Chapter 131 - Motive?
They were so fast that it was hard to tell who was who.
Sword-lights and sword-shadows filled the stage, blurring the compet.i.tors. One could only barely tell who was who by the color of the s.h.i.+rt.
Lu Mingshu felt like she was fighting Kuai Xin again.
Method, angle, force… she couldn"t find Gentleman Yu"s weak point; he seemed to be flawless. Compared to Kuai Xin, he had a weaker foundation, and he wasn"t going to break through to the Spirit Realm anytime soon, but with his ability, he was a match for Kuai Xin.
That was because his methods were simply marvelous! Lu Mingshu never knew that Physical Manifestation of Sword Intent could be used in such a manner.
His methods weren"t fixed; they were ever-changing. Sometimes they were predictable, and sometimes they weren"t.
She calmed down and tried to figure out his weakness. At the same time, she fought even harder.
The other party chuckled, "Miss Lu, this is not a smart move~! You just finished two rounds, but I"m still full of energy. Trying to scare me with your sword will only tire you out even more."
Lu Mingshu remained still. She shook her wrist, and the ray of sword-light started to condense.
"What a nice move," Gentleman Yu smiled. "At your age, you"re already doing such a thing? Impressive. When I was your age, I was still an immature kid. However, you have nothing on me."
After he finished his sentence, his sword lit up, and suddenly, a strong wind blew onto the stage and dispersed the sword-light.
"I told you, you can"t do anything to me, yet you are unwilling to heed my advice. What a waste."
Some spectators cut him off, "Shut up and fight!"
"Yeah! You"re just intentionally trying to disrupt Miss Lu!"
Gentleman Yu turned around and shouted at the spectators, "What do you all know? If she"s unable to concentrate because of my disruption, that just shows she needs more practice!"
After that, he turned to Lu Mingshu and smiled like a Ches.h.i.+re Cat, "Miss Lu, you don"t mind, right?"
He"s going overboard! the spectators were angered by Gentleman Yu"s behavior, "Compete properly or get the h.e.l.l down!"
"That"s right! Get down!" all the spectators jeered.
Gentleman Yu smiled widely at her. "Wow, Miss Lu, you have a lot of fans."
Beads of sweat trailed down Lu Mingshu"s forehead. Her breathing also became heavy, and the grip on her sword loosened.
"You must be tired. To be honest, I wonder how you managed to defeat eighteen people in a row during the Heavenly Door compet.i.tion if you"re already like this after two rounds. What has Nine Jade Palace turned into…?"
Clank!
The sword hit the ground, missing Gentleman Yu.
Gentleman Yu laughed out loud after seeing that, "Girls should just stay at home and do embroidery. Why even bother to come and compete with us at an arena?"
"Go to h.e.l.l, you idiot! Get down!" an uproar started among the spectators.
"It"s hard to tell the result just by their skills," Kou Wei used his fan to knock on the table. "This is more psychological warfare than physical now."
"Psychological? It"ll be hard for Lu Mingshu then."
"I totally agree! Yu Kuang is just a crafty old fox! When I competed with him previously, he lied that there was someone behind me…."
The story had Yue Lingyin rolling on the floor laughing, "Bro, are you sane? You believed that? That"s a trick for children, and you bought it?"
The person looked at Yue Lingyin in grievance, "I bought it because I never thought he would be so low!"
Kou Wei interrupted them, "Yu Kuang is always crafty, and Lu Mingshu"s naive. I"m only afraid that…"
Gentleman Yu chose to turn a deaf ear to the spectators and continued, "It"s still early, so give up now. The last thing I wanna do is put a scar on such a pretty little girl."
Lu Mingshu squinted her eyes. Mystic force started to rush from her body, and her sword lit up.
The mystic force was so strong that it created a tornado of sword-intent, which rushed forward like a dragon.
Physical Manifestation of Sword Intent!
"Wow, good!" gripping his sword tightly and transferring mystic force into his sword, Gentleman Yu jumped up and slashed down.
The wind swept across the stage.
Kacha!
The flag pole on the stage was broken.
The smoke that was created from the clash covered the spectators" view. When the smoke finally dispersed, the fight had already settled down.
Both parties stood on the stage, facing each other.
Bright red blood was flowing down Lu Mingshu"s arm.
Gentleman Yu smiled at her, "You feigned weakness to your enemies at the Heavenly Door compet.i.tion, tricking them into believing that you were out of mystic force before turning the tide at the last minute. Do you think I"m so stupid that I wouldn"t take that into account?"
Lu Mingshu looked at him with a straight face, "So, you purposely incited me, making me think that I had successfully tricked you. In reality, you wanted to beat me at my own game."
Gentleman Yu laughed heartily, "Yeah. You"re someone who had eighteen wins in the Heavenly Door compet.i.tion, so you must have your secret methods. Why would I let my guard down?"
