Chapter 75: The Strange and Treacherous Sword Path

Stargazing Platform

The cultivators below the arena were a little dazed. Was this the new way to open the finals of the Sword Path Grand Competition? Before the fight even began, they were putting on a little play?

On the presiding judge’s seat atop the arena, however, Lin Yunheng had a thoughtful expression on his face. His gaze rested with interest on Lin Yuchu and Song Jifei, who were confronting each other on the platform ahead—putting on a dramatic duel—and in his heart, a feeling of eagerness began to stir.

This seemed like quite a good idea!

Lin Yunheng, whose door to a new world had been opened.

And on the arena.

Seeing that he could not persuade Lin Yuchu, Song Jifei immediately tightened his flawless, handsome, jade-white face. His expression was cold as he stared at Lin Yuchu ahead and said in a chilly voice, “Obstinate and unrepentant. Stubborn beyond saving!”

“Since words cannot convince you, then I can only beat you into submission!” Song Jifei shouted sharply. Then he drew his sword and attacked, thrusting straight toward Lin Yuchu ahead.

Lin Yuchu stood where he was without moving. Sword light flashed through his eyes.

With a clang—

At some unknown point, Lin Yuchu had drawn his sword. With a backhanded strike, he blocked the sword Song Jifei had thrust at him.

Then he forcefully pushed it back and attacked Song Jifei with the same thrust.

Song Jifei tapped lightly with the tip of his foot, and his entire body retreated swiftly, avoiding Lin Yuchu’s sword edge. At the same time, his figure flashed in a rapid step, and he suddenly appeared behind Lin Yuchu.

His sword attacked Lin Yuchu’s back!

Lin Yuchu had no choice but to turn his hand back and block with a sword strike.

The two of them fought fiercely atop the arena.

Whether it was Lin Yuchu or Song Jifei, both of their movement techniques were extremely fast, so fast that they had already exceeded what their age and cultivation should allow.

The people below the arena could barely keep up. Their eyes were left with only streak after streak of sword light flashing past at incredible speed.

It stabbed until their eyes hurt.

Many cultivators felt their eyes grow dry and sore from the glare of the sword light. They could not help wanting to close their eyes, but they did not dare, afraid that if they blinked, they would miss something.

After all, these two were far too fast!

“Song Jifei truly lives up to his name!”

“Song Jifei’s sword technique improves through bodily movement and speed. His attacks are tricky, refusing to follow common sense, making them impossible to guard against. Add to that his extremely fast movement technique, beyond what ordinary people can match, and most people simply cannot withstand him.”

“Of all methods under heaven, only speed cannot be broken. Given time, this Song Jifei will definitely be difficult to deal with!”

“…”

“…”

On the arena.

From the very beginning, Lin Yuchu had noticed that Song Jifei’s sword technique emphasized speed. His movement technique was very fast, so fast that ordinary people would find it difficult to catch or keep up with.

And his sword was very tricky. A sword would often come from beyond expectation, either from your side, or behind you, or from above…

From every place you could not imagine and had not guarded against, a sword would fly in.

With the slightest carelessness, you would fall into his trap and lose.

And his speed was also extremely fast. Often, one sword would thrust over, and the next would already arrive.

Fast, ruthless, accurate. A tricky and bewildering sword technique.

Lin Yuchu thought to himself, if this person were an enemy, he would be a fatal one. This was an assassin who had taken the Sword Path!

With a crisp clang of blades—

Lin Yuchu blocked the sword Song Jifei thrust straight at him, then blocked the sword that immediately followed, attacking from below. His face was cold and severe as he thought.

He found it very unexpected. Song Jifei had such a straightforward, righteous personality, to the point of being somewhat wooden and dull, yet his Sword Path was actually so strange, treacherous, and tricky.

But—

Lin Yuchu dodged another sword thrust from Song Jifei and thought, perhaps it was precisely because he was such an honest, single-minded person that he could hold fast to his true heart and not lose himself in that strange, cold, treacherous Sword Path.

If someone had too many schemes and too many calculations, they would instead be more likely to be harmed by their own cleverness.

From this perspective, a blunt person like Song Jifei was actually perfectly suited to cultivating a strange and treacherous Sword Path.

