The Mountain Guest heard Chen Tang's inquiry and quickly regained composure, returning to his previously calm and indifferent demeanor.

He did not answer Chen Tang, but looked down, unfurling the animal skin to examine it.

"This swordsmanship has only eight moves, but each move encompasses multiple variations. Moreover, the eight sword techniques are all-encompassing, with diverse methods of attack, truly living up to the title of Superior Swordsmanship."

The Mountain Guest said, "I need to ponder over this for a while, please wait for me."

Chen Tang was secretly amazed.

Even with the Mountain Guest's vast knowledge, he couldn't comprehend this swordsmanship in a short time.

After speaking, the Mountain Guest picked up a dry twig from the side and attempted to practice the move Desperate Ape Throwing into the Forest on the spot.

But soon, he shook his head, made subtle adjustments, and executed the move again.

In Chen Tang's eyes, the second move was noticeably more forceful than the first!

"It's not right."

The Mountain Guest still shook his head, thought for a moment, and then executed a third move.

It was still the move Desperate Ape Throwing into the Forest, with an almost identical movement trajectory.

But the third move differed significantly from the previous two.

With each of the three moves, one was slower than the last, and the third sword exuded a sense of tragic heroism with no return!

Only at this moment did the Mountain Guest nod slightly.

But he still felt somewhat unsatisfied.

He stood and repeatedly practiced this sword move on the spot.

Just one sword move consumed so much of the Mountain Guest's energy.

Chen Tang, the Old Ape, and the Little White Ape watched from the side, which was a rare opportunity for them.

An entire three hours passed.

The Mountain Guest suddenly moved, using the stick as a sword, slightly vibrating it, causing a visible ripple in the air.

With the Mountain Guest's swordplay like a dragon or serpent, he moved elegantly, like a startled swan, or a swimming dragon, with light and agile body techniques.

Sometimes delivering a blow in mid-air, rapid consecutive strikes, other times the sword momentum was like a cage, dizzyingly confusing, and sometimes man and sword became one, piercing through the void.

In the end, Chen Tang could no longer see the Mountain Guest's figure, only a ball of white light flipping and flying in the air, like a deer hanging its horn, with no trace to follow.

After a while, the white light dissipated, and the Mountain Guest's figure stood in place, as if he had never moved, and the scene just now seemed like Chen Tang's illusion.

Buzz buzz buzz!

Even though the Mountain Guest had already sheathed his sword, the sound of the sword's hum still lingered in the air, dispersing only after a while.

Chen Tang was greatly shocked.

Cultivating martial arts to this level was almost indistinguishable from the legendary immortals.

"This White Ape Swordsmanship is indeed exquisite beyond compare."

The Mountain Guest exhaled lightly, looked at Chen Tang, and slowly said, "In the future, do not neglect the art of the sword, but also make time to practice this White Ape Swordsmanship. This swordsmanship is not only about exquisite sword techniques, but also aids in cultivating tendons and bones!"

"With this White Ape Swordsmanship in aid, combined with the Tiger Subduing Technique, I believe you can quickly cultivate to the Eighth Grade lower level."

Chen Tang nodded.

Although he did not plan to wield the sword in the future, practicing a swordsmanship praised highly by the Mountain Guest couldn't be wrong.

Moreover, it could help him improve his current realm.

Besides, after entering the Cyan Dragon Bureau, he was mainly allowed to use a sword, so learning this White Ape Swordsmanship could come in handy.

The Mountain Guest looked at the Old Ape and Little White Ape beside him and said, "Seeing your appearance, you should be descendants of the Immortal Ape, so you should learn as well."

"This sword move is called Wangyuan Disaster Wood."

The Mountain Guest said, "The heart method techniques below describe it: Covering the deer leaves the banana, Wangyuan Disaster Wood, neither enemy nor bandit, self-toppling and self-covering."

The sword techniques of this White Ape Swordsmanship contain some moves that are straightforward and easy to understand, like Monkey Catching the Moon, Old Ape Protecting the Young, Restless Heart, and such.

