Chapter Sixteen: Comparing People Leads to Despair, Comparing Goods Leads to Waste

"Really?" Xiao Bei was overjoyed. She loved swordplay more than anything. She had already mastered the Basic Thirteen Swords and had recently pestered her mother for money to study at the sword hall, but was not allowed to go. She could only find other ways, indirectly learning sword moves from her own brother.

“Hurry and teach me. Once I’ve mastered it, I’ll share the secret techniques with you so you won’t lose out,” the little girl declared matter-of-factly, full of confidence.

Xiao Nan wiped the sweat from his brow. Just how poor was the original owner’s talent and skill with the sword, to be looked down upon by a thirteen-year-old girl like this?

When it came to sword technique, the requirements during the high school entrance exams weren’t very high. As long as one was thoroughly familiar with the Basic Thirteen Forms and could channel power explosively, that was enough to pass the technical hurdle. The same was true for other skills like sabre or fist techniques.

So, most students aspiring to enter martial arts universities would focus on perfecting the Basic Thirteen Sword Forms, forgoing flashy tricks taught elsewhere, and poured all their energy into cultivating spiritual power and increasing their vitality. This was the foundation. If their spiritual power level didn’t make the cut for top universities, then with high enough vitality and good enough technique, they could at least enter an ordinary martial arts university. If that failed, they could join various martial arts training classes or become disciples of a sect, gain some skills, and find a decent job to support themselves.

As for Xiao Nan, his talent for spiritual cultivation was lacking, and his vitality didn’t meet the mark either. With the academic and martial arts tests looming, he was unlikely to even qualify as a martial arts candidate. Tan Qiuyi was aware of this and could only hope he might make a breakthrough in sword technique. If he managed to quickly boost his vitality before the exam, maybe he could just scrape by and reach the minimum requirements for university entrance, so his martial path wouldn’t be cut off entirely.

Perhaps she still harbored some unrealistic hopes. Maybe, though his spiritual cultivation was below standard now, one day he’d suddenly have an epiphany and his spiritual power would soar. In any case, she would never give up until the very end—however slim the chance.

As for Xiao Bei, she was a completely different story. The little girl was brimming with energy every day and was naturally drawn to swordplay, treating it almost like a form of dance, practicing with great enthusiasm. She was still young, not yet at the stage to increase her vitality, and her spiritual cultivation had only just begun, so she really hadn’t made any progress there. In Xiao Nan’s eyes, she was just playing around.

With a playful attitude, he demonstrated the second move of Spring’s Three Swords, “Oblique Drizzle,” which he had learned at the sword hall.

The Four Seasons Sword Technique was an advanced style. According to the sword hall instructor, the path of the sword was endless—its power could be infinitely increased through diligent study. Xiao Nan didn’t care for such self-aggrandizing talk; he simply thought the Four Seasons Sword was elegant and far superior to the basic techniques. He was eager to master it, hoping it would help him pass the technical assessment during the sword exam.

“Oblique Drizzle” was a single sword move, yet it could unfold into countless strikes. In his mind, he recalled the image of the instructor at the sword arts hall unleashing swords in all directions. The swords fell like a dense rain, silent yet magnificent.

At this moment, Xiao Nan’s senses were sharp and his memory strong. He imitated the move as best he could. Though a bit clumsy, he managed to complete it.

Seeing the little girl beside him, holding her wooden sword and watching with wide, unblinking eyes, he felt a twinge of pride. “If the original owner were here, he definitely couldn’t have demonstrated it so clearly,” he thought.

For him, practicing such elegant, graceful swordplay felt awkward. In his previous life, he had trained in military martial arts—brutal and direct. With weapons restricted, no one would be foolish enough to carry a sword abroad on a mission; fists and daggers were his domain, and he had never learned the sword. Holding a sword felt foreign and uncomfortable, but this was not the fault of his current body.

Nevertheless, with his extensive real combat experience and deep understanding of technique, he was more than capable of instructing a novice like his little sister.

“Oblique Drizzle relies on merging quietly into the night, nourishing all things silently. The lighter and more ethereal, the better…” This was the sword hall instructor’s exact phrasing. To be honest, Xiao Nan didn’t really understand it.

