Please Teach Me How To Fight!

"As the judge presiding over this duel, I hereby declare that the victor is Zhao Yunxiao!" Hua Sheng announced.

With that, the silence shrouding over Snow Moon Arena was dispelled in an instant as the crowd immediately broke out into separate discussions, all of which amalgamating to an almost thunderous level of noise.

That talentless Zhao Yunxiao actually managed to beat Gan Luozhi?

Despite a two boundary disadvantage in cultivation level?

Despite giving himself a handicap of not using his main weapon?

This was a huge upset!

Of course, there were still some people who were unhappy about Zhao Yunxiao's victory. But with Hua Sheng personally announcing the result, who dared to breathe a word of grievance?

Those who were more result-focused started marvelling at Zhao Yunxiao's individual use of a battle formation, thinking of practising how to do the same themselves.

At the same time, those with more analytical minds were thinking back to how the fight had progressed, closely scrutinising the flow of events.

It would appear that right from the very start, Gan Luozhi had not landed a single hit on Zhao Yunxiao?

Prior to today, everyone thought lightly of Zhao Yunxiao's chances at victory. After all, a single clean strike from Gan Luozhi was probably all it would take to mark the end of the duel.

Yet not only did Gan Luozhi fail to do so, but the actual result was also the complete reverse of that – Zhao Yunxiao effectively took him down in one go by gambling on a single big move.

Considering how Gan Luozhi possessed both a superior cultivation level and the Wind Immortal's Nine Directional Sword, could that really be a coincidence?

Or could it be that Zhao Yunxiao had completely read him like a book, making all the right moves in response to Gan Luozhi?

Regardless, this was something that they would definitely have to be mindful of in the future.

"Senior Martial Brother Zhao actually won..." Huang An felt all tension leave her body, and her knees immediately gave way, but she was quickly supported by Gu Qiansi.

"Didn't he say to trust him? Why are you acting so surprised?" Gu Qiansi said with a smile. At the same time, she tried her best to suppress the immense sense of relief in her heart.

In contrast, Lu Zhiying merely continued watching Zhao Yunxiao in silence, while Nie Hanchang let out a meaningful smile before leaving the Snow Moon Arena.

Back on the stage, Gan Luozhi was finally allowed to breathe easy as the Terra Seal Formation came to an end.

But before he could say a thing, his eyes widened in surprise as the five Zhao Yunxiaos crumbled to the ground. Not only him, but the majority of those in the crowd went speechless as well.

In the end, all five of them were clones!

This meant that even if Gan Luozhi had managed to muster enough strength at the end to rush at them and take them down, he still would not have caught Zhao Yunxiao's true body!

Should that have happened, who knew what kind of response would be waiting for Gan Luozhi then?

In the end, just how many steps ahead had this Zhao Yunxiao prepared for?

The surface of the ground broke open as the real Zhao Yunxiao slowly climbed up. His face was pale and his body was covered in sweat. It was clear that he had overexerted himself a little.

However, what most people saw was nothing but the glory of victory emanating from him.

After seeing that Gan Luozhi was fine, Hua Sheng slowly walked over to Zhao Yunxiao.

"Congratulations, Junior Martial Brother Zhao. Here are the talismans that you have earned with this victory," Hua Sheng handed the two spatial escape talismans over to Zhao Yunxiao. "Well done."

"Thank you, Senior Martial Brother Hua," Zhao Yunxiao received the talismans with trembling hands. "My apologies for what happened at the end."

He had directly made use of Hua Sheng to end the duel, and there was no way that Hua Sheng did not know that.

Therefore, even if the latter was going to bear a grudge against him for the matter, Zhao Yunxiao still thought that it would be best for him to apologise first.

"It is not your fault. If anything, Junior Martial Brother Gan is to be blamed for stubbornly refusing to surrender," Hua Sheng shook his head. "That said, have you already broken through to the Advanced Essence Gathering realm?"

"Senior Martial Brother Hua is truly wise and resourceful. It is impossible to hide anything from you," Zhao Yunxiao took this chance to throw in some praises. "I have indeed broken through to the Advanced Essence Gathering realm."

