Chapter 39: Swordsmanship Master

I'm rested now; the room is a bit stuffy, let's go out for a walk.

The woman named De Lai Er Sha lifted a pristine arm, looped it around Luo Jue's neck, and whispered a secret into his ear.

Luo Jue also wrapped his arms around her waist, their bodies pressed tightly together, like a pair of lovers in a passionate romance.

Dog couple!

Lei En let out a spit in his mind, then turned his gaze away.

These two clearly only met last night, yet they were acting like a hot‑blooded love affair, flaunting affection in broad daylight right in front of me; I couldn't tell whether it was just a pretense or if they truly fell into the river of love.

I used to think Master Luo Jue was cold and ruthless, but it turns out it was all an act.

Lei En was also curious; De Lai Er Sha was obviously a Transcendent, likely a powerful one, otherwise she wouldn't have recognized him as a combat wizard.

He instinctively wanted to open his Soul Eye to covertly probe De Lai Er Sha, but hesitated.

The last time he rashly peered into Luo Jue's soul, the opponent being Legendary made his soul too strong, causing a backlash; that uncomfortable feeling remains vivid to this day.

This De Lai Er Sha was so mysterious and even got entangled with Luo Jue; perhaps she too is a legendary strongman.

He thought it over and, instead of directly viewing De Lai Er Sha's soul, shifted his peripheral glance over her body bit by bit, catching only a sliver of her edge.

Even before seeing the soul, Lei En felt an indescribable sense of oppression!

He had a premonition that continuing to look would surely lead to a bad outcome.

The feeling was much like the last time he observed Luo Jue, as if about to see something forbidden, and the reaction was even stronger than with Luo Jue.

That meant De Lai Er Sha was at least a legendary strongman, perhaps even of a higher professional rank than Luo Jue!

"Indeed she's Legendary; otherwise Master Luo Jue wouldn't be involved with her. I just don't know her profession—maybe a Wizard?"

Lei En guessed in his heart and promptly closed his Soul Eye.

At this point the two loosened slightly; Luo Jue finally remembered there was someone else present. He one‑handed around De Lai Er Sha's waist, looked at Lei En, and introduced them: "Lei En, this is De Lai Er Sha; she is my... um, friend."

"De Lai Er Sha, this is Lei En, a very promising young man."

De Lai Er Sha gave a slight nod, her eyes drifting up and down at Lei En, scrutinizing him seriously, then smiled: "Indeed very promising; your soul is unstable yet so powerful. Longshande actually has such an outstanding young wizard as you."

Lei En felt a bit overwhelmed by her gaze, as if he were being teased.

De Lai Er Sha seemed to possess exquisitely subtle body language; her tone, gestures, every movement exuded charm, sparking endless imagination.

He felt a warning in his heart—could this be some ability?

Did Master Luo Jue notice this anomaly? Or perhaps he did notice and enjoyed it…

Moreover, she could discern the strength of his soul; he didn't know how she did it—perhaps a unique Element ability, or maybe Transcendents above Legendary share such insight?

Lei En's thoughts shifted quickly, but his face remained modest as he said, "I'm just lucky."

"Good luck won't get you a Soul-Melding Seed; this medium isn't expensive but it's rare. If you became a combat wizard, you must have exceptional talent," De Lai Er Sha, clearly knowledgeable about the wizard profession, suddenly asked, "Which academy are you from?"

"Claidun Academy."

Lei En answered honestly; after all, it was easy to verify. He now firmly believed this mysterious woman was also a wizard.

De Lai Er Sha seemed a bit puzzled by the answer, but she didn't press further.

"Combat wizard?" Luo Jue, standing nearby, heard their words and remained somewhat skeptical,

"I don't know much about this school; I've seen two or three combat wizards before, all fairly strong, but when they were at the first rank, none were as powerful as you."

"Unless you've fused a very rare demon soul..." he guessed the truth, his curiosity barely concealed.

Lei En said nothing, effectively conceding.

What demon soul a Transcendent fuses is a highly secret matter; generally they don't tell anyone, even close friends.

Luo Jue, seeing Lei En didn't want to speak, didn't press further, and sighed, "Since you've become a wizard, it's a bit regrettable that our Wolf Sect lost a promising junior, but that's fine; wizards are stronger than Demonhunters, at least most are, and in the Empire they face no prejudice."

"Thank you for your kindness, Master Luo Jue," Lei En said earnestly.

