The saber was a type of weapon, and it followed a unique pattern. Only after comprehending Weapon Intent would one be able to comprehend Weapon Heart.
Take swordsmanship for example, one had to first comprehend Sword Intent before one could comprehend Lower Sword Heart, Middle Sword Heart, and Upper Sword Heart!
He was a top student of the Martial Arts School, and his comprehension of saber arts was extremely deep. Even so, he was still a distance away from comprehending Saber Heart.
The young man before him was able to summon lightning from his saber, and his aura was overwhelming … He was actually able to execute the ability that only those who had comprehended Saber Heart would possess!
How was that possible?
When he fought with the other party earlier, he had only comprehended ordinary Saber Intent. There was still a huge gap between them. Zhang Shi had only imparted a single saber art to him, so how could there be such a huge difference?
"Damn it!"
Bai Mian's body trembled in shock. Knowing that he would be defeated if he were to stop for a moment, he gritted his teeth and charged forward with his saber.
In his view, so what if the other party had comprehended the Lingering Intent of Saber Heart?
The saber art that the other party had executed earlier was weak and slow, and after studying it carefully, he found that there were many flaws in it. As long as he made a move swiftly, he would be able to defeat the other party easily.
Hu!
Just as his saber was about to come into contact with the other party's saber, the other party's saber suddenly drew an elegant arc in the air before continuing its downward momentum.
It was as if his actions had not affected the other party at all.
"This … this is turning complexity into simplicity, breaking through with brute force?"
Bai Mian's body stiffened.
Back when he was cultivating saber arts, he had once heard a formidable master teacher say that upon reaching a certain level of mastery, one would be able to simplify the complicated saber arts.
Even though the other party was executing the simplest of moves, it carried a might that was nigh impossible to withstand.
He had thought that it was just nonsense, but who could have thought that … it would actually appear on the other party!
The moves of the saber in the other party's hand were not complicated, and there was nothing fancy about it. Yet, it harnessed a might that could pierce through anything. Enveloped by the saber art, Bai Mian felt as if all of his acupoints had been sealed by the other party's aura. No matter what he did, it would be nigh impossible for him to escape.
"Retreat!"
In an instant, fear crept into Bai Mian's heart. Not daring to face the other party's attack head-on, he hurriedly retreated.
If it had been anyone else, they would have definitely suffered a backlash if they were to retreat after executing the saber art. However, Zhang Xuan had suppressed his cultivation, and his own strength far surpassed that of the other party. Furthermore, his eye of discernment and knowledge had allowed him to surpass the other party. Even though he was in a wretched state, he did not sustain too much damage.
Huala!
Retreating two steps backward, he was just about to launch a counterattack when the young man suddenly stepped forward once more. Brandishing his saber once more, he executed the Wood Splitting Saber Art once more.
His saber Qi was like a dragon, and his aura was like lightning.
This time, he gathered all the energy that he had not scattered from the previous Saber Technique. Like a surging storm, its might more than doubled.
"This is … Saber Force Stacking?"
Bai Mian was on the verge of spurting blood.
He thought that if he were to dodge the saber qi, the other party's strength would surely be depleted. Who would have thought that not only did that not happen, the saber qi even stacked together with the first surge of saber qi, increasing the might of the saber qi!
He couldn't even block the first move, so how could he block the combination of two moves?
He retreated again.
Whoosh!
Seeing that Zhang Xuan was forced to retreat, the young man's confidence surged, and he launched a third slash.
The three consecutive sabers were combined together. The saber light was like the convergence of a hundred streams, finally forming a vast sea. It carried an irresistible power.
Initially, the young man was only a Consonant Spirit realm primary stage cultivator. However, the combination of the three slashes harnessed Saber Heart was more than enough to render even a Consonant Spirit realm intermediate stage or even advanced stage expert a match for him!
"This won't do … If I continue to let him accumulate strength, I'll definitely lose …"
Realizing the crux of the problem, Bai Mian's expression turned grim.
