Chapter 7: First Encounter with Proud Snow

  The days passed quickly in peaceful cultivation, and before he knew it, the three-month period had arrived. On this day, Ziyang True Person once again walked into the large courtyard, his eyes scanning around in a circle, finally stopping on Lu Yun's body. Looking at Lu Yun, a flame burst out of Ziyang True Person's eyes, and a look of extreme surprise and joy appeared on his face, he was truly overjoyed.

  Everyone saw that Master Ziyang had arrived, so they all stopped and slowly walked to his side. Master Ziyang smiled with a joyful expression: "It's been three months since we last met, it seems like you've made rapid progress during this period of time. Lu Yun, come here, let me take a look at your current cultivation level."

  Lu Yun looked at his face and understood that he had already seen something. He slightly moved forward, Lu Yun smiled and said: "Master thinks the disciple is still okay like this?" Lu Yun's eyes contained a hint of charm, extremely enticing.

  Zi Yang Zhen Ren glanced at the others, a smile on his face: "This time I'm very happy, because I've discovered our Yang Institute's future hope. This hope is Lu Yun, who has been here for exactly 100 days. If everyone observes carefully, they will find that in these 100 days, he has already mastered the first six moves of our Yi Garden's 'Yi Tian Twelve Techniques', something that has never happened before in Yi Garden. With his natural talent, if he continues like this, it won't be long before he can catch up with Li Hong Fei and Zhang Ao Xue, becoming the third most outstanding person in this generation of Yi Garden, bringing unparalleled glory to our Yang Institute. I'm truly overjoyed!"

  Everyone listened, and they all showed a surprised expression. Later, many people's eyes revealed a look of surprise and delight. After so many years, Yangyuan finally met a young man with exceptional talent, what a wonderful thing! Everyone looked at Lu Yun with encouraging and supportive eyes, hoping that he could continue to work hard and bring glory to Yangyuan in the future. Looking at his many senior brothers, Lu Yun smiled slightly, as if to repay their concern and expectations for him.

  Zi Yang Zhen Ren praised Lu Yun and then looked at the cultivation of the other four people, who were all very good. This made him very satisfied. Looking at everyone, Zi Yang Zhen Ren smiled and said: "From now on, I will teach Lu Yun the latter part of our sect's secret technique, and at the same time, start teaching him our sect's 'Lihuo Tiangang Sword Technique'. I hope he will work hard and catch up with others soon. The other four disciples also have good cultivation, let's learn the sword technique together. This time, our Yangyuan will compete with Qiankun Er Yuan to see who is better, and let them know that our Yangyuan also has outstanding talents. So Lu Yun, you must work hard and don't disappoint us! Tomorrow, we will start practicing sword techniques, and I hope that in two years' time, at the Liu Yuan Lun Wu Conference, you will have the opportunity to participate. Everyone else should also work hard together, let's make Yangyuan flourish!" As soon as he finished speaking, everyone cheered loudly, their faces excited and overjoyed.

  Lu Yun looked at everyone, a hint of strange light in his eyes. He slightly raised his head to glance at the horizon, and a hint of a smile appeared in Lu Yun's eyes, with an air of mystery that outsiders couldn't understand. Perhaps he was saying something to the heavens. From this moment on, Lu Yun's name began to spread throughout Yi Garden, and two years later, it would shake the world and resound throughout the Xiu Zhen realm.

  Since the last time, Ziyang True Person announced that he would teach Lu Yun the sword technique, it has been a year since Lu Yun came here. In this year, Lu Yun put all his energy into cultivating the truth. Lu Yun not only cultivated the easy garden's technique but also secretly cultivated his own five superior techniques and the "Tian Di Wu Ji" created by his ancestors. He made rapid progress in one year, and the five mysterious techniques taught by his strange master when he was a child also made great progress. At this time, his cultivation had reached the late stage of Youxu, and he could soon break through the boundary of Youxu and enter the ninth layer of "Indestructible" realm. However, Lu Yun also felt that his cultivation had reached a bottleneck, and it would not be easy to make progress again in a short time.

