Chapter 784: Zhang shi, Isn’t Yours Too Short?
Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97
Feather duster? Ying Qin’s body swayed weakly from side to side.
The spear in my hand is a Spirit high-tier weapon crafted using the finest Xuan Jade of the Eastern Sea. It has a length of 2.3 meters, and the tip is specially made out of Gelid Jadeite Essence, possessing incomparable sharpness capable of slicing through metal and carrying the effect to slow down the thoughts of one’s enemy...
I have such a powerful weapon in my hands, and yet you wish to fight against me using a feather duster?
That item is only made out of ordinary bamboo! It would be sliced into two with even the slightest touch, how in the world do you expect to fight against me?
Not only him, Ruohuan gongzi was completely stunned as well.
Using a feather duster to deal with a Spirit high-tier weapon? Zhang shi... don’t you think you are going too far humiliating the other party?
But... what is with the inexplicable joy I am feeling at the sight of this?
"Great, I’ll be right back!" With his lips curling up uncontrollably out of excitement, Ruohuan gongzi immediately ran off.
"You..." Seeing the gleeful look on Ruohuan gongzi’s face, Ying Qin felt his innards boiling with fury. "Zhang shi, I am earnestly challenging to a duel, and since you have agreed to it, I hope that you can take it seriously. As fellow master teachers, don’t you think it’s improper for you to humiliate me like that?"
"Humiliate?"
Zhang Xuan shook his head. "I am truly not trying to humiliate you, and you aren’t qualified for me to go that far either. The reason I am not using a spear against you is due to the excessive power of my spear art. I fear that I might accidentally kill you if I fail to control my strength well, and that would be very troublesome. While a feather duster is indeed a little weaker, it’s much easier to control it, so I will be able to avoid injuring you!"
He really didn’t have any intention of humiliating Ying Qin.
He could see why the latter would think so, but if he wanted to humiliate him, he could have easily defeated him in a single blow without any weapon at hand as well.
Honestly speaking, it was out of respect for the other party that he chose to even use a feather duster as a weapon.
"You..." Ying Qin was so furious that he started laughing uproariously instead. His eyes narrowed into menacing slits as he bellowed, "Fine! Let me see how powerful your spear art is then!"
For a top Grade-4 student to be told by a freshman that he was fearful that he might accidentally kill him... Ying Qin felt so much fury boiling within him that he could’ve charged forward to tear the other party apart then and there.
In the midst of their conversation, Ruohuan gongzi had already gathered more than a dozen feather dusters from the surroundings and threw them onto the stage for Zhang Xuan to choose.
Zhang Xuan casually picked up one of them before turning to Ying Qin. "We can start now."
"You’re seeking death!"
Seeing that Zhang Xuan was truly intending to use a feather duster to fight against him, Ying Qin roared in fury as the spear in his hand pierced forward with might reminiscent of a massive dragon.
A gale so powerful that it felt as if it could tear one into shreds whipped up in the surroundings.
Infused with zhenqi, the Spirit high-tier spear pierced through the air, producing a deafening sonic boom as it headed straight for Zhang Xuan.
"Strong..."
Upon seeing the move, Luo Xuan, Ruohuan gongzi, and the others couldn’t help but narrow their eyes.
Even though Ying Qin had already suppressed his cultivation to Cosmos Bridge realm pinnacle, the power that he displayed in his attack was still far beyond what they could withstand.
Perhaps it might be an exaggeration to say that this move was unrivaled by all Cosmos Bridge realm cultivator, but it was no joke to say that less than a handful of Cosmos Bridge realm cultivators in the academy would be able to take this blow.
In fact, most Perfect Harmonization realm primary stage cultivators would be forced to retreat in the face of this move, not daring to confront it head-on.
Could Zhang shi really be able to stand against such a powerful attack with a feather duster in hand?
Everyone subconsciously turned their gazes to Zhang Xuan, only to see him standing nonchalantly before the other party’s might. A slight smile emerged on his face as he stretched his hand forward and snapped his forefinger and middle finger together.
Kacha!
Just like that, the incomparably powerful spear was held lightly in Zhang Xuan’s fingertips.
