Chapter 2

The sky had already brightened, and Jiang Chen decided not to sleep anymore. He took his sword and came to the courtyard.

In the courtyard stood a large tree. It was early winter, and the leaves on the tree were falling one by one. Sometimes, a few leaves would fall together, and sometimes, a gentle breeze would cause dozens of leaves to fall and dance in the air.

Jiang Chen drew his sword and casually thrust it forward.

A faint sound of piercing rang out. Jiang Chen's long sword had become a skewer, piercing through a dozen leaves. The entire process was as smooth as flowing clouds, without a single pause or stiffness.

"It seems much more agile."

Closing his eyes, Jiang Chen savored the feeling of that thrust.

Piercing through a dozen leaves was not a big deal; he had been able to do it for a long time. However, the process was different. At the moment of piercing the leaves, Jiang Chen had a sense of illusion, as if it was not the sword but his body and skin that were touching the leaves.

"Is this the realm of man and sword as one?"

The realm of man and sword as one was a very high level in swordsmanship. A swordsman who could wield a sword as if it were an extension of his arm was already remarkable. The realm of man and sword as one was a higher level, where the person and the sword became one.

Of course, the realm of man and sword as one also had different levels. Jiang Chen had just barely entered this realm. Perhaps when he cultivated the Void Sword Body Technique to the first level, he could fully grasp this realm. Whether or not this would happen was still unknown.

Opening his eyes, Jiang Chen slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air. The more he cultivated the Void Sword Body Technique, the more he could feel its profoundness. Enhancing his swordsmanship was just one of its effects. The essence of the Void Sword Body Technique lay in the mind. A person's will could sometimes create many miracles. Even an old woman who could not lift a chicken could do things that a strong man could not, if her will was strong enough. This was the power of the will.

"Brother Chen, it's bad, Dongge got beaten up." The courtyard door was quickly pushed open, and a thin young boy rushed in.

Jiang Chen looked over. It was Guo Zihao, who was a year younger than him. He had admired Jiang Chen since he first came to the Yi Qi Sect, and this had not changed.

"Rat, speak slowly. What happened to Wang Dong?"

"Rat" was Guo Zihao's nickname, and Wang Dong was his childhood friend, with whom he had grown up.

"Sun Jian Sheng was slandering you in front of everyone. Dongge heard it and got into an argument with him, ..." Guo Zihao quickly recounted the events.

"Let's go."

Holding his sword, Jiang Chen followed closely behind Guo Zihao.

On a wide open area on the mountain waist, a large number of outer sect disciples had gathered. In the center of the open area, a tall young man was stepping on an ordinary-looking young man. The young man's mouth was bleeding, and his face was stubborn.

"Sun Jian Sheng, what are you so proud of? If Jiang Chen's seventh qi sea hadn't been broken, if Jiang Chen were a ninth-level Qi Sea Realm warrior, would you dare to speak ill of him?"

Wang Dong spat out a mouthful of blood and sneered.

Sun Jian Sheng grinned, "There are no 'ifs' in this world. Besides, even if his seventh qi sea hadn't been broken, he might not have become a ninth-level Qi Sea Realm warrior. Do you think everyone is like Senior Brother Gu Qingyuan?"

"Hmph, what is Gu Qingyuan? He's just a despicable person who twists right and wrong. A year ago, Jiang Chen could defeat him with ten sword strikes."

Mentioning Gu Qingyuan, Wang Dong's face was filled with anger. They had not expected that Gu Qingyuan would turn out to be such a person.

"Ha ha, Jiang Chen defeated Gu Qingyuan with ten sword strikes. It seems that Wang Dong has been beaten silly by Sun Jian Sheng. Senior Brother Gu Qingyuan said that even at his peak, Jiang Chen was not his match."

"Originally, I felt a bit sorry for Wang Dong, but now it seems that Wang Dong is just a scoundrel, just like Jiang Chen."

"You can't say that. After all, Wang Dong and Jiang Chen are childhood friends. It's normal for him to speak up for him."

"Hmph, but he shouldn't slander Senior Brother Gu Qingyuan."

The crowd was in an uproar, their criticism directed at Wang Dong and Jiang Chen.

"Did you hear that? Who do you think will believe you?" Sun Jian Sheng sneered, then continued, "You're going to suffer today, and even if Jiang Chen comes, it will be the same. No, he might even suffer with you. Ha ha ha!"

Sun Jian Sheng laughed arrogantly.

On a slightly higher step at the edge of the crowd, two girls stood there. One wore a green robe, with delicate features, and the other was beautiful and lively.

"Liu Ling, let's go. There's nothing to see here." Glancing at Wang Dong, Bi Qing said indifferently.

Liu Ling was about to leave when she suddenly said excitedly, "Bi Qing, Jiang Chen is here. It's going to be interesting."

"Jiang Chen?"

Bi Qing turned to look. Behind the crowd, Jiang Chen and Guo Zihao were walking side by side. "What use is it that he's here? Can he defeat Sun Jian Sheng? Times have changed. He's too weak now. There are many outer sect disciples who are stronger than him."

"You're too pessimistic about Jiang Chen. After all, he was once a prominent figure. Even if he's crippled, his swordsmanship is still there."

"You're right, but Sun Jian Sheng is now at the eighth level of the Qi Sea Realm, two levels higher than Jiang Chen. And Sun Jian Sheng's swordsmanship is not weak, ranking among the eighth-level Qi Sea Realm disciples."

Bi Qing remained noncommittal.

"That's true. Let's see what happens." Liu Ling nodded.

Jiang Chen's arrival stirred up the crowd.

