{"id":712,"date":"2025-10-09T01:08:37","date_gmt":"2025-10-09T01:08:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sakuratranslation.com\/?p=712"},"modified":"2025-10-23T20:12:28","modified_gmt":"2025-10-23T20:12:28","slug":"the-gate-of-heaven-12","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/www.velvetink.xyz\/ms\/chapter\/the-gate-of-heaven-12\/","title":{"rendered":"The Gate of Heaven 12"},"content":{"rendered":"

Chapter Twelve: Storm Slash

The Blood-Red Castle.

The long rainy season had finally passed. Sunlight fell on the still-damp outer walls of the castle, illuminating vines and moss. The castle’s hoist constantly went up and down, delivering batches of supplies inside, while within dozens of miles outside the castle, patrol squads of the Order of the Light Knights appeared, forming ring after ring of quarantine, preventing anyone unconnected from approaching this forbidden zone.

…

Inside the castle.

Morning. The first formal breakfast for the cadets. In the clean, bright dining hall, unlimited portions ensured each cadet had enough to eat. Loran ordered a serving of meat and a serving of fish, plus a bowl of soup and some potato slices, and sat alone in a corner, wolfing it down, while Aivelle sat with several female cadets from the class.

“Hey, Loran!”

Not far away, a group of youths approached. One of them, carrying breakfast and with a head of fiery short red hair, wore a mocking expression. He plopped down in front of Loran and grinned, “Nice to meet you. You actually made it out of the first three days of trials and became our classmate.”

“Thank you.” Loran smiled.

“My name is Mond!”

The boy smiled faintly and said, “Now, could you tell us what it felt like when you drew the white ball during the second day’s trial?”

“Hmm?”

Loran frowned, and a scene of Skarlett’s gruesome death involuntarily surfaced in his mind, making his stomach clinch. He frowned and said, “Monde, why ask me about this feeling \u2014 haven’t you experienced it yourself?”

“None.”

Monde set down his tray, gave a falsely polite smile, and lowered his voice: “You country bumpkin\u2014surely you don’t think everyone has to go through the three-day trial, do you?”

“What!?” Roland was stunned.

At that moment, a young man beside him laughed, “Ha ha, a rube is still a rube \u2014 you probably don’t know this? Real nobles don’t need to go through the first three days of trials, especially the life-or-death choice on the second day. The Mond sitting in front of you is the elite of the younger generation sent by the He Gu family; before entering the Crimson Castle his family had already pulled some strings. Those with true power can control their luck, unlike you lowly commoners.”

Loran froze for a moment, hesitated for a few seconds, emotions churning in his chest, then quietly drank his soup and ate, ignoring Mond and the others. A girl in a short skirt stood up, frowned, and said, “Mond, why do you have to say such things to make Loran upset? Hurting him\u2014does that really make you any happier?”

Loran looked up, and the girl speaking was a golden-haired girl holding a tray, her pretty face full of anger.

“Ah, I wondered who it was \u2014 turns out it’s our class seven’s beauty, Caroline! What, are you trying to protect this kid?” Mond said with a cool, casual smile.

Caroline frowned: “Mond, what you said was way out of line!”

“Hmph, I’m willing \u2014 what business is it of yours?”

Caroline gritted her teeth and said, “Just you wait and see.”

With that, she turned and walked away.

Not long after, the teaching assistant Mikaela’s graceful figure appeared at the dining hall door, clad in the imperial knightess uniform. She stood with one hand on her slender waist and smiled, “Cadets, class starts in ten minutes. Don’t be late\u2014Instructor Haimu is already waiting for you.”

\u2026

Ten minutes later, the training field outside the classroom.

Haimu stood clad in armor, gripping a broad sword, his gaze deep and restrained, his presence solid and majestic. Looking at the group of youths, he said, “Today is your first official day of classes. The lesson is simple: I will teach you the entry-level offensive techniques of the Order of Light Knights. Now, everyone, pay close attention!”

He lightly raised his long sword and gave a low shout. Instantly, the star-source force in his body surged; strands of starlight flowed down his arms into the blade, forming an exquisitely fine wind-edge along the sword’s surface. Then he leapt forward and slashed at a massive rock about a meter thick. With a sharp clang and sparks flying, the blade cut through the stone, and the half of the split boulder slowly slid down.

Immediately, a group of trainees gasped. Anyone could cleave rock with a sword\u2014Roland included\u2014but slicing a meter-thick slab so cleanly with a single stroke severely tests strength and speed. Moreover, it was clear that it wasn’t only about strength and speed; there was also the mystery of combat technique.

Haimu slowly rose to his feet, his expression relaxed. With one hand he lifted his longsword and rested it on his pauldron, smiling lazily as he said, “This move is called Storm Slash. It\u2019s almost the entry-level combat technique for becoming a member of the Order of the Radiant Knights. The so-called Storm Slash means feeling the wind-elemental sprite within the breeze, comprehending the power of the wind element, integrating that epiphany into your star-source force, and converting your star-source force into wind-element energy that flows through your blade. In this way, the wind element will envelop your weapon; it is the wind element that actually cuts through rock, not the edge of the sword. Many people learn this Storm Slash, but very few can truly master it to perfection.”

