Chapter 287: Dancing Blades, cut that scene…
‘I just realized that this might be your legit first solo fight, did you want me to assist, or…’
[No need, today’s performance will be mine and mine alone. Besides, I want to see if this man is all bluster and no muster myself.]
[Swear to chaos that was a weird yo-yo between a Russian and a Southern accent.]
[Swinging…dialect…]
[I don’t hear it.]
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As Zhen Liu walked to his side of the arena, Zhen Li rapidly went through everything he knew about the warrior before him.
The first and oldest fact they could find out about him was that the one known as the Fourth Young Master was horrendously crippled. Namely that while he was born with a surprisingly potent amount of aether of decent quality, he had exactly zero ability to channel said aether throughout his body. He was unable to cultivate any formula, he wasn’t able to use a single aether art even if he had a crossbow pointed at his head.
However, there were two other facets that made this little handicap less of an liability and more of a quirk.
The second rumor he recalled was that Zhen Liu had become an Aether puppet master after a botched assassination attempt.
While Aether Puppet Masters weren’t exactly rare back home, they were uncommon enough that the idea of one being in the sticks was somewhat unbelievable.
Especially one that could bestow their disciples with powerful elemental ones, like the rumors proclaim.
The last rumor that was the least believable: Zhen Liu had somehow become super strong. Like stupidly, physically strong without even needing aether to perform such feats.
‘Now assuming Zhen Liu is an aether puppet master, he’ll probably save his puppet for later in the fight or not at all in order to save it for the element of surpr-.’
“Razor Maiden, get his ass.”
“Huh?”
Or, not giving a single shit about such things, Zhen Liu just immediately summons forth a puppet to kick Zhen Li’s ass in right the fuck now.
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‘Let’s make it look realistic, yeah?’
[Of course.]
Zhen Liu reached into his pocket and pulled out the small, doll-like form of Razor Maiden in her carry mode.
Luckily for him, aether puppets normally took the form of small figures when not in use, so this little action actually made complete sense to the wider world.
Of course, his “puppets” were actually embodiments of chaos and desire, but the world didn’t need to know that…yet…
“Razor Maiden, get his ass!,” Zhen Liu exclaimed while throwing Razor Maiden’s doll form into the air. As Razor Maiden sailed through the air, her form got bigger and bigger under the watchful gaze of the audience, read: former opponents of Zhen Li, and Zhen Li himself.
“Razor Maiden? I don’t recognize that name…”
“Wait…I think Master Zhen Hai mentioned it once. It was a gift from some weirdo marquis in Emerald Eye. I think it was a custom job, but it was only a Bronze grade…”
“Well whatever the case maybe, this thing looks like nightmare fuel!”
“Really? I think it looks pretty.”
“Seriously?”
Up in the sir, the beautifully sharp and wicked looking form of a ballerina made of blades left an unforgettable impression of everyone watching. A feeling that Razor Maiden relished.
[That’s right, keep your eyes on me…because the show is about to begin!]
Now, normally she would just land back on the ground feet first and then rush towards her opponent in order to roundhouse kick them a face full of sword leg or she would try to land a jump kick on their face for a singular stabbing motion. However, for the past few weeks of being in non-active combat, she had looked through a lot of Zhen Liu’s memories in regards to pop culture and she wanted to…try a few things.
[Wait for the top of the arc…now!]
Once Razor Maiden had reached the very top of her thrown trajectory she concentrated her aether into her legs not to strengthen them, but to propel them forward, causing herself to spin in the air and turning herself into a giant chakram that then plummeted straight towards Zhen Li.
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‘Okay, unexpected but not unavoidable,’ Zhen Li thought to himself as he watched the spinning death diva come towards him. Before it got too close for comfort though, Zhen Li activated his movement art.
[Ice Step.]
In the blink of an eye, ice aether gathered at the soles of his feet and moved him several feet to the left just as the Razor Maiden came down and impacted the spot he was standing on several moments before.
Zhen Li was about to let out a sigh of relief or perhaps a mockery of Zhen Liu’s puppeting ability…but then he noticed that the Razor Maiden was still spinning.
“Uhhh…what the f-whoa!”
Before Zhen Li could ask what the fuck was going on, the Razor Maiden spun towards him like a wild wagon wheel and and almost sliced his arm off. As he spun around because of the momentum of him dodging the attack, he could see the spinning puppet coming towards him for a second time.
‘What the fuck kind of aether puppet is this?!,’ he cursed as this was highly unusual movement for an aether puppet.
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‘Whoa. Have you been practicing that move since the Marquis fight?’
[Of course, director. It worked surprisingly well last time and I have been reading on the ways to improve it.]
‘Huh…improve it, how?’
[Just keeping watching, director and you’ll see what surprises I got in store.]
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Zhen Li was just about to side step the incoming Razor Maiden again, but just as he was confident that he avoided the spinning death wheel, the Razor Maiden’s momentum suddenly stopped as the strange puppet was now doing a handstand before him, or rather, it was using it’s razor sharp claws to embed itself into he arena floor while keeping it’s legs upright.
“What the f-”
But then, it started to spin just it’s lower body.
‘Okay, I won’t be able to touch it but that’s just-.’
*Schink*
‘Schink?’
Before his very eyes, the Razor Maiden puppet popped it’s claws out of the ground and began to sue them as a focal point for an even deadlier spin.
