Blade - Unbound

Chapter 17: Switching Shoulders, Heart Piercing Elbow

Someone’s stirring trouble?

Li Yan found that a little unexpected. In the jianghu, what mattered was one’s abilities, but one’s reputation was just as important. Sometimes, one’s reputation was worth more than their life. Unless there was a real grudge, no one picked fights for no reason. No matter how ruthless they acted behind others’ backs, or how merciless they were, everyone would act politely when speaking to others.

Those who ran their mouths rarely lived for a long time.

Li Yan was just a teenager who seldom left his village. Everyone present counted as his senior. If someone was being this sarcastic toward him, they either had a screw loose, or there was something behind it.

The person who spoke was also a young man, around twenty years of age. His features were fairly upright, but his thin eyebrows gave him a faintly vicious air.

Li Yan’s expression didn’t change, but his eyes narrowed slightly. “Do we know each other?”

His dragon eyes were sharp and naturally intimidating. Even without training, his gaze carried a cold, piercing edge. Normally, he kept it restrained, but the moment he narrowed his eyes, his aura rose involuntarily. The people around him felt a chill and instinctively stopped underestimating him.

“You brat, what kind of tone is that?” Sha Lifei quickly stood up to retort, then turned back to Li Yan with a grin. “He’s no outsider; he’s Meng Haicheng, disciple of President Zhou of the Xianyang Divine Fist Association.”

The moment Li Yan heard the man’s backing, he understood. The Divine Fist Association wasn’t a gang; it was a state-recognized organization. Back in the Great Xing Dynasty, when they had been locked in a north-south stalemate with the Golden Horde, the warriors of the Golden Horde were fierce. They were huge, savage, and relentless. In every war, Great Xing lost more often than it won.

When the nation was in danger, every man had a duty. Thus, with imperial backing, several martial grandmasters set aside their differences and founded the Divine Fist Association. Martial groups across the land joined forces against a common enemy.

Jianguhu folk couldn’t stand the rigid discipline of the army, but they thrived in the Divine Fist Association. Sneaking into the north, they carried out assassinations, sabotage, and intelligence work, earning a great deal of merit. Later, when the Great Xuan Dynasty rose to power, the emperor continued to rely heavily on them. In the end, the realm was unified, and even the Golden Horde was swallowed whole.

But once the world stabilized, things changed. The court would never allow such a massive force to remain unchecked. Various measures were imposed, and the Divine Fist Association gradually declined.

Currently, they were a semi-official organization. Their leader, Grandmaster Huo Yin, even served as a martial instructor for the imperial family. Now, the Divine Fist Association acted as an intermediary between the court and the jianghu, allowing the imperial family’s hand to extend into the martial world. They frequently cooperated with local authorities to suppress bandits and evil sects.

Some jianghu figures despised them, calling them dogs of the imperial family, but local branch leaders of their association often gained power and benefits. Half of what they gained was obvious, but they also had hidden benefits, with large followings and considerable influence.

But where there was influence, there was conflict.

Li Yan’s father, Li Hu, the Sick Tiger of the Guanzhong Plains, had once competed for the position of Xianyang branch leader, hoping to secure a future for his family. Unfortunately, he had died before he could succeed.

The President Zhou Sha Lifei mentioned was Zhou Pan, who had been one of the contenders. He was skilled in the Red Fist and the Xingyi Monkey Fist. With Li Hu’s death, Zhou Pan had risen to the position.

The man was petty and vindictive. In recent years, not only had his martial skill improved, he had even trained two large monkeys in his Monkey Fist. Anyone who wanted to challenge him had to defeat his monkeys first.

Among jianghu circles, those who disliked him mocked him with the saying, When the mountain has no tiger, the monkey becomes king.

With Zhou Pan’s temperament, he wouldn’t stoop to bullying a junior like Li Yan, but that didn’t mean he didn’t hold a grudge. Li Yan quickly pieced everything together. Meng Haicheng was leading a harvest crew and was clearly not doing too well. He had learned Li Yan’s identity and wanted to step on him to gain merit with his master.

Too bad for him, Li Yan wasn’t the type to swallow insults. Nodding, Li Yan mumbled, “I see. You wish to use me as your stepping stone. Stepping on a junior to climb higher for fame and profit; alright, that’s quite understandable.”

The moment those words came out, the atmosphere turned strange. Everyone present was a seasoned veteran of the jianghu. They had seen through Meng Haicheng’s intentions the moment he spoke. Most only felt contempt for him. However, Li Yan had gone a step further. He hadn’t just seen through the insult, he had declared the other man’s intentions out loud.

Sometimes, the truth hurts far more than lies.

Meng Haicheng’s face flushed red, but he had no way to refute it. Furious, he snapped, “Such a young brat, yet no sense of propriety! Keep talking nonsense and I’ll teach you a lesson today!” frёeωebɳovel.com

Li Yan merely shook his head. “You have no shame nor bearing. Your martial arts is probably just as mediocre. I don’t want to fight you.”

That was a direct blow to his manhood.

“Sharp tongue! Let’s see you back up your words with your fists!” Meng Haicheng finally snapped and lunged forward.

