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He was absolutely the strongest person he had ever met in his life!

none of them!

Mirror Stream & Silky Knight: Chapter 8 Peeping Openly

boom--!

There had been no sound just moments before, but the moment Kurogane Ikki stepped into a certain spot, everything around him seemed to suddenly become clear, and the heavy clang of the sword almost resounded throughout the entire world.

"Could this be... a barrier?"

Sensing the changes in the surrounding space, Ikki's eyes widened.

Spatial-type blade-wielders are rare; if one were discovered, the Far East would probably treasure it like a precious artifact.

"Time reigns supreme, space reigns supreme."

This statement is highly applicable in any world, even in Genshin Impact, where time and space are treated as separate entities.

"No wonder the sword intent I sensed outside was so much weaker; it was because of the barrier's influence?"

The sword intent felt inside and outside the barrier is worlds apart. If what is felt outside is a small stream, then here it is the raging Yangtze or Yellow River, or even more powerful!

Ikki couldn't help but swallow hard.

The people here are definitely not ordinary; if I rush in rashly, I might disturb them…

What should I do if I upset the other person?

Ikki was a little conflicted. He just wanted to come here to watch others practice swordsmanship, so why was he acting so sneakily, like a thief?

With that thought in mind, Ikki abandoned his plan to hide in the bamboo forest and instead straightened his back, walking directly into the depths of the bamboo forest.

I'm not someone who can't be brought into the light!

If you're going to watch it, then watch it openly and honestly!

What kind of hero hides his secrets?

The path through the bamboo grove was initially extremely narrow, barely wide enough for one person to pass through. After walking several dozen steps, it suddenly opened up into a bright and spacious area…

There wasn't much land or many houses; all there was was a small courtyard and two girls standing opposite each other.

Because he repeated a grade, Ikki is now over sixteen years old, almost seventeen.

But those two women, who looked even younger than him, exuded an aura that reminded Ikki of his older brother and father…

real or fake?

Could they be the ones who unleashed their sword intent just now?

It has to be said that these two girls are very beautiful, even among all the people I've ever seen, they would rank among the top... about as beautiful as my own sister!

But compared to their beauty, Ikki is actually more concerned about the swords in their hands... Are they also sword-wielders?

Just as Ikki was pondering, the two girls moved.

The white-haired, blindfolded girl held an ice blade and stood opposite the dual-bladed girl in the distance. The two maintained a balance and launched their attacks simultaneously in the next instant.

how come?

Kurogane Ikki, who was openly observing, suddenly widened his eyes. According to his original plan, he had intended to carefully observe the swordsmanship of the two men to see if he could gain some inspiration from it.

After all, observing other people's swordsmanship is one of Ikki's interests.

However, just now, Kurogane Ikki suddenly discovered a serious problem.

His "imitation swordsmanship" requires him to observe the opponent's sword strikes in order to learn and imitate them, but the biggest problem now is...

He can't even see people!

Apart from the occasional loud roar from the sky, Kurogane Ikki couldn't even see his opponent's figure, let alone use the Imitation Sword Technique to learn his opponent's skills.

"Judging by common sense, no matter how strong a swordsman's physical abilities are, it's impossible for them to exceed the limits of physics. The human body has its limits unless... speed is the opponent's ability? Or space?"

"If I were to fight an opponent like that... I'm afraid I'd have no choice but to use 'Complete Mastery' to predict their attack trajectory, right?"

Speed ​​is indeed a big problem (sensitive words cause trouble).

A certain evil god once said: "Of all martial arts, none is invincible except speed." When your speed reaches a certain level, you might truly become invincible.

Therefore, if Ikki wants to defeat such an opponent, he can only do so by "taking a beating" to figure out how the opponent will attack next, and then counterattack accordingly.

Is this really as worthy of the title Kurogane Ikki?

Even when openly spying, one is still carefully analyzing the gap in strength between oneself and the other.

"But for now, let's forget about it..."

Ikki can quickly determine how to fight his opponent, but even if he determines the method of fighting, it does not mean that he will win.

At least for now, Ikki Kurogane knows his own limitations.

The aftershocks of the battle emanating from the air were enough to destroy everything around them. Even with the "One-Sword Asura" technique, which could only be used once a day, he was completely unable to cope with such an all-encompassing attack.

Moreover, his "One-Slash Asura" technique can only last for one minute, after which he will probably be finished.

Therefore, until he develops stronger sword skills, Ikki will try to avoid fighting such enemies...

Of course, if a battle between them is unavoidable, such as if they meet at this year's Seven Star Sword Dance Festival, then Ikki will not back down, but will fight with all his might!

If I win, it means my hard work over this period has paid off. If I lose, it only means I'm not skilled enough and need to practice more!

Perhaps in terms of talent, Ikki isn't as good as those geniuses. But at least in terms of effort, he doesn't want to lose to anyone!

Since he couldn't see what was going on here, Ikki could only slip away quietly... But the moment the boy turned around, an ice-blue sword suddenly pressed against his throat, as if it would behead him in the next second.

"Who...are you? Why are you sneaking in here to spy?"

