Chapter 40: What Must Come Will Always Come

Chapter 40 What Must Come Will Come

In the chieftain’s hut, fine wine and meat were laid out, and the brazier glowed warm.

Watching Yue Hongling eat with relish, Zhao Changhe sighed inwardly. If Xia Chichi had been here under such conditions back then... she would surely have been delighted.

Now, his income came from a bunch of fools who challenged him and handed him free wins, and Zhao Changhe found that his combat skills were growing stronger by the day. Yet, compared to before, he felt something was missing.

No one to guide him—he was groping in the dark.

Whether it was the Xia family’s inner technique, the lightness skill, or the Blood Fiend Art and its blade technique, he now had to figure everything out on his own, relying solely on manuals and diagrams.

Whether he was deviating from the path, he couldn’t be sure. There was no longer a Drillmaster Sun to grumble, “That slash wasn’t precise enough,” or “Your waist twisted too much.”

Whether he could break through to the second layer of inner and outer cultivation, or whether he lacked the proper timing, was all based on his own feelings. There was no longer an experienced elder to tell him, “You’ve trained enough; try breaking through today.”

Many things, once lost, you realize how much difference their presence or absence makes. He was, after all, someone who had only trained in martial arts for two months, far from the level of experience needed to self-correct. In his heart, he always felt uncertain.

But then Yue Hongling had fallen into his lap. She could beat the Drillmaster’s sect leader into submission and take on a group of Drillmasters. Compared to any romantic thoughts, Zhao Changhe cared more that now he finally had someone to guide him—a teacher far more formidable than the sect leader.

Did he have any thoughts about the opposite sex?

He didn’t know. She was so beautiful that any normal man would have ideas.

Yet, just like when he had lived with Xia Chichi, Zhao Changhe felt that without those complications, things would be easier and more natural. Her fall into that pit was really a pain, adding unnecessary trouble.

Was she avoiding those awkward, embarrassing topics and suddenly bringing up serious matters because she realized the same thing?

Thus, they both relaxed, at least on the surface.

If Xia Chichi were here, she would probably widen her eyes and then laugh, saying, “Truly the words of a true Jianghu hero.”

The details of her expression were vivid before his eyes.

She seemed to be jealous of Yue Hongling... but there was no need.

Yue Hongling ate and drank her fill, wiped her mouth comfortably, and said leisurely, “I’m not your master, just a friend exchanging ideas. You don’t need to sit there all stiff and proper.”

“You might have misunderstood something... What if I said I was thinking about a woman?” Zhao Changhe said expressionlessly. “Ever since you fell into that pit, the lofty Yue Hongling I admired has long ceased to exist.”

Yue Hongling nearly choked. After a long pause, she said, “I don’t need your lofty admiration either... I don’t know what strange version of Yue Hongling you have in your mind. Was I really that serious the day we met? I remember smiling at you, didn’t I?”

Zhao Changhe: “...How touching. You actually smiled.”

Yue Hongling ignored him and got down to business. “To be honest, I’ve watched many of your battles—more than you think.”

Zhao Changhe looked up at her.

You spied on a man, and you can say it so proudly? Did you watch when I was bathing? Never mind.

“Your foundation is extremely solid. Your eyes see, and your blade follows; you balance hardness and softness at will, and your mind is flexible, not bound by rigid routines. You just need to keep fighting, accumulate more experience, and naturally you’ll develop your own understanding and variations in technique. As far as pure skill goes, there’s little I can teach you. What you need is a more powerful blade technique.”

Zhao Changhe was skeptical. “Is it really that simple? I’m not even sure if I handled a certain slash correctly; I just rely on instinct. Don’t I need someone to tell me, ‘That slash would have been better if you did this or that’? Then I can sum up the experience and fight better next time.”

“The fact that you think that way is already enough.”

“Huh?”

“At the beginning, yes, you need that. But you’ve already set out on your own. Do you expect a master to guide you through every battle? You have to rely on yourself. Whether you can reflect, summarize, and draw more nourishment from each fight is part of your talent. Otherwise, what does it mean to be a ‘Hidden Dragon’? That’s just a snot-nosed brat clinging to his master’s coattails.”

“I’ve only trained for two months!”

Yue Hongling said calmly, “You are Zhao Changhe. After one month of training, you cut down a second-layer martial artist, ascended to the Hidden Dragon list, and shook Mount Mang. How many others in this world can claim that? Do you really think the Hidden Dragon’s 250th place is beneath contempt? It’s an affirmation that billions yearn for but can’t obtain.”

Zhao Changhe was speechless. “Well, thanks. So you say I need a more powerful blade technique. Do you have one? Let me see.”

“You’re not shy, are you?” Yue Hongling rolled her eyes. “No.”

“Hey!”

“Over the years, I’ve taken on many challenges and killed quite a few people. I do have some blade technique manuals and diagrams, but honestly, the Blood Fiend Blade Technique is really formidable. The ones I’ve collected probably aren’t even on that level. If you want, you can have them for reference—consider them stones from other hills to polish your jade. It’s good to learn from various schools. For now, I suggest you stick with the Blood Fiend Blade as your main technique.” Yue Hongling pulled out a bag from under the table and tossed a few books over.

“You actually brought a bag with you...”

