Chapter 4: Further Training
The Azulet Sword Law was divided into 12 different layers. The first layer was cultivating the body. A common saying was that if one wanted strong martial arts, then one must first have a strong body. After all, martial arts relied on the efficient use of the body; hence why the first layer of Azulet Sword Law was pertaining to the body.
Most martial artists relied on strengthening their bodies in order to improve their own strength. Therefore they would strengthen their bodies and end up with bulging muscles everywhere. It was clear to the naked eye how strong someone was by build alone. Some people had even built their bodies to the point of their bones being as hard as reinforced steel bars.
To Jian Chen, this type of method to train the body would only ruin the body and would only narrow the potential of the human body. So although this method would increase one’s strength past a normal persons, at the same time, it would bring about a large amount of damage to the body. The people who trained this way generally had a short life span. When they were in the elderly phase, diseases and impairment within the body would happen at a higher frequency for them.
The wandering martial artists of the world have many different sects with their own way of cultivating the body but to Jian Chen, these methods were mediocre. These were not the right paths to takes; even the Shaolin way of Yijin Jing was no exception.
TL Note: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yijin_Jing
Even though the principles of Yijin Jing were beautiful in how it cultivated the inner strength and how it also strengthened the outer muscles, but Yijin Jing’s way of strengthening the body was still the same. It didn’t strengthen the very core of a human and only focused on external force only. This could not be be considered the pinnacle of cultivating the body if it did not target the entire body.
The methods written in Azulet Sword Law were truly profound and magical. By absorbing both the Qi of the heavens and the earth and then transforming it, one could incorporate it within the bones of the body. This allowed every organ and even every single cell in the body to be strengthened to their limits. The original frailty would be cast away and the body would reach the most optimal state while giving the body endless amounts of benefits like a longer lifespan. When one practiced the later methods, your corporeal body would reach new heights in strength; and as Azulet Sword Law indicated, if one could reach the highest levels of cultivating the body, then they could even live as long as the heavens and the earth.
However this method was associated with one’s own strength. If one’s Qi was stronger than the physical body, then Azulet Sword Law would use that Qi and incorporate that into the body to become stronger. In the case that one’s physical body and one’s Qi strength were both at an equilibrium, then one would have to make a breakthrough to reach the next level. Only with this cycle would one be able to continuously improve their entire body without limits.
Jian Chen was slowly absorbing the world’s Qi in a neverending stream and was circulating it in a cycle throughout his body. Then under Jian Chen’s control, the Qi would be incorporated into his cells and organs.
Ever since he had arrived at this strange new world, one of the few things that had excited Jian Chen was the World Essence. The World Essence was extremely dense, perhaps a hundred times more dense than the Qi back in his world. Compared to the previous world, Jian Chen had nowhere to go but the old mountain range where he had died. One world was paradise, the other world was hell, the difference was simply that clear to see, so Jian Chen was extremely happy about that.
However what Jian Chen couldn’t understand was the difference between the World Essence of this world and the World Essence of his past world. While both were the same in feeling, Jian Chen was carefully discovering that the World Essence had an extra type of energy. This type of energy was a small part of the World Essence and was interconnected as if blended together so that they could not be separated.
When he had absorbed this new type of energy into his body, nothing negative happened. So because of that, Jian Chen had not tried to remove the clearly different energy from the World Essence. However, Jian Chen was now curious in the matter, thoughts and ideas were swirling around his head, but this new energy was not that simple to be figured out so easily.
After the never ending World Essence had been absorbed into his body, Jian Chen could clearly feel every single artery and cell in his body become stronger. The World Essence that was taken into his body was like a giant health tonic that made his body feel alive as it absorbed it. His body was like a giant thirsty tiger that wanted more and more. While at the same time, Jian Chen was feeling a pleasurable sensation from all over, and felt free from worry as the feeling carried him away.
In a flash, another year had gone by. Jian Chen had been in this strange world for 2 whole years now. During those 2 years, Jian Chen didn’t take a single step outside of the Changyang mansion. Everyday during his free time, Jian Chen was alone in his room practicing the first principle of Azulet Sword Law–body cultivation.
Perhaps it was because this World Essence was a hundred times denser than the World Essence in his past world, but in one year Jian Chen had already reached major success in cultivating his body. At the current moment without a doubt, If an average person swung an average sword at him, then his body would not be scratched at all. He had trained his body so much that even a single cut would not be made.
Of course, this was only what Jian Chen had thought of himself, he wouldn’t dare try it out on himself personally.
