Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Two: A Second Blooming Plum Blossom
On the way here.
Qiu Ju had already conjured up a lot of ideas herself.
As sword attendants, she and her sister Chun Lan were allowed to use the Communication Device in the Sword Palace. During one of her secret excursions with it, she had stumbled upon some blush-inducing scenarios in a manga about Fusa Pavilion.
In those comics, the villains would hold dirt on the female lead and force her into some seriously embarrassing situations.
Qiu Ju couldn’t shake the feeling that Young Master Sang was looking at her with similar ill intentions.
Just like the bad guys in the manga.
So, the thought that he might threaten her into doing something truly terrifying made Qiu Ju shudder.
But.
If it meant she could protect her sister… she bit her lip hard.
“Don’t be so stressed.”
To her surprise, Sang Zhe just grinned and said, “I just want you to practice swordsmanship with me.”
“Come on, show me a set of moves.”
Qiu Ju nervously bit her lip and hesitantly agreed.
She picked up the wooden sword Sang Zhe had propped against the side and danced it through a set of sword stances.
Though a bit stiff from being watched, it was still quite the sight—a young, beautiful girl with a graceful form wielding a sword.
As she performed, Sang Zhe confirmed his thoughts.
Just as he suspected.
Qiu Ju and Chun Lan were practically mirror images.
Chun Lan had a fiery personality, which prompted Gu Yingmian to specifically have her learn softer sword techniques to temper her disposition.
Qiu Ju was no different.
Her overly gentle nature made her swordsmanship too mild.
Thus, Gu Yingmian had taught her the most aggressive and fervent offensive moves.
This directly led to Qiu Ju currently facing the same predicament as Chun Lan.
Her swordsmanship had hit a wall, making progress a distant dream.
Watching the girl sweat while dancing the sword, Sang Zhe appreciated the view for a bit before giving a light nod.
“Not bad.”
“I finally understand why your sister resorted to sneaking to learn forbidden techniques.”
Qiu Ju immediately stopped, her large eyes wide with curiosity: “Why?”
“Because losing to her little sister would be too bitter to swallow, right?”
Sang Zhe explained, “With her strong-willed nature, she sees protecting her delicate little sister as her duty.”
“So, she desperately practices hard. If she’s weaker than you, how could she protect you?”
Hearing this, Qiu Ju momentarily lowered her gaze, seemingly lost in thought.
“Truly a good sister.”
Sang Zhe clicked his tongue in admiration, “If I had a sister like that, I’d gladly laze about every day, just curling up under her wings doing nothing, waiting for her to protect me…”
“N-No!”
Suddenly, Qiu Ju’s voice shot up.
Sang Zhe turned to see the girl’s cheeks flushed, and her beautiful eyes were misty, blinking rapidly.
“I… I don’t want to keep hiding behind my sister.”
“I don’t want her to protect me.”
“I want to become strong too, to be her support!”
Got it! Sang Zhe seized the moment, feigning a dramatic sigh:
“Oh dear, but it seems like Qiu Ju’s swordsmanship… might be hitting a bottleneck?”
“If this continues, you’ll fall far behind your sister, who’s learning forbidden techniques.”
Qiu Ju’s heart skipped a beat, and an adorable, almost tearful expression surfaced.
“What, what should I do?”
Sang Zhe gently patted her shoulder: “Don’t worry, Qiu Ju.”
“If you trust me, I might have a solution.”
“With your gentle nature, you’re actually more suited to softer sword techniques.”
“Isn’t that convenient? It’s right up your alley!” Sang Zhe clapped, “I just happen to specialize in gentle sword techniques.”
“I have an ancestral treasure that lets one truly experience the essence of the sword techniques from ancient masters.”
“I believe, with your talent, Qiu Ju, you’ll soon master this set of techniques.”
“Combining both hardness and softness, you definitely won’t fall behind your sister.”
Win over… my sister?
A flicker of confusion passed through Qiu Ju’s beautiful eyes.
When Sang Zhe caught that moment of wavering, he knew.
She was already intrigued.
The following process was basically a copy-and-paste.
Like her sister, after just trying the training jewel once, Qiu Ju was instantly entranced by the sensation.
In the end, she completely collapsed into Sang Zhe’s arms, panting softly.
“How was it?”
“I wasn’t lying, right?” Sang Zhe teased, brushing away the sweat-soaked hair from her forehead.
“Just come by to learn swordsmanship with me every day.”
“At the upcoming Sword Palace competition, you’ll defeat your sister.”
“When your sister realizes you are strong enough to protect yourself…”
“Then she won’t need to force herself to learn forbidden techniques anymore!”
At this moment, Qiu Ju was utterly exhausted, her eyes hazy and consciousness fading.
Yet, she still kept murmuring:
“The Sword Palace competition…”
“Defeating… my sister…”
Sang Zhe nodded in satisfaction.
——
——
After Qiu Ju left in a daze, Sang Zhe reclined back onto his bed and casually asked:
“Nian Nian, how’s the progress on the sisterly duo’s strategy?”
“Each has reached 50%.”
Not bad.
Attaining this speed in just a week was quite satisfactory.
Sang Zhe hadn’t hoped to complete his strategy on both sisters during this confinement period.
The rest could wait until he finished sweet-talking Gu Yingmian.
Although, those two really did share deep sisterly bonds.
Wonder if he could gain points for conquering both.
These couple of days spent on exchanging for training jewels had already set him back quite a bit.
Actually, Sang Zhe wasn’t the type to meddle just because the sisters were getting along well; it was more about the crucial role they played in his plans as Gu Yingmian’s personal sword attendant.
As a prelude to conquering Gu Yingmian, he had to ensure these girls would listen to him first.
“Now, I just have to wait until I’m out in three days.”
Sang Zhe lay comfortably on the bed: “Nian Nian, let me browse the store and see what sword techniques catch my eye.”
Nian Nian, maintaining her usual disinterest, just tossed his mind into the system space to browse through a myriad of sword classics.
“Hmm… Ripple Sword Technique, Celestial Stage Sword Technique.”
“Chong Yang Sword Method, Crossing Tribulation Stage Sword Technique.”
“Exploratory Sword Technique… Wait, is that even a sword technique?”
After a long time of browsing, Sang Zhe still couldn’t find what he needed.
To grab Gu Yingmian’s attention, a standard sword technique simply wouldn’t cut it.
While high-level training jewels were outrageously expensive, he couldn’t afford to hold back on points when it mattered most.
Suddenly, his gaze fell on a sword technique that caught his interest.
“Peaceful Floating Life Sword”
Sword Technique Level: ?
“Hmm?” He picked up this sword manual.
What drew him in wasn’t the question mark.
But rather, the name.
That name, Sang Zhe had seen before.
