The Cannon Fodder’s Inner Thoughts Were Overheard by the Villain [Transmigration Into a Book] - Chapter 22

Jiang Minghuan’s heart raced when he heard Duan Shui’s first question. Before he could even formulate an answer, the second question came.

He cleared his throat and said, “Which sect hasn’t researched these things over the years? It’s just that the Cloud Sect has always limited itself to research and never actually put them into practice. After all, we don’t have any Wood-Attribute cultivators. If I hadn’t accidentally come into contact with the Dragon Clan Cultivation Manual, I wouldn’t have discovered this hidden talent within me, nor would I know whether it’s a blessing or a curse.”

Duan Shui nodded, his expression unreadable as to whether he believed Jiang Minghuan or not.

Jiang Minghuan didn’t dwell on it. He’d offered his explanation, and whether others believed him or not was beside the point. He believed himself.

In any case, cultivating the fallow land wouldn’t take long. Halfway through the process, Jiang Minghuan wisely stopped.

Then, he and Duan Shui, big and small, crouched before the seedbed, scrutinizing the soil intently.

Duan Shui lay on his little cloud, propping his face in his hands. “When will they sprout?”

Jiang Minghuan replied uncertainly, “Many factors influence seedling emergence. Given our current weather, I’d estimate seven to eight days.”

Based on his previous experience with his experimental field, untreated seeds typically took about ten days to sprout. Since he had treated the seeds this time, he figured the germination period would be shortened by two or three days.

Duan Shui turned to him. “You don’t plan to just stare at them until they sprout, do you?”

Jiang Minghuan was about to say, “What else can we do?”

But when he met Duan Shui’s gaze, he knew the Blade Spirit was going to urge him to cultivate again.

Truly, the type of person you are determines the kind of Blade Spirit you attract. Pei Jingyuan was a cultivation maniac, and the Blade Spirit by his side was no different!

Jiang Minghuan immediately said, “I’m going to practice with my blade.”

Those cultivation manuals were so headache-inducing. Besides, it had been a while since he’d last practiced his forms and blade techniques.

Before his transmigration, he used to practice a set of punches and blade forms every morning. Afterward, he’d feel refreshed and energized, and then… he’d go back to being a miserable research dog.

Jiang Minghuan gripped Whale Swallower’s hilt. In that instant, he seemed to sense Whale Swallower’s joy. Turning around, he noticed Duan Shui’s face also wore a delighted expression.

He couldn’t help but ask, “What’s going on between you and Whale Swallower?”

Duan Shui said, a little embarrassed, “We’ve grown so familiar with each other that Spirit Integration won’t take long.”

A sudden thought struck Jiang Minghuan, After Duan Shui completes Spirit Integration with Whale Swallower, will he become my Blade Spirit? And if I leave the Sword Pavilion someday, who will Duan Shui follow?

He quickly dismissed the idea. What’s the point in asking? Duan Shui will undoubtedly stay with Pei Jingyuan. Whale Swallower will probably be left behind.

With this thought, he gently stroked Whale Swallower’s blade, feeling a sudden pang of reluctance. After all, Whale Swallower was an exceptional blade, its restrained radiance perfectly suiting his own temperament.

Jiang Minghuan casually began practicing a set of blade techniques. At first, Duan Shui lay on his little cloud, occasionally glancing over. But after one look, he couldn’t resist sitting up to watch intently. So absorbed was he that he didn’t even notice when he stood up, his attention completely captivated.

After finishing the set, Jiang Minghuan realized his cultivation seemed to have advanced slightly. Though he hadn’t consciously circulated his Dao Essence during his practice, the essence seemed to have a will of its own, spontaneously circulating through his body and even attaching itself to Whale Swallower.

At first, when he was still struggling to control it, the blade would occasionally strike nearby bamboo, startling him.

Fortunately, he quickly regained control. Even so, by the time he finished executing the blade form, four or five bamboo stalks had been felled.

Jiang Minghuan sheathed his blade and looked at the bamboo, then at Whale Swallower, beginning to ponder, Could this be the legendary Blade Qi?

Sword cultivators have Sword Qi, so it stands to reason that Blade cultivators would have Blade Qi, right?

As he pondered, Duan Shui drifted over from the side and circled him, observing. “Your blade form is quite… peculiar,” he remarked.

Jiang Minghuan, basking in the soothing sensation of Dao Essence surging through his meridians, replied lazily, “How so?”

Duan Shui replied cautiously, “The blade movements are slow, yet the Blade Intent is remarkably fluid. It appears gentle, yet the Blade Qi is remarkably forceful. It’s strange; I’ve never seen a blade form like this before.”

Jiang Minghuan smiled faintly but offered no explanation. In Daoist Blade Arts, the principle was to guide the blade with qi, intent precedes motion; where intent goes, qi follows; where qi goes, power follows.

Most forms appeared gentle on the surface but concealed explosive power within, a fact amply demonstrated by the fallen bamboo in the distance.

Before, Jiang Minghuan had never experienced anything like qi. His Master had told him that his heart wasn’t pure, that his desire to run off and attend school had left him unable to focus and thus unable to sense it. The purpose of practicing with the blade, he was told, was simply to exercise his body, to prevent him from ruining his health by studying day and night.

Now that he possessed Dao Essence, he had a much deeper understanding of the blade techniques he had learned before.

Duan Shui, clearly intrigued by Jiang Minghuan’s blade technique, casually asked, “Where did you learn this from?”

Jiang Minghuan, falling into his usual habit of teasing children, replied, “I learned it in my dreams.”

He almost added, “I also practice dream killing,” but managed to brake in time, fearing the consequences.

Duan Shui, who looked younger than his years, stared at him disbelievingly. “Who exactly is teaching you all this in your dreams? Who’s in your dreams?”