His leap was called the Monkey Dash. The Monkey Fist emphasized five essentials: form, intent, light footwork, tight technique, and agile body.

Without the spirit of a monkey, it didn’t work. A startled monkey in a tree could leap out in an instant, sometimes even catching wild beasts off guard as their faces were clawed bloody. It was all about surprise, speed, and precision.

Meng Haicheng’s move carried the essence of the monkey. Like a startled ape, he crossed five or six meters in a blink, pouncing on Li Yan.

The onlookers frowned in disdain. Even when fighting a junior, he had resorted to a sneak attack. Sure, he had yelled beforehand, but pairing it with a move like Monkey Dash made his warning meaningless. Still, at least he held back slightly. His hands were aimed for Li Yan’s shoulders, not his throat. It was still vicious, but at least it wasn’t deadly.

If nothing changed, he would dislocate Li Yan’s shoulder so he could humiliate his opponent. For a young man, such a blow could be devastating. It would crush their pride and break their spirit. Sometimes, breaking someone’s will was worse than killing them.

But Li Yan was ready for him. The moment Meng Haicheng lunged, he reacted. He tapped the ground with his right toe and shot backward several chi. In one motion, he created distance between them.

The eyes of the old Longxi County bladesman lit up. Among everyone present, he was the oldest and most experienced. Though he had never made a name for himself, years of travel had sharpened his judgment.

The old man could tell from Li Yan’s move that the youngster had grasped the essence of the Red Fist.

The essence of Red Fist was to maintain a stable foundation: to use their arms flexibly, to surprise the opponent with flowing movements, and to unleash perfectly cunning strikes. The movement of the body was the most important. Practitioners might keep their back straight, but their shoulders had to remain mobile. They could move in any direction, pretend to retreat while advancing, and strike while their opponent least expected it.

As the saying went, Master the shoulder movement, and even immortals can’t land a hit.

Li Yan had not only avoided the strike but controlled distance perfectly. With alternating palms, he could defend and counter with ease.

This kid is strong!

Meng Haicheng felt it instantly, but it was too late. He was still midair, and he had spent all his momentum from his leap. He had yet to generate any new force. If he pressed forward, he would expose an opening.

Still, he reacted quickly, drawing his arms to guard his chest while twisting his body, preparing a side kick to create distance between them. Unfortunately for him, Li Yan was faster. The backwards leap allowed him to plant his weight onto his right leg, compressing his muscles like a spring.

The instant Meng Haicheng changed moves, Li Yan exploded forward, unleashing his Heart Piercing Elbow.

Thud.

Meng Haicheng was sent flying. He rolled across the ground, clutching his chest. His face went pale as he struggled to breathe. The blow had landed cleanly.

“Nice!” Sha Lifei was the first to yell while the others stared in shock.

They had all heard both bones and tendons popping in unison. From the power it contained, everyone present could tell that Li Yan had reached the peak of the Light Jin Realm.

The Light Jin Realm marked the beginning of martial cultivation. One’s strength would be refined and focused, and power would be expressed clearly in every movement. At the peak of the Light Jin Realm, one’s tendons would become one and resonate with each movement, allowing all the force to be concentrated into a single point.

It was rare for someone so young to reach such a level.

Meanwhile, Meng Haicheng suffered terribly. The elbow had knocked the breath out of him and he gasped, clutching his chest.

If Li Yan had reached the Dark Jin Realm and intended to harm him, that blow would have damaged his lungs beyond recovery. As it was, his stomach churned violently from the earlier meal. Unable to hold it in, he vomited.

The stench spread instantly, forcing others to step back with stifled laughter. Humiliated, his expression alternated between embarrassment and rage as he scrambled to his feet and fled without another word. He knew Li Yan wasn’t someone he could provoke.

Glancing at his departing figure, Li Yan said nothing. They weren’t in an era of chaos. Sparring and killing were two different things. In broad daylight, the laws of the Great Xuan Dynasty applied to everyone.

Still, the fight gave him insight into his current abilities. He was stuck at the peak of the Light Jin Realm, and what he lacked was fighting experience. If he wanted to break through, he needed to take part in real combat.

With the substitute statue, he didn’t fear injuries. As long as he wasn’t killed instantly, he could face anyone!

“Like father, like son...”

The surrounding experts offered words of praise. In the jianghu, flattery came easily. For a young tiger like Li Yan to already be showing off his claws, his future was destined not to be ordinary.

After exchanging a few polite words with them, Li Yan pulled Sha Lifei to a quiet corner. His gaze turned cold as he glared at the older man. “Uncle Sha, you set me up! What are you playing at?!”

Sha Lifei forced a grin and muttered, “What are you talking...”

His voice choked off when he realized the short blade in Li Yan’s hand was pressing against his chest.

“... Let’s talk this out” Sha Lifei stammered, as his eyes stayed locked on the blade.

When he saw the look in Li Yan’s eyes earlier, a chill ran down his spine. He could tell that Li Yan really would stab him if he couldn’t give a satisfactory answer.

Not daring to stall, he leaned closer and whispered, “Don’t you want to know how your father died?”

For the first time, Li Yan felt his entire body freezing up.