But some moves sounded somewhat cryptic, Wangyuan Disaster Wood being one of them. The phrase below, Chen Tang found it somewhat difficult to grasp.

The Mountain Guest explained, "This heart method means that harming others harms oneself. To make the opponent's move backfire, one must use the adhering and drawing power in this sword move..."

The Mountain Guest detailed the essentials of each sword move for Chen Tang and the two apes, rather than simply teaching martial arts.

Understanding these martial theories, when encountering similar heart methods with similar contextual words in the future, Chen Tang could comprehend them on his own.

For nearly half an hour, the Mountain Guest practiced and explained the eight sword moves once.

After opening the Mud Ball Palace, Chen Tang's comprehension of martial arts was rapid; he had largely understood it after just one demonstration.

Subsequently, he could only rely on himself to continuously practice and understand the principles of Sword Dao within.

The Old Ape and Little White Ape, next to him, listened with blank expressions.

After one round, the Little White Ape could roughly mimic a few moves.

The Old Ape still only understood that one move...

The essence and profound meaning behind the sword techniques, let alone.

"You should go down the mountain first, I'll slowly teach these two, old and young."

The Mountain Guest said to Chen Tang.

After knowing the origin of the Old Ape and Little White Ape, the Mountain Guest was no longer indifferent to them and was very patient.

Chen Tang looked at the sky, noticing it was already past noon, and couldn't help but feel a jolt in his heart.

Training on the Snow Mountain, he'd lost track of time.

Returning to Wu'an County now, it would likely be evening.

According to modern terms, yesterday was like his onboarding process at the Cyan Dragon Bureau.

Today was his official workday.

This essentially meant he was skipping work on the first day...

Wasn't this a bit too much?

Oh well, it's already late, might as well let it go.

Chen Tang played with Xue Tuan'Er on the mountain for a while, then bid farewell to the Mountain Guest and started descending the mountain.

He hadn't walked far when he saw a black dot approaching quickly across the snow from the distant horizon, reaching him in the blink of an eye.

Chen Tang focused his gaze and, to his surprise, it was the Thunder Leopard!

When he left the city, the gates had closed, so he left the Thunder Leopard in the inn.

Unexpectedly, Thunder Leopard ran out of the city on its own and found him.

Moreover, this is the territory of the Three Thousand Snow Ridges, where ferocious beasts often appear, yet Thunder Leopard seemed unconcerned and just came here like that.

"Good horse."

Chen Tang was delighted, patting Thunder Leopard's body.

Just when he was worried about being too exhausted to run back, Thunder Leopard found him.

Chen Tang said, "It's dangerous here with many fierce beasts. Don't run this way again, alright?"

Thunder Leopard lifted its head, snorted, and showed indifference in its eyes.

It nudged Chen Tang, then lowered its head to bite at the wine gourd on Chen Tang's waist.

"Good fellow, you just want the Monkey Wine I'm carrying!"

Chen Tang chuckled helplessly, took off the wine gourd, and commanded, "Open your mouth."

Thunder Leopard understood and immediately obeyed, opening its mouth without moving.

Chen Tang pulled out the cork, poured a small sip inside, and said with a smile, "It's rare you came all this way to find me, consider it your reward."

Thunder Leopard drank the small sip, licked its tongue, smacking its lips with a look of enjoyment, its eyes gradually revealing a tinge of drunkenness.

"No, you can't fall asleep now."

Chen Tang quickly approached, forcefully pinching the lump on Thunder Leopard's forehead.

"Roar!"

Thunder Leopard roared in pain, lifting its head with a long howl, sounding like a tiger or leopard, even scaring Chen Tang.

"Carry me to a place first, then you can sleep when we get back to Wu'an County."

Chen Tang mounted the horse, guiding Thunder Leopard away from the Three Thousand Snow Ridges, heading to Chen Da'an's burial site.

After drinking, Thunder Leopard ran even faster, navigating the mountains and ridges like walking on flat ground.

In no time, Chen Tang reached his destination.

He dismounted, took a look, and the mound was still the same, but there seemed to be traces of disturbance.

Chen Tang stood in front of the grave, hesitated for a moment, then picked up the scabbard and began carefully digging into the grave.

