The Silent Path of the Swordsman

Chapter 8 – The First Battle

“My apologies, Uncle. I came back because I wanted to return to my hometown, not to fight,” Luo Yi said calmly as he walked past Luo Lian.

Luo Yi addressed him as "Uncle" because Luo Lian was actually already in his forties.

Luo Lian only looked about twenty-five because his cultivation had reached the Ninth Stage of the Advanced Realm.

In the martial world, the higher a cultivator's realm, the more slowly their body aged.

And once a cultivator reached the highest realm, aging would cease altogether. Their appearance would even revert to that of someone in their twenties. That was why nearly every cultivator shared the same ultimate goal—to reach the highest realm.

Watching Luo Yi calmly walk past him, Luo Lian's face flushed red. It felt as though his challenge wasn't even worthy of a response, leaving him utterly humiliated before everyone.

“Stop right there, you arrogant coward!” Luo Lian barked, tightening his grip on the hilt of his sword. There was no mistaking that those words were directed at Luo Yi.

Yet Luo Yi remained silent and continued walking calmly, as though he hadn't heard a single word. In truth, he knew the insult was aimed at him, but because he didn't consider himself either arrogant or cowardly, he simply chose to ignore it and continue on his way.

The reason Luo Yi ignored Luo Lian's challenge wasn't out of fear or arrogance—it was because he had no desire to attack him unless the man actually tried to harm him.

This time, Luo Lian could no longer suppress the fury surging inside him. He spun around and slashed his sword through the air, unleashing the Crescent Moon Slash Technique. Instantly, a blazing crimson crescent-shaped wave of Qi shot toward Luo Yi at incredible speed.

But Luo Yi effortlessly darted to the right, evading the vicious attack. The crimson crescent missed him completely and crashed into the wall of a nearby residence instead.

BOOM!

Everyone's eyes widened in disbelief. None of them had expected Luo Yi, whose dantian had been crippled since birth, to move fast enough to dodge Luo Lian's attack.

“He's unbelievably fast! I can't even sense the slightest cultivation aura from him!” one of the onlookers exclaimed.

The person beside him nodded. “I think something's wrong too. A cultivator without a dantian shouldn't be capable of moving that fast.”

Another person chimed in, “He disappeared from the clan for three years. Maybe he encountered a Legendary Alchemist, trained under them, and had his cultivation restored. Only a Legendary Alchemist could heal a crippled dantian.”

Meanwhile, Luo Lian had completely surrendered himself to his rage. He poured an enormous amount of Qi into the Chitiyan Sword, causing the crimson blade to blaze as though wrapped in scarlet flames. This time, he intended to unleash the Crescent Moon Slash Technique in rapid succession.

Realizing that Luo Lian truly intended to kill him, Luo Yi knew he had no choice. Still calm, he looked at the man and said, “Very well. If Uncle truly wishes to fight me, then I'll accept. But not here.” As soon as he finished speaking, Luo Yi sprang into the air using his lightness technique and sped westward, leaving everyone staring in even greater astonishment.

Without a second thought, Luo Lian leaped onto his sword, now infused with Qi, allowing it to carry him into the air before shooting after Luo Yi. This was one of the signature abilities of disciples from the Sky Sword Sect—using their swords as aerial transportation.

Even though Luo Lian pursued him by flying on his sword, Luo Yi was no slower. In fact, he could have easily outpaced the man using only his lightness technique. However, he deliberately held back his speed to avoid drawing too much attention from the public.

Each leap Luo Yi made with his lightness technique carried him across dozens of houses, and every leap took no more than a single breath. That alone was enough to match the speed of Luo Lian's sword flight.

After traveling for the time it took one and a half incense sticks to burn using his lightness technique, Luo Yi finally stopped at Wuyao Lake, southwest of Ningzhou Capital.

He landed lightly upon the surface of the lake as though stepping onto solid ground. Then he turned to face the northeast. His robe fluttered gently in the wind as his calm gaze rested upon the sky, quietly waiting for the person who had failed to catch up with him.

It didn't take long before the one he was waiting for finally arrived.

From high above, Luo Lian's face twisted with overwhelming fury the moment he saw the man he had been chasing standing calmly atop the lake. He immediately dove from the sky while swinging his sword repeatedly, bombarding Luo Yi with a relentless barrage of Crescent Moon Slash Technique attacks.

Crimson crescent-shaped waves of Qi rained down upon Luo Yi, yet he calmly evaded every single strike with graceful, agile movements, using the Wind Step Technique.

The once-tranquil waters of the lake churned into violent waves beneath Luo Lian's relentless assault. But when he finally ceased his attacks and landed upon the lake's surface, his eyes widened in shock at the sight of Luo Yi still standing there calmly, completely unharmed.

'How is it possible that none of my consecutive attacks even touched him?' Luo Lian thought in stunned disbelief. 'Fine... I have no choice now but to use that pill if I want to match his speed!'