A chilling voice came from in front of him. Wasn't this the blindfolded girl from before? Even though she couldn't see, she still pressed the tip of her icy blade against the boy's neck, her hand holding the sword not even trembling.

"This is a misunderstanding!"

Seemingly sensing the girl's hostility, Ikki hurriedly began to explain.

"I was just passing by during my morning exercise when I sensed a sword intent and came in; I had no other intentions. As for peeping..."

"I didn't peek!"

"I watch everything openly and honestly!"

"Even if it's peeping, it's peeping openly and honestly!"

Although his tone was slightly apologetic, Ikki's eyes were very upright, and he didn't look like someone who was sneaking around at all.

But these words are truly astonishing; they certainly don't sound like something a normal person would say.

The blindfolded woman merely tilted her head at the boy's words, her tone somewhat puzzled.

"You think you're right?"

"Uh...no."

The girl's tone seemed to reveal a hint of dissatisfaction, so Ikki decisively backed down and apologized directly.

"Red bean paste, a secret Marseille!"

"Can you forgive me for peeking?"

Ikki immediately took a step back and apologized to the girl in front of him without hesitation. After all, with the new chairman taking office, Ikki had just been "reborn" and did not want to make things too awkward with others because of this.

If the other person is a freshman who has just enrolled, he might have to be called to the chairman of the board... Ikki didn't want to cause too much trouble for the chairman who was taking care of him because of his personal issues.

The woman did not speak, but slowly put down her sword and walked past Ikki's side towards the bamboo hut. A chill permeated the surroundings, completely blocking Ikki's escape route.

Clearly, she had no intention of letting Kurogane Ikki go.

"I can forgive you."

"Use your sword to apologize!"

Mirror Stream & Silky Knight: Chapter 9 One-Sword Asura

Apologize with a sword?

The woman's words made Ikki's eyes widen slightly. How could he not understand what she meant?

Although ostensibly they were asking him to apologize, the pervasive fighting spirit around him clearly revealed their true intentions…

Challenge!

Ikki sensed absolutely no malice or contempt from his opponent; he simply wanted to fight him...

Since he was rated as an F-rank knight, no one has ever invited him to fight. The people who look at him almost always have contempt and indifference in their eyes, as if being rated as an F-rank knight was a mistake.

Especially Ikki's surname "Kurotetsu," which is a prestigious family of Far East Blade Masters. If outsiders knew that the Kurogane family had produced an F-rank knight, what would happen?

Therefore, Ikki has always suffered from the disdain of those around him and has never been able to shake off the title of "F-rank Knight".

Even at Po Jun Academy, because he was an "F-rank Knight," he couldn't meet the standards for practical combat courses and was unable to fight anyone.

But now, an opportunity has suddenly appeared before Ikki…

The opponent is very strong, so strong that even I can't see their movements clearly. The difference in strength between the two is huge, and they are not even on the same level.

Even so, Ikki had no intention of giving up!

If you have to back down every time you encounter a strong enemy, then what's the point of practicing swordsmanship? You might as well go home and play with building blocks!

Even if a true swordsman knows he is no match for his opponent, he will never give up his sword!

"Thank you so much!"

"This is the first time I've fought someone since I came to school!"

"I will definitely use my sword to apologize to you properly!"

The sword called "Yin Iron" appeared in the boy's hand, and his eyes sharpened instantly, like a sword about to be drawn.

"It's alright, just do your best."

"Let me see just how good your sword really is!"

rustle--!

A breeze blew from afar, causing the nearby bamboo to rustle crisply. Two swordsmen stood on the edge of this small hut, less than a hundred square meters in size, each assuming a sword-wielding stance.

A bamboo leaf fell from the sky due to the wind, one side facing Kurogane Ikki, and the other side... was a blindfolded white-haired female swordsman!

Boom!

Kurogane Ikki pushed off with all his might, without using any sword techniques, relying solely on his physical abilities and a little bit of magic to propel himself forward, and launched a frontal slash at the distant Kagami Ryu.

The posture was so perfect that even Kagami Ryu couldn't find any fault with it.

For a swordsman, slashing is almost a basic skill; a single swing of the sword can reveal the swordsman's fundamental skills.

Ikki Kurogane is absolutely perfect!

Even though he was in a very bad environment, he persevered and honed his basic skills to an impeccable level.

The same applies to Mirror Flow!

The sword pommel of Luofu is not something just any Tom, Dick, or Harry can become!

Tan Hua blocked Yin Tie's path as he swung his sword. Jing Liu's posture was equally perfect, without a single superfluous movement. Even every muscle on his body, which was not visible, was just right.

Clang—!

The sudden burst of force sent Ikki flying back to his original position, while Kagami Ryu got into a fighting stance and said, "Continue."

"Yes!"

Although it was just a clash of basic skills, Ikki could tell from his opponent's movements that she was definitely a highly skilled swordsman!

Despite possessing speed invisible to the naked eye, capable of stunning Kurogane Ikki in an instant, he still continues to practice his swordsmanship in coordination with me…

Therefore, we cannot let the other party down!

Even if I were to exert all my strength, I still couldn't possibly match the opponent, let alone satisfy them...