Chapter 96 (Patreon)

“I have no idea what the issue is,” Jiang Lei said.

Chen Haoran looked at him. He squinted and tried to find any sign of falsehood in his face. He drummed his fingers as he pondered over his observation and came to the conclusion that no, Jiang Lei was not lying to him. That, in all honesty, made it worse.

“Didn’t you say you could help me?” Chen Haoran asked. “Something about being the second-best swordsman in the city?”

“Actually, I was humbly calling myself the best. In any case, that’s for swords, not Harmonization. If you wanted an easy answer then maybe you should have considered having a less complicated problem.”

“Are you victim-blaming me?” He asked in disbelief.

“I’m not quite sure how you’re a victim in this situation.” Jiang Lei ruffled his hair and sighed. “I originally wanted to help you by dropping some cryptic hints that would lead you to solve your issue on your own.”

Chen Haoran put aside his immediate question of why that, of all things, was Jiang Lei’s first idea. “What’s the plan now, then?”

Jiang Lei stood up and drew his sword, three-feet of narrow double-edged steel. “Now we have to actually work for enlightenment. Draw your blade, Chen Haoran.”

Chen Haoran sighed but obliged him. His scimitar flashed white as he pulled it out. Jiang Lei swept his sword and casually brushed away the white energy that flew his way. Above them in the tree came Phelps’s encouraging squeals.

Chen Haoran lightly swung his sword and white energy flashed through the air like rain. Jiang Lei had a measured look as he parried the energy with his sword.

“So it varies between dispersed energy blades and a single beam, defaulting to energy blades when you’re not concentrating.” He hummed. “Was the last attack you used on my Junior Brother your maximum range?”

“About Fifty-feet yes.”

“And whenever you draw your scimitar, it releases cutting energy?”

“Yes.” Chen Haoran had a good guess as to why as well. With how much lip the White Tyrant had given to Lan Fen for even the most basic of assistance, he wasn’t surprised the Harmonization based on him wouldn’t deign to be casually used. Chen Haoran was half-afraid that if the Harmonization stopped causing problems, it would stop working entirely.

“Okay.” Jiang Lei tapped his chin in thought even as he was waving his sword around. It honestly rankled Chen Haoran a little bit to see how casually the strongest tool in his arsenal was being treated. “Right. Here’s what you should do.”

Chen Haoran pricked his ears up and gave Jiang Lei his full attention. Despite his eccentricities, Jiang Lei was still a Liquid Meridian Realm cultivator. His experience far exceeded his own.

“Just stop letting it do that.”

Chen Haoran blinked. “Stop what?”

Jiang Lei pointed at the white scimitar. “That. Stop doing that.”

He looked at Jiang Le with confusion and proceeded to sheathe his blade.

“Why are you putting it away?” Jiang Lei asked, looking equally confused.

“You told me to stop it?”

“You have to learn to control your blade when it’s drawn. Not while it’s sheathed.”

“And how am I supposed to do that?”

“I told you. You have to just stop it?”

“Are you fucking with me? I thought you said you weren’t doing the cryptic advice thing?”

Jiang Lei cocked his head. “Was that cryptic? I can’t make it any simpler, though.”

“You do understand how unhelpful that is, correct?” Chen Haoran swung with some force, and a particularly large crescent of energy scythed out.

“That was my best advice, though?” Jiang Lei batted it away with his sword, and the crescent careened into the jungle and sliced vertically through a tree.

Chen Haoran sheathed his scimitar. The annoyance that had slowly been building within him since the beginning of this conversation peaked. “If this is the best you can do, then there’s no point continuing. I agreed to this because I thought you could actually help me.”

“You have a Water Spirit Root. You only learned how to wield a sword this year. Your sword instructor had a Metal Spirit Root.”

“What—?”

Jiang Lei raised an eyebrow. “Have I proven my ability?”

Chen Haoran clicked his tongue but conceded the point. “How did you even figure that out?”

“By how you wield your sword, of course. For sword masters, crossing blades is the truest expression of oneself.”

“Really?”

“No, but don’t you think it’s poetic?”

Jiang Lei motioned for Chen Haoran to sit down and crossed his hands behind his back. Phelps floated down from the treetops and landed in Chen Haoran’s lap. The sloth patted around his pants legs like a cat before curling up and yawning.

