Chapter 117: Sufficiently Cowardly
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
…
On the stage, streaks of shadows flashed.
A moment later, the shadow vanished. Fang Zhengzhi stopped, and looked silently at Yan Xiu with an anticipating look, just like that of a good student.
"At least mastered sixty percent!" Yan Xiu spoke.
"Thank you!" Fang Zhengzhi sincerely bowed towards Yan Xiu.
"I didn’t teach you anything."
"Yes, I understand."
"Then let’s continue?"
"Alright."
Hence, the two people met each other’s eyes once again. The atmosphere on the arena returned back to its initial state, as if whatever that had happened previously didn’t happen.
"The sword technique I will be using next is different from what I previously used, it will be harder to learn." Yan Xiu spoke again.
"Looks like this sword technique is very powerful." Fang Zhengzhi guessed.
"It’s very powerful, but, I don’t like it." Yan Xiu continued to speak.
"Don’t like it?" Fang Zhengzhi more or less understood Yan Xiu’s meaning. He didn’t like it, yet he still mastered it. Hence, this sword technique should be compulsory for people of the Yan family to learn.
"This sword technique is shaped by the sun, containing Fire, Light and Wind, these three forms of Dao, and it also contains the killing intent of the Dao of Asura!" When Yan Xiu finished speaking, he moved.
He waved the Mountain and River, Heaven and Earth Fan in his hand, and following Yan Xiu’s actions, the air on the arena suddenly heated up, In the air, a red spot of light appeared out of thin air. The spot grew bigger and bigger, and grew brighter and brighter.
Just like a red sun.
"Sun in the Sky!" Yan Xiu bellowed. The expression on his face suddenly turned violent, and a faintly discernible red glow flashed across his eyes.
All along, Fang Zhengzhi felt that Yan Xiu was a person who was cold as ice, however, this sword technique caused him to be affected by violence. Looks like this should be the reason he doesn’t like this sword technique.
Is this the killing intent of the Asura Dao?
Alright…
It was really a little hot!
If Yan Xiu’s previous Torrential Pear Blossom was filled with coldness, then this sun undoubtedly caused people to feel as hot as if they had entered a desert.
"Could this be the legendary Heaven’s Fire and Ice?"
When Fang Zhengzhi thought of this, Yan Xiu suddenly leapt up.
"Kill!"
"Kill?"
Just as Fang Zhengzhi was carefully observing Yan Xiu’s movements, a dazzling red light appeared at the edges of Yan Xiu’s fan.
Then, the red light streaked across the air in a beautiful arc.
Becoming bigger and bigger.
In a flash, a powerful killing intent emanated from Yan Xiu’s body, then, the red light broke away from Yan Xiu’s fan and turned into a fiery half-moon that slashed towards Fang Zhengzhi.
"Uh…" Fang Zhengzhi instantly gave up attempting to continue observing. Because, life was the greater priority.
Luckily, he had learnt the Wind Shadow Technique just in time.
His body dodged, and his legs were like wind.
"Boom!"
Just as Fang Zhengzhi dodged, a deafening sound exploded on the arena.
Debris flew.
Fang Zhengzhi glanced over his shoulder, and the expression in his eyes turned into shock. He had finally understood how powerful the "very powerful" Yan Xiu referred to was.
The scene evidently seemed somewhat extreme.
On the arena, originating from Yan Xiu’s arm, a deep sword mark cut the arena into two, and on the white jade-like stones, a black, charred mark appeared
This terrifying power instantly gave the surrounding examinees a huge shock.
"Is this… really the level of a capital examination?"
"I believe it would even be a rare sight in the imperial examination?"
"Yan family people… indeed live up to their name!"
As the examinees discussed in shock, Han Changfeng, who was at the judging table, had mixed emotions for some reason. The Yan family’s "Asura Sword" originated from the battlefield, and contained the killing intent of Asura. Fang Zhengzhi shouldn’t be able to learn it?
Just as Han Changfeng expected.
Fang Zhengzhi indeed couldn’t learn Yan Xiu’s Asura Sword.
But, there was no problem…
He could make changes!
You use the sun, then I will use the moon. You use fire, then I will use ice. Even though the sun had a brightness that cannot be matched, but the moon can borrow the light of the sun.
This was the Dao of the inter-promoting relation between Yin and Yang.
I cannot use Asura, but, I can borrow your Asura!
Hence, Fang Zhengzhi moved. Waving the white jade sword in his hand, a beautifully white moon appeared in the sky under the red sun, borrowing the light of the red sun to radiate its own light.
"Kill!"
Unlike Yan Xiu, Fang Zhengzhi’s attack was bright and white, and didn’t contain any violent intent, except for an incomparable sense of calm and coldness.
"Kill!"
On the arena, a deep sword mark appeared again. However, this time, it was covered by a layer of ice.
Han Changfeng instantly felt sick, and leapt up from his seat. Looking at the sword mark that emanated an air of chilliness, he simply couldn’t conceal the shocked expression on his face.
They surrounding scholars stared with their eyes wide. This was possible? How much enlightenment did this require, and what level of mastery of all creations did he have?
To be able to learn any technique so quickly, and most importantly, expanding and inferring new things for those that he learnt!
Fang Zhengzhi didn’t bother about the reactions of the people around him…
Instead, he glanced towards Yan Xiu.
At this moment, Yan Xiu was inwardly shocked. Even though, when he mentioned the Dao of All Creation that the Asura Sword contained, he thought that Fang Zhengzhi might be able to learn it.
But…
Thinking was thinking. Having really been learnt by Fang Zhengzhi, he indeed felt somewhat overwhelmed.
In order to understand the intent of Asura, Yan Xiu had put in a lot of hard work.
"You borrowed my light? How about the killing intent of Asura?" Yan Xiu looked at the sword mark on the arena, then looked at Fang Zhengzhi, and tightened the grip on his Mountain and River, Heaven and Earth Fan.
"Light can be borrowed, but the killing intent of Asura cannot… however, the personality of Asura is kind-heartened, and is also one among the Dao of kindness. However, due to him usually having hatred and fighting persistently, the world had misjudged him as not being part of the good. I understand this; Hence, I can use another method to bring out the killing intent of Asura!"
"Another method?" Yan Xiu was somewhat confused.
"Yes, in order to use the killing intent, one’s heart must containing killing, similarly, one’s heart must contain peace." When Fang Zhengzhi said these, he seemed rather enigmatic.
"Peace?" Yan Xiu didn’t quite understand.
"Yes… this is a more graceful way of saying. Actually, it is about magnifying the fear in one’s heart. Or more frankly, I am sufficiently cowardly, hence this kind of cowardly attitude can also become a protective killing intent!" Fang Zhengzhi explained very generously. Luckily, his skin was sufficiently thick. An ordinary person would never admit that he was cowardly.
Furthermore, cowardly to such an extent.
"Cowardly attitude?" Yan Xiu was slightly taken aback, then, seemed to have understood something. "Thank you for teaching me this!"
"Ha ha, you don’t have to thank me. I believe you won’t be able to learn this, because, not everybody is as cowardly as me." Fang Zhengzhi smiled gently.
When both of them interacted with one another, the surrounding examinees, as well as Han Changfeng and the examiners at the judging table, were already so shocked by Fang Zhengzhi’s speech that they were completely unable to speak.
Seems like…
Being cowardly can also become a form of killing intent?!