Chapter 6: The Index of the Sword of the Wind

    ?

    “I didn’t ask you that question! I asked you who you are!” When Zheng-Fu got it together after being in shock from finally seeing the owner of the voice, he was upset that the shadow did not answer his question. So, he had to ask the question again. But still…

    “Concentrate! Cultivate the energy and bring it to the Qi energy center, then slowly send it to your arms and legs according to the technique that you’re practicing. Once the energy reaches all parts of your body, try to maintain it there. Keep the energy stable in those places as long as you can. If you succeed in doing that, it means you’ve achieved the technique.”

    The mysterious shadow continued to say the same thing. However, there was something different this time because after the shadow finished the sentence, Zheng-Fu’s body started to move by itself. His body started to move according to that same fighting technique that he had been practicing, but this time it moved in harmony with the words that the shadow uttered…

    “Concentrate.”

    Swoosh!

    “Cultivate the energy and bring it to the Qi energy center.”

    Woosh!

    “Then slowly send it to your arms and legs.”

    Rustle!

    “And then try to keep the energy stable before projecting it!”

    [The Index of the Sword of the Wind!]

    Woosh!

    Boom!

    Right after Zheng-Fu shouted the name of the “Index of the Sword of the Wind” skill out loud, a dense wave of energy built up into the shape of a sword and projected out from Zheng-Fu’s finger instantaneously. The sword-shaped energy hit the ground creating a loud burst and a huge hole. Dirt and rocks were scattered all over the place…

    “I…I…I can do it! I can finally do it! Thank you, Shadow! What!? Where did you go!?”

    Zheng-Fu was amazed that he could project his energy out successfully. He needed to thank that mysterious shadow for showing him the way. But when he turned to the shadow to express his gratitude for transcending the skill to him, the shadow was already gone…

    “Well, never mind! I would still like to thank you anyway, Mysterious Voice, sir! Zheng-Fu said thank and bowed in the direction that the shadow once appeared…

    “The power of this technique is so damaging. I almost lost my balance. It’s time to go back home before someone sees me here because that loud burst will definitely attract the attention of the people from the clan.”

    Zheng-Fu rushed home right after he finished his sentence. The noise from the explosion from the impact of the “Index of the Sword of the Wind” skill was very destructively loud. Anyone who was at the fourth level of the Qi Gathering stage would not be able to pull this technique off. This would certainly attract the elders in the clan, especially when the explosion happened in a forbidden area of the clan. The elders would definitely rush to this place…

    Rustle!

    Clomp!

    “What happened here?” A middle-aged man asked with confusion after he got to the explosion scene and saw a large hole in the ground in front of him…

    “I don’t know, Uncle. There was no one around when I got here. I only saw bits of this and that and this huge hole, sir.” A good-looking young man who was the first to arrive at the scene answered the clan’s elder without having any clue of what happened. Even though he thought he was fast enough, he was unable to catch any glimpse of anyone at the scene. This young man was called “Tian-Tang Hai-Gang” and he was Zheng-Fu’s cousin too…

    “From seeing how big this hole is, I think it must be made by some kind of energy produced by a certain kind of martial arts technique. The impact says that this hole must be made by someone whose energy level is quite high, just about the lower level of the higher stage of energy, otherwise, the impact can’t be this bad.”

    “A skill from the lower level of the higher stage of the Qi energy!?” When Hai-Gang heard that, he was surprised, so he could not withhold himself and asked the question. Then he said, “There are only two kinds of skills that are as advanced as that skill in our clan. And there are very few people in our clan who have the capacity to practice them. Or is it possible that someone outside broke in!?” Hai-Gang said and became alert all of a sudden. This level of skill that caused a huge hole like this could not be practiced easily by just anyone. And the ones who could practice this skill in the clan were working on cultivating their energy. So, the people in the clan definitely didn’t come out here to cause this…

    “It’s impossible. How can we have any enemies, if we’ve never crossed with anyone? Besides, there’s nothing valuable in this Forbidden Forest, except for its mystery and wildness.” The middle-aged man quickly responded to Hai-Gang. He thought that the hole was not caused by any enemies because the Tian-Tang Clan never really had serious arguments with anyone so much that someone would be sent to attack them. This forest held no magical objects as well…

    “I agree. You’re correct, Elder Kong-Shi. The Tian-Tang Clan never quarreled with anyone, so it’s impossible that we would have enemies! The other elder agreed with Zheng-Fu’s father…

    “But how did this hole come from? Or would you say it was caused by nature? All of us heard the explosion just a moment ago, didn’t we? Besides, there was no thunderbolt either, so there is a high possibility that someone came to attack us.” Another elder of the clan gave an opinion strongly.

    “Right!”

    By that moment, everyone at the scene started to lose themselves in their contemplations. But no matter how hard they thought, no one ever came up with an explanation of how this hole happened and who caused it…

    Back to Zheng-Fu…

    “Phew! Today was a very exhausting day, but it was so worth it that I have finally achieved the “Index of the Sword of the Wind” skill. This means that other techniques can be practiced and work in this world too. I suppose I have to go back to the forest and try more tomorrow.” Zheng-Fu said while smiling happily and delightfully that he could achieve that very technique. It was indeed a very powerful one. He thought if he used the same direction that the shadow suggested, other techniques in the previous world must work in this Xianxia world too. After all, he could achieve one today…

    “Zheng-Fu, son!”