"Jiang Chen is here."

"Can't believe he dared to come."

"He seems very calm."

"Probably just pretending. He's probably trembling inside."

Facing the ridicule and mockery of the crowd, Jiang Chen remained expressionless. Pushing through the crowd, he came to the center of the open area.

"Sun Jian Sheng, let Wang Dong go."

Jiang Chen said calmly.

"Let him go just because you say so?"

Sun Jian Sheng glanced at Jiang Chen.

"Let him go."

Jiang Chen's tone was still calm, but the atmosphere seemed slightly more oppressive.

Sun Jian Sheng's expression stiffened. He sensed a faint, almost imperceptible killing intent from Jiang Chen, which made his body cold. He couldn't understand why he still felt powerless when facing Jiang Chen again.

He hated this feeling.

With a thud, Sun Jian Sheng's face twisted, and he kicked Wang Dong away. "Jiang Chen, you have some guts to come here."

"Let's go."

Supporting Wang Dong with Guo Zihao, Jiang Chen turned to leave.

Boo!

A chorus of boos rose. The crowd felt that Jiang Chen was too cowardly. His childhood friend had been beaten up so badly, and he didn't even dare to say a word.

"Did you see that?"

Bi Qing said to Liu Ling.

"He is a bit cowardly."

Liu Ling was somewhat disappointed.

In the midst of the boos, Sun Jian Sheng felt more confident. Perhaps he had left a shadow in Jiang Chen's heart. To eliminate this shadow, he needed to defeat Jiang Chen, and this was the perfect opportunity.

"Jiang Chen, dare to fight me? Don't worry, I won't take advantage of you. If I can't defeat you in ten moves, I'll admit defeat."

Jiang Chen ignored him and continued walking.

Sun Jian Sheng was furious and taunted, "Jiang Chen, you coward, your parents must be cowards too for giving birth to you."

"What did you say?"

Letting Guo Zihao support Wang Dong, Jiang Chen slowly turned around, his eyes cold.

"I said your whole family is a bunch of cowards."

Sun Jian Sheng's face was full of provocation.

Step by step, Jiang Chen returned to the open area. "I accept your challenge, but I have one condition: the loser must slap themselves ten times."

Sun Jian Sheng was not an ordinary outer sect disciple. His father was an elder of the outer sect of the Yi Qi Sect, and his grandfather was an elder of the inner sect. Compared to him, Jiang Chen's family was nothing. At this stage, Jiang Chen did not want to cause trouble for himself. After all, he no longer had the aura of a genius. If he still had that aura, even if he disciplined Sun Jian Sheng, the higher-ups of the Yi Qi Sect would protect him. The Yi Qi Sect valued geniuses highly. Moreover, he did not want Wang Dong and Guo Zihao to be implicated.

"Fine, it's a deal. I hope you don't go back on your word."

"I won't go back on my word, but I'm a bit worried about you."

Jiang Chen truly doubted that Sun Jian Sheng would fulfill his promise.

"Rubbish, take my sword."

Sun Jian Sheng, enraged, attacked Jiang Chen with a sword strike. As an eighth-level Qi Sea Realm warrior, Sun Jian Sheng's swordsmanship was not particularly advanced, but with the support of powerful true qi, both his speed and strength were terrifying. A flash of white light, and Sun Jian Sheng's sword was already in front of Jiang Chen.

With a slight step, Jiang Chen easily avoided Sun Jian Sheng's first strike.

"Where are you hiding?"

Sun Jian Sheng's wrist turned, and his long sword swept horizontally, the sword techniques smoothly connected.

Unfortunately, Jiang Chen's footwork was flawless, moving like a breeze, light and seemingly weightless.

After several strikes, Sun Jian Sheng couldn't even touch Jiang Chen's clothes. He couldn't help but shout, "Jiang Chen, what's the point of just dodging? Do you think this is a game?"

Pfft!

Liu Ling chuckled.

In a sword duel, sword techniques were important, but footwork was equally important. No matter how advanced your sword techniques were, if you couldn't even touch your opponent, they were useless. Even if your opponent's sword techniques were slightly inferior, if their footwork was excellent, they could easily hit you or make you flustered.

Not just sword techniques, any martial arts required footwork to be effective; otherwise, they were just dead techniques.

"Take my sword."

Originally, Jiang Chen planned to keep dodging, but now he changed his mind.

Clang!

Drawing his sword, Jiang Chen held the long sword and thrust it at Sun Jian Sheng. This strike was incredibly simple yet incredibly complex. As the sword trembled, nine cold stars flickered in a chain, each representing a different attack trajectory. The attack patterns intertwined, not just nine changes, but eighty-one changes. These eighty-one changes gave a sense of unity.

The Star Chasing Sword Technique, the Starry Sky Variation.

"This seems to be the Starry Sky Variation from the Star Chasing Sword Technique."

The crowd was stunned.

The Star Chasing Sword Technique was a mid-level yellow-grade sword technique, not particularly profound. However, the way Jiang Chen executed it was so deep and mysterious, simple yet complex, and complex yet simple.

No one knew that Jiang Chen had not only cultivated ten low-level yellow-grade sword techniques and four mid-level yellow-grade sword techniques but had also mastered the basic sword techniques to perfection. Basic sword techniques were the foundation of all sword techniques, such as thrusting, pointing, hooking, lifting, slashing, and collapsing.

Everyone knew the basic sword techniques, but few could perform them to the standard. Since Jiang Chen started learning the sword, he practiced the basic sword techniques every day. He believed that all sword techniques evolved from the basic ones.

(To be continued, I hope for your support)

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