On the stage.
In the blink of an eye.
The first round had already ended.
Just moments ago, there were twelve people, but now only six remained.
Among the six, the only local martial artist from Luoshui County still competing was Jiang Ning.
The other five were all elite students from the Martial Academy of Dongling City.
Below the stage.
"As expected! The elite students from the Martial Academy aren't easy to deal with. I couldn't even win a single match!" Liu Zhaonan sighed, his expression filled with emotion.
"Brother Zhaonan, you've already impressed me by securing a team leader position. I'm far from matching you!" Cao Zijian, standing beside him, looked at Liu Zhaonan with a complex expression.
He hadn't expected that Liu Zhaonan, who had once lagged behind him, had now surpassed him by so much.
He had just stepped onto the stage and personally faced an elite student from the Martial Academy, gaining a firsthand understanding of their strength.
It was a level of power that made victory seem impossible.
Hearing Cao Zijian's words, Liu Zhaonan sighed softly and shook his head.
"What have I achieved? Jiang Ning is the one who's truly redefined our understanding. Who could have imagined that an ordinary commoner like him, after only a few months of martial training, could reach this level? Even a once-in-a-century genius from Luoshui County might not compare to him!"
Hearing Liu Zhaonan mention Jiang Ning, Cao Zijian's expression grew even more complicated.
"Indeed! Who could have predicted he'd have such strength? Even my cousin Cao Rong can't match his talent!"
"Thankfully, my cousin Cao Bin chose to reconcile with him earlier. If they had continued their feud, with Jiang Ning's current authority, our Cao family would be in real trouble!"
Hearing Cao Zijian's lament, Liu Zhaonan couldn't help but smile.
Because he didn't share Cao Zijian's concerns.
The Cao family's pillar was Cao Rong.
Cao Rong, who served in the Divine Bow Battalion in Dongling City.
Although Cao Rong held a high position, his military duties kept him away, rarely returning home more than once or twice a year.
For Luoshui County, he was too far away to be of immediate help.
If, as Cao Zijian said, Jiang Ning became a team leader in the Inspectorate and decided to target the Cao family, they would indeed face significant trouble.
With power in hand, causing trouble would be all too easy.
And Cao Rong, being so far away, wouldn't be able to intervene in time.
But Liu Zhaonan was different.
A few months ago, he had received the full support of his family.
Now, he has successfully secured a team leader position.
As fellow team leaders in the Inspectorate, while he admired Jiang Ning's strength, he didn't fear him as Cao Zijian did.
With him as a team leader in the Inspectorate, the Liu family would be able to weather any storms that came to Luoshui County.
The Cao and Xie families, however, were in a different position.
Xie Xiaojiu, the most outstanding member of the Xie family, had lost to Jiang Ning in the team leader competition, so like the Cao family, they hadn't produced a team leader.
Thinking of this, Liu Zhaonan felt a secret satisfaction.
Ten years ago, Cao Rong had emerged as a prodigy, lifting the Cao family from the bottom of the three great families to a position that now overshadowed the Liu and Xie families.
Now, it was his turn to create a legend.
At this moment.
On the stage.
With the first round over, only six people remained eligible to compete in the second round.
Qin Xuan was the first to step forward again.
Holding a sword tilted slightly downward, his black robe with gold accents exuded an air of elegance.
"Who's next?" Qin Xuan addressed the remaining five.
"I'll go!" A man stepped forward without hesitation.
With only one deputy commander position left, securing it would require defeating everyone present.
Since the goal was to be the last one standing, there was no difference between going first or last.
So, the man didn't hesitate at all.
After the match, Qin Xuan emerged victorious.
This time, he didn't sustain any new injuries.
If He Jinyun had been there, he would have noticed that Qin Xuan had made significant progress compared to a month ago.
In the next moment.
Jiang Ning stepped forward.
"Blade combat. Who's next?" he asked the remaining three.
Then he turned to the man overseeing the competition and said, "Sir, could I trouble you for a blade?"
"Here!" The man grabbed a heavier blade from the weapon rack and tossed it to Jiang Ning.
The blade whistled through the air, and Jiang Ning caught it effortlessly.
As soon as the blade was in his hand, its details appeared in his mind.
Three and a half feet long, weighing one hundred and thirty-seven pounds.
It was a rare, high-quality blade.
The mirror-like surface of the blade reflected dazzling light under the sun.
