Skimming waves and shattering water without getting wet, treading wind and piercing the sun to cut the clouds!

Clang-

Jian Yuhua knocked the spear aside with his staff and charged through the opening, striking straight at the centerline in what looked like a killing blow.

But no one noticed that although Ye Jingtang's spearhead had been knocked aside, his hands gripping the spear had barely moved.

The spearhead had veered aside only because Jian Yuhua's explosive force was too great, and the shaft was flexible.

The instant Jian Yuhua charged through the opening, the deflected spearhead sprang back. Ye Jingtang followed its momentum with a fierce sweep, smashing it straight into the long staff thrusting toward him.

Clang-

The two long weapons collided again with an explosive crash.

Jian Yuhua reacted extremely quickly. He had already drawn back his staff and raised it to parry the spearhead, while sharply flicking his wrist to sneak the staff's tip toward Ye Jingtang's ankle.

But the spear's explosive force was too great. His idea was sound, but his feet failed to hold; in that single exchange, the blow knocked his lower body off balance.

Thud, thud, thud...

Jian Yuhua was driven three steps sideways before planting his staff's tip on the ground to steady himself. Surprise had barely surfaced in his eyes when a cold gleam stabbed straight toward him.

Whoosh-

The ink-black spearhead sliced through the air with a sound like a whistling arrow, almost shrill.

As Ye Jingtang knocked Jian Yuhua aside, his robes snapped taut. Holding the spear in both hands, he delivered a level thrust of supreme simplicity, striking straight for Jian Yuhua's chest and abdomen.

The level thrust was the foundation of spear fighting, and also the most powerful move among the hundred schools of spear arts. It pushed the weapon's length and the body's strength to their limits. With his centerline exposed and his footing