  In the span of a year, many things can change. At this point, Lu Yun had already completed the ninth move of the "Easy Heaven Twelve Moves" in Yi Garden and was starting to enter the tenth move. This was mainly due to his own strong cultivation. At the same time, he had also mastered the "Fierce Fire Heavenly Sword Move", which could now display ten layers of fire. However, Lu Yun deliberately held back a few moves, not wanting to stand out too much, lest he be discovered by others.

  After practicing swordsmanship for a whole morning, Lu Yun no longer wanted to practice and ran alone to the grass outside the courtyard, lying there to bask in the sun. Not long after he lay down, he saw a figure suddenly appear beside him, startling him.

  Lin Yunfeng smiled and said, "Lu Yun, how come you've been gone for over a year and now you're so scared. How have you been this past year? I was messed up by that old Daoist, he's even more ruthless than my previous master. But my cultivation has increased a lot. What about you?"

  Lu Yun looked at Lin Yunfeng, a year had passed and he was still the same, with a cheerful smile on his face and an eccentric appearance. But upon closer inspection, his cultivation had indeed become much stronger than before, it seemed that the Easy Garden's mantra, he should have already refined to the eighth mantra, not simple at all. With a faint smile, Lu Yun said: "Take a rest for a while, this year I've been thinking about you a lot. Now that we meet again, I find that your cultivation has made great progress, much stronger than me, I'm happy for you. As for me, I also have some small progress. Our sect's mantra has already been cultivated to the seventh mantra and is starting to enter the eighth mantra."

  Lin Yunfeng exclaimed, "You're not kidding me, are you? You didn't have any foundation at all, and yet you've reached the seventh stage in just one year. Don't scare me, I'm getting nervous! In our place, many senior brothers have been cultivating for decades and still haven't broken through to the seventh stage. But you did it in just a year, you're truly a genius! It looks like you want to catch up with Li Hongfei. I heard he's already at the tenth stage now. You'd better work hard, that guy is said to be extremely powerful, on par with Zhang Aoxue of the Kun Institute."

  Lu Yun smiled and said, "Alright, stop talking nonsense. How's your progress with the Demon-slaying Sword this year? Have you managed to slay any demons? With a whole year of time, your ghost-catching skills must have improved significantly, right? Have you gone to practice in person?"

  Lin Yunfeng shouted strangely: "What else can be said, of course it's much more powerful. Now, no matter what kind of demon or monster, for me, it's still just a small dish, easy to capture. I am now one of the top masters in our Yin Institute, far ahead of others. In a year, there will be an opportunity to participate in the Tianxia Six Institutes' Martial Arts Conference, how about that, isn't it impressive?" After finishing speaking, his face was high up, with a complacent look, very ridiculous, making Lu Yun couldn't help but laugh out loud.

  Lu Yun smiled and said, "Great, you're really impressive, much stronger than me. Let's work together. In a year, let's compare our cultivation and see who's deeper. Don't think that just because I'm a beginner, I'll be inferior to you."

  Lin Yunfeng smiled and said, "Don't worry, I won't be driven away by you. If I were, wouldn't all my previous training have been in vain? Alright, let's not talk about that anymore. I'll tell you a little secret: ten miles east of Yi Garden, there is a dark pool with extremely cold water. It's said that inside the pool, there is a type of fish called Moon White, which emits white light under the moonlight at night and is very beautiful. It's also said that this fish tastes extremely good, and after eating it, one's body will produce a warm energy that slowly transforms into true energy. The more you eat, the fuller your true energy becomes, and it can enhance your cultivation. Do you want to go take a look? I heard that recently, a beautiful woman has appeared there... Hehe, she's extremely lovely. Let's go take a peek!"

  Lu Yun smiled calmly and scolded, "You little brat, you don't do anything good, but instead think of all sorts of evil ideas. I'm really impressed by you. It's been so long since we last met, if you want to go take a look, I'll naturally accompany you on this trip. Anyway, I've been cooped up for too long and it's time for me to get some fresh air." After finishing speaking, he stood up.