At this moment.
A woman stepped forward.
She was the only woman left among the remaining competitors.
Dressed in fiery red leather armor, she held a spear, her hair tied back in a ponytail that swayed behind her, giving her a heroic and spirited appearance.
"I'll go!" The woman walked to the center of the stage, standing in front of Jiang Ning.
"Blade combat? I like it!" She swung her spear lightly, the red tassel flashing like a burst of flame.
"I'm Feng Jiuge."
"Jiang Ning."
Jiang Ning had some knowledge of this woman because his heightened senses allowed him to overhear the murmurs of the crowd from various parts of the training ground.
After spending half a day in the training ground, he had gleaned much information from these whispers, including details about the woman in red armor before him.
She was the daughter of a captain from Dongling City.
Her martial arts style was heavily influenced by military training, and her previous fights had been characterized by bold, sweeping movements.
This style, though more suited for battlefield charges than arena combat, had brought her this far, proving her exceptional skill.
"Ready?" the woman asked Jiang Ning.
"Let's go," Jiang Ning replied.
As soon as the words left his mouth.
The woman moved, and a wave of killing intent enveloped Jiang Ning.
Such intense killing intent!
She must have been on the battlefield!
Jiang Ning quickly assessed.
At this moment.
His mind cleared of distractions.
He raised his blade, and it cut through the air with a sharp whistle.
Clang
Metal clashed, sparks flying.
Feng Jiuge's spear was sent flying, and her heart skipped a beat.
"Such terrifying strength!"
"At least three thousand eight or nine hundred pounds."
"My strength is only three thousand pounds. I'm no match for him in raw power!"
Feng Jiuge quickly realized.
Then.
She adjusted her grip on the spear, moving her hands to the very end of the shaft.
With a shake of her arms, the spearhead, which had been flung aside, snapped back into position, its triangular tip gleaming coldly as it swept toward Jiang Ning's throat.
Jiang Ning stepped back slightly, avoiding Feng Jiuge's strike.
Then he swung his blade upward.
His blade was both heavy and fast.
In an instant, it struck the spear shaft.
However, as the spear shaft lifted under Jiang Ning's force, Feng Jiuge's skillful handling of the weapon allowed the flexible and resilient shaft to absorb the impact effortlessly.
"It works!" Feng Jiuge's eyes narrowed slightly.
"It's time to end this!" she thought.
In the next moment.
Amid the fluttering red tassel, the spear burst into a flurry of motion, like a blooming flame.
Hidden within the flame was the spear's tip, darting like a venomous snake.
Clang
Clang
Clang
Sparks flew with each clash.
Jiang Ning retreated step by step.
"Such fierce force!" Jiang Ning thought, feeling the feedback from his blade.
He could sense that Feng Jiuge's current burst of power far exceeded her earlier strikes.
Each clash of the spearhead against his blade forced him back to dissipate the force.
"It feels similar to the Ninefold Force technique," Jiang Ning mused.
At this moment.
Feng Jiuge's spear movements grew even more ferocious.
The spearhead seemed to transform into a spreading flame, tightly encircling Jiang Ning and leaving him no room to breathe.
As time passed, Feng Jiuge's attacks grew increasingly intense, each strike heavier and more forceful than the last.
The flames at the spearhead gradually compressed Jiang Ning's space, pushing him toward the edge of the stage.
"Is this the Miao family's Blazing Spear Technique? It's indeed domineering!" Qin Xuan, watching from the side, murmured to himself.
"Brother Qin, you know about the Blazing Spear Technique?" a man beside him asked.
"Of course! The Blazing Spear Technique is a mid-tier martial art owned by the Miao family. Captain Miao rose to prominence thanks to the power of this technique!" Qin Xuan explained.
"From your perspective, Brother Qin, can Jiang Ning handle Feng Jiuge at her full strength?" the man asked again.
Qin Xuan opened his mouth to respond but then shook his head slightly. "It's hard to say. Let's watch and see."
On the other side.
In the center of the stage.
Under Feng Jiuge's relentless assault, Jiang Ning had been pushed back across most of the stage.
He was now only two zhang (about six meters) away from the edge.
Blazing Spear Technique?
Hearing these words, Jiang Ning was surprised.
He immediately recalled what Wang Jin had told him about the Surging Waves Blade Technique.
According to Wang Jin.
