Chapter 44: Ten Thousand Convergence Art (1)

I've completely mastered the Fourteen Sword Forms of the Plum Blossom, so let's see... It's time to train the Twenty-four Sword Forms. Let's start by supplementing the first form.

Just because he had completely mastered the Fourteen Sword Forms of the Plum Blossom didn't mean that he didn't need to train the first fourteen forms of the twenty-four forms.

The fourteen forms didn't even amount to half of the Twenty-four Forms; it was closer to a quarter. Abridging twenty-four forms into fourteen meant that there was a need for the other forms to be simplified as well.

Thanks to this, the time it took to train each form differed as well. A cultivator training the fifth form of the Fourteen Forms would only be training in the second form if they were training in the Twenty-four Forms, due to the difference in training difficulty.

Still, it's good that I've practiced some of them before. I should train just a little before moving on to the next form. I've trained the fifteenth form before, so it's time for the sixteenth form, Plum Blossom Rain.

Similar to the Violet Haze Divine Art, this was his first time learning the Twenty-four forms. This martial art was reserved for the Plum Blossom Swordsmen, so Zhou Xuchuan only knew of its sutra.

"Urgh, it's terribly difficult." He muttered helplessly whenever he executed the Twenty-four Forms.

Despite his enlightenment being in the Harmony Realm, performing a difficult sword art like the Twenty-four Forms of the Plum Blossom was challenging, particularly because it was his first time.

Zhou Xuchuan didn't have exceptional talent to begin with. It was his first time learning it, so he was bound to make mistakes.

"Tsk, now that my internal qi has reached a full cycle, the Plum Blossom Life Art is getting less effective, too..."

While it might be obvious, the Plum Blossom Life Art didn't stay effective forever. If it were permanent, Mount Hua Sect would have two divine arts, not two.

"Good work, Plum Blossom Life Art, see you again in the future," He bid farewell to the Plum Blossom Life Art. Training in it any further was a waste of time.

He judged that training something else would be more worthwhile and let go of it without hesitation. He hoped to see it decades later, discovered by a genius cultivator.

"Well, then. Now..." He took out a book from his bosom. It was one of the secret manuals he had in his possession.

"I was lucky to obtain this."

Gulp.

At the top of his list of items to obtain from the Three-Eyed Godly Thief's treasury was the Ten Thousand Convergence Art.

He knew that the Ten Thousand Convergence Art was somewhere in the Three-Eyed Godly Thief's treasury but didn't know exactly where it was. He was originally planning on raiding the treasury until he found it, but he ended up finding it much earlier than he had expected.

"The Ten Thousand Convergence Art..."

Two martial arts couldn't be learned at the same time—this statement wasn't entirely true. Strictly speaking, cultivators did not learn two martial arts at the same time.

There were three reasons for this.

Firstly, achieving full mastery in just one martial art was difficult enough, regardless of its type. Even being acknowledged as a full-fledged cultivator in the art was difficult.

That was how difficult the study of martial arts was. So, what would happen to someone trying to cultivate several at once? Obviously, they wouldn't succeed in any of them.

Secondly, the dangers of executing the martial arts.

Would it be possible to perform different types of martial arts in quick succession or even at the same time? For example, executing a fist art or a palm art while performing a sword art? It wasn't entirely impossible, but no one would be able to say with confidence that they could do it either.

Performing two different arts at the same time was practically impossible. Executing a sword art with the right hand and a palm art with the left hand would lead to an overlap or a clash in circulating internal qi, which would lead to qi deviation.

Thirdly, the required cultivation arts.

To perform a sword art of the Mount Hua Sect, one must have cultivated the Plum Blossom Cultivation Art or a similar cultivation art beforehand. Without such preparation, not only would proper execution be impossible, but it could also lead to qi deviation.

To make matters worse, an orthodox cultivator trying to imitate a martial art of a different nature, such as those from the Evil Faction, could also lead to severe consequences. That was how sensitive martial arts were.

However, there were some exceptions. One was the Duality Divine Art of the Wudang Sect, and the other was the Ten Thousand Convergence Art.

In the original history, the Ten Thousand Convergence Art fell into the hands of the Dark Heavens Association Leader, consequently leading to a disaster.

The very existence of that man defied common sense. Not only was he the genius of the era, he effortlessly mastered any martial art he learned. To that man, the notion that training in multiple martial arts would impede progress was only the whining of a loser.

Whether it was sword arts, saber arts, or spear arts, as long as he could obtain it and start learning it, mastering it completely didn't take him much time at all. Acquiring the Ten Thousand Convergence Art was akin to granting a tiger, no, a dragon wings.

"It's a crazy era in many ways..." Zhou Xuchuan let out an empty laugh. His eyes, tinged with a sense of absurdity, reflected the ashes of what used to be the manual for the Ten Thousand Convergence Art.

There was no other era that produced so many talents in history, be it heroes, villains, geniuses, or monsters. Just thinking about the arrival of such an era gave him a headache. There were many reassuring allies, but annoying enemies would match them in number.

"Let's return." Zhou Xuchuan stood up.

He searched the surroundings just in case a trace of the Ten Thousand Convergence Art was left. Despite witnessing its destruction firsthand, he took extra care to double-check, recognizing how important it was.

Zhou Xuchuan gathered a handful of ashes and threw them into the stream. As for the rest, he scattered them across the surrounding land or stuffed them into the mouths of small animals he caught nearby.

"You need to become a little weaker, Dark Heavens Association Leader."

*

The next day.

Zhou Xuchuan started training in the Ten Thousand Convergence Art at sunrise. It wasn't that difficult, so he completely mastered it before long.

He then immediately started his subsequent training exercise.

"Hmm..."

Before climbing the mountain, he had bought a bow and some arrows from a nearby village. Although he told the shop owner that he was going to use it to hunt, in truth, it was for the training he was about to do.

"Archery itself isn't that difficult..."

A wooden bow rested in his hands; an arrow nocked onto the bowstring.

Pah!

The arrow soared from the bowstring, trailing like a comet before striking the exact center of the target he had marked on the tree. His aim was extremely accurate, well, from the perspective of an ordinary man.

Martial artists were mostly good at archery because of their basic physical capabilities.

"Utilizing internal qi is much trickier than I expected."

He nocked a new arrow onto the bowstring. Despite chanting the sutra of the Eclipse Divine Archery Art and imbuing qi, it was difficult.

Considering he had never used something like this even in his past life, his struggles were understandable.

"That leaves training and more training."

He shot one arrow after another. It was a boring, repetitive routine. Sometimes, he would practice on live animals, training in the Eclipse Divine Archery Art separately.

"Big brother. You always tell me to focus on cultivation, but why are you doing something unnecessary?"

Archery was looked down upon even by the likes of Zhuge Shengji, who practically had no knowledge about martial arts.

"Shut up." Zhou Xuchuan ignored Zhuge Shengji's opinion.

And just like that, a month flew by.