Chapter 198 - Dagger vs. Dagger

Rip!

A slight sensation of something being torn.

It was what Feng Cheng felt every time his opponent's bullets hit the faint layer of fire created in front of him. Thanks to such a stratagem, it was possible for him to perceive bullets' arrival without having to rely on his eyes and his speed of reaction. Therefore, knowing the trajectory in advance, dodging them, albeit at close range, was not complicated.

Bang!

Another bullet was fired. Once again, Feng Chen dodged it by moving even before the flying object could hit his body. It didn't take long to reach his opponent, Malcolm Hammond.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Malcolm quickly fired one after the other, the three bullets left in his gun. The bullets flew at high speed, and yet Feng Chen, knowing their trajectory in advance, skillfully dodged the attacks until he was now at a distance where his sword could reach his opponent.

Slash!

An oblique cut from top to bottom. Feng Chen's sword followed this trajectory with lightning speed. However, it wasn't enough to checkmate Malcolm Hammond as he avoided the sword stroke at the last second while trafficking with his hands.

Click!

As he backed away, Malcolm inserted the hybrid bullets into his weapon as fast as he could. Then he aimed the revolver barrel at Feng Chen, who was practically in front of him.

"Take this!"

Bang!

Another blast and another bullet flew from Malcolm's gun to Feng Chen. This time, the fiery red-haired youngster's layer of fire wouldn't help him. Feng Chen was indeed too close to attempt to dodge the blow. The only solution would have been to strengthen his defense and receive the impact of the attack. And as expected, Feng Chen chose to take the attack head-on.

Boom!

'It is time to end this fight. You are probably wondering why your defense was overcome when I used the same attack as before. I'm sorry for you, but your analytical skills have turned against you. Never think you know everything about your opponent.' Malcolm commented in his head as he prepared to fire another bullet.

It was at that moment that it happened.

Whoosh!

A shadow emerged from the cloud of steam, exploded from the bullet fired by Malcolm. The shadow of a person, or Feng Chen. Incredibly, apart from his tattered clothes, his body was unharmed. There was no trace even that his defensive layer of spirit power had been affected.

Seeing this, Malcolm couldn't believe his eyes. How was that possible? He could understand that there were no injuries, but how could Feng Chen's defenses remain the same as before?

"No, it's impossible. It can not be." Malcolm muttered as he fired two more bullets.

Bang! Bang!

The two fired bullets moved at high speed towards Feng Chen. However, they didn't reach him as they stopped a few centimeters before reaching him. Not only that, but the steam bursts from the two bullets were also unable to influence Feng Chen.

Once again, Feng Chen came out of the clouds of steam. This time, in front of him, there was a crystalline blue screen - an ice screen. It was thanks to this defensive technique that he managed to emerge unscathed from the attacks.

Crack! Slash!

The ice screen shattered, scattering ice crystals all around. Feng Chen swung his sword rapidly towards Malcolm's hand, which held the unusual weapon. Suddenly, the ice crystals that previously formed the ice screen stirred and gathered towards the point indicated by Feng Chen's sword.

Freeze!

A layer of ice landed on the revolver and continued until it covered the whole arm. But unfortunately for the young Malcolm, this wasn't the end.

Slash!

Another sword stroke and other ice crystals were formed. This time, the ice crystals landed on Malcolm's feet so that he was glued to the ground by the ice.

"Shit!" Malcolm Hammond swore as he tried to wriggle away. He tried to release his spirit power to the maximum to break the layer of ice that kept him imprisoned, but he didn't manage to do it. Or rather, it would take time to break it, and time was something he didn't have at the moment.

"Law of Fire, Phoenix Wing Strike!"

With his right arm stretched out to the side and parallel to the ground, Feng Chen ran towards his opponent at full speed. His arm hit Malcolm Hammond in the chest.

Crack!

The impact of the move was devastating. Malcolm was still anchored to the ground by the ice layer, so he could not use the rebound of being hit to lessen the damage. Instead, he had to undergo the full power of Feng Chen's move.

His protective layer of spirit power was shattered as flames covered his body. More and more severe burns were forming visibly, charring the young man's skin little by little.

Slash!

Another sword movement and the flames on Malcolm's body went out. Not only that, but even the layer of ice that kept the feet and the arm imprisoned was also destroyed. In this way, Malcolm finally fell to the ground while spitting blood due to the impact received.

"The winner is Feng Chen!" Song Yazhu said as he called the supporting martial artists on stage to take care of the young Malcolm. Even though he wasn't life-threatening, his injuries weren't either light.

Feng Chen then put his sword back and turned to return to the section where the other fighters were stationed. The audience greeted him with a roar of applause to thank him for the show he had provided.