He said this and pointed to a row of rocks behind him. “Over the next month, everyone’s main task is to train the Storm Slash until you can cut through these rocks with a single stroke. This is your first examination to become an official trainee. If you can’t pass within a month, then there’s no choice\u2014you’ll have to join the auxiliary servants of the Order of the Radiant Knights and work for the order to repay the cost of your training.”

Among the crowd, Mond couldn’t help but let out a hearty laugh.

The Haimu Knight raised an eyebrow and said, “What’s your name, and why are you laughing?”

Monde stepped forward: “Teacher, my name is Monde. I think… this kind of test is meaningless, because I can do it right now.”

“Is that so?”

Haimu couldn’t help but chuckle: “Mikaela, give him a training steel sword. If he can’t cut with it, Mond, don’t expect to eat anything for the next 24 hours.”

“Yes!”

Mond wore a confident expression, gripped the steel sword, and surged with Xingyuan power. The color of the Xingyuan was very deep \u2014 the legendary third-tier Xingyuan power. With a shout he leapt up, the blade wrapped in Xingyuan force. With a “crack” it struck the rock, but the blade only sank an inch or so and could not cut any deeper.

“No… impossible?” Mende’s confident expression instantly turned to astonishment.

“Hmph, the stones you used to chop before were ordinary, but the training stones we use were dug from the valley \u2014 black rock, much harder than normal stones. Go down.”

Haimu’s gaze was indifferent. “Mikaela, note this: trainee Monde is forbidden to eat or drink for 24 hours; if not, send him directly to the Scarlet Castle Enforcement Camp. Understood?”

“Understood, Instructor Haimu!”

Mikaela smiled brightly, standing proudly with a commanding figure, doodling and writing something in her notebook.

Everyone was stunned.

“Alright.”

Haimu continued to carry the blade, smiling as he addressed the trainees: “Begin. Close your eyes, focus, and feel the rhythm of the wind\u2014feel both the agitation and the calm of the wind element. If you cannot attune to the elemental spirits, you cannot master the true Storm Slash. This is your first lesson, and a required one. If anything is unclear, you can ask me or the assistant instructor, Mikayla.”

A group of trainees sat down cross-legged one after another.

Loran looked somewhat bewildered, holding his steel sword and standing in place.

“Loran, come with me.”

Haimu beckoned and led Loran to a corner of the training ground, smiling gently as he said, “You haven’t awakened a star vein, so you can’t obtain star-source power. That means there’s no point in trying to attune to the power of wind element spirits; you need to find another path. Your strengths are power and speed\u2014no one in the class surpasses you in those\u2014so you must break through your current limits.”

Loran nodded slightly. “Teacher, what should I do?”

“Use a heavier sword.”

Haimu hummed, then said, “I’ll have Michaela bring you two greatswords used by knights\u2014these greatswords are extremely heavy, up to a hundred kilograms. If you can wield such a greatsword with ease, then train your speed and explosive power. As long as your speed, angle, and explosive force are sufficient, you can likewise cleave through the Blackrock of the valley with a single stroke.”

Saying this, he smiled meaningfully: “Never underestimate the explosive power of the physical body; it is the very source of human strength.”

“All right, Teacher!”

…

Not long after, Mikayla delivered a greatsword \u2014 great by Loran\u2019s size, at least. It was a two-handed knightly sword, roughly one and a half meters long and very heavy; even with Loran\u2019s wrist strength it was hard to lift. After all, while a punch could deliver three hundred kilograms of force, raw wrist strength alone was far from that level.

But Loran still strained and managed to lift the greatsword with one hand; each swing was exhausting, as if he were wielding a mountain.

Teacher Haimu has already left.

Beside him, Micayla hugged her notebook between her breasts, leaning against the nearby parapet, watching Loran practice his swordplay. A smile spread across her lips as she said, “If you don’t have enough strength to swing the blade yet, try picking it up and holding it out first\u2014keep the sword level and support it for as long as you can. Don’t be too hasty; no matter how much you eat for breakfast, it won’t make up for that kind of exertion, especially since your hand injury hasn’t fully healed.”

“Yes, teacher.”

In the blink of an eye, the youth’s face was already drenched in sweat, yet he showed no hint of slackening; he still strained, gripping a greatsword in each hand and holding the two-handed blades high above him, motionless.

\u2026

Three days later, Roland was still stuck at the level of training forearm and wrist strength, but with ample sleep and good nutrition over those days his body had almost fully recovered to peak condition. With relentless practice his wrist strength had even subtly improved. One morning during warm-ups, after the students of Class Seven swept past the central plaza, Roland saw a familiar figure\u2014Shen Yang\u2014clenching his teeth so hard they almost shattered.

Grand Knight Grey\u2014he had appeared again, this time bringing a cart full of wild boars, deer, and other game. And Grey seemed to have recognized Loran, unable to hide his astonishment: “That brat… he’s still alive?!”
<\/p>","protected":false},"parent":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}}},"novel":[],"class_list":["post-712","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.velvetink.xyz\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/chapter\/712","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.velvetink.xyz\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/chapter"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.velvetink.xyz\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.velvetink.xyz\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=712"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.velvetink.xyz\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/chapter\/712\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.velvetink.xyz\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"novel","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.velvetink.xyz\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/novel?post=712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}