Chapter 74: The Master’s Unorthodox Methods

After Meng Yingxing finished making all the dishes, he stood woodenly beside Xiu Qingcheng, as if he had appointed himself Xiu Qingcheng’s personal attendant.

Even when Xiu Qingcheng told him to sit down and eat with her, Meng Yingxing merely sat down but ate nothing.
Meng Yingxing’s given reason was: “I’m full.”
Xiu Qingcheng’s gaze towards him was extremely suspicious.

She had been with Meng Yingxing the entire time, and apart from a casual bite at the Tianfeng Sect’s relief point that wouldn’t even fill a cat, Meng Yingxing hadn’t eaten anything.
How could he be full like that?

In truth, Meng Yingxing didn’t know either; he just felt full simply by watching Xiu Qingcheng eat.

Since her disciple stubbornly insisted he wasn’t eating, Xiu Qingcheng let him be and began to devour her meal.
Eating openly felt different; Xiu Qingcheng, grasping her chopsticks and looking at the dishes on the table, felt her appetite had greatly increased.

Meng Yingxing silently watched his slender Master finish every single dish on the table, plate after plate.
While it was good not to waste any food, Meng Yingxing still found his Master’s appetite truly astonishing.

“I’m full! That was great!”
Xiu Qingcheng stretched her limbs, letting out an uninhibited burp.

Despite Xiu Qingcheng’s refined beauty, she always exuded a certain ‘roughness.’
Meng Yingxing didn’t mind, only finding Xiu Qingcheng’s uninhibited nature to be quite grand, truly befitting a master.
Seeing Xiu Qingcheng finish eating, Meng Yingxing even pulled out a handkerchief and helped her wipe the oil from her mouth.

“Oh, it’s really nice to have a disciple.”
Xiu Qingcheng didn’t dislike Meng Yingxing serving her; in fact, she found it quite enjoyable, no wonder people liked to hire nannies to take care of them.

After eating, Xiu Qingcheng threw herself onto Meng Yingxing’s bed.
Although the bed wasn’t as soft as she imagined, it was a bed nonetheless.
Xiu Qingcheng lay on her stomach on the bed, vigorously swinging her two smooth, pale legs, unaware that her skirt had ridden up.
This period of unrestrained living vaguely reminded Xiu Qingcheng of her former self, young, impetuous, and carefree.
Xiu Qingcheng suddenly felt that she was about to reconcile with this female body.
‘Being human truly felt good. If she could be human again, what did it matter if it was a female body?’
‘At worst, it wouldn’t be worse than when she was a dead sword.’

Xiu Qingcheng rolled onto her side, habitually tucking the quilt between her legs and hugging it.
As she turned, she saw Meng Yingxing, having finished cleaning the dishes, heading out to practice with his wooden sword.

Xiu Qingcheng could indulge in laziness, but Meng Yingxing could not.
He needed to cultivate diligently to avoid falling too far behind his peers, and today’s battle between Xiu Qingcheng and the Huang Cang demon had profoundly shaken him.

To truly stand shoulder to shoulder with Xiu Qingcheng, there was still much, much more he needed to do.

Meng Yingxing even felt a bit lost in his heart, wondering if he could truly reach Xiu Qingcheng’s realm, capable of effortlessly slaughtering a Huang Cang Demon King.
But how would he know if he didn’t try?

It was still the same old saying: people always unconditionally believed in one word, and that was “what if.”
Meng Yingxing was no exception at this moment.

Meng Yingxing had just walked into the courtyard when he felt a gust of wind behind him.
He instinctively turned his head, and a sword flew towards him.

Meng Yingxing’s heart jumped, and he instinctively reached out to catch it. The familiar weight of the Ting Tian Sword immediately settled into his hand.
He set down the Ting Tian Sword and saw Xiu Qingcheng leaning against the doorway, arms crossed.

“I can separate the Ting Tian Sword’s本体 into individual entities, so you can also continue practicing with the Ting Tian Sword.”

A white light flashed in Xiu Qingcheng’s palm, and another Ting Tian Sword appeared in her hand.
“I can also create these replicated Ting Tian Swords that only I can use, though their power is far less than the real Ting Tian Sword.”

As she spoke, Xiu Qingcheng conjured another replicated Ting Tian Sword, tossing it playfully in her hand as if performing a magic trick.
‘As a sword spirit, having this kind of skill was quite convenient.’

Meng Yingxing just watched Xiu Qingcheng, not knowing what she intended to do.
“Let me see how well you’ve mastered the Four Clouds Come Swords now.”

