"Come on!" Meng Chuan looked down from the arena, his eyes burning.
Wu Qi was startled by the dean's order, but his eyes gradually lit up. He looked at Meng Chuan and grinned. "Alright, let's fight."
Swoosh.
He took a step and arrived at the arena, much faster than before.
Clang. He moved the shield hanging from his back to his hand and pulled out a thick saber from the shield. This saber was completely black, a red glow surrounding it.
With a shield in one hand and a thick saber in the other, Wu Qi stood there like an unshakable mountain. He released an invisible aura, causing the surrounding juniors to shudder.
"Senior Brother Wu Qi, you cultivate a Godfiend Body known as the Dark Cloud Fiend Body, am I right?" asked Meng Chuan. The aura causing him some alarm was clearly the aura of a Godfiend body.
"That's right. It's the Dark Cloud Fiend Body!" After Wu Qi said that, he charged towards Meng Chuan. Despite charging forward alone, it felt as if a huge legion of soldiers was crashing down on him! There was no variation in the moves. It was purely a charge consisting of speed and strength.
Boom!
Wu Qi charged with his shield akin to a speedy phantom. He slammed his shield into Meng Chuan with might that could collapse even a house.
With a single step, Meng Chuan dodged the shield and moved to Wu Qi's side. The saber flashed as it cleaved at him.
"Kill!" The moment Wu Qi's shield missed, he very skillfully swung his thick saber resulting in a collision with Meng Chuan's saber.
Clang!
Sparks flew when the two sabers collided.
Wu Qi took a step back and steadied himself. In contrast, Meng Chuan flew back tens of feet.
He's actually able to unleash such powerful might using the secret technique? Wu Qi's pupils constricted.
Mortal cultivation: Foundation Establishment, Internal Tempering, Marrow Cleansing, Mortal Shedding, Impervious.
Among them, the first three cultivation levels were considered ordinary. They allowed one to cultivate Quintessential Energy, causing the mortal body to gradually grow stronger. The gap between them wasn't that great.
However, the fourth level—Mortal Shedding—meant shedding one's mortal burdens! This was because mortals would possess a portion of Godfiend power when they begin cultivating Godfiend bodies. This increase in strength was astonishing. Wu Qi cultivated the Dark Cloud Fiend Body and had reached the perfected Mortal Shedding stage. His strength and speed was extremely terrifying, far exceeding those of the perfected Marrow Cleansing realm.
If he were to deal with the average person at the Marrow Cleansing realm, he could chop his opponent to death in a single exchange.
Even if someone at the Marrow Cleansing realm wielded a shield, they would still end up spitting out blood from the saber impact.
The difference in strength was simply too great!
The power he just released is almost seventy percent of mine. This is equivalent to my strength when I was at the late stage of the Mortal Shedding realm. Wu Qi was shocked. "Is this the power of the secret technique?"
He had long known how terrifying the secret technique was. Even his chances of winning this battle were very low.
I still have a chance of winning. Wu Qi gritted his teeth and charged forward again. He was like insolent cavalry as he charged forward.
I'm still slightly weaker than him by relying on the power of the secret technique. Third Autumn Leaf is ultimately a secret technique that is more speed-based. Meng Chuan moved, producing another Meng Chuan a hundred feet away.
There he is! Wu Qi cultivated the Dark Cloud Fiend Body and was adept at sensing his surroundings. He could sense a figure was charging towards him.
Compared to Bai Guan who was unable to fight back, Wu Qi could detect him despite the secret technique—Third Autumn Leaf—being known for its speed. He was even able to respond.
Boom! His thick saber chopped down with a swipe.
Clang!
His saber missed, but the shield in his hand blocked Meng Chuan's sudden saber strike.
He's really fast. I still missed him. Wu Qi's heart tightened. Thankfully, he had carefully protected his unguarded areas with his shield. With shield and saber in each hand, he used a powerful skill from Mirror Lake Dao Academy, the Duality Shield Saber Technique. There was a high chance of surviving a battle when one used this top-notch skill. Therefore, Wu Qi had chosen the Dark Cloud Fiend Body that suited this powerful skill.
With the Duality Shield Saber Technique combined with his Dark Cloud Fiend Body, his defense was flawless and his attacks were ferocious. He was the number one among the Mirror Lake Dao Academy disciples at the Mortal Shedding realm thanks to this.
"Duality Shield Saber Technique—one yin, one yang—is indeed powerful. However, I wonder how many of my moves you can parry." As Meng Chuan's voice continued to echo, he lunged forward.
"It's useless. You won't be able to hurt me." Wu Qi stood his ground, using his saber and shield to block Meng Chuan's ethereal blade.
Pfft.
Pfft.
Swoosh.
Meng Chuan's movements were extremely fast as one saber flash after another appeared. It was none other than the Falling Leaf Saber.
