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--- Chapter 161 ---

After bantering back and forth for a few minutes, Qian Renxue huffed and told Han Yuan to follow her. Then, they moved to a flatter part of the area encircled by some trees and rocks with a decent lake view.

Han Yuan glanced around casually, sensing Qian Renxue's bodyguards in the shadows, but didn't bother to expose them.

Qian Renxue hummed joyfully as she jumped onto a rock and pulled a two and a half meter long spear made of refined metal, and then threw it at Han Yuan.

"Really? Throwing a spear at your teacher?" Han Yuan raised his eyebrow and caught the spear casually, letting the chilly metal rod slip between his fingers before grasping the base.

Qian Renxue watched how easily Han Yuan wielded the metal spear as if it were nothing. 'He didn't lie when he said his favorite weapon of choice is a spear, huh?'

Without further ado, Qian Renxue also pulled a refined iron sword from her storage device and lunged toward Han Yuan.

Clank!

Han Yuan casually parried Qian Renxue's sword strike and then kicked her with his left leg.

Qian Renxue was caught off guard, dodging the kick only to get greeted by a spear to the face.

"What!" Qian Renxue shouted in disbelief.

She just wanted to test Han Yuan, but didn't expect the counterattack to be so fast.

Qian Renxue stepped back and narrowly dodged the spear. Her steps are quite skillful and carry a mystery of flickering light.

"Heh, all that, and you're running away so quickly." Han Yuan commented playfully.

Qian Renxue blushed slightly and retorted, "What do you know. I-I'm just unprepared! Yes, that's right! I'm unprepared, I can defeat you with my swordsmanship easily!"

Han Yuan smiled faintly, "Is that so? Why don't we compare our mastery in Heavenly Judgement then?"

Qian Renxue narrowed her eyes unkindly, "Hmph, are you underestimating me? You just obtained the secret art last night, so how can you compare to me, who trained it for years? You're asking for a beating!"

Although Qian Renxue admitted that Han Yuan's cultivation talent is a bit better than hers, that doesn't mean his understanding is better! According to her grandfather, her talent in learning the Heavenly Judgement is even better than that of her ancestors.

She already mastered the Heavenly Sword Judgement to an expert level after learning it for less than a decade.

"Why don't we try?" Han Yuan kept smiling at her.

"Hmph, let me wipe that smile off your face then!" Qian Renxue entered a tight stance, holding her sword before her chest. A faint holy light burst from her four limbs before travelling to her abdomen and back to her arms.

Swoosh!

Qian Renxue burst out as she slashed her sword toward Han Yuan with extreme speed and precision.

"Not bad." Han Yuan didn't use his spirit energy and clashed with Qian Renxue's sword with pure spearmanship, causing her expression to darken as she snorted and increased her pace.

Clank! Clank! Clank!

Han Yuan parried Qian Renxue's sword perfectly, causing a metal clashing metal sound to echo in the forest continuously. The air trembled slightly due to their exchange.

Even the surrounding trees' leaves quivered left and right.

Ci Xue (Porcupinefish Douluo) clicked his tongue in amazement, "This kid is keeping up with the young lady's swordsmanship? His spearmanship is no less than hers."

"Hey, Snake Lance, do you know exactly how high this kid's attainment is?"

She Long (Snake Lance Douluo) frowned slightly because he couldn't see the depth of Han Yuan's mastery. "He's definitely an expert, and can put many spirit masters with a "spear" martial soul to shame."

"However, something about his state is weird."

"Don't you see there is no aura (energy) fluctuation around him? It's too stable."

"As you know, swordsmasters and spearmasters often possess a unique aura around them."

"Even that sword guy from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan always carried a 'sharp' aura around him."

Ci Xue stared at Han Yuan and frowned slightly, noticing the boy's aura was calm. In fact, it was so serene that he seemed to merge with the surrounding nature.

She Long suddenly snapped his fingers, "Ah, I got it!"

"Damn, this kid is a monster! He's actually reached that miraculous state of heaven and earth unity!"

Ci Xue tilted his head, "Heaven and Earth's Unity?"

She Long nodded and sighed, "Heaven and Earth's Unity is a unique state that many would envy to experience once. Although it is possible to train to reach such a state, one must have a very, very, lucky chance."

"In this state, spirit masters become one with heaven and earth, even capable of drawing power from nature itself to enhance their attack and skills."

"The more in-tune one is with nature, the stronger the enhancement becomes."

"At the moment, the young lady will continuously consume her energy and struggle while that boy casually deflects her attacks without breaking a sweat." She Long lamented helplessly.

While Qian Renxue's attainment in Heavenly Sword Judgement is strong, and she also received direct teaching from her grandfather, facing Han Yuan, who self-created his moves, is as tough as rowing against the current.

Something about Han Yuan's spearmanship style is not only domineering but also pulls his opponent into a trap that puts them in danger.

As a genius herself, Qian Renxue realized this, but it was too late. Han Yuan's spear danced in the air as a fierce white light broke through the holy light edge around her sword.

Bang!

Qian Renxue was stunned. She hurriedly entered a defensive stance as Han Yuan's spear strikes rapidly pushed her back, leaving her no room to fight back.

"T-This is the Heavenly Spear Judgement..." Qian Renxue recognized the aggressiveness of Han Yuan's spearplay instantly. Yet, this feistiness actually restrained her.

She felt the Heavenly Sword Judgement, which focused on restraining the enemy, felt like a joke now.

Not to mention, she was shocked that Han Yuan could display so much of the Heavenly Spear Judgement despite only obtaining it from her last night.

'Is this the gap between him and me?' Qian Renxue bit her lips unwillingly.

Suddenly, the refined iron sword in Qian Renxue's hand shattered into pieces, and a spear was just a centimeter away from her neck.

The spear's tip glowed with a cold light, causing Qian Renxue to freeze stiffly.

"It seemed this was my victory." Han Yuan said teasingly.

Qian Renxue blushed hard, "T-This doesn't count!"

"Let's fight again! For real, this time!"

"Heh, excuse..." Han Yuan mumbled audibly, making the angel girl blush even more.

Even then, Qian Renxue didn't back down. Her pride didn't allow her to be inferior to others, even knowing that Han Yuan is many times better than her, whether it was in cultivation or weapon mastery.

Was it shameful not to admit defeat?

Of course!

However, Qian Renxue couldn't help it.

If she wanted to tame Han Yuan, she had to be strong, though it was just a pipe dream.

What Qian Renxue didn't know was that her stubborn personality would lead her to develop quite a "unique" quirk.

Probably, like a certain female crusader called D.

Of course, that'd be far into the future.

Thus, another ass-whooping, I mean, sparring session started.

...

Not far away from Han Yuan and Qian Renxue, beneath the lake. A pair of eyes opened, revealing a silverish-red slit.

"This presence..." A hoarse voice echoed in the abyss-like realm.

"THUNDER GOD!"

A roar filled with anger shook the realm.

Roar!

A massive, white serpentine body swam in the darkness and unhurriedly rose to the surface.

However, due to the lake's uniqueness, no one detected this fearsome beast coming to the outside world.