"It's fine; your choice is right," Luo Jue spread his hands; the Demonhunter School doesn't recruit easily, but it values destiny and never forces anyone.

He had originally invited Lei En because of Lei En's good talent and strong initiative, so he considered taking him as a disciple, but it wasn't a strong urge; since it was missed, it was fine.

Luo Jue glanced again at Lei En's figure and chuckled, "Wizard... hey, looking like that, if you tell anyone, probably few would believe you're a wizard."

He suddenly became interested, "Combat wizards excel in melee; how about it, let me see your strength?"

"Fine." Lei En also wanted to spar with a legendary strongman.

"Do you know swordsmanship?" Luo Jue asked. After Lei En nodded, he entered the room, took out his two cross swords, tossed one to Lei En, and said, "You use a steel sword, I use a silver sword. You have no spells, I have none either; let's compare swordsmanship."

Lei En caught the longsword; the instant his hand grasped the hilt, a strange sensation emanated from his hand.

The metallic feel was at work.

He drew the sword from its sheath; the weight, shape, balance point, and structure of the whole blade materialized in his mind, the longsword seeming to become part of his body, an extension of his arm, with no awkwardness, as familiar as if he'd used it for years.

This steel sword's design was a common cross sword, yet clearly not ordinary; it weighed over thirty pounds, its blade etched with runes—a sign of enchantment.

Luo Jue said, "The steel sword in your hand is called 'Wolf's Fang'; it's a Legend Grade weapon. Its enchantment, Flame Wolf Strike, absorbs your soul energy in battle, converting it into fire Element power, heating the blade and boosting its force, while also allowing you to unleash Flame Wolf Strike."

"Legend Grade weapon!"

Lei En gasped in awe, caressing the steel sword in his hand.

Ai Lun E Si's armaments were extremely varied; the vast majority were ordinary, only those enchanted by alchemists gained extra effects, known as enchanted weapons.

Enchanted weapons far outclass ordinary ones, but their price is staggering, starting at at least hundreds of Gold Shields.

Most Transcendents have one or two enchanted weapons, more or less.

If a weapon undergoes multiple enchantment enhancements, boosting its power, or if special materials are used and a demon soul is fused into it, it becomes a top‑tier enchanted weapon. These top‑tier arms are commonly called Legend Grade weapons, astonishingly valuable—hundreds of times pricier than ordinary enchanted weapons—and rare; even Transcendents find them hard to obtain.

Better than Legend Grade weapons are Epic weapons, which are no longer limited to enchantments.

Epic weapons not only possess great power but also have stories recorded in history; each is unique and hard to replicate.

As for even more powerful Legend Grade weaponry, that truly is legend. They usually appear only in various hero legends, no longer mere equipment; they embody astonishing tales or have shaped past history.

It was still Lei En's first time seeing such a fine weapon; no wonder it felt different in his hand.

He wasn't surprised; as a Legendary Demonhunter, ordinary enchanted weapons wouldn't match Luo Jue's strength.

Luo Jie did not introduce the silver longsword he was holding, but it was presumably also a top‑grade weapon.

The two walked into the courtyard and stopped ten steps apart.

Lei En had already activated his phone's gyroscope, spread his feet one forward, one back, slightly lowered his stance, assumed his familiar plow stance, held his sword in front of his body with the tip upward, and made no offensive move, adopting a defensive posture.

"Empire Military Swordsmanship?"

Luo Jie saw Lei En's stance at a glance, a hint of a smile lifting the corner of his mouth, clearly very relaxed.

As soon as the words fell, he seemed to merge with the silver sword in his hand, its silver light flashing, and he darted to Lei En's side at an incomprehensibly fast speed.

Lei En felt a chill in his heart; he knew Luo Jie's speed would be fast, but he hadn't expected it to be this fast!

Yet he still caught the trajectory of the silver sword.

Without hesitation, he blocked with the steel sword at his side, stepped back half a pace to create space, drove power from his feet, and transmitted his whole body's muscular strength into the sword.

Thud!

With a crisp sound, the runes on Wolf's Fang's blade lit up, turning the whole sword red as if scorched through, and where it struck the silver sword, sparks flew in all directions.

A surge of great force came from the sword, shaking Lei En's palm to numbness, yet it remained within his tolerable range.

He moved his foot again, slightly turned his body to adjust his stance, and sliced horizontally with the steel sword, as if pre‑rehearsed, perfectly blocking Luo Jie's second strike.

