First Immortal of the Sword

Chapter 54 - Su Yi Teaches Martial Arts, the Sparrow-Catching Hand

Despite himself, Mo Tianling was startled.

He’d said almost the exact same thing to Wen Jueyuan just now! Both proclamations were wildly arrogant!

A moment later, Mo Tianling threw back his head and laughed. “I’ve been training in the Redscale Army for over a year, and I’ve long since lost track of how many enemies I’ve killed. I’ve seen plenty of madmen, but never anyone as insane as you!

“I’ll be interested to see if you’re even worth drawing my blade for!” Before his laughter even finished echoing throughout the arena, Mo Tianling launched himself forward, his bones crackling like beans in hot oil. In a single breath of time, his blood and qi surged like the tide.

Boom!

His feet pressed off against the stage with so much force, the iron-wrought stage shook violently. He shot forth, quick as lightning, charging explosively ahead.

In mid-air, his right hand closed, as if he were swinging a mountain right at Su Yi.

His momentum was fierce and limitlessly domineering!

“What a sophisticated attack! His punch is like the rumbling of thunder. This is a proficient ‘Malevolent Celestial Thunder Hand’!” Fu Shan couldn’t help but exclaim, and his pupils constricted.

The Malevolent Celestial Thunder Hand was Shen Jiusong’s ultimate technique. Its wielder punched like a malevolent star with the force of a thunderbolt, powerful and inscrutable.

Mo Tianling had actually mastered this ultimate art to proficiency! That was far too terrifying!

In Blueriver Sword Manor, only Ni Hao and other top disciples of the inner sect were capable of practicing a martial art to such heights. 

“The Cloudlight Marquis’ Malevolent Celestial Thunder Hand!”

“He’s going to smash Su Yi to bits!”

Exclamations rang out, and many of the major powers were visibly beside themselves.

“Sir….” Hu Quan’s heart was on tenterhooks.

Everyone else was on edge too. Mo Tianling’s momentum was far too terrifying, and the example of Wen Jueyuan’s bitter defeat was still fresh in their memories!

But against all expectations, Su Yi just stood there, unmoving. It was only when Mo Tianling drew near that he subtly raised his right arm.

His fingers closed around the air, his hand a birdcage! A single hand, yet it seemed capable of confining the entirety of both heaven and earth.

His calm detachment quietly transformed.

Bang!

The stage rumbled.

The crowd felt as if they were hallucinating; Mo Tianling stopped, mid-charge, then retreated a full ten feet back. Only then did he manage to stabilize himself. 

“No wonder you dared provoke me the moment you stepped on stage. So, you’ve recovered your cultivation!” Mo Tianling’s eyes glinted with sharp light. Despite his surprise, everything suddenly seemed clearer.

Meanwhile, the entire venue was in uproar.

Su Yi!

Everyone in Guangling City knew he was a live-in son-in-law, a cripple without a cultivation, a disciple cast out of Blueriver Sword Manor. But although none of them knew it, he’d shockingly recovered his cultivation!

This was truly far too shocking!

“How is this possible!?” This revelation dealt Nan Ying an enormous shock, and her pretty face contorted. Her beautiful eyes bulged.

It was precisely because Su Yi had lost his cultivation that she’d turned on him without hesitation, choosing to find another path to reach her goals.

Who would have thought that just one year later, the man she’d disdained as a waste and ruthlessly kicked to the curb would recover?

The shock threw her off balance, and she could no longer control herself.

“It really is unexpected…” Ni Hao was surprised too, but he was far calmer by comparison.

Back when Su Yi was still a Blueriver Sword Manor disciple, he was just in the Refining Sinew stage. Even though he’d recovered, he was still unworthy of Ni Hao’s notice.

“This….” Wen Changqing had been silent and sullen this entire time, but now, he couldn’t help but stare. He was visibly shocked, and his expression shifted erratically. That damned bastard! He sure hid himself awfully deep!

Wen Jueyuan, Wen Shaobei, and the other Wen Family youths reacted as if they’d seen a ghost; they just stood there, dazed. All of them were wondering the same thing: When the hell did Su Yi recover his cultivation?