The Surging Waves Blade Technique was an exceptional mid-tier martial art that could cultivate the Ninefold Force.
When the technique was mastered, the Ninefold Force would also reach perfection.
A perfected Ninefold Force could unleash the power of nine strikes in a single blow, combining the force of nine attacks into one.
This allowed one to fight above their level.
At the same time, Wang Jin had mentioned another mid-tier martial art: the Blazing Blade Technique.
If one could master both the Surging Waves Blade Technique and the Blazing Blade Technique and merge them, one could achieve a high-tier martial art.
"Blazing Blade Technique? Blazing Spear Technique?"
"Could this be a variation of the blade technique?"
Jiang Ning pondered as he fought.
At this moment, even though Feng Jiuge was going all out, Jiang Ning didn't feel much pressure.
Though her spear technique was fierce and dazzling.
With Jiang Ning's heightened senses, every movement of Feng Jiuge's spear was visible to him.
Every time the spearhead darted out from the fluttering tassel, Jiang Ning could easily spot it and deflect it with a single strike.
He hadn't used his full strength to knock Feng Jiuge off the stage because he wanted to use her as a tool to gain combat experience.
After all, opponents who were too weak wouldn't help him improve.
However, after this brief exchange, Jiang Ning realized that this approach might not be useful.
Because he found that so-called combat experience was essentially about developing muscle memory and instinctive reactions during battle.
For other martial artists, it was difficult to fully track every move and technique of an equally skilled opponent.
When you couldn't see clearly, split-second reactions were crucial.
But in Jiang Ning's case, every subtle movement and change in his opponent's actions was crystal clear to him.
His heightened senses gave him the ability to discern every shift and feint.
So, no matter how fierce or dazzling Feng Jiuge's attacks were, Jiang Ning could easily see through them.
Combined with his mastery of the blade, which had reached the level of unity between man and weapon, his blade moved as swiftly as his thoughts.
The speed of his strikes, enhanced by his blade technique, allowed him to precisely block every incoming spear thrust.
On the stage.
Feng Jiuge grew more and more alarmed as the fight progressed.
As Jiang Ning's opponent, she could sense how terrifying he was.
Though she seemed to have the upper hand, she knew deep down that she was in a precarious position.
She had thrust her spear dozens of times, and every single attack had been effortlessly deflected by Jiang Ning's blade.
Despite appearing to dominate the fight, she hadn't breached Jiang Ning's defenses even once or landed a single blow on him.
This situation made it clear to her that while she seemed to be winning, she was actually at a disadvantage.
The moment Jiang Ning counterattacked, she would lose.
Realizing this, she clenched her teeth.
"Ha"
Feng Jiuge let out a fierce shout, her attacks becoming even more violent and rapid.
Her eyes locked onto Jiang Ning's every move.
She knew the outcome would be decided in the next few moments.
If she couldn't land a hit, she would use her relentless assault to force Jiang Ning off the stage.
That would still count as a win.
After all, the rules of the arena stated that falling off meant defeat.
Feeling Feng Jiuge's intensified offensive.
"It's time to end this!" Jiang Ning declared.
In the next moment.
He gathered his strength, and it surged like a tidal wave.
Clang
With another swing of his blade, the Fivefold Force erupted.
The sheer power made Feng Jiuge's expression turn to one of shock.
Even though she was holding the spear at its very end, reducing the force transmitted to her arms.
At this moment, Feng Jiuge nearly lost her grip on the spear.
While holding the spear this way reduced the recoil force on her arms, it also significantly weakened her control over the weapon.
Under Jiang Ning's powerful strike, the spearhead was flung several feet away.
Feng Jiuge quickly retreated, her arms straining to bring the spear back under control.
But at this moment.
Though Feng Jiuge retreated quickly, Jiang Ning closed the distance even faster.
In just a few steps, Jiang Ning was within range of Feng Jiuge's spear.
Then, taking advantage of the spear's out-of-control state.
Jiang Ning reached out and grabbed the shaft.
"Let go!" Jiang Ning shouted softly.
With a pull of his left arm, the spear was yanked from Feng Jiuge's hands, causing her to stumble forward.
She collided headfirst into Jiang Ning's chest.
"S-sorry!!" Feng Jiuge pushed herself away from Jiang Ning's chest, stammering slightly.
Her face flushed with embarrassment!
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