Chapter 36: Chapter 35: Literacy Perfection

The night was deep.

A Blood Moon hung in the sky.

The cold wind, carrying particles of sleet, pelted the window lattice, making a soft RUSTLING sound. It was as if countless icy hands were knocking on the door from outside.

Chu Fan, wrapped in a worn, ink-black cotton robe, sat alone at the wooden table by the window, flipping through a scroll in his hands.

On the table sat a green-glazed oil lamp. Its flame flickered in the draft, stretching his thin shadow long across the mottled wall.

The opened *Qing Province Chronicles* had pages that were long yellowed and brittle, their corners stained with a few spots of brown mildew.

To the right of the table lay another book, the *Cyan Yang County Chronicles*, just as tattered and yellowed.

These books from the Seven Stars Gang’s Library Pavilion had likely been read by countless people.

Chu Fan lowered his gaze, his brow furrowing unconsciously as he slowly closed the *Qing Province Chronicles*.

As the pages came together, the faint sound of paper seemed exceptionally clear in the silent night.

The sound of the wind outside suddenly changed its tune, as if someone was sobbing quietly in the darkness.

The light of the Blood Moon suddenly brightened.

[You have gained a total of 38 Experience Points in Literacy from reading.]

[Skill: Literacy (Perfection) Progress: (0/1000) (Trait: None)]

It had been three days since he had condensed his second strand of Qi Blood Power.

He had been in the Seven Stars Gang for twenty days now.

’Literacy... finally at Perfection!’

Chu Fan’s thoughts raced. The books he had read in the past surfaced in his mind one by one.

The *Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber* Sword Manual, which he had already memorized, now appeared in his mind’s eye as a dynamic image.

The moment he thought of it, the contents appeared, perfect in every detail!

It seemed that just by reaching the Perfection Realm, he had already gained an Unforgettable memory.

And this Unforgettable memory was even more profound than he had imagined; it could even present his memories as dynamic images!

’What kind of astonishing Trait will I get after Breaking the Limit of Perfection?’

Chu Fan looked forward to it with great anticipation.

It had taken him twenty days to bring this skill to Perfection.

It wasn’t that Experience Points for this skill were hard to gain.

It was simply that the time he spent reading each day was too short, merely a brief hour of rest after his midday fist practice.

He had only managed to break through to Perfection within these three days because condensing his second strand of Qi Blood Power had caused too great a loss of qi and blood.

So, he had reduced his fist practice time, freeing up more time each day to read, and had finally brought this skill to Perfection tonight.

Chu Fan took a deep breath, his mind feeling exceptionally clear.

’It seems I’ll have to spend more time reading in the future.’

Chu Fan stacked the *Qing Province Chronicles* on top of the *Cyan Yang County Chronicles*.

He had borrowed these two books from the Library Pavilion today to see if he could find any major events related to the Chu Family or the Demon Suppression Stele.

Unfortunately, he found nothing.

Neither book contained any record of the Chu Family, nor did they mention the Demon Suppression Stele even once.

The so-called "major events" recorded in the books had no connection whatsoever to the Demon Suppression Stele.

However, the *Qing Province Chronicles* did mention an organization within the Great Yan Dynasty called the "Demon Suppression Bureau" several times.

The Demon Suppression Bureau was involved in many of Qing Province’s major events, as well as incidents involving Demon Fiends.

The Demon Suppression Bureau and the Demon Suppression Stele both contained the two words "Demon Suppression."

’I wonder if the two are truly related?’

’Perhaps it’s just a coincidence.’

Chu Fan sighed softly and reached for a Long Saber on the table.

This was one of the two Long Sabers Master Cao had brought on the first day of his saber training.

The scabbard was made of old sandalwood, polished smooth from use.

But it couldn’t hide the sliver of icy chill leaking from its opening.

Chu Fan walked into the courtyard, saber in hand. His fingers slowly tightened around the hilt.

Suddenly, his wrist dipped. With a crisp CLANG, like the first stirrings of a Dragon’s Roar or the crack of a frozen river, the blade was drawn.

The sound was not loud, but it carried a sharpness that could sever gold and shatter jade.

The light of the Blood Moon spilled onto the saber’s body.

It didn’t reflect any red light; instead, it seemed to absorb the moonlight.

A dark red light flowed across the blade, as if it were a branding iron heated red-hot in a furnace, then suddenly plunged into a pool of blood—quenching it with three parts ferocity and seven parts biting cold.

