Half an hour later.
On the open grounds of the space station's side wing.
Fu Hua held the Xuanyuan Sword in her hand as the two faced each other.
Though in their previous sparring Setsuna had overwheld Fu Hua's Taixuan Eminence with the bug-like abilities of the Eternal Snowfall, he still found the technique extrely fascinating.
Who wouldn't want to master a peerless sword art?
In the archives of the imperial library, breathing techniques were clearly outdated, and he had already studied Heroic Spirit sword styles for a ti.
But since their Noble Phantasms were tied to legends of their past lives, they weren't suitable for him.
By contrast, Taixuan Eminence was just right.
If he took the ti to learn it, he could strengthen his combat power in human form—rather than always having to swat mosquitoes with a planet-buster cannon.
"Edge of Taixuan has five essences: heart, form, will, soul, and spirit. Though it is called 'sword qi,' to truly transform sword into spirit, one must comprehend the fifth essence, the Spirit."
Fu Hua paced slowly as she explained to Setsuna.
"Only upon grasping the Spirit essence can you unleash the Taixuan Eminence."
"The Honkai energy within you is unparalleled, the strongest adaptability I have ever seen—far beyond even those of Fire Moth."
"I am curious. With your power, just how strong would the Taixuan Eminence be?"
"…"
Setsuna smiled faintly. His compatibility with multiple world systems of power had been useless back when he started with nothing but bare hands.
But as he explored more and more worlds, snowballing along the way, it was finally beginning to show its worth.
"Let's begin."
Fu Hua gestured for Setsuna to sit down cross-legged opposite her.
"We'll start with the Heart essence."
"This is the entry point, but also—apart from the Spirit essence—the most difficult one. Its purpose is to temper your sword heart."
"The Heart essence has four realms: Still Water, Dustless, Bright Mirror, and Taixu. For ordinary n, reaching Dustless is their limit. You, however, need not be bound by this."
"Now, I will recite the Blade Mantra. You must morize it, chant it at all tis, and refine your heart through it."
A string of strange syllables flowed from Fu Hua's lips.
They had no written form, no intrinsic aning, and belonged to no earthly language.
Yet their mystery lay in this: whether recited, whispered, or heard, they cald the heart like still water, inducing a ditative state.
"…"
Setsuna closed his eyes and began chanting the mantra as Fu Hua instructed.
He felt his thoughts completely relax, his awareness finely attuned to every subtle change within his body.
In the end, he knew and sensed nothing beyond the flow of power within—outside distractions could no longer touch his mind.
"Hm? You've grasped it so quickly. Not bad."
Fu Hua noticed that within half an hour, Setsuna had already entered the state, and was slightly surprised.
"I thought with your temperant, quieting your heart would take a long ti."
"And it is usually in youth that one's sword heart is best tempered—the earlier, the purer. For an adult to refine the sword heart is no easy task…"
"I trained swordsmanship before with the Ahoge King, so I have so foundation. Besides, a man is a boy until the day he dies."
Setsuna replied casually.
"…"
Fu Hua was briefly speechless, then continued her teaching.
"For the Heart essence, just keep tempering your sword heart in daily practice. Next, let's move on to the Form and Will essences."
"Form is literally swordsmanship itself. Since you say you've trained with the sword, let see your level of skill."
She cleared space for him.
Not far away stood a few alloy-made training dummies.
"Use your swordsmanship against them. Don't rely on ship cannons or other powers."
"Alright."
Setsuna raised the Sword in the Stone with both hands, vast magic surging into its blade.
Boom!!!
He swung downward, the magical blade extending dozens of ters in an instant, crashing into the ground and shattering the dummies to pieces.
Rumble—
Magic rippled through the training field, stirring up a violent gale.
"…"
Fu Hua froze for a mont.
"What kind of swordsmanship is that? So… brutish?"
"Uh, I learned that from Artoria. Her move is called Excalibur, and I tweaked it a little… as for the na…"
Setsuna thought for a mont.
"Let's call it 'Glory of Kariya.'"
"???"
Fu Hua had no idea where that strange na ca from.
She shook her head.
"Unacceptable."
"I know your power is imnse, and you may scoff at ordinary swordsmanship, but if you wish to master the Taixuan Eminence, you must first lay a solid foundation and thoroughly grasp the earlier essences…"
Swish—
She drew the Xuanyuan Sword and demonstrated each move for Setsuna.
"The Form essence of Edge of Taixuan has four lines—Guard, Transform, Inspire, and Open—for a total of twenty-one techniques. Watch carefully."