  Lin Yunfeng looked at Lu Yun and smiled, "You've also been practicing for a year now. Today, let me see how your training has progressed. Let's have a comparison, I want to see your sword technique, how well you can wield the sword, and whether you've mastered the art of sword control." As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Yunfeng's left hand drew out his sword technique, and the long sword on his back suddenly flew out, spinning around him in a very mysterious way. Immediately after that, his body floated up, his right foot touched the hilt of the sword, and he instantly rose into the air, flying in a circle before stopping mid-air, looking at Lu Yun.

  Lu Yun smiled calmly and pointed his right hand at the sky, and the long sword beside him suddenly flew into the air and shot straight at Lin Yunfeng. Lin Yunfeng let out a strange cry, and with a swift turn of his foot, he instantly moved six feet away, avoiding Lu Yun's flying sword. At the same time, he cursed loudly: "Good, you dare to launch a sneak attack on me, just wait and see how I'll deal with you." As soon as he finished speaking, he charged down from the mansion, rushing towards Lu Yun.

  Lu Yun smiled faintly, and a strange light flashed in his eyes. He tapped the tip of his foot, and suddenly he was airborne. At the same moment, his long sword flew back to him, appearing right under his feet. He lightly landed on the sword, as if weightless, and his body instantly shot out hundreds of feet with the sword, the speed so fast it was astonishing. Lin Yunfeng shouted loudly, also mounting his sword in pursuit, and in an instant the two disappeared from their original location.

  Just as the two of them left, Xuan Yu Zhen Ren and the four masters suddenly appeared on the scene. The five of them looked at the two small figures in the distance, their eyes filled with surprise. Xuan Yu Zhen Ren smiled and said: "This time, it seems that our Yi Garden has gained the most. Qian Institute has Li Hongfei, Kun Institute has Zhang Aoxue, Yin Institute now has Lin Yunfeng, and Yang Institute's Lu Yun is a rare talent in heaven and earth, able to fly with his sword in just one year. This time's Six Institutes' Martial Arts Conference may be ours for the taking. Haha, finally we can hold our heads high again."

  The head of the Qianyuan Institute, Qianyuan Zhenren, spoke up: "This matter is also difficult to say. Every time the six institutes compete in martial arts, the first place is either taken by the Tianjian Institute or the Puti Institute. This time, from our information, the Tianjian Institute has produced another one - a rare talent that appears once every hundred years; and the Fenghuang Book Institute has also produced an extraordinary woman, said to be a beautiful maiden who has not been seen for hundreds of years, with cultivation so strong it's rarely seen in the world. As for the other institutes, Daoyuan, Ruyuan, and Puti, they are mysterious and unpredictable, without any news, but I suppose they won't be too far off either. This time we must go all out, hoping that Hongfei and Aoxue can bring honor to Yiyuan."

  As soon as the words came out, Xuan Yu True Person only slightly nodded, while Xuan Yin True Person and Zi Yang True Person showed a look of discontent on their faces. It seemed that they were blaming Qian Yuan True Person for only mentioning the disciples of the two institutes of Qian Kun, without mentioning the other two institutes at all. It was as if every time the glory was obtained by the Qian Kun Two Institutes. Zi Yang True Person slightly hummed and said: "There is still a year before the competition, I believe that with my disciple Lu Yun's natural talent and rapid progress, by then he will definitely be able to make great strides in his cultivation, practice the Twelve Jue up to the ninth or even tenth jue. In that case, there is hope that at the Martial Arts Conference, he can bring honor to our Yi Garden and make a name for himself throughout the world."

