The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, becoming a disciple of Yue Buqun.

"You just joined my Huashan Sect yesterday and are fortunate enough to witness the sect's assessment, the disciple competition. Right now, your senior brother and junior brother Jiang Ning are competing. They are the most skilled martial artists among your generation of disciples. Watch carefully and learn from them."

Ning Zhongze spoke gently to the children from the side.

The children nodded blankly, then stared intently at the center of the training ground, looking very serious.

"Go, senior brother! Go, senior brother!"

Before the fight even started, Yue Lingshan began shouting and yelling, cupping her hands around her mouth like a cheerleader.

The other disciples smiled when they saw her like this.

The eldest brother and the youngest sister were childhood sweethearts and had a very deep relationship.

Yue Buqun glared at her.

"Shouting and yelling like that, what kind of behavior is this?"

Yue Lingshan reluctantly lowered her hand and made a face where Yue Buqun couldn't see her.

"Keep it up, Jiang Ning!"

It wasn't that there weren't people who encouraged Jiangning; Du Lanyin was one of them.

However, unlike Yue Lingshan, she stared intently at Linghu Chong and Jiang Ning in the training ground, her hands clenching slightly as she silently cheered for Jiang Ning.

Clang~

Linghu Chong drew his sword, took a step back with his left leg, leaned forward, and assumed an attacking stance, ready to charge forward.

But the next second.

call out!

A whooshing sound came as a sharp sword spun in mid-air before slashing towards his face.

Linghu Chong, who had intended to take the initiative and gain the upper hand, had no choice but to switch from offense to defense upon seeing the situation. With a flick of his wrist, he knocked the sword out of mid-air.

After defusing the attack, Linghu Chong prepared to counterattack, but the light in front of him suddenly dimmed and a dark shadow loomed over him.

Jiang Ning's expression was cold and stern. He raised his left hand, bent his arm inward, and slammed his elbow, the hardest joint at the base of his arm, down hardly on the right side of Linghu Chong's face.

A whooshing sound came from beside him. Linghu Chong's face turned serious. Faced with this sudden attack, he had no time to retaliate and could only raise his right hand to defend his face. At the same time, he was also startled.

The junior apprentice is faster than before.

Bang!

A muffled thud sounded between Linghu Chong and Jiang Ning.

A sharp pain shot through his arm, and Linghu Chong's brows furrowed involuntarily. The force of his opponent was so great that his body bent forward involuntarily, and his hand holding the sword trembled.

Jiang Ning looked down at Linghu Chong from his high vantage point, stretched out his right hand, grabbed the sword he had just thrown, and with a flick of his wrist, swung it upwards.

A cold glint flashed, and seeing the sharp sword that was brought up, Linghu Chong couldn't help but twitch his eyelids. He pushed Jiang Ning away with all his might, and at the same time, he retreated rapidly, widening the distance between the two.

He lost the initiative and fell into a disadvantageous position in the previous rounds. He can't continue fighting, otherwise he will become more and more passive.

Chapter 17: The Phoenix Arrives

"Ning'er's methods are becoming more and more ruthless."

Ning Zhongze, who was watching the battle, frowned slightly.

Although it was a martial arts competition between fellow disciples, Jiang Ning showed no mercy and his moves were ruthless.

Yue Buqun remained silent, calmly watching the battle between the two.

Unlike the casual exchanges with other disciples, the fight between Linghu Chong and Jiang Ning was a serious contest.

Both Linghu Chong and Jiang Ning were outstanding disciples of Yue Buqun, and he valued them highly.

The monthly internal assessment, while intended to evaluate the disciples' learning progress, also served as a practical opportunity for them. He would observe from the sidelines, pointing out their shortcomings and helping them correct them.

However, the other disciples were not very skilled in martial arts, so Yue Buqun only told them to stop when they were about to be defeated. Jiang Ning and Linghu Chong, on the other hand, were the best of the Huashan Sect, so they were naturally different from the other disciples.

Only through real combat can one improve the fastest.

This was not only his idea, but also that of Jiang Ning and Linghu Chong.

Moreover, doing so can inspire their passion for martial arts training.

Jiang Ning goes without saying; even Yue Buqun himself probably couldn't match his diligence.

After all, he has a wife.

Sometimes he worried that Jiang Ning was too obsessed with practicing martial arts and that something might go wrong with Jiang Ning's health.

Linghu Chong, however, was different.

His eldest disciple, although talented, was lazy and only moved when provoked.

When Linghu Chong's strength reached the level of a second-rate master, none of the disciples in the sect were stronger than him. At that time, Jiang Ning had not yet reached the level of a second-rate master, so Linghu Chong became lazy, going down the mountain to play and drink, and he was not as diligent in practicing martial arts as before.

To keep him on track, Yue Buqun took Linghu Chong to visit other Five Mountains Sword Sects for a period of time. This was partly to build rapport and partly to have Linghu Chong compete with disciples from other sects, so that he would feel a sense of urgency.

He had visited all the Five Mountains Sword Sects, including the Songshan Sect. He had defeated all the second-generation disciples of the four major sword sects, and none of them were his match. At that time, people from the other Five Mountains Sword Sects thought that Yue Buqun had come to cause trouble. Fei Bin, Lu Bai, and others of his generation from the Songshan Sect almost wanted to personally challenge him to a duel.

Yue Buqun had no choice but to terminate the activity.

He never intended to take Linghu Chong to visit Shaolin or Wudang.

