Secret Art: Star-Pointing Finger

In the fifth round of drawing lots, Zhang Yu drew number three. His opponent was a disciple from the Sword-Grasping Institute. The other man had struck only once when Zhang Yu flicked a finger against the blade. The treasured sword boomed, and its sword force scattered.

The man immediately retreated and conceded defeat, leaving Zhang Yu thoroughly frustrated. He had moved with the wind and was just about to throw a punch.

Before his fist could even fly out, the other man had surrendered, as if terrified Zhang Yu would keep attacking. He shouted it especially loudly.

"Damn it!" Zhang Yu cursed under his breath, forcibly withdrawing his fist.

The fifth round ended, and the top four emerged.

Zhang Yu of the Bedrock Institute, Gu Zhibei of the Sword-Grasping Institute, Pei Wang of the Cloud Return Institute, and Yu Hongbai of the Star Court.

In the sixth round of drawing lots, Zhang Yu drew Yu Hongbai of the Star Court.

Yu Hongbai was straightforward enough. Looking at Zhang Yu, he said, "I can't beat you. I concede."

Then he jumped down from the arena.

Yu Hongbai had his own considerations. With the strength Zhang Yu had displayed, he was certain he could not win. Rather than fight stubbornly and get injured, he might as well wait to compete for third place.

First place received three drops of Marrow-Washing Fluid, second place two drops, and third place one drop.

Zhang Yu stepped down from the arena and looked toward Gu Zhibei and Pei Wang on the other arena.

Neither Gu Zhibei nor Pei Wang rushed to attack. They stared at each other as though they were conversing.

"You should concede. You're no match for me. You might as well save your strength to fight Yu Hongbai for third place," Gu Zhibei said to Pei Wang.

He did not want to waste his strength fighting Pei Wang head-on. He wanted to save it for a proper battle against Zhang Yu in the final match.

As a swordsman, he trusted his sword, and he also had his own trump card.

Pei Wang did not speak. Reason told him that this was the best choice, but as the senior disciple of the Cloud Return Institute, he could not retreat without a fight.

"I have a killing move of the Cloud Return Hand, Plucking Stars. If you can take it, I'll concede," Pei Wang proposed a compromise.

"Come!" Gu Zhibei wasted no words and directly drew the Azure Edge Sword.

Pei Wang said nothing more. He closed in, his left hand suddenly reaching downward to grab straight for the other man's vulnerable spot.

The force behind it was immense, and faint explosions of air sounded from his five fingers.

Hiss...

"Senior Brother Pei Wang is ruthless!"

"My crotch feels chilly!"

"Senior Brother Pei Wang, that's underhanded! Didn't you say Plucking Stars? Is this Plucking Stars?"

The many male disciples below the arena all clamped their legs together, a sense of dread rising within them.

Gu Zhibei was frightened by Pei Wang's move as well. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Pei Wang, you're using dirty tricks. Don't blame me for being merciless. Take my sword!"

The Azure Edge Sword slashed downward as his body leaped backward.

Pei Wang's gaze remained fixed on Gu Zhibei. When he saw the latter leap back to evade, a cold glint flashed in his eyes.

Plucking Stars!

The true killing move, Plucking Stars, was unleashed.

Pei Wang's downward-reaching left hand had only been a feint, intended to make his opponent leap backward to evade. After all, it was difficult to alter one's moves in midair, making one easy to strike.

Pei Wang's body vanished. Cracks had already appeared in the stone slabs beneath his feet. He pushed his speed to its limit and instantly appeared before Gu Zhibei in midair.

His right hand clawed toward Gu Zhibei's head.

This was the true Plucking Stars.

At that moment, Gu Zhibei knew he had fallen for it. But the trials he had endured in the Ten Thousand Mountains, the brushes with life and death, kept him from panicking too much.

The downward slash of the Azure Edge Sword could no longer be changed, but his left hand formed a sword finger. Suddenly, starlight flashed as he pointed at Pei Wang's right palm.

Smack!

Pfft!

Pei Wang's right palm was pierced through by Gu Zhibei's finger. Powerful force burst open a bloody hole in his palm.

"Ah..."

Pei Wang cried out miserably and fell back onto the arena. His left hand covered his injured right palm as he stared at Gu Zhibei. "You mastered the secret art, the Star-Pointing Finger?"

