Ye Jingtang naturally understood the difference in speed between lifting his left hand to send the saber out and moving his left hand over to the right.
If this opening stance met his Eight-Step Mad Blade at the same level of skill, its user would be beheaded on the spot.
Ye Jingtang explained, "See this step? Against the Eight-Step Mad Blade, step back; against other saber techniques, step forward. That's how this counters the Dragon-Slaying Order and the Eight-Step Mad Blade. And drawing with the left hand while pushing with the right happens to block the Eight-Step Mad Blade's opening. If its first strike can't shake the opponent, it can't link the following strikes into an unbroken chain."
The Empress of Great Wei carefully rehearsed it in her mind and found that it really was so. After some thought, she said:
"It's only one move, and a defensive one. Even if you block the Dragon-Slaying Order's opening, if your saber push fails to subdue your opponent, by the time you reverse your grip for a second slash, the Dragon-Slaying Order will already be spinning. You won't be able to stop it. And never mind the Eight-Step Mad Blade-it could cut you into three pieces. What would you do?"
Maintaining his stepping saber-push stance, Ye Jingtang considered this seriously for a moment, then placed his left foot behind him to support his body, with his right foot forward.
The Empress frowned slightly. "That's even less stable than your last stance."
"Now that's something you don't understand."
Ye Jingtang drew with his left hand and pushed the saber with his right. "After I block the Dragon-Slaying Order, the opponent will inevitably slide to the right. A heavy saber's momentum is hard to arrest, and they can't slide past my saber tip, so