Proofreader: Papatonks
“Ah!”
Scarlet blood dripped on the ground, dying the earth red. Zhuo Fan’s face throbbed as his face slowly took on a much darker tone. Until now, his nigh invincible right arm was twitching in correlation with the pain it sent.
Mystical Heaven Sect’s girls gasped, filled with worry. Dan’er was frantic, “Sister Qingcheng, h-he’s hurt badly…”
Lightly furrowing her brow, Chu Qingcheng’s heart tightened in silence.
She had complete and utter confidence in Zhuo Fan that no matter what he faced or when this man would always come out on top.
Even now, her belief hadn’t been stirred. Yet despite this, she could still feel pain and worry for him when she saw Zhuo Fan’s bloody right hand.
This was Chu Qingcheng’s stance. She saw herself as nothing less than Zhuo Fan’s woman.
If a woman did not trust her man, then she could never call herself his to begin with. However, she would keep her eyes on her man, and the slightest wound would fill her with worry.
It might sound contradictory, and it was. Why worry when you believed he would win? This worry proved, in fact, you didn’t believe him.
This was the nature of women, filled with contradictions yet emotional to the core.
Trust and tenderness…
Looking at Chu Qingcheng, her eyes filled with worry and anxiety, Shui Ruohua’s opinion of her never fell. It occurred to her, then and there, and she looked back at Zhuo Fan with a sigh.
[It looks helpless and bitter, but I yearn for it…]
“How is this possible? I had never managed to scratch him, and a measly Wen Tao ends up piercing that freak’s arm?” Yan Mo was overwhelmed by such a radical development on the screen that he shouted his indignation.
Wu Qingqiu eyed him, then smiled, “Yan Mo, aren’t you a bit too conceited? I find Wen Tao just a layer under you but no less weak. Coupled with the fact he made a sneak attack while exercising caution, Zhuo Fan was bound to be hit hard. Maybe he underestimated his opponent since he was from a middle three sect.”
Brow shaking, Yan Mo was still incredulous an almighty expert like Zhuo Fan, who resisted him every step of the way, would make such a gross miscalculation as overlooking sneak attacks.
Especially when he could still hear Zhuo Fan’s patronizing and preaching words, sure, they were insufferable, but every word showed just how cautious this freak was, meticulous to the core.
So how the hell would he suddenly turn sloppy in the face of challenging the middle three sects’ strongest sect? It was too basic a mistake to make.
“What if… it’s on purpose.”
While Yan Mo was using every bit of brainpower to figure out just what he saw, a faint voice pierced the fog. Ye Lin’s sharp eye never left Zhuo Fan; his brow furrowed, his face solemn.
Wu Qingqiu raised an eyebrow, puzzled, “Junior brother, where did that come from?”
Yan Mo looked at him as well, eager for the reply.
“Just a hunch, nothing more.” Ye Lin shook his head and said, “I don’t believe he ever underestimates his enemy and make such a gross mistake by taking this fight as trivial. The only plausible explanation is that he did it on purpose.”
Rolling his eyes, Wu Qingqiu shook his head and sighed, “Junior brother, you’re just too stubborn. No one is perfect, and we all make mistakes. Just because you find someone that caught your eye doesn’t mean only you can beat him. Can’t the rest of us have a sliver of chance as well? You try finding anyone who agrees with that logic, ha-ha-ha… “
Yan Mo’s face twitched, but he shook his head in the end, thinking.
[Here, I thought this guy is great but only has this dumb reason.]
Ye Lin spared them a brief glance but said nothing. He kept staring at Zhuo Fan with all his focus to see if he could find anything that unraveled the mystery…
While Wu Qingqiu and Yan Mo didn’t understand Ye Lin’s reasoning, there was one person in this vast audience that saw through Zhuo Fan.
In the shadows, a glittering pair of eyes blinked at Zhuo Fan’s right, now gushing with blood, with a smirk.
“Ha-ha-ha, this punk is cunning indeed. He actually found such a grandstanding way of hiding his wounded arm.”
Danqing Shen held his beard as he smiled in amazement, “The kid could scout the sacred mine, and the wound he got from Atlas Sword could only be hidden for so long. I never dreamed he would think of using someone to strike his wound and hide its origins. I don’t think there’d be any more reasonable explanation than this. But what is truly shocking is he actually went with it.”