He thought that as long as he dodged, the other party's saber art would disappear, and he would be at his mercy. Who could have known that the other party's saber art would grow stronger and stronger, and it was even possible to stack together? If he were to dodge, he would lose the initiative, and he wouldn't be able to block the other party's attack anymore!
"I'll just have to go all out …"
Gritting his teeth, Bai Mian channeled his strength into his saber and charged forward.
Spirit high-tier battle technique, Furious Saber River Severing!
This move was said to have been created by a Saint realm expert. In a fit of rage, he drew his saber and sliced a river several dozen thousand meters long into two, preventing it from regathering.
This was the most formidable move that Bai Mian had learned over the years.
Even though he had suppressed his cultivation to Consonant Spirit realm primary stage, resulting in a lack of zhenqi, he was still able to execute the move with his deep understanding of saber arts.
Saber qi gushed forth, and it immediately collided with the stacked saber art.
Hong long!
With a resounding boom, the two sabers collided. Bai Mian felt his face reddening as the might of the Furious Saber River Severing was instantly neutralized. Following which, the stacked saber qi continued to surge toward him, threatening to tear apart his meridians.
"This is bad …"
Bai Mian's face darkened.
He had thought that he wouldn't be able to withstand the stacked saber qi, but he didn't expect the other party's stacked saber qi to be so fearsome. Even after breaking through his attack, it was still able to continue charging forward.
Unable to care about anything else, Bai Mian roared furiously and raised his suppressed cultivation.
Consonant Spirit realm intermediate stage!
Consonant Spirit realm advanced stage!
Consonant Spirit realm pinnacle!
Cosmos Bridge realm primary stage!
His cultivation rose by an entire realm, reaching Cosmos Bridge realm primary stage. Only then was he able to withstand the saber qi and survive the ordeal.
Peng!
As his strength rose, the young man before him suffered a backlash, and he was forced to retreat several steps before spurting a mouthful of blood.
Even though he was injured, his eyes were gleaming with excitement. "You … have lost!"
If the other party hadn't unsealed his cultivation, he would have been killed on the spot. In other words, he had lost the previous duel!
Hearing those words, Bai Mian's face turned as pale as a sheet of paper, and his eyes glazed over. "I … I have lost!"
He had no choice but to admit it. Before so many people, he had been pummeled to the point where he couldn't even retaliate. He couldn't afford to lose anymore!
When the other party first came up, he was knocked down with a single saber strike. Yet, the other party actually defeated him the second time around … Even though he was experiencing it for himself, he still found it hard to believe.
Zhang Xuan had only taught him a single move, and yet … he was able to defeat him? How in the world did he do it?
Bai Mian wasn't the only one who couldn't believe it. The eyes of the other freshmen below were also on the verge of popping out of their sockets.
They had witnessed the strength of this freshman with their own eyes. To be able to defeat a top student of the Martial Arts School with just a single saber art from Zhang Shi … Wasn't this too exaggerated?
Their guild leader … Was he trying to defy the heavens?
"Guild leader, I … succeeded! I defeated a Grade-4 student!"
Upon hearing the other party's acknowledgment, the young man leaped down from the stage in excitement. He walked up to Zhang Xuan and clenched his fists tightly.
As a user of saber arts himself, he knew how formidable the saber art that their guild leader had imparted to him was. As long as he continued practicing it, his comprehension of saber arts would surely grow deeper and deeper, and he would eventually become a grandmaster of his generation.
As such, it was understandable how agitated he was.
Pah!
But before he could finish his agitated words, Zhang shi had already raised his hand and struck him squarely on the head. As if a teacher lecturing a disappointing student, his face turned livid.
"Guild leader …"
The young man froze on the spot.
He had just defeated the other party, so why would their guild leader be so angry?
"You still have the cheek to be happy? What the hell did you do? Can that even be called a saber art? As long as you exerted enough force in your first move, your opponent wouldn't have been able to dodge at all! Clearly, you could have won in a single move, but you insisted on using three moves. Don't you find that embarrassing? "
The more he spoke, the angrier Zhang Xuan became. If he could, he would have pummeled that fellow.
That fellow was too stupid!