  Xuan Yu Zhenren looked at everyone and saw Xuan Yin's face was also unhappy. He wanted to speak, but Xuan Yu Zhenren slightly shook his head and said: "Alright, I understand what you all mean. We all come from the same Yi Yuan, why say those meaningless words? Now there is still one year until the Martial Arts Conference, how to improve their cultivation in this last year is the most important thing. Besides, there is another matter, about the frequent appearance of yin souls and ghost spirits in Shu Nan area, Xuan Yin Shi Di you should go take a look when you have time. That place is close to Feng Du Ghost City, which is the only entrance to the Ghost Domain. Although it was sealed by the six institutes 1,000 years ago, that place has always been the heaviest ghost energy place, and so many years have passed, so we must be careful. Our Yi Yuan has been stationed here all along, everyone should understand that it is actually to guard the entrance of the Ghost Domain, not to let the ghosts invade the human world. Alright, everyone go back, I will go to Ru Yuan for a trip, and come back in one or two days at most." After finishing speaking, Xuan Yu Zhenren's body suddenly became faint and disappeared in an instant. What a wonderful magical skill.

  Riding the clouds and chasing the moon, proudly whistling through the blue sky. Lu Yun's sword transformed into a long wind, carrying him at an incredibly fast speed, flying forward. Lin Yunfeng's clothes danced wildly as he chased after with all his might. In the sky, only two streaks of light flashed by, and the two figures seemed like a dream, disappearing instantly in the upper air. A ten-mile road was reached in the blink of an eye for Lu Yun and Lin Yunfeng, who were flying on their swords.

  Lin Yunfeng smiled and said, "Great, you really are a genius. In just one year, your cultivation has reached such a realm, it's truly astonishing. I'm afraid that even in the entire Cultivation Realm, there won't be anyone as talented as you. Alright, we've arrived, let's go down." After finishing speaking, his long sword was withdrawn and automatically flew back into its scabbard on his back, and he slowly descended towards the forest below.

  Luyu hovered in mid-air for a moment, gazing at the forest below. A hint of curiosity flickered in his eyes. Luyu discovered that from above, this forest was actually an extraordinary array, could it be hiding something? Looking at this array, it seemed to be surrounding and sealing something. Seeing Lin Yunfeng had already descended, Luyu also floated down gently, landing softly beside Lin Yunfeng.

  Lin Yunfeng smiled and said, "That small cold pool is just ahead. I've been here three times before. One of those times, I inadvertently saw a beautiful woman practicing swordplay right here. Her swordsmanship was incredibly powerful and stunning! Hehe, you'll know when you see her. She's come again today, did you hear that sound?"

  Lu Yun listened carefully and indeed heard a very strange sound coming from the depths of the forest, which was inaudible if one didn't listen carefully. It was unexpected that Lin Yun's hearing was so good. Lu Yun asked with a surprised expression: "Yun, do you know who that person is? Listening to this sound, it seems to be quite formidable? If we go in like this, won't we be discovered and misunderstood?"

  Lin Yunfeng smiled slyly and said in a low voice, "Don't be so loud, after you see it, I guarantee you'll never forget. We're the best of friends now, that's why I brought you here. If it were someone else, I wouldn't tell them. Now let's be careful, sneak in quietly, and don't make a sound when we leave, so we need to use some magic, or she'll discover us. Hehe, you'll know soon enough. Better draw your sword, hehe, let's go." After finishing speaking, Lin Yunfeng pulled Lu Yun's hand, and muttered, "Qiankun wuji, yinyang jiefal, yin!" As the words fell, a faint mist flashed by, and the two figures vanished from sight.

  Lu Yun looked at Lin Yunfeng, and was quite surprised by his Taoist skills. Unexpectedly, he was very proficient in these Taoist methods, and even understood the mysterious technique of "Yin Yang Borrowing Method". The two of them moved quietly together, without making a sound. The surroundings were quiet, and the two of them silently and quickly moved towards the depths of the forest.

  The forest wasn't very big, but the trees were extremely dense, making it seem somewhat dark. Lu Yun carefully looked around and instantly imprinted everything in his mind with clarity. At this moment, a faint seven-colored glow flashed across his eyes, and his thoughts fluctuated at a speed of 6,400 times per second, clearly reflecting all things around him in his heart.

