“Tie up both of your hands? Fairer?” Xiao Qin staggered, and he nearly fainted on the spot.
Are you suggesting that it would only be a fair fight against me after you tie up both of your hands?
Aren’t you underestimating me too much!
I, a powerful Saint 1-dan pinnacle expert, am challenging you to a fight, and yet, you think that I would only be a match for you with both of your hands tied?
A sharp pain assaulted Xiao Qin’s chest, leaving him feeling as if he would spurt blood at any moment.
“If you think that you will be able to withstand my attacks, do whatever you please!” Xiao Qin clenched his jaws so tightly that his teeth were on the verge of chipping, but he also knew that there was no point getting angry.
Thus, he took a deep breath to calm his state of mind before rushing forward.
The woman earlier was a Saint 1-dan expert just like him, and she was incredibly talented as well, so it was one thing for him to lose to her. He didn’t believe that he would lose to a random individual whom he had picked from a group of several thousand people as well.
Huala!
With his fingers hooked like claws, his hands darted forward with a sharp gust of wind.
Battle technique, Thunderbolt Heart Ripping Claws!
While this technique hadn’t reached Saint low-tier yet, it was well-known for its astounding prowess amongst Spirit pinnacle battle techniques. Upon reaching Major Accomplishment for this technique, one would be capable of pulling off lightning-swift movements that could mess with the opponent’s momentum, making it extremely difficult to deal with.
But of course, just the ability to mess with the opponent’s momentum wouldn’t justify the incredible infamy it had. What that had truly instilled fear in the hearts of the cultivators was how callous the technique was.
Everything that the claw latched itself onto would be torn off at lightning speed. If a cultivator were to put his guard down for a moment while facing this technique, his heart could very well be ripped out in the next moment.
It was due to how vicious the technique was that most master teachers would steer clear of it. However, these were the exact techniques that combat masters required to overwhelm their opponents in battle. The more vicious a technique was, the more likely that it would be effective in subduing or even killing their opponent. As a result, Xiao Qin had already reached an incredible level of mastery in the technique,
Huala!
Just as the Thunderbolt Heart Ripping Claws was about to land on its target, the scholarly young man suddenly took a quick step and dodged to the side. It was an extremely puzzling sight. The scholarly young man’s movements were visibly far slower than Xiao Qin’s, but for some reason, the scholarly young man was able to dodge his assault easily, as if having predicted the trajectory of his attack. On top of that, while the scholarly young man made the evasive maneuver, he lifted his leg and kicked it forcefully towards Xiao Qin’s lower body as well.
Facing the attack, Xiao Qin’s eyes narrowed.
He thought that the young man whom he had chosen out would only be average at best, but the movements made by the other party made him realize that he was sorely mistaken. The other party was far more terrifying than he had expected.
The Thunderbolt Heart Ripping Claws was extremely powerful, but the enhanced speed came at the expense of stability in his lower body. On top of that, the other party’s kick was accurately aimed at a location which he would definitely have to guard against but it was extremely awkward for him to do so.
“Thousand Leaf Threading Hands!” Knowing that he could be incapacitated if the kick were to land, Xiao Qin hurriedly opened up his claws and stroked the area in front of him gently.
It was a light movement reminiscent of a musician stroking its zither, but it was far more lethal than it looked.
The Thousand Leaf Treading Hands was a battle technique created by a demonic tunist. While its movements seemed completely harmless on the surface, in truth, every single finger harnessed a powerful surge of sword qi which could devastate any opponent easily.
The switch between the Thunderbolt Heart Ripping Claw to the Thousand Leaf Treading Hands was swift and seamless, devoid of the slightest lag in between, as if they were transformations of the same technique. This feat in itself showed that Xiao Qin’s reputation as the genius of the Martial Arts Division wasn’t just for show.
His mastery over his battle techniques had indeed reached an incredible level.
However, as incredible as his movements were, he was still outdone by his opponent. Seemingly having anticipated Xiao Qin’s movements, the scholarly young man leaped into the sky and accurately kicked his fingers with the tip of his feet.
Kacha! Kacha!
As the immense force gathered in the scholarly young man’s feet collided with Xiao Qin’s fingers, the crisp sound of bone shattering echoed resoundingly in the air. Before Xiao Qin could recover from this blow, a black shadow abruptly covered his view. A leg was headed straight for his face.