"Since Gentleman Yu knows me so well," Lu Mingshu replied slyly, "are you aware that I am also trained in rune-carving?"
Gentleman Yu paused. Suddenly, he felt that there was something under his feet, and a talisman shot up from the ground.
He moved back to block, not noticing that Lu Mingshu moved forward to attack.
He broke the talisman, but a sword suddenly tore his s.h.i.+rt and was placed in front of his chest.
Lu Mingshu looked at him and smiled, "I"m a girl who"s so insecure that I wouldn"t leave my house without knowing more than eight or ten skills. Gentleman Yu, joke"s on you."
The announcer ran on stage, "Miss Lu wins!"
Somebody rushed upstairs, "Senior, Yu Kuang lost!"
"What? That fast?" Kou Wei"s eyes widened in shock, "Quick, tell me all about it."
Upon hearing the disciple"s story, the bunch were left speechless.
"Erm…" Yue Lingyin hesitated, "Something doesn"t fit the picture?"
The disciple"s description was clear. Yu Kuang provoked Lu Mingshu, and Lu Mingshu feigned weakness. Both parties laid their traps.
What Kou Wei said was right; it was more of a mental battle.
Ultimately, Yu Kuang lost because he underestimated her.
But…
"Did Yu Kuang lose on purpose!?" the guy who once fought him exclaimed.
"Yeah. Too fast. He"s from the Seventh Truth Platform; even if Lu Mingshu has never lost, he stands a better chance."
"And he"s too crafty to fall into a trap!"
"What"s he thinking?" Yue Lingyin muttered. "Why didn"t he use his full effort? What"s beneficial to him if Lu Mingshu wins?"
"Today, the wine lover"s heart is not in the cup," Kou Wei laughed.
Qi Sheng furrowed his brows, "Is he testing her for Wei Chunqiu? Wei Chunqiu has his eyes on taking first place in the Qilin Festival."
Kou Wei cut him off, "No. Wei Chunqiu is too strong for Lu Mingshu. He would come for me instead of her if he wanted to test someone."
Yes, Lu Mingshu was powerful, but it"s only been less than a year since she entered the Harmonization Realm. Kou Wei thought that she was worthy enough to compete with him, but not enough to defeat him.
If Kou Wei had this mindset, Wei Chunqiu would too. They had the same position as martial artists; neither of them had time for a newb.
"Let it be. Let"s go back and take a rest. We will know during the Qilin Festival."
Chapter 132 - The One Who Makes the First Move is the Cheap One
"Miss Lu, please visit us soon!" the boss of the martial arts hall sent her off with bitterness like a young girl who was sending her lover off.
Lu Mingshu put on her cloak and nodded before scuttering off.
First step done. Now let"s wait for the next.
She stroked her arm, which was still in pain.
She was unlucky today. Arenas were just the dessert, while the Qilin Festival was the main dish, yet she was injured before the festival even started. Luckily, it wasn"t a serious injury, so she might be able to recover if she went to the Heavenly Wheel.
The sun had gone to rest, and the moon took its place, surrounding her with darkness and silence. Under the moonlight, Lu Mingshu went through an alley alone.
The alley was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop, distinctively different form the streets of the city, which were constantly bustling with activity.
All of a sudden, a figure flashed by her, causing a chill to run down her spine.
Ching! Ching! Ching!
Mystic lights flashed by her like lighting. Lu Mingshu swiftly moved away, and three throwing knives landed at her feet.
"Who are you?"
"Just like that?" a female"s voice rang across the alley.
Lu Mingshu turned around and realized there was someone at the other end of the alley, who started strolling over to her.
The woman was about twenty. She had a beautiful face, and she had an aura that made her look proud. From her clothing, one could tell that she had a good family background, and her cultivation was at the Harmonization Realm.
She looked at Lu Mingshu and scanned her, "You"re Lu Mingshu?" she asked in disdain.
"What do you want?"
The woman rolled her eyes, "Ah, look at you. An arrogant kid. What do I want? I came here just to look at you, of course."
Lu Mingshu kept quiet. It wasn"t like her to waste her energy on arguing with some useless people.
"Look at you. What"s so special about you? You"re not very good. Looks-wise, you look like a sheet of paper… no, wait! A ghost! I really don"t get what he sees in you…."
Lu Mingshu took a step forward, "Who?"
Surprised at the abruptness of Lu Mingshu, the woman took a step back, "What who?"
"Who sees what in me?"
The woman took two steps back until she felt safe. She looked into Lu Mingshu"s eyes and smiled at her slyly, "Hey, you"re a girl, aren"t you ashamed that you"re saying such things? Who sees something in you? You are not even worthy for anyone to see something in you."