“I wasn’t being entirely facetious.” Jiang Lei paced in front of them, his chest out and his shoulders raised high. It was an instructor’s pose, yet he looked more like he was copying it from memory than assuming it naturally. “A Spirit Root is an integral part of our bodies. Their elemental alignment thus makes that element an integral part of our bodies as well. Theoretically, at least. Our affinities are useless without the correct technique, but they shine through in minor ways.”

“Like through swords,” Chen Haoran said.

“Through all weapons, really. It’s almost instinctual. When you were fighting, I could see the same fluidity in your movements as my own.”

Chen Haoran nodded. That made sense, and given Jiang Lei’s superior experience, he could even believe him figuring out how long he’s used a sword. “That doesn’t explain how you figured out my teacher’s spirit root.”

Jiang Lei shrugged. “It’s the same principle. You learned your movements from them, and that’s reflected in your swordsmanship. I imagine they’re the same ones who taught you that ridiculous technique of yours. I almost pegged you for a Metal attribute with how well you copy them. I believe that’s where the crux of the issue lies.”

“That my Harmonization doesn’t match my element? I was told different affinities are only a problem for cultivation methods, not techniques.”

“Yes and no,” Jiang Lei said. “It all comes down to the name. Harmony. Between cultivator and technique, there is an imbalance. To Harmonize requires one to equalize these two forces.” He looked at Chen Haoran with incredulous eyes. “In your case, you clearly haven’t done that but Harmonized anyway. I don’t suppose you’d tell me how you did that?”

“Not a chance.” It was a wild enough story that he wasn’t sure he’d be believed anyway.

Jiang Lei chuckled. “I figured. In any case, going back to what I said before, the simplest method to control your Harmonization is just that. Control it.”

Chen Haoran sighed. “I’ll respect your knowledge but doing that isn’t as easy as you make it sound.”

“I said it was simple, not easy.” Jiang Lei held his sword straight and assumed a stance. “Observe.”

At this moment, Chen Haoran realized he had yet to see any hint of Harmonization from Jiang Lei. Right at this thought occurred to him Jiang Lei’s aura changed. He was just as casual and relaxed as before but this time his sword gracefully flowed through the air with an ease Chen Haoran would be hard-pressed to replicate. As Jiang Lei shifted from one form to the next, Chen Haoran was reminded of sparring with Lan Fen after she Harmonized. They both shared the same water-like movement but where the Canyon Carving Sword sought to open a path no matter the obstacle Jiang Lei’s sword gave the impression of dancing on the water. Just as suddenly as he began, he stopped, and his Harmonization vanished. Chen Haoran squinted and stretched out his sense but he couldn’t detect any trace of it even though Jiang Lei still held his sword.

“I thought Harmonization was supposed to be a part of you. How did you turn it off?” If he could learn how to do that, he could at least wield a sword normally again.

“If you’re not in harmony with your technique, can you use Harmonization?” Jiang Lei rhetorically asked. “I intentionally introduced an element of disharmony, and so I was no longer Harmonized.” Jiang Lei’s Harmonization appeared again. “And just as easily, I can Harmonize again.”

“How, though?” Chen Haoran eagerly leaned forward, as if getting closer would help him divine the secret behind the method.

Jiang Lei held his sword across his shoulders and smiled.“Just do it.” He held out his hand to forestall Chen Haoran’s objections. “Harmonization is a matter of the mind and will. I know what I’m saying frustrates you, but please look at it from my perspective. How am I supposed to tell you how to breathe? Or how to open and close your hands?”

Chen Haoran let out a long sigh and stood up. Phelps grumbled but obliged and floated in the air beside him. “So what you’re saying is that this is gonna be a huge pain in the ass.”

Jiang Lei laughed. “I did say we’d have to work for enlightenment. Now, all we can do is have you use your Harmonization enough until it truly becomes your hands and feet. Currently, too much of its power is dispersed and can’t show its full potential. When it does…” Jiang Lei’s eagerness was clear in his voice and infectious. Chen Haoran found himself drawn by the energy and couldn’t help the rush of anticipation. “…well, who knows.”

There went his anticipation. “You’re a killjoy, you know that?”

Jiang Lei shrugged. “I am what I am. In any case, the day is still young.” He pointed his sword at Chen Haoran. “Attend.”