Chapter 90: Victory and Defeat

Translator: CKtalon

Now, only he and his master were left in the forest.

Xu Jingming didn’t hesitate to throw away the dual shields in his hands and remove the two spear segments on his back. He connected them together and twisted them into place with a click.

At this moment, Xu Jingming wasn’t distracted; he only had eyes for his opponent.

“There’s no more suspense left for the finals now,” Zhang Qing said softly on the commentary platform.

Liu Xin nodded. “With Wang Yi killed, there’s only Xu Jingming and Teacher Liu Hai left on the battlefield to fight one-on-one. I have to admit that there’s a huge gap between Xu Jingming and the world champion, Teacher Liu Hai. It looks like the outcome of this battle is decided. Teacher Liu Hai’s team will probably win the Firestarter Cup.”

“Of course, I also hope for a miracle and that what I’ve said will only slap me in the face.” Liu Xin smiled brilliantly. “That would be a miracle that will shock the entire country.”

“A breakthrough in martial arts isn’t something that can be accomplished overnight,” Lei Yunfang said. “Xu Jingming is far inferior to Liu Hai. If Wang Yi were still alive, there might be some variables. Liu Hai is too cautious and didn’t want to put himself in a dangerous situation, so he finished off Wang Yi first.”

“He’s very cautious.” Zhang Qing nodded.

…

“We’re going to lose.” Li Miaomiao, Wang Yi, Yang Qingshuo, Liu Chongyuan, Heng Fang, Xu Hong, Dai Tongda, Dai Xiaoqing, and the others—including many of their relatives and friends—watched the battle.

Although they were looking forward to Xu Jingming’s victory, anyone with a shred of rationality knew how slim his chances were.

******

Xu Jingming suddenly charged forward. His combat boots stepped on the muddy forest, but his figure was fast as he produced afterimages while lunging at Liu Hai.

“Not a bad start.” Liu Hai held a shield in one hand and a saber in the other.

Swish!

Xu Jingming rushed over and moved his hand, spinning his spear like a dragon at Liu Hai! The dancing red embellishments made the spear’s trajectory even more unpredictable.

Liu Hai casually swung his saber, easily blocking with a saber beam. He then struck the spear shaft, causing it to tilt to the side.

Xu Jingming’s footwork changed, and he instantly retracted his spear and stabbed out again.

Pu! Pu! Pu! Pu! Pu!

In the livestream footage, Xu Jingming’s spear instantly split into more than ten. Although he stabbed out more than ten times in a row, the swift speed allowed the ten-plus spear afterimages to remain in everyone’s vision as if they were stabbed out simultaneously.

In a battle of spear versus shield, the advantage goes to the weapon length. My attack range is greater, but Master needs to get close.

“Moreover, the spear is good at piercing! This is the fastest way to deliver consecutive strikes.”

Xu Jingming knew how to use the advantage of his weapon.

Instantly, spear after spear after spear shot out like arrows—it was a dazzling sight.

Liu Hai held the shield in his left hand but didn’t use it to block. Instead, he only used the saber in his right hand to block. The saber swung left, right, and pressed down… In fact, he was drawing arcs; these arcs were also a part of the circle.

The single saber drew an arc, and Xu Jingming’s swift and fierce attacks were naturally blocked.

“Taiji is best at defense.” Liu Hai was very relaxed. He didn’t even need to use a shield; he just needed a saber.

Crush!

The many spear afterimages Xu Jingming stabbed out suddenly produced an impulse with Crush. He intended to send Liu Hai’s strike flying.

Liu Hai’s seemingly gentle saber beam turned much more resilient the moment Xu Jingming struck out. A slight jolt dissipated 70% to 80% of the Crush force, leaving nothing to worry about.

Bam.

Xu Jingming stabbed out repeatedly and suddenly delivered another short-range cleave. The saber beam Liu Hai executed with his single saber was extremely tenacious, and it similarly blocked the sudden strike.

In an instant, Xu Jingming unleashed an onslaught of attacks. His combat method was different from before; he pursued speed and instantaneous force delivery, making his moves harder to defend against. Yet, Liu Hai defended against them.

…

“This young man from China has fierce spearmanship.” In the Earth Alliance’s envoy delegation, the envoy from Japan knew the most about spearmanship and could tell how fierce Xu Jingming’s spearmanship was.

Japan itself was a country that practiced a lot of spearmanship. Although swordsmanship in Japan was flourishing, spearmanship was ranked second. In particular, spearmanship was much more advantageous than swords in weaponry combat… It had been more than a month since the virtual world’s launch, but spearmanship was already approaching swordsmanship in terms of popularity.

“This Xu Jingming’s spearmanship is fast in every sense of the word. Moreover, many of his strikes, jabs, and moves are very small—they all deliver force instantaneously. The movements to gather strength are very minute, and it’s very difficult for the opponent to block it.” The Japanese envoy wore a solemn expression. “This would be first-rate spearmanship in my country. We have to study the video of this Chinese competition well.”

Envoys from all over the world—such as India and the United States of America—observed carefully. They couldn’t help but compare them with the domestic experts, and their expressions turned solemn. This was because Xu Jingming could be among the best of their respective countries, while Liu Hai was unfathomable.