Xiu Qingcheng smiled faintly. The two replicated Ting Tian Swords instantly merged into one, which she twirled into a graceful sword flower in her hand before striking towards Meng Yingxing.

Meng Yingxing hadn’t expected Xiu Qingcheng to attack so suddenly. He hastily raised the Ting Tian Sword to block Xiu Qingcheng’s strike.

In the courtyard beneath the evening stars, two figures intertwined in combat, their robes swirling.

“Your sword strikes aren’t powerful enough! Such weak strength for practicing longswords! Again!”
Xiu Qingcheng’s voice was sharp and clear, her grey eyes seeing every flaw in Meng Yingxing’s moves.

As Meng Yingxing sparred with Xiu Qingcheng, he could feel the immense pressure she exerted on him with her swordsmanship.

It was the same Four Clouds Come Swords, yet two different levels of power.
‘His Master was like the vast ocean, boundless.’

“Too slow! Be faster!”

Xiu Qingcheng showed no mercy, her every move pushing Meng Yingxing into retreat.

She aimed low with her sword, striking Meng Yingxing directly on the calf with the hilt. Meng Yingxing immediately lost his balance and fell to the ground.
“Your stance isn’t stable enough! Practice!”

Xiu Qingcheng wanted to continue her pursuit, but Meng Yingxing, lying on the ground, tried to resist, instinctively grabbing Xiu Qingcheng’s ankle in front of him, hoping to use it to push himself up.

His hand made contact, and Meng Yingxing, still on the ground, was momentarily stunned.
Xiu Qingcheng’s ankle was so slender that even his small hand could grasp it completely.

Xiu Qingcheng’s feet were right before his eyes; her ten crystal-clear, rounded toes were charmingly exposed to the air. Perhaps because she was a spirit body, not a speck of dust clung to them even without shoes.

‘It made one want to reach out and play with them.’

Xiu Qingcheng thought Meng Yingxing was grabbing her ankle to counterattack, so she immediately kicked out, fiercely sending Meng Yingxing tumbling two circles on the ground.
After the kick, Xiu Qingcheng felt she had kicked a bit too hard and quickly ran to help Meng Yingxing up.

After their sparring session, Xiu Qingcheng decided she needed to add some physical training for Meng Yingxing.
Slow spiritual cultivation was fine, but physical strength had to keep up.

So, Xiu Qingcheng immediately instructed Meng Yingxing to do three hundred push-ups.

Meng Yingxing had no objection, obeying his Master’s every command.
‘That was his Master! His Master wouldn’t harm him, right?!’

Xiu Qingcheng sat on the bed, watching Meng Yingxing perform push-ups by the bed as if effortlessly, completing more than half in a flash.

“Why does he look so relaxed? Is it too simple?”

Xiu Qingcheng mumbled, a little doubtful of herself.
But upon closer thought, since Meng Yingxing had spiritual energy and had undergone body tempering, this amount of training probably wouldn’t challenge him.

To make Meng Yingxing’s training more effective, Xiu Qingcheng decided to increase the difficulty for him.
Meng Yingxing had just lowered himself for a push-up and hadn’t come back up when he felt something added to his back, significantly increasing the strength required to lift himself.

“Master?”

Meng Yingxing turned his head, glimpsing Xiu Qingcheng sitting by the bed, arms crossed, with her foot on his back.

“Your posture isn’t standard enough; you need to go down a bit more.”
Xiu Qingcheng stated righteously.
“Yes, Master!”

Meng Yingxing didn’t doubt her and allowed Xiu Qingcheng to step on his back as he continued to complete the remaining push-ups.

Later, Xiu Qingcheng felt it still wasn’t enough, so she simply floated onto Meng Yingxing’s back and straddled him.
She controlled her weight so that Meng Yingxing wouldn’t bear an excessive burden.

“What is the meaning of this, Master?”
Meng Yingxing caught a glimpse of two straight, beautiful legs beside him from the corner of his eye, not daring to turn his head to look more.

“Weighted training, weighted training!”
Xiu Qingcheng extended a finger, wagging her head as she spoke.
“You don’t have anything to use for weight, so I’ll just do it directly.”
“My current spirit body can control its weight. Once you adapt to the current weight, I’ll increase it later.”
“Only with strong arms can your sword strikes be faster!”

Xiu Qingcheng’s words resonated deeply with Meng Yingxing.
Although Xiu Qingcheng on his back did indeed put quite a burden on Meng Yingxing, he still obeyed Xiu

Qingcheng’s words, diligently performing every single push-up.