The Second Stance! Great! With this new attack in my proficiency, I might damn be the strongest first year around these parts!
One more try, just one more practice-ah, instructor is watching me and-
Li Baiyu is aiming a sword at me?!
"Where's your murderous intent, you heretic traitor? You wanted to kill someone I could feel it!" He pointed a sword at me with his left arm and his right hand rested on the hilt of his second sword.
"Murderous intent?! What do you mean? I was just practicing my sword arts!"
Li Baiyu cautiously turned to look at his instructor, who was watching but didn't do anything, "I'll be watching you, Yan Mo, I know your secrets!"
He grumbled, sheathing his swords and walking off.
He thinks my secret is that…I'm secretly a spy from the demonic cult? Uhuh…sure, I guess. Even though my Five Flames Arts is a righteous technique, but I did sense murderous intent coming off of me too..
I wonder what the reason for that could be? I had no intention to kill or harm, just to practice, so where is this intense aura coming from?
"Ah, brother Mo, is everything alright? I saw Baiyu point his sword at you." Guo Yanzhi came over, cautious but not truly scared of me.
"It's something to do with my sword arts, it's something weird going on, but pay no mind, brother, I'll have it in control."
He eyed me curiously, coming a step closer and putting his hand on my shoulder, "We are both brothers, you don't need to hide anything from me, I will aid you in any way I can! I just hope you can do the same for me when the time comes"
I looked at his eyes, seeing no lie in them, and decided to give it up. In a hushed voice I told him the secrets behind me and my sword arts, to which he, obviously, reacted very strongly.
He stared at me in pure shock for atleast a minute, "Ahem..er…say, brother, doesn't this make you like a hero in those romanticized novels of war?"
I couldn't help but let out laughter, "Aha..I guess you could say that, who knows, maybe I am even the main character!"
"-_-"
Okay, brother, let's not get too ambitious, ha! Ah, that makes me want to ask, when our spring break comes around, would you like to grab some drinks with me?"
"Ah? We get a spring break? I didn't know that, I have no reason to refuse after all! But then, what will be our training schedule until the winter tournament and afterwards?"
"Well, I suppose we'll keep the same training regiment, have the tournament, then afterwards be let go for break! Simple enough, no?"
"En, en," I nodded in understanding, "Sure then, but you're paying, I'm broke."
"Ha, since I am your senior, I guess I'll have to be the generous one"
"Pff, whatever you say, brother."
After our meditation training was finished, we headed back to our dorms, we were at the very back of the line, with Baiyu having returned to his dorms early.
I said byes to my brother and headed to the training grounds again, I had learnt the second stance, time for the third is it not?
Yet, as soon as I unsheathed my sword, I heard a shout from behind me.
It was Li Baiyu, from the windowsill of his dorm. He hopped down, two sheathed swords at the right side of his waist.
"You need to realize where you belong, you demonic traitor, you need to remember my name Li Baiyu, I challenge you to a spar!"
I chuckled, my hand reaching for my own sword, "I don't know who you think you are, I don't care if you're from the Northern Ice Palace or the Southern Sea Palace, I don't even care if you were the Murim Alliance Leader's dad! I'll give you a beating all the same! You've been glaring me over these past 70 days, and today is the day you're going to get humbled!"
Baiyu said no more words, grabbing two training swords and dashing forward, one sword was up high and the other down low.
"Namhae Ssang-Geom Sul, First Stance—"
The first sword slashed down on me while the other slashed upwards, I rushed my own sword up to defend as Baiyu attacked me and dramatically posed behind me.
"—Joryu Cham (Tide Reversal)"
I could only guard one of the two swords, and I decided to guard the first one, leaving my lower side bruising.
I turned around quickly, trying to gather into the second stance of my own art, but I was pushed on the defensive again as Baiyu rushed aggressively forward to me again.
"Namhae Ssang-Geom Sul, Second Stance"
He led forward with his left blade, which I quickly deflected over to the side and hoped to counterattack, but he already had jumped in the air.
Spinning mid-air, he reversed his grip on his right sword and struck me on my back. What kind of swordsmanship was this? It feels like I'm in the middle of a raging ocean, all I can hope to do is paddle, not to swim against it!
"—Yeok Pado (Wave Reversal)"
I pushed through still, since I already took the brunt of the attack, and he was stuck in the air with nowhere to dodge, I had the opportune time to attack!
"Yeowang Oyeonmu (Five Flame Dance of the Flame King/Five Flames Art), Second Stance—"
Great volume of flame erupted from my blade, and as I swung it across, it made it seem as though the tidal wave had been overcome by a wave of fire!
"Hwahwa-ui Wije (Ember Swept Reign)"
The strike landed perfectly on his side, from side to side of his stomach, he was launched sideways, hitting the split in half stone pillar and making both halves fall.
"You focus too much on the battle itself, intricacies and flashy tricks, but you failed to focus on your principles. That is the beginning of Tao, every road and path needs a paver and a brick layer. Rushing forward will only cause you to stumble."
Baiyu seemed unconscious but I monologued anyways. Maybe he'll learn I'm not a demonic cultivator and instead a righteous follower of Tao-
"F*ck that," he was shivering, stabbing one of his training swords into the ground to help himself up, "I'll overpower you…plain and simple!"
"N-namhae Ssang-Sul Geom, Third Stance—"
His eyes seemed to be filled with confidence, pure blue Qi used his blades as an instrument as he rushed forward again.
Then he spun, spun again, and kept spinning. The speed at which he spun and moved forward was steady, not enough to push me back but also not too light as to let me back up.
I have no windows of opportunity! He's just wearing me down, if this keeps going even my own training blade will break!
"—Wolyeong Chim (Moonlight Drown)"
CRREUK
My blade shattered into pieces and I was flown back myself, stumbling on the ground, but I wasn't down yet! He had stopped his third stance, and it gave me the chance to attack!
A horizontal or vertical slash here will be easily deflected if I use my hand as a sword, and I don't have enough time to grab another one..
Hm, according to the manual I've been reading, the third stance of my art is a thrusting attack…what if I did this…
"Yeowang Oyeonmu! Third Stance!—"
I rushed forward, my own right arm being engulfed in flames this time and it…it hurt! It stung and it felt like my skin was bubbling and sizzling, but I kept on!
I kept my fingers straight and steady, to imitate that of a sword! He was too slow to react, and feeling the pressure of my intent to end this fight with this last attack was enough to stun him.
My arm had now turned so hot it felt as though I had captured the very essence of the sun in it.
"—Gwangyang-ui Chimbi (Piercing Sun Fang)!"
I striked him in the middle of his chest, all breath was forced out of him and he fell down where he stood.
I took the moment to capture my own breath and looked at my own arm, it was ugly, brown and sizzling, in fact the pain seemed to only get worse as the fire had extinguished itself.
Maybe I should pay a visit to the medical building…
I turned towards the unconscious disciple, bowing slightly, a bow of respect for an opponent, "Thank you for letting me be enlightened through our fight, you let me have a moment of breakthrough, your path seemed bright, but with my appearance, all fate is distorted, because I disrupt the rivers of the universe to my will!"
Ahem..that was a bit embarrassing now that I think of it. Let me just head off and hope the instructor doesn't get too mad at me!