“Li Gao (superior/high). And Dong Yun An.”

 

“Who do you think will win?”

 

“Dong Yun An, isn’t it?”

 

“Yin Yu and Li Gao’s cultivation are at the same level, but Yin Yu is more quick-witted at using her cultivation and technique. So Yin Yu is stronger than Li Gao, but Dong Yun An has defeated Yin Yu. It’s obvious, isn’t it?”

 

“Think so too.”

 

“Li Gao may have an edge against Dong Yun An.” Someone else chimed in.

 

“What are you talking about?”

 

“Yin Yu has a better head, but Li Gao has better sword technique.”

 

“Now that you mention. Li Gao has many weaknesses in comparison to Yin Yu, but his Invisible Sword is definitely better.”

 

“So Li Gao will win?”

 

“Maybe.”

 

“There is more.”

 

“Like what?”

 

“The first thing is Dong Yun An didn’t defeat Yin Yu. Yin Yu surrendered because junior master Fang Yun ordered her to...”

 

The listening disciples immediately recalled the event and nodded slowly. Their junior master, the referee, did say something along the line that they both would sustain more injuries should Yin Yu choose to continue pursuing the fight. 

Yun An attended for the fights. She had no reason not to go further. Even if she received more wounds, she wouldn’t stop. Unlike other disciples who were busy making a name for themselves, Yun An had no such pressure.

Yin Yu was a higher cultivator though. Being heavily injured would greatly interfere with her cultivation. It couldn’t be compared to Yun An whose goal is merely breaking through to the third level. Thus, Fang Yun had decided not to persuade Yun An to surrender but tell Yin Yu instead. Yin Yu was also his disciple. It was far easier to convince her.

 

“…Even if Dong Yun An is as strong as Yin Yu, her injuries would be disadvantageous.”

 

The memories of Yun An swiping blood from her mouth corner, or the scratches from the Invisible Sword, or the bloody finger made their way back to the disciples’ mind. Those injuries gave them a sweat.

 

Li Gao on the stage was fully aware of those exploitable weaknesses. However, he was wary of Yun An. To him, anyone that could force Yin Yu to concede was a threat. Still, he understood that there was a winning chance.

During the fight between Yin Yu and Dong Yun An, Yin Yu’s palm strikes could reach Yun An but it didn’t have enough power to make her submit. On the other hand, Yin Yu couldn’t activate Invisible Sword fast enough during the high-speed combat to hit Yun An. In fact, if Yin Yu relied on her Invisible Sword technique, Yun An would have capitalised on the long preparation time to interrupt and corner Yin Yu. 

Fortunately for Li Gao, he didn’t have Yin Yu's problem. The boy spent his time on Lightning Slash and Invisible Sword more so than on other techniques. He could dish out those two sword arts almost as swiftly as Yin Yu using her palms. By nature, these sword techniques of the sect if landed would guarantee more severe damage to Dong Yun An than the palm strikes. When Dong Yun An was too badly wounded, his senior master (Fang Yun is the senior of Li Gao's master) would interrupt the match in Li Gao’s favour. For this fight, he only needed to take the opportunities and to not let Yun An adapt.

 

“Fight!”

 

Unlike the previous matches, Yun An had adopted a new stance. The right leg was behind and so was her right torso which held the sword. It was a stance as open as her old one but was more readily to move. 

The tactic of Yun An’s previous matches was reactive. This change indicated that Yun An had anticipated she would need to be more active if she wanted to snatch a victory from Li Gao.

As with every contestant before him, Li Gao took the initiative against Yun An. While cutting down the distance, his sword launched three successive crescent blades at the younger cultivator.

 

Yun An sidestepped them with little difficulty. When the last crescent blade flew pass her, Li Gao had been in the distance for melee.

 

Yun An struggled to defend just as she did against Yin Yu. Yin Yu’s palms were truly less alarming than a qi-imbued sword in the hands of a diligent swordsman. 

