Sword Among Us

Not too far into the distance was Yan Mountain Tiger and his group. They were about to leave. At the instant the two brothers executed Sunlight Sword Technique and Howling Moon Sword Technique, they recognized their identities.

Sunlight Sword Technique and Howling Moon Sword Technique belonged to a pair of brothers who had recently become quite famous in Jiangzhou and Hangzhou. With the terrifying effect to affect a person’s vision of Sunlight Sword Technique and the effect to affect a person’s hearing of Howling Moon Sword Technique, the duo was not afraid of anyone. Even when they were in a group fight, they could still move about with ease. They were known by the sects in Jiangzhou and Hangzhou as Supreme Ears and Eyes.

The brothers were known as Jiang Nan and Jiang Wei. They were famous in Jiangzhou and Hangzhou, but their names had not traveled outside. However, the Seventeen Swordsmen of Yan Mountains had once passed by that area, and they knew that there was such a pair of fearsome brothers.

Right then, when they saw their high-tier martial arts with their terrifying might, they felt that the rumors around them were not fake!

But they did not expect that such a powerful duo would be defeated by the nameless blue-robed young man in just one hit. The duo even struggled for breath while standing at death’s door.

When Yan Mountain Tiger remembered that his group had recklessly thought about attacking the blue-robed young man and had even spread the word about his location, Yan Mountain Tiger and his group shuddered while a chill crept down their spines. They did not dare linger in the area any longer and swiftly went down the mountain.

When Yan Mountain Tiger and his five companions left, the Jiang brothers died because they lost too much blood. The purple-robed man and Happy were soon the only ones left in the forest.

The two pairs of eyes met in the air, and sparks flew above the brocade box!

“What’s your name?”

“Happy.”

The purple-robed man recited Happy’s name in his heart once before he said, “My name is Shangguan Lian.”

Happy said nothing. He only frowned and thought about it. He did not seem to remember such a person from his previous life, so he merely nodded.

It was not surprising that he did not know about the other.

In his previous life, while the one emperor, two empresses, three kings, seven dukes, and thirteen aces were famous, there were many powerful players hidden in the China server who kept a low profile. They did not like to show off, and their luck was not really good, which was why they never rose to fame.

However, based on Shangguan Lian’s attacks, his Nocturnal Wolf Wind Demon Sword Technique had already reached the peak of the ninth realm. Just like Happy’s Flowering Knights’ Song, it was only a step away from reaching the tenth realm. In the current World of Martial Arts, he should be categorized among the top players.

If that were not the case, Happy would not have spent so much time and energy talking to him.

Shangguan Lian was still deeply concerned by his inability to tell what skill Happy used, so he could not help but ask about it. “Could you tell me what saber technique you used just now?”

“Flowering Knights’ Song.”

Once he finished speaking, Happy looked at the sky before he returned his gaze to Shangguan Lian.

“It’s late now. Let’s fight.”

Even though twenty or so Blessed Realm players had died, Happy did not want to be found by Heaven Descendants Sect and Vast Ocean Sword Sect. With the speed of his Cloud Treading Steps, it might be possible to shake off all the people in Mount Song, but it would not be easy.

He needed to finish the fight fast.

Perhaps Shangguan Lian had already noticed the burning fighting spirit in Happy, because his gaze focused. His arms fell to his sides, and a whip sword slipped into his grip from his sleeves. He had his qi circulate in his body, and with a buzz, his whip sword let out a sound that shook the air.

A sword whistle rang out in the forest!

At that moment, Shangguan Lian realized that Happy had actually closed his eyes. He raised his handsome face slightly, and there was a rather sentimental and nostalgic look on his face that made him look ancient.

A long time passed.

“It has been a long time since I heard such a clear and pleasant sword whistle.”

Happy sighed deeply in his heart before he put on a smile.

The sentimental and nostalgic look that made him look ancient had been placed on a young and handsome face. Two completely different presences that did not match fused together on him. Then, they turned into a calm smile, and Shangguan Lian was a little dazed from what he saw. The feeling that the young man before him was unfathomable became even more prominent in his heart. He was certain that Happy was someone with a story.

“Let’s do this.”

Happy braced himself, and the smile on his face became even wider!

