Jingliu didn't care about Ikki Kurogane's position. Finding this boy's location was not difficult at all. Even with her eyes blindfolded, she could remain completely unaffected, just as in the honkai: star rail storyline.
However, before this class began, Jingliu had already said...
"I will use power at the same level as yours."
In other words, Jingliu would not use strength beyond the scope of a student. Furthermore, her current role was that of a teacher. At most, she would emulate a certain sharp-eyed Great Swordsman, saying 'The world is further away than you imagine' before leaving a sword scar on the chest of a fledgling youth.
Therefore, 'using absolute strength to crush students and leave them with no hope' has a hundred harms and not a single benefit; it is strictly forbidden.
Given Jingliu's personality and status, unless it was an accident like Bai Yan, how could she actively break her own promise?
"Well done, little brother..."
"So, I'm going to get serious now. You must not disappoint me!"
It seemed that Kurogane Shizuku's will from the other side had infected Skirk, which in turn stirred a bit of fighting spirit within Jingliu's heart. Or perhaps it was because the male and female leads joining forces was a rare sight to behold.
In short, Jingliu's cold heart began to become active, and even her way of addressing Ikki Kurogane changed.
In honkai: star rail, the title 'little brother' was something Jingliu had only ever said to her grand-disciple, Yanqing. As for the others...
Who were they?
But now, she, playing the role of Jingliu, had bestowed this title upon the youth named Ikki Kurogane. This was enough to represent the importance she placed on Ikki...
So before starting her counterattack, Jingliu didn't mind giving Ikki a few reminders. If he could reach the future from the original work faster, Jingliu would be more than happy!
"Ittō Shura is a good technique, but you should understand, little brother... even if you concentrate all your energy into a single minute, you still won't be able to touch me."
"But your train of thought is correct. I sincerely look forward to your form after you've grown!"
"Now, come to me and receive true failure!"
Failure is the mother of success; it is not an embarrassment. As long as one can gain effective growth from failure, such failure is acceptable.
Ikki had failed many times before, but those so-called 'failures' were artificially manufactured. Aside from creating pressure for Ikki, they hardly allowed him to achieve effective growth.
So, Jingliu made her move.
The Ephemeral Sword danced through the air. The white-haired girl twisted her body slightly, revealing her graceful figure to the air.
If it weren't for the flames blocking the view, Jingliu's posture might have been seen by more people, bringing an even greater shock.
But now, only one person saw Jingliu's movements, and that was Ikki Kurogane!
However, seeing this sword dance, Ikki did not find it beautiful; instead, he felt a bone-chilling coldness.
Such a beautiful sword dance seemed at this moment like a dagger pressed against Ikki's heart; it felt as if only a gentle push forward was needed to take the boy's life.
'Blade Steal' was a technique Ikki had honed, allowing him to see through an opponent's thoughts within an extremely short combat window and make an effective counter.
From the very beginning of the battle, Ikki had been observing Jingliu's movements while she fought the other students, guessing what her next move would be.
So at the instant Jingliu moved, Ikki knew what he was about to face...
A sword storm!
Clang, clang, clang—!
Even using only student-level strength, Jingliu's speed far exceeded Ikki's imagination. Almost the instant Ikki knew what would happen, Jingliu had already completed her move.
Countless sword qi glinting with cold light were added into the storm by Jingliu, following the direction of the cyclone's rotation.
In an instant, a bloodstain appeared on Ikki's forehead, and a portion of the hair on his head was sliced off. More terrifyingly, the parts of his body cut by the sword qi were increasing!
Forget about counterattacking; even enduring such an attack for more than a second was extremely difficult for Ikki to accept.
So, what to do?
Ikki had thought about launching an attack on Jingliu in the final second of Ittō Shura, just like before...
But how could such a move work twice against a master of swordsmanship?
The sword techniques he had learned flashed through his mind one by one, but were one by one rejected by the boy himself.
Precisely because he knew the gap between himself and Jingliu, when Ikki last fought her, he had used the most effective third secret sword to reflect Jingliu's sword back at herself.
And now, the third secret sword, which was most likely to defeat the opponent, had probably long been seen through... Just as said before, the same move could not work again.
What on earth... should I do?
This split second of time seemed infinitely stretched. Ikki's face remained just as grim. The boy felt as if he were stuck in a swamp, completely unable to think of any way to escape.
"Do you feel unwilling, brat?"
However, at this moment, a certain voice suddenly rang out in his mind, causing Ikki's eyes to widen.
"Then do not forget this resentment, and go prove 'yourself'!"
It seemed that in a snowy field, a white-haired old man had said these words to him?
Ikki's memory was somewhat hazy, but he still remembered his feelings at that time. When he first learned he was an F-Rank Knight, he became the "weakest," suffering more cold stares than even Naruto.
But even so, Ikki has persevered until now!
Even when suppressed in various ways and targeted by everyone, he never gave up!
"Hoo!"
Seemingly having figured something out, Ikki took a deep breath, chose to withdraw from the perimeter of the firestorm, and simultaneously looked at the crimson-haired girl behind him.
"Dispel the flames, Stella."
"I have a new idea!"
——
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The massive fire tornado vanished at a speed almost visible to the naked eye. Jingliu seemed to have a premonition and stopped her movements.
When the flames had completely dissipated, Ikki Kurogane appeared not far from Jingliu, assuming a focused stance.
"Oh? You seem to have a new idea. Then feel free to attack! Don't worry about getting hurt!"
The aura on Ikki's body seemed to have completely surpassed that of an ordinary student, reaching a new level.
As his teacher, Jingliu wouldn't interrupt midway; she would even guide him to stimulate the potential within his body.
"I am deeply grateful!"
Looking at the teacher named Jingliu in the distance, Ikki had no words in his heart other than gratitude.
If not for her reminder, he might still be struggling with how to attack, but now...
Ikki had found a new way to fight!
Ittō Shura concentrates all of one's energy within one minute, unleashing potential far beyond one's normal self.
But can this really be invincible?
Of course not!
If one cannot defeat the opponent within one minute even after concentrating all the energy in their body, what then?
Ikki Kurogane's answer was to continue concentrating energy!
Concentrate all of one's energy into a single instant, into a single strike!
That is... Ittou Rasetsu!
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