〈Qinglian Sword Manual〉
The moment Chen Huaian opened the golden jade scroll, a powerful aura surged forth—it was undeniably the presence of a top-tier item.
["I was once a madman of Chu, laughing and singing of phoenixes and sages. With a three-foot sword in hand, I point toward the sorrows of the nine heavens."]
The Qinglian Sword Manual was created by the Sword Immortal Qinglian. It contains 36 foundational sword chapters and 12 sword forms.
Grade: Immortal.
Anyone with unblocked meridians may cultivate this manual.
However, to master it fully, one must possess: Sword Bone, Sword Spiritual Root, and a Sword Heart.
No doubt—it was a legendary item.
But after reading the description, Chen Huaian's expression turned… strange.
"This Qinglian Sword Immortal… don't tell me it's supposed to be Li Bai?"
Wasn't Li Bai the "Immortal of Poetry"? Since when did he become a Sword Immortal?
"Whatever. These days, reinterpretations are everywhere. If Tang Sanzang can wield a Gatling gun, Li Bai becoming a Sword Immortal makes perfect sense."
Chen Huaian shrugged. Then he remembered—Li Qingran used a sword, didn't she?
This Qinglian Sword Manual could be perfect for her.
Immortal-grade sword art… had to be impressive.
The first page of the scroll lit up. Chen Huaian expected a simple in-game description, but instead, it actually displayed words—and a small brush-ink figure demonstrating a pose.
"Damn—what kind of indie developer goes this hard?!"
Sword Chapter One: Crane Stance
Keep your legs together. Bend your knees and raise one leg in a crane-like pose (beginners may skip this). Keep your spine straight. Hold the sword vertically in front of your body, parallel to it. The hilt should be horizontal to the ground. Let the blade rest along your forearm in vertical alignment. Breathe calmly. Focus on synchronizing your breath and the sword's presence…
Next to the description was an illustration showing how to perform it.
Chen Huaian flipped through more pages.
Chapter Two: Pine Unfolding
Chapter Three: Edge Bearing
…
Chapter Thirty-Five: Unity
Chapter Thirty-Six: Carefree Flow
Every single chapter had both text and image—no shortcuts.
Chen Huaian was now genuinely impressed by how meticulous and hardcore the game developer was. His earlier irritation about the aggressive monetization softened a little.
The 36 chapters seemed to be foundational.
There were also 12 sword techniques afterward.
But when he tried to flip to them, a prompt popped up:
[You have not learned Sword Chapters 1–12. Sword Techniques are currently locked.]
"What? I still have to learn them? How?!"
Instinctively, he opened the top-right corner looking for a "Recharge" option—but this time, nothing appeared.
[Begin practicing Sword Chapter One?]
"Yes"
"Maybe Later"
Chen Huaian clicked Yes without hesitation.
"Let's see what you've got, game."
[Activating front-facing camera...]
The game UI vanished, replaced by his own face on the screen. A small floating overlay of the manual's instruction hovered above it.
[Please begin practicing Crane Stance as described. Current Progress: Initiate (0%)]
"Wait. Are you serious?"
Staring at the screen, Chen Huaian's face twitched.
This game wanted him to physically perform the Crane Stance?
While being recorded?!
"So if I don't pay, I have to suffer instead?"
He narrowed his eyes. Could the game dev be a sadist? Watching players contort themselves into ridiculous poses while laughing and eating takeout?
"Nice try, dev. I see through you."
Chen Huaian scoffed. He was sure if he just waited long enough, a recharge option would eventually pop up.
That's how these games worked: make a reward super grindy, and players would eventually cave and pay to skip it.
…But no recharge button ever came.
"Fine. I'll just give the manual to Li Qingran."
He closed the manual and tried to drag it toward Li Qingran's avatar.
> [You cannot directly transmit the Qinglian Sword Manual. Please cultivate all 36 Sword Chapters to Initiate level before sword instruction becomes available.]
"WHAT?!"
Chen Huaian nearly lost it.
This game was insane.
He clicked the little help icon in the top-right corner:
[Help]
"This game aims to provide the most immersive companion simulation. Players may provide their virtual partner with resources and emotional support—but to guide her properly, you must also strengthen yourself. After all, a true mentor leads by example!"
Reading that, Chen Huaian went silent.
He had never been drawn to games—not just because they were expensive, but because they lacked immersion. No matter how good your aim was, you weren't really the elite soldier storming through enemy bases. No matter how well you jungled, you weren't truly the lone king of the wild.
Game and reality were always disconnected.
But this game… was playing a different game entirely.
It was new. Maybe too new for its own good. It might flop hard.
But damn it—Chen Huaian couldn't help but be intrigued.
The idea of personally teaching your virtual partner, watching her grow stronger using techniques you had learned, overcoming enemies with your help…
That kind of emotional connection—that immersion—was exactly what other games were missing.
Yes, the game was hardcore. Yes, it was greedy.
But… it spoke to something inside him.
Chen Huaian reopened the Qinglian Sword Manual and selected Chapter One again.
He mounted his phone on a livestream tripod and took a deep breath.
"Alright. If I must become a fool in front of the dev to pass this on to Qingran, then so be it. He can laugh all he wants—I don't care."
With no sword on hand, he grabbed a drying rod as a substitute.
The manual's instructions seemed simple. But doing it was another story.
First, he had to keep the blade still—no trembling. Usually, he couldn't even hold a water bottle steady. But today, strangely, his hand didn't shake.
Then came the tricky part: maintain vertical alignment between the blade and both the ground and his arm, and keep the blade perfectly parallel with his body.
Holding the pose for a few seconds was fine.
But after two minutes, his arm started burning.
Worse still, after holding the rod for half an hour, drenched in sweat, his progress bar had only moved to 1%.
Still, Chen Huaian was stubborn.
He kept going for a full hour, until his shirt was soaked and his limbs trembling.
"God… I'm falling apart."
He shakily set the drying rod aside and stretched his aching arms.
It was nearly midnight. He hadn't showered or washed his clothes. He reeked of sweat and exhaustion.
"Well… I guess if I treat this as a workout, it's not too bad."
Rubbing his sore arms, Chen Huaian didn't feel defeated. He planned to rest tonight and continue training tomorrow morning.
But just then—
Thud.
A dull noise echoed from the door.
As if something had just slammed against it.