Because cultivating and refining one’s qi not only increases strength but also extends one’s lifespan, such a good thing naturally cannot be abandoned.

Henry Clark was an impatient person—when he decided to practice, he did so immediately, not even bothering with a post-meal nap. As for the water still clinging to his body, he didn’t care at all. With his qi moving at the speed of thought, the innate purple qi circulated through his body, generating intense heat that completely evaporated the moisture on his skin.

However, when he wanted to practice swordsmanship, he helplessly realized that he hadn’t brought his sword.

But it didn’t matter; in this pine forest, there were plenty of pine branches. He could just pick one at random. After all, he hadn’t reached the stage of cultivating with a flying sword yet, so there was no need to get too attached to his rather ordinary Qingfeng sword.

He went through the Two-Part Return-to-Origin Sword technique once and clearly felt a bit rusty. His sword movements lacked the smoothness and fluidity of the last time; the transitions were awkward and stiff. Even though there was no one watching, he still felt deeply ashamed.

If he had muddled along as before and attended that troublesome Opening Ceremony, and then, by bad luck, been chosen and cluelessly performed this sword technique, he might have ended up disgracing himself for a lifetime.

“Master was right—practicing swordsmanship is like sailing against the current: if you don’t advance, you fall behind. Looks like I’ll have to practice my sword technique ten times every day from now on!”

He thought to himself, and now had a profound understanding of that classic saying about progress and regression.

After practicing two more times, the feel for the sword technique finally returned, and his movements became extremely smooth. However, this sword technique only had two moves, and he had practiced it for eight years. Although each practice brought new insights, these insights were more about sword principles and intent, and didn’t do much to increase the power of the two moves themselves.

The only way to improve his swordsmanship within a month was to practice relentlessly—until he could practice no more.

This was what his master Mark had taught him, and Young Master Clark had always believed Mark without question.

In truth, practicing swordsmanship was a very tedious affair, especially when repeating the same movements over and over. Do it enough times, and you’re bound to get irritable and distracted.

Henry Clark, caught up in the moment, practiced swordsmanship for two whole hours. In that time, he went through the two-move Two-Part Return-to-Origin Sword technique over a hundred times. Gradually, he began to lose focus.

His sword movements became increasingly disordered, and distracting thoughts crept in.

These distractions were simply thoughts unrelated to his current sword practice. He didn’t think about much—just how to improve his barbecue skills, how much time he should spend practicing swordsmanship in the coming month, whether he could further refine his lightness skill, and so on. Slowly, his mind wandered to his unreliable master and the Taihao Xuan Yue Sword he had performed before leaving.

That flowing, cloud-like swordplay, the nearly perfect sword intent, the seamless, natural moves—like a goat’s horn hanging from a tree, leaving no trace—began to take shape in his mind. The trajectories of the sword flashed through his brain like lightning, and the previously scattered sword moves in his hand gradually became more precise.

The purple qi within his body began to circulate on its own. Unlike before, when he had to deliberately channel the purple qi into his sword, this time, the qi flowed naturally with his sword movements, slowly infusing into the withered branch in his hand.

A faint purple hue began to appear on the pine branch he was wielding, but Henry Clark was already immersed in the swordplay and completely unaware.

After a while, his sword movements suddenly slowed down, and the pine branch in his hand seemed to grow heavier. Every movement felt like it was in slow motion. The purple hue on the branch deepened, and a faint purple glow even flickered from it. Oblivious, Henry Clark continued to perform the Two-Part Return-to-Origin Sword technique, move by move.

Suddenly—“Crack!”—with a loud bang, the front half of the pine branch could no longer withstand the pressure of the purple qi from Henry Clark’s body and exploded. Henry Clark’s sword movement paused for a moment, but in that instant, his eyes flashed with a sharp light. Seemingly unaffected, he continued to finish the move.

“Whoosh!!!” After completing the Two-Part Return-to-Origin Sword technique once more, Henry Clark stopped, let out a long breath, slowly withdrew his stance, and stood upright, a silly, faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

“It feels like I’ve realized something!” he thought to himself, recalling the sensation of being immersed in the sword technique just now. Suddenly, his legs gave out and he collapsed to the ground. Only then did he realize he was utterly exhausted.

His whole body ached, every muscle and meridian felt as if they’d been trampled hundreds of times. These last ten or so rounds of sword practice had left him more tired than the hundreds of rounds before.

“What’s wrong with me? Am I finally getting the hang of it, or am I going astray?” Henry Clark gave a wry smile, his plump body struggling to move a little, leaning against the trunk of a large pine tree. “I feel like I’ve realized something, but I just can’t be sure!”