Clang—

Clang, clang—

Clang, clang, clang—

This Sword Debate between Lin Yuchu and Song Jifei left the people below the arena dazzled and overwhelmed.

It was not as grand in scale or astonishing in momentum as the previous match with Ye Li.

But Song Jifei’s tricky, strange, and treacherous fast sword still made everyone cry out in admiration. Against such a Sword Path, ordinary people would not be able to hold their ground.

This boy, though his reputation was not prominent, was also a rare Sword Path prodigy!

His sword was a sword for killing.

Lin Yunheng, seated in the presiding judge’s seat atop the arena, also watched with a face full of surprise. What he thought was much the same as Lin Yuchu.

He truly had not expected that this seemingly foolish boy would have such a tricky and treacherous Sword Path, attacking unexpectedly and making himself impossible to guard against.

He really should make that boy Zhengyang come and have a look. This was what a sword for killing looked like!

Song Jifei’s sword was fast and tricky, strange and treacherous, difficult to predict. Perhaps if it had been anyone else, he would have succeeded in his “assassination.”

But facing Lin Yuchu, he always felt a kind of helplessness, as though there was nowhere to strike.

No matter how he drew his sword, the other party seemed able to predict it and could always block his blade.

This kind of person…

Was too terrifying!

After yet another sword was blocked, Song Jifei could not help asking, “You really can’t predict the future?”

“I really can’t.”

While swiftly receiving his moves, blocking every sword thrust he sent over one by one, the ringing clang of blades endless in the air, Lin Yuchu answered in a calm voice.

“I don’t believe you!”

Song Jifei said, “If you can’t predict the future, how can you block my sword every single time?”

“That’s impossible!” he shouted coldly.

Faced with his question, Lin Yuchu answered him through action.

He gripped the sword in his hand and exerted his strength. Sword qi burst forth.

At once, atop the arena, a cold, awe-inspiring sword qi swiftly locked onto Song Jifei ahead. Lin Yuchu sent out a sword strike, ruthlessly knocking down the sword Song Jifei had used to attack him.

Clang—!!!

A sharp sound rang out.

The sword in Song Jifei’s hand was struck away and fell to the ground.

Without a sword in his hand, his entire person froze. He stood there blankly, not moving.

Lin Yuchu held his long sword, his gaze cold as he looked at him, and said in a frigid voice, “The reason I could block every one of your sword strikes is because your aura is too obvious.”

“…” Song Jifei.

He suddenly raised his head, his gaze fixed on Lin Yuchu before him. His handsome, flawless jade-white face was now entirely cold.

“Every time you draw your sword, the killing intent on your body grows heavier,” Lin Yuchu said. “For an ordinary sword cultivator, that is not a bad thing. But for you, it is precisely the weakness that exposes you.”

With that said,

Lin Yuchu turned and left the arena.

Only Song Jifei was left standing there alone.

A long while later,

Song Jifei finally muttered quietly, “Are you some kind of freak? You can even notice that?”

He remembered what his master had once said to him: “A true killing sword hides itself within the darkness, withdrawing all aura until it is infinitely close to nothing.”

“There are an extremely small number of people in this world whose perception is abnormally sharp. Even the tiniest wisp of killing intent can alarm them,” his master had said. “If you encounter this kind of person, run! Whatever you do, don’t make an enemy of them.”

Song Jifei’s master had tilted his head back and spoken in the exceptionally bitter tone of someone who had been through it before. “Every one of these people is a great figure famous in their region, and every single one is a freak with far too many schemes. Someone as simple as you won’t be their match.”

“If you meet one, run. Don’t clash with them head-on!”

At the time, Song Jifei had not taken his master’s words seriously at all. He had only answered carelessly, “The world is so big. There must be very few people like that. I might not necessarily run into one. Master, you worry too much.”

“…In the end, did that old man actually get it right?”

Song Jifei stood on the arena and spoke quietly.

Inside the Immortal Alliance.

“Hm?”

Immortal Venerable Yuquan looked at Song Jifei in the Thousand-Li Mirror and suddenly cried out in surprise, his expression strange.

After a long while, he said, “This boy…”

“Could he be Shadow Sword?”

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