Blade Duel

He took two strides to the courtyard gate and called out, "Dad! Mom! What's going on?"

A flurry of noise came from inside the house, and then the door swung open.

Lu Danian and Mother Lu appeared in the doorway, fear still lingering in their eyes.

"Chuanzi!" Mother Lu's voice trembled when she saw him. "You... you're finally back!"

Lu Danian pulled him inside and quickly shut the door, speaking urgently:

"Chuanzi, listen to your dad! Don't come home for the next couple of days!"

"That's right, that's right!" Mother Lu cut in hastily.

"It's... it's that Liu Biao! He came by this afternoon! Carrying a big knife, blocking our front door, shouting that he wanted to find you!"

Lu Danian took a heavy breath.

"We didn't dare open the door. We told him through the door that you'd gone to the county seat and weren't home. He... without another word, he lifted his foot and kicked!"

"He also said he'd be back tomorrow at this time. If he still couldn't find you, he'd tear this shabby house of ours down!"

"Chuanzi, listen to us," Mother Lu said, tears welling in her eyes.

"That Liu Biao trained at the Martial Arts Hall. We can't afford to mess with him! Don't come back for a few days! If he can't find you, maybe he'll just leave..."

"Dad! Mom!" Lu Chuan cut them off abruptly.

Seeing the helplessness and fear on his parents' faces, he understood their dread, but a fiercer emotion exploded in his chest.

Hide? Hide where? Could he hide from the Martial Arts Hall for the rest of his life?

If he couldn't even face someone who bullied his family to their doorstep, then what was the point of gritting his teeth and training in martial arts?

A surge of rage rushed to his head.

He turned and grabbed the long blade from inside the house.

Carrying the knife back to the main room, his parents went pale with terror at the sight of the weapon in his hand.

"Chuanzi! You... what are you doing? Don't do anything stupid!" Lu Danian tried to stop him.

Lu Chuan's voice was ice-cold.

"There's no peaceful way to settle this today."

"He kicked my door today and threatened to tear down my home."

"Some things, you can't run from!"

With that, he gripped the blade and headed straight toward Xinghua's house in the village.

At Xinghua's house, an oil lamp lit the room brightly. Five or six bowls and dishes were laid out on the wooden table.

A pot of braised meat, a plate of scrambled eggs, and a small flask of liquor in the middle.

Lu San, Lu Qinshi, Xinghua, and Liu Biao, seated at the head of the table, were eating together.

Lu San and Lu Qinshi wore faces full of almost fawning smiles.

Xinghua sat beside Liu Biao, occasionally glancing at him with adoring eyes, her cheeks slightly flushed.

Lu San raised his wine bowl, grinning wide.

"Biaozi! Good son-in-law! You were really something today! The way you stood at Lu Chuan's door, hey, what a presence!"

Lu Qinshi immediately jumped in, her voice sharp and piercing.

"You said it! Lu Danian and his wife were shaking just talking through the crack in the door!"

Xinghua also took the chance to pick a big piece of fatty meat and put it in Liu Biao's bowl, her voice sweet and syrupy.

"Brother Biao, that kick of yours... was amazing! Let's see if they dare bully our family anymore!"

As she spoke, a flicker of satisfaction flashed in her eyes.

Liu Biao's face glowed with pride. He tipped his head back and downed the wine in one gulp.

"Hmph!" he said roughly.

"Father-in-law, Mother-in-law, Xinghua, don't worry! With me, Liu Biao, around, from now on, let's see who dares to lay a finger on you!"

A look of brute arrogance shone in his eyes.

"Lu Chuan? What's he worth? Some mud-footed peasant dares to lay hands on my father-in-law? If he still hides tomorrow, I'll tear the roof right off his shack!"

"That's right! Biaozi's right!" Lu San quickly refilled his cup. "That kid just needs a good beating!"

Lu Qinshi chimed in too.

"Exactly! Our Biaozi is destined for great things! When that happens, our whole family will enjoy the good life!"

Liu Biao was floating even higher on their flattery.