In the beginning, Wu Qi was rather confident of his defense, but he found parrying the attacks increasingly difficult as Meng Chuan's repetitive strikes formed a continuous combo. His stance changed after every successful block. Through the continuous saber combo, Meng Chuan was able to tear apart his defense.
In just six strikes, Wu Qi staggered backward as he barely put up a defense.
Chi!
An extremely quick stab.
Wu Qi didn't even have time to brandish his shield to block before the tip of the blade was already at his throat.
"This…" Wu Qi looked at the saber that was pressing against his throat before looking at Meng Chuan.
This was the first time he had fought someone at the Marrow Cleansing realm who had grasped the secret technique. He had lost terribly.
"I've lost," Wu Qi said in a low voice. "The secret technique is even more terrifying than I thought. Not only can it produce a terrifying speed and strength, but it also improves the finesse of your saber arts."
Meng Chuan nodded.
Yes.
A secret technique was the combination of body, mind, and technique, so it could naturally release terrifying strength.
An ancient Godfiend had once said that a human's body had tremendous potential. A mortal who had never trained before would find it difficult to carry fifty kilograms of weight. However, if he could perfectly use his potential by utilizing every bone and muscle, he would be able to unleash more than five thousand kilograms of strength! Of course, that was an ideal case where every ounce of potential was used.
In reality, the higher one's mastery of saber arts, the more astonishing the potential one could use.
The Unity realm was the first major realm for saber arts.
The secret technique, Third Autumn Leaf, multiplied strength and speed! It allowed Meng Chuan's strength to reach roughly 70% of Wu Qi's strength—who was at the perfected Mortal Shedding realm—and his speed crushed Wu Qi's. Furthermore, his control of the saber was more refined. The saber moves perfectly coordinated with each other. Just seven strikes were enough to break through Wu Qi's Duality Shield Saber Technique which was renowned for its defense.
"From this day forth, you will be considered the strongest out of thousands of disciples from Mirror Lake Dao Academy." Wu Qi looked at Meng Chuan and said, "You will be the Eldest Senior Brother of Mirror Lake Dao Academy's current generation."
In Mirror Lake Dao Academy, the accomplished came first.
The eldest senior brother of the Dao Academy was the strongest amongst all the disciples. After defeating Wu Qi, Meng Chuan naturally became the eldest senior brother of the Dao Academy.
With that said, Wu Qi walked off the stage.
Suddenly, many of the juniors began to shout. "Eldest Senior Brother Meng Chuan!"
"Eldest Senior Brother!"
"Eldest Senior Brother!"
Being the eldest senior brother was just a title; whether he deserved respect was another matter.
The few Mirror Lake Dao Academy eldest senior brothers in the past didn't enjoy much prestige since their strength didn't stand out much. They did not manage to comprehend the secret technique! There was not much difference in their skills compared to their peers, so it was very possible they might be defeated by other juniors during matches in the future!
But Meng Chuan was different!
He had figured out the secret technique and defeated Wu Qi—who had reached the perfected Mortal Shedding realm. Furthermore, Meng Chuan would soon reach the Mortal Shedding realm as well. When that happened, the gap between him and his fellow disciples would become even more exaggerated. Even someone at the Mortal Shedding realm wouldn't be able to withstand a single strike from him!
Only an absolutely invincible eldest senior brother would be able to completely impress all his juniors.
"Hahaha"—Dean Ge Yu chuckled—"Alright, come down." It was rare for him to be so amiable. "Let the other juniors at the Marrow Cleansing realm fight to determine the other two slots."
"Yes." Meng Chuan immediately walked down.
"Greetings, Senior Brother Meng." Wan Mang cupped his hands and bowed with a smile.
"Greetings, Senior Brother Meng." The disciples of Mountain River Pavilion around him saluted him with a smile. Some of his fellow disciples had a slight fawning attitude. They knew very well that Meng Chuan was completely different from them. He was a peerless genius in the entire Eastcalm Prefecture, one who had a chance of becoming a Godfiend in the future.
…
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
One by one, the Meng family disciples rushed back to the ancestral mansion with everything they had.
"Why are all you brats running so fast?" The main entrance to the Meng family's ancestral mansion was huge, and clan members were naturally guarding it. They also recognized these juniors.
The first person to charge to the ancestral mansion shouted loudly, startling the clansmen guarding at the door. "Meng Chuan has figured out the secret technique!" While they were dumbfounded, the youth rushed into the ancestral mansion and continued shouting loudly, "Meng Chuan figured out the secret technique!"
The other Meng family members finally reached their destination as well.
All of them were shouting.
"Meng Chuan figured out the secret technique!"
"Senior Brother Meng figured out the secret technique!"
"Meng Chuan figured out the secret technique at Mirror Lake Dao Academy!"