Just as he finished speaking, he saw Xiao Bei, who had been imitating his moves haphazardly, suddenly display an indescribable transformation in her sword form. Although the sky was clear and blue, with white clouds drifting by, in Xiao Nan’s spiritual perception, the small patch of earth where the girl practiced seemed to be shrouded in fine rain, a dreamy dampness seeping into his heart.

“My goodness, she’s only just learned this move, and already she’s grasped its essence. Her movements may not be precise, but this ability to capture the spirit and forget the form is truly remarkable.”

Xiao Nan was stunned. After pondering for a while, he realized it was no illusion. In his memories, the original owner had often lamented that his little sister’s swordplay was far superior, leaving him feeling inadequate. Even their mother, Tan Qiuyi, was aware of this. However, since the little girl was still far from the university entrance exams, the family wasn’t yet considering shifting resources her way. All their worries were focused on his own martial arts test, exhausting their efforts for his sake.

The family’s finances were tight. To fully support two children would mean bankruptcy. Priorities had to be set, and so the little girl was inevitably overlooked.

Thinking of this, Xiao Nan felt a pang of guilt.

Xiao Bei’s sword strikes were weak and slow, yet possessed a peculiar beauty. After completing all nine forms of “Oblique Drizzle,” she eagerly continued practicing, her toes tracing a perfect circle on the ground.

“Compared to the sword hall instructor, her circle is even more precise,” Xiao Nan marveled. As the circle appeared, Xiao Bei’s sword form shifted once more—her slender waist twisting, the wooden sword thrust from impossible angles, leaving faint traces that wove together into a net.

“Her waist bends like a willow, her sword is like silk, and flowers bloom at her feet… This is ‘Silken Entwine,’ the sixth of Spring’s Swords, which I taught her days ago. She wields it even more skillfully than Oblique Drizzle.”

Unconsciously, Xiao Nan found himself glimpsing the poetic elegance of “March willows as soft as cotton, silken threads brushing the shoulder.”

A genius, truly a genius.

He swallowed hard, his eyes nearly bulging with envy. Thinking of the father of this body, Xiao Zhenjiang, he felt somewhat at ease.

There is never a shortage of geniuses in the world; it’s only a question of whether they have a stage to shine on. Perhaps through bloodline inheritance, the little girl’s talent was extraordinary—far superior to his own by several degrees.

Their mother, Tan Qiuyi, had often said that their father, Xiao Zhenjiang, had been similarly gifted in his youth, once hailed as Yuanjiang Prefecture’s most promising candidate to break through to the grandmaster realm. Born a commoner, he had risen against all odds, won a beautiful wife, and earned a legendary reputation. Sadly…

Xiao Nan squeezed the ebony sword in his hand, then tossed it aside. Comparison only brings despair—just as goods thrown together are inevitably sorted, so too are people. There was no need to even test his own talent; it was far inferior.

Even holding a sword felt awkward, let alone executing subtle sword techniques. To think that he couldn’t even compare to a fourteen-year-old girl of the same parentage—what a humiliation.

He felt his face flush. Earlier, while teaching, he had been proud of his precise movements; now, he just felt embarrassed.

If it came to killing techniques—steady, accurate, ruthless—he was well-versed, having mastered military combat and even dabbled in Xingyi, Taiji, Bagua. But it all depended on comparison.

No wonder his old instructor used to say he had no real talent for martial arts. Though he was tough on himself and strong in body, he would always be a brute, no matter how long he trained—a craftsman, not an artist. At the time, he hadn’t wanted to believe it.

Now, trapped in this weak body, one that hadn’t undergone years of bitter training and was far from being steady, accurate, or ruthless, would he have to walk his old path again, spending years building up his physique?

Lost in thought, he suddenly felt the birthmark on his chest grow warm. His heart pounded wildly. Startled, he pressed his hand to his chest—and an image flashed through his mind.

Within that misty space, a new figure had appeared—alone, practicing swordplay with effortless grace.

It was the image of his little sister.

How had her image entered the mirror-space?

Filled with curiosity, Xiao Nan wanted to immerse his thoughts and enter that space to investigate, but after a moment’s hesitation, he decided now was not the right time.