Chapter 38 Training Within The Tournament

Xiu Ying went into a daze a little. This feeling that came from Liang Chen was very familiar. It was always like this. Whenever she has a problem, Liang Chen would always notice it and give her this comfort and encouragement. Xiu Ying blushed and although she always hated Liang Chen for treating her like a kid, she didn't mind at this moment. Yu Yin on the other hand just watched the both of them silently.

As expected, Chen Wei won his match. When the jade cards lit up, Liang Chen and Xiu Ying both entered the stage. Cheers erupted and more so from the east outer sect peak disciples. When Liang Chen and Xiu Ying are at a matched distance, both of them stared at each other. While Liang Chen was calm, it was the opposite for Xiu Ying. She was excited yet nervous at the same time. As Xiu Ying was fidgeting a bit, Liang Chen went to a Slope Stance. Xiu Ying has seen Liang Chen's fighting stances before but this was the 1st time she had seen him do this stance. She studied Liang Chen's matches till now and most of them are close-combat variations. Aside from using array formations, she thought that keeping a distance from him and doing hit-and-run tactics may give her an advantage. However, she didn't know what this stance does. Xiu Ying was pondering if this stance is counter to her moves. Xiu Ying was not wrong as this stance was intended as a counter. Just like Xiu Ying, Liang Chen also knows of her moves and strength. By showing a new stance, Liang Chen wants Xiu Ying to know that he has more moves he hasn't shown and he wants to know what she would do.

While Xiu Ying was contemplating what to do, the elder started the match. She was startled a bit but then noticed that Liang Chen has a calm face and did not charge over as he always did. Xiu Ying caught sight of this. Was Chen'er Underestimating me? She readies herself, took out Primal Spring, and set up an attack. Liang Chen wasn't underestimating Xiu Ying but he wanted her to show him something more. Something she would do in this kind of situation where an opponent was aware of all of her moves. Xiu Ying started to dash forward, circling him. At the 3rd dash, instead of moving in circles, she charged toward Liang Chen with her sword pointed at him. However, before it hits him within a meter, Xiu Ying dashed away. She plans to throw faints however Liang Chen didn't even move. Although his eyes were always on her, thanks to Thought Acceleration, Liang Chen would know if it was a faint or a real attack within a split second. Xiu Ying saw that he didn't even flinch at her faint so she kept encircling him and throwing a faint or two.

"What is she doing?" One of the east outer sect disciples asked.

"She is testing the waters. It is a good tactic but unless she actually succeeds, it would be for naught." Master Wu responded back.

Xiu Ying saw that of all the faints she threw, Liang Chen didn't move at all. As if he knew that Xiu Ying was throwing a faint at him in the beginning. She decided to throw a real attack this time and charged from behind. When her attack was about to connect, Liang Chen stepped backward and went inside. Xiu Ying noticed this too late as Liang Chen swung his arms upwards, grabbed her forward arm, and threw her to the ground on her back. Xiu Ying couldn't get up immediately as she felt pain and wasn't able to breathe for a few seconds. Liang Chen walked a few steps away and then turned around while Xiu Ying slowly gets up and looked at him.

Liang Chen positioned himself in the Slop Stance again. "Ying'er, that was good but you have to do better. You needed to come up with something new in order to get me."

Xiu Ying immediately knew and appreciated what Liang Chen was doing. Once she was ready, she started to encircle him and threw faints once again. But Whenever she attacks at any angle, Liang Chen would find a counter and throw her to the ground. This has been going on a few times now and the time surpassed the longest match in the tournament.

"Was Liang Chen going easy on her? He could have followed up and defeated her multiple times now." "I guess some of the rumors were true and seems that Liang Chen wanted Fairy Xiu to surrender herself instead of being beaten..." What rumors?" "That Xiu Ying was Liang Chen's woman." "WHAT! Fairy Xiu was already taken? How?! I'm better looking than him and my cultivation is higher!" "Well, they grew up in the same village before coming here." "That lucky bastard! I wish I was Fairy Xiu's childhood friend instead."

Discussions were all going on within the crowd and most of them concluded that Liang Chen was going easy with Xiu Ying. However, what they didn't know was that Xiu Ying already understood that she can't win against Liang Chen and he was trying to train her using this match. If you want to be with me, then you need to prove your strength. Although this was not what Liang Chen said, to her, Xiu Ying believes it was close to that. Liang Chen was getting stronger day by day and if she doesn't do something, he will leave her to dust like a Nissan Skyline against an old Toyota Corolla.

With all the running around and faints she has been throwing at Liang Chem, Xiu Ying was also thinking of what to do. Liang Chen hasn't said anything to her after that. He wanted her to figure something out by herself, it wouldn't make her a true expert if he spoonfeed her every single time. Xiu Ying suddenly thought of Liang Chen's applications of array formation. Can I also do that? Although Xiu Ying was not fundamentally a Formation Master, Liang Chen taught her the basics of his array formation formula and hand signs. Liang Chen's basic teachings can also be applied to everything and not just array formations. It was something that can be implemented in any cultivation system. She began working on it and while her free hand was hidden from Liang Chen's sight, she formed hand signs. Immediately water emerged around Liang Chen, surrounding him like a pillar of water, him on the inside. Xiu Ying jumped into the air just above the pillar of water where she can see Liang Chen. She dove downwards pointing her sword at him.

"Cloud Piercing Art, Cumulus Charge!" Xiu Ying yelled.

Thanks to Liang Chen eagerly nudging her to try something new, she thought on the spot to use her water power as a trap, isolating his escape route and using Cumulus Charge in the air as a linear attack in a space he could only move, blocking it. When Liang Chen saw this, he smiled a bit. He stepped aside a little and before Xiu Ying's attack connected, he set down to a drop stance evading her charge then immediately threw a double Wu Jin Ji Palm at her torso, like a mouse trap snapping its prey or a large jaw biting at a small animal. The water pillar dissipates and Xiu Ying was thrown to the side.

"Ying'er, give me EVERYTHING you've got." Liang Chen switched to the Spear Stance with a serious expression.

Although Liang Chen was already satisfied he wanted to see more from Xiu Ying. Liang Chen wanted her to not just fly around but he wanted her to soar in the sky instead. Xiu Ying heard him and when she saw his face, she knew that this will be their last exchange to conclude the match. But what can she do? She thought for a moment about the word EVERYTHING that he spoke of. What move can I put everything into? What does she know and have? After a while, she thought of the basics Liang Chen taught her. She also got into a Spear Stance with Primal Spring ready to impale someone. With the Cloud Piercing Sword Technique, she will use the Cloud Piercing Art, Cumulus Charge. With the Iron Body Refinement Technique, she will pour every bit of strength into her strike. With the Water Dragon Technique, she will use the power of water to reinforce her sword. Xiu Ying's aura suddenly skyrocketed in an instant like when Mario ate a mushroom. Liang Chen burst out his own aura as well. This surprised everyone since they thought that only Liang Chen can do something as illogical as generating an aura that surpasses someone's cultivation level.

"It seems my theory is more likely correct that those two may have had the same master before." Said the Sect Master while twirling his beard.