Zheng Tianhe scowled, pondered for a moment, and shook his head. This Li Canghai was unexpectedly tricky; having escaped under such circumstances, recapturing him would be difficult.

He had originally planned to catch Li Muzhan completely off guard, striking fiercely to finish him before Li Muzhan understood the depth of his own capabilities.

He hadn't anticipated that Li Muzhan's Qinggong would be so absolute, allowing him to vanish completely at the last second.

Closing his eyes briefly, he floated out through the window, heading north, soon entering the endless mountain range, finding himself amidst a dense, dark forest.

He sensed Li Muzhan's presence again, and the aura was far stronger than before. Joy sparked within him; he surmised that Li Muzhan's sudden disappearance earlier was due to using some secret art, one that surely came at a steep cost.

He quickened his pace and soon spotted Li Muzhan. Near a pine tree sat a smooth, round white stone, upon which Li Muzhan rested, his eyes slightly lowered, utterly still.

Zheng Tianhe slowed his steps, approaching gradually so as not to alert him and risk another escape. However, he reasoned that Li Muzhan likely couldn't deploy that secret art again right now, feeling quite certain of this.

When he was ten paces away, Li Muzhan suddenly opened his eyes.

Zheng Tianhe started, then abruptly accelerated, his waist sword flashing into a streak of lightning, instantly stabbing toward Li Muzhan. Yet, Zheng Tianhe inwardly cursed the misfortune; his hand met empty air—he had only struck a shadow.

Li Muzhan appeared two zhang away, shaking his head. "Senior Zheng, no need to trouble yourself."

Zheng Tianhe strode forward, closing the distance to Li Muzhan, and struck again, only to miss once more.

Li Muzhan reappeared two zhang away, chuckling, "Senior Zheng's fast sword truly is formidable. How did you manage to cultivate such a skill?"

Zheng Tianhe sneered, "Fast?"

Li Muzhan nodded. "Surely your Qinghe Sword Sect possesses a specialized fast sword technique, yes?"

"We do not," Zheng Tianhe replied coldly. "Li Canghai, you cannot escape!"

Li Muzhan smiled and shook his head. "That remains to be seen. Senior Zheng's sword is fast, but it cannot outpace my footwork. Perhaps we should just call it a day."

"Hmph, relying on bizarre secret arts is futile!" Zheng Tianhe sneered, stepping forward again to Li Muzhan's side. The sword light flashed past, once again striking nothing but air.

Li Muzhan had found the method to counter Zheng Tianhe: combining his Xintong (Mind Connection) with instantaneous movement. As soon as Zheng Tianhe formed an intent, Li Muzhan would instantly shift, always staying one step ahead of Zheng Tianhe’s swift blade.

That single step ahead made all the difference. Without that fraction of time, he wouldn't have time to dodge Zheng Tianhe's extremely fast sword. His Xintong had just revealed the secret to the fast sword: there was no secret art, only relentless, brutal practice.

Li Muzhan waved his hand from two zhang away. "Senior Zheng, there’s no need to waste your effort. I am genuinely curious—how did you manage to cultivate such a fast sword!"

He fully activated his Xintong, mirroring everything in Zheng Tianhe's mind, as clear as reading the lines on his palm.

Zheng Tianhe’s face was as dark as iron; he remained silent, his sword light flickering in and out, almost invisible. Li Muzhan’s figure also flickered, seeming to sync perfectly with the intermittent flashes of Zheng Tianhe’s sword.

Amidst Li Muzhan's relentless chatter, Zheng Tianhe launched thirty strikes before halting, frowning at him. "Li Canghai, impressive footwork!"

He had absolute confidence in his fast sword; once drawn, it never returned to its sheath without drawing blood. This was the first time he had encountered someone like Li Muzhan who could evade it completely.

Li Muzhan smiled. "Such a fast sword is truly astonishing. The Qinghe Sword Sect lives up to its name!"

Zheng Tianhe sneered, "Hypocritical!"

To offer such praise to an enemy felt utterly false; he longed to thrust his sword through Li Muzhan's heart just to silence him and avoid hearing Li Muzhan’s voice again.

Li Muzhan said, "Senior Zheng, let's just stop here."

Zheng Tianhe asked coldly, "Li Canghai, which school or sect do you hail from?"

He could not discern Li Muzhan's style, which was exceedingly rare. He had thoroughly studied the supreme arts of various sects throughout his life, having delved into the martial arts of both major and minor factions.

The thousand-year heritage of the Qinghe Sword Sect contained records of virtually every school; even if unable to access the core teachings, grasping the surface details and studying them deeply always yielded results.

There were many exquisite footwork techniques in the martial world, but few could successfully evade his fast sword—perhaps only a handful that could be counted on one hand. The movement Li Muzhan employed did not match any of them.

