Edict of the Blade Fiend

Chapter 1: Soul Of The Old Sage.

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation  Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

It was a chilly fall night. Over the frozen lake, silhouettes of cranes that were flying overhead were visible, illuminated by the pale light of the moon.

As cranes flocked the skies, a majestic yet elegant dance reflected upon the still, shimmering surface of the lake. A young man stood in the center, practicing his sword dance.

“It seems my strikes were not even enough to pierce the veil of water,” said the young man.

His eyes were stained black as they were the colors of strength and determination in its purest form.

He was unmoved by the damage he inflicted upon himself as he bit down too hard on the edge of his cracked lips and blood-streaked down his mouth.

“Swoosh…”

The silver blade glistened as it reflected under the cold and pale moonlight. It penetrated the water below and began moving on its own, the rays of light that refracted off his blade were uncontrollable.

His face grew pale, as beads of sweat dripped into the lake beneath his feet and dissolved in the waters until he could no longer discern the droplets of sweat.

His arms were sore and numb as he was completely drained of energy.

“It’s either I drown and become one with the lake, or I continue to suppress my body’s potential! I am still full of youth and I can’t give up so easily. Grandfather has treated me well and I don’t want to look at his disappointed eyes. I don’t wish to once again disappoint grandpa for the kindness he so generously gifted me.”

His mind was focused on those words, the flames of his unwavering persistence fueled his soul, giving him the final push of motivation.

His face became paler than before as he continued to reach out his arm to swing his long blade, persistence was written all over his face.

…

As time passed, somehow, memories of his past flashed across his eyes.

The daily training for him was no walk in the park. However, he would feel somewhat accomplished from his arduous training. Strangely enough for today, time seemed to have slowed to a crawl for every passing second, and minutes seemed to have dragged on forever.

Even though the water in the lake was icy cold, he had already adapted to such harsh conditions. His frail silhouette quivered like a wilted leaf clinging onto a branch in the middle of the lake.

He could no longer support his weight.

“So, this is it…am I destined to fail? Am I going to meet my mother now?” As he mumbled, a slender yet hazy figure presented itself in the form of his collective memories.

That was a specter of a figure emerging in the deepest chambers of his heart. It seemed like it was to turn around to face him, but it never did.

Then it struck him as clear as the light of day. He realized the slender figure that made her presence known was his own mother, who had been long dead in his father’s eyes.

As he faded out of consciousness, he lost the only support keeping his body upright as he collapsed into the freezing waters below.

In that instant, he suddenly saw a cloud of misty aurora that descended upon him as the sky lit up bright red through the starry night sky.

…

‘Verily, I say unto you, the essence of the ancient blood feeds your soul. Master the art of The Formless Fist, and the world will bend to your will.’

…

I have transcended the limitations of my soul, and through that, I’ve gained complete mastery over my pure form.

‘Within the pure form lies the essence and nature of one’s spirit in its purest form. Buried deeper in one’s spirit dwells the real awakening of primordial alchemy of the soul.

‘In search of one’s pure form, one must first seek to understand the meaning of the truth of one’s pure form.

‘In possession of the full truth comes the enlightenment of an oath in one’s mind. Honor the oath, and one shall exceed the limitations of one’s astral form.’

…

‘The secret of ascending one’s skill in martial arts to the pinnacle of perfection lies within the nurturing of one’s soul.

‘Knowledge seeks out those who are at peace with one’s mind and soul.’

…

‘The first form of the Formless Fist Art is the dragon form, dragon slayer form, and the skill of bone detection. Dragon folk are beings of pure Yin, for the essence of the dragon subdue one’s inner flames.

‘The Edict of The Clouds: Dragons are an ascension of flames, also known as clouds. When clouds bore the dragon, this is known as the dragon form. The power of this form begins with the Ren Meridian and connects to the essence of the tiger, which amplifies the cycle of balance between both forms as they ascend and descend in unison and harmony within one’s body.

