Bart smiled and said, "So sure that I came to you for something?"

Louis shook his head and said, "I'm just here to find a trash can to vent to, but you're saying too much."

"It seems I was still too obvious."

"Get to the point, Mr. Bart. There's no need to waste so much time between us."

"Alright... are you interested in taking Vier as a disciple?"

Louis was stunned, almost jumping up: "Do you know what you're saying? How old am I? You want me to be a master?"

Just as he said this, a figure stood in front of him.

It was Vier, whom he had only met once.

She stood there biting her lower lip, opening and closing her mouth for a long while before finally speaking:

"Father said only you can teach me."

Louis was silent.

After a moment, he rubbed his forehead with some annoyance and said, "That guy's eyes are as sharp as ever."

Vier softly said, "Father said, among everyone, only you who have witnessed the essence of his martial skills from beginning to end have the ability to teach me the Celestial Blade. Also, he asked me to give this to you."

Vier handed over a strangely shaped pitch-black long blade.

Louis glanced at it and sighed, "Is this the Demon Blade? I had previously asked that guy to bring the Demon Blade and fight me, but he refused no matter what. And now, he's just throwing the blade to me."

Vier still stood there holding the Demon Blade, not saying a word.

The atmosphere instantly became silent.

Bart's breathing lightened.

He didn't know what Louis would choose.

If he were in his position, without enough benefits, he wouldn't be willing to do this task.

Louis hesitated for a moment before softly asking, "Why do you want to learn the Celestial Blade?"

"Revenge. I want to personally kill that guy."

"You don't need to seek revenge. The Great Sin of Envy will definitely die at my hands. I won't let him escape from me a third time."

"..."

"Is there any other reason?"

"Does there have to be a reason?"

"Doesn't there need to be?"

"Replacing my father to see the scenery at the higher places, that's the simplest choice for many children, isn't it?"

"Is that what you want?"

"No, I just want to kill that guy."

"Alright, you're a lot like your father, which might help you understand his Path of the Celestial Blade a bit better."

"So you're agreeing?"

"What else can I do? After all, he's caught onto my little secret. I can't just claim I don't know the Celestial Blade, can I?"

When Vier stood in front of Louis, he realized his disguise was seen through by the Sword Master.

Yes, he did know the Celestial Blade.

Not just a general understanding but he could use almost all the techniques of the Celestial Blade.

Even if there were a small part he couldn't yet manage smoothly, with proper study, he could figure it out.

Although he often claimed to be a transporter of knowledge and skills already perfected by others, turning them into his lifelong learning.

But as his foundation grew, he eventually became one of the few people in the world who understood martial skills the best.

A level unattainable by the common man, even if he didn't initially excel in self-research, he accumulated a wealth of innovation and improvement methods.

—Or rather, this is the path chosen by most who surpass ordinary people yet aren't quite geniuses or prodigies. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

During the first sparring, he indeed hadn't mastered the Celestial Blade.

The learning difficulty of the Celestial Blade compared to the Invisible Qi Boundary was not on the same level.

Master Kulin was a great person, but his professional level never rose to a higher level to witness the landscape from a summit.

But the Sword Master saw it.

This was the first time, even with his greed-driven curiosity, that Louis couldn't immediately grasp a martial skill.

No, Louis had long suspected that thing was just wearing the facade of a "Celestial Blade Domain."

The core of that thing wasn't about being a domain at all.

The battle between Cialdini and the Great Sin of Envy further demonstrated that the Sword Master had already embedded the power of the Celestial Blade into the semi-plane.

Or maybe it should be more fitting to call it the "Celestial Blade Realm"?

This thought suddenly flashed through his mind.

But he quickly squashed the excess thoughts, taking the Demon Blade from Vier's hands.

"I will teach you how to learn the Celestial Blade. After the funeral, come to me, and let me see how much you've already learned."

Vier nodded but soon showed a troubled expression: "What I've learned might be less than you expect."

Louis calmly said, "With your father running around all the time, it would be strange if he could sit down to teach you properly."

Yet, he couldn't hide that feeling of frustration inside.

That damn guy, he had initially planned to return the favor during the next spar, to put on a remarkable show.

Too bad, there won't be a next time.

...

On the second day after the Sword Master's funeral, Vier went to Louis's manor as promised to be taught.

Vier's swordsmanship wasn't exactly bad.

At least, given her age, Louis hadn't seen anyone better than her.

Well... maybe mainly because he hadn't seen many people.

However, Vier's swordsmanship had a very apparent problem; it didn't quite resemble the "style of the Sword Master."

Louis could bet with his big toe that Vier's swordsmanship was full of others' shadows, with very little trace of Cialdini's style.

Clearly, the guy didn't have enough time to teach his daughter, so most of Vier's techniques came from other swordsmanship experts.

Fortunately, Louis had anticipated this and provided guidance to Vier from start to finish.

Vier was quite diligent in her learning. Although she didn't grasp as quickly as he did, it was still relatively fast.

But on the flip side, if she learned faster than him, the face of Greed's curiosity would lose some shine.

He just didn't understand why the Sword Master had given him the Demon Blade?

Giving him the Demon Blade?

It didn't seem right. This weapon was very sinister, useful indeed, but Louis could sense it affected a person's mind.

To utilize this weapon, you need exceptionally strong mental fortitude.

Louis could use it, but Cialdini had also bought a spot in the Hall of Greed and was aware of the existence of the Ten Thousand Transformations Sword Pill.

With the Ten Thousand Transformations Sword Pill around, ordinary weapons didn't have much effect on them. Was it necessary to have his daughter deliver it specifically to him?

Or was it fear that after his passing, someone might steal the weapon, so he handed it over for safekeeping?

That was even more illogical.

The Sword Master's reputation and standing in Lokeshi were well-known. Looking at Bart Jean's appearance, he didn't seem unwilling to protect Vier.

With guarantees from the Patriarchs of thirteen families, the Sword Master's wealth wouldn't be so easily seized.

Do they really think it's those quirky plots where a Mahayana Stage gets slandered by a Qi Refining Stage from female stories?

If they truly pissed off Bart Jean, he'd send the enemy straight to be imprisoned within the Dragon Pearl.

He didn't concern himself much with this matter.

Or rather, although he found it a bit troublesome initially, the possibility of seeing the Celestial Blade reemerge in the world through Vier excited him greatly.

It gave him something to look forward to.

Maybe in the future, when Vier progresses further on this path, wouldn't it be alright for him, as her master, to learn better techniques from his disciple?

What?

You ask why Louis doesn't research it himself?

Don't joke around. With his current array of ever-expanding techniques, just organizing his existing methods and supplementing the Invisible Qi Boundary is already quite a hassle.

His main goal now is to integrate all his techniques and vocational systems to further advance the methods of the Nine Sword Grandmaster.

This relates to the further growth of the Martial Tomb semi-plane.

If there's any extra time, he should focus on organizing and optimizing the martial arts positions.

That's clearly his "Path of Godhood," the culmination of all his current studies.

Why even think about perfecting the Path of the Celestial Blade when you could be enhancing this?

That's just reaching too far for what lies nearby.

So, the Path of the Celestial Blade had to be entrusted to Vier.

He would, at most, be a strategic supplement.

He taught earnestly, and the girl learned quickly.

About a week later, Vier sought out Louis after finishing her practice.

"Teacher, there's something I need to hand over to you to handle."

"What is it?"

"This..." Vier handed a strange fragment to Louis. "Father asked me to give this to you afterwards."