Peng!
Xiao Qin was sent crashing into the ground, and blood spurted uncontrollably from his mouth.
He struggled back to his feet with disbelief in his eyes.
He realized that from the start to the end, the scholarly young man really hadn’t used his hands at all. Yet, the other party was still able to defeat him so easily!
While he did lose to the Saint 1-dan pinnacle woman earlier on, he could rationalize his defeat as the woman being the most talented genius in the Xuanxuan Faction. But the scholarly young man was someone whom he had chosen at random, a mere Cosmos Bridge realm cultivator… and yet, he didn’t even survive two attacks from the other party!
Could it be that there was truly a mistake in the battle techniques that he cultivated?
“There’s no need to get depressed.” the scholarly young man consoled. “Your fighting prowess is not too bad, it’s just a pity that you met me! But well… I guess you could also count it as a blessing in disguise too, because I am one of the weaker members of the Xuanxuan Faction.
“Your moves are swift and powerful, and your ability to transit between different techniques is impressive. Your grasp of timing over battle techniques is rather commendable too. Despite all this, the reason why you are unable to achieve victory is because you place too much trust in your battle techniques and overlooked yourself!”
“Place too much trust in my battle techniques?” Unsure of what the scholarly young man was driving at, Xiao Qin frowned in incomprehension.
“That’s right. The aim of a battle technique is to effectively draw out the strength within a cultivator so as to overwhelm the opponent. However, it is important to note that it is a means to a battle, not an end to a battle! As powerful as a battle technique may be, it can only play an auxiliary role in battle,” the scholarly young man explained with a smile.
“The battle techniques that you have utilized in your fight against Senior Qiqi and me are indeed powerful. If it had been any other cultivator, there would be no doubt that they would have fallen by now. However, in our eyes, your reliance on powerful battle techniques only became flaws for us to exploit.
“To give you an example, that claw art that you have used against me earlier boasted of incredible speed and astounding might. However, have you considered any countermeasure should your attacks fail to land on your opponent?”
At this point, the scholarly young man paused for a brief moment before continuing. “Even the strongest of battle techniques would be meaningless if you can’t land it on your opponent! The reason why I chose to dodge your claw art at the very last moment is because I could tell that you would be wide open in that very instant. In that instant, all of your strength would be centered on your upper body, leaving your lower body wide open!
“Thus, I aimed my kick at your lower thigh. No matter how fast you are able to drive your zhenqi, it would have been difficult for you to channel your zhenqi from your hands to your legs at a moment’s notice. You probably thought that this was a negligible flaw due to the incredible speed of your claw art, but under the careful manipulation of an expert, even the smallest of flaws could be exacerbated many times over. That being said, your response is truly commendable. Realizing that you would not be able to reinforce your defenses in time, you decisively chose to switch your method of offense.
“Your new offense consisted of a light stroking motion. Under its gentle exterior, I could sense sword qi gathering on your fingertips. If I’m not mistaken, it should be a type of battle technique as well. I have to admit that it’s quite a powerful move, but its attacks are very straightforward too. A sword might be sharp, but that’s only when you are standing before its blade. Just by leaping into the air, I was able to avoid your attack easily. Then, with a simple kick on your fingers, I was able to overcome your battle technique very easily and even inflict considerable damage.” The scholarly young man shook his head in pity.
As a whole, the strength of the fellow before him was still decent, but it was a pity that his movements were too rigid.
“Y-you…” Xiao Qin’s body trembled in shock, as if a streak of lightning had struck his body.
The other party’s analysis was spot-on. Those were indeed the flaws of his battle techniques… It was no wonder why he lost so tragically!
“All of you… were able to see through my flaws as well?” Xiao Qin turned to the crowd around him and asked hoarsely.
“Considering how weak you are, it would have been difficult not to see through your flaws!”
“Your attacks are too straightforward, being able to see through the flaws in it is truly nothing much…”
“To tell you the truth, Hu Chun has only listed a small portion of the flaws in your battle techniques. It goes without saying that the more powerful a battle technique is, the greater damage it could deal, but… if one is unable to land his blows, what would be the use even if one were to wield the most powerful battle technique in the world?”
