Chapter 17: Disgraced

"The Fiery Sun Sword is already a Third-rank Treasure Sword. Even without using any Spiritual Power, the blade itself radiates a searing heat. That move from Shen Yue is still as shockingly powerful as ever."

"I myself once lost to the Fiery Sun Sword. The Flame Sword Technique is relentlessly aggressive. I was defeated before I even had a chance to react. Alas."

"Speaking of which, everyone in the sect calls Li Shuang a genius of the Sword Dao, but has anyone ever actually seen her swordsmanship?"

"Isn’t that the truth."

"Even if her swordsmanship really is superb, her Black Abyss is only a First-rank Treasure Sword, while the Fiery Sun is a Third-rank. If their skills are equal, she’s guaranteed to lose. She could only stage a comeback from this disadvantage if her swordsmanship was several levels higher than Shen Yue’s."

"Is that even possible?"

The crowd around the fighting ring murmured amongst themselves.

Under the Fiery Sun’s ferocious assault, Li Shuang finally moved.

She raised her hand and casually swung her sword.

Her blade sliced through the sea of firelight, thrusting straight for Shen Yue’s throat.

Shen Yue recoiled in shock and quickly retracted his sword.

But it was as if Li Shuang had anticipated his every move.

Before he could retract his blade, the Black Abyss Sword flashed. A numbing sensation prickled Shen Yue’s scalp as his hair crown burst apart. Li Shuang had sliced off a lock of his hair.

Li Shuang looked at him with indifference. "Your hair for your head. You’ve lost."

Shen Yue’s lips began to tremble uncontrollably.

’I lost?’

’In a single move?’

’No!’

’This is impossible!’

Shen Yue felt as if countless mocking voices were boring into his ears. His pupils turned blood-red as he roared, "Who says I lost?!"

His hair flying loose, Shen Yue charged toward Li Shuang once more.

His sword technique was fast.

He could unleash a torrent of sword flashes in an instant.

But with what looked like a single, effortless stroke, Li Shuang would always strike directly at a flaw in his technique.

Shen Yue’s swordsmanship was flashy and created a grand spectacle, but Li Shuang forced him back step by step, driving him ever closer to the edge of the ring.

Shen Yue was dumbfounded.

The hand gripping his sword began to tremble faintly.

’How could...’

’How can this be happening?’

At that moment, he suddenly understood the meaning of "all brute force, no finesse."

Li Shuang’s patient admonishments, repeated time and again, surfaced in his mind.

"Third Brother, don’t focus solely on brute force in your swordsmanship. At your current level, you don’t need to unleash so many strikes at once. You can’t control them. It might look more powerful, but it just exposes more openings. I suggest you..."

’And how did I answer her?’

"Eldest Sister! If you don’t know how to teach, then don’t! Zhaozhao told me this move is amazing. Even your Sword Spirit, Long Yan, praised it. Everyone else thinks it’s great, so why are you the only one with so much to say?"

After that, his Eldest Sister grew more and more silent, until, in recent years, she no longer offered any opinions on his swordsmanship at all.

Shen Yue had assumed Li Shuang was speechless, and he’d felt secretly smug about it for a long time.

But now, he understood with painful clarity exactly what "exposing more openings" meant!

Li Shuang was seizing every single one of those openings. With just a casual swing of her sword, she could strike his vital weak point.

Below the ring.

An expression of disbelief spread across Ye Zhaozhao’s face.

’Why is this completely different from what I imagined?’

’How could Li Shuang be the one with the upper hand?’

’Shen Yue is being completely overwhelmed!’

Ye Zhaozhao whipped her head around to look at Long Yan.

’Didn’t Long Yan say Li Shuang was nothing without him?’

’Then what is this happening right in front of me?’

The gasps of awe from the disciples around the ring were like a death by a thousand cuts to Ye Zhaozhao.

’This wasn’t how it was supposed to go at all!’

Long Yan grew flustered under Ye Zhaozhao’s stare. He lowered his head, his voice laced with guilt. "Master... I... I don’t know what’s happening either. Maybe it’s because Li Shuang knows Shen Yue too well? That’s how she’s able to suppress him."

Seeing Long Yan’s guilty demeanor, Ye Zhaozhao guessed that the Sword Spirit was likely hiding something.

