Nanming stands at the ready, Jing-U words weren't lose on him though, if what he heard from Jing-U was right, then this Xu Hui Cheh is someone on par with Father, the Demon King.
"We have to run!"
Jing-U shouted, his entire body is like a string of a bow being pulled taut, ready to run as fast as he can, but before Nanming could respond, Xu Hui Cheh had already dashed and swung her saber at the same time.
And as the golden steel glimmers, Nanming caught on and parried the strike, but the momentum of the swing is that powerful that he felt intense pain resounding back and forth through his entire muscles and bones.
Xu Hui Cheh face is that of a pleasantly surprised, before she opened her mouth to speak.
"Damn! You're this capable huh?"
She then wildly swungs her saber around to force Nanming out of the bind, and as Nanming repositioned himself, he tried to search for Jing-U who fortunately had fled.
"Mmm, around Divine Realm? No, your energy is so ridiculous you might as well be a Xiantian"
Her assessment fell on deaf ears, for Nanming is busy enough assessing the threat she possessed.
Nanming should become a distraction until Jing-U is far enough, there is no way he can outrun Xu Hui Cheh.
Speaking of her, Xu Hui Cheh eyes glowed bright golden, now that he sees it, Nanming saw some similarity from her eyes and Wu Yuen's eyes, its similar, but not quite.
"Tell me you're name, boy"
She said as she pawed the edge of her saber with her nail, smiling as she did. The air is suddenly thick with tension, but Xu Hui Cheh didn't seem bothered by that tension, if anything, she revels in it, evidenced by how her expression changes into three different states of happiness.
"I am Nanming of Jiangnam"
"…That's it? Well, looks like I'm just fighting a nameless nobody"
Hearing his name, Xu Hui Cheh expression became more exhilarated, like a hunter finally spotting a particularly fat prey that could sustain them for months.
"But tell me boy, you're from the Demonic Sect right?"
"-!"
Xu Hui Cheh laughed at Nanming emotionless state, as if already knowing that he is surprised. After having her fill laughing, she then delivers her explanation.
"The way you move, your swordplay and fist technique, are all a derivative of those Fiends Demonic Style, Wind Style and Blood Style arts"
"…I didn't ask you to explain"
"…Ohh you think you're funny, aren't ya?"
Nanming is certainly surprised that she can deduce Nanming faction by just the way he moves and how he uses his sword.
Xu Hui Cheh then earnestly begins to gather up her Aura, a soft golden glow coats her form, a gentle yet fierce Aura resolutely pushed the air itself away, Nanming was blown a few feet away from the sheer force.
"Now, a dance should begin with proper courtesy…"
She said as she shifts her stance, her posture stretched, showing off her honed muscle that is showing through her robe.
"…You attack me first"
"I'm merely testing, don't want to dance with an amateur right? I'm quite an expensive woman you know?"
Xu Hui Cheh lightly laughed but seeing not even a shroud of expression in Nanming's face killed her smile as fast as she moves.
"My name is Xu Hui Cheh, holder of the Colored Blade-Jin Xiwang, I bear the title of the Killing Star, Blade Demon"
Her previously soft Aura suddenly explodes out, into a blazing flame of intense killing intent, all directed straight to Nanming.
"I will now show you…"
Her form, alongside her fierce Aura fades instantly, and as Nanming tried to look for her, she appears just in front of him, straight in the path of her blade that is already in motion.
Nanming can only put the sheath of his sword in between the path of her golden blade, and yet it passes through and embedded itself deeply into his throat, and before he could even feel any pain, the blade slides through, as if propelled by an unseen force and almost severed Nanming's head cleanly.
"Might: Cleave…"
Yet despite that, Xu Hui Cheh who had already touched the ground, spun her body and retreated her blade as she prepared for a different attack, unbothered by the black blood spraying from Nanming.
"Might: Sever!"
And to her amusement, Nanming managed to unsheathe his sword and bind her saber in place, but she can see how the momentum of her strike affects him, for the bone on his forearm protruded through the skin, showing off its white keratin.
