Chapter 20: Intelligence (Cultivation)
Chapter 20: Intelligence (Cultivation)
As a secret agent cultivated by the Guardians, Night Dream was well aware of her role.
Orphaned at a young age, her parents perished in battle against the Sole Truth Sect when she was merely two years old.
Since the age of two and a half, she had participated in secret training at the Shadow Chamber.
Alongside Night Dream, four hundred children of similar age underwent this clandestine training at the base.
Over time, some became assassins, while others were eliminated or reassigned to clerical duties, joining the City Guard or various functional departments.
In the end, only fifteen remained.
The ruthless elimination process could no longer be described as a sieve that filtered out the weak.
Among the fifteen, there were both boys and girls, and three of them had already been sent out on missions and sacrificed their lives.
Night Dream was the first among these fifteen. With exceptional aptitude, mastery of her skills, and unparalleled stealth, she stood out.
Due to her outstanding aptitude and adorable appearance, with her large eyes and natural baby fat, she was always under close observation and received various forms of instruction.
Her eyes were too big.
And she had a hint of natural baby fat.
When she opened her eyes, she exuded a cute and innocent charm.
Even if her mind was sharp, her outward appearance gave off a dazed and adorable vibe.
Anyone who saw her would think she was a little slow and dim-witted.
Yet, she was naturally endearing.
With slightly drooping eyes, she was a calamity in the making; but when she opened her eyes, she instantly transformed from a fairy into an adorable little girl.
You just wanted to pinch her cheeks.
With such exceptional qualities, the Guardians were reluctant to deploy her.
Until now, the higher-ups believed it was time to test her.
Upon receiving Fan Tantiantiao's report, they learned it was just a new recruit with low strength, making her a relatively safe choice.
So, they assigned her to Fang Che's side for some initial experience.
After all, Fang Che's line was of limited use due to his low rank and young age—only a Samurai.
They decided to see if there were any gains; if not, they could simply recall her.
It was like hitting three times to get a date, allowing Night Dream to gain some experience.
But Night Dream was now a bit lost.
The mission was too easy!
Fang Che had essentially provided her with the most relaxed environment for her undercover role, and his reasons were impeccable.
Night Dream felt it was indeed the case.
It was indeed the case!
So, even though Night Dream couldn't sleep, she began to feel confused.
"Successfully infiltrated Fang Che's side."
"Fang Che's cultivation is around the fifth rank of the Samurai level, with exceptional aptitude. His cultivation speed is remarkable, and at this rate, he will surely be in the top ten, with a chance for the top three, during the next Guardian Martial Academy's entrance examination."
"Fang Che intends to cultivate me to assist him in the future."
"..."
Night Dream wrote a few simple lines in secret and sent them out.
...
Subsequently, Fang Che commenced his cultivation, not only diligently practicing himself but also urging Night Dream to join him. He demanded even more from her.
To the point of becoming somewhat eccentric.
Any slight deviation from the standard would result in beatings and verbal abuse, filled with words like 'useless, unfit for cultivation, what quality, wasting my food!'...
Night Dream was furious but dared not speak up, nor could she reveal her true abilities. She endured the insults and practiced diligently, her head throbbing from the scolding.
"You can't even hold a sword properly!"
"Cultivate! Look at me!"
"It's been three days, and you still haven't grasped the basics!"
"You can't even stand or walk properly, let alone run. What do you eat? Do you think being a maid is just about pouring tea and serving water?"
"..."
Whenever Fang Che rested, Night Dream's nightmare began!
His mouth was like a venomous snake, spewing all sorts of vicious insults.
Cold and cruel.
"With your aptitude, if you don't make progress, you're only good for bearing children!"
"Your chest is flat, your butt doesn't perk, and your body is all skin and bones. Even as a concubine, you'd be a nuisance..."
"If you're this stupid, I'll sell you to the brothel!"
Night Dream's heart burned with rage, and many times, she had to restrain herself from slapping this guy.
His mouth was so damn venomous!
She felt like her head would explode from the scolding, but instinctively, she followed Fang Che's commands. After a day of this, her waist and legs ached, and her head throbbed—yes, from the scolding.
In the evening, after serving Fang Che to sleep, Night Dream began to review her day's progress.
Then, she envisioned each movement in her mind.
Finally, she focused on the action of drawing the sword.
Suddenly, she was a bit surprised.
Recalling the movements carefully and comparing them to her current form, she envisioned multiple sword-drawing silhouettes in her mind.
To her astonishment, she discovered that this method of drawing the sword felt more fluid. Moreover, the act of drawing the sword itself carried killing intent, and with sufficient cultivation, the sword energy could directly harm opponents!
Her previous habitual movements couldn't achieve this!
Although it was just one movement, if she were to draw her sword now with her true strength, the surprise effect would be more than doubled!
And the killing intent would be even greater.
"How is this possible?"
Unconsciously, Night Dream became a bit perplexed.
She decided to observe further the next day.
Perhaps this was the most correct method? Or had no one discovered it before? Had she been practicing incorrectly all along?
Night Dream didn't know how to think about it, but Fang Che, lying on the bed, secretly smiled.
Hmph, a weak woman with no martial arts training experience, who had just recovered from serious injuries, was holding a four-jin heavy green steel sword and practicing for an afternoon without her arms swelling up.
This little girl was lucky to have met me.
Otherwise, she would probably be subjected to harsh interrogation by now.
Morning.
