Martial Arts: After ten years of sword-drawing, the Sword God must bow his head when he sees me

Chapter 197 Clash of Two Number One Swordsmen
"senior?"

Shen Ping'an narrowed his eyes slightly, his mind racing.

"It's rare to find someone who can be addressed as 'senior' by you, Young Master Yu."

Gongzi Yu nodded and said, "That's right, but perhaps Brother Shen would be interested in this senior."

Shen Ping'an also became somewhat interested in what Gongzi Yu said.

Seeing this, Gongzi Yu slowly moved his lips and instructed the man in the blood-patterned mask outside the courtyard, "Please invite the two outside in!"

"No need, I'm already here."

Almost the instant the sound was uttered, a figure appeared in the courtyard.

The newcomer wore a gray cloth shirt and had gray hair, looking like an ordinary old man.

However, the old man's eyes were extremely bright, unlike the cloudy eyes of an ordinary old man.

However, the moment Shen Ping'an's gaze fell on the old man, he raised an eyebrow slightly.

With Shen Ping'an's current perception and swordsmanship cultivation, he sensed the difference in the old man's temperament almost immediately.

It's a return to simplicity, a return to one's true nature after sharpness has been washed away and sheathed.

Moreover, Shen Ping'an could clearly sense a distinct sword intent emanating from the old man's body.

What surprised Shen Ping'an the most was that the sword intent fluctuations on the old man's body were somewhat mixed.

It actually possessed dozens of different sword intent auras.

Just as Shen Ping'an's gaze fell on the old man, another figure approached from afar.

Dressed in white, with a face as cold as frost, he resembled a plum blossom standing proudly against the wind and snow.

It was Ximen Chuixue, who had challenged Shen Ping'an when the Shen family hosted a banquet for all.

After the two appeared in the courtyard, Gongzi Yu slowly stood up and introduced to Shen Ping'an, "Brother Shen has already met Ximen Chuixue, so there is no need for me to introduce him again."

As he spoke, Gongzi Yu pointed to the old man beside him and said, "This senior is someone whose reputation I'm sure you've heard of, Brother Shen. He is the number one swordsman in the Great Song Dynasty, the Sword Demon Dugu Qiubai."

"Ok?"

Upon learning the old man's identity, Zhang San Niang, Yao Yue, Lian Xing, and the others all looked at Dugu Qiubai with astonishment.

Even Ximen Chuixue, who arrived later, looked surprised.

None of them expected to see this senior in the Ming Dynasty.

Moreover, they even took the initiative to visit us.

Not to mention the others, even Shen Ping'an was somewhat surprised after learning Dugu Qiubai's identity.

He immediately stood up and greeted, "Junior Shen Ping'an greets Senior Sword Demon."

Dugu Qiubai first waved his hand lightly, then continued to look at Shen Ping'an.

Upon seeing this, Shen Ping'an also met his gaze with a calm expression.

After a short while, Dugu Qiubai nodded and said, "Indeed, as Old Zhang said, his appearance and temperament are truly extraordinary."

The dignified founder of the Wudang School and the number one martial artist in the Ming Dynasty was called "Old Zhang" by Dugu Qiubai.

Even Shen Ping'an couldn't help but smile when he first heard this title.

However, before Shen Ping'an could think further, Dugu Qiubai spoke again: "Interested in exchanging a few moves?"

Faced with Dugu Qiubai's blunt words, Shen Ping'an slightly raised his eyes.

After a few breaths, Shen Ping'an nodded and said, "Since Senior has such an interest, this junior will naturally comply."

If Zhang Sanfeng was the undisputed number one martial artist in the Ming Dynasty, then Dugu Qiubai, the Sword Demon, was the undisputed number one martial artist in the Song Dynasty.

At the same time, he was also the number one swordsman in the Song Dynasty.

And like Zhang Sanfeng, his life story can also be described as "legendary".

As a master swordsman, the fact that he can give people such a peaceful feeling rather than a sharp one is enough to show that his attainments in swordsmanship are extremely high, and that he has long been able to hide his sharpness.

Therefore, Shen Ping'an also wanted to see what level of skill this number one swordsman of the Great Song Dynasty had achieved in swordsmanship.

Upon hearing what the two said, Zhang San Niang, Yao Yue, Lian Xing, and the others all had a flash of insight.

But the most excited of all was none other than Ximen Chuixue, who was standing to the side.

For Ximen Chuixue, the only thing he sought in his life was the pursuit of the Way of the Sword.

Now, there are two people in the arena. One is the Sword Demon Dugu Qiubai, the number one swordsman who has stood for a hundred years in the Great Song Dynasty and whose cultivation has reached the ninth level of the Celestial Realm like Zhang Sanfeng. The Hundred Knowledge Pavilion has commented that he has "never been defeated".

