The Elder took a great sword, 5 meters long, twice Vong Tran's height, and handed it to him with one hand, saying, "From now on, you will practice with this sword."
Vong Tran frowned and grumbled, "Changing swords again? I refuse!"
The Elder immediately hit him on the head with his staff and said, "Too much talking! Truong Thiet, who is your age, has been practicing with this for five years! Less complaining."
The Elder handed Vong Tran a heavy armor, saying, "Give this to Bach Ho. It is the Mysterious Armor, a kind of magical artifact. It can shrink or enlarge depending on the wearer, perfectly suited for Bach Ho's ability to transform."
Vong Tran asked, "Since when did our village learn to forge armor?"
The Elder shook his head and said, "We don't. This armor belonged to a Great Demon, the Black Tiger Demon King, who was 50 meters tall and was slain by our ancestor. We just kept it as a war trophy. Since no one uses it, it's just gathering dust here. Take it to him."
The Elder and Vong Tran continued into a cave labyrinth, lit only by the torch in their hands. They stopped at the Purple Door ??, and the Elder said, "Stay outside; only those officially inheriting the Purple Robe Celestial Master title are allowed in."
The Elder took a key and stepped inside. Inside were many jade cores, which were the Inner Cores of the Great Demon Beasts that this Celestial Master family had eliminated. The Elder scanned through many cores and stopped before the Inner Core named Three-Tailed Fox Demon ??. A sly and delighted smile flashed across the Elder's lips: "I hope you are still useful."
The Elder exited the Purple Door and gave the core to Vong Tran, saying, "Embed this core into the sword and practice. Now, go to the training ground and show me all your skills—everything you know."
After watching, the Elder said, "All that garbage is useless stuff learned in the Black Heaven Sect. Didn't they have a teacher there?" Vong Tran remained silent, not daring to say a word.
The Elder continued: "A few things are salvageable. Creating two hands from Yin Qi is quite useful for fighting against an encircling crowd. You can use those hands as a shield, to bind, to grab objects, or to attack—it's a flawed copy of the Thousand-Hand Asura technique. Back then, I heard of someone who could create thousands of such hands. I heard they were at the Nascent Soul or Spirit Transformation stage."
Vong Tran took out a handwritten tablet of this secret skill. The Elder examined it and said, "It's incomplete, but enough to train up to the Core Formation stage, which is equivalent to a Purple Robe Celestial Master."
Vong Tran delightedly asked, "So, I can't reach the Nascent Soul stage?"
The Elder frowned and said, "Don't be so arrogant, child. Even though you are a Single Root, the best spiritual root, you can only reach Core Formation, Kim Dan at the highest. The Nascent Soul is beyond reach. In my whole life, I've only known the Seven Star Sword Sect Ancestor, the highest peak of the Sword Sect, who reached Nascent Soul."
Vong Tran asked curiously, "When did Grandpa meet the Seven Star Sword Sect Ancestor?"
The Elder smiled and said, "It was during the time you ran away from home. The Ancestor came here and took your eldest brother back."
Vong Tran immediately stood up and said, "Where is my brother? Let me see him."
The Elder said calmly, "He followed the Ancestor and only comes back occasionally. The Ancestor came here to lecture me, because I was too stubborn, forcing my children to practice the sword. Your brother only liked using the saber. Because of my stubbornness, your brother got angry and left."
The Ancestor taught me: 'The weapon is only an external object; the important thing is the desire to slay demons and uphold justice.' I have admitted my mistake and reconciled with your brother. I will contact him so he can arrange a time to return and meet you. His name now is Blade Black."
Vong Tran said joyfully, "Yes, please!"
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The Elder continued: "Back to your skills. The second thing, your use of the Soul Summoning Banner, is quite fast, but that's basic knowledge in our village, so it doesn't count. The third thing, that Shout, is very similar to the potential of the Heavenly Hound's Roar skill. Practice these three things, and discard the others."
Vong Tran said, "I want to learn Talisman Manipulation and Talisman Drawing. I know you don't want me to learn this, only to focus on sword training and Sword Control. But I'm really not good at those two; a short sword or a short saber is more my style."
The Elder sighed, showing helplessness, and said, "Alright, I won't force you. Using a sword or a saber, a short sword or a short saber, is fine. As for Talisman Manipulation, I will teach you. You don't need to be a sword master to learn it."
Vong Tran shouted with joy, "Yeah, that's great! I get to learn what I like!"
The Elder sighed, disappointed, and walked away, muttering, "The Sword Sect lineage ends with me. The last inheritor doesn't like using a sword. What will they be called later?"
Vong Tran heard this and laughed, controlling his Yin Qi Arm to pick up the 5-meter great sword and perform a sword move with extreme speed and great power. The Yin Qi Arm is invisible to ordinary people, making Vong Tran appear to be using Sword Control. The Yin Qi Arm directly transmitted Yin Qi into the Black Iron Sword, causing a reaction. The patterns on the sword began to emit a very faint blue-purple light, increasing its power many times, which greatly impressed the Elder.
Vong Tran said, "I'm not good at Body Cultivation; I don't have enough strength to wield this great sword, and my Sword Control ability is also poor. So, I deliberately practiced this secret skill, the Twin Black Hands, for this situation."
The Elder was moved, hugged his grandson, and said, "Thank you, my child, for understanding me."
Separation and New Journeys
A short while later, Han Thuong, Hoa Minh, and Tho Trung Sa returned to their respective sects to report, register, and receive new missions. Noe and Bach Ho stayed in Ghost Valley Village with Vong Tran. Noe stayed here for more than 10 years before leaving, occasionally returning to the house by the Phoenix Lake. Bach Ho stayed quite a long time, and whenever he went somewhere, he quickly returned here to train. Vong Tran, with the effect of the Three-Tailed Fox Demon Inner Core, became increasingly masculine, married, and had children over 30 years, but he had not yet been made the Purple Robe Celestial Master, only a Yellow Robe Celestial Master (B).
The Heavenly Record ??
Log Date: [Current Story Date]
Event: Noe and his companions have arrived at Ghost Valley Village, a mysterious village dedicated to demon-slaying. Vong Tran has been given a new task, and Bach Ho has learned to control his power.
Impact: Noe learned about the Tai Chi, Liang Yi doctrine ??, helping him better understand Divine Intellect and Divine Sense. The relationships between the characters have become closer than ever.
- Merit Updates
- Character Profile Updates
- Analysis of Demonic and Ghostly Power
- Yin Qi ???: In this chapter, Yin Qi was mentioned as a type of energy, a poison that can kill ordinary people but serves as a nutrient source for spectral entities, demons, and wicked spirits.
- Spectral Entities, Demons, Wicked Spirits ??: These are creatures nourished by Yin Qi that can attack people and cause great harm.