At that mont, Fu Hua was at the peak of her pri. Her swordplay flowed like a dance—graceful as a startled swan, supple as a dragon in flight.
The gleaming sword light, combined with her classical robes, wove a striking contrast of fierce sword winds and elegant beauty. Setsuna found himself montarily dazed.
"The Inspire line has three forms: Crescent Moon, Sea Severing, and Sky Rending… the Transform line has six…"
"The Open line also has six: Stonebreaker, Chaos Thunder, Thunderclap, Landslide, Dustfall, and Galequake… this is the sixth."
After completing the demonstration, Fu Hua handed the sword to Setsuna.
"Now you try."
Setsuna accepted the sword.
He began to mimic her movents.
The ship's AI granted him extraordinary learning and analytical abilities.
Every detail of Fu Hua's demonstration was stored vividly in his mind.
Thus, without needing further examples, he could slowly correct his own mistakes through repeated practice—
Turning Fu Hua's swordsmanship into his own.
"You really are remarkable…"
"To morize an entire sword style at a glance—in the martial world, you would already be considered a once-in-a-million prodigy."
Fu Hua marveled.
She found that after only a few corrections, Setsuna could steadily perform the full twenty-one forms of the four lines.
Though his movents were not yet fluid, for soone who just half a day earlier had only known how to smash the floor with raw magic, it was shockingly fast progress.
"This is the power of technology."
Setsuna smiled.
The two trained from afternoon until evening.
By the ti the lolis on the space station finished work and headed off in groups for als or rest, Setsuna reluctantly sheathed the sword.
"Interesting. After blasting people with starship cannons so many tis, practicing the sword as a change of pace isn't bad."
"It's elegant. No wonder the Kocho sisters like to practice swordplay in the capital."
"You've improved quickly, but Edge of Taixuan isn't sothing that can be mastered overnight."
Fu Hua regarded him seriously.
"Once you have thoroughly practiced the Form essence, I will teach you the Will and Soul essences. When you grasp the Soul, you will understand the essence of swordsmanship itself."
"At that level, you can wield any weapon as if it were a sword, unbound by sword form. Only upon reaching such a state can one be said to have achieved true mastery."
Ordinary people needed a dium—whether the Sword in the Stone or the Xuanyuan Sword.
But upon comprehending the fourth essence, one could begin to transcend reliance on external objects, treating all weapons as swords.
And when one learned to wield sword through spirit, sword qi by heart—that was the fifth essence, the Taixuan Eminence.
"How long do you think I'll need to train?"
Setsuna asked.
"Hmm… your comprehension and mory are excellent, and your adaptability to Honkai energy is extraordinary. With diligent practice, you should be able to fully master the Soul essence in about three to six months."
"As for the Spirit essence… given your adaptability, it shouldn't be difficult for you."
Fu Hua rested her chin in her hand, pondering for several minutes.
"Among those who practice Edge of Taixuan, your speed is already frighteningly fast."
"Three to six months? Tsk, that's a bit slow…"
Setsuna clicked his tongue. "I'm fairly free at the mont, but I won't always have this much ti for sword practice…"
"If only I could finish it in a day or two."
Once the affairs in the Broken Sword Record world of Shenzhou were settled, he still had to manage the capital's administration and plan expeditions into other worlds.
Every day ahead promised to be busy.
"???"
"A day or two?!"
Fu Hua couldn't help but laugh in exasperation. She tapped his shoulder with the hilt of her sword.
"Cultivating Edge of Taixuan requires decades of daily practice. There are no shortcuts."
"The fact that you can grasp so much in such a short ti is already remarkable. How can you still not be satisfied?"
"…"
"Decades of daily practice…"
"Wait!"
Setsuna pondered briefly, then his eyes lit up.
With a wave, he projected a shuttle, whisking Fu Hua toward the Eternal Snowfall.
"Hua, co party with —oh no, co guide in my swordsmanship."
"?"
Fu Hua, completely bewildered, followed Setsuna onto the ship.
"What are you doing? Practicing swordsmanship on a battleship?"
"Isn't this the sa as training on the space station…?"
She glanced around. The Juggernaut was positioned so distance from the station, maintaining relative alignnt with Earth.
Thanks to advanced optical camouflage and anti-gravity systems, the natives of Earth had noticed nothing unusual.
"Self-ti acceleration, one-hundred-eighty tis."
Buzz—
Space trembled violently.
The distant station and ship suddenly slowed down, and even Earth's slow rotation seed frozen.
"I twisted the flow of ti here."
Setsuna stood at the command console, smiling at Fu Hua.
"Now, one hour outside equals 180 hours aboard the Eternal Snowfall. Spending sixty days here will only be one night outside. Perfect for training, don't you think?"
