Chapter 518: Hold Me Tight

“No!”

Bai Zhenzhen looked at the Seven Sentiments Lord with a mix of anger and panic. “Teacher! How can you do this? Are you trying to get Zhang Yu killed? If he loses control even once, it’s all over!”

Fear rose in her chest. “With Yuzi’s feelings for me, and his terrifying martial talent—if he really does this, his Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship could skyrocket overnight.”

“Not just level ten—maybe even level twenty isn’t impossible. But the higher it goes, the greater the risk of losing control.”

“When that happens, even a slight emotional fluctuation could cause him to lose control and expose himself…”

“If that happens, the Artifact Refinement Department at Wanfa University will never tolerate him. All his years of effort will go to waste. He’ll end up like me—stuck practicing this useless Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship.”

“And during his loss of control, who knows how much damage he’ll cause, how much money he’ll owe, how many debts he’ll rack up…”

“And… without a proper military license, he’ll face lawsuits. If no one at Wanfa helps him, his physical body could even be confiscated…”

Thinking this, Bai Zhenzhen grew even more desperate. She raised her hand, trying to sever her connection with Zhang Yu.

But the Seven Sentiments Lord let out a cold snort. Sword intent surged skyward, transmitted through the patrol flying sword that linked their two locations, restoring and reinforcing their connection.

“Heh. Haven’t you been sneaking around, trying to contact Zhang Yu all this time?”

“What’s wrong?” The Seven Sentiments Lord’s voice held a mocking smile. “Now that I’m letting you contact him, you’re unwilling?”

Suddenly, there was a dull thud—Bai Zhenzhen had fallen to her knees.

“Mom, please let him go.”

“Can we just cut off the communication, please?”

Seeing this, Zhang Yu’s body trembled. “Zhenzhen!”

“Don’t talk!” Bai Zhenzhen snapped. “Close your eyes right now! Don’t look at me, don’t think of me—don’t let your Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship level rise!”

Then she looked toward the blurred figure of the Seven Sentiments Lord and pleaded, “Mom, I promise to train in Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship properly. Just please, don’t let Zhang Yu contact me anymore. Don’t let him improve his cultivation through this.”

The Seven Sentiments Lord replied calmly, “If you’re supposed to practice Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship diligently, shouldn’t you be training with Zhang Yu every day?”

Sword intent exploded in Bai Zhenzhen’s eyes. She tried to kowtow, but a thread of sword qi intercepted her before her forehead could touch the ground.

Sensing the power within Bai Zhenzhen’s body, the Seven Sentiments Lord said with satisfaction, “See? Your Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship has improved again. That means my method works.”

“Mom! Teacher! I’m begging you,” Bai Zhenzhen cried. “I don’t want Zhang Yu to walk this path.”

The Seven Sentiments Lord’s tone cooled. “I don’t understand what’s so wrong with this path. The man was your choice—so what’s the problem?”

“Stop putting on that pitiful act. If you dare kneel or bow again, I’ll send you straight to Wanfa University—to Zhang Yu’s dormitory—so you can cling to him all you like.”

“Yes, I can’t drag Zhang Yu here myself.”

“But sending you to Wanfa University, to his room, letting you hold each other tight—now that’s no problem. And no one at Wanfa would stop me.”

Bai Zhenzhen went cold all over, as if plunged into an icy abyss. She could already imagine their embrace, their Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship soaring uncontrollably, both of them ending in ruin.

She stood shakily, bitterness clouding her face as she gazed at Zhang Yu on the other side of the projection. The future between them seemed utterly bleak.

The Seven Sentiments Lord said evenly, “You refused to change partners when I told you to. Don’t blame me for being cruel now.”

“You chose Zhang Yu for your Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship. Then practice it to the end.”

“If, by the time you realize he isn’t your best match, your sword path rebounds—I’ll just refine you into a flying sword and add you to my sword vault.”

As she spoke, the Seven Sentiments Lord opened a private space within the Spiritual Realm, drawing both Bai Zhenzhen and Zhang Yu inside.

“Ah-Zhen!” Zhang Yu said, moving toward her but stopping short.

Through what the True Lord Magneto and Director Gao had told him, and what he’d just heard from Bai Zhenzhen and the Seven Sentiments Lord, Zhang Yu now understood what the Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship truly was.

It was a military-grade sword technique fueled by emotion.

“The deeper the bond, the stronger the talent—the faster the swordsmanship advances.”

“With how close Ah-Zhen and I are, she could progress rapidly in this art.”

“But seeing her like this… she clearly doesn’t want me to advance in it.”

He recalled those horrifying news stories—men and women driven mad, killing lovers, families, and themselves.

“Will it drive one insane?”

