Soon, it was time for Vayu's fight. As he and Shen stepped onto the stage, the crowd fell silent, the third elder stood between them, glancing from one to the other.
"Ready?" third elder asked and both of them nodded. The elder's hand dropped — and the duel began. Vayu was the first to move, dashing forward, his blade flashed in the sunlight as he slashed, but Shen met his attack calmly, parrying it with practiced ease. Vayu didn't stop, he pressed on, attack after attack, his strikes fast and relentless. Yet Shen didn't strike back — he simply kept parrying his attacks each time, his movements fluid and measured. Bit by bit, Vayu's attacks began to drive Shen backward. To the onlookers, it looked like soon Vayu will corner Shen .But that never happened. Shen kept shifting his direction with effortless precision, moving in circles, never letting himself get pinned. Vayu too knew the truth — cornering an opponent was only possible in two cases: either the attacker was far more skilled, or the opponent was far less experienced, and he was not more skilled then Shen neither Shen was less experienced, Vayu knew it was trap to make him drop his guard. On the other hand, Shen was calm, he had used the slightest movement, the bare minimum of force, to parry each of Vayu's strikes. Every motion was calculated. He wasn't trying to overpower Vayu, he was waiting. Waiting for the moment when Vayu's will tire himself out, that was when Shen planned to strike back, to unleash a flurry of attacks and end the fight in one decisive sweep.
But Vayu had trained for hours every day, perfecting his techniques until every strike flowed into the next. After his drills, he sparred with the First Elder herself — battles that pushed him to his limits everyday. He was a maniac when it came to training, compared to that this was nothing. So he kept attacking, his attacks didn't slow down, instead it increased. Each swing became faster, heavier and sharper. Shen started losing his cool, his brows furrowed. The attacks he thought would weaken began to grow stronger. Instead of Vayu tiring, it was Shen who felt his arms begin to strain under the constant pressure. For the first time, a flicker of doubt crossed his face. Shen decided to wait a little longer. He can't keep this up forever, he told himself. Five minutes passed, then ten, by the fifteenth minute, sweat glistened on Shen's forehead, his composure began to crack. He grit his teeth, irritation flashing in his eyes. Finally, he snapped and lunged forward, swinging hard for the first time in the match. Steel met steel, and this time it was Vayu who was pushed back.
"How… how did you do it?" Shen growled, his expression twisting with disbelief.
Vayu blinked, confused. "Do what?" he asked between breaths, not understanding. Shen's eyes narrowed. "Are you using the first elders special technique? You know you cannot use it, until its a emergency"
They were a few feet apart — so only Vayu heard what Shen said "Special technique?" Vayu murmured. For a moment, his mind flicked to Overdrive. His expression shifted, Shen caught the change instantly, and that was enough for him, to come to a conclusion "So it's true…" he hissed. Then, with a roar Shen rushed forward, boiling with fury . To him, Vayu's endurance could only mean one thing — the use of a secret technique. It was forbidden to display such skills in front of everyone unless it was a matter of life and death. And yet, Vayu was using it… just to win a duel. How dare he, Shen thought, rage rising from his chest. With a sharp breath, he charged forward, his blade cutting through the air. Vayu didn't back down either. He met Shen's momentum head-on, closing the distance in an instant. As they were about to clash, Vayu twisted his body performing Spiral Gale, spinning his body with fluid precision. But the moment his back turned toward Shen, Shen drove his foot hard into Vayu's back. The impact jolted through Vayu's body, knocking him off balance — the crowd gasped — but before Shen could follow through, Vayu's feet slid across the dirt, twisting sharply. He regained balance mid-spin, his body snapping back into place. As Shen's attack came slicing down, Vayu's dagger flashed up, deflecting the strike just in time.
Clang!
The sudden rebound sent a shock up Shen's arm. He stepped back, startled —as disbelief flickering in his eyes. He regained his balance that fast? this fueled his anger even further. His grip tightened around the hilt of his blade as his composure began to crumble. Shen lunged forward, his blade aimed straight for Vayu's chest — a killing strike, but Vayu twisted his torso at the same instant, stepping in with him. Before Shen could dodge, Vayu's dagger drove deep into Shen's abdomen, a cry echoed inside the arena mixed with fury and disbelief. Shen's mind was clouded with rage and he ended up making a fatal mistake. Vayu didn't stop, in the same motion he struck Shen's forehead with the butt of his dagger Slam!.
Shen's head snapped back as he stumbled, his body collapsing to the ground. The dagger still struck in his abdomen, as blood started coming out from his wound. Vayu didn't waste a breath, he closed the distance in a heartbeat, dropping onto Shen's chest to finish the fight. His hand raised, ready to strike down — but before Vayu could attack, Shen slashed upward, the blade grazing across Vayu's wrist, his dagger slipping from his hand, clattering beside them. Vayu quickly pinned down both of Shen's wrists to the ground, sitting atop him — the two locked in a struggle, faces inches apart, their breathing ragged and their eyes burning with fury. As the two wrestled on the ground, Shen drove his knee hard into Vayu's abdomen and Vayu rolled to the side, pain flashing through his eyes.
Shen seized the moment — he quickly pushed himself up, and slowly pulled the dagger out from his own abdomen with a grunt, and threw it outside the arena. His blood-slicked hand trembled, but his glare turned cold.
"You'll pay for this," he hissed, his voice filled with fury.
Both men faced each other once again — while one stood bleeding, the other one stood weaponless. Although Shen was bleeding, he knew he held the advantage, because he still had his weapons, so he didn't rush. Instead, he steadied his breathing, then took a handful of dirt and rubbed it onto his open wound, gritting his teeth through the pain. Vayu watched Shen silently, his eyes sharp, he knew one wrong move and he would lose. Shen started walking, slowing he came closer and closer, then stopped as he judged that the distance was right, he attacked his arm swinging backward, gaining momentum to strike. But Vayu had been waiting for that exact moment, the moment Shen's hand moved, Vayu stepped in. His fist crashed into Shen's face, followed with another punch. Before Shen could attack, Vayu spun, his body twisting with full force — his elbow slammed into Shen's jaw. The impact sent Shen staggering backward, blood spraying from his lip.
For a moment, Vayu stood straight, ready to make his next move — but then his body stopped as his eyes looked downwards, as pain rippled through his body. One of Shen's daggers was now buried deep in Vayu's abdomen.
Vayu bent forward, clutching his abdomen as a sharp wave of pain spread through his body. His vision blurred for a second, the world narrowing to a dull, throbbing ache.
Across from him, Shen slowly pushed himself up, blood dripping from his mouth — yet a crooked smile formed on his face.
"It hurts, doesn't it?" Shen said, his voice low and mocking. Then, he laughed "Playtime's over."
Vayu looked up, confusion flickering in his eyes.
Shen reached towards his wrists and tugged his tunic, revealing the dull metallic bands wrapped around his wrists and ankles. One by one, he unlatched them — clink, clink, clink — each weight falling heavily onto the ground, kicking up small clouds of dust.
The crowd erupted in shock and excitement.
"Wait—he was wearing weights?" someone shouted.
"He fought the whole time like that?" another gasped.
"he did that with Tarak too!"
"He's too arrogant" muttered one of the elders.
"It's over for Vayu now," someone else whispered, a mix of awe and pity in their voice.
The noise grew louder, the air thick with anticipation. And as Shen rolled his shoulders, free from the burden of weights,
Vayu reached down, wincing as he pulled the dagger from his abdomen, blood running down his hand. He tightened his grip around the hilt and raised it. They stood facing each other for the third time — both bloodied, both had one dagger in their hand.
The crowd fell silent, as they started to circle each other.