Chapter 258: Instructor, Chen Mu!

Looking at Su Donglai, his bladework was fierce, and his movement technique even more outstanding.

He adopted a skirmishing tactic, constantly wearing down and disrupting his opponent, then seizing the momentary chance when the foe switched artistic conceptions or paused between spiritual attacks, only then could he strike a decisive blow.

After all, spiritual attacks usually had their limits; they could not be unleashed continuously without end.

Thus, Chen Mu sent his voice across the air, calmly giving guidance.

【Keep your distance, use your movement advantage to dart about quickly, don't give him a stable moment to lock on with his spirit. Rush in to harass from time to time, that's enough, draw out his irritation.】

On the arena, Su Donglai moved as instructed, his figure instantly becoming elusive and uncertain, like a ghost flitting rapidly along the edge of the arena, leaving only afterimage after afterimage, which indeed prevented He Zaiyun's several attempts to condense his spiritual power from locking on precisely.

He Zaiyun's brows knit tight; his opponent's sudden change of tactic gave him the stifling feeling of throwing punches into cotton.

Immediately, he tried once more to unleash his Storm artistic conception, blanketing the arena with area attacks to force Su Donglai into a head-on clash.

【Break his artistic conception one more time, but don't pursue. The instant you break it, retreat far away!】

Chen Mu's voice, carried by true Qi, rang out in time.

Su Donglai did not hesitate; he once again condensed his Slaughter Blade Intent, slashing out a heaven-shaking blade-gleam that forcibly split apart the storm vortex bearing down on him.

But this time, after shattering the storm, he didn't even glance at the result; his figure had already blasted backward, leaving He Zaiyun—who had been preparing to seize the chance for a fierce assault—lunging at empty air.

"Damn it!"

He Zaiyun cursed under his breath, growing ever more irritated.

Su Donglai, following Chen Mu's instructions, was like the most patient of hunters; relying on his superb movement technique, he circled and wove around He Zaiyun, every so often darting in like a venomous snake, slashing out one cut then immediately retreating far, forcing He Zaiyun to keep splitting his attention to defend, his rhythm thrown into disarray, his breathing beginning to grow slightly disordered.

The two thus tangled at high speed on the arena for roughly a quarter-hour; He Zaiyun's emotions visibly grew more agitated, and the operation of his Storm artistic conception also showed a faint, hard-to-detect sluggishness.

【Now—attack his lower right stance!】

Chen Mu read the moment and instantly transmitted his voice.

On the arena, Su Donglai, who had been maintaining high-speed movement, seemed to have long been ready; almost the instant he heard the command, his figure dropped low, the long blade in his hand became a streak of cold light, and with the speed of a thunderbolt he swept straight at He Zaiyun's lower stance.

The speed of this strike, the precision of its timing, the viciousness of its force—all far surpassed what had come before!

He Zaiyun, in horror, hastily shifted his footing and swung his iron fan to parry; his body lurched.

【Now—attack his left shoulder!】

Chen Mu's commands came like a gale and a sudden downpour, without a pause.

Su Donglai's blade momentum did not cease; his wrist flipped, the blade tip flicked upward, stabbing straight at the opening at He Zaiyun's left shoulder that had been exposed when he parried the lower-stance strike!

He Zaiyun was in a sorry state; he barely twisted his body and used the shaft of his iron fan to knock aside the blade edge, but his guard was already wide open.

【Attack his abdomen!】

Su Donglai obeyed as naturally as moving his own arm; the blade-light changed again, shifting from thrust to upward slash, a fierce blade Qi heading straight for He Zaiyun's completely unguarded abdomen.

He Zaiyun could not adjust in time; he could only watch helplessly as the blade Qi bore down on him, barely managing to condense protective true Qi to take the hit head-on.

Boom!

The blade Qi slammed into the protective true Qi; He Zaiyun's qi and blood churned, and he retreated step after step.

Chen Mu's transmitted commands were like the most precise movement of a symphony, and Su Donglai was the most perfect performer.

One attack from him, He Zaiyun scrambled to defend; the battle reversed in an instant, completely led by the nose by Su Donglai.

Such precise and rapid chain strikes continued for roughly five minutes; He Zaiyun was already in a frantic fluster, openings appearing all over.