“He used his sect’s disciples in the fight with Demon Soul Sect to stall. He didn’t fight Han Yunfeng because the kid was too weak. If he ended up wounding this grand dark horse, then it would only raise suspicion. However, if it was Wen Tao instead, his power fit the bill, making this kind of wound obvious. It’s truly rare for someone like him to know patience and understand choices. Anyone else thinking this plan would not consider every detail and would just fake being wounded in the fight with Demon Soul Sect. And that would have had the opposite effect, ha-ha-ha…”
Danqing Shen chuckled, “His strength and sharp mind make him a marvel of this world. I would’ve taken this boy along if I had not come for the sword this time and didn’t want to raise alarm. Sigh, what a shame…”
Shaking his head, Danqing Shen’s figure was gone from the shadows.
Meanwhile, with a groan, Wen Tao made a sign, and the sword stuck in Zhuo Fan’s right flew back in his hand.
Gazing at the bright edge of his sword and then at Zhuo Fan’s red arm, Wen Tao’s brow was furrowed in puzzlement. Even he found it hard to believe he could land such a heavy blow. But then he cupped his hands in respect, “Ha-ha-ha, brother Zhuo, sorry. I hope you will overlook my overbearing attack.”
“It’s fine since I won’t be going easy either.”
Zhuo Fan flicked his right and splattered the blood covering it on the ground. His face was heavy, and his voice was low, as if enraged. Though no one figured out yet that his heart was dancing in joy.
[Now I don’t have anything to worry about and can let loose, ha-ha-ha…]
Wen Tao’s face twitched, “Brother Zhuo, it wasn’t on purpose. I didn’t mean to give you such a heavy wound. I was only distraught by brother Zhuo’s power but never imagined…”
“You mean to say I don’t live up to my name? That I’m not so tough to even take one hit? Is that it?” Zhuo Fan faked anger, “Then, brother Wen, allow me to show you all that I’m capable of. Now I can’t waste brother Wen’s kind intentions, can I?”
Wen Tao’s mouth twitched, and he shook his head. But then his gaze steeled, “Let’s go! Since brother Zhuo wants to let loose, then I’ll be happy to oblige!”
Wen Tao swung his sword, and an invisible ripple shot from its edge straight for Zhuo Fan.
However, unlike the brash Space Crusher’s way of unleashing its power, the sword’s vibrations were gentle, like silken threads drifting with the winds.
“As a dinghy on wave doth drift, and willow branch bend in the wind so swift, never more than a finger lift! Such is the way of peace and gift!”
With that poem, Wen Tao pointed at his sword and smiled, “Brother Zhuo, the name of this sword is Ephemeral Life, a gentle and aloof sword. It drifts with the world and stands free of burden. It is not a sword meant for brute force but refined and carefree in nature. But even gentleness has power. Even it can take a life. Do take care, brother Zhuo!”
Zhuo Fan’s heart sank, and he understood his meaning.
In Space Crusher, everything was pulverized, yet this sword’s sword energy remained because it used softness to glide through brute force.
However, while the sword looked soft, it was hard. Only when combined with that gentle sword energy, could it release such a power that could break Space Crusher.
Recalling the sword’s name, Zhuo Fan had figured out everything.
[Such is the way of peace and gift.]
This did not mean it was weak, but it was crafty and ready to pounce when the time was right. While a breeze could not shift a mountain, it can move me with it, thus borrowing its power with time and unleashing it all at the right time.
This was the meaning of the sword’s name and what made Gentle Sword Wen Tao deadly.
Gentleness acted as entrapment, while hardness struck one’s defenses, ending everything in a split second just like before.
Having understood all about his opponent, he also had the perfect response.
Raw power could not beat gentleness as it was meant to carry it. Only through destruction and instant annihilation could he finish this before the opponent gathered momentum.
Zhuo Fan sported a vague grin, with purple lightning arching around his right hand.
The fist turned into a dragon claw, ready to rip the sky.
Wen Tao was startled, his face twitching.
[Did I just talk too much? Showing off allowed this punk to find my sword’s weakness…]
Wen Tao felt like smacking himself hard to wake up…