The other person was the most renowned swordsman in the Ming Dynasty. Both of them were the best swordsmen in their respective countries.

For Ximen Chuixue, nothing in the world was more important than witnessing the two fight firsthand.

"Should we go somewhere else?" Gongzi Yu asked.

Shen Ping'an asked with a smile, "How about we move to the garden over there?"

"Alright!" Dugu Qiubai nodded slowly.

Then, the two set off together and walked side by side toward the small courtyard next to them.

Inside the garden, the pits created by Shen Ping'an's practice of the "Glassy Sword Style" during the day had long been filled in by the servants of the house.

However, the color of the soil still makes the difference noticeable.

As the group reached the center of the garden, Gongzi Yu, Zhang San Niang, and the others retreated to a distance of about two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters) to clear their positions.

"Young master, would you like to use a sword?"

Qu Feiyan, who was standing to the side, asked a question.

Upon hearing this, Shen Ping'an gently shook his head and said, "No need."

Qu Feiyan said "Oh," then ran to Shen Qingshan's side with the two swords and watched quietly.

The full moon, like a silver platter, hung high in the sky, and under its light, all the other stars in the night seemed to lose their luster.

Under the bright moonlight, even though there were only a few lanterns in the garden, it was still bright.

Shen Ping'an and Dugu Qiubai stood five zhang apart, both slowly mobilizing their inner energy.

However, sensing the fluctuations of true qi at the first level of the Heavenly Gang Realm within Shen Ping'an's body, Dugu Qiubai let out a soft "Eh" and said, "It seems that young friend really does like to suppress his cultivation level, just as Old Zhang said."

Shen Ping'an didn't explain further, but instead said, "It's just a friendly spar, not a life-or-death struggle. We'll stop when we've made our move, so why use all our strength?"

Dugu Qiubai nodded and said, "That's right! It's a contest of swordsmanship, not cultivation level, so there's no need to use all your strength."

As soon as he finished speaking, Dugu Qiubai's internal energy surged, suppressing his own power to the level of the first level of the Heavenly Gang Realm.

"Young friend, are you ready?"

After suppressing his cultivation level, Dugu Qiubai asked.

Shen Ping'an nodded and said, "Please go first, senior!"

Seeing this, Dugu Qiubai stopped talking nonsense. His inner energy surged suddenly, and with his legs crossed, he shot through the air like an arrow, arriving in front of Shen Ping'an in an instant.

He brought his two fingers together to form a sword, aiming straight for Shen Ping'an's face.

It may seem like a simple finger strike, but it was incredibly fast.

Faced with Dugu Qiubai's probing attack, Shen Ping'an chuckled inwardly, and with a flick of his fingertips, he struck first, aiming at Dugu Qiubai's wrist.

Noticing Shen Ping'an's swift, meteor-like finger strike, Dugu Qiubai raised his white eyebrows slightly, his interest only growing.

He then lightly swept his fingertips forward, and the sword energy condensed into needles that instantly burst forth from his fingertips.

But just as the sword energy and sword aura were about to burst forth, an even more condensed sword aura rose from below, blocking the sword energy he had just unleashed.

"This kid actually guessed my move?"

Upon seeing this, a look of surprise flashed in Dugu Qiubai's eyes. He slightly turned his body to avoid Shen Ping'an's finger pointing at his wrist, and then raised his hand again.

Shen Ping'an remained expressionless, his body swaying back and forth like a willow catkin before suddenly lunging forward, just in time to let Dugu Qiubai's move pass him by.

Although they only clashed a few times, Dugu Qiubai's calm demeanor was gradually replaced by solemnity and seriousness.

On the contrary, Shen Ping'an remained calm and composed, though a hint of excitement lingered between his brows.

In just a few dozen breaths, the two had already exchanged a hundred blows.

Dugu Qiubai took the lead in attacking, while Shen Ping'an countered each move.

In the eyes of Qu Feiyan and Shen Qingshan, the techniques used by Dugu Qiubai and Shen Ping'an at this moment were almost all basic sword moves meant for children's enlightenment, and there was nothing special about them.

However, in the eyes of Gongzi Yu, Zhang San Niang, and Ximen Chuixue, the two men's moves seemed simple, but in fact, each move was a fusion of terrifying sword momentum and sword intent.

It has clearly reached the level of the ultimate simplicity.

Not to mention Zhang San Niang and Yao Yue, even if Gongzi Yu put himself in Shen Ping An's shoes, he would find that he couldn't even withstand ten moves from Dugu Qiubai.

Ximen Chuixue, in particular, was completely mesmerized by the fight between the two.

(End of this chapter)