  Lu Yun's expression changed slightly, as he learned from the situation that deep in the forest, there was a convergence of yin energy, extremely strong but very hidden. If it wasn't for him having cultivated "Tian Di Wu Ji" and already entering the seventh level realm "Tian Di Tong Chun", he would have also found it difficult to discover this point. Another powerful aura also appeared in the place where the yin energy converged, the aura was somewhat familiar but extremely strong, showing that his cultivation was extremely high.

  Lin Yunfeng brought Lu Yun, and soon they passed through the layers of trees and appeared near a small pond. As soon as the two appeared, an incredibly powerful sword aura suddenly burst forth, with such great force that it shocked and amazed them, causing Lin Yunfeng's heart to be greatly startled. Lu Yun was extremely shocked in her heart, and before she could even see anyone, they had already been discovered, which was truly unexpected.

  Lin Yunfeng saw that their tracks had been exposed, and they no longer hid themselves. Along with Lu Yun, the two of them suddenly appeared. After taking a look around, they didn't see anything, Lin Yunfeng strangely shouted: "Ah, there's a monster! Quickly escape!" After finishing speaking, his body swayed once, and in an instant he had escaped, leaving behind Lu Yun alone to withstand that incredibly powerful sword energy.

  Lu Yun's face changed slightly, and he cursed loudly: "Yun Feng, you despicable kid! You actually escaped alone. You brought me here, encountered a strong enemy, and didn't care about my safety. What a heartless guy!" As he spoke, Lu Yun drew his long sword, and suddenly a flame burst out, illuminating the dark forest.

  Lu Yun unleashed one of the four great ultimate techniques of Yi Garden, "Lihuo Tiange Sword Intent". The long sword emitted a piercing red glow, like flames, extremely dazzling. The sword in mid-air was like a fire dragon, with an overwhelmingly powerful aura, instantly blocking in front of Lu Yun and forcefully meeting the opponent's fierce sword. Two sword energies intersected, instantly producing a massive explosion, the surrounding trees were destroyed by the overwhelmingly powerful sword energy, and suddenly a ten-zhang square empty space appeared. The grass on the ground flew horizontally, and a deep pit suddenly appeared there, extremely frightening.

  Lu Yun retreated three zhang, shouting loudly: "Who is it? Why the unprovoked attack? Come out quickly, this might be a misunderstanding." As soon as he finished speaking, there was no response, but another even more powerful sword energy struck again, instantly shattering the protective true energy shield outside Lu Yun's body. Lu Yun's face changed slightly, and his body disappeared in an instant, reappearing under a large tree four zhang to the right the next moment.

  The other party's cultivation is extremely high, and their swordsmanship is only familiar. Among the people Lu Yun has seen, apart from his master, this person is the most formidable one so far. Of course, this is only up to now. Lu Yun looked around, but there was no one in sight, and he couldn't find where the other party was hiding. At the same time, he took a look at the surroundings, and Lin Yunfeng that kid also didn't know where he had hidden himself, even a ghostly shadow couldn't be found.

  Lu Yun shouted: "Yun Feng, you'd better come out and explain what's going on. Why were we attacked for no reason? Who was it that attacked us? Come out quickly, or else when we get back, I'll deal with you." At this moment, he understood why Lin Yunfeng reminded him to prepare his sword when they entered the forest - he had known all along that something like this would happen. Lu Yun's body flashed and moved a zhang away, avoiding the silent and stealthy attack of an incoming sword. The large tree at the original location was shattered by the powerful sword energy, turning into fine powder that scattered throughout the forest.

  Lin Yunfeng didn't know where he had hidden, he must be hiding nearby using the yin-yang escape method and sneering. Lu Yun's body kept dodging non-stop, the opponent's attack became more and more fierce, the entire forest was already being chopped by the opponent's sword energy, branches were flying everywhere, a thirty-zhang square empty space appeared on the ground.

