In the middle of the sky, the blazing sun shot its scorching rays onto the two males standing on platform A. Faint sweat was forming on Yang Bin's back, as he faced off one of his hardest opponents to date: Yang Lan.
"So. Are you still planning on acting like a cowardly rat? Running and fleeing?" Yang Lan taunted Yang Bin, attempting to provoke him. Evidently, he had paid attention to Yang Bin's first battle and did not like his strategy.
Yang Bin merely smiled. "Maybe I will; maybe I won't. Though the title 'Yang Lan gets utterly defeated by a cowardly rat' would make an interesting story."
Yang Lan's face seemed to darken. "I will not let things go your way. I will defeat you." He pointed a dagger at Yang Bin.
Yang Bin stopped smiling. "With just your strength? You don't have the ability."
The air was filled with tension. Sparks were flying in between them.
"Ahem, contestants please bow and introduce yourself." Yang Yugang said with slight annoyance. He already said it once, but neither of them had listened.
Yang Bin and Yang Lan bowed to each other, albeit unwilling.
"Yang Bin. Eighth rank body tempering cultivator."
"Yang Lan. Seventh rank body tempering cultivator."
"Match begins!"
The moment the call was made, Yang Bin and Yang Lan both sprung forward like an arrow leaving the bow.
Seeing this, Yang Lan grinned gleefully. He decided to fight me head on? Is he underestimating me? Perfect. He suddenly sped up again, instantly appearing in front of Yang Bin, and performed a downward slash. It's over Yang Bin! You lost!
Bang! Contrary to Yang Lan's thoughts, Yang Bin didn't go down.
Knowing beforehand about Yang Lan's movement technique, Yang Bin had already formulated a counter plan. His arm, which shimmered with a bronze hue, was raised in front of him. Although it was heavily pushed down, it was able to stop the swing.
"Surprised?" Yang Bin grinned. It was a technique he had learned from Yang Chen: Bronze Guard.
At this instance, Yang Lan's instincts screamed danger at him. Utilizing his movement technique, he immediately shot backwards, narrowly avoiding Yang Bin's lethal sneak attack.
"How lucky." Yang Bin clicked his tongue in disappointment. Taking advantage of their close proximity, he had used his right arm not just to block the attack, but also Yang Lan's line of sight. His left hand had activated Extreme Piercing Finger and was aiming for Yang Lan's stomach.
Yang Lan looked down at his armor, and his face became solemn. Despite Yang Bin's attack not landing, there was still a tiny slit at the lower half of his armor. "What a powerful technique. You've kept your cards hidden well."
"Now that you see it, why don't you forfeit? It'll save both of us some time." Yang Bin goaded. Of course, he didn't expect Yang Lan to take his suggestion.
Yang Lan shook his head. "No, I can't do that. You see, I-" He unexpectedly cut off mid sentence and burst forth. Appearing in front of Yang Bin, he swung diagonally with one hand and then stabbed with the other.
Already on guard, Yang Bin was prepared for this sudden attack. He blocked the slash with his arm and deflected the stab.
Internally, Yang Bin was astonished. He wasn't surprised about the attack, but rather his father and warned him about this during the break.
"Your opponent is like an assassin, so sneak attacks are his forte. Sneak attack doesn't just mean attacks that are hidden; it could also mean attacks that are unexpected. For example, in the middle of talking, that is usually a time where people would launch an attack. Always be careful. Always be on guard."
Yang Bin frowned slightly. Even though Yang Gang had told him many things, he never told him that Yang Lan's hits would be so powerful. It didn't feel like a swing from a seventh rank, but from a rank higher. Shaking his head, Yang Bin dispelled this doubt.
Surprised that his attack foiled again, Yang Lan retreated again, but this time, Yang Bin was one step ahead.
Seizing the initiative, Yang Bin chased after him. In his mind, his father's words echoed.
"After failing an attack, Yang Lan will fall back. This is because he knows he is weaker than you. A rank difference in cultivation means that your strength, speed, and endurance triumphs over his. In fact, even your reaction time and improvisation skills are better than his due to your Mystic Pupils. The only thing he has over you is his 'surprise' factor, so once that's gone, the only logical move is to retreat.
Once he retreats, seize the initiative and pursue him. The longer you fight, the less he can hide. Draw out everything that he is concealing."
