Chapter 144: The Reincarnation of the Four Seasons and the Shifting of Temporal Sequences

"This..."

On the elevated platform, Li Shaoyun abruptly stood up, his gaze flickering with uncertainty and bewilderment.

Earlier, when he had forced Xiao Nan into a fight to the death, he had spoken with arrogant bravado, leaving himself no room to retreat. Yet at this moment, a creeping sense of foreboding washed over him.

That mountain landscape projection—others might not recognize it...

Having traveled widely and befriended many over the years, he was a man of broad horizons, and he had indeed heard of it.

"Could it actually be the True Intent of the Four Seasons? Where on earth did he learn the Four Seasons Sword Technique? And to have mastered it to such a profound level—surely even Jiang Yu, the master of the Lijiang Sword Pavilion, falls short of this."

With such mastery over swordsmanship, could he possibly be defeated?

Li Shaoyun, who had been utterly certain of victory just moments ago, now began to waver.

Su Yuqing, however, burst into loud laughter, utterly unconcerned with ladylike decorum.

Refusing to sit back down, she pointed at the raised platform and laughed at Tan Qiuyi, "Look at our little Nan... What did I tell you? He wouldn't have dared to step onto the arena and accept a death match unless he had a few tricks up his sleeve. Not long ago, I thought it was strange when he went to the Four Seasons Sword Pavilion to practice swordsmanship, wondering why on earth he fancied such a soft, sissy style of swordplay. Who would have thought..."

Staring unblinkingly at the stage, she chattered away like a string of firecrackers, clearly releasing the intense anxiety she had held inside, her reaction bordering on manic.

Her demeanor and expression caused Qin Feng to roll her eyes involuntarily from the sidelines. Anyone who didn't know better would have thought Xiao Nan was her own biological son.

Just as a flash of pleasant surprise crossed Tan Qiuyi's eyes, the situation on the stage shifted once more.

A clear whistle rang out, and amidst the shimmering illusionary phantoms, a sword tip roared forth with a piercing thrust.

"Whoosh..."

A sword strike flashed like thunder and lightning, appearing seemingly out of nothingness as it lunged forward.

With a low, metallic chime of "clang," a spray of sparks erupted from Li Shaohua's chest... Where his clothes were torn, a flash of jade-gold glazed radiance could be faintly seen.

He let out a muffled grunt, forced back seven or eight steps by the sheer impact of the sword. He looked down with a cautious gaze, only to suddenly burst into loud laughter.

"You can't even scratch my skin, so what gives you the right to duel me?"

Before his laughter could fade, Li Shaohua's expression turned even more ferocious. His sword momentum transformed into a golden wheel of light, slashing forward like a raging tidal wave.

This time, he couldn't be bothered with proper techniques or artistic intent; he stopped blocking or parrying, resorting purely to a relentless, brute-force assault.

The golden-jade radiance emanated from his skin, casting an imposing, murderous aura over his entire frame.

Relying on physical strength, speed, and defense that far surpassed his opponent's, Li Shaohua finally chose the most infallible tactic.

That was to crush finesse with raw power.

You can stab me with one or two swords, and I can take it; the moment I land a single strike on you, I will cleave you in two... Let's see who comes out worse!

"Hmph!"

"And here I thought this fellow was going to pull out some miraculous secret technique. In the end, it's no different from the way we brawl—just a stubborn, ox-headed charge."

"He has no choice but to brute-force it; you saw Xiao Nan's sword skills just now. Who knows what kind of trick that illusionary phantom is, but the sword light was completely impossible to track. Truly terrifying."

"Terrifying or not, it's useless if it can't harm the opponent and his strength falls short. No matter how clever his swordsmanship is, once his mental energy is over-consumed, he'll lose the initiative again and his defeat will be sealed."

Someone sighed nearby.

Among the spectators from all walks of life, there was no shortage of officially ranked martial artists. Their discussion hit the nail right on the head.

It left Zhang Xiaorou on edge, her heart pounding nervously without a moment of peace.

Not just her, but the other young girls beside her had entirely forgotten their duties as cheerleaders. From the moment the two clashed on stage until now, they hadn't even shouted a single word of encouragement.

...

Xiao Nan's sword attacks had yielded no results, and instead, he had been slashed several times in return. Parrying frantically, he retreated step by step with every blocked strike until he was forced to the very edge of the fighting platform, his arms and wrists growing numb.

