Chapter 26: Victory and Defeat
Zhang Ruochen stared at Lin Yushan and said calmly, "Making it into the top four is equally important to me. How about this? I can fight you without using a sword!"
"Really?"
Lin Yushan's heart leaped with joy. "Since my cousin is being so courteous, Yushan thanks you!"
In her view, Zhang Ruochen must have been reluctant to defeat her, which was why he had voluntarily offered to fight her barehanded.
How could she know that what Zhang Ruochen was actually thinking was that to beat her, he simply didn't need a sword?
The sword Lin Yushan used was a second-rank True Martial Treasure, the Star Radiance Sword.
As the battle sword left its sheath, it immediately emitted a radiance like starlight, with specks of light flowing across the blade's surface.
Lin Yushan's gaze turned sharp. She mobilized the true qi within her body and poured it continuously into the sword, simultaneously activating a force-type inscription and a light-type inscription engraved within the blade.
"Whoosh!"
Lin Yushan took three steps forward, each step spanning three meters. She attacked first, thrusting her sword toward Zhang Ruochen's chest. A cyan sword flower bloomed in the void.
In an instant, the icy-cold sword tip reached Zhang Ruochen.
Earlier, the Ninth Princess had been defeated by this very sword technique of Lin Yushan's, proving that it was no simple move.
Zhang Ruochen pushed off the ground with his foot and immediately shifted horizontally to the right.
"Swish!"
Lin Yushan changed her move as well, twisting her arm. The Star Radiance Sword spun in the void and reversed direction, stabbing toward Zhang Ruochen's neck.
The Star Radiance Sword seemed to have become a part of her body, completely under her control. The sword techniques she executed were extremely exquisite.
"Flowing Clouds and Water!"
Lin Yushan unleashed a human-grade mid-rank sword technique, thrusting nine times in succession, one after another without interruption.
The swordplay was graceful, the sword light dense.
"Wind Sweeping the Remnants!"
"Rain Ceasing, Clouds Settling!"
...
Lin Yushan executed thirteen sword techniques in a row, each thrust aimed at the void, yet none could even touch the hem of Zhang Ruochen's clothes.
One must know that her sword intent had already reached the realm of "Sword Following the Heart." How could she be unable to secure a quick victory against a martial artist of weaker cultivation?
"Clouds Parting, Mist Scattering!"
Lin Yushan unleashed the final move of this sword technique set. The sword strike was grand and sweeping, its momentum astonishing, forcing Zhang Ruochen to retreat continuously until he was pushed to the edge of the training ground.
It seemed Zhang Ruochen was about to step out of the arena.
"That's about enough."
Zhang Ruochen's eyes emitted two sharp beams of light. He abruptly stopped in his tracks, staring at the overwhelming sword light pressing down on him. He formed a finger sword with his index and middle fingers.
He pointed forward!
"Whoosh!"
The finger sword shattered all the sword qi in the void and struck Lin Yushan's chest.
"Bang!"
True qi transmitted from his fingertip, crashing into Lin Yushan and sending her flying backward, where she fell to the ground three meters away.
Zhang Ruochen looked coldly at Lin Yushan, who lay on the ground, and said, "You've lost."
Lin Yushan clutched her chest, gritting her teeth. Her eyes stared fixedly at Zhang Ruochen. She grabbed the Star Radiance Sword from the ground, a cold, humiliated aura in her gaze. "I haven't lost! Zhang Ruochen, let's continue fighting!"
Zhang Ruochen shook his head gently, unwilling to argue further with a defeated opponent. He turned and walked out of the training ground.
"Heavenly Heart Pointing the Way!"
Lin Yushan's eyes turned cold with resentment. She poured all the true qi in her body into the Star Radiance Sword, unleashing a spirit-grade lower-rank Heavenly Heart Sword Technique.
The Star Radiance Sword immediately surged with a meter-high sword light, radiating a massive burst of sword qi.
With a swing of her arm, a seven-meter-long sword qi slashed toward Zhang Ruochen.
The moment Lin Yushan executed this sword technique, the martial artists outside the training ground all changed expression.
One must know that the Ninth Prince was currently walking out of the training ground, yet Lin Yushan was attacking him from behind with a powerful spirit-grade sword technique.
If it struck the Ninth Prince, he would surely die.
"Yushan, stop!" Lin Fengxian's face also changed slightly, and he immediately roared.
If the Ninth Prince died under Lin Yushan's sword, the Lin Clan would be in deep trouble.
But no one had expected that after her defeat, Lin Yushan would still continue to attack.
It was too late to intervene.
Just as everyone thought Zhang Ruochen would surely die under Lin Yushan's sword, his body shot into the air, dodging the sword qi she had slashed out.
