The waterfall descended from the heavens, rivaling the Milky Way itself, a crashing spectacle of rainbows and lightning that roared down into countless ravines.

The deafening boom, like the very galaxy plunging from above, hammered into the pool below, sending massive white spray surging upward with terrifying force.

Beneath this cascade, a youth held a crimson flying sword, straining to execute an upward parry.

He struck, time and again, slashing against the waterfall’s momentum.

How to strike faster? How to strike stronger?

Lu Yuan cut against the downward torrent, upward thrust after upward thrust. The waterfall, thirty zhang high, thundered ceaselessly. To execute a reverse parry against such immense force was undoubtedly arduous, rapidly depleting his spiritual energy (fali). Yet, this very difficulty sharpened his sword speed and honed his swordsmanship.

He executed the upward parry, over and over.

This relentless series of reverse parries exhausted him to the point of stumbling. Cultivating against the force of a waterfall was inherently taxing.

This was already the second day of his practice. Lu Yuan’s reverse slicing thrusts were moving as slow as a snail's pace, draining his fali immensely. Sweat poured relentlessly from his brow, immediately dripping into the roaring torrent below.

Whether by day or by night, he practiced unceasingly. Only when his spiritual energy was utterly depleted would he pause to meditate nearby, grabbing some sustenance to replenish his strength. During cultivation, he cared little for fine dining, subsisting merely on basic Qi-nourishing pills to manage his needs.

He could be lazy in his downtime, but when serious, he had to be absolutely dedicated.

A person must know when to play and when to apply serious focus.

A person is like a taut string; kept too tight, it snaps. True principle lies in the balance of tension and release. Of course, on his own account, he had too much time spent on release, and too little on tension. Thinking this, he couldn't help but smile slightly. Drawing upon the power of the Cloud-element spirit beast sealed within his Spirit Sealing Plaque, his fali began to constantly recover.

As soon as his energy returned, he plunged back into the intense cultivation.

...

It was the tenth day of practice. Beneath the nameless waterfall, Lu Yuan continued his succession of upward strikes. The speed of his sword strokes this time was certainly not as light and nimble as his usual demeanor, but compared to when he first began under the falls—when his sword moved like a snail—it was vastly improved, infinitely faster.

He could clearly feel his progress now.

Since there was improvement, tangible and evident, he would continue.

Taking a deep breath, he resumed his sword practice. In fact, Lu Yuan was pleasantly surprised to discover that practicing under the waterfall had significantly strengthened the sustainability of his fali, making it denser and more continuous—perfectly aligning with the nature of the Cloud-element cultivation method. Lu Yuan now realized the Cloud-element method suited him perfectly. The rigid power of Fire, the variability of Mist, the dominance of Thunder—none of these suited him. A seemingly simple style like the Cloud-element, which appeared to lack overwhelming power but was actually dense and persistent, better matched his own temperament.

A person, their sword, their cultivation method, their sword technique.

These things ought to harmonize.

If a person aligns with their cultivation method, results are achieved with half the effort.

If a person clashes with their method, results require double the effort.

...

It was the thirtieth day of practice. Still beneath the nameless waterfall, Lu Yuan tirelessly continued his reverse upward strikes, thrusting against the cascade's flow. The momentum of his sword now far outpaced the snail-like speed of the first day, and was exponentially faster than even the tenth day.

Lu Yuan knew this acceleration was due to his inherently high swordsmanship talent, coupled with a full month of non-stop, dedicated training. Over this past month, he had never paused his practice, stopping only when his fali was completely depleted.

However, he now sensed that although his sword speed had increased considerably, he was hitting a plateau in this current configuration.

If intense practice yielded no further breakthroughs, then enlightenment was necessary.

He promptly moved the stone he had been standing on directly beneath the heaviest part of the falls, then sat upon it, allowing the torrent to wash over him while he entered deep contemplation. While sitting there, feeling the massive impact of the water striking his flesh, Lu Yuan sank into a meditative state.

The waterfall crashed down from above, and Lu Yuan pondered. The water flow seemed to possess subtle variations; it was not uniformly powerful—there were moments of stronger impact and moments of weaker surge. If he could skillfully utilize these variations in the water, could his sword become even faster?

After a long period of thought, Lu Yuan suddenly opened his eyes and whipped the Changhong sword upward in a reverse parry.

As the Changhong swept up in that reverse motion, Lu Yuan distinctly felt that the execution of this thrust was different from any before. He could perceive minute variations in the impact force hitting different parts of the blade. What if his sword could pass through the areas of weaker impact? Could it then strike even faster?

Practicing in the waterfall was one thing; what about practicing in open air? Some researchers in the Cultivation World had long established that the air was not empty but filled with a tangible medium that could impede a sword's speed. If the waterfall had areas of variable force, did the air also possess regions of varying resistance?

Even if the differences were infinitesimally small, striking through the weaker zones should allow his sword to accelerate further.

He swung once, his eyes intently following the sword's path, while his hands gripped the hilt, feeling every tremor in the blade. He was completely immersed, his entire spirit channeled into the pursuit of swordsmanship.

After intense mental deliberation, Lu Yuan executed reverse thrusts, sometimes within the waterfall, sometimes in the open air, constantly sensing the subtle shift in the blade with every strike, observing even the most minute change with focused intensity.

...

At that moment, Lu Yuan drove his reverse thrust into the waterfall, parrying upward. This upward sweep was incredibly fluid, faster than any previous strike. The Changhong then flickered, striking into the open air; the speed of this second thrust was nearly double his original speed, and its agility was breathtaking.

Success.

He had finally succeeded. After two months of cultivation, his sword speed had nearly doubled its original pace. This meant a massive leap in his swordsmanship, and consequently, a substantial increase in his combat power. With a faster sword, even when the 'Qin, Qi, Shu, Hua' quartet—who specialized in coordinated attacks—assaulted him simultaneously from the start, they would pose no real threat.

Furthermore, these two months spent beneath the waterfall had also advanced his spiritual cultivation, pushing his fali to the mid-stage of the Eighth Layer of the Qi Refining stage: the Subtle Meridian.

Under the thundering waterfall, Lu Yuan smiled.

Two months of rigorous practice had borne fruit. With a flick, the Changhong returned to its sheath. His sword practice for this session was complete. He strode out of the water pool and marched away from the muddy ground toward the Everspring Residence. Having achieved his goal after two months of hard toil, a wave of deep exhaustion washed over him.

He’d sleep on it first.

(The updates these last few days have been diligent; a compliment to myself.)