Lu Mingshu sneered, "Didn"t you say it first? Now you"re telling me a girl shouldn"t say such things. Aren"t you also a girl?"
"What on earth did you say!?" the woman did not expect for her own words to be used against her.
"Lady, I"m busy. If there"s nothing important, please leave and don"t waste everyone"s time," Lu Mingshu straightened her cloak as she prepared to leave.
"Stop there! Did I say you could go?"
Lu Mingshu ignored her and continued to walk forward. There was no point wasting her saliva with this missy out here.
As soon as she took a step forward, mystic light shone behind her, and she could feel a force making a beeline for her.
Lu Mingshu moved sideways and took out her sword.
Clang~~~~!
The heavy clash made the woman"s hand numb. She was indigent and made another attack.
Lu Mingshu did not try to escape. Instead, she turned to fight as well.
The woman"s skills were quite something, but seeing that she was so panicked while fighting Mingshu, it was obvious that she rarely fought seriously with others.
Seeing that she was in such a panic, Lu Mingshu seized the opportunity, and after two more attacks, the woman was starting to get pushed back.
Like a poisonous snake, sword-light moved toward the woman like it was about to kill.
Ding!
The swords clashed again.
In her shock, the woman moved backward, far away from Lu Mingshu.
"Miss Lu, she just wants to compare notes with you, why do you want to kill her?" a sloppy voice rang across the alley, and Yu Kuang jumped down from a wall.
Lu Mingshu look at him coldly, "Oh, it"s Gentleman Yu. I see; you lost at the arena, and yet here you are tailing behind me. Is it that you like seeing blood so much that you want to give me another injury?"
Yu Kuang burst out in laughter, ignoring her sarcasm, then turned to the woman, "My dear Junior, why did you find her for practice? You care about comparing notes, but she only cares about killing."
"What "comparing notes"? It sounds so nice. I may only care about killing, but at least I don"t kill innocents," Lu Mingshu looked straight in their eyes, "If you both choose not to leave, don"t blame me for attacking you."
Yu Kuang sighed and shook his head, "Why are you so pessimistic?"
Lu Mingshu asked in reply, "Haven"t your elders taught you?"
"Taught me what?"
"Please look in the mirror before giving others a lesson," she sneered. "You lost a compet.i.tion against me, yet here you are blocking me and trying to teach me a lesson?"
"Lu Mingshu! Shut your arrogant mouth up! Who the heck do you even think you are? He did not fight you with all his might because-!" the woman shouted.
Yu Kuang cut her off, "All you care about is winning, huh?"
"If I didn"t win, why would you be here?" Lu Mingshu replied in monotone. "If I didn"t win, why are you here to humiliate me?"
Yu Kuang looked at her in confusion, "We are not here to humiliate you."
"What a joke!" she let out a sardonic smile. "I"m not like your Junior Sister - pretty and precious. I may be a wild gra.s.s, but I never provoked you guys, you know why? Because…"
She let out a sly smile and spoke every word clearly, "The one makes the first move is the cheap one."
"You…!"
"Lu Mingshu!" Yu Kuang was taken aback by what she said, but the woman went into a fit. She fished out her sword, ready for an attack. "We are cheap? You are the cheap one that sticks to Senior Brother Xie like a leech!"
She attacked in her anger, but after two or three hits from Lu Mingshu, she was stopped.
The woman was furious, yet she was stopped from attacking. In her anger, she started throwing any random thing she could find at Lu Mingshu.
When Yu Kuang realized the situation, the situation had already gone sideways. Seeing the woman"s action, he shouted in panic, "Junior Sister, no!"
What she had thrown was her self-defense weapon. If one wasn"t careful, it might result in death.
As soon as the item was out of her hand, a strong pressure appeared - an energy beyond their power.
A fist rose up in the middle of the air and made a beeline for Lu Mingshu.
Lu Mingshu quickly moved backwards, but the mystic force continued to surge, creating powerful sword-like energy.
Yu Kuang"s panic b.u.t.ton had been pushed. He took his sword out and blocked in front of Lu Mingshu. If the fist landed on Lu Mingshu, she would either die or end up crippled.
The fist"s energy was so strong that Yu Kuang vomited blood.
"Senior Brother Yu!" the woman shrieked.
However, the energy was so powerful that, even after Yu Kuang blocked it, it was still making a beeline for Lu Mingshu.
Within no time, the fist would reach Lu Mingshu.
Ding~~~~!
A sound echoed across the alley. Rays of light came from nowhere and shot the fist down.
At the same time, the lights shattered.
Boom!
The fist shattered into pieces.
Yu Kuang, who was still in shock, looked at the sky blankly. He turned to the end of the alley and muttered, "Senior Brother Xie?"
A teenager sitting in a wheelchair appeared at the end of the alley. He looked at them and sighed, "Are you done playing monkey?