Xuan Tian's eyebrows furrowed. The difference in strength between the third and fifth levels of martial arts was too great; it was not simply a matter of one hand versus two hands.
Using only one hand does not reduce one's strength by half. A martial artist's strength remains unchanged; it simply means having one less hand and being able to use fewer martial arts techniques. For a swordsman, as long as he has a sword in hand, one hand is enough to unleash eighty or ninety percent of his full strength.
Huang Shi was no match for Zhang Hu, who could only fight with one hand.
Upon hearing this, Xuan Tian immediately understood that his cousin Huang Shi had been provoked by Zhang Hu and deliberately lured him to the arena for a fight. Once on the arena, under the watchful eyes of everyone, it would be a matter of mutual consent. As long as he wasn't killed, even if he was seriously injured, it would only be because his skills were inferior to the opponent's.
Thinking of this, Xuan Tian was furious. Fearing that his cousin Huang Shi would suffer too much, he loosened his grip and released Lin Dong, saying, "Junior Brother Lin, take your time. I'll go first."
With his profound inner strength, Xuan Tian used his lightness skill to its fullest extent, moving as lightly as a swallow. In one step, he covered more than three zhang (approximately 10 meters) and rushed towards the dueling arena in the outer sect disciples' square.
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Heavenly Sword Sect, outer disciple plaza.
At this moment, hundreds of outer sect disciples gathered in the square. The duel between a disciple at the fifth level of martial arts and a disciple at the third level of martial arts was too great in terms of strength. Although the result was a foregone conclusion, it was indeed a rare event that attracted the attention of many people.
Of course, it only attracted some disciples who had just started learning a few years ago, or whose cultivation level was below the sixth level of martial arts.
Disciples at the seventh level of martial arts or above are considered high-level among outer disciples, and they disdain watching such a boring duel.
On the arena, Huang Shi and Zhang Hu were 'fighting,' but it was more like a game than a real fight.
Zhang Hu was also a fourteen-year-old boy who entered the Heavenly Sword Sect in the same year as Xuan Tian. His talent was outstanding among the disciples of the same year. After three and a half years in the sect, his cultivation had reached the fifth level of martial artist, which was a level higher than Xuan Tian before his fortuitous encounter.
Zhang Hu was born strong and robust. At only fourteen years old, he was already about 1.8 meters tall, with a burly build and immense strength. Among disciples of the same cultivation level, he was the most outstanding.
Although he used only one hand, the moment he swung the sword, Huang Shi was thrown back violently, his hand numb and painful.
Before Huang Shi could react, Zhang Hu changed his sword technique and a wound appeared on his arm.
At this moment, Huang Shi had no fewer than ten wounds on his arms, and even several cuts on his front, back, and thighs, all of which were bleeding profusely. There was also blood at the corner of his mouth, indicating that he had suffered internal injuries from the impact of Zhang Hu's heavy sword.
Zhang Hu struck again with his sword, laughed heartily, and said, "Huang Shi, you still say you're not trash? I can beat you with one hand like slaughtering a dog, and kill you like slaughtering a pig. Today, as long as you admit your mistake and admit that Huang Tian is trash, the trash of trash, I will let you go."
"Ha ha ha ha..."
Some disciples below the arena burst into laughter, and some even made various comments, such as, "He really is a piece of trash," and "Senior Brother Zhang Hu is indeed powerful."
Most of the disciples watching below were of low cultivation level, the lowest level disciples in the outer sect. They were usually bullied by others and had nowhere to vent their dissatisfaction. Now, seeing that Huang Shi was even worse off than them, they completely forgot how pathetic they were when they were being beaten.
Some people are like that; even though they are at the bottom of a circle and suffer oppression from those above, they still enjoy mocking others who are also at the bottom.
"Don't even think about it!" Huang Shi spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes gleaming red, and roared like a madman, "Zhang Hu, you're the trash. One day, Brother Tian will beat you down."
"You piece of trash, still dare to talk back? Looks like you're really asking for trouble. If I don't teach you a lesson, you won't know how powerful I am."
Zhang Hu was furious and shouted loudly.
He thought to himself: As long as I don't kill this piece of trash in the duel, I can severely injure him. At most, the elder will punish me for not being careful in the duel and make me reflect on my mistakes in the face of the wall for about a month. Fine, I'll stab this piece of trash in the chest with a sword, make a big hole in it, and make sure this piece of trash can't get out of bed for three months.
Once Zhang Hu harbored evil intentions, he acted on them without hesitation. As soon as he finished speaking, he deflected Huang Shi's sword with his own and thrust his long sword toward Huang Shi's chest.
This ruthless move shocked all the disciples watching from below the stage, and exclamations of surprise rang out in unison.
"Zhang Hu...stop right now!"
Just then, a loud shout rang out from the edge of the square. Xuan Tian leaped into the square and landed in the middle of the square, still more than 20 feet away from the arena.
Xuan Tian's voice startled Zhang Hu slightly. Then, a cold smile appeared on his face, and the speed of the long sword in his hand increased instead of decreasing, continuing to stab Huang Shi in the chest.
call out...
A dazzling light flashed from Xuan Tian's hand, instantly traversing more than twenty feet of void and flying onto the arena.
clang...
With a loud bang, just as the tip of Zhang Hu's sword touched Huang Shi's clothes, a dazzling light struck Zhang Hu's sword.
A tremendous force emanated from the sword, causing Zhang Hu's hand to tremble and the longsword to fly out of his palm and fall to the side.
After the dazzling light knocked Zhang Hu's longsword away, its trajectory veered off course, and it plunged headfirst into the arena three zhang away.
With a whoosh, the dazzling white light that had been vibrating instantly stopped and transformed into a long sword, which was stuck upside down on the arena, half of its blade embedded in the hard surface.
As everyone's attention was drawn to the long sword, Xuan Tian leaped onto the arena and appeared beside Huang Shi.
Zhang Hu was shocked by Xuan Tian's sword strike. When he suddenly saw Xuan Tian appear in front of him, he immediately retreated and stopped three zhang away. At the same time, he picked up the long sword that Xuan Tian had dropped on the ground.
Xuan Tian pressed several acupoints near Huang Shi's still bleeding body to stop the bleeding. Seeing that although Huang Shi had many wounds, none of them were deep and were just superficial injuries, he felt relieved. If something serious happened to Huang Shi, how could he live up to his third uncle's entrustment?
Fortunately, Xuan Tian arrived in time. If Zhang Hu's sword had pierced Huang Shi's chest, Huang Shi would have been seriously injured, even if he hadn't died. He might not have been able to advance his cultivation any further in this life.
Thinking of this, a hint of coldness appeared in Xuan Tian's eyes. His enemies—Xuan Ji and Yin Ji—were still too powerful and too far away. The most important thing right now was to eliminate the obstacles and enemies in front of him.
From this day forward, any enemy who harms his family, his own interests and safety, or stands in his way must be eliminated. Only by constantly breaking through all obstacles and moving forward can he possibly have the right to fight against his greatest enemies—Xuanji and Yinji.
With the acupoints sealed, Huang Shi's wound immediately stopped bleeding. Although he was weak, he was not seriously injured and would recover after a few days of rest. Xuan Tian said, "Go wait over there and let me deal with him."
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My eyes are shining with excitement as I beg for your votes!!!