“So that’s why Ah-Zhen doesn’t want me to cultivate it… she’s afraid that through our closeness, my swordsmanship will advance uncontrollably.”

While Zhang Yu’s thoughts churned, the Seven Sentiments Lord’s voice rang out again. “Why are you standing there? Hug her!”

Seeing Bai Zhenzhen’s struggle, her teacher’s tone grew colder. “Or do you want me to send you to his dorm?”

At those words, Bai Zhenzhen seemed to lose all strength. Step by step, she walked toward Zhang Yu.

Watching her, Zhang Yu’s brows knit tightly. He didn’t know what to do.

“Should I prove to Ah-Zhen that I haven’t practiced Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship?”

That was his first thought. If she knew he hadn’t trained it, she wouldn’t have to worry about his cultivation rising through their contact.

But another thought flashed through his mind.

“That sword-path backlash the Seven Sentiments Lord mentioned… does it mean emotional backlash?”

“Their understanding of martial talent is too shallow. If they believe I can’t cultivate this technique because I lack emotion… what will happen?”

“Will that trigger backlash in Ah-Zhen’s sword path?”

Seeing her trembling, Zhang Yu’s thoughts spun like lightning.

Then, when Bai Zhenzhen’s hands finally wrapped around him, her body trembled violently.

The Seven Sentiments Lord burst into laughter. “Yes! That’s it! Do you feel it? The Extreme Sentiment Sword Intent surging within you? Can’t you feel it building?”

Scarlet sword qi flared within Bai Zhenzhen, burning around her like a storm of crimson flames. Her emotions swelled—each wave sharper and stronger. The air crackled as sword auras carved marks into the walls and floor.

Yet Zhang Yu stood utterly calm. No sword intent, no aura, not even a ripple of mana or qi emanated from him.

The Seven Sentiments Lord’s voice turned cold. “Do you see, Bai Zhenzhen? Look carefully. There’s not a single sign of advancement on Zhang Yu’s body.”

“You of all people should understand what that means.”

Bai Zhenzhen’s face paled. Her sword qi grew more and more violent, hissing through the air like a roaring beast.

Zhang Yu’s heart sank. “It’s affecting Ah-Zhen’s sword path…”

He remembered the Seven Sentiments Lord’s earlier words—about backlash, about refining into a flying sword. He suddenly hugged Bai Zhenzhen tightly and said softly, “It’s okay, Ah-Zhen. Believe me—I can control the Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship.”

“You don’t have to worry about me.”

He knew that at this point, no explanation, no logic could persuade either Bai Zhenzhen or her mother. His lack of advancement would only seem like emotional coldness.

So Zhang Yu stopped trying to explain.

He relied instead on trust—the bond between them.

He believed that if he spoke sincerely, she would feel it and believe him.

Because the trust between them no longer needed logic or reason.

As Zhang Yu spoke, Bai Zhenzhen’s raging sword qi slowly calmed. The violent aura softened into faint halos of light, gently circling her body.

She nodded, still clinging to him. “Mm. I trust you.”

Zhang Yu felt her changes—and his heart grew heavier.

He had stopped her from losing control… but he’d also pushed her further down the path of the Extreme Sentiment Swordsmanship.

“Good, good, good.” The Seven Sentiments Lord laughed. “The two of you are truly perfect for cultivating this sword path together.”

At the same time, a private message appeared in Zhang Yu’s EyeNet interface.

Seven Sentiments Lord: Boy, you’d better keep lying to her forever. Otherwise, she’ll be the one to kill you—or I’ll forge her into a sword myself.

Zhang Yu’s heart trembled again. Looking at Bai Zhenzhen in his arms, he thought silently, Ah-Zhen, I’ll become so strong that you’ll never be able to kill me. No matter how far you go down this path, it won’t matter.

Bai Zhenzhen, hearing his heartbeat, thought in turn, Yuzi, I’ll learn to adapt to this sword path—just like I did with my spirit root when I was little. I’ll make sure my sword never turns against you… I’ll never hurt you.

Half an hour later, their communication link closed. Bai Zhenzhen’s figure slowly faded before Zhang Yu’s eyes.

In the days that followed, Zhang Yu threw himself even more fiercely into cultivation—at the construction site, in class, in the lab, and in the Supreme Purity Realm. He moved tirelessly, his account balances rising and falling in constant motion.

Yet despite his hard work, the payment for his construction project never arrived.

By late April, Zhang Yu finally sent a message asking when the payment would come.

The reply: “Don’t ask again. If you do, you’ll be waiting till next year.”

Zhang Yu blinked in disbelief. “So arrogant? Do they not know I’m under True Lord Magneto?”

He didn’t act rashly. After some investigation, he discovered the one in charge of the payments—True Lord Thunder, Magneto’s junior brother.

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