"I see. Congratulations on that as well. I know how hard you have been working, so it is good to see that your efforts are being rewarded," Hua Sheng nodded. "However, there is something that I have to say regarding your methods, and it is not going to sound good."

"Please feel free to give me your guidance, Senior Martial Brother Hua," Zhao Yunxiao replied.

"You are a smart boy, so I believe you understand just how risky this was. Your reckless gamble might have paid off this time, but I hope you won't do something as risky in the future. Most of the time, a safe escape is a better choice than a reckless victory," Hua Sheng advised.

"I understand, Senior Martial Brother Hua," Zhao Yunxiao nodded.

"It is good that you understand. Now then, the mental strain from what you did must be enormous, so hurry back and get some rest," Hua Sheng said with a sigh.

"I will get going then," Zhao Yunxiao turned to clasp his fists towards Gan Luozhi. "I got lucky today. Thank you for the pointers, Senior Martial Brother Gan."

These were mere pleasantries, and nobody present would believe that Zhao Yunxiao truly thought this way.

However, it still had to be said as long as Zhao Yunxiao wanted to leave any opportunities for reconciliation in the future.

After all, no matter what happened between them, they were still members of the same sect. There was always the possibility of them having to work together in the future.

"Thank you for the pointers..." Gan Luozhi reluctantly replied, his breaths still yet to return to a regular pace.

With that, Zhao Yunxiao slowly made his way down the stage while ignoring Gan Luozhi's spiteful glare.

The crowd parted immediately, opening a wide path for him to go through. At the same time, those in the crowd watched him with a mixture of emotions.

Joy, anger, bitterness, excitement, admiration, relief, awe... these were just some of the emotions going through these individuals' minds at this moment.

Zhao Yunxiao ignored all of that.

At the same time, he was not too surprised by the fact that Hua Sheng had figured out that he had broken through to the Advanced Essence Gathering realm.

After all, the techniques he employed were all common techniques that everyone knew about. Anyone with a keen sense of observation would have noticed that his total energy expenditure easily exceeded the capacity of most Intermediate Essence Gathering realm cultivators.

Had he not broken through to the Advanced Essence Gathering realm, it would have been literally impossible for him to summon that many clones, and even have them execute the Terra Seal Formation.

However, there was something that Hua Sheng had been mistaken about.

For Zhao Yunxiao, the risks involved in having his clones execute the Terra Seal Formation were actually not as large as Hua Sheng had imagined. Otherwise, someone as risk-averse as him would never have gone for it.

The main downsides to doing so were the mental strain involved and the fragility of the clones, both of which could potentially lead to a premature termination of the technique and, in turn, an energy backlash.

But what Hua Sheng did not know was that this mental strain was not nearly at the level where it could tickle Zhao Yunxiao's mental fortitude!

Zhao Yunxiao had always been confident in two main aspects – physical and mental fortitude. That was because they were just about the only traits that had nothing to do with talent, and could only be improved through arduous training.

As if that was not enough, he had further refined his mental fortitude by playing on the Benevolent Wave Chessboard with Cha back at the Origin Lake Sect.

Through this experience of virtually living for thousands of years and dying dozens of times, Zhao Yunxiao's mental fortitude had already reached a level far beyond his realm!

But that alone was not enough to eliminate the risks. After all, there still remained a risk of energy backlash in the event that Gan Luozhi disrupted his clones.

Therefore, Zhao Yunxiao had only decided to do this after careful analysis of Gan Luozhi.

Gan Luozhi's basic traits, his combat style, the techniques and equipment in his arsenal, his personality, his attitude towards this duel, the material and state of the duel platform, the weather, the season, the atmosphere of the event...

By comparing it closely to himself and running countless battle simulations in his head, Zhao Yunxiao finally came to the conclusion that this would most likely work.

At the same time, Zhao Yunxiao understood that there was no such thing as a perfect plan, and thus had no intention of putting all his eggs in this basket.

He had been watching Gan Luozhi closely from the start.

Had Gan Luozhi managed to overcome the Terra Seal Formation, he would have immediately cancelled the technique so that he would not receive any energy backlash. It would have been an immense waste of energy, but at the very least he would not straight up lose the fight at that point.