A few streaks of blood began to seep through the front of his tunic, the vivid crimson staining his clothes in a shocking display.

These were the lingering shockwaves of the Dragon-Slaying Sword's momentum that he hadn't fully deflected, piercing through the defense of his sword technique.

While attacking the opponent, getting attacked in return was an inevitability difficult to avoid.

A few muffled gasps escaped the surrounding crowd. Recognizing them as belonging to his close family and friends, Xiao Nan knew they were worried.

Yet even as he fell back into a disadvantageous position, his heart grew increasingly steady, and a cold sneer curved the corners of his lips. "If brute force alone were enough to win, why on earth would I bother learning swordsmanship?"

Confident that he had seen through all of Li Shaohua's trump cards and located his opponent's weakness, his sword momentum shifted once more.

"Order and Rotation."

Silently operating the True Intent of the Four Seasons Reincarnation, the blade in his hand followed a peculiar trajectory, tracing a series of exquisite arcs.

The sword moved with his mind, and his body turned with his footwork.

Seeing Li Shaohua's sword hack toward his chest, Xiao Nan merely shifted his torso to the side, stepped forward once more, and in a flash, tapped his blade precisely against the opponent's right shoulder well.

Struck by the sword, Li Shaohua was not alarmed; instead, he was delighted.

Every moment like this was his opportunity.

Forcibly halting his momentum as he was about to be knocked back, he channeled his strength to charge forward. The broadsword in his hand swept back with borrowed force, tearing through the air with a deafening roar.

Yet before the sword momentum had even completed its arc, his charging posture jerked to a sudden halt... From the exact same angle and the exact same spot, his shoulder well acupoint was struck by a sword once more.

This time, no matter how much pain he could endure or how formidable his defense was, he couldn't quite hold on.

The force of the two strikes overlapped—the previous momentum had not yet faded when the next arrived.

Not only was he unable to complete his charge, but the Dragon-Slaying Sword swinging in his hand also froze mid-motion.

"Why is this happening?" Li Shaohua's mind spun in chaos. Before he could figure out what was going on, a third sword carved a bizarre arc from his left, piercing right into his right shoulder.

A fierce, overpowering force drove his body into a slanted stumble backwards, and it took a desperate effort for him to plant his feet and steady his stance.

Feeling shadows flicker before his eyes, another sword tip surged toward him like a streak of dazzling light, rushing into his field of vision.

By this time, his shoulder throbbed with pain, and his right arm felt so sore and weak that he couldn't even lift it.

"Squish..."

A muffled sound echoed.

The blinding sword light flashed and vanished, a streak of blood trailing through the air.

Li Shaohua let out a pained cry, staggering backward.

Sensing the bone-chilling murderous intent closing in from the front, and catching a glimpse of another silver gleam piercing directly toward his throat out of the corner of his eye, he cast all dignity aside and scrambled to evade in panic.

He had no choice but to retreat.

Taking four sword strikes to the shoulder was tolerable, but if his throat were pierced, no matter how strong his golden-jade body was, there would be no saving his life.

"What kind of sword technique is this?"

Li Shaohua felt completely powerless and stifled with frustration; the Dragon-Slaying Sword in his hand had essentially become an ornament.

Clearly, his strength, speed, and defense were all superior, so how had he unknowingly been beaten into this wretched state?

...

"What kind of sword technique is this?" Qin Feng's eyes sparkled with brilliant light.

She realized she had severely underestimated Xiao Nan. His dazzling performance far exceeded her expectations.

The confidence she had in him earlier wasn't based on anything substantial other than seeing the flawless, jade-like luster of his skin, which told her he had already broken through to the first rank.

Coupled with their resonant auras—standing close with her arms crossed, she could sense the vast and agile nature of Xiao Nan's spiritual energy, allowing her to deduce that he had broken through to the embryonic breathing stage, which gave her the peace of mind to watch quietly.

Never did she expect the situation to develop so unpredictably, bringing one pleasant surprise after another.

She could no longer fully comprehend the sword technique Xiao Nan was deploying.

Of course she couldn't understand it.

In fact, none of the people present, including Su Yuqing and Li Yuanchen, truly comprehended this style of swordsmanship.

They were merely reminded of a certain legend.

It was said that when Jiang Hongbo, the Four Seasons Swordsman, engaged in sword duels back in the day, he never suffered a single defeat. From the southern banks of the Yangtze to the northern plains, the western deserts to the eastern seas, with a single sword in hand, he swept through them all.