Nanming throat has already begun to heal, and yet he grits his teeth, before he stomped his foot to gain purchase with the ground beneath. Using that as a foundation of his next attack, overpowering Xu Hui Cheh with sheer strength.
"-!"
And once his sword slides off the bind, positioning itself under her exposed armpit, Nanming delivers an attack.
SWISH
So profound it split the air, yet it misses.
"Hot Damn!!"
Xu Hui Cheh remarks, bright, unending smile decorates her face as she feels the breeze of air coming from her severed robe, which had its entire sleeve cut off. Yet she herself remains unharmed.
And as Xu Hui Cheh tried to reposition, Nanming closes in, it's his turn on the offensive.
"Oh? A bit of Tango lover, are ya?"
Her remarks are casual, a stark contrast to how aggressively she defends, practically swinging her saber in a random yet controlled manner, always cutting off Nanming's sword from its intended path straight to her throat.
"Well sorry~ I'm not such a woman you can simply fascinate…"
And as she cut her own words, she cut off Nanming arms once the millisecond a chance reveals itself, straight threading the needle her blade is, finding its mark when Nanming himself is dodging.
"…with a bit of pas de deux performance, to be honest I'm not into dancing"
And with that, her form shift from a dancer to that of a hunter, and before Nanming knew it. Xu Hui Cheh had begun her execution.
As she began to hack and dice, methodically slashing at Nanming's vitals, moving on from the least important organs and body part such as his foot.
SLASH
His Legs, which she severs without much decorum on her part, merely dicing it before she moved on.
SLASH
To his arms where she unceremoniously cleaves, separating the hand, forearm before the entire thing went off, on both sides, simultaneously.
SLASH
Before she begins to puncture and gorged her blade deep inside Nanming's torso, not so much that it goes through, just enough so that she can twist her blade inside Nanming's body, utilizing the curved shape of the saber to stir and cut the inside.
"Hahaha~"
The ferocity of her technique reached its end, as Xu Hui Cheh begins to gather her energy to fuel the next attack.
As the Golden Aura reconverge, going straight to her blade, she activates her Weapon Soul Saber Mind and shift it to full offensive.
"When the Hunt come to a close! I better make a mincemeat out of ya!"
'Might: Dismantling'
CLANG
But Nanming blocks it with his sword, the hand he grabbed it with has reattached itself.
"-! What the—"
And Xu Hui Cheh was blown away, Nanming Aura suddenly glows in Violet, as it all blazes forth like a flame, threatening to wick away at Xu Hui Cheh.
Xu Hui Cheh who had recovered, quickly finds herself in a pinch, and before she could compose herself, Nanming sword is already at her throat.
At the brink of death, Nanming brain put all its power in keeping him alive, trying desperately to recall every bit of knowledge he read and learn, one of which was regarding a technique.
'A technique that comes from One own desire is inherently stronger than even a thousand codified techniques'
Faced not with the intense killing intent of Yi Ling, Nanming could comprehend what he will do, though unwilling, he fears that Jing-U might come to harm if he didn't go all out.
And so borne, in the nick of time, in the heat of combat, the instinct of a child who once know nothing but to kill, return.
Kill.
"Violet Style:"
And KIL—
"You brat!"
Yet before Nanming could activate his technique, Xu Hui Cheh had already severed his arm once more, and she didn't stop there, she begins to immediately hack away at every piece of his severed arm, it's no longer just dicing it, she is obliterating it.
Sensing a premonition of severe death if she didn't act, Xu Hui Cheh brought forth Jin-Xiwang ability to manipulate fate, the power of the 'Kama rewrites all'.
"You're just a brat! And yet you… how dare you force me to activate the Blade! DON'T THINK YOU'RE SUPERIOR TO ME FUCKING SHIT!"
Xu Hui Cheh then ready another stance, this time, there is no calmness in her posture, only mindless desire to attack, attack and attack. The flame of her fury rapidly consumes the rational thought that she had.
"Got you!"