As if fallen deep into a marsh, the ferocious dragon of a spear from a moment ago found itself incapable of moving no matter how hard it struggled.
Pah pah pah pah!
While holding onto the spear, Zhang Xuan raised his feather duster and struck Ying Qin’s face relentlessly.
In just the blink of an eye, crimson streaks had already filled the latter’s face.
"The heck... it is actually possible for such a situation to happen in a battle?"
"Why does it feel like an adult caning a child?"
"Indeed... This is supposed to be a serious battle, but this..."
The crowd beneath the stage was stunned.
When they saw Ying Qin’s spear art earlier, they had nearly been scared out of their wits, thinking that Zhang shi would be defeated by it. Who could have known that Zhang shi would end up stopping the spear with just two mere fingers instead!
No matter how hard Ying Qin tugged or pushed, the spear was firmly trapped between Zhang Xuan’s fingers, refusing to budge at all. This had left him open to the lashing of Zhang Xuan’s feather duster.
Everyone had thought that this would be an intense battle between two experts, but in the end... it turned out to be a one-sided slaughter instead!
"Ah!" Ying Qin hadn’t expected the other party to be skillful enough to even grab a spear harnessing such immense might so easily. Panicked, he struggled with all his might, but he was unable to pull the spear out of Zhang Xuan’s fingers at all. Flustered, he howled, "Let go!"
At the same time, he gathered all of the zhenqi in his body to pull the spear back to him with his full might.
As long as the spear remained in the other party’s grasp, he would be powerless against him.
"You want it back? Here you go!"
Feeling the force pulling the spear away from his fingers growing stronger and stronger, Zhang Xuan abruptly let go with a smile.
Deng deng deng deng!
The sudden disappearance of the force from Zhang Xuan’s side caused Ying Qin to fall backward abruptly. In an attempt to stop himself from tumbling back, he ended up leaving a series of heavy footprints in the dueling platform.
"You! Die!"
Even though Ying Qin was left in quite an awkward position, having succeeded in pulling his spear out, he felt another burst of confidence returning to him. With a roaring whiz from his spear, he swept it toward the Zhang Xuan.
Since the pierce failed to work, surely a sweep would be fine!
In the next moment, however, the figure before him suddenly blurred, and a pair of fingers abruptly materialized from nowhere and easily halted the movement of his spear.
What is going on... Ying Qin’s body shook wildly.
In order to prevent the other party from grabbing his spear, he had put his full might into the sweep. How did the other party still manage to grab his spear?
That should have been impossible!
Before he could give it much thought, the feather duster began raining blows down on him once more.
Even though it was only a stick made out of bamboo, it had zhenqi infused into it. As such, a lashing from it felt even more painful than being whipped by a leather belt. With just a few strikes, Ying Qin’s face was already covered in lacerations, and blood was dripping down his face profusely.
"Damn it!"
Despite facing an opponent with the same cultivation level as him at the moment, he still ended up being struck bloody by a feather duster. Ying Qin felt as if he was going to go mad.
With an abrupt pounce, he leaped upward while tugging the spear forcefully out of Zhang Xuan’s grip.
Exerting his full might until the point which his zhenqi was about to explode from overexertion, the other party’s force on his spear abruptly disappeared once again.
Huala!
As a result, Ying Qin’s figure fell back yet again. However, this time, before he could steady his figure, Zhang Xuan had rushed forward to grab his spear once more, and the feather duster began lashing him again.
The heck... Ying Qin was on the verge of tears.
He had fought many battles ever since he had started cultivating, but never had he had a duel like that before.
The moment his spear shot forth, the other party rushed to grab his spear and lash him viciously. While he was trying to pull his spear out of the other party’s grip, the other party would abruptly let go, resulting in his loss of balance. But yet again, making use of his state of vulnerability as a result of his loss of balance, the other party would charge forward to grab his spear again...
That’s cheating!
Can’t we have a proper duel?
"AHHHH!"
The more he thought about it, the more furious Ying Qin felt. Fury raged furiously in his chest like blazing flames.
Hong long!
In his state of rage, he finally let go of the suppression of his zhenqi, resulting in his cultivation swiftly surging back to normal.
