Heavenly Song Academy encouraged its students to spar and compete with one another. It had spent vast resources and great effort to carve out hundreds of spacious fighting arenas across Green Mountain.
Despite their number, the arenas were nowhere near enough. Nearly every day, they were packed with people fighting battles both large and small.
But today was different. The other arenas were deserted, while a crowd jostled shoulder to shoulder around a large arena to watch the match.
The air rang with voices as everyone talked excitedly. At the two points on which their gazes converged stood two young men.
One was thirteen, the other fourteen.
But after their bodies had been transformed by demonic spiritual energy, they no longer looked their age. One stood six feet tall, a gleaming blade strapped to his back, with a powerful build and an air of confidence. The other stood eight feet tall, clad in a green robe, his eyes gleaming with keen light.
As they faced off, Yan Que suddenly spoke. "I know someone set you up and arranged for you to move into the West Mountain Dormitory. Even so, I have to challenge you in front of everyone and defeat you. Only then can I uphold the honor and dignity of us commoner students. You can only blame your bad luck."
Chu Yun raised an eyebrow and gave him a faintly mocking smile. "You're pretty confident, aren't you? We haven't even started, and you're already certain you'll win. Let's see whether the Drunken Snow Blade in my hand agrees."
Yan Que lifted his chin, looking down on him. "This isn't mere confidence. It's strength. My Thunder Vine may have only cultivated for 380 years, but you have no combat experience, and you know nothing about me. You've had the Drunken Snow Blade for a hundred times less time than I have. That's the gap in our strength. Freshman, you're still green. You've got a lot to learn."
"Heh. I never rely on empty boasts. I prefer to let the facts speak! Let's fight." Chu Yun's eyes flashed like lightning. The instant he finished speaking, he raised his blade and charged, opening the battle.
"The fight's started!" The crowd erupted at once.
"Chu Yun made the first move. What a Young Tiger—bold and relentless, afraid of nothing." Some people were rooting for him.
"His opponent is Senior Yan Que. This is going to be a fierce battle!" Some watched with shining eyes, convinced the two were evenly matched.
"Not necessarily. Chu Yun got lucky and managed to kill Remnant Wolf. He's still just a freshman, while Senior Yan Que is the leader of us commoner students. His combat strength ranks among the best in all of Heavenly Song Academy. I'll sit here and watch Chu Yun get thrashed." Most people, however, were rooting for Yan Que.
The noisy crowd's cheers surged up, but the two combatants had already blocked them out, focusing every ounce of their attention on each other.
"Thunder Vine, come forth." Yan Que slapped the Immortal Pouch at his waist, and countless pale-blue vines poured out of it.
The vines were only as thick as a person's finger, each long, slender tendril covered with countless oval leaves. As they spread, they looked like a ceaseless tide of blue.
"Flying Leaf Chaotic Slash!" Yan Que pointed, his voice cracking like spring thunder. He opened with a powerful technique, hoping to take Chu Yun down in one blow and make the commoners' influence felt to the fullest.
In an instant, countless oval leaves spun and shot out, forming a vast, sky-covering storm of leaf blades. Their whooshing filled the air like a sudden gale and downpour as they bore down on Chu Yun.
"He opened with the Flying Leaf Chaotic Slash. Looks like Senior Yan Que wants to crush Chu Yun."
"That's so powerful! There are so many blades—I can barely follow them. If they hit, they'll strip every scrap of flesh off his body."
"He has to retreat. He can't meet such a powerful attack head-on. He should take his time and look for an opening."
The crowd cried out in alarm. Yan Que had shown his formidable strength right from the start, leaving everyone shaken.
Chu Yun's charge did not slow. His eyes gleamed with an incomparably deep, cold light. Just as the leaf blades were about to reach him, he suddenly called, "Shelter from Wind and Rain."
The Drunken Snow Blade responded with a soft hum. Vast blade aura burst from it, rolling on without end like snow.
The Drunken Snow Blade had a demon weapon technique recorded within it, passed down through generations of Shu Family Island lords: the Shu Clan Blade Technique. It had six forms.
Chu Yun suddenly felt the blade grow as light as a feather. He swung it left and right, forming a curtain of blade aura that cleaved through every leaf blade. He broke through the imposing attack without losing speed, charging forward with his whole body.
Yan Que let out a startled sound. Chu Yun's calm, capable response was beyond his expectations.
"Immortal Vine Grappling Hand!" He shouted and thrust out both hands like a pair of eagle claws, grabbing toward Chu Yun from afar.
The Thunder Vine beside him suddenly spread like mad. Countless tendrils coiled like snakes, forming two enormous five-fingered hands under Yan Que's remote control. Their imposing might made the heart quail.
The enormous vine hands were as big as carriages. Chu Yun looked tiny before them, yet charged forward as if rushing to his death.
A vast shadow fell over him. The two blue-vine hands seemed slow, but moved with astonishing speed. They were lifelike, and were about to seize Chu Yun's small frame.
"Hmph. Strike first, ask questions later!" Chu Yun called softly. He seized his opening and unleashed one of the Shu Clan Blade Technique's forms.
A flash of blade light burst forth, bright and keen. It cleaved straight through the blue-vine hands, carrying Chu Yun through the encircling vines and out of the trap.
"What a sharp blade! The Young Tiger is bold and unstoppable!"
"Just wait. Senior Yan Que still has plenty of tricks up his sleeve."
The exchange had been perilously close, so tense it left everyone short of breath. Only now could they catch their breath and exclaim in amazement.
"Hmph! Let's see how long you can hold out." Yan Que sneered inwardly, his eyes flickering with dark light. He was utterly confident that with such a gap in strength, victory would be his. He decided to unleash another powerful technique and force Chu Yun into disarray.
"Brute Force Vine Whip!" At his command, countless tendrils intertwined to form a long blue whip.
The whip stretched more than ten yards, twisting and writhing as it lashed through the air like a mass of dancing snakes. Its assault was vicious.
"Single Blade Direct Entry!" Chu Yun's expression remained cold and unmoved. He seemed not to care about the madly lashing whips at all.
The Drunken Snow Blade's momentum rose, carrying Chu Yun forward and accelerating his steps. He continually adjusted the force of his blade, relying on the Drunken Snow Blade's razor edge to clear a path. He charged back and forth through the whip shadows, dodging again and again. When he couldn't dodge, he thrust out his blade and cut the massive whips apart.
"That's incredible! Chu Yun met offense with offense, and even a killing move like Brute Force Vine Whip can't do a thing to him!"
"The Young Tiger is fierce by nature. If it were me, I'd have gone on the defensive against an attack like that. But he's still pushing forward!"
"Look at Senior Yan Que's face. It's still anyone's game!"
Gasps and cries of amazement rose from the spectators. Chu Yun's strength and fighting style had stunned them.
Yan Que's expression had no choice but to change. He could see it now: what kind of inexperienced newcomer was this? His blade technique was so polished it had to be the product of at least ten years' practice. Breaking Brute Force Vine Whip was no easy task. In particular, this method required calm, rational judgment and constant footwork. He also had to avoid getting too tangled up while cutting through the whips, or the others would ensnare him.
At that moment, Yan Que began to take Chu Yun seriously and regard him as an equal. He decided to use his trump card. Otherwise, he wouldn't win.
(final note: the new week has begun, and I, True Person, am here shouting myself hoarse for votes. I sincerely ask everyone to show your support!)