Defeating Lin Xuan

Lin Xuan's pupils contracted slightly. He clearly hadn't expected Su Yu to evade his first move so effortlessly.

He snorted coldly. "Lucky break. Again!"

Before the words faded, Lin Xuan flicked his wrist and struck again with the same Spirit Snake Emerges from Cave, but this time the sword's speed abruptly increased by thirty percent. The blade tip traced several afterimages through the air, aiming straight for Su Yu's throat!

Su Yu's gaze sharpened. His form swayed gently like a willow in the wind.

The sword edge grazed past his clothes without severing a single strand of hair.

"Second move." Su Yu spoke calmly, his voice so steady it sent a chill through the heart.

Lin Xuan's face flushed crimson in an instant, veins bulging on his forehead.

He, the esteemed Third Young Master Lin—when had he ever been so belittled?

"You're asking for death!" He roared, his sword stance shifting abruptly.

Spirit Snake Wags its Tail!

The longsword traced a bizarre arc through the air, the blade sweeping in from an impossible angle like a venomous serpent.

This move was unpredictable—the very essence of the Spirit Snake Sword Style.

A glint of light flashed in Su Yu's eyes. His right hand had already rested on his sword hilt.

Wind Sweeps Clouds!

A cyan Sword Light burst forth, sweeping out like a whirlwind.

The two swords clashed with a crisp ring.

Lin Xuan felt a tremendous force surge through him, and he stumbled back three steps involuntarily.

"You... you're actually at Qi Refining Level 5!" Lin Xuan's eyes went wide as he stared at Su Yu in disbelief.

He distinctly remembered that just half a month ago, Su Yu had only just broken through to Qi Refining Level 4.

Su Yu sheathed his sword, his expression indifferent. "Three moves are done. Accept your loss and honor the bet."

Lin Xuan's face shifted between shades of gloom. Suddenly, he let out a sinister laugh. "I was just careless earlier!"

Before the words died, he lunged without warning, unleashing the full force of his Qi Refining Level 6 cultivation!

Spirit Snake Dances Wildly!

The sword dissolved into dozens of afterimages, converging on Su Yu like a frenzy of writhing serpents.

This move was vicious to the extreme—clearly meant to kill!

The surrounding crowd erupted in uproar. No one had expected Lin Xuan to go back on his word.

A cold light flickered in Su Yu's eyes. His iron sword left its sheath in an instant.

Sudden Storm!

The Sword Light cascaded like a waterfall, precisely blocking every incoming serpent shadow.

The clang of metal rang without pause. Amid the shower of sparks, Su Yu's form suddenly shifted—

Swift as Wind, Fast as Lightning!

The sword moved with his body. A streak of cyan light pierced straight through Lin Xuan's defenses.

Lin Xuan felt a dull pressure in his chest. His entire body flew backward, crashing heavily three zhang away.

"I never thought the esteemed Third Young Master Lin would be so shameless." Su Yu sheathed his sword coldly, his tone dripping with undisguised mockery.

Lin Xuan scrambled up, his face cycling through shades of pale and red.

Gnashing his teeth, he barked at the attendant beside him: "Give it to him!"

The attendant hurriedly pulled out three Level 1 Mid-grade Beast Cores and tossed them over.

Su Yu caught them, inspected them carefully, and tucked them into his robes.

"Just you wait!" Lin Xuan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his voice venomous.

"I'll break through to Qi Refining Level 7 soon. At the Skywind City Grand Tournament, I'll make you beg for mercy on your knees!"

Su Yu turned and walked away without a word, leaving only an upright silhouette behind.

The onlookers parted a path for him automatically, their gazes now tinged with a measure of respect.

Night deepened. The clamor faded.

Su Yu sat cross-legged in his room, eyes half-closed.

Moonlight streamed through the window lattice, casting dappled shadows before him.

Huff—

He slowly exhaled a mouthful of turbid air and opened his eyes. A glimmer like shifting stars swirled in his pupils.

The battle with Lin Xuan today, though a crushing victory, had given him a deeper understanding of his own state.

So this is what a martial artist's fight is like...

His fingertips brushed lightly over the iron sword's blade. The cold touch made the memory all the clearer.

The moment Lin Xuan's Spirit Snake Dances Wildly came at him, he could clearly see the trajectory of every single Sword Qi.

It wasn't with his eyes—it was Soul Power perception.

In the Soul World, the pale yellow light orb flickered faintly, as if responding to his thoughts.

The changes brought by the Soul Light Orb went far beyond heightened comprehension...

Su Yu rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

Ever since he crossed over, he'd noticed he maintained an uncanny calm.

Even facing Lin Xuan's sneak attack and killing moves, his heart remained utterly still—like... like he was watching someone else's fight.

That state reminded him of himself back on Earth.

The grad student who stayed in the lab until dawn, always keeping a rational analysis no matter what crisis hit.

And Su Yu of the Nine Heavens Continent was that stubborn youth who kept training through endless mockery.

Two lonely souls...

He sighed softly.

Su Yu of Earth had lost both parents young, scraping through university on government aid.

Those cold nights spent alone in the library, those days of grinding for scholarships—they'd forged his tough, prematurely mature character.

And Su Yu here had lost his mother in childhood, his father vanished when he was ten, and still persisted in training for five years amid cold stares and ridicule.

No wonder the soul fusion was so seamless.

Shaking off those thoughts, Su Yu turned his focus back to the sword technique.

He traced lightly in the air with his finger, replaying every move he'd made today.

At the third form of Wind Sweeps Clouds, his wrist had twisted half an inch too far...

The spiritual power distribution in Sudden Storm could be more even...

The footwork transitions in Swift as Wind, Fast as Lightning still had room for improvement...

In the Soul World, the light orb flickered in time with his thoughts.

The flaws in those sword moves were now as clear as ink spots on white paper.

Even stranger, improvement plans surfaced naturally in his mind, as if he'd practiced them a thousand times already.

So this is transcendent comprehension...

Su Yu suddenly stood, drawing his iron sword.

No spiritual power—just pure form practice.

The blade's arc through the air grew smoother and smoother, until it began to hum with the wind.

No. He stopped abruptly.

The essence of Gale Sword Style isn't in the moves, but in... Su Yu closed his eyes.

A line from True Understanding of the Sword Dao in the Library Pavilion surfaced in memory: "Sword momentum is like water—held back, it becomes an abyss; unleashed, it can burst a dike."

When the iron sword swung again, the forms were completely different.

Seemingly slow sword paths hid astonishing explosive force.

As he executed the final form, Swift as Wind, Fast as Lightning, a sudden whirlwind kicked up in the Quiet Room, sending pages on the desk rustling.

So that's it!

Su Yu's eyes blazed with insight.

He finally understood—he'd been too fixated on the surface forms, neglecting the accumulation and release of sword momentum.

It was like physics experiments back on Earth.

Sometimes the most brilliant discoveries hide in the most basic principles.

Sheathing the iron sword, he took out the three beast cores he'd earned today.

Under the moonlight, the crystals shimmered with a faint, enchanting glow.

Su Yu gripped the cores tightly, feeling the Ancient Sword's longing.