’But what’s the point of pressing him now? I finally managed to get my hands on this Peerless Treasure Sword, and I’ll still need Long Yan’s help going forward.’

Ye Zhaozhao forced a smile. "Perhaps."

Her gaze returned to the ring.

Shen Yue was in total disarray, on the verge of defeat.

Ye Zhaozhao gritted her teeth.

’This won’t do.’

’I came here to make Li Shuang break down, not to let her have her moment of glory!’

Ye Zhaozhao shouted, "Second Brother, come on! You can’t lose!"

Shen Yue’s form was in shambles and his mind was a tangled mess, but Ye Zhaozhao’s shout suddenly snapped him to his senses.

’I can’t lose!’

’That’s right, I can’t lose!’

’I have to prove that I was right and Li Shuang was wrong!’

’If I lose here, I’ll be a laughingstock.’

Just then, Li Shuang’s sword descended again, aimed squarely at another of his flaws.

In that instant, Shen Yue’s eyes turned crimson again.

’I can’t block this strike!’

’Once her sword lands, I’ll be knocked off the ring for sure.’

’And then... I’ll have lost?’

’No!’

’I can’t lose!’

’So many people are watching!’

’My junior sister is still cheering for me.’

’I absolutely cannot lose here.’

With a furious roar, Shen Yue suddenly infused his body with Spiritual Power and leaped out of the range of her sword technique.

Then, his heart filled with rage, he lashed out at Li Shuang with his sword!

The entire arena erupted in an uproar!

They had agreed this duel would be a contest of swordsmanship, with no Spiritual Power allowed.

Otherwise, what would be the point of a duel between someone at the Golden Core Stage and someone at the Qi Cultivation Stage?

And now, Shen Yue had actually used Spiritual Power!

According to the rules, Shen Yue had certainly lost, but if Li Shuang were to take this rage-fueled blow...

Li Shuang turned just in time to see a flash of sword light, carrying an aura of pure, scorching heat, sweeping toward her.

Li Shuang tried her best to evade.

But with her current level of cultivation, she couldn’t avoid it completely.

Li Shuang couldn’t help but let out a sigh.

’All I can do is protect my vitals and try to minimize the injury.’

Shen Yue gritted his teeth.

The moment his sword move was unleashed, he felt a pang of regret.

’Even though I didn’t use my full power, Li Shuang’s cultivation is too weak right now.’

’If this move hits her, Li Shuang will probably be injured, and I’ll have to go to the Law Enforcement Hall to accept punishment.’

’Why couldn’t I control myself just now!’

"Who dares harm my junior sister!" a cold voice suddenly rang out.

Luo Mingyue reacted in an instant, moving to stand directly in front of Li Shuang!

She drew her sword, parried Shen Yue’s attack, and with a burst of force, sent him flying!

In the next moment, Liu Juncheng sneered and charged forward. "Shen Yue, if you love using Spiritual Power so much, then you can fight me. We’re both at the Golden Core Stage, so it won’t be considered bullying!"

Shen Yue parried instinctively, but then he felt something was wrong.

Liu Juncheng had always been so unassuming. How were his attacks now so relentless, one after another without end?

Shen Yue had just been knocked back by Luo Mingyue, and before he could even recover, Liu Juncheng had forced him into a corner of the ring.

For the final blow, Liu Juncheng didn’t use his sword. He sneered, raised his leg, and kicked Shen Yue clean off the ring.

He landed with a heavy thud outside the ring and coughed up a mouthful of blood.

"Second Brother!" Ye Zhaozhao’s eyes flickered, and she rushed over to help Shen Yue up.

Jiang Yi took a deep breath, then another. She muttered to herself, "So humiliating, so humiliating."

Then she moved to block Ye Zhaozhao’s path.

Ye Zhaozhao grew annoyed. "You people from Heartless Peak are ganging up on him! If you know it’s humiliating, then get out of my way!"

As soon as the words left her mouth...

Jiang Yi seemed to make up her mind. She suddenly stepped forward, grabbed Ye Zhaozhao, and then...

...threw her out without the slightest hesitation.

THUD!

Ye Zhaozhao landed heavily on top of Shen Yue. Shen Yue, who hadn’t even caught his breath, was slammed so hard he spat out another mouthful of blood.

Ye Zhaozhao was going insane.

’Did she really just throw me like that???’