Child of Destiny

Swoosh!

Shin was slightly taken aback when he saw the sword wave that was released by Dylan. It was completely on a different scale compared to the last time they fought, during the entrance exam.

‘Such an attack is almost comparable to the Sword Qi Release of Swordmasters. What’s more, his precision is also not that bad,’ he thought to himself after seeing the incoming sword wave that was covering almost every escape route that he could possibly take.

On top of that, that sword wave was also targeting all of the afterimages that he created to confuse him. And it seemed to be impossible to be avoided.

‘I guess I have no other choice but to face it head-on,’ thought Shin as he immediately halted his charge and crossed his katanas in front of him while amplifying the respective Qi that was covering them.

Not long after that, the two types of Internal Qi spread through his surroundings, forming a dome-like barrier. The alternating black and white color of the barrier had a specific rhythm as if it indicated that Shin had perfect control over the two Qi.

This technique was also one of the skills that Shin had developed after researching the tricks that Professor Plum had thought him to freely manipulate the opposing Qi inside his body. It was yet another skill that he had inside the game that he created in the real world.

‘Yin-Yang Swordsmanship: (Modified) Qi Control: Eclipse Pulse’

Then he watched the incoming sword wave come after him with calm eyes and full of confidence.

Boom!

Then his barrier collided with the sword wave that was sent by his opponent. The barrier shook violently due to the collision, but aside from that and the slight burden that was received during the impact, Shin didn’t encounter any mishaps.

With a huge grin, Shin kicked the ground beneath him and flew out of the could of dust created by the previous explosion, and launched himself towards his opponent.

The previous attack from Dylan was pretty strong and powerful, but Shin was aware that it also consumed a lot of Sword Qi and put a lot of burden on one’s body. After all, mimicking a skill of a Swordmaster was not an easy feat.

After a brief moment, Shin already arrived in front of Dylan, ducking and fully ready to unleash his next attack.

But Shin immediately saw the unyielding will in his opponent’s eyes when he looked straight at them. He could also feel the true will of a swordsman from them.

‘Anything that blocks my path, I will cut them apart.’

‘Whoever tries to stop may track, I will slice them apart.’

‘I will continue moving forward no matter what I face.’

‘If gods try to stop me, then I will slay gods.’

‘If a demon lord tries to block me, then I will destroy them’

Dylan chanted the mantra that his father had thought him since he was young inside his head while starting back at Shin.

‘This guy is really something!’ thought Shin to himself while wearing a satisfied smile before throwing a consecutive slash with his left and right katana.

Those strikes were pretty swift and had precise control, both of them were even targeting the expose vital spots of Dylan because of the awkward posture that he currently had due to his previous attack.

But despite that being the case, the young swordsman remained calm and collected. He read the trajectories of the sword of his opponent for a very brief moment before responding accordingly.

He flipped his sword with a quick flick of his wrist and held it in a reverse manner. He then leaned the surface of his sword against his arm and used it as a support while moving it according to the trajectories of the incoming attacks.

Clang! Clang!

Metal sparks flew in the air as he successfully blocked the two attacks with ease. He then kicked the ground and hopped away from Shin to earn himself enough breathing space while also keeping a close eye on his opponent.

Shin was slightly surprised at what happened since he didn’t expect Dylan was able to read the trajectory of his attacks within a short period of time. And on top of that, he was even able to respond to them accordingly.

‘I guess, this is one of the abilities of a Sword Genius,’ thought Shin before chasing after Dylan.

Path Reading

This was indeed one of the specialties of a Sword Genius.

Since Sword Geniuses had a high comprehension when it came to sword techniques, they were able to see through any kind of skills and techniques related to swords. They might not be able to copy those techniques, but they could easily understand the principle behind them.

Inside their head, they could draw the most ideal posture and movements of their opponents after seeing their sword techniques. They were using these abilities to respond to their opponents and counter them based on their understanding.

And if a Sword Genius honed this skill properly, they could also use it against most types of weapons.

After all, there was a statement that was saying that the sword was the king of all weapons.

And at this point in time, Dylan was currently using this particular ability to the fullest to respond to each of Shin’s attacks.

Clang! Clang!

He might be currently on a passive due to the previous events but he was able to perfectly defend himself against all of the attacks that his opponent was throwing at him.

Not long after, he became accustomed to the rapid attacks of Shin and slowly regained his footing. His stance was also starting to change and steadily hold his ground.

After a few more exchanges, he started throwing a few counters toward Shin which hinder the rhythm of the latter. And that was when he started throwing some sword techniques in the mix and threw the match back into a deadlock.

From the perspective of the spectators of the match, Dylan’s stance was pretty solid. His attacks were strong enough to pose a threat even for Ethereal Opening Stage experts such as Jerimiah and Vincent. His sword techniques were graceful yet also powerful at the same time.

And the base of these techniques was the special stance that he was currently using. It might be the most basic stance in the eyes of other people, but if an expert, who was a veteran in life and death battle, saw it, then they would instantly understand how special it was.

With this technique, Dylan was able to connect each of his sword techniques with ease. It was as if his attacks were originally part of a single movement. And by linking these techniques, his swordsmanship was reaching its perfection.

‘Divine Swordsmanship: Deity Dance’

A high-level sword stance that could evolve and grow alongside its user. It didn’t matter if the sword technique was a basic one with the most basic movement or an advanced technique that had multiple complexities on it, all of those techniques were going to be perfectly connected by this particular stance.

But despite how perfect Dylan was performing, he still failed to overwhelm his opponent or suppress Shin.

It didn’t matter how strong or powerful his attacks were. His perfect execution was also not enough to completely dictate the rhythm of this battle.

It was because Shin was also using a special stance of his own.

The Yin-Yang stance was the most basic stance and the very first thing that he learned from Professor Plum. But he immediately understood that this stance was the foundation of every Yin-Yang Art that he learned.

This stance involved the control of one’s body, especially their muscles. It also had the principle of manipulating its center of gravity.

And with this stance as its foundation, the Yin-Yang Shift came in next. A technique where the Martial-Artist absorbed the force sent towards them and released them towards their opponents, returning it with double the force. ｅｌ．𝚌ｏ𝚖

It was also the foundation of the combat technique that Shin had created inside the game, the ‘Infinity Edge’.

But at this point in time, Shin was currently using the real stance where that combat technique came from.

He already used it before but he couldn’t show its full capabilities since he couldn’t use the Yin-Yang Swordsmanship at that time. But right now, it was a completely different case.

‘Yin-Yang Swordsmanship: Sword Transmigration’

Clang! Clang!

With this sword technique, Shin was able to hold his ground despite the advanced sword techniques that Dylan was linking perfectly. And at the same time, he was also throwing a series of sword techniques of his own alongside it, which was giving his opponent enough trouble.

He was redirecting the trajectory of Dylan’s attacks and, attempting to throw the latter in an awkward position. Unfortunately, the young swordsman was not that simple which was why he was not affected by each of Shin’s attempts.

The two continued to exchange sword techniques repeatedly while also moving around within the barrier constantly.

Their figures kept on disappearing and appearing in different places. And each time they clash against each other, metal sparks flew in the air while loud sounds rang right after it.

And as the battle continued, the two of them became more accustomed to their respective stances and became more daring in each of their attacks. They unleashed a series of more advanced sword techniques, making the match reach a whole new level.

Given the burden that their techniques on their bodies, it was pretty clear that both of them were already reaching their limits, which also signified that this battle was about to come to an end.

……