Chapter 163 – Sword-Controlling Technique: Kill One Man in Ten Steps, Leave No Trace for a Thousand Miles! (5k)

Chapter 161: Sword-Controlling Technique: Kill One Man in Ten Steps, Leave No Trace for a Thousand Miles! (5k)

Taking stock of the resources Su Xing currently possessed.

Apart from pills, the only thing likely to catch the military’s interest was probably spirit rice.

Su Xing hadn’t brought out the spirit rice before or enacted the spirit rice plan because his strength had been insufficient.

He’d been afraid of encountering assassinations and various dangers.

But now, Su Xing was virtually invincible below the legendary level.

If he put some spirit rice up for sale, the trouble it would cause shouldn’t be too significant.

“It’s just the quantity of spirit rice…”

Su Xing thought it over briefly. He wasn’t yet suited for implementing the spirit rice plan on a large scale or growing spirit rice in the real world.

First, he didn’t have enough spirit stones. Second, growing spirit rice in the real world would require too large an area and create too much commotion.

But if he grew the spirit rice in his spirit field grotto-heaven and then sold it to the military, as long as he kept things sufficiently covert, it might just work!

“Over the past two months, the spirit fields I’ve cultivated for growing spirit rice in my spirit field grotto-heaven have expanded to nearly two hundred mu…”

“Given the size of the spirit field grotto-heaven’s space, growing five hundred mu of spirit grain shouldn’t be a problem!”

Su Xing did some quick calculations and murmured:

“With the Descendant of Shennong talent boosting things, one mu of spirit field can produce roughly twenty thousand jin of spirit rice per year… five hundred mu would be ten million jin!”

“If each person only consumes twenty jin of spirit rice per year, supplying five hundred thousand people wouldn’t be a problem!”

This quantity was naturally unsuitable for large-scale distribution to ordinary people and low-level Class Users.

But if Su Xing released the spirit rice, he would clearly be sending a signal.

Spirit rice was a resource capable of improving ordinary Class Users’ aptitude and enhancing their attributes.

According to Su Xing’s estimate, he could distribute these spirit rice allotments annually in the form of merit-based scholarships and subsidies, prioritizing students who performed well at elite academies.

That way, the quantity would be barely sufficient.

And for these students who happened to be between Bronze rank and Gold rank, spirit rice would absolutely be a top-tier resource.

After carefully considering the plan’s feasibility, Su Xing murmured:

“Of course, the most important thing is maintaining secrecy… minimizing attention as much as possible.”

“Maybe I can run another experiment in the simulator first. That way I can be rock-solid about it.”

Su Xing had already made his decision, so he said to Jin Congxue:

“Xue-jie, go ahead and prepare to contact Great Xia’s military… I may have something here that interests them!”

“When the time comes, we can work out a cooperation, and we should be able to contract even more mining zone dungeons.”

Jin Congxue nodded slightly after hearing this, but said with some concern:

“But Su Xing, trading with Great Xia’s military… won’t you expose your secrets or invite trouble?”

Having worked with Su Xing for so long, Jin Congxue naturally knew he harbored quite a few secrets.

But this woman had good sense of boundaries—she never asked questions she shouldn’t ask. She also knew Su Xing was deliberately hiding himself, as if he’d always been afraid of something.

Hearing Jin Congxue’s question, Su Xing smiled faintly and said:

“That’s exactly why, Xue-jie… I’ll need you to find someone reliable!”

“Then we finalize this cooperation under your name. What do you think?”

Jin Congxue rolled her eyes after hearing this:

“You little brat, using your big sis as a front?”

“Hmph, if you want me to play middleman, fine—but you have to grant me one request!”

Su Xing blinked in confusion. “What request?”

Jin Congxue replied, “I haven’t thought of it yet! I’ll tell you when I do. But you can’t weasel out of it!”

Su Xing laughed helplessly and nodded in agreement.

The two chatted for a while longer before Su Xing returned to his dormitory and entered the spirit field blessed land.

Su Xing deftly converted the new week’s goods into simulation energy—a total of twenty-eight million points.

Adding what Su Xing had left over from before, it came to nearly sixty-seven million points of energy!

Though not as much as before, it was still enough for this round of simulation.

Before starting the simulation, Su Xing closed his eyes briefly and began thinking through his plan for this run.

“Mm, this time I should test the consequences of cooperating with Great Xia’s military to trade spirit rice. Of course, nothing large-scale—just a small-scope collaboration…”

“Beyond that, reaching Qi Refinement to Spirit Transformation Great Perfection is essential!”

“Movement techniques should also be put on the agenda. I’ll go to the Luotian Sect and see if I can learn one…”

“And I need to train my vitality as well…”

Su Xing ran through everything he needed to do in detail.