Zhao Yunxiao let out a helpless sigh as he revisited his earlier train of thoughts while walking away from the stage.

It might have worked this time, but the next time would surely be different.

Now that he had revealed this move, Gan Luozhi, as well as all of those present who had witnessed this duel, would be wary of it when facing Zhao Yunxiao in the future, so he would effectively have one less trick up his sleeves.

It was unfortunate, but Zhao Yunxiao did not regret doing so.

After all, securing the victory was still the priority!

And it was not as though he would often have the need to fight his fellow sect members anyway.

"Let me take a look at you, Senior Martial Brother Zhao!" Huang An arrived before him at this point, having hurried over the moment he left the stage.

"Don't worry, I am fine," Zhao Yunxiao shook his head with a smile, patted Huang An on the head, then continued on his way.

The truth was that he was not fine at all.

However, he refused to show any signs of weakness here in front of everyone. Otherwise, the impact of the intended message that he wanted to send would be greatly diminished.

Huang An quickly hurried after him as he led the way out. As he passed, Gu Qiansi and Lu Zhiying smoothly joined the group and left.

Back on the stage, Gan Luozhi limped over to Hua Sheng's side with his head hung low and blood still flowing down his thigh.

"I'm sorry, Senior Martial Brother Hua. I've let down your expectations."

"You don't have to be sorry. Wins and losses are natural on the arduous path of cultivation. The most important thing is to take this as a learning experience and find a way to improve yourself."

"I understand. Thank you for the guidance, Senior Martial Brother Hua."

"Mm," Hua Sheng nodded in approval. But at the same time, he could not help but keep his gaze locked on the group of four who were currently making their way out of the Snow Moon Arena.

What an interesting bunch.

***

"What do you mean you didn't suffer any injuries? You are hurt everywhere!" Huang An exclaimed in shock.

After leaving Snow Moon Arena, the group had headed straight for the Lightwind Pavilion where Huang An seated Zhao Yunxiao down for a good examination.

During this time, Bo Fei came over to join them as well. Nobody had told him anything, but it was not difficult for him to guess that the group would be here.

"Ah, that's different. Those are from my mission earlier," Zhao Yunxiao explained. "I am feeling a lot better now after replenishing my essence energy."

Gu Qiansi narrowed her eyes at him, but chose not to say anything at this point.

"You fought Senior Martial Brother Gan despite such injuries?!" Huang An felt tears welling up in her eyes. "I am so sorry for causing trouble, Senior Martial Brother Zhao."

"What are you sorry for? This is what companions do for each other," Zhao Yunxiao shrugged. "If you are truly feeling bad about it, perhaps you can waive all my medical expenses in the future?"

"Tha-"

"Don't use this excuse to take advantage of Junior Martial Sister Huang!" Gu Qiansi chided before Huang An could agree. "It is one thing for her to do it for you willingly, but don't force her to make a promise like that!"

"Fine, fine..."

"But I didn't expect you to fight while bearing prior injuries. Seems like you are finally starting to lose that overly careful mentality of yours," Bo Fei said. "Just don't go too far, or I might have to start thinking of which coffin to buy."

"I will only accept coffins made wholely with spirit stones, but can your poor ass afford any of those?" Zhao Yunxiao replied matter-of-factly.

"Don't say that!" Huang An protested. "Are you sure you are feeling all right?"

"Haha, don't worry, I'm fine," Zhao Yunxiao assured. "You have already done an examination as well, haven't you? I'm sure you can tell that I didn't suffer any grievous internal injuries."

"It would be too late if that were to happen!" Huang An retorted.

"That said, you really need to be careful," Bo Fei stopped joking and spoke seriously. "Senior Martial Brother Gan is not someone who would just take things lying down. For all you know, he might already be thinking about how to take revenge for this in the future."

"Don't worry, Senior Martial Brother Bo. I will be careful," Zhao Yunxiao answered before turning to Lu Zhiying. "You are surprisingly quiet today, Junior Martial Sister Lu."

Lu Zhiying did not avert her gaze, looking Zhao Yunxiao in the eye for a good few seconds before finally speaking.

"Please teach me how to fight, Senior Martial Brother Zhao!"