High Martial Arts: Enlightenment after Practices-Chapter 117: Showdown with the Seven Kills Saber
"Xu Wuyi! Haha, I’m here!" Shen Wei’s voice came through the communicator.
Xu Wuyi smiled and said, "Shen Wei, you’ve arrived at Star Martial?"
"I’m here. Just got settled in. I’m in Villa 10 of the Hidden Dragon Garden. We’re neighbors now!"
Shen Wei’s tone was filled with excitement. "This is a bit embarrassing, but I was planning on arriving at the end of July. Turns out I went into seclusion at home to focus on a breakthrough with my Seven Kills Saber and accidentally dragged it out until now."
Xu Wuyi nodded. He knew that Shen Wei’s family was well-off, and the training conditions at his home weren’t necessarily worse than at Star Martial University.
"So, what do you say? Got time? How about a sparring match on the Battle Network?" Shen Wei directly invited him, his style as direct and straightforward as ever. "I’ve been wanting to have a real fight with you for a long time!"
"Alright."
Xu Wuyi was just thinking about testing the combat effectiveness of his Eight-direction Soul Suppressing Spear, and Shen Wei was undoubtedly a suitable opponent.
The two agreed to meet in the public training area of the Battle Network.
Xu Wuyi’s consciousness entered the Star Martial Battle Network, and he was teleported to the familiar greenstone arena area.
A system light promptly swept over them, synchronizing and locking their Life Energy Levels at 15. This was a setting Shen Wei had configured beforehand.
Shen Wei was already waiting there. He looked even more powerfully built than he did in reality.
He wore tight-fitting combat gear and held a long saber with a ferocious design. Its blade was long and narrow, with a deep blood groove, exuding a menacing aura.
Seeing Xu Wuyi, a combative smile spread across Shen Wei’s face. "You’re here!"
"Mhm." Xu Wuyi nodded, his usual long spear materializing in his hand.
"Just a heads-up," Shen Wei said, gesturing toward Xu Wuyi with the tip of his saber, his tone confident. "My Seven Kills Saber has reached Entry Level. Its killing power is on another level now, so you’d better watch out."
Xu Wuyi was about to say that his Eight-direction Soul Suppressing Spear had also reached Entry Level, but Shen Wei was faster.
The moment his voice fell, Shen Wei’s figure shot forward!
He didn’t bother with any probing attacks, launching directly into a ferocious assault.
His footwork was rapid as he shot toward Xu Wuyi like an arrow loosed from a bow. He raised his long saber high, and it whistled through the air as it chopped down toward Xu Wuyi’s head!
"Seven Kills: Splitting Mountain!"
The slash was ferocious, and the sharp sound of it cleaving the air was piercing. A ruthless killing intent shot straight for his face.
This strike was even stronger than Xu Wuyi had anticipated. Shen Wei’s arm muscles bulged, the long saber’s trajectory fast and steady as it fell. He clearly had a proficient grasp of this move, with no trace of unfamiliarity.
Xu Wuyi didn’t dare to be careless. With a flick of his wrist, he brought his long spear up to block.
"CLANG!"
The instant the spear and saber collided, a loud crash exploded across the arena!
Tremendous force traveled down the spear shaft. Xu Wuyi’s arm dipped slightly, but he held firm and received the blow.
In that instant of collision, he seized the opportunity to infuse a trace of "mountain" True Intention into his spear, silently activating the "Soul Suppressing" characteristic of [Gathering Spirit].
There was no obvious flash of light, nor any special sound, only an invisible pressure that traveled up the saber’s blade and onto Shen Wei.
Shen Wei felt as if the force of his slash against the spear shaft had struck a mountain of cotton; most of the fierce momentum of his saber was instantly neutralized.
What shocked him even more was an invisible pressure that suddenly descended upon him, like a small mountain pressing down on his spirit.
His Heart and Spirit faltered, and the smooth flow of his Qi and Blood stagnated for an instant. Even the hand gripping his saber went slightly numb.
’What’s going on?’ Shen Wei wondered, but he had no time to think it over.
He flipped his wrist, changing his chop into a sweep. The blade skimmed across the ground with a sharp whistle, aiming straight for Xu Wuyi’s lower body.
