Lin Qingcheng's figure was a golden blur of non-stop movement. Zhou Ziyun was surrounded by silver streaks of saber light. For the moment, the two were evenly matched.
This was often the case. The two had been sparring with each other since the beginning and were used to each other's habits. Lin Qingcheng liked to start out with great energy and enthusiasm. Zhou Ziyun made sure to defend early and look for opportunities to counter.
"Take this!" Lin Qingcheng shouted and launched a flurry of strikes.
Her fists and legs were filled with the might of the Nineteen Demon Subduing Palms. She had practiced it for many years already. Although she started out slow, she could now claim to have mastered all nineteen palms and their variations.
Zhou Ziyun sensed the pressure and retreated. She leaped onto the roof of a pavilion, avoiding the first sweeping kick. Lin Qingcheng followed swiftly, jumping after her.
Ping!
A deft saber strike deflected the next attack which was a powerful punch.
The force of the impact sent Zhou Ziyun somersaulting backward. She landed on one leg, balanced on a stone railing. Even in retreat, her movements were swift and insightful, with no wasted effort.
"Golden Madam, beat her up!"
"Golden Madam is the best!"
Cheers and shouts echoed around the courtyard. A large crowd had gathered around the edge. Even more were watching from the balconies and windows.
"Golden Madam!"
Everyone was shocked and excited. They had been treated to a splendid duel between Wu Qianyu and Peng Lingxi a few days prior. Now, they were witnessing an even better bout, one between the first and second disciples of Ten Thousand Flower Valley.
News of this spread like wildfire. Soon, it seemed as if half the city knew of the rumor that Lin Qingcheng and Zhou Ziyun had gotten into a fight. The exact reason was unclear which allowed idle imaginations to run wild. Some would say that it was over their master. Others said it was over money. Regardless, each person had their own opinions.
"Chengcheng, are you going to beat me like this? You can't even touch a single hair on my head." Zhou Ziyun teased.
Lin Qingcheng pouted angrily, "Sister Ziyun, don't talk before the fight is over. I won't go easy on you!"
She clanged her metal gauntlets together and dived into another attack. She felt strong. She felt fast. Most importantly, after expending all of her effort in the prior attacks, she was still in peak physical condition. This was something she didn't expect. Even with her great stamina, it was difficult to maintain such intensity for so long. Yet, she was doing it now.
The two women went through another round of exchanges. This time, Zhou Ziyun was forced to retreat halfway around the middle of the courtyard. She felt something was wrong but couldn't grasp it.
Lin Qingcheng, on the other hand, felt as if she had understood something. Not being as smart as Zhou Ziyun didn't mean Lin Qingcheng was dumb. She occasionally had moments of brilliance. And this was one of those moments.
She pressed the attack, not letting her opponent rest. Her punches and kicks didn't lose any speed or strength. Instead, they became swifter and more powerful.
"Ha!" She shouted and swung her body around for a double kick.
Zhou Ziyun saw the attack. She also saw an opening. As Lin Qingcheng's figure twirled in midair to launch the kick, her back would be exposed for a split second. All Zhou Ziyun needed to do was block the initial strike and swiftly retaliate.
Bang!
Zhou Ziyun was sent flying. Lin Qingcheng's double kick arrived too fast and it was too strong. Zhou Ziyun was able to barely block but not much else.
In the brief moment she spent soaring across the garden, she finally understood what she had done wrong and the bad assumptions she had made.
Zhou Ziyun's figure crashed into a well-manicured flower bush, completely destroying it. When she got back up, she was covered in leaves and her clothes were a complete mess. Her hair was disheveled and she looked like a beggar.
"Haha! Sister Ziyun, how was that? Do you admit defeat?" Lin Qingcheng landed in front of Zhou Ziyun with a wide smile.
"Golden Madam!"
"Golden Madam!"
The disciples of the House of Paradise all cheered and shouted to display their joy.
Zhou Ziyun smiled wryly, "Fine, I lost."
Lin Qingcheng threw her head back and laughed, "Haha, great! Great fight!"
She reveled in her victory for a little while longer before calming down. After directing a few servants to clean up the mess, the two sisters retreated indoors to a private room. There, Chen Wentian met them using Chen Mo's shadow.
"Very good! Chengcheng, how do you feel? Tell me exactly what happened, step by step."
Lin Qingcheng slowly described each step of the spar. She explained her feelings throughout, especially how she was so full of energy that didn't seem to run out. Even now, she believed she could go for another spar and win easily.
"I see. I see." Chen Wentian couldn't hide the excitement in his voice, "This is a very interesting development. Chengcheng's physique once again surpasses common sense."
Zhou Ziyun sighed, "It's so unfair."
"Huh? What's unfair?" Lin Qingcheng asked.
Chen Wentian laughed, "Chengcheng, with that array, the orgasmic energy provided does not have a high enough quality to affect your cultivation. However, it is strong enough to overfill your spiritual sea with spiritual energy. Think of it like this. A person's spiritual energy is a finite resource during a fight. If they use powerful attacks or abilities, it will deplete their spiritual energy, making them weaker and weaker."
"However, with the effects of the array, you have overfilled your spiritual sea, meaning there is far more spiritual energy than normal. This allows you to fight at maximum strength for an unreasonable amount of time, thus overpowering Ziyun who couldn't keep up."
"Certain Daos can give their cultivators similar effects. The costs of doing so vary. My soul art can do something similar that lets me fight at full strength beyond my normal limits. However, the cost is very high. But it seems that for our Chengcheng, all she needs to do is sit in the middle of a circle while her disciples masturbate. Haha, the difference is simply too great!"
"Oh… hehe, that does sound pretty good!" Lin Qingcheng said, "Sis, it's my win today. The next time, I won't go easy on you."
Zhou Ziyun smiled wryly, "Of course not. I will think of a way to beat your unfair advantage."
"Hey! Don't be a sore loser. Hey, wait up!"