    Zheng-Fu’s father called for him from out of nowhere…

    “Yes, father!”

    “Are you all right, father? How come you look so worried?” Zheng-Fu broke a smile as he saw his father. He wanted to tell his father about his achievement, but when he saw the concern on his father’s face, he decided to keep it to himself…

    “Son! You must not go out during this time, especially to the Forbidden Forest behind the clan’s estate!” Zheng-Fu’s father could not wait to stop him from going out. He thought it would be very dangerous if the hole was created by the enemy.

    “What’s the matter, father? Why can’t I go out? And what happened at the Forbidden Forest!?” Zheng-Fu tilted his head as he asked the questions. The Forbidden Forest was the place that he had been to, to strengthen himself up. Without the forest, he could not come this far, so he wanted to know what was going on…

    “We heard a loud explosion from the Forbidden Forest, so we rushed there and found a gigantic hole in the forest. However, we didn’t see anything suspicious or anyone there, so the elders thought that there must be someone coming in to attack us. This is why you should stay away from the place.”

    Kong-Shi explained the situation to Zheng-Fu immediately about what happened and why he had to forbid him from going out during this time…

    “Wait!”

    “Why are you so in shock like that? And what’s with the sweat!? Kong-Shi could detect that his son’s reaction to the news was too unusual. He could also see that his son started to sweat overwhelmingly, even though the heat was not that bad…

    “I…I was shocked, of course, father! It’s very appalling to hear that an outsider broke into our estate. But how come someone wanted to break into our place? We don’t have any enemies.” Zheng-Fu intended to be smooth, trying to adjust his face before asking his father like there was nothing unusual about him…

    “I wouldn’t know the answer to that. You just stay away from that area. Got it?”

    “Yes, father!”

    Zheng-Fu thought that telling his father the truth right now would cause him unwanted problems, so he prevented himself from telling his father about his experience. He chose to keep quiet about it and nodded his head in a bid to show his father that he obeyed the order…

    “All right. Let’s have dinner! Wait! You have moved up to the fourth level of the Qi Gathering stage!?

    When Kong-Shi saw that his son obeyed his order, he told his son to go have dinner. When they were about to move, Kong-Shi could sense that Zheng-Fu’s energy level had been hiked up. Since his energy level was higher than Zheng-Fu’s, he could detect that Zheng-Fu had reached the fourth level of the Qi Gathering stage…

    “Yes, father. Thanks to your manual of the “Practice of Fundamental Martial Arts", I could learn to practice correctly and efficiently. It really helped me break through to the next level.” Zheng-Fu replied to his father instantaneously. He did not forget to praise his father and the manual that his father gave him…

    “Fourth level!? What fourth level?”

    “Ling, dear!”

    “Mother!”

    As Zheng-Fu and his father were chatting, Zheng-Fu’s mother walked towards them and heard their last sentence, but she could not hear it clearly, so she asked just to check if she heard it correctly…

    “Well…”

    “Well, what? Dear husband? Are you hiding something from me!? Tell me what it is!”

    “It’s not father’s fault, mother. I asked him not to tell you about what I’ve been doing. The thing is, I’ve been practicing martial arts while studying with Master Huang. The practice helps me reach the fourth level of the Qi Gathering stage.”

    “What did you just say? Practicing martial arts!? And you’ve got to the fourth level of the Qi Gathering stage too!?” Zheng-Fu’s mother sounded surprised. She could not believe what she heard and thought that her son was joking around. But she came to believe him when she saw that her son and husband really meant it…

    “Hahaha.”

    When Zheng-Fu’s mother heard that, she was not angry with him at all. Instead, she laughed out loud and then showed her smiley face because she was very happy. She then ran to her son, stroked his head, and said…

    “My dear son. You’ve done wonderfully. Why didn’t you tell me about it? Did you think that I would be mad at you? I’m your mother. I can give you anything that you need. If you really wish to practice martial arts, I would never be in your way. It’s because you told me that you would study with Master Huang, so I let you do what you wanted. But look at you now! You’ve been hiding this from me all these years, but you could manage to finally succeed and become a martial artist.”

    “Mother, I was afraid that you would be angry at me. I was also afraid that I would break your heart if you knew that I disobeyed you!”

    “You silly child! I would support you all the way in anything you want to do. Come! Let’s celebrate. I’ve just prepared your favorite dishes tonight.”

    My favorite dishes!?

    “Hooray! You’re the best mother in the world. I love you the most, mother.”

    “And don’t you love your father too?”

    “Of course. I do. I love both of you. Why are you acting so sensitive like a woman, father?”

    “What!? Zheng-Fu, son! That kind of saying…!”

    “Hahaha. I guess I’ve learned too much from Master Huang. It’s been five years that I was with him.”

    “All right. Come! Let’s eat!”

    Zheng-Fu (Jin-Yang) became an orphan when he was young in his previous life because his parents died in an accident. Since he had to be raised by his uncle and aunt, he did not get the kind of warmth that a kid really needed from their parents. So, when he was reborn in a Xianxia world, he got the kind of warmth and love he had been longing for once again. He was on top of the world. The world that he had been dreaming of and the love that he needed was right in front of him now…

    The family was so happy eating and chatting. Then Zheng-Fu decided to tell his parents about how powerful his skill became, but as he was about to say it…

    Knock knock!

    Someone was knocking hastily at the door of Zheng-Fu’s house. Kong-Shi heard that, so he asked…

    “Who’s that!?”