"I had originally saved this move for Zhang Yu. I didn't expect you to force it out of me. You can take pride in that," Gu Zhibei said.

The expression on Pei Wang's face shifted for a moment. He was deeply unwilling to accept it, but in the end, he said nothing more. The winner was king, the loser a bandit. He turned and walked off the arena.

Secret arts were extremely difficult to cultivate. Once mastered, they could unleash twice one's own strength.

The Star-Pointing Finger was one such secret art.

Zhang Yu had been watching as well. Seeing Gu Zhibei break Pei Wang's killing move with a single finger in a desperate situation, his expression did not change at all.

"Senior Brother, Gu Zhibei actually succeeded in cultivating the secret art, the Star-Pointing Finger. You must be careful later," Li Feifei said beside him, her face full of concern.

"It's nothing," Zhang Yu said indifferently.

He had spent two months studying martial knowledge in the Scripture Repository, so naturally he knew what secret arts were.

With the insight gained from cultivating two true martial intents, he saw through the essence of secret arts at a glance.

A secret art was merely one-tenth of a martial intent—perhaps even one-twentieth.

To Zhang Yu, who had grasped two genuine martial intents, secret arts were chicken ribs: tasteless to eat, yet a pity to discard. Before him, they were simply not worth mentioning.

But the others did not know that. When they saw Gu Zhibei use the secret art, the Star-Pointing Finger, they immediately burst into exclamations.

"Hiss, Senior Brother Gu Zhibei actually mastered the secret art, the Star-Pointing Finger. Senior Brother Zhang Yu may be in danger next."

"For a commoner's son like Zhang Yu to have made it this far, he should already be thanking his lucky stars." The disciples of the great families had long disliked Zhang Yu. If a commoner disciple won first place in the Azure Eagle Tournament, every disciple from the great families would lose face.

The battle for first place soon began.

On the raised platform, Shi Cangyue glanced at the elder from the Sword-Grasping Institute and said, "Elder Li, Gu Zhibei's mastery of a secret art is quite formidable. My disciple is in danger."

"Shi Cangyue, do you think I'm blind? Zhang Yu has most likely grasped the martial intent of the Iron Shirt. Even if he has not fully mastered it, he has already touched upon it. The Star-Pointing Finger cannot threaten him," Elder Li said irritably.

Shi Cangyue was not embarrassed. "Martial intent is so difficult. My disciple has not comprehended it, so he may very well be no match for Gu Zhibei. Let's make a wager. We'll each bet on our own disciple to win. If the loser..."

"Get lost! Shi Cangyue, do I look like an idiot to you?" Elder Li cut him off before he could finish.

"Hehe, fine, no wager then." Shi Cangyue smiled.

Chang Wei, however, felt extremely stifled. Elder Li's words had not hurt Shi Cangyue, but they had hurt him.

It sounded as though he had been called an idiot, yet he had no proof.

On the arena.

Zhang Yu looked thoroughly unconcerned, while Gu Zhibei faced him as though confronting a great enemy.

"We've fought all day. I'm tired. Concede on your own and spare yourself some physical suffering," Zhang Yu said blandly as he looked at Gu Zhibei.

"What did he say?"

"How arrogant!"

"He actually dares look down on Senior Brother Gu Zhibei."

Before Gu Zhibei could speak, the disciples below the arena had already grown furious.

"Senior Brother Gu, show him what you're made of!"

"Cripple him!"

"Smash his mouth so he'll see how he can keep being arrogant!"

Voices condemning Zhang Yu rose one after another.

"A bunch of trash! Go, Senior Brother Zhang Yu! Senior Brother Zhang Yu is mighty!" Li Feifei suddenly shouted.

That was simply her nature.

Once she had placed a bet, she dared stake everything on it. She would not abandon it halfway just because she encountered difficulties.

Now that all the disciples of the great families were denouncing Zhang Yu, even the junior sisters who had supported him earlier no longer dared make a sound, because they too were part of those great families.

Su Wan did not speak either. She did not dare offend anyone.

Only Li Feifei's voice remained.

Zhang Yu glanced at Li Feifei on the arena and gave her an approving look.

You could be bad, ruthless, sharp-tongued, mean, sinister, and cunning.

But so long as you dared step forward to defend him at a crucial moment, Zhang Yu would remember the favor.