Everything seemed to have suddenly returned to the period of time two years ago, when he had just begun to understand the essence of various high-tier martial arts and went around challenging various famous players. His state of mind was incredibly similar to that time, which was why his fighting spirit burned so greatly.

The change in Happy’s state of mind shocked the purple-robed man!

If Happy had given him an unfathomable, calm, and aloof feeling earlier that made him look like an ice mountain, then the current Happy was like a great ocean under the sun! He appeared very calm, but underneath that calm was endless power.

Shangguan Liang sucked in a deep breath to calm his mind. With a loud whoosh, the whip sword in his hand sliced through the air and drew a purplish-black sword shadow in the shape of an arc.

“Nocturnal Wolf Wind Demon Sword Technique, ninth realm! Please grant me your instructions!”

“Flowering Knights’ Song, ninth realm!”

Happy smiled faintly, and he also stated the condition of the martial art he used.

This was a tacit agreement between powerful players when they fought against each other. However, because of this, they were not to change the martial art they used in the middle. They could only use one martial art to fight against their enemy.

After he spoke, the two of them disappeared from the spot at the same time.

The attack speed of Nocturnal Wolf Wind Demon Sword Technique was incredibly fast. It was easy to tell just how great it was by how the purple-robed man had instantly killed ten people. However, as a high-tier martial art that was also at the peak of the ninth realm, Flowering Knights’ Song could be considered its equal.

Even though Flowering Knights’ Song was slightly inferior to Nocturnal Wolf Wind Demon Sword Technique in terms of speed, its attacks were far more vicious!

A gust of sword wind went to cut Happy’s face, while a saber glare went charging at Shangguan Lian!

This was the truest portrayal of two people fighting against each other.

Shangguan Lian had already developed the speed in Nocturnal Wolf Wind Demon Sword Technique to a certain level. He seized the initiative to attack while moving about. Usually, before the purplish-black sword glare vanished, a new one would be delivered. The purplish-black sword glares were as numerous as the spikes on a porcupine, and they were layered as they moved forward. His speed allowed Shangguan Lian to bring out the full potential of his sword technique’s ferociousness, and soon, he suppressed Happy’s moves.

“Very good!”

Even though he was suppressed by Shangguan Lian’s Nocturnal Wolf Wind Demon Technique, Happy did not panic. Shangguan Lian’s high-tier martial art placed an emphasis on attack, not defense, and Flowering Knights’ Song had an equal balance in offensive and defensive techniques. If he chose to fight with offensive skills alone, Flowering Knights’ Song would naturally not be able to win. In fact, all of Happy’s attacks would get countered.

Hence, in his past life, when the game had been launched for a year, practically every single person would have practiced at least three high-tier martial arts that had different properties, and they would use them together.

Or else, if Flowering Knights’ Song went up against Nocturnal Wolf Wind Demon Sword Technique while both were at the same realm, most of the time, Flowering Knights’ Song would lose.

As of then, Happy had only learned one high-tier martial arts, which was Flowering Knights’ Song, and unfortunately for him, he had to run into someone with Nocturnal Wolf Wind Demon Sword Technique. But… Shangguan Lian was even more unlucky.

If he had ran into someone else, he would have already gained the upper hand.

However, Happy had a great understanding of Nocturnal Wolf Wind Demon Sword Technique, and every time Shangguan Lian attacked, he would immediately retreat beforehand. Then, he would swing his saber forward without any flourish.

Every single time they clashed with brute force, Shangguan Lian would feel a sharp pain as if his finger was about to tear. Then, when he noticed that something was off, he immediately changed tactics and carefully avoided head on confrontation. He decided to fight while moving about, intending to use his speed to win the fight.

Unfortunately for him, Happy was not fooled. Like a tree whose roots were buried deep in the ground, he remained in one spot and only barely moved about to avoid the attacks. He swung his Hundred-battle Saber horizontally and vertically, defending himself with stable footsteps. While he parried the attacks, he made Shangguan Lian waste his qi, and without his knowledge, Shangguan Lian used up almost all of his qi.

As for Happy, he was still very energetic.

In the end, Shangguan Lian let out a long sigh, tapped the ground, and took the initiative to jump a few feet away. His gloomy voice then came from a distance.

“I give up! I can’t win against you. The brocade box is yours!”