“Hmph. No wonder you’re so brazen,” said Li Tianhan, his gaze sinister. “It turns out you’ve regained everything you lost.”

A cripple wasn’t worth a second thought.

But when a cripple regained his cultivation and became a martial artist again, that was an entirely different story.

Li Tianhan furrowed his brow. When he recalled that his son, Li Moyun, was planning to murder Su Yi this very night, he fell silent.

“That boy sure knows how to keep his cool.” Zhou Huaiqiu looked gratified, and his eyes flashed with delight. However, his heart churned. He suddenly regretted not paying Su Yi a visit after arriving in Guangling City.

Could it be that he chose not to tell me he’d regained his cultivation precisely because I treated him so distantly? When this possibility occurred to him, Zhou Huaiqiu’s delight receded, and he felt internally conflicted. 

“So, our family’s son-in-law became a martial artist again….!” Hu Quan was beside himself with joy.

Of those present, only Fu Shan, Huang Yunchong, Nie Beihu, Nie Teng, and Huang Qianjun remained relatively calm.

This was because they’d long since known of Su Yi’s recovery, and they understood his abilities far better than the rest of the audience.

The venue practically boiled over, especially on Guangling City’s side. They were in uproar!

Even Cloudfall City’s side was stunned beyond belief; a live-in son-in-law, someone universally regarded as a mere cripple, yet he’d managed such a counter-attack? This was undoubtedly a huge shock.

Suddenly, Li Tianyu snorted coldly and roared, “So what if he regained his cultivation? Back when he was still the Blueriver Sword Manor’s outer sect Sword Chief, his cultivation was inferior to even Wen Jueyuan’s!”

This one sentence suppressed much of the discussion, and the atmosphere calmed down significantly.

“That’s right! Mo Tianling beat Wen Jueyuan with a single punch. Even if Su Yi’s recovered his cultivation, what of it?” Nan Ying muttered to herself. She’d lost control over her emotions earlier, but this thought made her much calmer.

The others gradually reacted as well and suppressed their turbulent emotions. They gazed back at the stage.

It was just, when they looked at the newly-recovered Su Yi, their attitude had silently undergone a subtle shift. 

“This is actually a good thing,” said Mo Tianling. He’d already calmed down, and he laughed, “This way, when I beat you, no one will mock me for bullying a pathetic worm with no cultivation.”

Su Yi remained calm from beginning to end. 

He ignored Mo Tianling’s provocations. Instead, he glanced over at Nie Teng, who was now seated beside his father at the banquet, then said, “Watch carefully.”

Nie Teng was briefly stunned. His face filled with confusion; he didn’t get what Su Yi was trying to say.

Boom!

Mo Tianling seized the opportunity to attack once more. He shot through the air with fiendish momentum, charging like lightning, fast and despotic. This was a true killing art, tempered on the battlefield. His bloodlust was terrifying.

Wen Jueyuan held his breath. He had a sudden, powerful premonition that were he the one facing this attack, he’d suffer grievous injuries, and that’s assuming he even made it out alive!

Offstage, the audience could sense that Mo Tianling was really attacking with the intent to kill. He’d gone all out, and his earlier flippant attitude was nowhere to be seen.

But Su Yi merely stretched, his hands closing around air, floating like clouds and flowing like water, without the slightest urgency.

When Mo Tianling’s fist came crashing towards him, as powerful and despotic as it was, something silently diverted its course. His attack didn’t so much as touch Su Yi’s clothes.

The most unbelievable part was that Su Yi’s movements weren’t quick; his hands were like drifting clouds or unfurling scrolls, yet they had a certain mysterious and inexplicable cadence.

“Achieving maximum results with minimum effort? Diverting a tree with a flower?” Mo Tianling’s expression shifted. This was a martial arts trick, and it wasn’t difficult.

But in Su Yi’s hands, it seemed invincible, without the slightest gap or weakness.

Boom!

Mo Tianling’s eyes glinted with sharp light. He swung his fist with the intent to kill.

