“My father? It’s been a long time since he''s passed, but…I believe calling him a mountain is most fitting. Indomitable, but set in place. He would''ve been an exceptional general in these dreadful times."


    —Liu Changfeng, Grand Marshal of the Dawn.


    — —


    In the path of martial arts, one needed an unmovable will, a powerful physical body, overwhelming Primeval Essence, a profound cultivation technique, and heaven-shattering martial techniques.


    Soldiers like Jiang Yun and Han Zhen possessed exceptional willpower and determination. However, they lacked advanced techniques. Additionally, some injuries had already taken their toll on them, prompting Liu Dong Tu to intervene and prevent these two from damaging their own potential. Liu Changfeng, recognizing their value, wanted to help them overcome these limitations.


    “Huh. Did the General train you?” Jiang Yun muttered, parrying another one of Liu Changfeng’s blows. He was impressed. Let alone the Third Young Master caring enough to remember their names, he was quite talented with the sword.


    “No. This—”


    —CLANG!


    “Is my,”


    -CLANGG! CLANG!


    “First time.”


    After the two created some distance, Jiang Yun frowned slightly. “And I thought me and Han Zhen were good at that age…”


    Liu Changfeng grinned a little. He was to teach them, not bask in flattery. As Jiang Yun adjusted his stance, Liu Changfeng’s mind wandered to the technique he had developed in the final years of his life—the one he had used to kill his greatest enemies, human or not.


    The Heartblood Massacre Sword Technique.


    But he couldn’t immediately teach it to these two. The Heartblood Massacre Sword Technique had a prerequisite foundational technique before it could be learned. Liu Changfeng called it the Fiendish Heartsword.


    Even then, despite how they were both on the Primeval Refining Realm’s cusp, their cultivation barely qualified to learn the foundation technique! That was just how advanced Liu Changfeng’s personal sword technique was. Then again… despite being the creator, he also can’t use his own technique due to his lack of cultivation.


    “Hey, Jiang Yun are you able to emit your energy?” Liu Changfeng asked curiously.


    “Errr…yes. Upon reaching the peak of Primeval Refining, all cultivators should be able to do so among other things, assuming they have the necessary talent and control. Han Zhen and I only recently broke through.”


    “Really?” Liu Changfeng grinned mischievously. “Could you show me?"


    Jiang Yun blinked at the request, glancing at the dull practice sword in his hand. "Show you? I’m not all that experienced, Young Master."


    "Still, I’ve never seen it before," Liu Changfeng said, his tone light and curious, masking his true intent. "I’ll stand over here. Try hitting that dummy from a distance. Maybe I’ll learn something watching you."


    Jiang Yun hesitated but eventually nodded. He took a stance, drawing in a steady breath as he began channeling his Primeval Essence. A faint shimmer of power enveloped his sword, and with a sharp swing, a ripple of energy surged forward, striking the wooden dummy with a dull thud.


    "That’s it?" Liu Changfeng tilted his head, his voice deliberately teasing. "It looked… fine, but you’re not really focusing it, are you? I thought it’d be sharper, like a clean cut."


    Jiang Yun frowned, his grip tightening on the hilt. "The control comes with practice. Besides, emitting energy isn’t about cutting—it’s about projecting force all at once."


    "Is it?" Liu Changfeng mused aloud, as if pondering the concept for the first time. "What if you think of it like… well, imagine water flowing down a river. If you just let it go anywhere, it spreads out and loses its strength. But if you make it flow through a narrow channel, like a blade… wouldn’t it cut sharper?"


    Jiang Yun’s eyes narrowed slightly, and he adjusted his stance, clearly thinking over the analogy.


    "And—oh!" Liu Changfeng clapped his hands together as if struck by sudden inspiration. "Try focusing on the edge of your sword, like it’s a brush painting on the air. My father used to say—what was it? Ah! ''The keenest blade lies not in steel, but in the heart; compress the storm, and it will roar through a needle''s eye.'' Maybe that’ll help?"


    Jiang Yun looked at Liu Changfeng skeptically but nodded. He exhaled slowly, raising the sword again. This time, he concentrated, focusing all his energy along the blade’s edge, narrowing it as the boy had suggested.


