Seeking Truth with a Sword

「Ten days quickly passed.」

The students from the various countries' delegations then officially arrived at the Academic Palace for academic exchange.

The most noticeable change was that the classrooms had become slightly more crowded, and students were more proactive with their contributions and questions during lessons. Many of the Academic Palace's faculty and students were foreigners. However, an even greater number were Yu people. Possessing a strong sense of national pride, they naturally wanted to appear more outstanding in front of the foreign delegations.

The courses selected by foreign students also showed distinct preferences. Natural Science had the most registrations. It was followed by Military Studies, Hundred Beasts, Talismanic Sword Thought Body, and similar subjects. Many students also signed up for Agricultural Science, Mathematics, and Danqing Melody. In contrast, far fewer registered for national history and Yu Law—foreign students indeed had little need to study the laws of Yu Country.

"Telekinesis is ever-changing—formless yet substantial. You have already learned techniques like Heart Level, Square, and Rock; now you must integrate them," Xi Yangyu instructed while teaching the Mind Study class on the lawn. "De Ming, come and help me demonstrate."

"Yes."

An Assistant Tutor in Mind Study stepped forward, blindfolded himself, and then untied the brocade bag at his waist, taking out more than thirty unsharpened rectangular metal strips.

He spread the metal strips in his palm and took a deep breath. Then, brushing the edges of all the strips with his middle finger, he released his telekinesis, causing them all to levitate and circle around him.

Xi Yangyu, on the other hand, snapped his fingers. A large tree ten meters beside him shook for a moment, dropping dozens of green leaves.

WHOOSH!

All the green leaves flew into the air, hovering around Xi Yangyu. Under the control of his telekinesis, they spread out flat, one by one.

Xi Yangyu raised his index finger and casually flicked it. The leaves transformed into flying knives, shooting toward the Assistant Tutor at high speed. The edges of the leaves cut through the air, producing a dense sound like birds chirping.

The Assistant Tutor in Mind Study pursed his lips and clapped his hands together sharply. The metal strips around him moved rapidly, intercepting the leaves before they could reach him.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The sound of clashing metal was incessant. The leaves, enhanced by telekinesis, spun rapidly around the Assistant Tutor, continuously bombarding him, while the blindfolded man used the metal strips to protect himself.

The students below watched in astonishment. They realized that if the one being attacked had been the slightest bit careless, allowing even one green leaf to penetrate the defense, that person would likely have met a grisly end—even wearing the most secure armor.

And if the green leaves were replaced with metal blades... they mused.

"Enough."

Xi Yangyu waved his finger. All the leaves lost their power and slowly drifted to the ground, not a single one damaged.

The Assistant Tutor exhaled a long breath. Wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead as he removed his blindfold, he then controlled the dented metal strips, guiding them back into the brocade bag.

"Telekinesis Masters are different from Sword Masters and Talisman Masters," Xi Yangyu said mildly, his hands clasped behind his back. "Without their swords, a Sword Master's full ability is reduced by sixty percent. A Talisman Master without talismans, ink, and paper loses seventy percent of their full capability. But the power of a Telekinesis Master comes from within. Fallen leaves, fluttering flowers, pebbles—all can be weapons."

"What Assistant Tutor De Ming just demonstrated was the application of the Square technique and multi-tasking. First, release telekinesis to perceive the surroundings, then use a large number of metal strips to protect oneself and resist external threats. Of course, this is mostly to show you the techniques. Enemies on the battlefield certainly won't be so cooperative as to only attack with weapons like flying arrows. Instead, they will resort to hacking with sabers, chopping with axes, and hidden spear thrusts—they will stop at nothing. This is where Rock comes into play."

Xi Yangyu then nodded towards the Assistant Tutor. The latter took a deep breath, covered his entire body with telekinesis, and adopted a defensive stance.

Seeing the Assistant Tutor was ready, Xi Yangyu raised his arm and flicked his finger.

BANG!

The Assistant Tutor was struck by an invisible, colossal force and sent flying, crashing hard into the trunk of a large tree in the distance. Branches trembled, leaves scattered, and tree bark and wood chips flew everywhere.

The Assistant Tutor shook his head and stood up. Not a single scratch could be seen on his body.

"The essence of Rock is to use telekinesis to protect the surface of the body, shielding it from external forces," Xi Yangyu explained. "However, doing so consumes a great deal of telekinesis, so it must be combined with the Square technique. At the instant an opponent attacks, you must sense the force of that attack and distribute your telekinesis evenly across your body. Any error in distribution can cause the defense to collapse, leading to immediate death. Alternatively, your body might withstand the attack, but due to uneven telekinetic distribution, your limbs could be torn off by the sheer force of the blow."

Xi Yangyu's tone remained calm, as if he were discussing something trivial. "A Telekinesis Master needs to constantly calculate, weigh, estimate, and predict. Multi-tasking is just the beginning. The ultimate goal is to develop an instinct, making your telekinesis as nimble as your own hands and feet. De Ming, take out the Mind Threads."

"Yes."

The Assistant Tutor took out a metal wire from his robes and demonstrated the telekinetic technique called Tethering Silk. This involved using telekinesis to control the metal wire, making it cover an area. Within this area, the Square sensing range expands significantly, and each strand of wire can move flexibly. If someone steps into it, the Mind Silk can instantly tighten, binding the enemy like a spider's web, potentially even slicing them to pieces.

The upper limit of a Telekinesis Master's ability depends largely on their calculating ability, emergency responsiveness, strategic planning, and imagination.

In this regard, I think I'm doing quite well, Li Ang mused. While others are still struggling to deploy Rock, I can already feel a layer of telekinesis enveloping my body, giving me a sense of being impervious to swords and spears. This effect must be from Mo Si. It has infiltrated every part of my body, acting like a natural Spirit Vein circuit. This makes the release efficiency and sensitivity of my spiritual power much higher than that of cultivators of the same rank.

Moreover, Li Ang had instinctively learned to cover his palms with telekinesis, like a thin film. When this film touched an object's surface, it could adhere to it, allowing him to walk on vertical walls like a gecko.

Unfortunately, my spiritual power at the Mid Stage of the Body Concealing Realm is limited. Once I reach the Rain Listening Realm, I'll be able to form steps in the air with telekinesis and perform that trick of stepping on one foot with the other to ascend into the sky. With a bit more effort, maybe I could even use telekinesis to lift myself and experience the sensation of flight!

"Pair up. Each group of two will select a leaf and compete for control over it using telekinesis. The requirement is not to damage the leaf," Xi Yangyu casually instructed.

The students immediately paired up with their friends.

"Qilang..." Li Ang began. He didn't have many acquaintances in the Mind Study class. He turned to look for Yang Yu, but Yang Yu just coughed, gestured towards Zhang Yuyan (who was standing with Qiu Feng nearby), and said, "Sorry, Risheng."

Li Ang was speechless. "...Liu Bei once said, 'Brothers are like limbs; wives are like clothes.'"

"Did Emperor Zhao Lie of Han really say that? Uh, never mind. Look, there are plenty of people on the streets missing hands or feet, but no one goes without clothes. Forgive your brother this time, alright? I'll treat you to a meal next time."

With a quick apology, Yang Yu excitedly ran off to team up with Zhang Yuyan.

Li Ang sighed and turned to Qiu Feng, who looked equally lost for words. "Shall we give it a try?"