Li Muzhan smiled, shaking his head. "No school, no sect!"

"Again!" Before Zheng Tianhe finished speaking, he stepped forward, but his every mental fluctuation was already known to Li Muzhan. The moment he moved, Li Muzhan moved first.

After several more empty thrusts, Zheng Tianhe let out a cold laugh. His sword began to tremble, as if the longsword itself wanted to break free of his grasp, before finally dissolving into a canopy of shimmering sword light.

Chiii, chiii, chiii, chiii—it was like a sun plummeting, the brilliance of the sword light too intense to look at directly.

Li Muzhan swayed like a lotus leaf on water, barely managing to slip outside the range of the blinding light, breaking into a cold sweat. If not for his Xintong, he would never have dodged that attack.

He swayed again and again, evading the continuous torrent of sword light, daring not to meet Zheng Tianhe head-on. The sword was too fast and too vicious; a direct clash was impossible.

It was entirely thanks to his Xintong that he could evade in advance; otherwise, he would have been trapped in a bitter struggle, unable to extricate himself, leading inevitably to defeat.

Chii! As Li Muzhan retreated, he thrust out his thumb.

Ding, ding, ding, ding... A barrage of finger force struck out, the sound indicating the terrifying speed of the sword.

After a long pause, Li Muzhan activated a formation, suddenly vanishing into its boundaries, disappearing from Zheng Tianhe's sight. Seeing him vanish, Zheng Tianhe rushed to pursue.

The moment he gave chase, he truly fell into the formation. The Five Elements were inverted, his senses thrown into chaos. Thus, he ran in place, his speed like lightning.

He was closely tracking Li Muzhan's aura, running within the formation for nearly a quarter of an hour before realizing something was wrong. He stopped, looked around wildly, his face turning ashen; he understood he had walked into a talisman array.

He gave a cold laugh and pulled a jade talisman from his robes, slowly crushing it.

Peng! The jade talisman exploded into dust, and an invisible force radiated outward. Li Muzhan felt a flash before his eyes; the previously chaotic vital energy instantly dispersed, and the formation lost its power.

Li Muzhan inwardly acknowledged the power, knowing this was a Form Breaking Talisman. The fact that Zheng Tianhe possessed such items suggested his status within the Qinghe Sword Sect was highly respected.

He dared not linger on other thoughts, flashing away and disappearing from the location.

In the blink of an eye, he was back in the inn in Yue Zhao City, sitting at his original table. The waiter, who had been preparing to clear the dishes with a troubled expression, was overjoyed to see Li Muzhan reappear.

Li Muzhan tossed down an ingot of silver and casually ordered two more dishes. The waiter eagerly snatched the silver, agreed with a beaming smile, and scurried off.

While drinking, Li Muzhan reviewed what he had learned from the encounter. Zheng Tianhe’s cultivation method was unique, arduous, and difficult, yet the results were remarkable, allowing his sword to achieve such incredible speed.

He had trained by striking stones with an increasingly heavy sword, the stones becoming ever harder. This relentless, years-long practice involved no trickery, ultimately forging a sword speed that rivaled lightning, almost impossible for the human eye to track.

Li Muzhan sighed internally. This was akin to his own practice with throwing knives—both were the fruits of gradual, cumulative effort, leading to the purest form of skill and power.

Zheng Tianhe had managed to suppress his peers in the Qinghe Sword Sect purely through such rigorous practice. Of course, his achievement stemmed from two factors: brutal training and the exquisite core arts of the Qinghe Sword Sect.

Li Muzhan focused on how to surpass this method and increase his own sword speed even faster; otherwise, he would truly be unable to handle Zheng Tianhe. The man was fast in movement, fast with his sword, and possessed deep internal energy. A direct confrontation was futile, and his finger strikes were useless. Only an even faster sword could prevail.

Accustomed to multitasking, he continued contemplating while simultaneously eavesdropping on conversations nearby. Suddenly, a fragment of speech caught his attention, invigorating his spirit.

"Damn it, the manual fell into Chu Shengmo's hands. We might as well forget about it!" someone muttered in a low voice, laced with resentment.

The person next to him sighed. "Alas... Mo Shiren is truly lucky. That brute is ruthless; it’s better not to cross him."

"I'm just so unwilling to give up!"

"Unwillingness changes nothing; skill is inferior."

"If we can't have that Mo fellow’s prize, we won't let him have an easy time either. Let’s spread the word!"

"This damned..."

Li Muzhan’s brow twitched slightly. He assessed the two men with his Eye of the Void: one tall, one short; the tall one plump, the short one lean—an incongruous pair seated together. (To be continued)