Chapter 51: Defeating the Third Saber Master
Changle Martial Arts Hall.
Main hall.
Gongsun Wu, an elder from the martial arts tournament venue, was sitting and drinking tea.
He saw Lu Changfeng striding over.
Gongsun Wu’s eyes lit up, and he immediately rose to greet him.
He introduced himself.
"Master Lu, business at your Martial Arts Hall seems to be doing very well!"
Lu Changfeng cupped his fist in salute. "Thanks to the tournament, I’ve managed to build a bit of a reputation in Jiangzhou."
After a pause, Lu Changfeng dispensed with the pleasantries and asked directly, "Elder Gongsun, have you come today because you’ve found a suitable opponent for me?"
Gongsun Wu nodded. "That’s right. There is indeed a suitable opponent for you tonight, which is why I came to find you first thing in the morning, Master Lu."
"Could you tell me a little about them?" Lu Changfeng said.
"Of course. Whether the match can even happen depends on if you accept the challenge!"
Gongsun Wu began to introduce Lu Changfeng’s opponent.
This time, Lu Changfeng’s opponent was a renowned Saber Master from the Five Horses Street rankings!
Xuu Shaoying, a True Disciple of the Hu Family Martial Arts Hall and the third-ranked Saber Master on Five Horses Street.
The Hu Family Martial Arts Hall was one of the three martial arts halls on Five Horses Street presided over by a Bone Refining Realm master, making their strength extraordinary.
Among the top three Saber Masters of Five Horses Street, besides Xuu Shaoying, was the number one ranked Hu Fan, a direct descendant of the Hu Family. One Martial Arts Hall occupied two of the top three spots.
Xuu Shaoying had always been following in Hu Fan’s footsteps. He currently had a cultivation of the Blood Forging Sixth Layer and had already condensed Saber Intent despite only being in the Blood Forging Realm.
As he mentioned the condensed Saber Intent, Gongsun Wu watched Lu Changfeng’s expression closely.
His purpose in coming was to make this highlight-reel match happen.
He was afraid that Lu Changfeng would not dare to fight Xuu Shaoying upon learning he had condensed Saber Intent.
But Gongsun Wu had underestimated Lu Changfeng.
It was Lu Changfeng’s own fault, really. In his previous two matches, he had never used his Sword Intent, winning instead with the ferocity of his Swordsmanship and his own combat skills.
This led Gongsun Wu to believe that Lu Changfeng had not yet condensed Sword Intent.
"He’s condensed Saber Intent? That’s even better," Lu Changfeng said.
Having received a definitive answer from Lu Changfeng, Gongsun Wu was naturally overjoyed. He exchanged a few more pleasantries, confirmed the time for the evening’s match, and then left to make the arrangements.
Lu Changfeng watched him leave, then stood up and resumed his training as usual.
Soon, word of Lu Changfeng’s upcoming match that evening spread throughout the Martial Arts Hall.
The Disciples of the Martial Arts Hall naturally began making plans to go as a group and watch their master display his might.
Of course, some Disciples were worried that Lu Changfeng would be defeated.
After all, his opponent was from the Hu Family Martial Arts Hall. The Hu Family’s patriarch was a bona fide Bone Refining Realm Martial Artist!
Amidst all the hubbub, the Changle Martial Arts Hall welcomed two new Named Disciples today.
Disciples with outstanding Talent Root Bone were hard to come by.
But there was no shortage of Disciples with money.
...
「And so, evening came.」
Lu Changfeng watched the time. Taking his Autumn Water Sword, he set out alone for the tournament venue.
Now possessing a bit of fame, Lu Changfeng proceeded unimpeded to the contestants’ area.
It was time for the main event.
The crowd in the venue was in an uproar.
Lu Changfeng glanced at the other contestants around him.
Thanks to his interface, he recognized the Saber Master Xuu Shaoying at a glance.
Name: Xuu Shaoying
Root Bone: Middle A Class
Talent: Middle Grade Talent [Sabersmanship]
Xuu Shaoying was quite young, around twenty-five years old.
With his Middle A Class Talent, to have reached the Blood Forging Sixth Layer and condensed Saber Intent at this age made him a truly outstanding genius.
’I wonder how much of a genius the other one from the Hu Family Martial Arts Hall is—the First Saber Master who can suppress even Xuu Shaoying?’
After seeing Xuu Shaoying, Lu Changfeng found himself rather looking forward to a battle with that Hu Family direct descendant.
Lu Changfeng didn’t have to wait long.
The announcer declared the start of one of the main events.