Then he opened the simulation panel and murmured:

“But still, gotta see what talent I draw first! What if I get a good one?”

On the afternoon of July 22nd, New Era 2024, Su Xing initiated a new round of simulation.

“Begin simulation!”

【Ding! This simulation costs 4,600 energy points. Remaining energy: 66.87 million points. Remaining simulation attempts: unlimited.】

【Simulation begins!】

【Drawing a green talent costs 1,000 energy points, a blue talent costs 10,000 energy points, and a purple talent costs 100,000 energy points. Would you like to draw?】

Su Xing didn’t hesitate.

“Draw a purple talent!”

【Congratulations! You have obtained the purple talent: The Cold-Faced Emperor!】

【The Cold-Faced Emperor】: Even if Mount Tai crumbles before you, your expression remains unchanged. Your face possesses astonishing composure—even when you are shocked inside, you appear perfectly calm on the surface. Additionally, you unconsciously emit a powerful aura of an otherworldly master who looks down on everything, making others believe you have always held a position of supreme authority.

“Hm?”

Su Xing frowned slightly upon seeing this talent.

This seemed like another poker-face talent?

He’d drawn a similar one before.

But at purple quality, it clearly came with an additional effect of imposing presence and aura—quite useful for intimidation.

Su Xing quietly noted down this simulation talent. It might prove useful at the right moment.

“Sigh, in the end I still didn’t draw a purple-quality spirit root. But I can’t worry about that now—let me just try and see if I can cultivate to Spirit Transformation stage Great Perfection!”

Su Xing’s gaze turned to the simulation panel.

【In the spirit field grotto-heaven, you realize you are in a simulation.】

【You take out the spirit rice you’ve harvested over the past few months—roughly over a million jin.】

【With your current level of strength, spirit rice provides negligible improvement to your power.】

【You decide to use this million-plus jin of spirit rice as a bargaining chip to strike a deal with Great Xia’s military.】

【You then spend a month finishing the cultivation of the remaining spirit fields. The total area of spirit rice cultivation in the spirit field grotto-heaven reaches five hundred mu.】

【You discover that since the spirit field blessed land evolved into a spirit field grotto-heaven, the quality and efficacy of the spirit rice has increased by more than fifty percent, and the yield has also risen slightly.】

【You hand this one million jin of spirit rice over to Jin Congxue and have her negotiate with Great Xia’s military.】

【Over the following days, you use wood-attribute spiritual energy daily to accelerate the growth of the spirit rice in the fields. The rice grows increasingly well, and some portions have already matured—in less than half a month, you’ll be able to harvest several million jin of spirit rice.】

【During this period, you still don’t slack on your cultivation.】

【You consume three hundred drops of spirit liquid daily to sustain your daily cultivation needs, and your cultivation level improves noticeably.】

【At the same time, you put vitality training on your agenda, spending two to three double-hours each day tempering your vitality.】

【One day, having accumulated the Great Wisdom effect in advance, you set aside time to visit the Luotian Assembly dungeon.】

Su Xing’s heart stirred when he saw this, and he silently intoned:

“Activate immersive simulation mode, duration twenty-four hours!”

【Ding! You have successfully activated immersive simulation mode. Duration: 24 hours. Energy cost: 2.4 million points. Remaining energy: 64.37 million.】

Though Su Xing’s energy was a bit tight right now, spending a few million to learn divine techniques in the Luotian Assembly dungeon was well worth it.

As the notification chime faded, the scenery before Su Xing’s eyes shifted and transformed.

The next second, Su Xing appeared in the familiar great hall.

“Good disciple, go to the rear mountain and summon Shennong Martial Uncle~”

“Yes, Master!”

Su Xing nodded slightly, then went through the familiar quest routine.

After escorting Shennong Martial Uncle to the Luotian Assembly grounds, Su Xing headed straight for the Scripture Pavilion.

Arriving at the third floor of the Scripture Pavilion, he found that besides cultivation methods and secret arts, there were also some minor divine techniques stored here.

Su Xing wanted to see if he could find a suitable movement-type minor divine technique here.

But after searching for quite a while, Su Xing couldn’t find a movement technique that satisfied him.

They either consumed too much spiritual energy or didn’t provide a significant enough speed boost—none were particularly outstanding.

Eventually, Su Xing stopped before a minor divine technique called “Phantom Shift.”

This minor divine technique couldn’t enable aerial flight, but it could propel the user across the ground at astonishing speed.

With a single step, the body would flash forward like an afterimage, covering a hundred zhang.

Though it looked like the speed was modest, it could still double Su Xing’s speed.

Beyond all that, the most important thing was that this divine ability was also a movement technique!