Upon closer inspection, the saber was broad and heavy. From the handguard, its edge curved in a domineering arc.

Its shape was like the iron wing of a wild goose stretched out against the autumn sky—solitary, severe, and faintly exuding the might of the heavens.

A blood groove was carved into the spine of the blade, running from hilt to tip, resembling the stark line of a goose’s bone.

This design not only reduced the blade’s weight but also added a certain sharp elegance to its lines.

In hand, it felt as heavy as a mountain, yet when swung, it moved with unexpected agility.

It was truly a deadly weapon forged for the battlefield. Every inch of its steel frame spoke of immense power, conjuring images of it galloping across fields of war, sundering halberds and splitting armor.

With its perfect weight and balance, this was clearly a hero’s blade, combining valor and duty. It was perfectly suited for executing the Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber.

Chu Fan glanced at his Map of Mountains and Rivers panel—

[Spiritual Essence: 41.3]

[Cultivation: First Stage of Foundation Establishment, Blood Nourishing 99%]

[Skill: Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber (Uninitiated) Progress: (5/10) (Trait: None)]

Three days had passed, and his gains had been substantial.

Eating a roasted chicken every day had also caused his Spiritual Essence Value to increase much faster.

Unfortunately, he had too few silver coins. Although he could now afford a roasted chicken daily, he couldn’t buy rare items like mountain ginseng or Treasure Fish.

Not to mention treasures like the Vermilion-Scaled Blood Python Flesh that Zhao Tianxing had given him before.

He was only one strand of qi and blood away from breaking through the Blood Nourishing stage.

Only his progress in the Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber was frustratingly slow.

The cultivation of the Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber was different from the Nine Blood Soul Blades.

Whether it was the Nine Blood Soul Blades or the Seven-Star Bead Slash, anyone could start practicing them from scratch, just like with the Twelve Forms Fist.

But the Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber had a threshold—one must first comprehend "Sword Force."

Without passing this threshold, it was absolutely impossible for someone who hadn’t condensed their qi and blood to even reach the Entry-Level!

According to Master Cao, it was best to cultivate the Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber only after condensing three strands of Qi Blood Power and breaking through to the Blood Nourishing Realm.

Master Cao had advised him of the same when he came looking for him in the wood-chopping yard that day.

At the time, Chu Fan had thought Master Cao wanted him to focus on practicing the Twelve Forms Fist first.

After all, those five trials were all designed for Foundation Establishment.

And the Twelve Forms Fist itself was a profound Technique for overcoming those five trials and establishing one’s foundation.

Thinking about Sword Cultivation before his foundation was even solid—even the trio of wood-choppers in the yard laughed at him for being too ambitious.

’Master Cao was willing to teach me the Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber so early, probably because he thinks my talent for Sword Cultivation is quite high and wanted me to build a foundation first.’

In any case, starting on the Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber was better than chopping wood all day.

Now that he had truly begun cultivating it, "Sword Force" had indeed become a bottleneck for his progress...

Even after practicing with the saber all afternoon, he barely gained a single Experience Point.

Continuing to train like this was incredibly inefficient; the difficulty was far greater than that of the Twelve Forms Fist!

To learn the Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber, one must first comprehend Sword Force.

Otherwise, all is for naught.

Only by comprehending Sword Force could one master the Ninefold Force.

If one hadn’t even condensed Qi Blood Power, how could they possibly perceive "Sword Force"?

Without comprehending Sword Force, even with powerful Qi Blood Power, one couldn’t fully utilize it.

It would be like a black bear swinging a saber wildly. It might be ferocious, but in the end, it’s just brute strength.

And brute strength, ultimately, has its limits.

This was true even for him, who possessed the Map of Mountains and Rivers.

For anyone else to cultivate this Sword Technique before the Blood Nourishing Realm would be harder than ascending to the heavens.

That was why, these past few days, Master Cao had only taught him theoretical knowledge and the basic Sword Techniques of this method.

In the end, his training these last few days was merely laying a foundation for truly learning the saber later on.

’Thankfully...’

Three days ago, he had already condensed his second strand of Qi Blood Power.

He was just one step away from breaking through to the Blood Nourishing Realm.

After three days of cultivation and contemplation, his understanding of "Sword Force" had also deepened considerably.

Chu Fan gripped the hilt of the Long Saber and slowly began to circulate his two strands of Qi Blood Power...

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