Free Web NovelChapter 335: Chapter 278: Divine Skill Mastered, Able to Pacify the World
As the old saying goes: even a cornered rabbit will bite.
Gao Neng didn’t see anything wrong with being afraid of death. In fact, his fear of death was what drove him to work harder. It was also what made him extra cautious.
In reality, those who managed to survive on the battlefield were basically all afraid of death.
After all, the ones who truly weren’t afraid of death...
...were, nine times out of ten, already dead.
’Three slashes into one, three slashes into one...’ Gao Neng chanted endlessly in his mind. The key to combining three slashes into a single one was actually the application of ’force’.
Saying three slashes literally became one was just bullshit.
It wasn’t like he was throwing knives.
To execute three slashes with one cut was to combine three different types of force into a single slash.
One cut...
...was equivalent to executing three.
The original Tyrant Saber technique had a total of nine forms, all of them offensive. The first three forms contained three different types of force. Although they were all primarily ferocious and powerful, they had distinct differences.
For example, the first form of the original Tyrant Saber emphasized speed.
The draw was the slash.
Generating power from speed.
At extreme speed, it could break through anything.
The second form, on the other hand, was viciousness.
A cleave powerful enough to split a mountain, utterly ferocious. A single slash could unleash absolutely immense power. This required a vicious intent in one’s heart, a drive to press forward relentlessly.
Combining these two was the saber technique Gao Neng could currently use.
Fast enough, and vicious enough.
However, there was a problem with the third form of the original Tyrant Saber.
The third form emphasized... finesse!
Used on its own, it was easy to understand; the third form’s force was based on flexibility and cleverness.
But incorporating it into the first two forms proved difficult.
It had to be fast enough, vicious enough, and also have enough finesse...
Gao Neng had been stuck at this point for three days.
’How can I imbue a slash that is absolutely fast and vicious with finesse?’ Gao Neng wondered, but the black saber in his hand was already in motion.
SWISH!
The slash was extremely fast.
It chopped down from above.
With a speed that seemed to tear through the wind.
BOOM!
A deafening crash.
Gui Zian’s Alloy Fangs trembled, and a slight flush rose to his face, but he didn’t take a single step back.
After all, he had his dignity to maintain.
As for Gao Neng, the shock from the slash sent him stumbling back three steps before he barely regained his footing.
"Not bad. You’ve improved. This slash had more weight to it, and it was faster!" Gui Zian said. He was genuinely startled; Gao Neng’s progress was simply too fast.
You could say he was improving with every single slash.
Such talent was enough to make his heart tremble.
"’It’s not right. Still missing something. Not enough! Again!’" Gao Neng shook his head. He still hadn’t managed to incorporate the third force into his slash; it was another failure.
’What exactly do I need to do?’
’What am I missing?’
Gao Neng’s mind raced.
His Second Magnetic Core kept his mind exceptionally clear and his mental state calm. He carefully recalled the last slash. It was fast enough, and it was vicious enough, but it still lacked that element of finesse.
’Wait a minute!’
’Finesse isn’t necessarily a type of force.’
’It could also be a posture for exerting force, or the angle of the slash.’
’If I use a posture and angle of finesse to strike...’
"I get it!" Gao Neng’s eyes lit up. He had been stuck in a quagmire, but now, with this sudden insight, he felt an irrepressible wave of inspiration and excitement course through him.
’The force of finesse, the force of finesse...’
’If the posture is correct, that *is* the force of finesse!’
’That’s it!’
’It must be!’
The more Gao Neng thought about it, the more excited he became. He subconsciously adopted a strange posture, then charged toward Gui Zian again.
"Huh? This posture?" Gui Zian’s eyes narrowed. He sensed a change in Gao Neng. Although the stance was a bit odd, he became fully alert.
At the same time, Gao Neng arrived in front of him.
He drew his saber in a flash!
Gui Zian subconsciously prepared to block.
But just then, he suddenly realized something was wrong. Gao Neng’s slash seemed to have been unleashed, but it was actually half a second slower than expected.
It was precisely this half-second delay that made Gui Zian’s block a fraction too early.
And likewise, because of that fraction...
The force of Gui Zian’s block was slightly diminished.
In contrast, Gao Neng’s slash was even stronger than before. Because he had delayed for half a second, he had used that time to perfectly build up his power.
BOOM!
The saber came down.
Gui Zian’s expression changed drastically.
His dignity told him he absolutely could not retreat.
But the sharp, tyrannical force made it impossible for him to stand his ground. The power of the slash completely overwhelmed his center of gravity, forcing him backward.
CRACK!
The stone beneath Gui Zian’s feet shattered.
His face turned deep crimson, and a churning sensation rose in his chest. Unable to hold on any longer, he took a large step back.
Of course, Gao Neng was also pushed back.
But this time, it was two steps instead of three.
Gao Neng retreated two steps, and Gui Zian retreated one. The difference in their levels was clear, yet a monstrous wave was crashing in Gui Zian’s heart.
Because he was a high-tier powerhouse.
A Tier Seven Mid Stage!
Two whole major tiers higher than Gao Neng!
But the gap between them had shrunk to a single step?!
"Gao Neng, you..." Gui Zian was truly shocked this time. This rate of progress couldn’t even be called fast anymore; it was like he was strapped to a rocket.
This slash was at least twice as strong as the last one!
"Hahaha, I did it! I succeeded! Teacher Gui, let me try a few more!" Gao Neng was overjoyed. Even though he had been pushed back two steps, he felt he had grasped the key.