“I told you I was coming to seek refuge with you. Did you think I was lying?”

“...Hard to say.”

Zhao Changhe caught the books but felt unsatisfied. “You defeated the Blood God Art despite being a lower level, and now you say the Blood Fiend Art, which is even lower, has a powerful matching blade technique? That sounds like a brush-off.”

Yue Hongling chuckled. “What I’ve learned isn’t necessarily superior to the Blood God Art.”

She left it at that, and Zhao Changhe understood.

A technique depends on who practices it. With the same Blood Fiend Art and blade technique, Vice Captain Huang was defeated by Zhao Changhe in three moves.

So it wasn’t that the Blood God Art was trash—it was that Sect Leader Xue was incompetent.

Yue Hongling continued, “The Blood Fiend Art isn’t a lower-level transitional technique compared to the Blood God Art. It was originally a shortcut derived from the Blood God Art. The Blood God Art cultivates both inner and outer, while the Blood Fiend Art focuses solely on blood and qi. Though unbalanced, it’s more direct and excels in external physical training. But the lack of inner-outer harmony brings obvious drawbacks, which is why few have cultivated it to great depth. You know this better than I do.”

Zhao Changhe nodded slightly. “Indeed. I’ve felt that the Blood Fiend Art is quite powerful. I thought it was just because I hadn’t seen many high-level external techniques, so I had that illusion. Since you say so, it must be genuinely strong.”

“But...” Yue Hongling hesitated. “Its drawbacks aren’t limited to the two you know: the tendency to affect one’s reason and the pain of cultivation.”

Zhao Changhe’s eyes widened. “Most techniques have one drawback at most. Two is already disgusting enough. There’s more?”

“Yes.” Yue Hongling said, “Haven’t you noticed that the more people you kill, the more powerful the technique’s feedback becomes?”

Zhao Changhe paused. That was indeed true, and it was clearly stated in the manual. It even noted that this aspect existed in the Blood God Art as well. The Blood God Sect’s bloodthirsty nature was rooted in this.

Blood Fiend—it wasn’t just about blood and qi, but also about killing intent. The more you killed, the more you nurtured that killing intent. A weak scholar using this technique would never perform as well as a ruthless bandit who killed without mercy.

Was this stacking kills like a game, or building momentum to become invincible? Zhao Changhe was speechless. He couldn’t tell if this was an advantage or a drawback. It certainly seemed like a fast track to becoming a blood-soaked demon.

And with heavy killing intent, wouldn’t it become easier to lose reason? So far, he hadn’t experienced any berserk episodes, but that was probably because his cultivation was still low. What about when it deepened?

Zhao Changhe thought for a moment and asked cautiously, “Can inner techniques solve these problems?”

“Inner techniques aren’t all the same. I can’t quite figure out your inner technique—it seems to have no particular characteristics. I don’t know if it will help your situation...” Yue Hongling smiled faintly. “Does it feel like I’ve said a lot but can’t actually teach you anything?”

Zhao Changhe was a bit exasperated. “You know it. But at least you’ve helped me sort things out. It’s good to have a clearer picture.”

“I can teach you in three areas. First, your inner technique must have an irregular origin. You only have the meridian pathways for true qi circulation, but no one has taught you the methods of breathing, exhaling, and the essential oral formulas. That might not be a problem at the beginning, but when you try to advance, you’ll definitely feel something missing—like you lack the key.”

Zhao Changhe suddenly saw the light. His instincts had been right. He had felt that breaking through to the second layer was just out of reach, and now he knew why. Without Yue Hongling’s arrival, who knew how long he would have been stuck!

“Can I use your inner technique?”

“Inner techniques of various schools are largely similar—they strengthen guidance and focus the mind. You can use my technique to run your own meridians. The true qi you cultivate will still be yours. No problem.”

It was like using Fu Junzhuo’s Nine Mysteries Technique to practice the Eternal Spring Scripture—in the end, it was still the Eternal Spring Scripture. Zhao Changhe suddenly thought of many Tang Dynasty fanfictions where people practiced the Eternal Spring Scripture without proper guidance... He dismissed the stray thought and said happily, “Please teach me, sister.”

“Before that, I’ll teach you breathing. Sit steady... no need to cross your legs. Just sit normally.”

Zhao Changhe obediently sat still.

Yue Hongling stood up, walked over to him, hesitated slightly, then bent down and placed her hand on his lower abdomen. “First, draw in your stomach... yes. Take a deep breath, feel the expansion as the breath enters your body, then merge it with your inner qi...”

The female teacher was so close, her slender hand gently pressing, her fragrance right under his nose, her hair brushing against his cheek. His face itched, and so did his heart. Zhao Changhe suddenly realized why Yue Hongling had been unwilling to take him as a disciple back then. It wasn’t just about freedom or not wanting a burden on the road—it was also about this.

Martial arts teaching inevitably involved close contact. Drillmaster Sun had often grabbed his hand while teaching blade techniques, twisted his arms and pressed his waist, even slapped his butt. Now, with a female teacher and a male student, both of similar age, how could this teaching not feel awkward?

“I told you to take a deep breath. Why is your breathing getting scattered and hurried?” Yue Hongling said expressionlessly, her voice squeezed through her teeth. “Could it be that because Yue Hongling is in your room, you’re thinking about how to play with her?”