‘Bring your fist into submission and it will subdue your inner flame. However, if your fist opposes your will, you shall be consumed by its hellish flames. The mind fogs when one’s body tires…”

…

A mysterious aura of energy engulfed his mind. It burrowed deep into his bones, pulling the drowning man back into consciousness as his vision dimmed.

At this very moment, it was unsure of what exactly had happened that the entire lake was now frozen solid.

The lower half of his body was trapped between the thick sheets of ice and it felt inhumanly cold.

His body was frozen stiff, and his face had turned purplish as his breathing was dangerously shallow. However, the only thoughts that flooded his mind were the repeating voices and mantras he had heard moments ago. With that, he had seemingly gained some form of enlightenment of knowledge foreign to his world.

Amongst all, one thing that stood out the most was a style of martial arts., it was indeed one of its kind. It seemed like the pinnacle of some ancient sage life’s work.

“Earth? The Formless Fist? What is all this? Could there be a place simply known as ‘Earth’ in this world? On top of that, could there possibly be a wagon known as ‘the car’ that could potentially travel at high speed? What exactly is this ‘computer’?”

This strange knowledge of a foreign world only lingered in his mind for a very brief moment, since he was more keen to learn this intricate set of unique martial arts.

Even though his body was dangerously weakened.

“This is a realm dictated by the law of the sword, and that is known as Earth, whatever it is.. However, wise words that were spoken by the ancient master of the Formless Fist were right. As many laws as there are, all will still diverge into the same destination…

“Since I have nothing to lose, I’ll use the Formless Fist as a foundation, utilizing the intricacy of this ancient art, I will be able to create a sword skill to call my own based around its knowledge!

“This ancient sage was capable of Spatial Destruction equivalent to a god in our realm. With his teachings my skills would undoubtedly improve by a lot.”

He mumbled and had decided on the next chapter of his life.

…

“Zhou Yan, are you actually still training? Even if you had somehow managed to exceed rank three of a swordsman and reach rank one as a blade’s cardinal, you would’ve crippled your own body at that point with the lengths you pushed your body to!”

“The body is the most important thing to a swordsman. How could you have lost your way! You really think that all this while you’re untalented only because you were suppressing your natural talent? How disappointing if that was the truth!” said a maiden draped in a purple silk cloak. The lady was strong and outspoken, coupled with unrivaled elegance and angelic beauty.

The lady stood on top of a cavernous cliff by the lake as her hair flowed like a waterfall. A mysterious ferocious aura surrounded her body. Her drapes fluttered in the wind while her purple silk cloak flapped in the dirt. It was indeed a mesmerizing yet frightful sight.

She was none other than Zhou Lingyi of the Zhou family—infamous for her prime beauty and wisdom.

She was also Zhou Yan’s idol. He had adored her for a long time.

Usually, he was quick to explain himself or submit to her by lowering his head in guilt. This was what he would do in the past.

However, it was different this time. He did not do so seemingly due to the influence of the ancient sage. The man simply stared blankly at her and grinned. “Did I disappoint you? When have I ever not disappointed you?”

The grin was accompanied by a creepy yet mockingly sarcastic tone. His response got the young lady standing tall on the cliff to raised her eyebrows in shock.

At the same time, Zhou Yan felt a strange feeling inside him while he spoke.

The words that escaped his mouth made him feel free and comfortable. No longer did he have to worry nor hide his opinion as he spoke his mind.

He was completely caught off guard by how bold he was and he realized how great it felt.

“How brave of you to speak to me like that!” she screamed. Her furious composure was hiding a shred of sarcastic smugness.

Zhou Yan could never comprehend her sarcasm. However, this time, he could feel that all his senses were heightened and could perceive even the slightest hints of emotions.

“What about the tone you’ve always used when you speak to me? Many months ago, you never bothered about me. I’ve cared for you, submitted to you… all in the name of love. Since then, I lowered myself to nothing more than a speck of dust. However, I have devoted to the way of the sword now. Once I perfect the skills of my blade, all the women will then flock to me.”