When it came to finesse in swordsmanship, he had no peer in his era.

Because his sword always seemed to strike precisely at the opponent's weak points.

Even when inferior in raw power, he could frequently overcome the stronger opponent and seize the initiative at every turn.

With the downfall of the Four Seasons Sword in the desolate wastes, this legend had long since faded into dusty tomes and been forgotten by the world.

Yet, there remained a select few who remembered the various miracles created by that lone man and his sword.

The swordsmanship displayed by the young man before them—where every single move calculated steps ahead with immaculate precision—wasn't that precisely the same thing?

The so-called fierce and overbearing nature of the Li family's Dragon-Slaying Sword appeared entirely like a clumsy child waving a stick in front of this sword art, rendering it completely useless.

"Four Seasons Reincarnation, temporal shifting." Li Yuanchen gritted his teeth; he could no longer remain seated.

For the first time, he began to worry whether Li Shaohua would actually win, or worse, die?

Word had it that this sword stroke was comprehended from a shred of time rules within the Four Seasons Reincarnation, allowing the wielder to preemptively predict the opponent's attack patterns and timing.

Before the opponent even struck, the wielder would already have claimed the optimal position and laid an ambush in advance, forcing the enemy to defend what they must, thereby subduing them invisibly.

How could anyone break such a technique?

Li Shaohua had no intention of breaking it, nor could he.

Two sword strikes had already pierced his throat, and he could see the third following like a shadow, faster than his own retreating footsteps.

He could clearly sense that his golden-jade body was far from sufficient to withstand the onslaught of this next strike, and his eyes instantly turned blood-red.

He fancied he saw his father roaring as he charged forward to rescue him, and Su Yuqing laughing heartily as she intercepted him.

His eldest brother, Li Shaoyun, wanted to rush forward, but Zhang Yi silently blocked his path.

In his ears, he heard someone shouting: "In a duel sealed by a death pact, no one is permitted to interfere..."

A death pact?

Despair and regret welled up inside Li Shaohua. Why on earth did I force him to sign a death pact? Otherwise, even if I lost, I wouldn't have to die on the spot...

"No, I have practiced the Primordial Spirit Visualization Method; I still have a glimmer of survival. I must kill that brat Xiao Nan, and Qin Feng as well..."

A fierce, baleful aura erupted, and as the obsessive intent took root in his heart, he abandoned all thoughts of defense.

Blood-red radiance instantly flooded his vision, and Li Shaohua let out a wild roar that sounded entirely inhuman.

A series of loud cracking noises echoed from his bones as reversed bone spurs sprouted outward. A towering column of blood-colored flame surged three feet into the air.

The bloody holes in his shoulder sprouted granulation tissue, growing at a frenzied pace.

The Dragon-Slaying Sword in his hand suddenly leaped up and slashed downward...

His injuries healed, his physique transformed dramatically, red light shielded his body, and the blood-red glare in his eyes resembled drawn swords.

"This—this is a beast-god cultivation technique, and he's even awakened battle qi! Furthermore, he has completely lost control!"

"As a scion of the prestigious Dragon-Slaying Sword Li family, he is actually practicing demonic arts? Preposterous!"

"Xiao Nan, be careful! Run..."

Sensing the tyrannical and violent aura emitting from the elevated platform, Su Yuqing, Sun Zhongli, Zhang Yi, and the others underwent drastic changes in expression, no longer caring about blocking the Li family father and sons.

The sudden turn of events caught everyone unawares.

This time, even Li Yuanchen and Li Shaoyun were shocked beyond measure, standing frozen in place.

They no longer attempted to rescue Li Shaohua; in truth, there was no need for them to save him anymore.

As Li Shaohua's physique underwent its monstrous transformation, a bone-chilling, ruthless intent manifested over the platform, locking down a radius of five paces.

Xiao Nan, charging forward with his sword raised, halted midway.

He was like an insect trapped inside a piece of amber, utterly unable to move.

Blood-light stretched across the air like a silken ribbon...

***

I originally wanted to finish writing this battle in this chapter, but the word count ended up going way over and I still couldn't wrap it up. Today I have to accompany my mom to the hospital for a follow-up checkup, and there might be prescriptions or hospitalization to deal with, so I'll be busier than a dog. I can only continue tomorrow.

I really didn't mean to end on a cliffhanger, please don't hit me...