Scrap (Part 6)
The black mist that the sunlight couldn’t penetrate was as freaky as its conjurer. Unlike Hong Jiu’s alcoholic mist, the black mist wasn’t a manufactured entity. It was a product of Vivianite’s black garments distorting the image that light shone on it produced with his movements. In addition to the freaky image, it also concealed his presence from the human subconscious. Vivianite wasn’t someone who should’ve shown up in sunlight. Once he did, his existence alone would stress people out.
Hong Jiu’s reputation was bound to grow to new heights after beating the Mount Wu demons solo and back to back. There was no doubt that, going forward, he’d also be feared for his broadsword skills. Of course, the accolades came at a price: he was in so much pain and fatigue that he couldn’t move. He only looked tough because he was standing upright similarly to a general who died fighting till his last breath atop a mountain of corpses.
Guan Ning was one of the people who proudly cheered for Hong Jiu when the latter triumphed, but he had gone completely mute. “Shifu, we won! What are we standing here for? Brother Hong cannot fight any more. Stop him. He… Vivianite is too dangerous. Brother Hong might not even be able to beat him in tip-top form, let alone now…”
“I know what he’s doing, which is why I can’t stop him.” Bai Zhiqing lamented, “He’s made up his mind.”
“But…”
“Ning’er, man must sometimes indulge in foolish endeavours. You can’t stop him when he chooses to do so, not that you will be able to. Look at her. She’s young, yet she knows better than you.”
“… Miss Wen.”
Master Qi’s brows were knitted together. She couldn’t hear what anyone around was saying as all her attention was focused on the two standing still. She was aware of what Bai Zhiqing talked about. If anything, she knew better than Bai Zhiqing because she knew how simple and direct Hong Jiu was, just like his palm techniques. Once he acknowledged someone, there was no changing his mind. “… You idiot.”
“Don’t be so depressed. I reckon he still has a chance.”
Master Qi jolted when she heard the voice next to her ear. “Patriarch Bai.”
“They may look like they’re on two totally different levels, but they’ve been sizing each other up all this time.”
Master Qi wasn’t actually focused on their abilities but something else. Bai Zhiqing snapped her out of her thoughts. No matter how she analysed the match up, the reality was that her knowledge was limited, so she couldn’t grasp the state of affairs as accurately as Bai Zhiqing.
Bai Zhiqing pointed to the black mist and smiled. “His skills aren’t actually that impressive. He didn’t forge his skills in real combat or train his way up in a school. When it comes to foundations, he’s inferior to the two demons of Mount Wu, let alone Hong Jiu. The real challenge is that single slash of his. He practices just that one attack.”
Nobody understood what Bai Zhiqing meant better than Hong Jiu. Vivianite had honed the one technique until it became a technique that could lead him to victory whenever he utilised it. Vivianite didn’t have the foundations Hong Jiu did to learn everything fast, didn’t need developed internal strength, or fast eyes and hand. All he needed was to be able to kill his target upon drawing his blade.
“Heh, that means they are the polar opposite of each other as martial artists.”
Yes, Vivianite took shortcuts, used unorthodox methods and only sought to be proficient rather than complete. However, that was the perfect route for an assassin. Vivianite’s type weren’t supposed to fight duels or fair fights. The moment he revealed himself, he forfeited his option of assassinating his opponent, but he only made that decision because he believed he could unmistakably beat Hong Jiu in the latter’s condition.
Due to the two of them silently sizing each other up, everyone else instinctively reduced their voices to whispers. People couldn’t understand why Vivianite was still standing there when it was obvious that Hong Jiu was too weakened to even beat a foot soldier. Even if he was concerned about Hong Jiu playing possum, he was being far too cautious.
Owing to the silence, one man’s breaths gradually grew increasingly clearer. It was clear that he was hurt and tired. The strange thing was, his breaths kept growing louder and louder – loud to a point that it seemed abnormal.
His breaths stayed in time with the cadence of the breeze freely coursing through the trees, the swirling leaves that fell from the trees and covered the ground.
With his gaze on the sun, Bai Zhiqing mumbled, “Strange. What is this?”
The silence had to have been hiding something, or it wouldn’t have been so unsettling.
“It’s the breathing,” Fang Xiaoyu commented, drawing all eyes toward himself. As he frantically waved his hands, he explained, “I-I don’t know, either. It’s what Brother Hong said. When I recited Vivianite’s broadswordplay for him, he said the most dangerous part about Vivianite’s broadswordplay is his breathing.”
Guan Ning expressed, “But it’s Brother Hong who’s breathing loudly right now.”
“I don’t know any more than you do. I might’ve been the one to recite it, but I don’t understand anything in it. Brother Hong was the one who explained it all to me. He… must’ve grasped something, I guess?”
Everyone on Bai Clan’s side figured it out from that explanation. The gaps between the breaths were the reason Vivianite hadn’t made a move. Soon after, even the non-elites caught on. It wasn’t that Vivianite didn’t make a move but couldn’t.
The air trembled. The hearts of those watching thumped harder and faster. Those similar to Fang Xiaoyu’s level struggled to breathe.
Suddenly, a cry of pain echoed throughout the heavens.
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