Zhou Yan said with resonating confidence and might in each word.

Zhou Lingyi gave Zhou Yan a confused look and a hint of anger was visible through her cold demeanor. Her eyebrows twitched and she said, “Looks like you have truly gone mad! Do show me what you are fully capable of on the test of might in a full month’s time.”

Holding back her rage, she left the cliff while flipping the tail ends of her coat furiously.

Looking down at the lake, he realized the ice had melted, freeing his body. Through the reflection of the lake, he saw his pale face and weak body.

He felt reborn on the inside. Upon reflection, he realized that his past beliefs were immature and foolish. He recalled his past actions and was revolted by his naivety and foolishness.

He recalled that he used to lower himself to submit to the lady when he was pursuing her and it felt normal to him. In the wake of current events, he found that act to be appalling.

Hence, he was no longer guilty even if he had pissed Zhou Lingyi off with his words.

With a deep breath of crisp cold air entering his lungs, he began the cycle of Qi energy in his body. In one swift kick, he leaped gracefully from the lake and landed on top of the cliff.

Turning toward the moonlight, he drew another deep breath as he began accumulating his inner Qi.

Zhou Yan felt a strong and powerful force of energy building inside him. It was as if this energy was buried deep in his body. It was like what the old sage said, great energy was stored in the solar plexus of his body!

However, this energy felt foreign to him.

‘If this is the inner strength, I must make this power mine!’ Zhou Yan thought to himself.

As he focused his mind, he started channeling every single sword skill and mantras he knew in a single breath.

However, the collective Qi energy he conjured for the skills was not even a fraction to that burst of innate, foreign energy!

He frowned as he was puzzled.

After contemplating for a brief moment, Zhou Yan recalled the ancient sage had mentioned a unique ancient scroll entitled ‘Nine Fold Yin-Yang Manuscripts’. Instantly, he focused his breathing using the method instructed by the first chapter of that scroll.

He realized the methods were similar to the mantras of the sword skill of his bloodline!

In this particular attempt, the mass of Qi felt somewhat similar to a god-slaying sword swung wildly intending to slay a god in his body.

Nothing could stand in the way of that sudden rush of pure unhinged energy which coursed through his meridians.

As the Qi energy flowed through his liver meridian, it gushed through the Tai Xu, Yuan Chong, Shou Ren, Qi Du, and Zhu Yao1 pressure gates of his body.

At this moment, vapors of smoke escaped from Zhou Yan’s body. He felt as if he had been struck by lightning since he suddenly had uncontrollable spasms. He was tormented by every form of unimaginable pain.

However, Zhou Yan did not make a single whimper despite coughing out three liters of blood and bearing that agonizing pain that pierced through his bones and soul.

He was known for his strong will and stubbornness. After being infused with the spirit of the old sage, his determination reached unimaginable new heights!

Cold sweat that had soaked his long robes were now completely dried from the immense heat that his body released. However, he paid no attention to it.

“Huu…” The young man exhaled.

A cloud of black smoke escaped his body and Zhou Yan was instantly recovered. Since his soul felt completely refreshed and he could now see things that used to be invisible to him. His fatigue and shallow breathing had all faded away.

He succeeded in infusing the collection of foreign Qi as his own. Through the tormenting pain, he was completely reborn and had exceeded the realm of a rank three swordsmen and attained the heights of a rank one blade’s cardinal!

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Alas, there he stood, with a wave of his hand, a stream of water from the lake launched into his grasp and exploded in bursts of glory and showered on him.

Seemingly baptized by the stream, the waters washed the dirt and grime from his body and purified him.

“This is only the first fold and it already contains this much ferocity. Why would I submit to the will of anyone? I can be a natural genius! I will no longer be a burden to my family! No longer will Grandpa be disappointed in me!”

Zhou Yan’s eyes were now stained black and his mind was as sharp as ever. He rejoiced at his newfound confidence in his future!