    Liu Changfeng hid his smirk behind an expression of wide-eyed amazement. "Whoa, that was way better! I knew you could do it!"


    Jiang Yun lowered his sword, his frown lingering as he stared at the dummy. There didn’t seem to be a change. Or maybe there was? The Young Master shouldn’t see anything he can’t, so how was it better?


    Before Jiang Yun could dwell on it, Han Zhen clapped him on the shoulder. "Enough playing around. We’re already late for our shift at the gate."


    Jiang Yun nodded reluctantly, his gaze flickering back to the dummy one last time. As the two guards left the training ground, Jiang Yun’s brow remained furrowed in thought.


    “I’ll see you two tomorrow morning again.” Liu Changfeng brushed past them.


    The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    “We’ll look forward to it, Young Master.” Han Zhen said before nudging Jiang Yun. “C’mon, how much longer are you going to stand there.”


    By the time Liu Changfeng was long gone, Jiang Yun still stared at the dummy. “Hey, Han Zhen.”


    “Huh?”


    “Did General Liu use a sword?”


    “...No, he used a spear. Did ya’ hit your head?”


    “I-no, nevermind. Let’s go before we lose our jobs.”


    —


    “Heh.” Liu Changfeng chuckled as he ate.


    It wasn’t a meal shared among the entire clan like yesterday. Only his mother, father and Liu Yaun were present. His two elder siblings were busy overseeing Liu Dong Tu’s army in his absence.


    “Did you have a good day, Changfeng-er?” His mother prodded.


    “I did. I was training with Han Zhen and the other manor guards this morning.” Liu Changfeng said through a mouthful of braised chicken.


    He ignored the slight shock on his parents'' faces and took another bite, a faint smirk tugged at his lips.


    Energy was like water; it could flow freely, spilling everywhere, or it could be shaped into a blade, sharp enough to pierce stone. Jiang Yun didn’t know it, but today was about planting the seed. To channel Primeval Essence through the sword was one thing. To compress it, to sharpen it—that was another matter entirely.


    He lifted his cup of tea, the warm steam curling into the air.


    His mind drifted further. They didn’t realize it yet, but the first step to sword qi wasn’t power—it was control. Each arc of energy they tried to expel would need to be thinner, sharper, until it wasn’t just energy—it was honed and deadly. Eventually, once he personally teaches them, that sword qi will turn to Heartsword Qi.


    Ah, and whatever Jiang Yun learns, Han Zhen will too!


    Liu Changfeng’s grin grew wider. While he couldn’t teach them now because of his pathetic cultivation stage, having the two hone their skills like this would make it easier later. He just had to keep nudging them forward, one deliberate step at a time.


    “Say, father. When are you leaving for work again?” Liu Changfeng asked.


    “I’m done with the royal court. I’ll be returning to the border soon. Not where I’m usually deployed but it''s against the same Hwan Kingdom troops.” Liu Dong Tu frowned. It was just his personality. He was a rigid man who found solace in the battlefield, not political battles. His tongue was meant to command troops, not talk to kings, court officials, ministers, and the like.


    Madam Liu consoled him with a soft touch on his shoulder. “You mustn’t worry dear. I’m sure those two did a good job overseeing your men in your absence.”


    Ah, my two elder brothers. In this life…they aren’t dead. Liu Changfeng wore a bitter smile. I’ll make sure to make amends for them as well.


    “Uhm. The day you leave…can you find me in the morning?” Liu Changfeng asked.


    “Why—”


    “I wanted to show you my swordsmanship.”


    “...?” Liu Dong Tu’s face scrunched puzzledly. “I…of course. I’ll look forward to it.”


    Liu Changfeng smiled.


    Eventually, dinner ended—the last one shared between Liu Dong Tu and his family for a while before he returned to the capital again.


    However, today was a key memory of Liu Changfeng’s previous life. It was because he never shared dinner with his father again after today.


    His face darkened as he watched his father’s mighty back retreat into his study.


    In his last life, his father’s redeployment to the border was shifted last minute to a fortress beside Zhulong Tao—the general of the Liu Clan’s rivals.