As Night Dream fetched water, Fang Che hummed and said, "What's wrong? Does your arm hurt? I knew you were useless. You've been practicing swordplay all afternoon and this is the result? What a waste!"
Night Dream broke out in a cold sweat.
Suddenly realizing her mistake, she hurriedly said, "This is... my first time practicing swordplay, and it feels so novel... I wasn't paying attention to my body..."
"You need to coordinate with the Heart Technique. I'll teach you the Heart Technique I learned today."
Fang Che hummed and said, "That's my master's unique technique."
"Your master?"
"Of course."
Fang Che proudly said, "My master is known as the Flying Sky Saber King. You don't understand now, but you will in the future. The word 'king' represents something significant!"
Flying Sky Saber King! Night Dream's heart trembled.
Her mind immediately filled with countless pieces of information about the Flying Sky Saber King, Sun Yuan; a figure who walked the line between good and evil, a wandering cultivator in the martial world.
Could it be...
"You're so amazing!" Night Dream praised.
"Of course!"
Fang Che proudly raised his head and said, "I, Fang Che, am a genius, and I have many influential friends. Do you know what that means?\"
Night Dream exclaimed, "Influential people? I've never met any influential people before. In my heart, you are the greatest influential person."
Fang Che boasted, "Do you know how many truly influential people there are? Besides, you've just started on the path of martial arts. Those who are truly influential, like the people I just met from the Seal God Palace, you'll understand in the future."
Seal God Palace? Night Dream suppressed the tremor in her heart and shook her head in confusion, "I don't understand."
Fang Che waved his hand dismissively, "Talking to you is like playing the lute to a cow. Alright, you can leave now."
It's time to send a message through the spatial ring.
The Seal God Palace didn't come here just to baptize me into the sect, because I'm not that important.
So, his arrival here must be for something significant! Quick, report this!
...
Fang Che quietly chuckled to himself. This was a message he intentionally spread; first, the fact that the leader of the Demon Sect was involved meant it was a major event, and this information was crucial and couldn't be delayed. Second, Night Dream had just arrived, and once she became familiar with her surroundings, she would automatically steal intelligence, so this opportunity would be missed.
Of course, there was a third reason, which was to quickly give her some achievements and let her demonstrate her value, as it was not easy to have a spy by his side.
What if she was a fool and couldn't gather any information after a few days, and was recalled? Fang Che would be dumbfounded.
So, although the method was a bit low, for now, it was effective.
...
The next day was spent practicing cultivation.
Fang Qianyi saw that his son was practicing with great enthusiasm, so he joined in.
As they practiced, Fang Qianyi couldn't help but praise, "You're right, Che. The techniques your master taught you are indeed useful."
Yes, Fang Qianyi had also noticed the benefits.
Fang Che didn't care about this at all.
These were his people, and the stronger they were, the better.
Except for the Boundless Scripture, which couldn't be passed on, everything else was possible.
In these few days, Fang Che had made a little progress in the Boundless Scripture, reaching the first level; the Crystal Mind Platform and Bone Transformation had already been completely mastered.
Blood Spirit Seven Swords and the Thirteen Movements of the Divine Ape Heart Extraction had reached proficiency.
Of course, the top priority was Sun Yuan's teachings, and various saber techniques, body techniques, and heart techniques were all thoroughly understood.
Saber, spear, sword, and lance techniques were also carefully studied one by one.
...
Meanwhile, the Guardian Hall had already started making arrangements.
Regarding Night Dream's intelligence, only two people in the hall were qualified to see it.
Chen Ruhai and Fantiantiao.
The two, who didn't get along, had to meet every day to discuss matters.
"The Flying Sky Saber King, Sun Yuan, has been spotted!
Fantiantiao's expression was filled with worry as he pondered, "However, the key point in this intelligence is this sentence: 'Fang Che mentioned the leader of the Unity Sect, the Seal God Palace, and said, 'like the people I met from the Seal God Palace today.' I'm informing you of this specifically."
"This is the most crucial point. This girl probably doesn't even realize the significance of the intelligence she conveyed."
Chen Ruhai immediately focused all his attention and thought, "It's the Seal God Palace, and it's the Seal God Palace and others... This 'others' is worth considering. Also, how did Fang Che meet the people from the Seal God Palace?"
Chen Ruhai said, "Fang Che is just an outsider from a ninth-rank minor family. With his status, he doesn't even have the qualifications to know the name of the Seal God Palace. Now that he has met them, there must be a reason."
"What reason?"
"The most likely reason is that the Seal God Palace has come, and he has seen them, which means the Seal God Palace is in Verdant Wave City?"
"What qualifications does he have to meet the Seal God Palace?"
"The most likely reason is that he has joined the sect and received the baptism. Apart from this, he has no qualifications to meet the Seal God Palace."
"So, Fang Che has definitely joined the sect. This is certain."
"The Seal God Palace is the leader of a sect, and the main headquarters of the Unity Sect is definitely not here. Would they come all the way here just to baptize Fang Che into the sect? This seems to be making a mountain out of a molehill."
"Yes, so the Seal God Palace must have come here for another important reason! And it's a significant reason." Fantiantiao's face became even more worried.
"When the leader of the Seal God Palace personally makes a move, there must be a reason. In this area, what else could be important enough for the leader to come in person?"
The two discussed further, and soon the situation became clearer.
"If it's an attack on the Guardian Hall, the Seal God Palace probably wouldn't dare. So..."
Chen Ruhai's gaze suddenly froze.
"The Iron Blood Fortress?! My god!"
"Report this immediately!"
(End of Chapter)
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