Chereads / Path to Destiny: Bonds of Light and Shadow / Chapter 12 - Friendly Battle

Chapter 12 - Friendly Battle

William and Yu Ming were traversing through the forest terrain.

"How shall we train today?" William asked with curiosity.

"Why are you asking me? Weren't you the one who invited me? Although, I suppose we can go for weapon training today." Yu Ming talked back.

"We'll do that today, then, although the first part was definitely not needed."

Sigh

"Since when have you become my own personal fitness coach?" Yu Ming responded with some sarcasm.

They reached the same location they trained previously, and went into the familiar shed.

William placed his treasured longsword carefully on a bench, and picked up a wooden longsword that was stronger than the one he used several months prior.

"Oh, how I missed these swords."

"Really? Not the training?" Yu Ming's voice was laced with irony, as he picked a sword with a familiar feeling for himself.

"Oh? You can tell that's a dao?"

"Nah, I can feel the traditional Chinese vibe this sword radiates, though."

"Alright, enough dilly-dallying. Just thinking about training is making me pumped up."

"Pumped up? For what? We aren't going to fight or anything."

William immediately spun his head around. "We aren't?"

"We are?"

"Of course! What else is more exciting than this?"

Sigh

"Come on now, one round?"

"Fine. But if I win, you'll have to listen to me."

"Well, if I win, you'll have to spar with me every time I want."

"Deal."

They both got into their own stances, relaxed yet focused.

A tranquil silence enveloped the forest before a gentle breeze swept through, and the rustling sound of leaves could be heard. They both looked intently at each other and dashed towards each other at the same moment, creating a small dent in the ground from the impact. A loud "clack" sound could be heard as the two swords clashed. It was a stalemate between the two, as both sides had similar power. However, one side seemingly began to overpower the other. The other side did not take this lightly and retaliated, as the advantage shifted to him.

"You will never defeat me, Yu Ming!"

William fought back, and the tide once again sided with him for a short time, but ultimately they were on par with each other. Both of them disengaged as they jumped back to create some distance while getting ready for the next onslaught of attacks. They eyed the opponent warily before going into several clashes.

William made the first move, aiming for Yu Ming's lower body, which he determined had a weaker defence, but he expected just as much. He defended the attack with ease and managed to parry all of William's rapid strikes. Yu Ming decided to strike back himself as he prepared to counterattack his opponent in battle. After a few more attacks from William, Yu Ming started his offence, as he attacked back quickly after parrying yet another one of William's strikes. Although taken aback by Yu Ming's attacks coming in quick succession, he managed to effectively block them to reduce the amount of damage he received.

"You're not too bad yourself, William!"