So far, he has only revealed one technique and that is his movement technique. He must have more. Yang Bin thought, as he started his barrage of attacks. Alternating left and right, he stabbed Yang Lan over and over again with Extreme Piercing Finger, making sure to always aim for his armor.
Familiar with the lethality of these stabs, Yang Lan didn't dare take them on. He didn't even dare deflect them with his blades, afraid that they might break. As such, he could only hopelessly dodge each jab.
But not all dodges were perfect. Since Yang Lan was one rank lower than Yang Bin, he couldn't perfectly keep up with Yang Bin. As seconds dragged by, his dodges were becoming messier, resulting in scratches in his armor.
Yang Lan was feeling stifled. Each attack was keeping him at his edge. He desperately wanted to fight back, but wasn't sure how to when he was outclassed in every aspect.
A rage began to bubble within Yang Lan. He had practiced and suffered so much just for this opportunity, and now it was slipping away from him. Eventually the rage overflowed.
"AHH!" Yang Lan roared. His speed abruptly increased, letting him dodge Yang Bin's attack. Then he instantly countered, slashing horizontally.
Noticing this, Yang Bin hastily brought his arms up to block the attack.
Bang! The impact actually knocked away Yang Bin!
Yang Bin stumbled sideways a few steps. What a heavy blow!
Recovering, he looked at Yang Lan solemnly. His speed suddenly became on par with mine, and his attacks had improved a level. So this is his trump card.
With bloodshot eyes, Yang Lan growled, "Well done Yang Bin. You've forced my hand. I originally planned to save this for my final fight, but now, I must use it against you." He lunged forward.
Yang Bin took a sigh of relief. At least his speed is only on par with mine, not greater. I can just stall.- While Yang Bin was thinking these thoughts, Yang Lan appeared in front of him all of a sudden. Even with his Mystic Pupils, it looked like Yang Lan teleported in front of him, leaving him with very little time to react.
I forgot about his movement technique! Startled, Yang Bin was barely able to block the dagger slashed at him. He stumbled back many steps. Alarm bells rang out in his head, as he realized this impact was even stronger than the last. His swings feel as powerful as Yang Chen's punches! How is this possible?
Not giving Yang Bin to ponder upon this question, Yang Lan stabbed out with his other dagger.
Not wanting to get pushed back again, Yang Bin twisted his body to dodge it. Seeing the outstretched dagger in front of him, an idea came to Yang Bin: declaw the tiger; cut down the daggers. With this plan in mind, Yang Bin activated Extreme Piercing Finger and swiped up.
Unfortunately, Yang Lan was already recalling his dagger, thus Yang Bin was only able to shave off the tip of the dagger. However, Yang Lan seemed oblivious that his weapon had been tampered and proceeded to slash Yang Bin with his other dagger.
Using Phantom Tracks, Yang Bin retreated outside of the dagger's reach and away from Yang Lan.
Keeping up with Yang Bin, Yang Lan instantly flashed in front of Yang Bin and delivered two attacks. And once again, Yang Bin dodged them.
The cycle continued, and seconds dragged by. While most contestants would have lost by now, Yang Bin was slowly adapting to Yang Lan's lightning fast moves and attacks. There was a pattern that he had gotten familiar with. One move, two attacks. One move, two attacks. He chanted in his mind.
As it continued, unknownst to Yang Lan, more tiny wooden pieces appeared on the floor. Some of it was broken off from Yang Bin armor, but most of it was from Yang Lan dagger which had been considerably shortened. By now, it was only half the length of what it used to be.
Despite the drastic difference, Yang Lan still had yet to notice, completely tunnel visioned on Yang Bin. All he saw was small damages that had slowly accumulated on Yang Bin's armor. My time is running low. I need to change plans. Just a little more and I'll win. Just a little bit more!
Yang Lan darted in front of Yang Bin.
Yang Bin reflectively dodged back, but then he realized something wasn't right. The attack never came. What was Yang Lan planning?
Yang Lan zoomed in front of Yang Bin again, and once again, Yang Bin reflectively retreated back. Still no attacks from Yang Lan.
Appearing in front of Yang Bin for a third time, Yang Lan roared with glee, "I got you now!" He raised his dagger.
Just as Yang Bin was about to back up again, he realized something, and his heart sank.
His back was already at the edge.