extremely delicate blade of sword qi mid-air. This blade of sword qi seemed endowed with life, gracefully spiraling and dancing in the air for a moment before gradually dissipating into the atmosphere, as if it had never existed at all.

Liu An slowly stood straight, his posture as upright as a proud, towering pine tree—resilient and unyielding. The Qilin-beast beside him also appeared exceptionally excited, hopping along continuously. Thus, man and beast, bathed in the warm morning sunlight and taking brisk strides, headed toward the dwelling of Jian Yi.

"Calculated properly, it has been quite a long time since we last saw Senior Brother Jian Yi. We might as well go pay him a visit today," Liu An said with a smile. Hearing his master's words, the Qilin-beast nodded happily, completely agreeing with the decision.

Before long, they arrived at Jian Yi's residence. The dwelling was nestled at the foot of the mountain, surrounded by a lush bamboo grove, looking both antique and elegant. Liu An stepped into the courtyard and immediately caught sight of Jian Yi holding a long sword, practicing his swordsmanship with utmost concentration. Although the stances he executed appeared simple, every movement flowed like drifting clouds and running water, accomplished in one smooth, unbroken breath.

At that moment, Jian Yi seemed to sense something and raised his head. His gaze, bright as torches, instantly captured the sword intent emanating from Liu An, which was far denser and more powerful than before.

Noticing this, the corners of his mouth involuntarily curled upward into a smile as he said, "Haha, Junior Brother, I never expected that you would break through to the second realm in such a short span of time. Your cultivation speed is truly remarkable!"

Upon hearing this, no expression of great joy appeared on Liu An's face; instead, the corners of his mouth only lifted slightly into a rather forced and strained smile.

His once bright eyes appeared somewhat dim at the moment, as if he harbored some indescribable anxiety within his heart.

Seeing this, the senior brother nearby asked curiously, "Junior Brother, you have now broken through to the second realm, which should be a joyous occasion. Why do you not show the slightest hint of happiness?"

Liu An pondered slightly for a moment, as if debating whether to tell the whole story.

Ultimately, he decided to unburden himself to his senior brother, and slowly began, "Senior Brother, you may not know this, but recently I frequently fall into a strange dream..." Following that, Liu An detailed all the bizarre sights and experiences he had encountered within his dream to Jian Yi.

Jian Yi listened quietly to Liu An's narration, his brows furrowing and relaxing alternately, his expression extremely grave.

When Liu An finished speaking, he let out a long sigh, shook his head helplessly, and said, "Junior Brother, regarding the methods of the Master, your foolish brother has truly limited knowledge and cannot resolve your doubts. However, as for whether this dream is real or false, I'm afraid we will have to wait until your cultivation advances further and your strength becomes greater in the future, when you have traveled across more mountains and rivers and witnessed a broader world. Perhaps only then will you find the true answer."

Having spoken these words, Jian Yi gently patted Liu An's shoulder in comfort.

"By the way, Junior Brother, there is a gathering of cultivators in the Han State recently. Would you like to go join the bustle and see the world with me? What kind of breakthroughs can you possibly achieve by forever bitterly cultivating in the mountains?"