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  Ancient Fragment #29

  From the heavens the sword descended, and heaven and earth were cleaved beneath its fall.

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  Night and day came and went.

  Long Tianyu and Hua Qingqing spent their time cultivating. Talking about their childhood. How life had been in Moondragon City. About their goals in the future. Both of them wanted to see more of the world, and experience all of its flavors. Even the bad flavors could be good to learn from, just they had from the Crimson Heart.

  At one point Long Tianyu had tossed over one of his Twin Shadow Blade to Hua Qingqing and sparred her. It ended with a loud shout from him landing in the dirt.

  Later that day Long Tianyu held one of the blades in his hands. He took a deep breath as qi surged around him, gathering into his spiritual core. His bloodline was on fire. And slowly a blood red glow covered the entire blade of the low-graded Mortal Weapon.

  ''Blood Slaughtering Slash''

  The red sword intent burst out into a nearby rock, causing an explosion that shot out smaller rocks all over the grass.

  ''Huuuh''

  Long Tianyu exhaled deeply. It's getting easier.. I should soon be able to attack with it twice before gathering qi again. He had stopped falling down after practicing it 7 times. Each time he adjusted his pose, the amount of qi used and the usage of his bloodline.

  He tried going slowly, it ended up taking too long for a practical fight. Going too fast meant being too clumsy and using too much power. He needed to find a perfect balance between everything for the sword technique to be truly useful in a fight.

  He slowly closed his eyes and focused on the scripture from Azurythax. The Supreme Annihilation Sword Scripture contained very basic sword techniques but the major 9 techniques were:

  1 - Blood Slaughtering Slash

  2 – Crimson Severing Edge

  3 – Bone-Shattering Gale

  4 – Soul-Drinking Fang

  5 – Heaven-Cleaving Descent

  6 – Void Sundering Horizon

  7 – World-Ending Sword Domain

  8 – Ten Thousand Extinction Shadows

  9 – Supreme Annihilation

  For now he could only touch the Blood Slaughtering Slash, the others were either too illusive or too consuming and dangerous to use. He frowned as he contemplated how to continue.

  He took in his fist into his sleeve to hide it from Hua Qingqing.

  Hua Qingqing sat on the same rock as before. Her fingers plucked the strings of The Eternal Frost Plum Zither. She was delving deeper into understanding of The Celestial Heaven’s Sound Scripture.

  A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  While it contained the essence of basic zither songs, the things she was really interested in was its illusion and soul attacks, it also contained some qi based attacks. She could access a total of nine levels.

  1 - Eternal Illusion Prison

  2 - Slumbering Heart

  3 - Veil of Shattered Reflections

  4 - Soul-Piercing Reverberation

  5 - Rage of Heavens

  6 - Frostbound Spirit Dirge

  7 - Heaven-Overturning Crescendo

  8 - Ten Thousand Echoing Phantoms

  9 - Celestial Nirvana Requiem

  The very downside was that she needed time, something that usually wasn't allowed in a cultivator's fight. She needed to find another weapon... something that fit her or become extremely strong that the zither could become an auxiliary weapon.

  Hua Qingqing’s fingers paused mid-note.

  The final vibration of the zither string lingered in the air like a strong wind slowly settling over a quiet lake.

  “You’re improving too quickly,” she said softly.

  Long Tianyu opened his eyes.

  “Is that praise?”

  “It’s concern.”

  He smirked, but the faint crimson glow still lingering around his sword did not go unnoticed by her.

  “The Blood Slaughtering Slash consumes too much of you,” she continued. “Not just qi.”

  Long Tianyu looked down at his hand. The veins beneath his skin had faintly darkened during the continuous training. They were returning to normal now, but he knew what she meant.

  The inheritance was not gentle. It also devoured his bloodline before restoring it.

  “It's fine, I can handle it,” he said.

  Hua Qingqing’s gaze sharpened slightly. “Tianyu.. That’s what someone would say before they lose control.”

  Silence settled between them.

  A breeze moved through the frosted grass.

  Long Tianyu sat beside her on the rock.

  “You’re not one to talk,” he said, nodding toward her zither. “Illusion arts that target the soul. If you lose focus for even a breath…”

  She smiled faintly. “Then I it could hurt my soul, worst case I die.”

  Their eyes met.

  Both of their eyes were determined, but hidden underneath was also that gentleness toward each other. They would sacrifice themselves for power, especially to protect one another.

  Long Tianyu was the first to sigh. He decided to change the subject.

  ''Qingqing.. in the future should we join a sect?''

  Hua Qingqing’s fingers hovered over the zither strings, and she tilted her head slightly, considering. “A sect… it depends. Why do you ask?”

  Long Tianyu looked out over the frosted grass, his blade faintly gleaming at his side. “If we stay alone, it’ll be harder to survive, or to reach higher realms. A sect could give us protection… resources… guidance.”

  ''We can't rely on this free knowledge forever either..''

  Hua Qingqing’s lips curved into a faint, thoughtful smile. “That’s true. They also have rules, hierarchies, politics… you might be stronger than your sect members, but the sect might not recognize it. And power isn’t always rewarded fairly.” She thought back to how her own clan worked.

  Long Tianyu leaned back on the rock, folding his arms. “I know… but there’s also strength in numbers. Imagine a place where we can focus purely on cultivation, with resources, master teachers, and allies we can trust.”

  Her eyes softened as she studied him. “Trust is rare, Tianyu. Especially in sects. Many are willing to sacrifice others for their own advancement. It would be best if we could be together with the others...”

  He met her gaze. “Mmm.. I agree. Then we’ll choose wisely. One that values strength, but also morality. One that doesn’t crush its disciples for petty schemes.”

  Hua Qingqing’s fingers returned to the zither, plucking a soft, lingering note. “And if we don’t find such a sect?”

  “Then we’ll keep walking our own path,” Long Tianyu said firmly, a determined glint in his eyes. “Together.”

  She let out a soft laugh, almost like a sigh of relief. “Together, then.”

  The wind moved through the grass again, carrying the fresh scent of frost and the distant mountains.

  Long Tianyu looked at the crimson glow still lingering around his sword and then at her calm expression. No matter what comes… we’ll face it together.

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  End of chapter 29 - Strength For Protection