Enlightenment: Attaining the Dao at Age 8

However, Zhao Xiaowan’s speed was not slow in the least!

Zhao Xiaowan abruptly twisted the long spear in her hands, its tip lunging like a nimble, slithering serpent, thrusting diagonally toward the charging ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot.

“WHOOSH!”

Because the thrust was so fast, the spear’s blade and shaft left trails of afterimages in the air!

However, amid a piercing shriek, the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot, which should have been struck by the spear tip, had somehow twisted its body in mid-air. It dodged the attack—one that would have been impossible for any ordinary person to evade—from an incredibly bizarre and contorted angle.

Zhao Xiaowan’s spear stabbed nothing but air, but she was clearly not surprised by this. Instead of retracting the spear, she followed the momentum and brought it smashing down toward the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot.

Due to the immense power behind the blow, as Zhao Xiaowan swept the spear horizontally, its entire shaft bent into a massive arc.

Because of the incredible speed, all the crowd could see was the long spear in Zhao Xiaowan’s hand tremble. Immediately after, a tremendous metallic roar echoed across the Rebirth Arena.

“BANG!!!”

The shaft and tip of the spear slammed heavily onto the ground. To everyone watching, it seemed like an unavoidable attack, but the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot was not hit as they had expected.

The figure, its entire body exuding a mysterious aura, suddenly vaulted higher into the air, evading Zhao Xiaowan’s attack and positioning itself directly above her head.

An inch longer is an inch stronger.

Zhao Xiaowan wielded a long spear, while the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot was bare-fisted, so her advantage at mid-to-long range was obvious.

Given this, Zhao Xiaowan knew exactly what would happen to her if the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot got in close.

Therefore, upon realizing the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot was now above her, Zhao Xiaowan could no longer afford to conserve her stamina.

Zhao Xiaowan violently shook her spear and shouted in a low voice, “Flying Dragon in the Sky!”

Before her voice had even faded, the Red Tassel Spear in her hand seemed to come alive, stabbing fiercely toward the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot in mid-air.

This thrust was clearly more than a notch faster than before. For an instant, the entire spear—both its head and its shaft—seemed to overlap into a single image.

This was a visual distortion caused by the sheer speed of the attack!

One could only imagine how fast the spear truly was.

Clearly, this was Zhao Xiaowan’s ultimate, last-resort technique. Once used, it was a matter of life and death.

“PFFT…”

The ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot’s clothes were torn by the spear’s blade, but that was the extent of the damage. The sparring robot had dodged Zhao Xiaowan’s strike, and though no one understood how, it had genuinely pulled it off.

Finding that the robot had closed the distance, a bitter smile appeared on Zhao Xiaowan’s stern face. In the next instant, she was sent flying by a punch from the Martial Arts Emperor, landing heavily outside the arena.

After doing all this, the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot stood quietly on the spot, completely still.

According to the rules of the Rebirth Arena, leaving the stage counts as a loss.

Since Zhao Xiaowan had already lost, it meant the life-and-death battle was over. The ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot naturally made no further movements.

Zhao Xiaowan coughed up a mouthful of blood and spent some Rebirth Points to heal her injuries before climbing back to her feet.

She had wanted to hold out a little longer, but the pressure from the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot was just too intense. If she hadn’t used her ultimate move early, she would have had no way to deal with its monstrously terrifying combat power.

In other words, only by using her ultimate move could Zhao Xiaowan, for a brief moment, catch up to its elusive figure and tear its clothes.

The fight had started quickly and ended even faster. From the moment Zhao Xiaowan jumped onto the stage to the moment she was knocked off by the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot, the entire exchange had lasted no more than five minutes.

Down below, everyone, including Su Ruobing, was momentarily stunned into silence.

They weren’t surprised that the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot could defeat Zhao Xiaowan so easily, but that Zhao Xiaowan had managed to land a blow on it in the final moment!

After all, among everyone present, besides Li Chang’an and Su Ruobing, probably no one else would dare claim they could have done the same!

In the silent atmosphere, Zhao Xiaowan, having just recovered her strength, got up and prepared to head back to the arena. Only then did everyone else snap out of their daze.

Caiyou hurriedly stopped her. “Xiaowan, hold on a second. Don’t forget why we’re gathered here. Our goal is to get a good ranking in the regional arena tournament!”

Hearing this, Zhao Xiaowan hesitated for a moment before stopping in her tracks. She stood silently to the side without moving.

Caiyou breathed a sigh of relief and quickly turned to Li Chang’an. “Did you get a clear look at the techniques Xiaowan just used?”

Li Chang’an nodded. “I saw them clearly!”

Seeing this, Caiyou let out another sigh of relief and continued, “Good. That final spear thrust Xiaowan used is called Flying Dragon in the Sky. In terms of both speed and Attack Power, it’s practically unbeatable among those at her level. You should have seen it just now—even the ’Martial Arts Emperor’ sparring robot was almost injured!”

Hearing her explanation, Li Chang’an nodded again, indicating that he had.

Caiyou was relieved that Li Chang’an had such a keen eye.

Otherwise, if he hadn’t seen it clearly, she would have had to ask Zhao Xiaowan to go back on stage and demonstrate it again. The very thought made her skin crawl.

…