"Tch… who the hell are you?" Lian's eyes stretched wide as he stared at the shadowy figure standing before him. The man was roughly his height, yet no matter how hard Lian tried to focus on his face, he couldn't recognise him.
The stranger had pale grey skin, long dark hair, and sharp orange eyes. In his hand, he dragged a long sword across the ground.
Without a word, he rushed forward and thrust the blade.
Lian twisted to the side, barely dodging the strike.
"What? Don't you recognise me now?" the figure said as he landed behind Lian, walking slowly in a circle around him.
"Tchhh—!" Lian's legs buckled. Even here, he could still feel the lingering agony of his body being hammered apart.
He knows me.
Where do I know him from?
His eyes locked onto the sword.
It was Guǐ Shā Shǒu.
The hue was slightly different, but there was no mistaking it. That was his blade.
"Where did you—"
"Look at you," the man cut him off, a wide smile spreading across his face.
"You were powerless in that fight. You couldn't do anything against a Martial Sovereign. What do you think you can do against stronger masters?"
He tilted his head slightly.
"It hurts, doesn't it? The hammering."
Lian clenched his teeth.
"Your body is weak. Your spirit is weak. So weak that Guǐ Shā Shǒu refuses to accept you as its master."
The smile widened unnaturally.
"Why not just die?"
Outside his mindscape, the Alrick raised the hammer high. Cracks had spread across its surface; it was on the verge of breaking. He drew his arm back, and as the hammer came hurtling down, ancient golden characters began to swirl around it.
BANG!
The hammer struck Lian and shattered on impact. Shards clattered across the floor as the glowing characters drifted downward, sinking into Lian's body one after another.
"Body Destruction Art… finished."
The Alrick's eyes never left Lian.
"He's holding on well. Time for the next phase."
He dropped the broken handle and reached into the case, pulling out the second hammer, the red one. It crackled faintly as he lifted it.
"Hold on tight. This one will hurt far more than the first."
He gave a slight bow and murmured something under his breath, words meant only for himself.
"Second Hammer: Reconstruction."
He raised it high. The air crackled violently as the hammer tore downward.
BOOM!
The impact thundered through the chamber like a lightning strike. The place where it struck Lian's body contorted and bent unnaturally.
"AHHHHH!" Lian roared inside his mindscape.
"Look at you falling apart. I don't even need to do anything. If I leave you as you are, you'll die on your own."
"Shut up! Shut the hell up!" Lian barked as he forced himself into the Yin–Yang stance. "Let's do this again."
His body was drenched in blood. The grey figure had sliced him so deeply that the wounds poured like fountains.
"Damn it… this hurts so much. No matter what skill I use, he counters it. It's like he knows what I'm going to do before I do it. Even his techniques are cultivated to the extreme… shit… he's better than the version of myself I imagine in my dreams."
"You're losing your head, aren't you?" the grey figure said calmly as he walked toward Lian.
He dropped his blade in a curved arc, and a blinding crescent of Qi shot across the ground.
Lian planted his feet firmly, palms raised.
"Yin Reversal," he muttered.
His hands flowed in a circular motion, catching the incoming force, spinning it around, and hurling it back toward the grey entity.
"Tch. Not bad. Not bad at all. You're finally learning."
The grey figure launched another slash. The two attacks collided midair and exploded violently on contact.
"Again—hehehe!" he laughed from behind the debris.
But when the dust cleared, Lian was already in front of him.
"Tch—what the—"
Before he could react, a barrage of palm strikes slammed into his arm, chest, and leg. Each hit numbed the point of impact. Lian's final strike rose vertically, his hand turning rigid like a blade.
"Yin–Yin Technique: Palm of Closing," he hissed as golden light burst from his palm.
BOOM!
The strike connected, sending the grey entity flying backwards.
"Waaah… that was a close one. You really are improving," the entity said, eyes sparkling with curiosity as a transparent Qi barrier formed in front of him.
"So… is that the path you've chosen? The path of a vice? Will you create your own martial path?"
"Huff… huff…" Lian breathed heavily.
"I really thought I had him there. Combining the Yin–Yang technique with the Palm Pressure art from Shaolin… I thought that would finish him."
His gaze drifted toward the entity as his vision slowly adjusted.
"Mmm… I do know him. What is this feeling…?"
"Ha! Little dragon, tell me, is that truly the path you will take?" the voice boomed as the entity rushed forward.
Cling!!!
Lian's palm collided against the blade, Qi grinding against steel.
"Oh, shut up!" Lian snapped.
"I don't know, and I don't care about this 'path' you keep talking about. All I know is that I want to wipe that smug look off your face. I'll show you something you haven't seen before."
The grey entity suddenly pulled back, drifting away from Lian instead of pressing the attack.
"What…? He's really doing it?" the entity muttered to himself.
"I thought his strength only came from the other piece of the lotus… but it seems he's more talented than I thought."
He raised Guǐ Shā Shǒu into the air. The blade shrank slightly and began to whistle through the air, vibrating with power.
"Hahaha… you're excited too, aren't you, Guǐ Shā Shǒu? To see what your master is about to do?" the grey entity laughed.
"How about you show him as well… what you look like when properly unsealed?"
The entity's voice dropped to a whisper.
"Seal drop. Shine and light the skies, Guǐ Shā Shǒu."
The air grew heavy.
Doom!