In combat, one could use the effects of Phantom Shift to confuse opponents, thereby reducing the chances of being attacked.

“Sigh, running on the ground ultimately can’t compare to flying through the sky… but this is the best I can do. If I want to cultivate a better escape art, perhaps I’d need to go to the fourth floor?” Su Xing let out a sigh and was about to begin studying this divine ability.

But from behind him came Ghost Granny’s voice.

“You seem to be looking for a suitable escape-type divine ability?”

Ghost Granny glanced at the divine ability jade slip in Su Xing’s hand and asked.

Upon hearing this, Su Xing hurriedly bowed to Ghost Granny and said:

“Greetings, Senior Ghost!”

Ghost Granny frowned slightly upon hearing this. “You know me?”

Su Xing froze for a moment, nearly forgetting that he had learned Ghost Granny’s name during the last simulation, but in this iteration she had lost her memories.

He’d almost blown his cover…

Thinking quickly on his feet, Su Xing hastily said: “My master, Niu Rilie, once mentioned you…”

Ghost Granny nodded slightly at this and didn’t press further.

She simply said: “I have a minor escape-type divine ability here that is very well suited to you. While it’s not top-tier, it has great compatibility with you. For you, its practicality would be no less than a major escape-type divine ability. Would you like to learn it?”

Su Xing’s eyes lit up when he heard this, and he nodded repeatedly.

This Ghost Granny was really quite nice — giving him pleasant surprises in every simulation?

So Su Xing quickly said: “Thank you, Senior! For the grace of your teachings, this junior will surely repay you in the future!”

Ghost Granny nodded slightly upon hearing this and said:

“Of course, this isn’t given freely. Since you have the heart to repay me, then come find me at the Scripture Pavilion again in one year. Is that acceptable?”

“Yes, Senior!”

Su Xing agreed without hesitation.

But inwardly he sighed with regret: Ah, what a shame — next time I come, you won’t remember again. What exactly is this task she wants done a year from now?

At that moment, Ghost Granny extended a finger and pointed at the center of Su Xing’s brow, saying:

“I can sense a trace of Sword Momentum about you. You must be a sword cultivator…”

“Today I shall pass on to you the minor escape-type divine ability — the Sword-Controlling Technique!”

“The Sword-Controlling Technique — on offense, it can form arrays to slay enemies; in retreat, it can cover tens of thousands of miles in a single day… Its potential is limitless. The higher the quality of your spirit sword and the deeper your insights as a sword cultivator, the faster this escape art becomes!”

“In its early stages, it may not match an ordinary minor divine ability… but if you cultivate it diligently, within a hundred years, it could rival a major escape-type divine ability!”

As Ghost Granny’s words fell, Su Xing felt a new segment of memory appear in his mind.

This was the cultivation method for the divine ability, the Sword-Controlling Technique!

“On offense, it can form arrays to slay enemies; in retreat, it can cover tens of thousands of miles in a single day…”

Su Xing silently murmured the words.

In his mind appeared the figure of a cultivator with snow-white hair and beard, ethereal as an immortal.

He watched as the old Daoist pointed a single finger, and his spirit sword became a blur of afterimages, taking the enemy’s head in an instant.

Even when the enemy had already fled a hundred li away, the spirit sword still crossed that hundred li in a single breath, effortlessly claiming the head.

After a few breaths, when all enemies had been slain —

The old Daoist leaped up, landing steadily upon his spirit sword, and rode it away into the distance.

The entire sequence was crisp and decisive, elegant and dashing!

“Kill one man with every ten steps, leave no trace across ten thousand miles…”

A gleam of excitement flashed in Su Xing’s eyes, and he could barely resist the urge to slap his thigh.

Damn, the power was secondary.

The most crucial thing was how cool it looked!

Riding a sword to slay enemies, then departing gracefully on the wind — what hot-blooded young man in his early twenties could possibly resist that?

“Thank you, Senior, for the grace of your teachings!”

Su Xing bowed sincerely to Ghost Granny.

Setting everything else aside, Ghost Granny had successively taught him the Myriad-Mile Tracking Art and the Sword-Controlling Technique, and had also pointed him toward the fire-element cultivation art, the Thousand Blazing Flame Art.

Though Ghost Granny wouldn’t remember any of it, Su Xing kept this debt of gratitude firmly in his heart.

Ghost Granny nodded slightly, her expression unchanged, and simply said: “The Sword-Controlling Technique is perfectly suited for you… and when I say this, it’s not only because you’re a sword cultivator…”

“It’s also because you’re a body cultivator!”

Su Xing paused, taken aback. A body cultivator? What did one have to do with the other?

Ghost Granny explained:

“Body cultivation refines physical strength, vital blood, and bodily fortitude… and of course, it also refines primordial energy!”