’I’ve got the feeling!’
’I have to solidify it while I’m on a roll!’
As soon as Gao Neng finished speaking, he lunged forward again. This time, he even used Ghostly Stealth. He was going to seize the opportunity from Gui Zian’s retreat... and launch a fierce assault!
SWISH!
An afterimage.
It split into two right in front of Gui Zian.
One went left, the other right.
Gui Zian’s eyes flew wide. This was definitely not a Body Technique he had taught. No, it couldn’t have been taught by Gu Yi either, because Gu Yi’s "Ghost’s Lament" didn’t have this effect.
’Where did this kid learn a new Body Technique? Did Elder Li teach him, too? But this technique seems to come from the same school as Gu Yi’s ’Ghost’s Lament’?!’ Gui Zian’s mind reeled, but he had no time to think, because he could already feel a chill from behind him.
He had no choice.
He could only unleash his Spiritual Power.
A Tier Five forcing a Tier Seven to use Spiritual Power.
Gui Zian was utterly humiliated.
But if he didn’t use his Spiritual Power and got slashed in the back by Gao Neng, it wouldn’t be a matter of losing face, but a matter of having no face left at all.
Weighing the two options, he chose the lesser evil.
Gui Zian was quite decisive.
He sent out his Spiritual Power and located Gao Neng. At the same time, he stopped holding back and directly activated his Ocean Domain, enveloping his body.
He counterattacked.
BOOM!
His punch shattered the Gao Neng behind him.
"..." Gui Zian.
’Wait?!’
’Why did it shatter?’
’No!’
’That was the afterimage?!’
’The ’real body’ I locked onto with my Spiritual Power... was actually the afterimage?!’
Gui Zian didn’t understand.
But just then, the "afterimage" to his left was already striking.
The same slash.
But it was faster, more vicious, and had more finesse than before.
BOOM!
Caught off guard, Gui Zian ultimately managed to force a block, but this time, he was forced back three steps before he could steady himself, while Gao Neng only retreated a single step.
"What in the hell!" Gui Zian’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. He had actually been put on the back foot by Gao Neng’s slash. This had gone completely off-script.
He had clearly used his Spiritual Power to distinguish the real body from the fake one among those two shadows...
Why had he misjudged?
What kind of Body Technique was that?!
Gui Zian was just about to speak.
But Gao Neng was already charging at him again.
Moreover, he felt a powerful, bloody aura.
Yes!
A bloody aura.
The moment Gao Neng slashed, a massive surge of blood energy erupted from his body, splattering onto the black saber in his hand.
The black saber began to glow with a bloody light.
Blood Saber Art!
"You brat, are you practicing or trying to get yourself killed?!" Gui Zian couldn’t hold back anymore and cursed out loud. "Sacrificing your essence blood to the saber... this isn’t practice, this is a death wish!"
But regardless.
Gao Neng’s slash had already been unleashed.
Whether Gui Zian wanted to block it or not, he had to.
"Teacher Gui, take my strongest slash!" Gao Neng focused his Spiritual Power, coating the black saber with his Blood Saber Art. Aside from using ’Life Element Fusion’, this was indeed his strongest attack.
"Fine! I’ll damn well see just how strong your ’strongest slash’ is!" Gui Zian gritted his teeth, a silver-white light flashing on both his hands. He was finally getting serious.
These two hands of his had once torn countless high-tier aliens limb from limb.
Now, he would use these same hands to receive Gao Neng’s so-called strongest slash.
CRACK!
There was no expected BOOM.
Because as Gao Neng’s saber came down, it was clamped between Gui Zian’s two palms, as if a shark had bitten down on the blade.
Passive defense and active attack.
These were two completely different things.
Gui Zian could no longer maintain a purely defensive stance; he had to counterattack.
However, his hands didn’t "bite" down on Gao Neng’s saber for long, because the tyrannical force within it was like a writhing flood dragon.
It struggled free after only a brief half-second.
!!!
Gui Zian’s face went from red to white. The instant Gao Neng’s saber broke free from his palms, he decisively kicked out.
BANG!
The kick landed squarely on Gao Neng.
He was sent flying backward.
THUD!
Gao Neng crashed to the ground.
"Ouch! You’re still amazing, Teacher. I lost again!" After hitting the ground, Gao Neng flipped over and sprang to his feet, looking completely unharmed.
Gui Zian, however, was silent.
He glanced at his palms. There was a gash on his Alloy Fangs.
A very deep gash.
So deep that a few drops of fresh blood were trickling from his palm.
’My defense was broken?!’ Gui Zian was horrified. Although he had kicked Gao Neng away, the momentum of the slash had already landed.
He was actually... injured!
"Teacher, you’re so incredible! The timing of that kick was perfect!" Gao Neng didn’t notice anything was wrong with Gui Zian and trotted back over eagerly.
"Of course! How could I be your teacher if I weren’t?" Gui Zian lifted his chin, but he couldn’t stop himself from hiding his bleeding hand behind his back.
"Teacher, let’s go again!" Gao Neng wiped the sweat from his body, eager for another round.
"..." Gui Zian.
(I, Xin Yi, have been updating so diligently, so I’d like to ask for some monthly tickets! To all you lovely readers who have some, please don’t hold back! Toss them my way—the more, the merrier! Also, I’d like to recommend a friend’s new book, *My Younger Brother is the Three Sovereigns* by Leng Guangyue V. It’s an ACG-style novel based on the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. If you’re interested, please go check it out!)