The Five Mountains Sword Sects are closely united. Although the Songshan Sect wants to annex the other four sects, it has not yet taken any action and is only making preparations in secret. Therefore, they still maintain an alliance on the surface.

But Shaolin and Wudang are different. They are two major righteous sects. If Yue Buqun leads Linghu Chong to Shaoshi Mountain and Wudang Mountain to challenge his second-generation disciples, then it is not a friendly exchange, but a provocation.

Originally, Yue Buqun wanted to put some external pressure on Linghu Chong, but after returning from that trip, Linghu Chong discovered that he was actually the most skilled martial artist among the second-generation disciples of the Five Mountains Sword Sect, so he became even lazier, which gave Yue Buqun a huge headache.

This situation only improved after Jiang Ning also reached the level of a second-rate master.

Jiang Ning was talented, young, and hardworking. At the beginning of the sect's internal assessment and martial arts competition, Linghu Chong was able to suppress him, but after a while, Jiang Ning was able to hold his own. After a while, the two were evenly matched. Before this sect assessment, the previous martial arts competitions were difficult to determine and ended in a draw.

Linghu Chong can no longer suppress Jiang Ning at all. The two are evenly matched in strength. If it weren't for his experience traveling outside and his rich combat experience from real battles, he would have been defeated if he had been careless.

A fist has the advantage of youth and strength, and Jiang Ning is stronger than him now.

Feeling the pressure from his junior brother, Linghu Chong stopped being lazy and practiced diligently without Yue Buqun's supervision, and he went down the mountain less often.

So even though Jiang Ning has been working hard to improve his skills, he is not standing still.

The two made rapid progress.

Yue Buqun was very satisfied with this.

He understood Linghu Chong well. Although Linghu Chong was lazy, he was proud. He would become lazy when no one was better than him, but when he found that his junior brothers in his own sect were gradually catching up with him and even about to surpass him, he could also muster the spirit of hanging his head from the beam and pricking his thigh with an awl to cultivate.

The fight between the two appears dangerous, but Yue Buqun is watching closely. He will intervene immediately if the other party is in any real danger.

when!

A metallic clang.

Jiang Ning and Linghu Chong swung their swords at each other, the smooth blades reflecting their faces.

Linghu Chong looked seriously at the face so close to his, his previous carefree attitude gone, and his hair fluttered in the wind.

"It's been a few months since we last had a martial arts match, and Junior Brother's skills have improved again."

Jiang Ning's eyes were cold, and he remained silent.

Linghu Chong was not surprised; that was his junior brother's fighting style—he didn't waste words during battle.

However, in the brief moment he was speaking, Jiang Ning raised his hand and struck him in the chest. Linghu Chong was startled and immediately retreated.

when!when!when!

A flash of sword light, and the longswords clashed repeatedly, emitting a piercing, sharp sound.

Taking advantage of Linghu Chong's retreat, Jiang Ning unleashed three consecutive sword strikes, each one heavier than the last, the veins on his arms bulging beneath his sleeves.

Linghu Chong was struggling to defend himself against the three sword strikes; the hilt of his sword vibrated incessantly, and his hand holding the sword trembled.

Seeing Jiang Ning advancing triumphantly and relentlessly pursuing him, Linghu Chong gritted his teeth, his expression tense, and let out a long howl.

"I haven't wasted this time either!"

Linghu Chong forcefully raised his sword and swept it, repelling Jiang Ning's attack. Then, he lowered his body, slightly bent his legs, and with a push of his toes, thrust his wrist upwards at a tricky angle.

Linghu Chong infused his inner energy into the longsword, which emitted a clanging sound, and the sharp edge of the sword brought a stinging sensation.

Linghu Chong's sword strike was much faster than before.

"not good!"

Upon seeing this, Yue Buqun's eyes narrowed, and he suddenly exerted force with his feet, rapidly rushing towards Jiang Ning and Linghu Chong.

That sword was too fast; if it had struck Jiang Ning, he would have been either dead or seriously injured.

Seeing the sword tip approaching in the blink of an eye, Jiang Ning remained calm and composed. The moment the sword came at him, Jiang Ning turned his head and leaned his upper body to the right. The sword tip grazed his cheek and cut his skin.

A string of blood droplets sprinkled in the air.

As Jiang Ning leaned to the right, he raised his left hand, pinching the tip of Linghu Chong's longsword with his index and middle fingers together. His internal energy was transferred to his left hand to resist the internal energy belonging to Linghu Chong on the sword.

At the same time, Jiang Ning pushed his sword-wielding right hand forward, the long sword in his hand stabbing straight towards Linghu Chong's throat. The speed was so fast that Linghu Chong's pupils contracted, and he could already feel a faint stinging sensation in his throat.

Chapter 18: Trials and Tribulations

At this critical moment, Yue Buqun appeared in front of the two. Without saying a word, he quickly grabbed Jiang Ning and Linghu Chong's shoulders and arms respectively, his face flushed with purple aura and his inner strength bursting out.

The two, who were locked in a fierce battle, suddenly felt an internal force that did not belong to them enter their bodies, causing their internal energy to surge, their breathing to become disordered, and their fighting speed to slow down slightly.

With a loud bang!

Jiang Ning and Linghu Chong were both thrown backward by the shock, and their longswords fell from their hands and clattered to the ground.

Jiang Ning staggered backward four or five steps before regaining his balance, and Linghu Chong on the other side did the same.

"Ho...ho..."

Linghu Chong's chest heaved as he steadied his breathing, panting heavily.