With a slash of his knife, he cut off almost the entire hem of his black robe, folded it twice and tossed it. The fabric, like a large crow, steadily flew toward the table.
Pei Ye frowned as he watched it trace its arc, his gaze shifting to where it would land. Suddenly, he realized something and his heart clenched tightly.
But there was nothing he could do in time. The crow spread its wings obscuring the burning blue flame, plunging the entire cave into darkness, swallowing up his narrowed pupils and pale face. The flame seemed to have no heat, failing to ignite or penetrate the fabric.
Those who possess True Qi have much more sensitive senses. When the light dims, Wu Zaigu can see more than Pei Ye; when the sound grows faint, Wu Zaigu can determine directions more precisely than Pei Ye.
I have lost ninety percent of my sight, but I can still exert half of my strength. However, when you lose ninety percent of your sight, you're reduced to a helpless state. While I indeed cannot match your swordsmanship, do you still know when to strike, where to strike, or how to strike now?
Pei Ye had no idea.
Without a clear target, without specific details of the opponent's moves, without gauging the distance between them or time to react, his unique skills could only leave him helpless.
His heightened senses hindered his swordsmanship, or perhaps his outstanding swordsmanship is why he managed to hold on for so long under such disproportionate power.
The surrounding darkness was filled with sharp needles, poised to deliver a lethal blow from any direction at any time.
His heart almost stopped beating. Under the looming threat of imminent death, Pei Ye quickly racked his brain for a countermeasure, but it was all in vain.
This was a blatant scheme, resulting from a vast power gap. A Seven Level martial artist from the Meridian Tree could easily kill a novice. Now, things had simply returned to their natural order.
He had no more time to think. Even the worst countermeasure was better than waiting helplessly for death.
Even though he was almost the entire room away from the blue flame, Pei Ye charged towards it trusting only his memory.
The entire room was not more than a few steps away. Getting closer, he could see a faint light, but Wu Zaigu didn't give any chances to a cornered opponent. A shrill sound echoed behind Pei Ye's head, and he knew the next strike was aimed at his throat.
But this was also Pei Ye's last resort!
If I don't know from which direction you'll strike, I'll deliberately expose my vulnerable back. If I don't know when you'll strike, I'll rush to unveil the darkness, forcing you to strike now.
His longsword was all set and ready. He gritted his teeth, twisted his step, turned around, and struck!
In the midst of darkness, he left everything up to fate.
Hoping his sword could cut through his adversary's throat first!
A clash of metal echoed.
Pei Ye's heart sank to the pit of his stomach.
Until now, Wu Zaigu had still not risked his life to take the offensive.
Pei Ye was attempting to lure him into a desperate gamble, but Wu Zaigu hasn't even placed his life on the betting table.
Pei Ye was enticing him to make a move, but wasn't he also simply waiting for Pei Ye to swing his sword? He was not seeking a swift kill, but a contest of swords.
As he had predicted, with the distinct disparity in strength, Pei Ye's sword flew out of his hand upon impact, "clang" echoed as it hit the ground, like a wild goose crying out after having its wing broken.
Throughout his thirty years of life, Wu Zaigu had experienced countless life-or-death fights. From his initial recklessness to his seasoned experience, he had long comprehended the essence of doing one's utmost even when facing the weakest opponent, and had seen many experts succumb to unforeseen disasters.
He granted Pei Ye the utmost respect, turning Pei Ye, a poisonous snake, into a harmless earthworm by first blinding him then pulling out his fangs.
Pei Ye stood motionlessly in place, the evaporating sweat on his body beginning to make him feel cold. He realized that he had truly become a helpless fish under the knife.
In strength, experience, quick-wittedness, decisiveness, and calmness, the opponent surpassed him steadily in every aspect.
For the first time, Pei Ye truly experienced this feeling. All his tricks were utterly useless; his fate was completely in the enemy's hands. The enemy could do whatever he wanted, kill or tease him however he wished.
This was the so-called no-way-out situation.
He knew beforehand the strength of his enemy, but his feeling was one of danger and oppression, which only served to stir up a great courage in him.
But now, for the first time, he was shrouded in the fear of being powerless to resist death—a fear that he could not tell whether it was a fear of death or of powerlessness itself.
In the darkness came the snickering of Wu Zaigu, and the sound of his blade being drawn. He hadn't thought that he would feel a joy of victory when facing a duck without water, but fortunately, everything was over.
The blade was drawn.
In the darkness, where his hands and feet were cold and his whole body was powerless, the sound of the wind pressed in, and fear and despair rose to their pinnacle.
In this moment, Pei Ye finally glimpsed that bit of enlightenment.
It turns out it wasn't bad luck, that the essence of this swordsmanship was actually 'heart and sword harmony'.
After decades of immersion, reaching the pinnacle of sword moves, the state that those swordsmanship masters were painstakingly seeking was actually the threshold for mastering this set of swordsmanship.
Only when your mindset matches can you truly command this set of swordsmanship.
After completely immersing his mindset in despair, Pei Ye finally understood what it was saying.
Pei Ye.
— You believe yourself to have exceptional talent, being able to compete with predecessors who are 40-50 when you are young. You are praised by everyone, and you are proud. But have you ever thought of yourself as a frog in the well?
— You consider yourself as string-willed, daring to face difficulties, can persist through hardship, but have you ever encountered insurmountable difficulties? Have you ever tasted the complete and utter defeat?
— You consider yourself brave and chivalrous, full of compassion, standing alone against a formidable enemy for the sake of your friends and elders. But are you truly prepared to die? In the end, who have you saved? If you have to choose again, would you still be able to do it without hesitation?
— You pride yourself on your keen mind, 's ability to strategize in the face of the enemy, often winning against all odds. But have you ever played a game with real players? At this point, aren't you still just a naive child in front of a formidable enemy?
When all of which you are proud becomes worthless, who are you then?
Strip away these things from the outside in, leaving only the original, weakest "me", like a goose with a broken wing on a snowy night. This is the mindset of Master Yue when he created this swordsmanship.
If you still have the courage to wield the sword at this point.
Then this sword will open its arms to you.
Pei Ye was exhilarated. The darkness, fear, the scent of blood, and impending blade seemed so far away. Regardless of life or death, he could not wait to swing his sword, even if it was his last sight before death, he wanted to see its appearance.
But where is the sword?
The sword is at hand.
Pei Ye reached out and grabbed a bronze rod over three feet long, with one end so sharp it was unspeakable, and the other end adorned with a gourd.
In the quiet night, in front of the pitch-black curtain, suddenly countless white images swarmed in: snow, horses like jade, frost on the icy sword, white, sharp feathers filling the sky...
The sword was drawn.
Wu Zaigu seemed to fall into darkness, real darkness.
No sight, no sound, no feeling, even the knife in his hand seemed to have been lost, as if he was in the deepest dream, or buried in the darkest heart of the earth, the feeling of losing all reliance, at this moment all returned.
Only a sharp wind ran and roared past.
A tearing pain came from his throat, and all his senses suddenly returned. Wu Zaigu slowly lowered his head, his chin resting on a hard, cold bronze rod.
This is the first move of the Snow Night Wild Goose Swordsmanship.
[Clouds Covering the Sky and Losing Feathers]