The Mountain Guest was right!

That blade was indeed gone.

Chen Tang fell into deep thought.

Initially, he joined the Cyan Dragon Bureau with a rather relaxed mentality.

Now, inevitably, some doubts arose in him.

If that blade was in Cai Yin's hands, with this Guard Captain's experience, he would surely have guessed that the masked person that night in Changze County was him.

If so, why did Cai Yin recruit him under his command?

Thought about it for a long time, but had no clue.

Perhaps, just as the Mountain Guest had judged, Cai Yin probably bore no malice toward him.

If he truly intended to deal with him, there was no need to go to such great lengths.

After pondering for a moment, Chen Tang mounted the horse and guided Thunder Leopard towards Wu'an County.

Because he had delayed at Chen Da'an's grave, it was near dusk when he returned to Wu'an County.

Fortunately, he entered the city before the gates closed.

Chen Tang first returned to the inn, reported his safety to Qing Mu, Zhiwei, and the others, then dressed in the Cyan Dragon Armor, equipped with the Cyan Dragon Sword, and headed to the Cyan Dragon Bureau.

At the gate, the guards didn't stop him upon seeing his attire.

All the way unimpeded, Chen Tang arrived at the previous hall.

Inside, the lights were bright. Cai Yin was sitting in the main seat, angrily drinking tea, accompanied by Wei Qun, Wang Yanli, and several other Cyan Dragon Guards on both sides.

"You, come in!"

Cai Yin lifted his eyes, and upon seeing Chen Tang, immediately exploded in anger, loudly reprimanding, "Don't push it, you brat. On the first day, you're already shirking. Do you even care about me as your boss?"

"I've been in the Cyan Dragon Bureau for so many years, never seen anyone as arrogant as you! What's the matter? Are you of royal blood or a noble minister?"

"Uh..."

Chen Tang hadn't even entered the hall when Cai Yin gave him a thorough scolding.

Wang Yanli hurried forward, whispered, "Cai is worried something might've happened to you, even sent us looking for you everywhere, didn't even eat dinner."

He didn't eat dinner?

He must be really upset.

But knowing that the blade might be in Cai Yin's hands, watching him fume and glare, Chen Tang found it peculiar, feeling a bit more cautious.

However, knowing he was at fault for skipping work, Chen Tang cupped his fists and said, "Cai, I'm sorry for worrying you."

Wei Qun, nearby, advised, "Cai, no need to be angry. Xiao Chen just joined the Cyan Dragon Bureau, unfamiliar with the situation, no experience. Besides, he's not yet an official Cyan Dragon Guard; he just needs to be more attentive in the future."

Wang Yanli added, "Yes, nothing much is happening lately, everyone's quite free, it doesn't affect anything."

"This must be curbed!"

Cai Yin snorted coldly, "There will be a second day if there's a first. Let him slack off like this—it's a disgrace!"

"I'll dock your salary for a month as a warning!"

With that, Cai Yin snorted softly and left, flicking his sleeves.

After Cai Yin left, Wei Qun and Wang Yanli approached.

Yue Shou said, "Don't mind Cai like this, he's not that angry. If it was any of those three Guard Captains, you'd either get a whipping at least or possibly be expelled from the Cyan Dragon Bureau."

"Yeah, just five taels of silver."

Wang Yanli laughed, "You just joined the Cyan Dragon Bureau, and you don't have much money. I'll cover this for you, sister."

"Sister Li, no need..."

Chen Tang was about to refuse when Wang Yanli interrupted, "Don't think it's a free gift, you must remember to repay!"

Chi Yun quietly said, "A small fine is the lightest punishment in the Cyan Dragon Bureau. When we first joined, we'd all make mistakes; the fines were paid by Brother Wei."

Wei Qun walked over, patted Chen Tang's shoulder, and said, "Those recruited by Cai into the Cyan Dragon Bureau all come from poor families, and poor backgrounds. I heard you have elders above, children below, and just arrived in Wu'an County from elsewhere—there'll be many expenses."

"If you have money, use it for your family first. If you need money in the future, just tell us, don't be shy."

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