"Understood," Kuo nodded respectfully, drawing a heavy, thick broadsword from his back.
Bai Shan merely gave a short, arrogant grunt, spinning his silver spear into a flashy readied stance.
Down in the crowd, Xun'er looked at Yoriichi, her golden eyes filled with curiosity. "He stepped in for you. Why? You humiliated him previously."
"Because he is no longer the same man who fell that day," Yoriichi replied quietly, his crimson eyes locking onto Kuo's stance. "A blade that breaks against a rock is weak. But a man who learns from the rock... becomes a mountain. He has tempered his Dao heart."
"Begin!" the Instructor shouted, dropping his hand.
CRACK!
Bai Shan moved with terrifying speed. In the blink of an eye, he utilized a high-tier lightning movement technique, closing the fifty-foot gap between them. He thrust his silver spear forward, creating a blinding flash of blue light aimed directly at Kuo's right shoulder.
It was a strike meant to end the fight instantly and showcase his overwhelming dominance.
But Kuo did not try to match the speed. He slammed his heavy boot into the arena floor, channeling his 7-Star Dou Qi.
"Mountain Cleaver!" Kuo roared.
The stone tiles beneath him shattered. A thick, condensed wall of yellow, earth-attribute Dou Qi erupted around his heavy broadsword as he swung it up to parry the thrust.
CLANG!
A massive shockwave of displaced air and crackling ozone swept over the crowd. The sheer kinetic force of the 9-Star strike forced Kuo to slide backward by three feet, his boots carving deep trenches into the arena floor, but his guard held.
The blue lightning, instead of paralyzing Kuo, scattered erratically across the stone floor.
Standing on the sidelines, Yoriichi's Transparent World vision analyzed the intricate physics of the clash.
'Fascinating,' Yoriichi mused internally. 'Lightning relies on piercing speed and high-voltage conductivity. But Earth is an absolute insulator. Kuo is actively channeling the electrical current down through his broadsword, into his arms, and discharging it directly into the arena floor before it can reach his vital organs. He has essentially turned his own body into a grounding rod. A highly logical, albeit painful, defensive mechanism.'
Bai Shan's eyes widened in brief shock as his paralyzing effect was completely neutralized. "You stubborn rock!" he spat.
He immediately retracted his spear, launching into a furious, high-speed barrage. Thrust. Sweep. Pierce. Blue lightning painted the arena in a chaotic web of destruction.
The contrast between the two combatants was stark. Bai Shan was the picture of an elite genius. His techniques were flashy, his movements elegant, and his connection to the Inner Academy had clearly afforded him access to top-tier Xuan Class Dou Skills.
Kuo, on the other hand, was a completely normal student with a standard background. His moves were not flashy. They were gritty, heavy, and desperate. He fought entirely on the defensive, using his thick broadsword and his dense earth Dou Qi to block, parry, and absorb the relentless storm of lightning.
Clang! Smash! Clink!
Minute after minute passed. The crowd, initially expecting a one-sided slaughter, fell into a stunned silence.
Kuo was clearly struggling. Sweat poured down his face, mixing with the dust of the shattered arena. His heavy breathing echoed loudly. Minor cuts and burns began to appear on his arms where the sheer volume of Bai Shan's lightning managed to bypass his grounding technique. The two-star realm gap was an immense physical burden.
But he refused to fall.
Bai Shan, conversely, was growing increasingly frantic. He was breathing heavily, his pristine white uniform stained with dust. Internally, he was absolutely shocked.
'How is this stepping stone surviving?!' Bai Shan screamed in his mind, his pride taking a massive hit with every second the spar dragged on. 'I am a 9-Star! He should have been crushed in the first exchange! If I can't beat this nobody quickly, how will I ever look Xun'er in the eye?!'
Desperation and humiliation began to cloud Bai Shan's judgment. He abandoned his elegant, energy-efficient strikes, pouring massive amounts of his Dou Qi into wildly aggressive, power-heavy sweeps.
Yoriichi shook his head slightly, seeing the shift in the flow of combat. 'The genius is losing his temper. He is wasting caloric energy on flashy, emotional strikes. Kuo is exhausted, but his mind remains anchored to the earth.'
In the center of the ring, Kuo felt the sudden sloppiness in Bai Shan's rhythm. He realized his defensive strategy had reached its absolute limit; his Dou Qi reserves were dropping dangerously low. If he kept blocking, the 9-Star power would eventually break his guard and shatter his ribs.
He needed to change the dynamic.
As Bai Shan executed a massive, highly telegraphed overhead strike with his spear, Kuo did not raise his broadsword to block.
Instead, he took a heavy, suicidal step forward, directly into the path of the descending lightning.
Bai Shan's eyes widened, panicking slightly at the sudden, unexpected offensive maneuver. He tried to adjust the trajectory of his spear, but he had committed too much momentum to the swing.
"Earth-Shattering Palm!" Kuo roared, dropping his broadsword entirely.
Ignoring the searing pain as the edge of the lightning spear grazed his shoulder, Kuo channeled the absolute entirety of his remaining 7-Star earth Dou Qi into his right hand. His fist took on a dark, metallic yellow hue, glowing with heavy, crushing gravity.
He drove his fist upward, aiming a devastating, all-out strike directly at the center of Bai Shan's unprotected chestplate.
Sensing the immense, heavy danger of the incoming blow, the arrogant genius realized he had made a fatal tactical error. The panic in Bai Shan's eyes vanished, instantly replaced by a vicious, ruthless glint. If this peasant wanted to push him to the edge, then he would show him the true terror of the elite.
Bai Shan forcibly halted his spear's momentum and violently ignited his Dantian, preparing to unleash the terrifying, high-tier trump card he had been saving for emergency situations and competition.
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