Feng Ping thought Ah Dai was reluctant to reveal his mentor’s name, so he didn’t mind and chuckled, "A kid who respects his rules and traditions, good, very fitting of our Tian Gang Sect. Come, let’s find a place to chat at leisure." Saying this, he grabbed Ah Dai’s arm and walked off.

Ah Dai didn’t really want to go with him, but since Owen had instructed him to never be rude to members of the Tian Gang Sword Sect, he reluctantly let Feng Ping lead him towards the back of the Mercenary Guild.

The back of the Mercenary Guild was a big practice arena, where some idle mercenaries not on missions would often practice their martial arts. As they entered the practice arena, where quite a few people were diligently training, many would call out to Feng Ping as they passed, addressing him as big brother Feng or Chief Feng.

After exchanging greetings with everyone, Feng Ping led him to the middle of the practice arena, "Alright, this place will do." He drew the great sword from his back with a reverse grip, and while smiling he said, "Since you cannot divulish your mentor’s name, let this uncle guess. After exchanging some moves with your Tian Gang swordsmanship, I’m certain I can determine which senior brother taught you."

Ah Dai stood dumbfounded, not knowing what to do. Having recently entered society, he was like a newborn baby, naive to the ways of the world.

Feng Ping commanded, "Draw your sword! Let this uncle give you some pointers." As he spoke, he held his sword with both hands. A faint white light pulsed from the tip of the sword; it was live fighting spirit.

Seeing Feng Ping invoke the fighting spirit, Ah Dai had a strange sense of familiarity, as if Owen had come back to life to spar with him. Figuring that uncle had said that he was a member of the Tian Gang Sword Sect, the man in front of him must be his uncle then. Ah Dai drew his Tian Gang Sword with a reverse grip and respectfully said, "Uncle, please guide me." Scenes of Owen instructing him with the use of a branch were constantly flashing across his mind. From under his slightly reddened eyes, Ah Dai raised the Tian Gang Sword high. He gave a loud shout, and the live fighting spirit burst forth, carrying a streak of white light. Just as when he would normally cleave waves, he abruptly swung downwards. This seemingly unstoppable force suddenly made the accompanying red-haired man retreat a few steps.

Feng Ping’s eyes sparkled and he exclaimed, "Great aura!" He counter-gripped his broadsword and made an abrupt upward swing, perfectly meeting Ah Dai’s sword edge.

Ah Dai could feel the live true Qi from within his body pour out like a wave. The white fighting spirit immediately produced faint ripples. With a "clang" sound, the tip of the two Tian Gang Broadswords met mid-air. The recoil made Ah Dai involuntarily step back. From what he could tell, this uncle’s skill seemed to not be as good as uncle Owen’s.

Feng Ping was forced to retreat three steps before regaining his balance. He was shocked to find that Ah Dai’s sword perfectly encapsulated the live fighting spirit that the Tian Gang Sword Sect took pride in. However, what differed from his was that with one strike, the child in front of him sent out waves of fighting spirit, each equally as powerful as his own. The child’s depth of skill seemed to supersede his as well. According to his knowledge, none of his other senior sword brothers had managed to tutor such an outstanding disciple. He shifted his retreat into an advance, his whole body exuding fighting spirit. As his body transformed into a long rainbow, he abruptly pounced towards Ah Dai, it was the crouching sun strike of the Tian Gang Sword technique.

The strike from earlier had greatly bolstered Ah Dai’s confidence. Yet again, he let out a loud cry, sending out another sword strike. He was still using Splitting Chop, the simplest move from the nine steps of the Tian Gang Sword technique that he had learnt.

Feng Ping watched as Ah Dai’s Tian Gang Sword collided with his own, but he was trapped and couldn’t switch his technique. He had no idea why, but he felt as if every other angle around him was being sealed off by Ah Dai’s strike, he could only oppose it directly. Then, there was another light sound of metal on metal. Yet again, Ah Dai took a step back, but at the same time, he neutralized Feng Ping’s technique. Their spar had attracted numerous onlooking mercenaries. Most of these mercenaries were pretty low rank and their martial arts skills were not high; nonetheless, they enjoyed a good spectacle and cheered them on.

When Feng Ping landed, his breath was somewhat ragged. He dispersed the crowd of mercenaries and pulled Ah Dai to the side, praising, "Your swordsmanship is excellent! Young lad, you must be among the best of the fourth generation of our sword sect. Quickly, tell me who taught you."

Ah Dai returned the Tian Gang Sword back to the leather bag on his back. He racked his slow-working brain for a moment, then said, "I, I don’t know my mentor’s name. He just taught me swordsmanship, that’s all." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Feng Ping questioned, "Then, tell me, where is your mentor now?" In his mind, several of his sword brothers who had deeper skills were meditating back in the Sect. As long as this slow-witted youngster in front of him revealed where his mentor was, he could definitely guess which of his sword brothers was the mentor.

Ah Dai’s eyes reddened, "My mentor, he, he’s already dead." Thoughts of Owen’s death made Ah Dai unable to withhold his sadness and tears started to stream down his face.

Feng Ping was taken aback. He cried out in shock, "What did you say?" As he continued questioning Ah Dai, Ah Dai, having no choice, gave a description of Owen’s appearance. However, no matter how much Feng Ping pondered, he couldn’t figure out who this deceased sword brother could be. It seemed he would have to wait until he returned to the mountains to ask his master about it.

"Ah Dai, how did your mentor die?"

Ah Dai knew that he couldn’t answer this question. After hesitating for a long while, he finally said, "He was killed by a group of men in black. I don’t know why, but before he died, my mentor told me to wander throughout the mainland and so I ended up here."

Feng Ping patted Ah Dai’s shoulder, "Alright, don’t be sad anymore. Let’s do this: in a few days, you’ll go to the mountains with me. I’ll take you to meet the Great Ancestor Master. He’ll definitely exact justice for your mentor."

Ah Dai furrowed his brow, wondering, could it be that uncle also had a mentor? Yet, he didn’t dare to ask, "Uncle, I, I can’t go back to the mountains with you yet. Before my mentor died, he told me to do a few things. After I finish them, I’ll follow you to the mountains." What he wanted to do more than anything was to first register as a magician, and then hurry back to the Illusive Forest to visit his old friend, Goris. If he were to follow Feng Ping back to the Tian Gang Sword Sect, he would definitely lose a lot of time.