Another thud rang; Lei En blocked the second sword, did not pause, swiftly turned to face Luo Jie, swung his sword to parry, and held his central line.

This is the essence of Empire Military Swordsmanship: within a small area, moving footwork to control the front central line with a longsword, steady defense, and seeking a chance to counter.

The courtyard was filled with the continuous clashing of longswords, almost a single roar.

One silver, one red, the two sword lights flashed incessantly; the silver sword in Luo Jie's hand moved like a sudden storm, circling Lei En, trying to find a suitable opening to break his defense.

Lei En, however, wielded the steel sword so densely that no wind could pass through.

Under Luo Jie's onslaught, he was like a reef amid raging waves, trembling as if about to collapse, seemingly on the brink of being swallowed each time, yet he remained unyielding, tenacious and solid.

His footwork never strayed beyond three steps; he only turned and applied force within a small radius, and the steel sword in his hand performed no flashy moves, merely continuous parries.

But that was limited to parrying alone.

Luo Jie is a Demonkin hunter, not strong in raw power, yet as a legend he has fused more than ten demon souls; his strength far exceeds that of the single‑rank Lei En, even if Lei En possesses enhanced strength Element.

Not to mention, the hunter's speed has not been fully unleashed, perhaps not even half.

Even so, Lei En's resistance was extremely arduous.

He had already tried to use the stronger part of his blade—the front half near the guard—to collide with Luo Jie's weaker blade, reducing the recoil force, then discharged the force through his footwork to keep his balance, barely staying unbeaten, with no chance to counter, suppressed from start to finish.

The enchantment of the steel sword Wolf's Fang had little effect given the massive disparity in strength.

He persisted like this for nearly a minute.

The pressure suddenly vanished; Luo Jie abruptly stepped back a few steps and ceased his attack.

"Why did you stop?" Lei En asked, breathing lightly.

Although the swordsmanship duel was arduous, he felt he was far from his limit; if he kept fighting, perhaps he could find a chance to counter.

Luo Jie shook his head, his face full of disbelief.

"Continuing a sword duel is meaningless; without spells and without limiting my speed, relying solely on swordsmanship, I can hardly defeat you." He looked at Lei En as if at a monster, his gaze dropping to Lei En's feet, "Your footwork is superb, your power control very steady; the key to Empire Military Swordsmanship is 'stability.' I have struck dozens of swords and haven't disrupted your rhythm—truly impressive."

Speaking so, Luo Jie sincerely raised his thumb, his eyes filled with admiration.

"Master Luo Jie, you're flattering me." Even Lei En's thick skin was a little embarrassed by the compliment.

In fact, since his transmigration, he had never practiced any swordsmanship; he relied only on his prior sword foundation, the phone's gyroscope's precise control over his body, and the metallic feel that made him intimately familiar with the steel sword in his hand, as if it were an extension of his arm, which enabled his earlier performance.

If he didn't use a sword and switched to another weapon, it wouldn't be much different.

Luo Jie, unaware of Lei En's thoughts, hummed dismissively and said, "You needn't be modest; I know my swordsmanship well. In the Empire, there are few who surpass me in swordsmanship."

"Do you really think Zuo Er Tan calls me Master just because I can play cards?"

"I'm a bit regretful now; with your sword talent, becoming a wizard is such a waste. Had I known, I should have forcibly made you join the Wolf School."

His complexion turned unpleasant.

This isn't solely because the Wolf School's Demonkin hunters missed an infinitely potential member; it's also regretful for Lei En's choice, as the world loses a swordsmanship master.

Combat Wizards can also fight up close, still using swordsmanship, but they primarily rely on casting spells; spells are the source of strength, otherwise they could not form a wizard sect.

As a top‑level swordsmanship master, Luo Jie's love for swordsmanship runs deep to his bones.

He could see that Lei En's passion for swordsmanship was not strong, treating the sword merely as an ordinary weapon; now that he has become a wizard, he likely won't focus on swordsmanship in the future.

Lei En said nothing more, sheathed the steel sword Wolf's Fang, and silently handed it back to Luo Jie.

"What a splendid swordsmanship duel!"

De Lai Er Sha broke the courtyard's silence, draped in a black robe, walked over, gently leaning against Luo Jie, and smiled, "Lei En, you did well. Don't listen to his talk; Wizards certainly have a better future than Demonkin hunters. Becoming a combat wizard is definitely the best choice."