    Liu Dong Tu didn’t mind it. He thought nothing about the two clans’ age-old rivalry. The same couldn’t be said about Zhulong Tao.


    In two days, Zhulong Tao will invite Liu Dong Tu to the Three Springs Pavilion under the guise of discussing their joint efforts in repelling the Hwan Kingdom at the border. However this will only plant a seed of doubt in the mind of the Liu Clan’s benefactor—King Ji, one of the many kings beneath the Son of Heaven. The Zhulong Clan is tied to King Ji’s rival, King Shou.


    King Ji heads one of the three largest factions in the court, and the threat of one of his most valiant supporters, the Liu Clan of generals, allying with King Shou would be catastrophic.


    King Ji, ever paranoid and ambitious, would not tolerate even the faintest suggestion of betrayal. A single rumor could erode his trust, forcing him to reconsider his reliance on the Liu Clan. And Zhulong Tao, a man infamous for his cunning, understood this better than anyone.


    In his last life, Liu Dong Tu accepted Zhulong Tao’s invitation without hesitation, driven solely by his duty to the empire. The two generals dined beneath the fragrant wisteria blossoms of the Three Springs Pavilion, exchanging pleasantries over wine. To Liu Dong Tu, it was a necessary collaboration to defend the border. But for Zhulong Tao, it was a stage—one carefully arranged to sow discord.


    King Ji’s spies, always lurking in the shadows, reported the meeting with exaggerated precision. By the time word reached the capital, it was no longer a discussion of strategy. It had become an accusation of collusion. Whispers of treason began to swirl, dragging the Liu Clan’s reputation into dangerous waters.


    This time, Liu Changfeng clenched his fists, his mind racing.


    Father was never one for politics. He’d never see the snare until it was too late. But now...


    The memory burned in Liu Changfeng’s chest.


    The Hwan Kingdom’s invasion this year was heavy. Zhulong Tao welcomed it, forged evidence, and reported back to the royal court of Liu Dong Tu, who had “secret dealings” with the Hwan Kingdom. It was a masterpiece of treachery.


    Zhulong Tao''s plan was as cunning as it was ruthless. The Hwan Kingdom, emboldened by their initial victories, had sent a delegation under the guise of peace talks, offering to trade information on troop movements for supplies. The Liu fortress had intercepted a missive, and in his sincerity, Liu Dong Tu had brought it to Zhulong Tao for discussion.


    Unbeknownst to Liu Dong Tu, Zhulong Tao had seized this opportunity to forge damning evidence—a counterfeit agreement written on Hwan Kingdom parchment with the seal of Liu Dong Tu’s fortress affixed to it. It was a crude but effective forgery, one that suggested Liu Dong Tu had not only agreed to the Hwan Kingdom’s terms but had secretly supplied them with rations in exchange for sparing his troops in future skirmishes.


    The forgery was sent to the capital through anonymous channels, timed perfectly with the spies'' reports of the meeting between Liu Dong Tu and Zhulong Tao. By the time the rumors reached King Ji, they had grown legs of their own, painting Liu Dong Tu as a man who had sold out his kingdom to protect his own skin.


    Liu Changfeng remembered the fallout all too vividly.


    Liu Dong Tu was executed within a month. Zhulong Tao, meanwhile, rose in prominence. With the Liu Clan disgraced, he became the favored general of King Shou, solidifying the Zhulong Clan’s power.


    Liu Changfeng remembered the fallout all too vividly. He had watched his father fall from grace in his past life, branded as a treasonous traitor, not by his own actions but by the schemes of others. It was the first domino in the cascade that led to their family’s ruin.


    Not again.


    If I can stop Father from attending the meeting, King Ji’s trust will remain intact. Zhulong Tao’s plot will fail. But how? Father respects duty above all else... He won’t refuse an invitation tied to the empire’s defense.


    Liu Changfeng’s jaw tightened as he formulated a plan. No, that line of thinking is flawed. Especially when I can influence the matter of the meeting itself.


    …All strings led back to one thing—Mei Lian.


    His face darkened and his gaze steeled before he returned to his room.