Free Web NovelChapter 1746 - Slapping Faces
The attack locked onto every major acupoint around Shi Wa, leaving him no way to avoid the fatal blow, no matter how he struggled.
The blade's edge ripped through the air, sending sand and stones flying until they formed a cloud that hovered above everyone's heads. From that alone, anyone had to admit that Yan Hu deserved to be called an expert.
Just as the blade was about to fall, Shi Wa performed that strange footwork again. This time, however, he reversed the entire sequence. Previously, his first step had carried him forward. This time, he retreated first, then stepped forward again.
Each of Liu Wuxie's footsteps seemed to land on the rhythm of dao, causing Yan Hu's blade to brush past Shi Wa's scalp. The blade only sliced off several strands of hair, while Xiang Rulong and the others felt their hearts leap into their throats.
Xiao Qian was so frightened that she couldn't utter a word. Ye Linghan watched in disbelief, while Zhongsun Wen and the other mentors also looked shocked. They couldn't believe Shi Wa had dodged Yan Hu's attack with such precision, as though he had locked onto the trajectory in advance. They began to wonder if Liu Wuxie truly possessed the touch of a miracle.
Recalling the spiritual array assessment from a few days ago, many people couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat. They realized they might have misjudged Liu Wuxie, and he was far from ordinary.
When Yan Hu's attack missed its mark, a premonition rose in his heart. According to the rules, one move would decide each round, and attacking again would count as a second move. This meant that even if he defeated Shi Wa in the end, it would still be an unfair victory.
Shi Wa lunged forward before retreating another step and shifting right, arriving at Yan Hu's left rib once more.
"This is bad!" Nangong Shan exclaimed, staggering and nearly falling headfirst to the ground.
Shi Wa had used the same footwork to perfection, only in reverse.
The surrounding students exchanged confused looks. They couldn't understand how Shi Wa had done it, nor how he had found Yan Hu's weakness so quickly. No matter how powerful an expert was, they would always have a weakness; as long as someone found it, they could break through.
The golden dagger plunged straight into Yan Hu's previous wound. This strike was even more vicious than the last, as the entire blade sank into Yan Hu's body all the way to the hilt.
"ARGH!" Yan Hu screamed in pain as the dagger injured his internal organs.
Even after reaching the High Immortal Realm, his internal organs remained fragile. The moment the dagger pierced in, his lung ruptured, and blood began spraying from his mouth.
"Brat, I'll tear you into pieces!" Yan Hu roared. Ignoring the rules completely, he struck down at Shi Wa again.
At that moment, Ye Linghan intervened. The longsword in her hand descended from the sky, separating Yan Hu and Shi Wa. On the contrary, Nangong Shan did not step forward to intervene, simply allowing Yan Hu to attack.
"The battle has already ended, and why did you still attack him?" Ye Linghan snapped, and a biting chill spread across the beach.
This time, no one spoke. Even Nangong Shan chose to keep his mouth shut. They had agreed on the rules beforehand, and Yan Hu had broken them twice. Liu Wuxie had stopped him the first time, while Ye Linghan stopped him this time.
Nangong Shan's side had completely lost face, as a ninth-level High Immortal had lost to a mere ant.
"It's over just like that?"
Many students who had come to watch couldn't accept the outcome. Aside from being injured in the first round, Shi Wa hadn't suffered any injuries in the next two rounds.
Yan Hu wasn't as fortunate. Shi Wa had injured him in all three rounds.
After three breaths of silence, everyone drew in a cold breath. Only then did they finally snap back to their senses.
Nangong Shan's two assistants couldn't accept the result and stood frozen. "This is impossible! How did Yan Hu lose?!"
Liu Wuxie was a newly appointed mentor with no background or experience. Meanwhile, they were veteran mentors with rich teaching experience. One could imagine how it felt to lose to a newly appointed mentor. freewebnσvel.cøm
Everyone knew that Shi Wa had only defeated Yan Hu because of Liu Wuxie. Without Liu Wuxie's guidance, Shi Wa would have died at Yan Hu's hands long ago. Looking back, everyone realized they had underestimated Liu Wuxie's teaching method.
Many students began to stir, feeling a strong urge to join Liu Wuxie's class and learn more.
"Mentor Nangong, do you still remember your promise from before?" Liu Wuxie asked, looking at Nangong Shan with a grin.
According to their earlier agreement, Nangong Shan would have to acknowledge Liu Wuxie's teaching method and bow to him from today onward. Acknowledging Liu Wuxie's method wasn't the issue, but bowing to him would be humiliating. It would prove that his teaching skills fell short of Liu Wuxie's.
"Liu Wuxie, you're pushing it!" Nangong Shan growled, spitting out a mouthful of blood. His anger had caused a fine crack to appear in his heart pulse.
"All the mentors and students can bear witness to who went too far, you or me," Liu Wuxie replied with an innocent look. He now stood on the moral high ground, looking down at Nangong Shan and leaving him with nowhere to hide.