Jiang Minghuan’s spirits instantly perked up. “Listen, do you believe there’s another world inside our dreams?”

Duan Shui pondered this seriously. “A Small World? No, that’s not right. Small Worlds aren’t in dreams.”

After reaching the Nascent Soul Stage, cultivators can cultivate Small Worlds. The more realistic the Small World, the deeper the cultivator’s understanding of the Heavenly Dao, and the more their cultivation will advance.

Jiang Minghuan, as the Chief Disciple of the Cloud Sect, had a cultivation level that, while not low, had previously only reached the Golden Core Stage.

Now, due to his injuries, his true strength was somewhat ambiguous.

One could say he was still at the Golden Core Stage, yet without his Golden Core, he couldn’t use many of the techniques he once could.

Yet to call him a novice was misleading; his Dao Essence was profound, and he clearly already possessed his own path, making it difficult to gauge his level.

Regardless, Jiang Minghuan was far from being able to cultivate a Small World.

Jiang Minghuan immediately waved his hand. “Of course not. That world doesn’t seem like a Small World cultivated by a cultivator. It feels incredibly real and completely different from this place.”

Duan Shui, sitting cross-legged on a cloud, asked, “Then tell me, what exactly is different about it?”

There was so much to say. Jiang Minghuan described everything from architecture to transportation, deliberately avoiding any mention of religious beliefs like Buddhism or Daoism.

Even these basic descriptions left Duan Shui utterly stunned.

When Jiang Minghuan mentioned feeling a little parched, Duan Shui promptly offered him a cup of water.

But the moment he swallowed the water, he heard Pei Jingyuan’s voice.

“Even mortals can fly through the air here. This world is truly extraordinary.”

“Pfft!”

Jiang Minghuan choked, spitting out the water he had just swallowed.

He turned around, his face a mask of horror, to see Pei Jingyuan slowly descending from mid-air.

‘Holy shit, what is he doing here? How much did he hear? Is he going to burn me at the stake as a heretic?’

‘No way, no way. I already said this was a dream. Does he really think he can control even my dreams?’

After his initial guilty shock, Jiang Minghuan regained his self-righteousness. “How dare you eavesdrop on our conversation?”

Pei Jingyuan glanced at him. “You didn’t even notice my arrival. With your complete lack of vigilance, you still have the nerve to blame me?”

Jiang Minghuan said nothing, but his expression clearly showed his defiance.

‘You’re a Nascent Soul Cultivator. Of course you’re hard to detect. If you don’t make a sound, I’ll never find you in this lifetime.’

‘What could possibly happen in the Sword Pavilion of the Years? If anything goes wrong, it’s the fault of the Sword Pavilion Disciples for inadequate patrols, and your fault as Pavilion Master for poor management!’

‘This guy never took responsibility for his own low cultivation level.’

Expressionless, Pei Jingyuan grabbed Jiang Minghuan by the collar. “Go back and rest.”

Jiang Minghuan gripped his wrist. “I’ll walk myself, I’ll walk myself.”

‘What’s with the rough handling? A gentleman uses his words, not his hands, you know!’

‘You’re always grabbing me like I’m a kitten or puppy. What’s with that?’

‘You’d better not give me the chance. One day, I’ll carry you just like that.’

Pei Jingyuan’s lips curved slightly. He wanted to tell Jiang Minghuan that, given his current laziness, that day would likely never come.

Unfortunately, he didn’t want to reveal that he could “hear” those messages.

Jiang Minghuan’s defenses were beginning to soften. The world he described today was likely his original world, not just a dream.

Even Nascent Soul cultivators struggle to create Small Worlds that break free from the laws of the mortal realm. How could an ordinary dream contain so many unheard-of things?

With this thought, Pei Jingyuan instructed Duan Shui, “Remember to ask him more about that dream world in the future.”

Duan Shui readily agreed, genuinely intrigued by this so-called dream world himself.

However, over the next two days, no matter how he tried to steer the conversation, Jiang Minghuan refused to elaborate. He simply repeated that he’d dreamed of those things and nothing more.

Just as Duan Shui was pondering how to get him to talk further, Jiang Minghuan suddenly exclaimed, “Duan Shui, Duan Shui! Come quick! It’s sprouting!”

Duan Shui immediately rushed over to see.

In the damp black soil, a barely perceptible sprout of green peeked out.

The seedling was so small that only its delicate tip had emerged when Jiang Minghuan spotted it.

If Duan Shui hadn’t leaned in close, he probably wouldn’t have noticed the tender shoot at all.

When Duan Shui saw the sprout, he was filled with excitement.

How many years had passed since the Cultivation World last witnessed the cultivation of spiritual plants?

He held his breath, afraid a single gust of wind might extinguish the fragile seedling.

Throughout his observation, he dared not speak, waiting until he had thoroughly examined the plant before cautiously backing away and asking, “Is that the only one?”

The moment the words left his lips, he regretted his impatience. Even a single sprout was a remarkable achievement.

Jiang Minghuan bent down for a closer inspection. “I don’t think so,” he replied. “This one just happened to sprout first. Once one seedling emerges, the others should follow soon.”

Of course, some seeds wouldn’t germinate, acceptable losses in any planting. But at this moment, Jiang Minghuan fervently prayed for every seed to sprout. Each one was incredibly precious; they couldn’t afford to waste even a single grain.

As he prayed, a sudden intuition struck him. Turning his head, he saw Pei Jingyuan gently land behind him. “What’s wrong?” the sect leader asked.

Jiang Minghuan immediately grabbed the Pavilion Master’s sleeve and pointed at the seedbed, exclaiming, “Pavilion Master, look! The wheat seedlings are sprouting!”