…

Xu Jingming attacked for a full three minutes, using all his spearmanship insights, but Liu Hai still blocked all his attacks with a single saber.

“Jingming, I’ll begin attacking now. Moreover, my attacks will only get stronger and stronger. They will increase until they reach my limits,” Liu Hai suddenly said in a private chat. “Let’s see how long you can last.”

With that said, Liu Hai’s saber move changed.

When Xu Jingming’s spear attacked like a venomous snake again, the saber flashed and stuck to the spear. This made Xu Jingming feel uncomfortable, and the moment it stuck to his spear, the single saber slid down the spear shaft! It wanted to chop off Xu Jingming’s finger that was holding the spear.

Everything happened naturally and quickly as lightning went from sticking to the spear to the attempt at slicing off his fingers.

Bam.

Thankfully, Xu Jingming immediately unleashed Crush the moment his master’s saber stuck to the spear shaft, tearing open a distance between the spear shaft and the saber beam and avoiding the strike.

Swish!

Liu Hai’s saber flashed as he closed in time and time again. As long as the saber touched the spear shaft, it would stick to it in a bid to gain control.

Xu Jingming was forced to constantly retreat while his spear broke free from his master.

“Now that you’ve blocked this move, try the next one.” Liu Hai was very relaxed. The might of his moves increased, and his saber technique became faster. It was sometimes soft and sometimes fierce.

It made Xu Jingming find it harder and harder. In just a minute, he was forced to defend entirely.

Just one saber strike forced Xu Jingming—who was holding a spear—to defend. Xu Jingming felt aggrieved, but the saber beam was too terrifying! He felt that he might not be able to mount a defense even if he tried his best.

How can anyone’s saber technique be so terrifying? I’ve met many opponents and have seen many weapon techniques in the virtual world… But it feels like Master far exceeds everyone. The difference is too great. Xu Jingming felt like he was suffocating.

He had fought Lei Yunfang before, but the latter only had terrifying movement techniques. His saber techniques didn’t pose a fatal threat to Xu Jingming.

There was no need to talk about the others. Xu Jingming could suppress or even crush his opponents with his weapon when dealing with them.

Only when he met his master… His master was like the sea—boundless. He was putting in his all, but his master could still suppress him with a single saber.

In this situation, I’m far inferior to Master in terms of pure technique. The solution is either to crack it with strength or speed, Xu Jingming thought. It hasn’t been long since I raised my evolutionary method, and my body’s force delivery is inferior to Master’s. I definitely don’t have enough strength. The only thing I hope for is instantaneous speed.

Extreme speed—my fastest move is Shadowless Thrust! Xu Jingming finally made a decision and made a final gamble when he was about to suffocate from the pressure.

In the past, he only attacked when he had the confidence to use Shadowless Thrust. This time, he still had to make a move despite not being confident.

He would reveal a huge flaw when he attacked! If he didn’t succeed, he would die.

Now! Xu Jingming exerted his full strength without any warning when his master’s saber approached.

With his master’s suppression, the psychological effects brought about from the attention of countless people in the country, as well as using Shadowless Thrust without any confidence… Xu Jingming felt that the usage this time was different from usual.

Normally, it was a fatal strike that killed the enemy.

This time, it was a surprise finale attack that revealed its true intentions! It was a strike that disregarded his life!

Xu Jingming went completely crazy.

Boom!

Xu Jingming pursued speed without any regard for anything—even his life. At this moment, he felt that while mobilizing his muscles and bones, he could dig into deeper strength. The force exerted by many of his muscles became even faster, and his speed increased once again. This was a speed that was even faster than usual.

It’s faster than any move I’ve executed in the past! Perhaps I can win! Xu Jingming felt that this move was extremely splendid when he stabbed out. He even felt that he could win.

Liu Hai was as usual—he kept increasing the pressure to see how long his disciple could withstand it. He had only delivered a very normal strike, but who would’ve thought that Xu Jingming would suddenly unleash a strike?

The spear was too fast! Liu Hai felt his scalp tingle.

Not good. Liu Hai didn’t even have the time to move as he immediately pulled the shield in his left hand towards his torso.

Bang!

The spear stabbed into the shield!

Shields were ultimately weapons that were best at defense. Moreover, Liu Hai’s single-handed shield was slightly larger than Xu Jingming’s shield. As long as he retracted his shield slightly, he could block a large area.

Once the strike was blocked by the shield, there was naturally a recoil. Liu Hai also discovered that Xu Jingming’s spear had caused him to reveal an obvious opening.

Whoosh.

Liu Hai very naturally took a step forward. With a flash of his saber, he tapped his disciple’s throat and penetrated it.

“It was blocked,” Xu Jingming murmured. His ultimate strike—which had exceeded his limits—was still blocked. It wasn’t blocked by the saber but his master’s shield.

I managed to force Master to use his shield after all. Xu Jingming’s figure turned ethereal and disappeared from the forest map.

There was only one person left in the forest.

Liu Hai held his shield and saber and felt a lingering fear. This silly kid’s last move was really fast..