Just as He Zaiyun exerted all his strength to block yet another tricky diagonal slash and his center of gravity faltered, Chen Mu's final command came through.

【Kick his center!】

Su Donglai's gaze turned fierce; his long-neglected left leg shot out like a venomous dragon bursting from its den, seizing the instant when He Zaiyun's arms were locked in a parry and his center was wide open, and delivered a vicious kick square into his chest.

Bang!

He Zaiyun felt only a tremendous force transmit through him; his protective true Qi instantly shattered, and his whole body flew backward like a kite with its string cut, tracing an arc through the air before finally going "boom" and slamming heavily into the ground outside the arena, where he tumbled several more times before coming to a stop.

Around the arena, in an instant, all was silent.

He Zaiyun had lost!

After a brief silence, the crowd in the plaza erupted into a clamor mixed with shock and regret.

"How is that possible! Wasn't He Zaiyun the one with the upper hand at the start?"

"What do you know? He Zaiyun's victory at the beginning was Su Donglai letting him have it!"

"To be precise, Su Donglai was sizing up, observing He Zaiyun's Wu Gong! Once the observation was done, naturally came the Lei Ting strike!"

"Too formidable. Worthy of being ranked eleventh on the Hidden Dragon List! He Zaiyun losing to Su Donglai is no injustice!"

"Heh, He Zaiyun certainly doesn't think so!"

"Ahem~ watch your words! Watch your words!"

"……"

The plaza exploded into an uproar.

Some marveled at Su Donglai's powerful bladework, while others felt it a pity that He Zaiyun had lost.

As for those who were just watching the show and eating melon, they wore expressions of schadenfreude.

"The winner of this match is… Su Donglai!"

On the arena, the referee appeared at the right moment and loudly announced that Su Donglai had obtained the alternate qualification and would advance to the next round.

The crowd cheered at this.

Below the arena, He Zaiyun's face was ashen; he flung away the guards who tried to support him, endured the churning of his internal breath as he scrambled to his feet in a sorry state, his gaze so dark and vicious it was almost dripping water, staring fixedly at the opponent who had made him lose face.

Su Donglai, meanwhile, only expressionlessly sheathed his blade, acting as if utterly unaware of the venomous gaze behind him that was almost solidifying into substance.

A gaze as sharp as an eagle's swept across the bobbing heads below the stage, clearly searching for something.

Chen Mu knew he was looking for him.

Earlier, when Su Donglai delivered that decisive blade strike and his qi flared, he had, whether intentionally or not, swept past the direction where Chen Mu stood—a kind of probe and greeting that only those of their realm could understand.

Chen Mu's lips moved slightly; a wisp of pure, condensed true Qi wrapped his voice and transmitted it precisely into Su Donglai's ear.

【East side of the square, Kaiyuan Teahouse for a chat.】

Su Donglai's gaze flickered almost imperceptibly, then immediately returned to calm. He did not linger, walking straight down from the arena, parting the crowd, and heading out of the square.

Chen Mu did not follow immediately.

Still maintaining that ordinary-looking Jianghu traveler's disguise, his gaze fell on He Zaiyun, watching him, surrounded by his guards and carrying a chill all over him, depart in the direction opposite to Su Donglai.

Only after that group's backs disappeared around the street corner did Chen Mu unhurriedly turn and leave the square with the flow of people.

Passing through several noisy streets and alleys, in an empty corner, Chen Mu tilted his body slightly, swept his sleeve across his face, and his bones let out a few barely audible soft cracks.

When he stepped back into the sunlight, the plainness had already been shed, and his original appearance restored.

Then, he walked unhurriedly into Kaiyuan Teahouse, where a sharp-eyed waiter came up to greet him.

Before the waiter could speak, Chen Mu had already sensed a familiar qi in the private room on the second floor.

So, raising his hand slightly, he went straight upstairs and pushed open the door of that street-facing private room.

Inside, Su Donglai was standing by the window; hearing the door open, he turned sharply.

When his gaze landed on Chen Mu's face, for the first time a clear ripple appeared on that well-like, unruffled countenance. A glint flashed in his eyes, carrying seven parts astonishment and three parts sudden understanding, and he blurted out.

"It's you! Chen Mu!"

"What do you want me to do?"