"Unfortunately, the young Malcolm lost, but the young Feng Chen's victory was well deserved. Anyway, what do you think of the weapon we developed?" Principal Jing complimented before asking this question.

A series of discussions followed among the upper echelons. Feng Chen's talent and skills were first class, and it wasn't surprising that he had won. Yet, indeed, if Malcolm hadn't taken it for granted that his opponent had miscalculated the strength of his bullets, perhaps he could have come out on top. The attack speed was sufficient to overwhelm his opponent when used cunningly.

"Okay, Teacher Jing. For me, it can be done. In any case, since it was developed by a prototype taken from demons, it wouldn't surprise me that in the future, we will find ourselves against more users of this type of weapon. If we don't understand the full functionality of this new type of weapon ourselves, there is a danger of finding ourselves in difficulty in the next battles." Feng Qing seriously replied.

"I also agree with this. We cannot afford to fall behind, now more than ever. There isn't much time left, and we have yet to complete a myriad of preparations. We cannot be stingy with our resources, or we will end up with nothing. It affects the fate not only of our families but of the whole human race." Hu Luoyang added. Despite his carefree behavior, he had now taken on a serious and dignified attitude as befits the Hu Family head.

"So be it. We will talk about the details later. For now, let's enjoy the tournament." Principal Jing ended this matter. However, even though he was calm, infinite thoughts were swirling in his head.

"Let's proceed with the next fight." Song Yazhu meanwhile began to introduce the two new fighters. "The first to take the field is William, one of the guards of Imperial Prince Long Tian. As you all know, imperial guards are all trained by the imperial instructors, so their strength is not to be underestimated."

When Song Yazhu announced the new fighters' name, William moved away from Long Tian's side. The latter nodded to him to encourage him. Since they had been together for a long time, Long Tian knew William and his other guards' strength well. After all, he had chosen them personally when both he and they were still children.

"The next one to take the field is Mafeng Rong, belonging to the Mafeng family." Song Yazhu introduced the second fighter for this round.

"So William has Mafeng Rong as an opponent. I don't know if it should be considered a fortune or a misfortune," commented Dae-Won, Long Tian's number one guard.

"What do you mean?" Hei asked as he didn't know who this Mafeng Rong was or the Mafeng Family in general.

"The Mafeng Family is the owner of the Giant Hornet Bloodline. It is a bloodline of the Poison Law. But this isn't the issue. The Mafeng Family's favorite weapon is a pair of drill daggers that simulate the sting of the hornet. William uses Katars, which are also considered daggers. As a result, both are familiar with dagger attack patterns." answered Xinya, guard number three.

"Exact. Also, William uses a close-combat style with his Katar daggers. Therefore, he isn't very proficient in fighting from a distance, using his Blood Law techniques." added Hide, guard number two.

"However, even if that's the case, I'm sure William will come out on top." Long Tian ended the analysis as everyone's eyes returned to the stage where Song Yazhu was about to kick off the fight.

"Begin!" Song, Yazhu loudly said.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The two fighters' figures flickered for an instant, then vanished and reappeared the moment later in the center of the stage. Both fighters wielded a pair of daggers in their own hands, and as soon as they were both within each other's range, they began to exchange a storm of attacks one after another.

Peng! Peng! PENG!

Metallic sounds followed one after the other. No demonstrations of pure strength or displays of flashy techniques. Only pure technique in the use of weapons. The two were exchanging blow for blow at an impressive speed. Their daggers stuck to each other just before they could skewer their opponent's protective layer of spirit power. However, although their attack patterns might seem the same, they weren't.

William's style came from the Kalaripayattu style; that is, it contained explosive and elastic movements exploiting the whole body. His arms moved according to arched and sinuous trajectories that were difficult to be analyzed correctly, while the legs added further power and momentum to the movements.

The style of the Mafeng Family also relied on the speed of movement, moving around the enemy like a hornet. However, apart from that constant movement around the enemy, the body remained almost rigid, leaving only the arms to attack. It was used to counterbalance the recoil due to the power of movement of the arms and to throw stabs indefinitely without the risk of falling forward or to the side.

The two, therefore, continued to fling blow after blow without stopping for several minutes. Despite the absence of elemental techniques, it couldn't be doubted that it was a high-level clash. Their dagger style techniques were flawless as well as the use of their spirit power to coat their weapons and enhance their penetrating skills.

'We'll never end it in this way.' William thought as he finally detached himself from the enemy. Mafeng Rong also stepped back, surprised by his opponent's dagger skill.

"As expected from one of the imperial guards. Your skill with daggers is incredible. It honors the Kalaripayattu Style. However, my family's fencing is superior. Now I'll show you why." Mafeng Rong said before adding, "Giant Hornet Bloodline, Activation!"