He’d fought in the Redscale Army for over a year to refine his Malevolent Celestial Thunder Hand. He’d lost track of how many vicious foes he’d overcome on the blood-soaked battlefield or how long he’d immersed himself in martial arts to achieve proficiency in this technique.

When he exploded with his full power, he was as mighty as a tiger or leopard, and his fist struck like lightning. He was like a human weapon, imposing and overbearing. 

But what made Mo Tianling’s expression change was—

Every time he attacked, Su Yi easily shifted its course, leaving him both infuriated and stifled.

From the perspective of the audience, Mo Tianling attacked like a storm, coming at Su Yi from all sides.

Su Yi, conversely, was like a boulder. No matter how hard the wind blew, he stood there, unmoving. That mad flurry of attacks didn’t so much as touch his clothes.

This drew sidelong glances from the entire venue. Some of the major powers in attendance were stunned, and their eyes widened in disbelief.

But Nie Beihu and Nie Teng were the most agitated of all.

They could tell that the martial art Su Yi currently had on display was the one they were the most proficient in, the “Sparrow-Catching Hand”!

However, when they used the Sparrow-Catching Hand, using their palms as a formless cage, they could at most prevent birds from flying away.

Nie Beihu had been immersed in the study of martial arts for years. His exquisite control might perhaps entrap an entire flock of birds within a given range of his hands.

But watching Su Yi, he realized he paled by comparison.

In Su Yi’s hands, this familiar martial art exploded with unimaginable power. He was like an immortal going through the stances of his technique.

Every living thing was a “sparrow”, while all of heaven and earth were a “cage”!

Nie Teng watched, dazed, unable to look away. The sight shook his heart repeatedly.

He’d been studying this very art for years, but he’d only just realized it could unleash such unbelievable power!

He dared not look away. He held his breath and watched with rapt attention, carefully observing every move.

Ol’ Nie’s son has finally won Master Su’s favor. How rare and fortunate! Fu Shan sighed to himself.

There was no way he’d miss that Su Yi was using this duel as an opportunity to teach Nie Teng the Sparrow-Catching Hand’s profundities!

Huang Qianjun’s expression shifted too. Just like Fu Shan, he could see through Su Yi’s intentions.

This was a stroke of fortune!

Meanwhile, everyone present could tell that Mo Tianling’s situation left little room for optimism.

In Su Yi’s hands, he was like a caged beast. With every movement of Su Yi’s palms, a formless cage entrapped him, and despite his attempts to charge through, he couldn’t break free.

This unbelievable scene drew countless gasps and exclamations.

Before, most of those present were certain that, even if Su Yi had recovered his cultivation, there was no way he’d be a match for a madman like Mo Tianling. 

But now, their convictions wavered.

Especially Nan Ying, Ni Hao, Wen Jueyuan, and Wen Shaobei. Their emotions rose and fell in waves, their expressions flitting back and forth unpredictably. It was a spectacular sight!

Someone they’d once degraded, disdained, ignored, and looked down on was now revealing power far beyond their imagination. How could they accept this so suddenly?

“Break!” Up on the platform, Mo Tianling was as grim and somber as could be. He suddenly roared, and all the energy in his body flowed into his right fist, like floodwaters bursting through a dam.

He swung his fist. This punch was as fast as lightning, and it rumbled like thunder, ripping the very air itself asunder. The power of a peak Blood Circulation Realm expert was on full display.

“Fine then. Allow me to show you the true meaning of ‘martial arts’!” Su Yi sighed, and his hands pressed gently against the air. His movements were light and ethereal, without any force at all.

Yet Mo Tianling’s expression shifted dramatically. He felt as if Su Yi’s hands carried an enormous cage, as if the weight of all of creation were bearing down on him.

In the face of this cage formed of heaven and earth, he felt utterly minuscule and helpless.

He couldn’t run, nor could he dodge!

Seth's Thoughts

The Nie Family’s technique, 揽雀之手, the Sparrow-Catching Hand, is likely named after 揽雀尾, or “grasping the sparrow’s tail”, a Tai-chi movement. 

Nckeo posted some more information about it, so scroll down if you're interested! Sounds like there was a scandal involving this technique.