 

Yun An's weaker qi forced her to avoid the edge of her enemy. Despite her advanced perception, his adept swordsmanship made it difficult for her to deal with the sharp weapon. Even when her left hand shoved the blade away by its broad side, Li Gao knew to use the weapon’s flexibility to fix its trajectory. The sword wasn’t too long but its reach kept her at bay. Unable to attack, the onlookers whispered at Yun An’s imminent defeat.

 

Kicking the tile, she jumped back a short distance. 

 

Li Gao immediately followed. He has seen enough to conclude that Yun An hadn’t reached Mid Qi manipulation. This meant she couldn’t amplify more than one part of her body with qi. Thus, the only worthy attacks could only come from her sword which was currently highlighted with qi.

Li Gao was at the fourth level of Qi Forming stage. Hence, he has already formed qi skin, qi vessel, qi flesh, and qi bone. These parallel qi tissues which occupied the same space as normal tissues enhance the flow of qi as well as the performance of his body. Non-qi attacks could not overcome this constructed defence.

 

Everyone held the same opinion that Yun An posed no threat to Li Gao. The one who understood this the most was the young girl herself. It was a situation where Yun An could not harm her opponent but not vice versa. Thus, she widened their distance to change that. At sufficient range, Yun An made a one-hand swing from the hip that traveled upward diagonally.

That swing exploded into a thick crescent blade.

 

Li Gao’s pupils dilated at the extraordinary sight. Sweats formed into droplets on his forehead as he managed to get away in time. 

 

The howling wind silenced the courtyard. 

 

As the disciples snapped out of it, voices of speculation broke out like a disturbed beehive.

“What!?”

 

“How could she make a blade that big?”

 

“Didn’t she just know how to use qi the other day? How could she learn Invisible Sword that fast?”

 

“That’s not Invisible Sword.”

 

Cultivator’s martial techniques place higher emphasis on qi flow than physical practicality of the move. Non-qi martial arts of ancient time focus only on reserving momentum, accuracy against vital points, and maintaining a stable and beneficial stance for offence and defence purpose. To make an analog, practising qi martial arts without qi is the same as practising writing without actually writing a stroke.

 

Li Gao stumbled away from Yun An. 

 

While he was being disoriented, she just stood there, checking the blade. 

 

Li Gao had no idea what she was doing. What he comprehended at the moment was what just happened wasn’t Invisible Sword. <She was the first senior grandmaster’s disciple so there was a chance it was a secret technique of the Shadowless sect. It could also be a technique invented by the first senior grandmaster.> Of the two speculations, he was leaning more toward the latter than the former.

 

As seconds ticked away, a third explanation took a foothold in him. Shadowless sect’s techniques focus on sharpness and high speed to finish the opponent before they can react. This is the justification for them to be called Shadowless or to be precise No Image.

 

<If the first senior grandmaster did invent a new move, it should follow this principle. However, Yun An’s technique was almost the opposite. It was crude. The sect’s technique should not generate a howling wind. The power of her strike deviated from the blade instead of forming into oneness like Invisible Sword.>

 

The chaos of sound and wind were the testament that it was of a different breed from techniques of the sect. Hence, in spite of its size, the blade didn’t travel far. While Shadowless sect’s technique does make sound, only an extremely large Invisible Sword can do so, Dong Yun An’s is no where near that big to be able to scream that loud.

 

Li Gao did consider it to be an unskilled Invisible Sword, but another aspect told him otherwise, the qi. Her blade wasn’t made out of qi. If there was qi, he should have seen it. There wasn’t. Her blade was formed purely from brute force and subpar sword skill. The qi on her blade was likely not to make a qi blade like Invisible Sword, but to reinforce the metallic tool from the stress of its owner's manipulation.

 

<Could this be the answer for her strange action of checking on the blade? She was checking if her blade was damaged by her own technique?>