This was a linking move from the Seven Kills Saber, designed specifically to exploit the opening after an opponent blocks.
Xu Wuyi shifted his feet lightly, executing Instant Shadow Step to dodge to the side.
At the same time, he thrust his spear forward with the momentum, the tip aimed straight at Shen Wei’s left shoulder and carrying a faint, scorching aura.
Before the spear tip even got close, Shen Wei felt that familiar sense of oppression wash over him again.
It was like someone had struck a gong next to his ear. His Heart and Spirit were thrown into disarray again, and he failed to execute the follow-up move he’d planned, "Seven Kills: Waist Binding."
"CLANG!"
Shen Wei could only throw up a hasty block, his saber clashing with the spear once again.
This time, the feeling of his Heart and Spirit being suppressed was even more pronounced.
The speed of his slash slowed by a fraction, his arm movements grew a little stiff, and even his breathing was thrown off rhythm.
Xu Wuyi’s eyes narrowed. ’The "Soul Suppressing" characteristic really works.’
Although it was only at the Basic Level, it was already having a noticeable disruptive effect on a Martial Artist like Shen Wei, who had just reached the Entry Level of his Saber Technique.
Shen Wei’s attacks grew more and more ferocious. As if sensing something was wrong, he instead sped up his slashes, unleashing the killing moves of the Seven Kills Saber one after another.
His saber flashed, slicing the air around the arena with a crackling sound. The killing intent radiating from Shen Wei was almost tangible.
But his movements slowed imperceptibly. His once-rapid footwork became somewhat unsteady, and the arc of his slashes grew smaller and smaller.
The confidence on his face gradually faded, replaced by a hint of anxiety.
He could clearly see openings in Xu Wuyi’s defense, but because his Heart and Spirit were disturbed, every slash was half a beat too slow. He tried to put more power into breaking through the defense, but his strength would mysteriously drain away mid-swing, leaving the momentum of his saber feeble.
In less than a minute, cold sweat was already beading on Shen Wei’s forehead, and the hair at his temples was soaked through.
He stopped to catch his breath, the hand gripping his saber trembling slightly. His eyes now held a look of confusion and exhaustion.
This was the inevitable sign of despondency that appeared after one’s will was continuously suppressed. The sharp aura he had a moment ago had weakened considerably, and even the killing intent around him had faded.
’This isn’t right! It has to be Xu Wuyi’s doing!’
Shen Wei suddenly realized.
He had heard an instructor mention during his martial exam training that some High-tier Martial Arts could affect one’s Heart and Spirit, even coming with suppressive effects on a spiritual level.
That sense of oppression from before—nine times out of ten, it was a characteristic of the Spear Technique Xu Wuyi practiced!
Having figured this out, a ruthless glint flashed in Shen Wei’s eyes.
He no longer persisted with his frenzied attacks. Instead, he took a deep breath, and the Qi and Blood in his body began to circulate wildly.
His originally steady aura suddenly surged. The killing intent radiating from his body instantly intensified several times over, and even his saber began to glow with a faint red light!
"True Intention of Martial Arts: Kill!"
Shen Wei let out a low shout. His voice was somewhat hoarse, but filled with unwavering resolve.
He knew that the only way to fight this kind of Mental Suppression was to use his True Intention of Martial Arts.
As he channeled his True Intention, the long saber in Shen Wei’s hand began to vibrate violently. The red glow on the blade grew brighter and brighter, and the surrounding air seemed to ignite from the killing intent, growing scorching hot.
"Secret Technique: Seven Kills Linked Slash!"
Shen Wei swung his saber fiercely, and it instantly transformed into seven afterimages!
Each afterimage carried an ultimate killing intent, attacking Xu Wuyi from seven different angles simultaneously.
There were slashes aimed at his head, sweeps aimed at his waist, and thrusts aimed at his chest. The saber images were densely packed, sealing off nearly every possible escape route.
This was a Secret Technique from the Seven Kills Saber that could only be used after reaching Entry Level. It consumed a massive amount of Qi and Blood, and every saber image was a real attack, not a feint.
In order to break the suppression of "Soul Suppressing," Shen Wei had directly used his trump card.
