High Martial Arts: Enlightenment after Practices

Chapter 53: Chapter 53: Shadow Sword Technique

A faint pop of displaced air sounded.

Xu Wuyi felt a chill across the surface of his fist as a piercing force attempted to penetrate his Qi and Blood defenses.

He let out a muffled grunt. His Cloud-Pushing Force erupted, its Triple Power layering to shatter the sword shadow.

In that fleeting instant of their exchange, his wrist trembled imperceptibly. A Yin Soft Hidden Force had already snuck toward Su Yueling’s wrist.

Su Yueling’s delicate brows furrowed slightly. She had clearly detected the invasion of this foreign Power.

Sword Qi pulsed faintly from her fingertips, neutralizing most of it. Still, a sliver of Silk Binding Force seeped into her meridians like a maggot clinging to bone.

The two broke apart on contact, each taking half a step back.

Xu Wuyi felt a measure of relief. ’Successfully landing the Silk Binding Force is a good start.’

’If I can build it up, maybe I can gradually affect her Qi and Blood circulation, just like I did with Zhao Ding.’

Su Yueling glanced down at her wrist. There seemed to be a faint sense of sluggishness there, and a glint of understanding entered her eyes.

”So it’s this kind of Power...” Su Yueling murmured to herself.

This was the first time anyone had heard her speak since the joint entrance exams began.

After a brief pause, both moved simultaneously, but this time was different.

The probing was over!

Su Yueling’s figure abruptly accelerated. She was no longer dodging, but circling Xu Wuyi like a phantom, zipping left and right at high speed.

The pressure on Xu Wuyi instantly skyrocketed. His Martial Arts were indeed far superior to Li Mo’s, allowing him to predict many of Su Yueling’s movements and even intercept her preemptively a few times.

But he had his own shortcomings. For one, his durability was far inferior to Li Mo’s, not to mention Zhao Ding’s. For another... he had never trained in a specialized, advanced Body Technique!

The Wind-Settling Spear emphasized stability, a doctrine of meeting countless changes with constancy. Its footwork consisted mostly of steady movements designed to complement its Spear Momentum.

Now, facing this burst of speed from Su Yueling—far beyond what she had shown before—Xu Wuyi could only defend passively, completely surrendering the initiative.

He had to pivot constantly, adjusting his center of gravity just to keep facing her.

But the process of observing, reacting, and turning still took time. That minuscule delay was enough for an inevitable opening to appear.

During one swift flanking maneuver, Xu Wuyi couldn’t twist around in time, exposing the area over his left ribs!

Su Yueling appeared at his side as if she had teleported, her palm striking silently toward the small of his back.

The palm strike looked deceptively light, but the sharp energy gathered at its edge made the air hum with a faint tearing sound.

Xu Wuyi twisted to block. Fist met palm!

BANG!

A clash of Qi Force.

Xu Wuyi felt a piercing power surge into him, making his arm go slightly numb.

Su Yueling retreated the instant her attack landed, her figure vanishing once more.

Immediately after, she appeared behind Xu Wuyi. Forming a sword with the fingers of her right hand, she thrust out abruptly.

This was her real killing move!

This was no longer a tentative probe, but a strike condensing her true power!

VMMMM!

The air shrieked as it was torn asunder.

A ghastly white sword shadow, almost corporeal, suddenly materialized along the edge of her hand.

The sword shadow was about a foot long, its edge peerlessly sharp. It carried a piercing Intention that could sever anything. Silent yet swift as lightning, it stabbed straight for the center of Xu Wuyi’s back!

Before the sword shadow even arrived, its peerlessly sharp, bone-chilling intent made the hair on the back of Xu Wuyi’s neck stand on end.

Danger!

A lethal sense of crisis washed over him like a splash of ice water, and every muscle in Xu Wuyi’s body tensed instantly.

He knew it was too late to dodge completely. In the nick of time, he could only rely on his combat instincts, twisting his body to the right with all his might, while frantically gathering Qi and Blood in his left arm to block behind him!