In this past year, Jian Chen’s body was developing at such a fast rate, it was inconceivable. In a single year, he had already reached a height of 1.2 meter, an abnormal height for a 2 year old. This height had actually made him look to be closer to 5 or 6 years old instead.
Because of this, everyone in the Changyang mansion had been alarmed beyond belief, although many of them still had vast expectations for him. Expectations hoping that he would be a genius with unlimited potential, but everyone would have to wait for when he turned 3 in order to confirm anything.
Regarding this expectation put on him, Jian Chen couldn’t help but feel helpless. He didn’t understand that the reason why his body had grown so fast was due to practicing Azulet Sword Law because back in his previous world, he did not have Azulet Sword Law by his age.
Although he still accompanied his mother Bi Yuntian to the dining hall, but as usual he had still shut himself off in his room every night. Sitting on the bed with crossed legs and his hands on his knees, he would close his eyes and face the sky once more.
But this time, Jian Chen wasn’t cultivating his body, but instead he was pondering. It had been 2 years since he arrived at this world, and in those 2 years, he had never seen the outside world from beyond Changyang mansion. He spent the majority of his days locked up to cultivate his body. Up until now, he still did not understand much about this world. Outside of Changyang mansion, he practically knew nothing about this world, even what the outside world looked like.
He understood in his heart that in everyone else’s eyes, he was a 2 year old boy. A 2 year old boy would generally be happily cherished by his parents while growing up carefreely. Jian Chen however, would not be in that situation at all.
As he was thinking on his bed, Jian Chen finally decided that tomorrow morning, he would ask his parents. It was important for him to know and understand what the outside world was like in this world.
After thinking it out, Jian Chen slowly opened his eyes and got off the bed. Tonight, he would not be cultivating his body on top of his bed as usual, but instead he would stand in the central point of his room with his eyes closed.
In Jian Chen’s mind, a pair of mysterious footsteps began to appear. Then a picture appeared inside of Jian Chen’s mind. Just like a movie reel, the picture never seemed to stop, but all he could see was a figure wearing a white chang pao. It was a young man holding a sword that was quickly pacing through a mysterious land. He was walking so fast, that a regular person would have a hard time seeing him clearly. Because the young man was walking far too quickly despite the small amount of room he was in, a series of after images were trailing behind him.
This figure was the previous incarnation of Jian Chen, and the steps that were appearing were actually symbolizing Azulet Sword Law, truly a mysterious image.
As the morning daylight shone through a crack of a window into his room, Jian Chen suddenly opened his eyes as he stood in the middle of the room. In this hour, he had finally moved; his legs moved so fast that it was practically a blur. For his legs to maintain this type of speed for some time, even most martial artists wouldn’t be able to keep up in this condition.
Jian Chen’s legs were moving in a mysterious way as he walked about in a certain trajectory. As he moved around his room quickly, his legs had whipped up a small whirlwind due to the extremely fast paced movement he was making.
Although this event did not go on for long, Jian Chen stopped moving, as his face was turning paler by the second. Slowly gasping for breath, both of Jian Chen’s legs couldn’t help but shiver and quake as he paused.
Jian Chen slowly walked to his window and sat down next to it. Bending his lower back, both of his arms massaged his legs continuously. Pursuing the mysterious footsteps for that one moment had caused his legs to become incomparably weak. He couldn’t even use the smallest amount of power in his legs anymore.
Jian Chen shook his head helplessly, no matter what type of martial art to cultivate himself, the first thing he had to do was attain a better build. Not only that but the more profound a martial art was, the higher its requirement. When it came to the exercise of following the footsteps, if he did not have a strong physical physique and a strong Qi, then he would not have been able to last very long. Of course, normal practitioners would not be able to hold up for as long as he had, and if they had tried, then they would have exerted their body beyond what it could take and damage it.
It was not easy to acquire a profound ability after all.
Sitting by his bed after massage his legs, he waited for his leg to be returned to their original state before sitting cross-legged on the bed again. Once more he began to absorb the spiritual Qi from the world and absorb it into his body.
The night went by quickly and in a flash the sky was filled with the colors of the day. And at that moment, a sound could be heard coming outside of Jian Chen’s room.
“Fourth master, it’s daytime, time to get up!”. came the obviously feminine cry.
Hearing the sound, Jian Chen slowly opened his eyes and cried out in his childish voice, “I know, sister Hong Hua, I’m already awake!” With that said, he climbed down from his bed.
Yet at this time, the door was opened, and two girls around the age of 18 came walking in. Both of them were carrying a small serving tray with a basin on it. Rolled around the basin was a new clean and tidy towel meant for him to wash his face with. The other tray had also another basin for Jian Chen to wash his teeth in to prepare himself for the day