Liu Wuxie naturally didn't care whether Nangong Shan bowed to him. Crushing him was already enough. Nangong Shan had caused trouble for him at the Myriad Artifact Pavilion yesterday. Now it was Liu Wuxie's turn to repay him in kind.
"Mentor Nangong, don't tell me that you can't afford to accept a loss?" Ye Linghan added the perfect finishing blow. If Nangong Shan refused to honor his side of the bet, he would only prove that he couldn't accept defeat.
The surrounding mentors began pointing and discussing among themselves. After all, Nangong Shan had indeed caused this entire incident.
Liu Wuxie had only proposed a best-of-three battle between their students because he had no choice.
Nangong Shan's assistants stepped forward. "The battle earlier wasn't fair, and you made the rules. We won't accept the result!" They believed they had only fallen for the trap because Liu Wuxie proposed a best-of-three match, with one move deciding each round. If they had followed their own rules, Shi Wa would have died by now.
"Since Mentor Nangong can't accept a loss, we'll drop it here. I don't really care, and I feel sorry for your students," Liu Wuxie replied. He had already achieved his goal, and no one would dare question his teaching philosophy now. Whether Nangong Shan admitted defeat no longer mattered to him.
Liu Wuxie's words were merciless, publicly humiliating Nangong Shan. Having already lost much of his credibility, Nangong Shan could no longer hold his head high before his students. Liu Wuxie's last remark made them look at him with doubt.
Doubt appearing in the students' eyes was never a good sign. It meant that they would begin questioning his teaching method.
"Assistant Liu, I'm truly impressed by your ability. I have lost this match, and I hope to learn more from you if there's a chance in the future," Nangong Shan said after taking a deep breath to suppress his fury.
He knew this wasn't the time to lose his temper. If he continued to clash with Liu Wuxie head-on, he would ultimately be the one to suffer.
Wei Wenbin and Shen Chao kept signaling to him, telling him to apologize immediately. This way, he could still salvage some of his image in front of his students. freewebnσvel.cøm
"Mentor Nangong, shouldn't you give Mentor Liu a bow?" Zhang Hua asked. He truly picked the worst thing possible to mention when Liu Wuxie had already dropped the matter.
Wang Zhuang's words were even more vicious. "A real man should keep his word. Mentor Nangong, don't tell me that you're not a man?" If Nangong Shan refused to bow to Liu Wuxie, it would mean he wasn't a real man.
Zhang Hua and Wang Zhuang couldn't compare to Xiang Rulong in combat strength, but they had perfected the art of kicking someone while they were down.
The surrounding students covered their mouths and laughed. The female students, in particular, looked at Liu Wuxie with shining eyes. After all, Liu Wuxie was likely the youngest mentor present, and some students were even older than him.
Which young girl wouldn't dream of romance and dating a hero? Many female students cast flirty glances at Liu Wuxie.
No one dared to speak up for Nangong Shan, afraid they would become Liu Wuxie's next target. After all, everyone who had targeted Liu Wuxie over the past few days had ended up being slapped in the face.
"Alright, the matter today will end here. Mentor Ye and Mentor Liu, you two can continue," Zuo Yang said, stepping forward to end the farce.
Nangong Shan's expression turned terrifyingly dark. He clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug into his flesh without him feeling any pain, while flames blazed in his chest. From that alone, one could imagine how furious he was.
Liu Wuxie led his seventeen students, and they continued their run. Shi Wa's speed had now doubled after his breakthrough. Everyone put in even more effort than before because they also wanted to fight opponents above their level, like Shi Wa.
The mentors began leading their students away and returned to their classrooms.
"Mentor, let's stay and run as well!"
Many students took the initiative to ask their mentors if they could stay and join the training. Once one person took the lead, students from several classes also began making the same request, as they all wanted to learn from Liu Wuxie's teaching method.
The mentors glanced at their students. They knew that if they refused now, their standing would drop in their students' eyes. They had no choice but to agree.
Just like that, many students appeared on the seaside and ran behind Liu Wuxie.
One of Nangong Shan's assistants stepped forward and asked, "Mentor Nangong, are we really going to let this end here?
The students also stood in silence. Not one of them dared to speak, afraid they might anger Nangong Shan even further.
"Let it go? I'll make him wish he were dead!" Nangong Shan growled. He had lost all face in front of so many people today, so how could he establish himself in the Azure Flame Dao Hall in the future?
"Mentor, do we keep challenging them?" Many of Nangong Shan's students were also furious. Since their class had been humiliated, they naturally wanted revenge.
"Be patient," Nangong Shan replied with a cruel smile. "There are still ten days before the next monthly competition, and we'll trample on them this time. We'll make them wish they were dead."
Many students began rubbing their palms together, eager to humiliate Liu Wuxie's class.
Unaware of everything that had transpired, Liu Wuxie continued training with his students. After leading them through two laps, noon had already arrived. He then guided them on a light jog back to the courtyard.
By the time the run ended, the students were still full of energy, and not a single one of them showed any signs of fatigue.
