In their first clash, the two were evenly matched. Lin Jin used the recoil to flip in midair, his second slash following close behind.
The blade traced a strange arc through the air. Chen Cangsheng turned his scabbard slightly, precisely blocking the blade's path.
Lin Jin's attacks kept accelerating. His third slash came from the right, his fourth cleaved down from overhead, and his fifth thrust straight forward.
Lin Jin's figure flashed repeatedly around Chen Cangsheng. Lightning-Cleaver became a sky full of blade afterimages in his hand, attacking from every inconceivable angle.
Every collision of blade and sword erupted in an ear-piercing roar. Shock waves spread outward one after another, shaking down the courtyard walls remaining on either side of the square, section by section.
Yet Chen Cangsheng never moved his feet again throughout it all. He stood in place, his scabbard like an impenetrable shield in his hand, steadily blocking every slash Lin Jin delivered.
His movements were not fast. They could even be called slow, but every block appeared exactly where the blade was about to fall, without the slightest deviation.
"Your blade is fast, and it has enough power." Chen Cangsheng's voice remained clear and steady amid the dense collisions of blade and sword. "But your Way of Skill has yet to enter the Force Realm. You have more than enough dominance, but not enough fluidity."
"Every slash you make attempts to cleave through my defenses. But have you ever considered that some things cannot be broken through brute force?"
"Whether the Way of the Sword or the way of the blade, once your cultivation reaches its pinnacle, you are no longer fighting your opponent, but yourself. The obsession in your heart is too strong, and instead leaves your Sword Intent lacking that touch of clarity."
Lin