An insect hum began to ring as Mafeng Rong's daggers were painted purple. It was a sign that the Poison Law was now present in those daggers. If William were to be hit, the poison would enter his body. The most crucial unknown was to understand what kind of poison it was.

In response to his opponent's move, William extracted two small glass ampoules containing a red substance - his blood. Then he threw them into the air and crushed them with the blades of his Katar daggers. The blades of the two daggers turned blood red and took on a sinister appearance.

Dagger vs. Dagger. Poison Law vs. Blood law.

From an evaluation of the clash so far, William and Mafeng Rong were on par. Both possessed a high mastery of the dagger and possessed first-rate speed techniques. It was no coincidence that they hadn't gotten an advantage over each other in the previous exchange. Now, however, both had activated their Elemental Laws - for William, it was his Blood Law, for Mafeng Rong his Poison Law.

Although they were on par with their dagger mastery, this didn't indicate that their knowledge in their respective Elemental Laws would also be on the same level. In addition to this consideration, Mafeng Rong possessed the Giant Hornet's Bloodline, which added more power to his elemental techniques; William, on the other hand, didn't have one, not even a pseudo bloodline.

Although it didn't mean that the young man from the Mafeng Family would automatically win, it was undeniable that at the moment, he had a not negligible advantage. Therefore, most of the audience thought that he would be the winner of the fight.

Whoosh!

The two moved at high speed again. Their figures trembled and then met again in the center of the stage. Exactly as before, they began to exchange blow for blow but with an even higher intensity.

Flashes of purple and blood-red light flew each time their blades crossed. Each of the two fighters was trying to land a powerful stab on the opponent but to no avail. Although Mafeng Rong had the advantage over the Elemental Laws, he specialized in techniques that touched the enemy's body. As long as William deflected Mafeng Rong's drill daggers, the guard of the Imperial Prince shouldn't worry about the disadvantage he had by not possessing a bloodline. And it was precisely that evaluation that brought William into a difficult situation so as to risk the defeat.

While the two were clashing their weapons, Mafeng Rong suddenly rotated the handle with which he held one of his daggers. He made two rapid rotating clockwise movements with his left wrist, and something unexpected happened immediately afterward. The drill dagger's blade held in his left hand suddenly stretched out during the unstoppable exchange of blows.

William was completely taken aback because he didn't expect such a thing. Nonetheless, he managed to bend his body just in time to prevent the blade from hitting him in the chest. However, this movement had disturbed his posture, placing him in a critical situation.

"Intent of the Dagger, Poison Law, Poisonous Hornet Sting!"

Mafeng Rong then turned his right wrist counterclockwise. This time the blade of the other drill dagger, instead of stretching, shrank but at the same time began to rotate frantically according to the rotation performed by the wrist. The blade's outlines vanished to make way for a blurred image of something that was spinning frantically.

Stab!

The rotating drill blade made contact with William's left shoulder. The defensive layer of the young imperial guard, under the rotating attack of the blade and the ability to dissolve by the Poison Law, broke, thus leaving the flesh defenseless. The rotating drill blade, therefore, continued its advance until it entered the flesh, creating a hole of considerable size.

Stab!

Just as the rotating drill blade broke the defensive layer of spirit power and entered the flesh, a metallic glow flashed, and the tip of a blade reached Mafeng Rong - it was one of William's two Katar daggers.

Since Mafeng Rong was concentrating on the attack, he unconsciously lowered his defenses to focus on increasing power. Therefore William, who knew that he couldn't avoid being hit, decided to take advantage of this opportunity to deal a heavy blow to the enemy as well. It would have worsened the extent of his injury, but he knew it was the only way to prevent Mafeng Rong from gaining too much of an advantage over him.

The blade of the Katar dagger broke Mafeng Rong's defensive layer and touched the flesh. However, William possessed the Blood Law and not Poison one, not to mention that he didn't have a Bloodline. Therefore, the force of his blow lessened more, and the extent of the injury was inferior. Nonetheless, it was irrefutable that he had landed a direct hit on his opponent.

Cough!

Both coughed and spat blood when their weapons touched their respective bodies. William was in a much worse condition than Mafeng Rong, but it was the latter who backed away. He had a stunned look on his face as he didn't expect William to aim to hit him even if doing so would make his wounds worse.

Instinctively, he looked at the wound caused by his opponent's blade. It wasn't too deep, but it wasn't a simple cut either. However, it wouldn't prevent him from continuing the fight, although there was no longer any need for it.

Yes. Mafeng Rong had not backed away out of fear but simply because it was no longer necessary to expose himself in that way and risk being seriously injured. By now, he had practically won.