Perfect Harmonization realm primary stage... Perfect Harmonization realm intermediate stage... Ethereal Treading realm pinnacle!
In the blink of an eye, he had reached the peak of his strength once again.
Upon the recovery of his strength, he immediately turned his attention back to Zhang shi once more, seemingly about to charge at him again, only to see the latter had already retreated several meters away.
Holding a feather duster in his hand, the other party questioned him nonchalantly, "Are you admitting defeat?"
"Admitting defeat? Impossible! Through the battle we had, I realized that you aren’t merely a Cosmos Bridge realm pinnacle cultivator... Do you dare fight against me at my full strength?" Ying Qin gritted his teeth.
After being struck so viciously on his face, how could he possibly admit defeat and let the other party get away just like that?
Besides, considering how the other party could grab his spear so easily and firmly such that even he was unable to extract it from his fingers, that showed that his strength far exceeded any Cosmos Bridge realm pinnacle cultivator. Since that was the case... even if he were to use his full strength against the other party, that couldn’t be considered bullying.
"Fine by me," Zhang Xuan replied calmly.
In the first place, he had intended for Ying Qin to use his full strength, but the latter obstinately insisted on suppressing his cultivation for the sake of fairness. This situation worked better with him; he would finally be able to try out his strength like that.
"Let’s start then." Zhang Xuan raised his feather duster to gesture for the other party to come at him.
"Wait a moment!" Seeing Zhang Xuan’s movement, Ying Qin couldn’t help but recall how badly he had been thrashed just a moment ago, and he shuddered in fear. Gritting his teeth, he said, "I wish to compete with you in terms of spear art, but your feather duster is too short, turning the duel into a close quarter battle instead. May I ask of you to use a spear to fight with me?"
What Zhang Xuan had done earliergrabbing his spear and lashing him viciouslycouldn’t be considered as a spear art but close quarter offense.
A spear’s length granted it a long reach, but at the same time, it also limited its utility in a narrow space.
He couldn’t allow the other party to turn the battle into a close quarter combat like before, or else even with his restored cultivation, it was extremely likely that he would end up badly thrashed like before.
"Close quarter combat? Spear?"
How could Zhang Xuan possibly not understand the other party’s intention? Letting out a soft chuckle, he said, "You mean that... my feather duster is too short for you, so you want me to fight you with a longer weapon?"
"That’s right!" Ying Qin nodded.
"Fine by me as well!" Zhang Xuan nodded before turning to Ruohuan gongzi. "Help me tie these feather dusters together, end-to-end."
"Yes!" Ruohuan gongzi nodded as he leaped onto the dueling platform and tied the feather dusters together using some string from his storage ring.
With more than a dozen feather dusters connected end to end, the ultimate product was more than ten-meters long, and it resembled a long wooden branch.
It was truly a novel sight to watch as the bunch of feather dusters rose up like a flagpole, and countless feathers swayed amidst the wind.
"This should be long enough, right?" Zhang Xuan asked as he took the long rod over.
"Of course!" Ying Qin’s eyes lit up.
Due to his spear being too long, he had been unable to display his prowess in close quarters, which resulted in the eventual lashing he’d received. However, now that Zhang Xuan had made his weapon ten meters long, the tables would be turned on him.
He had no doubt that the other party would be completely crushed, and he would be able to exact vengeance for the humiliation he’d received.
Hearing the other party’s approval, Zhang Xuan flicked his ’long spear’ made out of more than a dozen feather dusters to the side, preparing himself for the battle. He then said nonchalantly, "I hope that you won’t complain anymore when you lose this time."
"Of course, I won’t. However, you are the one who should be careful!" Ying Qin replied confidently.
The feather duster spear was more than ten meters long. Provided he could get within a distance of ten meters of Zhang Xuan, the other party would be helpless before him.
Excited, Ying Qin swung his spear casually and said, "Let’s begin!"
Seeing the other party’s confidence, Zhang Xuan raised his spear vertically upright, as if a lightning rod connecting to the heavens. At the same time, he beckoned with his left hand and chuckled lightly. "Come, I’ll give you a 39 meters head start!" 1