“Once you’ve delved deep enough into primordial energy, you’ll be able to use it to nurture the spirit sword in your hand, continuously raising its quality!”

“Even a mundane sword, so long as the cultivator’s cultivation is sufficient, could theoretically be nurtured to the level of an immortal-grade artifact!”

“So choosing a sword as your bonded primordial artifact is truly the most fitting choice for you!”

After a brief pause, Ghost Granny added:

“These things should have been told to you by your master, Niu Rilie. But knowing that unreliable fellow, I’m sure he never mentioned any of it…”

“When you have time in the future, you should ask your master for some insights on nurturing primordial artifacts…”

Su Xing nodded earnestly. Niu Rilie really had never told him about this.

Ghost Granny’s figure then receded, leaving Su Xing alone.

At this point, there were still over ten hours remaining before the immersive simulation ended.

Su Xing naturally wouldn’t waste such precious time.

He activated his heightened-intellect state and began memorizing the content of the third chapter of the Three Talents Sword Art — the Heaven Sword chapter.

Time slowly passed, and when the immersive simulation ended, Su Xing’s consciousness returned to the real world.

Back in reality, Su Xing wearily rubbed his temples.

His comprehension of the Earth Sword hadn’t even reached the introductory level yet. The Heaven Sword was practically incomprehensible to him — forcing himself to memorize it had truly been a struggle.

“But… being able to learn the Sword-Controlling Technique this time around was an absolute windfall!”

The corners of Su Xing’s mouth couldn’t help but curve upward.

He genuinely envied sword cultivators from the bottom of his heart.

Who wouldn’t want to be such an ethereal Sword Immortal?

“Tsk tsk, this Sword-Controlling Technique has immense potential. I probably won’t have to worry about my weakness in escape arts for a long time… Of course, I’ll need to invest time in cultivating it!”

Su Xing mused, while also harboring some curiosity.

“Just how powerful is this Ghost Granny, really?”

“Niu Rilie, as a Grand Elder, is at least comparable to a Body Integration stage cultivator… Yet Ghost Granny addresses Niu Rilie without any deference. She’s at least his peer, if not his senior!”

“On top of that, when Ghost Granny transmitted the divine ability to me through memory infusion, she barely suffered any backlash at all…”

“Such cultivation is above even Grand Elder Niu Rilie!”

“Could it be… that Ghost Granny is a Mahayana-level cultivator?!”

Su Xing arrived at a tentative conclusion.

The Luotian Assembly instance was truly of an extremely high level!

Though he couldn’t bring out magical treasures, there was no danger to his life either.

For Su Xing, it was absolutely a prime location for grinding experience!

“I’ve already memorized the Sword-Controlling Technique. Now it’s time to get back to business…”

Su Xing murmured, his gaze turning to the simulation panel.

【After emerging from the Luotian Assembly instance, you continued to diligently cultivate and tend your spirit fields every day.】

【Two months quickly passed, and you harvested another five million jin of spirit rice.】

【At the same time, Jin Congxue brought you news — Great Xia’s military had agreed to the trade with the Tarot Society.】

【Each year, the Tarot Society would provide one million jin of spirit rice to Great Xia’s military.】

【In return, Great Xia’s military would grant the Tarot Society mining rights to two additional exotic metal mining zone instances, with the primary mineral still being first-order exotic metal.】

【Upon learning this news, you immediately discussed with Jin Congxue, hoping to provide ten million jin of spirit rice annually to Great Xia’s military in exchange for mining rights to even more exotic metal mining zone instances.】

【But Jin Congxue rejected your proposal, explaining the advantages and disadvantages to you in detail.】

【In short, spirit rice was a resource of enormous influence. If only one or two million jin flowed into Great Xia’s military, perhaps it wouldn’t cause too great a stir.】

【It could be distributed solely to students at the universities. But if ten million jin were provided, word would inevitably leak out, and even Lu Yuanwu wouldn’t be able to suppress it.】

【After all, Jin Congxue’s story to Great Xia’s military was that she had accidentally discovered an instance capable of producing spirit rice, and hoped to trade its annual yield for mining rights to mineral zone instances.】

【According to this cover story, a mere million jin of spirit rice might not be enough to tempt Great Xia’s military. But ten million jin? That would likely make them want to seize the instance for themselves.】

【After hearing Jin Congxue’s words, you pondered at length. Ultimately, after further discussion with Jin Congxue, you arrived at a number.】

【At most, two million jin of spirit rice could be provided annually to Great Xia’s military under Jin Congxue’s name.】

【Any more than that, and Jin Congxue’s status would be insufficient to keep things under control. It would likely attract the covetous attention of those with ulterior motives.】