The world of martial arts, the immortal swordsman in the mortal realm.

Chapter 14, The Celestial Sword God? How arrogant!

"what?"

Upon hearing Huang Rong's suggestion, Master Mo was first stunned. Then, looking at the aloof swordsman beside Huang Rong—dressed in black, carrying a long sword, wearing a bamboo hat, with only his nose and below exposed, exuding an air of unfathomable mystery—he was momentarily dumbfounded.
Do you expect me to fight this swordsman who looks like he's not someone to mess with?
How did I offend Miss Huang?
After a long pause, he cautiously asked:

"Use...use a real sword?"

Huang Rong smiled slightly:
“We’re here to spar, not to kill, so of course we’ll use wooden swords.”

The wooden sword is fine.

Master Mo breathed a sigh of relief, but was still somewhat apprehensive:
“Miss Huang, how could I, with my meager skills, dare to spar with this Mr. Lu… um, Swordsman Lu? You see…”

"Don't worry, my brother Lu here will only use the Yue Maiden Sword Technique of your school."

Huang Rong took the stack of paper money, waved it like a fan, and said crisply:
"Furthermore, he will suppress his power to be equal to yours."

Only using my school's Yue Maiden Sword Technique?

And you even suppressed your power to be equal to mine?
Then what do I have to be afraid of!
Master Mo's spirits lifted. He glanced at the stack of coins in Huang Rong's hand, which held a full hundred strings of cash, and said in a deep voice:

"We will do as Miss Huang suggests. Brother Lu, may I ask for your guidance?"

Lu Chen remained silent, maintaining his aloof swordsman persona. He merely nodded slightly, handed the real sword to Huang Rong, picked up a wooden practice sword from the martial arts school, and stood facing Master Mo seven steps apart in the training ground.

Master Mo, placing himself in a subordinate position and eager to win the hundred-cash prize, naturally wouldn't let anyone go first, and he gave a low shout:
"Lu Jianxia, ​​I'm sorry to offend you!"

After saying that, he took a step and rushed to Lu Chen's side. He raised his wooden sword and immediately used his most familiar and favorite move, attacking Lu Chen with a three-hit combo.

Although Master Mo's martial arts skills were not up to Huang Rong's standards, he was able to open a martial arts school in the prefectural city and make money, so his skills were actually quite good. At least he would have a certain chance of winning in a one-on-one fight against the Four Ghosts of the Yellow River.

However, this level of skill seemed insignificant to Lu Chen, who had endured Huang Rong's beatings and could now withstand three hundred moves of her full-force attacks without being defeated.

Faced with Master Mo's three consecutive sword strikes, Lu Chen did not rush to make a move. He took a step back, easily dodging the first sword. He then leaned back slightly to avoid the second sword. After that, he flicked his wrist, and the wooden sword slashed out diagonally, easily intercepting Master Mo's third sword with a snap.

Master Mo didn't expect to defeat this unfathomable swordsman in one move. He wasn't discouraged when his first three sword strikes were easily neutralized. He quickly moved to Lu Chen's left side and slashed at his ribs.

Lu Chen casually parried Mo Guanzhu's wooden sword. Mo Guanzhu then changed his attack, unleashing seven swift thrusts with his wooden sword, covering Lu Chen's upper body. Lu Chen remained unmoved, casually deflecting and parrying each of Mo Guanzhu's sword strikes.

Although he repeatedly deflected Master Mo's attacks, he did not launch a counterattack, but continued to observe and test Master Mo's skills.

Master Mo, however, believed he had suppressed Lu Chen, and fought with increasing ferocity. He hummed and shouted, unleashing the thirty-six moves of the Yue Maiden Sword Technique one by one, fighting with great enjoyment and satisfaction.

After probing for a while, Lu Chen had a better understanding of the situation.

In terms of skill in the Yue Maiden Sword alone, Master Mo is still much stronger than Rong'er, after all, he has practiced for many years and it is his livelihood.

In other aspects, however, they are really not worth mentioning, and their overall strength is far inferior to Rong'er's.

Since that was the case, Lu Chen was too lazy to deal with him anymore. He suddenly changed his sword technique from a defensive stance to a defensive one. He first used a move that Master Mo had used, the Three Consecutive Swords, which easily broke Master Mo's offensive and forced Master Mo to switch from offense to defense and retreat repeatedly. Then Lu Chen also flashed to Master Mo's left side and slashed at his ribs with his sword.

The moves were exactly the same as those used by Master Mo, but the speed, precision, timing, and even a certain mysterious aura of the sword strikes were far superior to those of Master Mo, causing Master Mo to break out in a cold sweat and barely manage to parry the sword with all his might.

But Lu Chen immediately followed up with a series of stabbing sword strikes, using the same moves that Master Mo had used before.

