Ruan Dong had been born into a wealthy merchant family and had wanted wind and gotten wind, wanted rain and gotten rain since childhood. His first setback had come when he failed to become Bái Xī Wén's disciple, despite wishing for it, and he had never let it go.
In recent years, he had practiced martial arts on the mountain. Though his aptitude could not be called outstanding, it was still above average. If he endured bitter cultivation and tempered himself, he might become a master in his own right after twenty or thirty years. Naturally, he was proud and arrogant.
Yet that very pride, that very self-confidence, had now been mercilessly torn to shreds by Granny An. The pent-up grievance and fury in his heart were beyond what others could imagine.
What was more, Duàn Yì—the one who had stripped him of all face—was studying martial arts under the Bái Xī Wén whom he so admired and yearned for. Added to Helan Yue'er's favor toward Duàn Yì, those two forces together made him explode completely, challenging Duàn Yì to a fight.
Of course, Zhào Yù's instigation and Granny An's delight in watching the world burn had also played a part.
"Ruan Dong, have you no shame? Duàn Yì has only been on the mountain for a few days, and he has practiced martial arts for even less time. Yet you have already trained in the Golden Cauldron Sect for three years. How could he possibly be your match?"
Before anyone else could react, Helan Yue'er bristled. She looked at Ruan Dong with utter contempt, every word dripping with disdain. When she looked at Duàn Yì, her eyes held even more concern.
She had a point. For someone who had trained for three years to take the initiative in comparing himself to someone who had only practiced for a few days was somewhat shameless.
But for a man—even one not yet fully grown—the one thing he could least endure was the scorn of the woman he loved.
At Helan Yue'er's words, Ruan Dong's face alternated between red and white. His heart twisted in pain, and he felt a surge of true qi rampaging through his dantian, nearly bursting through his meridians and exploding.
"Yuè'er, you have gone a little too far. In the martial world, the strong prevail. When you and I venture out into the world, others will not show mercy simply because of how many years you have trained in martial arts.
"Since we have come to this arena, there is no harm in having a spar. What do you say, Junior Brother Duàn?"
Zhào Yù had spent a great deal of breath provoking Ruan Dong into exploding. How could he let this excellent chance to test Duàn Yì slip away?
Still, in all fairness, his reasoning was quite sound. In the martial world, conflict and slaughter were never scarce.
And enemies would not go easy on someone because of how long they had trained in martial arts—or even whether they had trained at all.
From the very first sentence Ruan Dong had spoken, Duàn Yì had remained silent, merely listening quietly. Now that Zhào Yù had questioned him, there was still no anger on his face, as though Ruan Dong's aggressive pressure meant nothing to him.
Just as he was about to speak, a thread of a voice suddenly reached his ear. It was Granny An.
"Boy Duàn, agree to it for now. I guarantee that you will defeat him when the time comes. Once you have taught Ruan Dong a lesson, I will pass down a lightness skill to you, so that when you roam the martial world in the future, you will have a few more means of preserving your life."
Duàn Yì was startled. He swept his gaze across everyone present, but it seemed that he alone could hear Granny An's voice. The others noticed nothing at all and merely watched him, seemingly wanting to know how he would respond.
Four words surfaced in his mind: secret voice transmission. This was a method that could only be used once one's internal cultivation had reached a certain realm.
What he did not understand was how a mere youth like Ruan Dong had offended Granny An enough to make her so dissatisfied.
That was because Duàn Yì did not know the inner details.
Though Helan Yue'er was young, her features were exquisitely flawless, pretty and lovable. Coupled with her distinguished status, she received the pursuit and flattery of many men on the mountain. Among them, Ruan Dong was the one who knew least when to advance and when to retreat.
By not knowing when to advance and retreat, firstly, he had no restraint in his speech. He had once presumptuously commented on Helan Yue'er's figure and appearance with a lecherous manner. Granny An had overheard him in secret and become dissatisfied.
Secondly, he never looked for the right moment. He often came to disturb them while Granny An was teaching Yuè'er martial arts, vexing Granny An beyond measure. Yet she could not punish a mere youth, lest others accuse her of using her seniority to bully the young.
Today, she had happened to encounter Duàn Yì. Granny An had a deep impression of him and came up with the thought of using his hand to teach Ruan Dong a lesson.
As for whether Duàn Yì could defeat Ruan Dong, Granny An did not care. With her methods, helping Duàn Yì win without anyone noticing would be simplicity itself.
As for teaching Duàn Yì a lightness skill, it was because he had protected Helan Yue'er when facing danger last time, yet afterward had not asked for any reward. That had always left Granny An feeling uneasy, so she wanted to use this opportunity to compensate him.
Of course, the most important point of all was still Helan Yue'er's special attitude toward Duàn Yì.