That she failed to notice the prowling Jing-U with his cleaver at the ready, Xu Hui Cheh reaction is spot on, she shift her saber right at the cross path of Jing-U cleaver, yet the moment the two-steel made contact, her own saber succumb and slip out of her grips.
And as Xu Hui Cheh falls into the ground, Jing-U cleaver pressed lightly towards her nape, a silent promise of what would happen is she dare move.
"Hah…hah… you… How…?"
Xu Hui Cheh demand explanation, in between her fury-borne exhaustion and shock. Her contemptuous stares peer deeply in Jing-U's own gaze, his iris is trembling and despite that one movement, he is already tired.
A sign of his fear, it's a given, he faced off against a Killing Star after all.
"Your Saber Mind is at full offense, you know how it works, in its balance state, Saber Mind would boost either defense or offense, leaning too far on one side means forgoing the other"
Jing-U snarled in reply, he knows very deeply how shameful it is for an Unorthodox Jianghu to lose to an ambush, sure ambushing itself is quite shameful, in Orthodox that is, the former perceives it even more so if One would succumb to an ambush.
"…Damn you! Cheap tactic, all of it! I could chop all of you in mere seconds!"
"And that's why I ambush you, I'm no Killing stars, I have no reputation at stake"
Jing-U gives a smug smile, but Xu Hui Cheh suddenly laugh, it's just a faint laugh at first, nothing but a giggle.
"Hihihi"
But then it explodes out, alongside the fury that is seething deep inside her.
"HAHAHA! So?! Having fun winning yet?"
Jing-U was taken aback by her sudden outburst, but before he could understand why, Xu Hui Cheh Aura blast forth, if her previous Aura when fighting Nanming had been akin to a candle, this time, it's akin to a bonfire.
As her Golden Aura tore through the air in a blast of deafening explosion, Jing-U was thrown off because of it, pain shot up through his entire body, throbbing endlessly as he could feel every bit of his bone screaming in pain.
And as he shot his head up to observe what Xu Hui Cheh is up to with his bloodshot eyes, he saw her activating her foundation technique.
"I should remind you all that I am still a Blade Demon… A Xiantian no less!"
And as she grabbed the golden saber, it started to share the same Aura as her. Nanming, who by now had fully regenerated, recognized that scene immediately.
"C-Corrosion?"
"Close, but not quite, this is Erosion…"
Xu Hui Cheh then relished in the awe of both Jing-U and Nanming, though she cannot make out what the hell is on his mind, she pretends that he is at awe.
"Yes! Give me all! Your awe, your fear… Let me bathe in the showers of your admiration!"
Her eyes then glowed Gold as she makes a theatrical gesture, as if announcing herself in a big stage where a mass of audience is awaiting her performance.
The performance of a Hunter, for her foundation technique, has activated.
"Bore your sight through me, as I show you my 'Unbridled Might'…"
She then raises her saber up high, catching the ray of sunlight that shines golden alongside the blade itself. And as her Aura blares even brighter than even that, she begins the Hunt.
"Unbridled Might: Glowing Gore!"
Her first target is Jing-U, and as she moves, a trail of gold is at her wake, creating a tense and intimidating afterimage, a promise of what's to come, as she will dissect that fucking cleaver-wielding bastard who dare ambush her with cheap tactics.
As her saber cut through the air, it failed to connect with Jing-U body and was instead redirected by his cleaver.
But the force remains, Jing-U failed to keep up with her sheer brutality as the constant swinging of her saber creates a sort of brutal firework, as every time she brings her saber up-and-down, it clashes again and again with the cleaver.
It doesn't help either that Erosion is slowly chipping away at his vitality, evident by his scorched hand that holds the cleaver.
"Hahaha! Keep it up, will you?! C'mon! Where is that confidence?"
Her taunts seem to rile up Jing-U, but he cannot do anything for he is pinned down by the sheer brutality of her attack.
"No fun when a prey isn't squirming around! Try to fight back!"
She didn't even fight in earnest, for each time Jing-U got staggered, she just forced him to pick his blade back up and continue the onslaught of attack that by now, looks more like a heavy rain of saber strike.