He raised his freshly filled cup and gestured boldly.

"Come on! Drink! Once we catch that kid, Father-in-law, Mother-in-law, you can take out your anger however you like!"

"Drink up!"

"Bottoms up!"

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Just as the four were drinking themselves red-faced, a deafening crash exploded!

"BANG!!!"

The four froze, turning in unison to stare at the doorway.

The wooden door now lay flat on the ground.

"Who?! Which bastard dares raise hell in our home?!" Lu San was the first to react, charging out.

Liu Biao furrowed his brow.

Lu San barely reached the shattered doorway before his rage fizzled out:

"Lu... Lu Chuan?!"

"Lu Chuan?!" The other three inside were also startled.

Liu Biao, hearing the name, wasn't alarmed—he was pleased.

He strode to the door, sizing up the thin youth outside.

"Well, well! So you're Lu Chuan!" Liu Biao's voice dripped with undisguised malice.

"You played the coward this afternoon and dodged death. Didn't think you'd have the guts to come knocking on death's door yourself!"

Lu Chuan's face was expressionless. He kicked the broken door panel at his feet:

"I tore down your door... that makes us even."

"Even?!" Lu Qinshi shrieked.

"Lu Chuan, you little bastard! You kick in our door and still act so cocky! Biaozi, hurry! Teach him a lesson!"

"Lu Chuan, I think you've lived long enough!" Lu San blustered, his voice shaky.

Liu Biao just grinned savagely, pulling his Thick-backed Chopping Knife from behind.

"Good lad, you've got balls! Let's see what you're really made of, acting so tough!"

The two stood, blades drawn.

Lu San's family watched the standoff eagerly.

Lu Qinshi kept muttering curses under her breath.

Facing Liu Biao, who was a full size bulkier, Lu Chuan felt no fear.

He hadn't come on a blind impulse.

Liu Biao was just a farm-born apprentice. Even with some talent, without a mountain of resources, how strong could he be?

Lu Chuan was now part of the Martial Arts Hall and understood this well.

Besides, if Liu Biao really had skill, why would he settle for Xinghua's family?

"Kill!" Liu Biao roared, striking first when Lu Chuan didn't move.

His Thick-backed Chopping Knife came straight down at Lu Chuan's head.

Lu Chuan didn't meet it head-on. He sidestepped nimbly, sliding half a foot back and to the side.

The blade whistled past him, cutting air.

Liu Biao overextended on the miss.

Seizing the moment, Lu Chuan's long knife shot out, its tip aimed at Liu Biao's exposed ribs.

Liu Biao panicked, hurriedly swinging his blade to block.

"Clang!"

The knives clashed, sparks flying.

Liu Biao was indeed stronger in the arm, and the jarring impact numbed Lu Chuan's hand slightly.

But Lu Chuan ignored it. His long knife turned into a flash of cold light—chopping, slashing, hooking, sweeping...

Every strike targeted Liu Biao's weak defenses, forcing him into a flustered scramble, barely parrying, unable to counter.

The more Liu Biao fought, the more shocked he grew. He never expected this country boy's blade work to be so seasoned.

This was no Initiate-level skill!

"Xinghua, your family has doomed me!"

In just seven or eight exchanges, Lu Chuan had fully gauged Liu Biao's measure.

His strength was greater, but his saber technique was crude—far inferior to Lu Chuan's Minor Success-level Mountain Splitting Saber.

When their blades clashed again and Liu Biao's center opened wide, a fierce glint flashed in Lu Chuan's eyes.

He channeled the blood and qi within his body, unleashing the most explosive strike from the Mountain Splitting Saber!

"Break!"

Lu Chuan's long blade swept aside Liu Biao's blocking saber.

The blade light drove straight in, stopping just before Liu Biao's throat under his horrified gaze.

The blade's edge pressed against his skin, making Liu Biao's hairs stand on end, daring not to move an inch.

The cleaver in his hand clattered to the ground with a bang.

The entire world fell silent.

If you can't find the book by its title, try searching by the author—maybe it's just been renamed!