SHHNNK—!

The sword shadow swept past!

There was no loud collision, only a sound like a sharp blade slicing through thick leather.

Xu Wuyi grunted, stumbling forward several steps before steadying himself.

On his left shoulder blade, his Martial Arts Uniform had been sliced open by a clean, foot-long gash. The flesh beneath curled back, revealing a sword wound so deep the bone was visible.

Fresh blood instantly gushed out, dyeing the torn fabric red.

A searing pain shot through him. But what horrified Xu Wuyi even more was the persistent, sharp intention lingering in the wound. It was constantly obstructing his Qi and Blood from mending the injury, even trying to seep deeper.

He whipped his head around to look at Su Yueling, who had already drifted back a safe distance. A flash of realization lit up his eyes.

Xu Wuyi finally understood!

He finally understood why the numerous small wounds on Li Mo’s body were so hard to heal, and why they got worse the longer he fought!

The sword shadows of the Shadow Sword Technique were not purely physical attacks at all.

Or rather, the physical attack was just a facade.

These sword shadows were a product of Spirit interfering with reality. They were a ”Blade of Will,” formed by Su Yueling’s powerful Spiritual Will combined with the unique legacy of her Shadow Sword Technique.

The inherited knowledge of the Mountain Shifting Technique mentioned that when Spiritual Cultivation reached a high enough Realm, it could produce all sorts of profound phenomena, including ”Heart Image Manifestation” and ”will interfering with reality.”

Xu Wuyi just never imagined he would witness such an almost metaphysical power wielded by a high school student.

Su Yueling, having succeeded in her attack, did not pursue. Her figure drifted back several meters, her cold eyes quietly watching Xu Wuyi, as if observing his reaction to being injured.

The sharp energy coiling around her fingertips subsided slightly as if she were gathering her strength anew. It was clear that delivering the previous strike had taken a significant toll on her as well.

Below the stage, the crowd erupted in an uproar.

”Xu Wuyi is injured!”

”That sword shadow is terrifying! What kind of Martial Arts is that?”

”Su Yueling is too fast, Xu Wuyi can’t keep up!”

”That sword shadow... it feels so strange!”

The students of Honghe First Middle School had their hearts in their throats. Zeng Bonan, Hu Haobo, and the others had grave expressions; they could see how much danger Xu Wuyi had just been in.

Over on the Silver Port First High School side, Li Mo’s eyes widened. He stared at the familiar sword mark on Xu Wuyi’s shoulder and subconsciously touched the already scabbed wounds on his own body, a lingering fear in his heart.

’This sword shadow was so much more powerful than the ones I faced.’

’I was worn down by countless tiny swords, while Xu Wuyi just faced a greatsword head-on.’

The teachers and students of United Middle School, however, looked exhilarated.

In the VIP room, Yan Zhishan’s gaze was profound. He said slowly, ”Xu Wuyi is injured. At a high school student’s level, it’s still impossible to deal with an attack of this caliber. This battle... is perilous for him.”

Chen Fan clenched his fists nervously. ”It’s not fair for a high school student to be using a Heart Image Martial Arts legacy!”

”When has the world ever been fair?” Yan Zhishan chuckled and shook his head. ”Do you know why that personage took Su Yueling as a Closed-door Disciple?”

Chen Fan shook his head. He had a general idea of Su Yueling’s background but didn’t know the full story.

Yan Zhishan said, ”Su Yueling was extraordinary from birth. Her Telekinesis was far stronger than an ordinary person’s. At six years old, her Spiritual Strength already exceeded level 11. She’s exceptionally gifted. At fourteen, she learned the Shadow Sword Technique...”

”Judging by her performance now, her Spiritual Strength is likely approaching level 20. Otherwise, do you think just anyone could wield Heart Image Martial Arts with such power?”

”This...” Chen Fan was speechless.