"Flying Dragon in the Sky!"
Zhang Ruochen soared seven meters into the air, twisted his body, and let out a dragon-like roar. He struck down with his palm, hitting Lin Yushan's shoulder.
"Bang!"
Lin Yushan's entire body trembled. She spat out a mouthful of blood, her legs went weak, and she collapsed to the ground.
Zhang Ruochen cast a cold glance at Lin Yushan, lying in a pool of blood, and shook his head, feeling even more disappointed in his cousin.
Lin Fengxian immediately rushed into the training ground. He glanced at Zhang Ruochen, then at the cold-faced Yunwu Commandery Prince in the distance, and said reluctantly, "Thank you, Ninth Prince, for sparing her life."
With that, Lin Fengxian helped Lin Yushan to her feet.
He placed his palm on Lin Yushan's back, channeling thick true qi from his palm continuously into her body to help her recover from her injuries.
Zhang Ruochen had indeed shown mercy just now.
If that palm strike had landed on Lin Yushan's head instead of her shoulder, she would have been dead without a doubt.
Lin Yushan regained consciousness and opened her eyes. She glanced at Zhang Ruochen, a deep resentment burning in her gaze. She thought to herself, "Zhang Ruochen, the humiliation you've inflicted on me today, I will repay you double in the future."
By then, Zhang Ruochen had already turned and left, walking out of the training ground.
After Lin Fengxian had taken Lin Yushan away, the martial competition continued.
The next three matches were: Situ Linjiang versus Lin Tianwu.
The Fifth Prince versus the Sixth Prince.
Xue Kai versus Luo Cheng.
Lin Tianwu was another young expert of the Lin Clan, nineteen years old, with a martial cultivation at the Yellow Extreme Realm Mid Extreme Position.
But Situ Linjiang was at the Yellow Extreme Realm Great Extreme Position. With just one palm strike, he sent Lin Tianwu flying out of the training ground.
The battle between the Fifth Prince and the Sixth Prince ended with the Sixth Prince forfeiting.
The fight between Xue Kai and Luo Cheng was quite exciting.
Although Luo Cheng was only at the Yellow Extreme Realm Mid Extreme Position, the martial techniques he had cultivated were very powerful, allowing him to hold his own against Xue Kai.
Of course, in the end, due to the gap in cultivation, Luo Cheng was defeated by Xue Kai.
With that, the top four of this year's year-end assessment were decided: Zhang Ruochen, the Fifth Prince, Xue Kai, and Situ Linjiang.
Lin Yushan, Luo Cheng, Lin Tianwu, and the Sixth Prince would compete for fifth place.
The battles to come would become even more brutal. The Fifth Prince, Xue Kai, and Situ Linjiang were all at the Yellow Extreme Realm Great Extreme Position, while Zhang Ruochen was only at the Yellow Extreme Realm Small Extreme Position.
"Little Ninth, I never expected you to make it into the top four. Fifth Brother has indeed underestimated you in the past. But you'll have to stop at fourth place, after all, the gap between the Small Extreme Position and the Great Extreme Position is far greater than you imagine," the Fifth Prince said with a smile.
Zhang Ruochen paid no attention to the Fifth Prince. He simply closed his eyes, quickly recovering the true qi he had expended.
"The next match: Ninth Prince Zhang Ruochen versus Xue Kai of the National Preceptor's Mansion."
Zhang Ruochen and Xue Kai entered the training ground together.
Xue Kai sized up Zhang Ruochen and said with a smile, "Ninth Prince, your specialty is the sword, isn't it?"
"You could say that," Zhang Ruochen replied.
"Good! Then let's compete with swords!" Xue Kai extended his arm, and a young martial artist from the National Preceptor's Mansion outside the training ground handed a longsword to Xue Kai.
Xue Kai had carefully observed Zhang Ruochen's previous two matches. He felt that Zhang Ruochen's claim of being skilled with the sword was just a front; his real strength was definitely in palm techniques.
After all, the palm techniques Zhang Ruochen had displayed in the first two matches were indeed formidable, hardly the mark of a sword expert.
Palm techniques emphasized overwhelming power.
Sword techniques emphasized agile variation.
The two were difficult to combine.
That was why Xue Kai had proposed a sword duel with Zhang Ruochen.
He believed that Zhang Ruochen's mastery of the sword was far inferior to his own.
"Little Ninth, catch!" The Ninth Princess threw her own sword, the Clear Water Sword, toward Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen caught the Clear Water Sword. As he gripped the hilt, he immediately felt a faint coldness emanating from the blade.
"A third-rank True Martial Treasure-level battle sword, with three ice-type inscriptions and three force-type inscriptions engraved within," Zhang Ruochen muttered, judging its grade just by holding it in his hand.