"Our first contestant, Xuu Shaoying, a True Disciple of the Hu Family Martial Arts Hall! Blood Forging Sixth Layer! A record of twenty wins and one loss! The third-ranked Saber Master at this venue!"
Xuu Shaoying’s only loss was to that very direct descendant of the Hu Family.
"Our second contestant, Lu Changfeng, Master of the Changle Martial Arts Hall! Blood Forging Sixth Layer, with a record of two wins and zero losses!!"
"Though Lu Changfeng has only fought two matches, with his Blood Forging Sixth Layer cultivation and superb Swordsmanship, he has already become the fifth-ranked Swordsman at this venue!"
"This is a match between the number three Saber Master and the number five Swordsman!"
The announcer’s words whipped the entire crowd into a frenzy.
Lu Changfeng and Xuu Shaoying entered the arena from their respective passages.
The sharp-eyed Lu Changfeng spotted his group of Disciples in the audience, led by Hei Niu, Cui Tianyu, and Lin Yan. He gave them a reassuring look.
"So you’re the newly emerged Blood Forging Realm Swordsman, Lu Changfeng. I hope you don’t disappoint me."
Xuu Shaoying had a cold and aloof aura. He had already drawn the long saber from his waist.
The blade glinted with a cold light; it was clearly a superior Treasure Long Saber.
Lu Changfeng nodded slightly, drew his Autumn Water Long Sword, and pointed it diagonally downward. "Please, enlighten me."
Xuu Shaoying wasted no time on pleasantries.
He channeled a powerful offensive Saber Stance from the Hu Family Saber Technique and slashed at Lu Changfeng.
Lu Changfeng’s gaze sharpened. ’The Hu Family Saber Technique is indeed impressive. Among Blood Forging Realm Martial Arts, it’s definitely in the top tier.’
Lu Changfeng was keen to test the power of his Storm Sword Technique.
He activated the Storm Sword Technique and launched a counterattack.
The two traded blows, countering move for move. In the blink of an eye, a hundred exchanges had passed, saber against sword.
The spectators watched, dumbfounded. It was hard to imagine that the martial art techniques of the Blood Forging Realm could display such power!
Some of the ordinary Tendon Transformation Martial Artists could already tell that in both strength and speed, every slash from Xuu Shaoying and every thrust from Lu Changfeng was no less than their own.
After a hundred exchanges, Xuu Shaoying was the first to find his patience wearing thin.
The man opposite him, Lu Changfeng, actually surpassed him in both strength and stamina.
Most importantly, the sophistication of Lu Changfeng’s Swordsmanship was in no way inferior to the Hu Family Saber Technique. Furthermore, his Sword Stance was incredibly fast and fierce, truly like a storm.
The Hu Family Saber Technique emphasized a balance of yin and yang and excelled at defense, yet it was still struggling to defend completely against Lu Changfeng’s Swordsmanship.
’This Storm Sword Technique is unheard of. Could this Lu Changfeng be a disciple of some Hidden Sect who has finally come out into the world?’
’I won’t be able to defeat this opponent without using my Saber Intent.’
Xuu Shaoying’s eyes narrowed, and the aura around his entire body changed dramatically!
Hu Family Saber Technique, Yin-Yang Saber Intent!
A terrifying force suddenly imbued the long saber in Xuu Shaoying’s hand!
’So he’s finally using his Saber Intent?’ Lu Changfeng suppressed the Storm Sword Intent within his body, but faint traces of materialized Sword Intent still manifested on his skin.
"That’s materialized Sword Intent!"
In a private box on the second floor of the venue, Gongsun Wu shot to his feet!
The other elders also stared at Lu Changfeng with wide eyes!
Materialized Martial Arts True Intent was something that most Tendon Transformation Martial Artists had failed to grasp.
’Just who is this Lu Changfeng?’
On the stage, the confident Xuu Shaoying suddenly felt a fierce Sword Intent rushing straight at him.
Under the pressure of this fierce Sword Intent, the Saber Intent within his body instantly recoiled.
This was a suppression of rank between Martial Arts True Intents.
Saber and sword clashed, and the long saber was sent flying from Xuu Shaoying’s hand.
The tip of Lu Changfeng’s sword gently tapped Xuu Shaoying’s forehead. He then retracted his sword and sheathed it.
THUMP. Xuu Shaoying fell to his knees, gasping for breath as a drop of blood burst from his forehead.
"Thank you for your mercy."
Even though it was within the rules of the arena, Xuu Shaoying still offered his thanks. In that last moment, if Lu Changfeng hadn’t withdrawn his sword, the long blade could have truly pierced straight through his forehead.