He had personally imparted the Heaven's Path Saber Art and even imparted Saber Intent to him, but that fellow actually used three moves to defeat his opponent. That was an insult!
"You won in a single move …"
Bai Mian rolled his eyes and nearly spurted blood.
I am a Grade-4 student, a top student of the Martial Arts School … It's already incredible that you were able to defeat me in three moves after imparting your saber art to me.
"Yes …"
Under the guild leader's reprimand, the young man dared not refute. Thus, he could only lower his head.
Their guild leader was right. If Bai Mian had used up all of his moves, he would have admitted defeat on the spot instead of putting up a desperate struggle and injuring himself in the process.
"Alright, I won't blame you for that. However, you must take note of that next time. You mustn't go easy on your opponent!"
Seeing that the other party had admitted his mistake, Zhang Xuan's anger finally subsided. He waved his hands and turned his gaze back to the dueling ring.
"Who are you sending this time?"
"I'll be challenging Zhang Shi!" Yuan Gang stepped forward and said.
Even he couldn't help but be shocked by Bai Mian's defeat. He didn't dare underestimate the young man before him anymore.
"Un." Zhang Xuan nodded. "Who was defeated by him earlier?"
"Me!"
"Guild leader, I was defeated as well!"
"How can you be as pitiful as me? Let me do it!"
"What do you mean by pitiful? All you did was fall from the dueling ring, and I was even slapped by him! That's why I want to challenge him! "
"I even spurted blood. Let me do it …"
…
Hearing Zhang Xuan's words, a huge commotion broke out beneath the dueling ring. Those who had been injured earlier immediately charged forward indignantly as they roared in agitation.
They were all master teachers, and they could tell that the young man was unable to withstand a single blow from Bai Mian. Yet, with Zhang Shi's guidance, he was able to turn the tables around and defeat the other party. If they could learn such a move, their fighting prowess would surely soar.
Only a fool would give up such a good opportunity!
"To think that there would be such a maneuver …"
On the dueling ring, Yuan Gang and Ying Qin's mouths twitched.
The heck!
They had seen students backing away in fear before an upper grader, but they had never seen anyone rushing forward to challenge an upper grader.
Besides, it's fine if you want to challenge us, but why do you have to compete in a more pitiful state?
The more pitiful one was, the weaker one was, and the more passive one was in the duel earlier. Yet, you still want to challenge us? Do you have any respect for us seniors at all?
Aren't you being too arrogant?
"Yuan Gang, make your move later on. Don't go easy on him … If we lose again, we won't have the face to return!"
Seeing that the commotion below was getting worse and worse, the crowd couldn't help but feel stifled. Why didn't they just stand there and allow Yuan Gang to pummel them a few more times? If so, they would have been in a worse state … Ying Qin couldn't take it anymore, so he sent a telepathic message to Yuan Gang.
The crushing defeat in the first round had made him realize just how fearsome Zhang Shi was. They couldn't afford to lose the second round!
If they were to lose again, they wouldn't have the face to return to the Xuanxuan Faction anymore.
"Don't worry, I'll do my best!"
Yuan Gang nodded.
While the duo was speaking, Zhang Xuan had already chosen his opponent. It was a bruised and swollen fellow, and his mouth and nose were slightly crooked. In fact, he was even spurting blood non-stop.
"That fellow … I know him, but I didn't think that he would be so heavily injured. Could it be that he decided to beat himself up in order to be more pitiful than the others? "
Upon seeing the other party's appearance, Yuan Gang's eyes widened, and he nearly fell to the ground.
(Author's Note: There's no need to feel conflicted over the 'senior'. Based on Laoya's settings, there are more males than females in the Master Teacher Academy. If you feel that it's inappropriate, you can always change it to 'senior' instead. Also, feel free to share your thoughts on the matter. Laoya will read it. Lastly, I'll post an introduction to the Xuanxuan Faction on the public account. If anyone has any suggestions for the development of the faction, feel free to leave a comment. Laoya will read it. Just search for 'World Sweeping Dominance' on WeChat or add 'follow' on hstysds.)
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