Chapter 76

The moment the words fell.

Facing the girl who moved with the ferocity of a tiger, Luo Li merely tapped his sword against the side of her blade.

Instantly, her peerless momentum was neutralized; Noelle immediately twisted her body, utilizing the explosive power of her slender waist to shift her sliding downward strike into a horizontal slash.

The greatsword cleaved through the air, whipping up a whistling gale.

The fact that the wielder was a petite girl made it look incredibly strange, creating a sense of total dissonance.

As the long-standing, standard sword art taught within the Knights of Favonius, Noelle had made many modifications to the Favonius Sword Art to suit her own style.

After all, the Favonius Sword Art was inherited from the Wolf Pup Rostam; although the Lion of Light, Arundolyn, was peerless with a greatsword in one hand and a single-handed sword in the other, his combat prowess far exceeded those who possessed a Vision, even without one himself.

But such a powerhouse as him was truly rare, so the dual-wielding battle dance was regrettably lost.

However, Luo Li felt that Noelle was actually very well-suited for dual-wielding; with her strength, it would be a breeze, and she would only need proper training to master it.

"Faster, and with more force."

Giving pointers to Noelle as if he were taking a leisurely stroll, Luo Li had never witnessed Arundolyn's dual-wielding with his own eyes, but the many techniques he had obtained through check-ins were truly countless.

He was proficient in everything from blades and spears to swords and halberds.

Gritting her teeth and constantly changing her moves, Noelle swung the greatsword until it was airtight; the unique battle dance kicked up sand and dust, and the aggressive fighting style was enough to make one's blood pressure skyrocket.

The tip of his sword deflected off the edge of her greatsword time and time again; Luo Li was simply feeding her moves and had not yet launched a counterattack.

He was testing the extent to which Noelle had integrated her training, squeezing out her limits step by step.

Watching the intense sword dance, many knights shook their heads; honestly, if it were them up there, they would likely be no better, and might not even be a match for Noelle.

The broad and sweeping sword path was extremely wild; even when Luo Li used leverage to deflect it, the next wave would surge in immediately, like an endless tidal wave.

From a bystander's perspective, it had absolutely nothing to do with an elegant maid.

Luo Li nodded slightly to show his approval; in terms of growth speed alone, she absolutely surpassed ordinary people, and her foundational skills could barely be considered qualified.

Then, it was time to test her true limits.

With that thought, his originally lazy demeanor shifted.

The extremely ordinary single-handed sword in his hand struck out three times in different directions in almost an instant.

Seeing the three sword lights in different directions, Noelle felt an unparalleled murderous intent descend in an instant, and a heart-stopping aura of death permeated the air.

"Is this an illusion? No, they're all real!"

Realizing this, Noelle felt it was truly incredible.

Striking three times at the same moment—how could this be possible? Where in the world was there such a sword technique?!

It was complete cheating; it was off the charts!

No matter how she considered it, or what kind of defense she used, it was impossible to block three simultaneous killing blows.

An ordinary person might have despaired in such a situation.

In a flash of lightning, Noelle did not give up; instead, she gritted her teeth and swung her greatsword one last time, gathering everything she had learned until now into this single strike.

In an instant, the greatsword and the sword light flashed past.

The training ground suddenly fell silent.

The surrounding knights were stunned, unable to suppress the excitement in their hearts.

Being able to witness such a high-quality clash of sword techniques with their own eyes allowed them to learn a great deal.

Feeling the cold sword tip prick her skin at her throat, Noelle fell into dejection and frustration; she couldn't even take a single formal counterattack from Mr. Luo Li. As expected, he had just been playing with her before.

It was a waste of all her hard work; in reality, her progress wasn't as great as she had imagined, and she had even regressed. She was simply unworthy of that gentle and earnest guidance.

Thinking that the gift might fly away because of this, the girl lowered her head, her eyes brimming with tears.

Just as she was filled with shame and prepared to face a reprimand, she unexpectedly received praise instead.

"Well done. Although you couldn't block it completely, this will in the face of a desperate situation is something to be proud of."

Gently stroking Noelle's smooth silver hair, Luo Li dropped the longsword that had shattered into pieces and did not skimp on his praise.

The sword technique he had just used was no ordinary item; it was the life's work condensed by Sasaki Kojiro in a certain world, a sword technique worthy of being called a Noble Phantasm.

Secret Sword: Swallow Reversal!

A flash from the real world, followed by two overlapping flashes that completely ignored the concepts of time and space, resulting in strikes from three directions.

It was a "multi-dimensional refraction phenomenon" that transcended elements such as speed, precision, and feints.

A realm of the gods reached solely through sword technique, without the aid of any magic or mystery...

It was normal that Noelle couldn't block it.

Rather, Luo Li would have been surprised if she had actually managed to take it.

Noelle raised her head, feeling discouraged, and asked unconfidently, "Really?"

She was worried he was just comforting her.

Luo Li smiled and wiped away the teardrops about to spill from the corners of her eyes.

"Believe in yourself; you are already very impressive. I am very satisfied with this test."

After a pause, he spread his hands, and in an instant, a greatsword radiating fluorescence and frost appeared in his hands.

With a blue and black hilt, a sky-blue guard, and patterns that spread across the blade like frost flowers,

Noelle fell in love with it at first sight. She looked at Luo Li with expectant eyes, wanting to say something but hesitating.

"Do not doubt it. As a gift for passing the test, this is the present I am giving you."

Receiving a positive answer, Noelle took the greatsword with care, making no effort to hide her happiness.

While gently stroking it, she still asked with doubt: "Can you really give it to me?"

"It is well-deserved. It is called [Snow-Tombed Starsilver], and from now on, it is yours."

The reason Luo Li went to Dragonspine two days ago, besides investigating secrets, was also to bring back the Starsilver greatsword buried there.

A greatsword that condensed the wisdom and power of an ancient kingdom, it possessed extraordinary elemental driving force and could easily slice through ice and snow.

It couldn't be more suitable for Noelle, who had been troubled by her weapon.

"Thank you, this is the first time I've received a gift from someone."

Noelle raised her teary face; she had wanted to cry just a moment ago, but now she was as happy as a child.

However, she was indeed an immature girl, which made her look particularly pitiable.

Holding the greatsword in her arms, it was foreseeable that the girl would maintain and use it with unprecedented care.

After giving the gift, Luo Li added a word of advice.

"Although your progress is acceptable, it is still far from the level I require. Whether it is the 'Mirror of Still Water' heart of sword realm or the 'Mind's Eye' possessed by top-tier swordsmen, you are far from that level. You must undergo even more rigorous training in the future."

"Yes, I will!"

At this moment, the smile blooming on the maid knight was even more moving than the roses she had sewn.