"!!!"
Fu Hua's eyes widened. She stared out the window for a long mont.
Ti distortion.
Yet again, she heard sothing utterly absurd from Setsuna's mouth.
"You… can control the flow of ti?"
"On a ship larger than the moon itself?!"
"Don't get the wrong idea. This is just a trick. The Eternal Snowfall is , so I'm only accelerating and decelerating my own ti."
Setsuna laughed it off.
"…"
"Still unbelievable…"
Fu Hua looked around. The station and nearby ships outside were indeed frozen to a standstill under the ti distortion.
"Then if you always distorted ti like this, wouldn't you be able to…"
"Stop! Don't get any unrealistic ideas."
Setsuna cut her off.
"Ti distortion is a massive drain. Even I can't maintain it constantly. Doing it once in a while is enough."
"Besides, its original purpose was for… well, let's just say it wasn't for training. Rare that I'm using it properly this ti."
"?"
Fu Hua frowned in puzzlent.
"What did you usually use ti distortion for? Physical training? Learning knowledge?"
"Physical training… well, not wrong."
Setsuna patted her shoulder.
"You'll find out in ti, Hua."
...
Aboard the Eternal Snowfall.
Under Fu Hua's guidance, Setsuna began long sessions of training.
Here there were no interruptions, only Angeloids maintaining and monitoring the starship.
He could focus entirely on what he wanted to do.
First week.
He practiced swordsmanship move by move under Fu Hua's guidance.
They sotis sparred, relying on sword skills alone, without power. Fu Hua overwhelmingly defeated him.
Third week.
Setsuna had fully mastered the twenty-one forms of Edge of Taixuan's four lines.
It was also the first true sword style his system had ever truly ingrained.
Each strike was fierce and precise, leaving even Fu Hua with no fault to point out.
Fourth week.
Setsuna began to learn the Will and Soul essences under Fu Hua's instruction.
"The Will essence of Edge of Taixuan requires the Xuanyuan Sword. One must beco attuned to it, forging one's own sword intent."
"Hmm… since you lack the Xuanyuan Sword, I'll gift you one."
Fu Hua produced a golden longsword and handed it to Setsuna.
At its core, Edge of Taixuan was a thod of channeling Honkai energy. Practicing with the Sword in the Stone was sowhat incompatible.
Setsuna accepted the sword and paused to think.
"By the way, once the Will and Soul essences are mastered, there's no longer any need to cling to weapon forms, right?"
"Correct."
Fu Hua nodded.
"But for beginners, a sword is still necessary to control the power…"
Before she could finish, Setsuna raised his hand.
Black Honkai energy gathered, condensing into a long spear.
Swish—
With a thrust, the weapon shifted seamlessly. Spear beca saber, blade beca halberd, polearm beca axe. Eighteen martial weapons, each form at his command.
Any weapon he could imagine, he could conjure.
With Herrscher-level control over Honkai energy, he could forge weapons for himself at will.
Swish swish swish—
He swung them fiercely, his movents like a raging tiger, leaving Fu Hua staring in astonishnt.
"All weapons and arms… by my will!!"
A line suddenly popped into Setsuna's head.
"Wait, am I being influenced by Senti?!"
"…"
Fu Hua pressed her forehead, frowning.
"Forging weapons out of Honkai energy? …Fine, I suppose you are a Herrscher. Whatever makes you happy."
Other than short periods for als and rest, Setsuna poured all of his ti into learning the Taixuan Eminence.
His physique was formidable, and as a MANTIS, Fu Hua too needed only two or three hours of sleep per day.
As a teacher in cultivation, she was undoubtedly excellent.
Eight weeks later.
On the bridge of the Eternal Snowfall.
Fu Hua stood before Setsuna, guiding him hand in hand through the final essence of Edge of Taixuan—the Spirit essence.
"The Spirit essence is essentially shaping and extending Honkai energy. Master it, and you can unleash the Taixuan Eminence."
"You already possess enough Honkai energy. In theory, practicing the Spirit essence should present no bottleneck for you."
"As long as you temper your heart, reaching the realm of wielding sword through spirit, sword qi through heart, you'll succeed."
She raised her sword and demonstrated the Taixuan Eminence once more.
A torrent of Honkai energy twisted above, reshaping the sky into a burning sea of clouds.
Then, a massive sword unsheathed itself in midair, condensed entirely from Honkai energy.
With a sharp cry, Fu Hua sent the golden blade crashing down, light shimring across the Eternal Snowfall's hull.
The Taixuan Eminence struck both spirit and flesh simultaneously.
