Chapter Seventeen: The Wind of Health

“The Eight Styles of Cloud Sword” consists of eight moves in total: Pushing Clouds, Spitting Clouds, Dispelling Clouds, Rolling Clouds, Turning Clouds, Stacking Clouds, Clouds Pressing Down, and Eight Clouds Converging into a Dragon.

Inside the Wind-Listening Pavilion, Qu Yi began practicing these “Eight Styles of Cloud Sword” right away. Holding the Green Python Sword, its blue light shimmering, his movements were extremely graceful.

Given Qu Yi’s comprehension ability, it would be difficult for him to master these styles in a short time. However, with the Dimensional Sphere in his soul, the Sword Spirit directly implanted the true essence of the eight styles into his soul, allowing him to understand them instantly. That’s why he could return to the Wind-Listening Pavilion and start practicing right away.

As the Green Python Sword moved forward in a thrust, a faint golden qi streamed out from the sword—this was Pushing Clouds. The sword tip swiftly drew a circle, and a ring-shaped stream of qi flew out—this was Spitting Clouds. The sword tip oscillated, sending out rows of qi blades—this was Dispelling Clouds. The Green Python Sword was pushed forward with force, creating a vortex of dense qi—this was Rolling Clouds. The sword was thrust forward again, emitting a stream of qi; suddenly, the practitioner rushed forward, and another stream of qi emerged from the sword tip, surpassing the previous one—first virtual, then solid—this was Turning Clouds. The sword was held horizontally and raised continuously, with streams of qi being emitted one after another, forming overlapping qi blades—this was Stacking Clouds. The Green Python Sword was swung forcefully, unleashing a burst of sword qi that created a massive array of qi blades—this was Clouds Pressing Down. In the eight directions—east, west, south, north, northeast, southeast, southwest, northwest—the sword tip reached instantly, emitting qi that formed vortices. These eight vortices converged into one, generating immense power—this was Eight Clouds Converging into a Dragon.

The later the styles, the more qi was required, and the greater their power.

Qu Yi first practiced with metal-type qi. After it was exhausted, he used wood-type qi, continuing until that too was used up. With all five types of qi in his body depleted, he had practiced the “Eight Styles of Cloud Sword” about five times and had become fairly proficient.

In just eight days, Qu Yi mastered the “Eight Styles of Cloud Sword”!

This was all thanks to the help of the Sword Spirit and the abundant qi energy in his body, which enabled him to practice immediately and without interruption.

For other disciples, it would take three months just to understand the true essence of these styles. During practice, due to insufficient qi energy, their qi would likely be exhausted after practicing Spitting Clouds, forcing them to rest and replenish their qi before continuing. In that case, mastering the entire set would take at least a year.

Qu Yi’s speed of practice was truly astonishing.

Just after Qu Yi mastered the “Eight Styles of Cloud Sword,” the Artifact God inside the Miniature Realm called out, “Qu Yi, I think there’s an unexpected bonus to the ‘Five Energies and Three Flowers’ divine technique you’re practicing.”
Hearing this, Qu Yi immediately transformed his spiritual consciousness into a human-shaped shadow inside his soul, facing the Miniature Realm and asking urgently, “What unexpected bonus?”
The Miniature Realm pulsed once before the Artifact God spoke, “While you were practicing the Eight Styles of Cloud Sword, I observed the flow of your vital energy. First, it depleted the metal-type vital energy, then sequentially the others. After thinking it over, I realized that the five types of vital energy in your body can be transformed into one another.”
The human-shaped shadow trembled—this news was astonishing. If the Artifact God’s speculation was correct, it meant Qu Yi was equivalent to a combination of five individuals at the mid-stage of Qi Guidance. Coupled with his vital energy being about three times denser than others’, his total vital energy was equivalent to fifteen times that of someone at the mid-stage of Qi Guidance—more even than those at the later stage, allowing him to fight against those at the early stage of Foundation Building.
“How can they be transformed?” Qu Yi calmed down and asked quickly.
“Inside your dantian lies a mixture of the five types of vital energy. You can use it as a medium. Once the metal-type vital energy is depleted, send wood-type vital energy into your dantian, where it can be transformed into metal-type vital energy. The same method can be used to transform the other types into metal-type vital energy as well,” the Artifact God explained slowly.
After hearing this, the human-shaped shadow trembled once before disappearing.
Qu Yi understood what the Artifact God meant. Though it seemed utterly incredible, it was still worth trying.
“Across all realms, the five elements evolve, interact in cycles of generation and restraint, and transform on their own.”
Recalling the contents recorded in the “Five Energies and Three Flowers,” Qu Yi finally found a theoretical basis. Since the energy of all things in the universe could be represented by the five elements and transformed over time, then naturally, the five types of vital energy in his dantian could also transform into one another.
At that moment, the Miniature Realm suddenly vibrated, prompting Qu Yi to start swinging his sword.
With a push of clouds, a golden sword aura shot forth. With a release of clouds, a golden-lit energy ring burst out.
…
All the metal-type vital energy was depleted!
The Miniature Realm glowed green again. Inside Qu Yi’s dantian, the vortex spun faster. All the wood-type vital energy from his liver flowed into his dantian—as torrents, streams, threads, and even finer particles. Suddenly, that wood-type vital energy, now in the form of countless tiny particles, transformed into metal-type vital energy.
The Eight Styles of Cloud Sword continued, demonstrated using metal-type vital energy.
Subsequently, water-type, fire-type, and earth-type vital energy were also transformed into metal-type vital energy one after another.