  Lu Yun was extremely shocked by this hidden opponent, and had been secretly searching for the other's whereabouts. In order to find out the other's whereabouts, the true energy around his body suddenly increased to a high frequency of 4,800 times per second, detecting all hidden objects around him. Finally, he found the hidden Lin Yunfeng and that opponent. It was a woman, which made Lu Yun extremely surprised, but unfortunately she moved too fast, and her face couldn't be seen clearly.

  Lu Yun was about to dodge and retreat, calling out for the other party to clarify things, but unfortunately, their attack came again, and this time it was exceptionally powerful. With just one move, Lu Yun's body was sent flying backward, immediately falling into a predicament. The "Blazing Heavenly Sword Technique" in his hand was actually suppressed by the other party's incredibly mysterious sword technique, unable to lift its head. This truly shocked Lu Yun to the extreme.

  Lu Yun's body spun sideways, his long sword spinning around in a circle, and with each rotation, nine powerful Tianjue Sword Qi were chopped out, hoping to stop the opponent's attack. Unfortunately, the opponent's offensive was extremely strong, and that overbearing sword energy actually made it difficult for Lu Yun to breathe, which was truly astonishing. Since Lin Yunfeng was present, Lu Yun did not dare to display his true abilities, so he could only use the cultivation techniques he had learned in Yiyuan Garden over the past year to cope.

  In the forest, a fierce wind suddenly rose, and in an instant, hundreds of colorful sword energies gathered into a dense sword net, like a five-colored rainbow falling from above Lu Yun's head, enveloping him. Lu Yun's face changed, and he shouted loudly: "Yun Feng, if you're still hiding behind that big tree on the left and don't come to help me, I'm definitely going to die! Why aren't you taking action to help me deal with this hidden mysterious opponent?"

  Lin Yun Feng said in a surprised tone: "Lu Yun, how did you know I was hiding there? That's my unique skill, and you can actually see through it. How much have you learned in the past year?"

  "Stop stalling and make your move, I can barely hold on!" Lu Yun shouted. As soon as he finished speaking, the long sword in his hand trembled, causing the ground around him to ripple instantly. A powerful scarlet sword aura burst forth, colliding with the thousands of sword auras in an instant, producing a blinding flash of light and a deafening crash that shook the heavens. In an instant, a dazzling radiance expanded outward, its speed and power so great that it severed hundreds of large trees at their trunks, sending them crashing to the ground with a terrifying force.

  Lin Yunfeng's body suddenly flashed in mid-air, and he let out a loud cry. Then, his left hand gestured, and his right hand somehow produced a talisman, as he chanted: "Qiankun wuji, yinyang jiefǎ, xiàn!" As soon as the words fell, a powerful sword energy, shaped like a phoenix spreading its wings, hacked down towards Lin Yunfeng. At the same moment, a white figure appeared in mid-air not far away.

  Only a white-clad figure was seen, slowly floating down, the gentle breeze lightly brushing against the snow-white long skirt, making it seem like a wind-blown snow lotus, pure and unblemished. Silently landing on a large tree, her clear and cold eyes quietly gazed at Lu Yun and Lin Yun Feng, without any emotional fluctuations.

  Lu Yun looked at the girl in front of him, and his heart was stunned. Her white clothes were as snowy, her figure was as ethereal as a fairy, her clear and cold eyes had a hint of shallowness. What a face it was, as cold as a winter night's moon, as noble as a snow lotus flower, with delicate features, beautiful complexion, skin as white as jade, and a slender figure. Everything showed that this was an extremely beautiful girl who was hard to find in the world. At the age of 21 or 22, she had a temperament as elegant as a fairy, her bright eyes contained saintliness and loneliness. A sword with a faint purple glow stood quietly above her head, like a protective umbrella, quietly and firmly protecting her inside.

  Who is this? Lu Yun's heart was filled with doubts, looking at the beautiful and unparalleled girl in the world. Lu Yun couldn't guess who she was. He took a glance at Lin Yun Fen, but found that his eyes flashed with a hint of panic, as if he was afraid of the girl. Did he know who this person was? Was he acquainted with the girl?