Had Setsuna not possessed near-unbreakable shipborne supercomputing defenses, any ordinary person would have been annihilated body and soul.
Even Celine wouldn't dare take Fu Hua's full-powered Taixuan Eminence head-on.
"Hmm… shaping Honkai energy… wielding sword through spirit…"
Setsuna closed his eyes, following Fu Hua's words, entering ditation to forge his sword intent.
Casting sothing that resembled a Taixuan Eminence cannon wasn't difficult—Senti could do that too.
But only in a state of perfect serenity could this technique show its full power.
Thus, even though Senti had the sa body as Fu Hua, her Taixuan Eminence could never overpower Fu Hua's.
He cast aside all distractions, until nothing remained but himself and the flow of power within.
His being rged with the starry sky.
Then—
He swept his hand, gathering all Honkai energy within himself.
Swish—
The sky above his head was instantly overlaid with a blazing orange-red hue.
A colossal mass of Honkai energy condensed and took form.
Beyond his Herrscher power, Setsuna realized he could also infuse the Wisdom Cube or Allspark's energy into it.
After all, they were part of him.
A golden longsword, radiant and vast, grew larger and larger above him.
Until it beca a gargantuan blade nearly one-fifth the size of the Eternal Snowfall.
Even the energy leaking from it was enough to make one's blood run cold.
"???"
"What are you doing?!"
Fu Hua nearly leapt back in shock.
"I figured I could mix my other energies into this move as well."
Setsuna answered calmly.
"???"
"Don't point it at Earth!!"
The Taixuan Eminence was originally the ultimate anti-personnel technique, annihilating both body and spirit of its target—unavoidable, inescapable.
But Fu Hua felt that whatever Setsuna had unleashed… wasn't quite right.
What was this? Did this man have to go overboard with everything—not only his ship, but even Taixuan Eminence had to be made ridiculous?!
This was supposed to be swordsmanship, not a doomsday weapon!!
Fu Hua suspected that if Setsuna struck Earth with this, at least 90% the planet's population would either be reduced to ash or suffer total ntal collapse.
Boom—
Setsuna swung his hand.
The golden giant sword, brimming with Honkai energy, shot into the distant void.
On Earth below, the natives who saw the golden streak crossing the heavens thought it a miracle.
anwhile, aboard the station, the shipgirls, Cangxuan, Dan Zhu, and others looked on with mild surprise.
"That looked like Fu Hua's Taixuan Eminence…"
"No, wait, was it ever this outrageous when she used it? And why did you fire it from the Eternal Snowfall?!"
Rumble—
The Honkai energy blast struck a distant asteroid, shattering it into pieces.
"Hmm, seems this move specializes in anti-personnel. Its physical destructive power isn't that strong—less than the Light Spear."
"But the ntal attack… excellent. From now on, no need to use full power against small fry."
Setsuna nodded to himself.
"If you can't control your strength, unleashing the Taixuan Eminence at full power on Earth would cause secondary disasters."
Fu Hua pressed her forehead and sighed.
"From now on, practice focusing that massive energy onto a single target."
Setsuna's progress was nothing short of astonishing.
He had learned it—yet it also felt as though he hadn't.
At least to Fu Hua, the planet-buster version of the Taixuan Eminence was nothing like the technique she had created.
"Mm, perfect."
"All that's left is practicing control."
Setsuna was completely satisfied.
More is better, bigger is stronger—he was a faithful devotee of the aesthetics of violence.
...
When the ti distortion ended, the two returned to the space station.
For the others, only a single night had passed.
Fu Hua recounted to Cangxuan and Dan Zhu, astonished, what she had experienced aboard the Eternal Snowfall.
"So he achieved spatial and temporal distortion by rging with the ship itself?"
"Incredible, simply incredible…"
The two nodded repeatedly as they listened.
Especially when they heard that Fu Hua had spent two months alone with Setsuna aboard the Eternal Snowfall, Cangxuan's eyes lit up like stars.
She imdiately leaned close to Fu Hua, looking up curiously:
"And then? And then? You two were alone for so long—besides practicing swordsmanship, didn't you do anything else?"
"No."
Fu Hua shook her head blankly.
"I was teaching him the Taixuan Eminence. What else would we do?"
"…"
Dan Zhu and Cangxuan exchanged glances, fell silent, and then carefully looked Fu Hua over.
"That can't be right… is it because your figure is too plain? Or because you're such a block of wood?"
"Jingwei, why don't you go ask the Life Sciences Division if they have so way to, well… make you bigger—oh no, I an, more enticing?"
"???"
—
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