This time, Master Mo could no longer defend himself. He could only barely block the first two swords. He could not keep up with Lu Chen's rhythm for the third sword. Lu Chen bypassed the block and the tip of the sword gently touched his heart.

"Concession."

Lu Chen immediately withdrew his wooden sword, twirled it, held it upside down, and bowed to Master Mo.

Master Mo returned the greeting with a disappointed look:
"Lu Jianxia is truly superior; I, Mo, am completely outmatched."

He wasn't disappointed about losing the match; he was just heartbroken about losing the hundred-string prize.

Huang Rong chuckled, completely unsurprised by the outcome:

"As previously agreed, these ten strings of cash belong to Master Mo!"

With that, he counted out ten strings of cash and handed them to Master Mo, then said, "Farewell." He then waved his folding fan and left gracefully with Lu Chen.

Although Master Mo hadn't earned the hundred strings of cash prize, the ten strings were still some consolation. He touched the banknotes, watched Huang Rong's retreating figure, and thanked her repeatedly, hoping that Miss Huang would come again and often. Unfortunately, his hopes were destined to be dashed.

Miss Huang plans to challenge all the martial arts schools in the city today, and leave tomorrow to seek out martial artists elsewhere for real combat training.

The rest of the day.

Huang Rong took Lu Chen to visit all the martial arts schools in the city, offering prizes to the school masters to spar with him.

Although Lu Chen's skill was shallow, he recovered quickly and was able to withstand the continuous challenges. In one day, he successfully fought all the martial arts schools in the prefecture city and learned various skills such as swordsmanship, knife skills, fist and foot techniques, and spear and staff techniques.

Although these private martial arts schools did not have any outstanding masters who could make a name for themselves in the martial arts world, and most of them were not even at the level of the "Four Ghosts of the Yellow River," the various weapons and fist and foot techniques broadened Lu Chen's horizons and greatly increased his practical experience in dealing with different opponents. Moreover, by analogy, it also slightly improved his own swordsmanship.

Having won all the challenges of the day, Huang Rong was in a great mood and cooked a big meal for Lu Chen to reward him when she got back.

Just as the two were happily eating and chatting at the stone table in the courtyard, a figure in blue slowly walked into the alleyway where their small courtyard was located.

The figure was tall and thin, dressed in a blue cloth robe, with an extremely strange expression. Except for his eyes, his mouth, nose, and cheeks all gave people a stiff feeling like wood or stone.

He walked unhurriedly, his footsteps not only silent but also leaving no footprints, like a weightless, ethereal shadow.

His purpose was clear: he saw a large tree with a canopy like an umbrella in the distance, and walked straight toward it. Soon, he arrived at a small courtyard.

That big tree is right inside the courtyard.

The man in the green robe stood with his hands behind his back outside the courtyard gate, listening quietly for a while. When he heard the lively and clear voice of a girl in the courtyard, his stiff face showed no expression, but his eyes revealed a relieved look.

But soon, he heard a young male voice.

When the man in the green robe heard the male voice calling out "Rong'er," his eyes immediately sharpened, and a hint of murderous intent even flashed across them.

But he did not take immediate action, and continued to stand outside the courtyard, listening intently.

Then the girl said:

"Lu Chen, we're about to embark on a journey to visit and challenge renowned masters across the land. If you can maintain your winning streak, you might just become famous throughout the martial arts world. Have you decided on a nickname yet?"

That kid's name is Lu Chen?

Hmph, with such an unlucky name, no ship would allow him to board.

Then, the young male voice continued:

"I've only just started honing my skills in real combat. Isn't it a bit too early to be thinking about nicknames now?"

The girl said with a grin:
"It's not too early at all. If you think about it now, and you win every battle after another, when people ask you: 'Who exactly are you?' you can just reveal your name on the spot and make a name for yourself."

"Um, well, I'm not very good at coming up with nicknames. How about you help me come up with one, Rong'er?"

She's called Rong'er again!
This boy has already found a way to die!

"Let me think... Hmm, your ultimate sword technique is incredibly powerful, and considering your background, how about calling it 'Heavenly Divine Sword'?"

A single, deadly sword strike, with astonishing power?

How amazing can it be?
Return the celestial sword...

Rong'er is such a spoiled brat. She dares to give someone such an arrogant and domineering nickname. She really doesn't know her place.

"This title... well, it sounds quite good, but I'm not ready to take it on yet."

A cold smile appeared in the eyes of the man in the green robe:
Does "you can't take on this responsibility now" mean you can take on it in the future?
Another one who doesn't know his own limitations!

"Okay, using this nickname now does sound a bit arrogant, and it might get me beaten up. Let me think about it some more..."

Before the girl could come up with a new nickname, the man in the green robe moved as if he were being blown by a gentle breeze, and suddenly soared into the air, leaping onto the courtyard wall in an instant.

I need votes!!
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(End of this chapter)