The moon hung low over the imperial capital, silver light pouring across the sleeping city. But in one small courtyard near the outskirts, no one slept.
The disciples of the Falling Sword Sect... once the joke of the empire... stood drenched in sweat, panting as they held their brooms like swords. Around them, Shen Liang paced barefoot across the training field, humming a cheerful tune that was completely at odds with their exhaustion.
"Again!" he called out.
"Master! We've been sweeping for six hours!" Zhao Fei groaned, barely able to keep his arms steady.
"Excellent," Shen Liang replied. "That means you've warmed up. Now we begin cultivation!"
The disciples collectively groaned, collapsing in spirit if not in body. One poor soul actually dropped his broom and fell face-first into the dirt.
Shen Liang stopped in front of him and tapped his shoulder with the broom handle. "If you've got energy to faint, you've got energy to clean the path to enlightenment."
"Master, please," another cried, "the broom bristles are glowing! We might be overdoing it!"
"That's not overdoing it," Shen Liang said with a grin. "That's progress! When your broom hums, Heaven is starting to take notes."
He turned toward the star-filled sky, his eyes suddenly sharp. "Listen carefully, my little laborers. Tomorrow, the world will see the Falling Sword Sect not as janitors… but as cultivators of rhythm."
"Rhythm, Master?"
"Yes," he said, planting his broom into the ground. "Cultivation is nothing more than breathing with Heaven. The sword flows like wind, Qi like water, labor like heartbeat. So tonight, we synchronize our breaths. Sweep as one. Move as one. Even your laziness must be synchronized."
The disciples exchanged nervous glances.
"Master," whispered Zhao Fei, "is this… actual martial technique?"
Shen Liang nodded solemnly. "The greatest of all. It's called..." he paused for dramatic effect, "The Unified Sweep Formation!"
Silence. Then:
"…That sounds like cleaning duty."
"Exactly!" Shen Liang said proudly. "Which means no one will ever suspect it's powerful."
And so, the training began.
The courtyard echoed with the steady rhythm of sweeping — shhhh, shhhh, shhhh — dozens of brooms moving in perfect unison. Shen Liang moved among them, adjusting postures, correcting stances, and occasionally slapping the lazy with his own broom.
"Too stiff, Zhao Fei! The Dao of Dust doesn't reward rigidity!"
"Breathe! Flow! Imagine you are dust... weightless, humble, unnoticeable, and yet… everywhere!"
The disciples tried their best, sweat flying as spiritual energy gathered around them. The ground shimmered faintly, glowing lines tracing under their feet, the birth of a formation.
The more they swept, the stronger the rhythm became. Their breaths synchronized. Their movements matched. Their Qi pulsed as one heartbeat.
By dawn, the air itself seemed to hum.
Shen Liang stood at the center, eyes closed, broom spinning lazily between his fingers. "Good," he murmured. "Now you understand. Effort without ego. Discipline without pride. A thousand actions...one intention."
Then he opened his eyes and grinned. "Alright!! Time to show the world what janitors can do..!!
The Next Morning – Imperial Arena
The sun rose over the imperial arena, bathing the stone tiles in gold. Thousands of cultivators gathered once again for the Sect Tournament's second round.
"The next match...the Falling Sword Sect versus the Flowing Cloud Pavilion!"
The crowd erupted in laughter.
"Hah! The broom people again!"
"Will they sweep the arena before losing this time?"
"Someone fetch them a mop banner!"
Even the announcer was struggling not to smirk.
But Luo Yan, standing quietly among the Imperial observers, felt something different. Her eyes narrowed. The air around the Falling Sword Sect was… still. Centered.
Something had changed.
Shen Liang stepped onto the stage first, smiling like he was about to perform street magic rather than lead a duel. His disciples followed behind him, their brooms held in identical posture, eyes calm and unflinching.
"Opponent ready?" Shen Liang asked lazily.
The Flowing Cloud disciples laughed. "Ready to wipe the floor with you, janitor!"
"Oh good," Shen Liang said cheerfully. "Then you'll appreciate our cleaning technique."
He tapped his broom once on the ground. "Formation activate!"
The audience blinked as a strange rhythm filled the arena.
Shhhh...
Shhhh...
Shhhh...
The disciples moved as one. Each sweep released faint golden trails that intertwined like ribbons of light. The brooms whirled in perfect arcs, synchronized breathing filling the air with a steady pulse.
The Flowing Cloud Sect charged, unleashing torrents of water Qi, crashing waves meant to overwhelm.
But Shen Liang merely smiled. "Water meets flow. Dust meets Heaven. Sweep."
The brooms moved... not to block, not to resist, but to redirect. Each sweep turned the incoming Qi into spirals, reversing its current. The Flowing Cloud disciples stumbled as their own energy rebounded, swirling around them like a vortex.
"What...what kind of formation is this?!" their leader shouted.
Shen Liang pointed casually with his broom. "Unified Sweep Formation: Grade Unknown. Power Level: Filthy but Effective."
Then came the spectacle.
The disciples leapt in coordinated arcs, their brooms glowing bright gold. Dust rose... not ordinary dust, but shimmering particles of pure spiritual energy, painting the sky in radiant swirls.
It wasn't a battle anymore. It was a dance.
A storm of light and movement that blended art, labor, and swordsmanship into one breathtaking display.
The audience fell silent, jaws slack.
Even the Emperor leaned forward, eyes gleaming with interest. "Remarkable… they move as one spirit."
Beside him, Luo Yan smiled faintly. "He told me once... labor is creation."
Down below, Shen Liang laughed as his disciples completed the final motion, all sweeping inward at once.
A thunderous BOOM echoed through the arena as the golden dust surged upward, exploding into a shining symbol above them... the sigil of the Falling Sword Sect, reborn.
The Flowing Cloud Sect lay defeated, disarmed not by blades, but by rhythm.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Then, one voice shouted from the crowd:
"Wait..!! did… did they just win with brooms?!"
The arena erupted into chaos. Laughter, cheers, disbelief and beneath it all, awe...
Shen Liang twirled his broom once and bowed deeply. "Clean floors, clean victory."
Zhao Fei beamed. "Master, we did it!"
"Yes, yes," Shen Liang said modestly. "Now remember to gather all that spiritual dust. It's recyclable."
The disciples nearly fell over laughing.
From the imperial dais, the Emperor chuckled softly. "A janitor who teaches unity better than generals. Intriguing."
Luo Yan's eyes lingered on Shen Liang... his carefree grin, the glow around him, the humble way he brushed dust off his sleeve even after such glory.
She whispered to herself, "The Sect of Dust… truly rises."
As the crowd roared, the System chimed in Shen Liang's mind:
[Quest Completed: "Rise of the Dust Sect."]
[Formation Technique Created: Unified Sweep (Epic Tier).]
[New Title Unlocked: Labor Saint of the Arena.]
Shen Liang stretched and yawned. "Ahhh. Another good day's work. Maybe Heaven will finally give me paid vacation."
His disciples cheered, the crowd thundered, and the man once mocked as a mere janitor swept his broom through the air, scattering golden motes that shone brighter than any sword.