With all his vital energy exhausted, Qu Yi finally stopped practicing the “Eight Styles of Cloud Sword.”
“Hehe, the five elements of vital energy can indeed transform into one another. Qu Yi, you’ve gained another advantage,” said the Artifact God suddenly with a laugh.
Though physically tired, Qu Yi was also excited. Thinking about this way of transforming energy within his body, it was undoubtedly another powerful tool for enhancing his strength.
“Artifact God, thank you!” Qu Yi sincerely said at that moment.
“Hahaha, Qu Yi, there’s no need for formalities with me. I’m very interested in the progress of your strength. I really want to see how far you’ll go in mastering the five elements cultivation techniques. Oh, by the way, you still have two months before leaving the sect for training. Hurry up and master this technique of exchanging vital energy,” the Artifact God said excitedly.
Qu Yi nodded.
……
At the middle of Chase Cloud Peak, there was a natural flat platform five li wide—this was the Return Platform.
At that time, twenty groups of disciples from the Immortal Cloud Sect gathered on the Return Platform, totaling about two hundred people, stationed in twenty locations. Qu Yi was in one of those groups.
Every three years, the lower-ranked disciples of the Immortal Cloud Sect would select some outstanding ones to go to the Misty Demon Mountains for training to gain more practical experience.
Thirty-six peaks, each with some outstanding disciples, gathered at the Return Platform, making up a total of two hundred people. The elders from each peak discussed and formed twenty groups, with twenty elders leading each group.
Qu Yi’s group from Chase Cloud Peak consisted of fifteen people: five in the Foundation Establishment stage and ten in the Qi Guidance stage. The group leader was Qu Yi’s senior brother, Kang Feng.
Kang Feng was tall and robust, exuding an imposing presence even when standing among people. He was steady in his actions and always handled matters fairly, earning the trust of the sect’s disciples. If Huai Qing stepped down, Kang Feng was the most likely candidate to take over as the sect leader.
For this training of lower-ranked disciples, Huai Qing assigned Kang Feng to lead the group, combining disciples from Chase Cloud Peak and Wind Mist Peak into one team to train in the Misty Demon Mountains for a year.
Among these fifteen people, besides Qu Yi, there was also Bai Man.
Normally, Bai Man shouldn’t be able to cultivate and thus wasn’t qualified to join this group. But for some reason, after hearing that Qu Yi was going to the Misty Demon Mountains for a year, Bai Man kept pestering Huai Qing, insisting on joining him there.
Her only reason was that she was tired of staying on Chase Cloud Peak and wanted to go out and have fun.
Huai Qing couldn’t resist Bai Man. Thinking that his daughter had a golden crown heron with her and Kang Feng as her companion, she would be safe in the Misty Demon Mountains, he agreed.
At that moment, Qu Yi and Bai Man stood together.

“Senior sister, are you really going to the Misty Demon Mountains? Is our master okay with that?” Qu Yi asked with concern.
Bai Man pouted and snapped angrily, “Junior brother, you’ve asked this question ten times already. If you ask again, I’ll use the White Egret Beak on you.”
Qu Yi covered his mouth and pretended to be scared as he looked at the Golden Crowned Egret.
Seeing Qu Yi’s expression, Bai Man immediately smiled brightly, her beauty radiating once more, captivating Qu Yi’s eyes once again.
At the front of the group, Kang Feng stood there to block the wind. His broad shoulders helped calm the disciples behind him, greatly reducing their anxiety about going to the Misty Demon Mountains. How could Kang Feng, who was only in the early stage of the Golden Core realm, not hear the conversation between Qu Yi and Bai Man?
“What’s the background of this little junior brother? Normally, it should take at least five years for someone with a Five Spirit Roots constitution to reach the early stage of Qi Guidance. How did he reach that stage in less than three months? What secret does he have?” Kang Feng stood firm, but his mind was busy pondering.
If Kang Feng discovered that Qu Yi had already reached the middle stage of Qi Guidance, he would surely be shocked.
Thinking about Qu Yi’s rapid progress and his master’s instructions from the previous day, Kang Feng began to make plans. In the Misty Demon Mountains, he still needed to ensure Qu Yi’s safety, but it would be best if other disciples developed resentment toward him. That way, if Qu Yi tried to compete with him for the position of sect leader in the future, he wouldn’t have anyone’s support.
The position of sect leader was what Kang Feng truly valued.
Qu Yi continued chatting with Bai Man, unaware that Kang Feng had already arranged some tasks for him.
Suddenly, a dark shadow appeared in the sky above Chuiyun Peak. In an instant, Sect Leader Huai Qing appeared in front of the Return Altar.
“Salute, Sect Leader!”
About two hundred lower-ranked disciples shouted in unison.
Huai Qing smiled and glanced at each disciple, nodding frequently, seemingly satisfied with these future pillars of the Xianyun Sect.
“Disciples of the Xianyun Sect, today you will go to the Misty Demon Mountains for a year-long training. I hope you won’t fear danger, will strive to improve your cultivation, strengthen your spells, and build up your courage. I hope that after a year, you will all return safely. I will be here to welcome you personally.”
Huai Qing spoke slowly, his voice filled with true energy, yet it was loud enough for everyone to hear clearly.
“Yes, Sect Leader!”
The two hundred lower-ranked disciples responded emotionally.
Huai Qing took a few steps forward, still smiling. After drawing all the disciples’ attention, he suddenly shouted, “Disciples of the Xianyun Sect, heed my order! Set off immediately for the Misty Demon Mountains!”
“Yes!”

The excited lower-level disciples’ replies echoed several times on Chase Cloud Peak.