Duàn Yì had already intended to accept this match, though not because Ruan Dong had provoked him.
A blockhead in the throes of adolescence, desperate to show off before the girl he fancied, simply did not merit Duàn Yì's attention, much less his anger.
He merely wanted to test the progress of what he had learned today.
For days now, Duàn Yì had practiced martial arts in Bái Xī Wén's residence with extreme diligence. That diligence was not limited to the daytime. Even when he slept at night, his consciousness entered the Tower of Hidden Martial Arts, where he relied on his peerless comprehension to practice. He felt that he had advanced by leaps and bounds, yet he lacked a concrete point of comparison.
Ruan Dong happened to be close to him in age and had not practiced martial arts for too long, making him suitable to exchange moves with.
Moreover, Zhào Yù had repeatedly sought to test his martial arts, clearly suspecting that he had cultivated the Invincible Treasure Codex. To avoid being targeted by some great figure in the future, Duàn Yì wanted to display his martial arts and dispel the doubts of those lurking in the shadows.
He had no choice but to be cautious. His identity was unusual. If Qū Dōng Liú discovered that he was Yán Susu's grandson, he would undoubtedly die, and even Bái Xī Wén could not protect him.
And now that Granny An had promised both to ensure his victory and teach him a lightness skill, Duàn Yì was even more tempted.
To survive in the martial world, one's martial arts did not necessarily have to be exceptional, but one's lightness skill absolutely could not be poor. If one could not defeat an opponent, one had to be able to outrun them.
The Mount Song Sword Manual that Bái Xī Wén had taught contained footwork that complemented swordsmanship, along with simple techniques for leaping and vaulting, but none of it could be considered profound.
Furthermore, Duàn Yì's internal cultivation was still quite shallow, making it even less fit for great use. If Granny An taught him a lightness skill, it would surely give him wings like a tiger and add still more brilliance to his abilities.
"Fine. Since Senior Brother Ruan wishes to spar with me, I can hardly refuse. As you wish."
Duàn Yì put on the appearance of someone who had been looked down upon and had his pride wounded. He replied with an icy expression, meeting Ruan Dong's gaze without yielding in the slightest.
At that moment, their gazes met, needle against awl. Yet to outsiders, they appeared entirely different.
Ruan Dong's eyes were like fire—fires of rage and jealousy, blazing at their height. Duàn Yì's eyes were like ice, grim and chilling, enough to make one shudder.
"Duàn Yì, you have only trained for such a short time. How could you possibly be Ruan Dong's opponent? No, that will not do.
"How about this? You two can compare only stances, not internal cultivation. That would be much fairer. What do you think?
"Ruan Dong, surely you are not only daring to challenge Duàn Yì because you intend to rely on your deeper internal cultivation?"
The instant Helan Yue'er heard that Duàn Yì intended to accept the challenge, her little face tightened and her eyes filled with worry. Then an idea flashed through her mind, and she spoke.
In her view, what Duàn Yì lacked compared to Ruan Dong was three years of internal cultivation. If they compared only stances, he might not necessarily be weaker than Ruan Dong. After all, his clean and decisive Minor Capturing Hand in Daming County had left a deep impression on her.
Yet everyone else wore strange expressions, looking at Helan Yue'er without knowing whether she truly did not understand or was only pretending not to.
Internal cultivation did indeed advance step by step, but that did not mean stances could be mastered overnight.
Strictly speaking, stances required even more accumulation and tempering over the years than internal cultivation.
If Duàn Yì had received Bái Xī Wén's instruction and the aid of medicinal pills, it was possible for his internal cultivation to advance by leaps and bounds.
But there were absolutely no shortcuts when it came to moves. He had to build them solidly, with someone feeding him moves and correcting him. Only then could he gradually grow.
Yet Helan Yue'er was asking him to fight Ruan Dong using only stances, without internal cultivation. Was she not plainly leading Duàn Yì into a pit?
"Haha, fine! As Yuè'er says, if we are not using internal cultivation, then we will not use it. I will compete with you in swordsmanship."
Ruan Dong was overjoyed and brimming with satisfaction. Before his eyes, he could already see himself toying with Duàn Yì using his sword and making him lose all face. His heart felt utterly exhilarated, incomparably refreshed.
When youths loved, they loved; when they hated, they hated. Perhaps from the very first moment he had seen Duàn Yì, it had already been destined that Duàn Yì would be someone he disliked. Since he disliked him, he naturally had to suppress him.
Not only did he want to prove before Yuè'er that Duàn Yì was a useless embroidered pillow, he also wanted to prove to Bái Xī Wén that refusing to take him as a disciple back then had been a mistake.
Of course, Ruan Dong had already automatically ignored the fact that the two had never stood on the same starting line.
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