Finally, Jing-U loses his grip on the cleaver, and as it stabs itself to the ground far from him, Xu Hui Cheh retorts before shifting her stance.
"Oh? Tired already? It's time then…"
Nanming is already on his way, with his eyes glowing Violet, he delivered a strike.
"-!"
CLANG
Xu Hui Cheh managed to intercept him though, and as their blade locks in bind, they were able to converse mid-fight, Xu Hui Cheh looked surprised for a second, she didn't get a closer look at Nanming so she didn't know he could actually regenerate from a paste of red meat.
"Fucking monster, aren't ya? Pretty sure I dice you up back there…"
They then get out of the bind before trading blows one after another, sensing no way of striking, both of them dashed away.
"Well then, I'm sure you're feeling confident… Parry this then!"
"…Violet Style: Swift Strike!"
Nanming Aura coat his entire body, before he becomes a blur of motion. Xu Hui Cheh looks like she already knows what was coming, so she already begins her next technique.
"Unbridled Might: Persistence Hunting!"
As her saber herself, is a blur of motion, it meets and clash with Nanming's own Violet clad sword. As the sound of metal clashing into each other and subdue any other sound beside it, Jing-U makes his move.
His body is sore all over, and it's just from being hit by her Aura. And here Nanming is trading blows with her, sure, if he goes by the rumor, Xu Hui Cheh, the Blade Demon is a battle junkie through and through, she probably yearns for such a clash and thus, didn't give it her all.
It is still mighty impressive for Nanming to be able to keep up, but Jing-U felt that this is no time for him to observe, he too, should try and find a way to help Nanming, the Orthodox way.
"…Should I? No, hesitation is defeat! Remember what was engraved so deeply into you Shua Bi!"
Jing-U then clad himself back into the Jade-green Aura before he assume the stance of cultivation, his inhibition ran amok as it tries to capture any ambient energy, which he can easily considering that there is a Xiantian leaking her own energy on purpose.
"Huff… Huff"
As sweat drenched his skin, Jing-U focus prevails deeper than those two are in their own duel. And as Nanming himself was pushed back once more.
"Ha! Got to give it to ya! You sure are fucking sturdy!"
Xu Hui Cheh shouts, her face is that of utter happiness and excitement, practically wet with sweat and something else as she prepares for another strike.
But Nanming is not so keen, for some reason he kept holding back, and now his Violet Aura diminished and fades away, leaving only the Gold of Xu Hui Cheh own Aura.
Nanming body was a mess of torn Hanfu and bleeding limbs, some part of him was painted in a nasty scorched mark from Xu Hui Cheh Erosion that is now smoking, since Erosion is a step closer towards Corrosion, the flesh burning effect has already exist.
"But a Hunt must come to an end! And it's you! Who'll bite the dust!"
"…You take it from here…"
Nanming said before his eyes shut close, as his body went limp and drop the ground, Xu Hui Cheh immediately understood what he meant by that.
"Apology for my late arrival"
Jing-U stood tall, in his hand, a flickering sword made from pure light takes shape. Though imperfect, Xu Hui Cheh recognize that inheritance foundation technique so very well.
After all, she was continuously hunted by those very Clan, the same Clan that bestow her the title of the Killing Stars, the pillar that rules and govern over the entire Orthodox Alliance, the Pure Light Clan.
"You're from the Yu Clan? Impossible! The fuck are you doing in these backwater dump!"
"The same reason as you did! And for that I declare!"
Jing-U held the sword of pure light up-high, mimicking Xu Hui Cheh own movement just a minutes ago.
"I, Yu Shua Bi! The Dawn Star of this generation! Shall clash my blade with Xu Hui Cheh, the Demon Blade and one of the Killing Stars!"
"…You're missing the part where it said, holder of the Colored Blade Jin-Xiwang"
"I don't give a Damn!"
The entire landscape was then painted in white, before Jing-U, no, Yu Shua Bi, delivers his technique.
"Sunborne Blade: Excise!"