…
Hearing Xiao Qin’s question, a huge commotion broke out amidst the crowd.
“Unable to land his blows…” Xiao Qin muttered in a daze as he heard the comments around him.
Indeed.
Battle techniques were designed to allow a cultivator to amplify his strength so as to deal greater harm to his opponent. However, if one’s battle techniques couldn’t connect with one’s opponent… what would be the use?
No matter how many battle techniques one were to learn, it would only be for show!
“I have benefitted from your guidance…”
The realization of this fact came as an epiphany to Xiao Qin. He had a feeling as if the clouds that had been covering his eyes all along had finally been parted, revealing an entirely new world to him. Thankful, he bowed deeply to the crowd before him.
For many years, he had been aiming to cultivate as many powerful battle techniques as he could, and he took pride in that as well. He mistakenly assumed that powerful battle techniques equaled greater fighting prowess.
Such a logic may hold true against ordinary cultivators, but when faced with a true expert, his overreliance on battle techniques would have been a fatal flaw!
As the saying goes, ‘the greater the breadth, the lower the depth’!
No matter how smooth his transitions between battle techniques were, they were still ultimately different battle techniques. There were bound to be several flaws in between that others could make use of.
“There’s no need to stand on ceremony. Actually, we also learned all of these from our principal as well. It’s only due to his guidance that we were able to attain the current eye of discernment and astute combat sense that we possess. Otherwise, as ordinary master teachers, there’s no way we could have been a match for you!” the scholarly young man replied.
“Your principal?”
“That’s right. Our principal is an incredible genius. Despite being younger than us, his understanding of combat far surpasses our understanding. He is the one who taught us that the precision of an attack is far more important than the strength harnessed in it. For example, in the fight earlier, if you had shifted your first attack to the left by three centimeters and taken an additional step forward, I would have been unable to counterattack at all.” the scholarly young man said.
“This…” Frowning, Xiao Qin simulated the scene in his mind, and his eyebrows suddenly shot up in astonishment.
He was right!
If he had done so, the scholarly young man wouldn’t have had any time to dodge his claws, let alone launch a counterattack at his lower body!
“And for the second move, the concept of wielding sword qi on your hands with a gentle stroking motion is a good idea, but your movements are simply too rigid. If you were to complement it with the motions of Gentle Palm as well, you would have been able to cover your sides as well. Even if I had leaped into the sky and dodged your first attack, I would still have been in your attack range, thus forcing the match into a direct collision. If so, it would have been hard to tell who would emerge victorious…” the scholarly young man continued analyzing.
Xiao Qin’s body stiffened once more.
The main reason why his fingers were kicked so easily earlier was due to the sword qi on his fingers being unable to reach his opponent, thus leaving him wide open.
If he were to complement his stroking motion with the underlying concept of the Gentle Palm, the enhanced flexibility in his hand movements would have allowed him to cover a greater arc of attack before him. If so, he would have been able to fend against his opponent’s kick as well…
“Our principal had once told us that if it would be better to cast away all techniques if all one did was rely on them blindly. It’s your overreliance on battle techniques that resulted in your lack of flexibility in battle, thus placing you in a disadvantage against other cultivators…” the scholarly young man sighed.
With his fists tightly clenched, Xiao Qin finally absorbed everything that he had heard, and he exhaled a mouthful of turbid gas. With admiration in his eyes, he commended, “To be able to have such insights, your principal is truly an incredible genius…”
These combat insights were far more profound than those in the Combat Master Hall. Just by these in itself, it was apparent that the principal that they were speaking about was a terrifying genius.
“Of course, our principal is a genius like no other in the world! Not only so, he also has a magnanimous heart that is boundless like the ocean. As long as one is willing to learn from him, he would impart what he knows without any hesitation.” The scholarly young man smiled.
“He would impart what he knows without any hesitation to anyone who is willing to learn?”
“Indeed. But due to his limited time, he has no choice but to limit his efforts on the members of the Xuanxuan Faction for the time being. It is also for this reason that countless cultivators dream of joining our Xuanxuan Faction!” Ruohuan gongzi interjected at this point.
“T-this…”
With his fists tightly clenched, many emotions flashed across Xiao Qin’s face. A moment later, he spoke up meekly, “May I ask if… your Xuanxuan Faction is still recruiting?”
