“A successor to the Guan Gong saber technique?”
Yan was somewhat surprised; he hadn’t expected to encounter a martial artist who introduced themselves so formally in a game, yet he still politely cupped his hands in greeting.
“A pleasure, a pleasure,” Yan began, “I… have merely practiced the Yue Family Spear a little.”
He dared not claim to be a successor of the Yue Family Spear, as his grandfather had never bestowed that title upon him, and the thought caused him to momentarily lose focus.
Quickly snapping back to reality, Yan looked at Guan Ying before him and offered a slight smile.
“Is Mr. Guan here to challenge me on the arena?”
“Standing here already, is there a second answer?”
Guan Ying laughed heartily, pulling the great saber that stood beside him from the ground.
“Xiao said you’re very strong, and I’m truly curious: just how strong are you?”
“So I jumped up here to challenge you.”
“Hahaha… Xiao might have exaggerated a little.”
Yan’s lips twitched into a stiff, wry smile.
“Whether it’s an exaggeration or genuine skill, we’ll find out in a spar.”
Guan Ying swung his great saber, holding the long shaft with both hands and pointing the sharp blade towards Yan.
“In that case, let’s spar.”
Knowing there was no avoiding it, Yan could only say with a bitter smile.
“I’m also quite curious about how much real-world skill can augment performance in a full-dive game. Before, I had no one to compare myself to, but now, perhaps my doubts can finally be resolved.”
Upon hearing this, Guan Ying, seemingly harboring similar doubts, actually nodded in agreement.
“Precisely my intention.”
Yan smiled, unstrapped the long spear from his back, gripping the shaft tightly with both hands, its sharp tip aimed directly at Guan Ying.
Both wielded long-handled weapons, both were well-suited for this 80-yard arena, and both were martial artists who practiced in reality. In the full-dive RPG world of `Companion God Realm`, this promised to be an unprecedented duel.
The two stood there silently, unmoving, unspoken, unsmiling, simply staring intently at each other, utterly still.
Just as the observing players watched the static image on the large screen, believing the game had lagged…
Both moved simultaneously!
Charge!
Yan moved with the swiftness of wind beneath his feet, covering three steps in two, abruptly closing in on Guan Ying. His left hand, which had been loosely gripping the spear shaft, tightened sharply downwards, while his right hand pressed down on the spear’s tail. The sharp spearhead, glinting with cold light, suddenly flicked upwards, striking directly at Guan Ying’s face.
Sweep!
Guan Ying, however, swiftly turned to his left, bringing the great saber’s blade around his body in a full circle, swinging it upwards from below. Its cold gleam was sharp, and the saber cut through the air with a whistling sound, aiming directly for Yan’s head.
Both, by unspoken agreement, had forgone stacking buffs or using skills, choosing instead to employ the martial arts techniques they had trained in!
And with this first exchange, they both unleashed lethal moves, practiced hundreds of times in daily life but never truly deployed!
Only within the world of `Companion God Realm`, on an arena such as this, could these ancient martial arts—originally conceived for killing, and now relegated to obscurity in a peaceful era—truly display their former might!
Nevertheless…
Both men knew full well that no matter how terrifying the destructive power their techniques should theoretically possess, here, any move not recognized as a skill within `Companion God Realm` would simply be registered as ‘free attack’ basic damage.
In that instant, saber and spear intertwined, both men’s simultaneous attacks poised to land on their opponent. Yan, staring at the great saber’s cold glint, now impossibly close, immediately changed his movement.
He twisted his body sideways, barely evading the great saber that swept past his head, forcing his own ‘Charge!’ maneuver to retract.
Though his previous offense had brought the spear tip within an inch of Guan Ying’s face, nearly piercing him, Yan felt no regret. He tightened his grip on the spear shaft, preparing to thrust again directly at Guan Ying’s heart, when Guan Ying, too, altered his stance.
“Chop!”
Guan Ying roared, and the great saber, which had been swung above Yan’s head, instantly changed the direction of its blade. He abruptly tightened his grip on the long shaft, pressing down with both hands simultaneously, as if intending to cleave Yan in two from head to toe.
“Block!”
Yan crossed his arms, raising his long spear high, firmly parrying Guan Ying’s overhead cleave with the spear held above his head!
Even so, the force of Guan Ying’s downward chop was not something Yan’s impromptu upward block could easily withstand. Yan felt the spear shaft suddenly grow ten times heavier, the web of skin between his thumb and forefinger throbbing painfully from the heavy impact of the ‘Chop,’ almost buckling under the strain.
Fortunately, Yan had anticipated this situation and reserved some strength, never intending to meet Guan Ying’s force head-on with brute strength. His arms, which had been crossed to raise the spear, now suddenly straightened, causing the spear to spin above his head, deflecting Guan Ying’s heavy blow.
The long spear slid along the inside of Guan Ying’s great saber, its sharp tip tracing the saber’s shaft, poised to slip into Guan Ying’s unprotected neck!
Guan Ying’s expression remained unchanged as he abruptly twisted the great saber with both hands, using the end of its long handle to sweep Yan’s spear tip away from his shoulder, thus protecting his neck.
‘He’s got some real skill,’ Yan thought.
With that thought, Yan raised an eyebrow slightly, then used his long spear to execute a horizontal sweep, forcing Guan Ying back two steps.
For long-handled weapons like staves, spears, and great sabers, the core of their practice revolves around a single character.
‘Shua’ (TL Note: A Chinese term meaning to ‘play with,’ ‘brandish,’ or ‘flourish,’ emphasizing flexibility and showmanship in martial arts.)
Sun Wukong ‘flourished’ his staff, Guan Gong ‘brandished’ his great saber, and countless generals ‘played’ with their spears.
What does ‘shua’ mean? In its crudest, simplest understanding, it means to play, to turn, to be flexible, to be versatile. When one can make their moves endlessly varied and agile, with no sense of stagnation between techniques, then they are truly ‘shua’-ing.
As the saying goes, ‘outsiders watch the show, while insiders understand the technique.’ Yan could tell that Guan Ying handled his great saber with considerable skill.
Both men stopped almost simultaneously, their expressions grave as they looked at each other.
After several exchanges, neither had managed to gain an advantage over the other, and through this thrilling contest, neither had even shed a single drop of blood.
“Impressive.”
Yan cupped his hands.
“You as well.”
Guan Ying returned the gesture with a wry smile.
“Let’s stop with the mutual flattery,” Yan said, “After that exchange, I’ve realized our martial arts attainments are quite similar. Continuing this way, it would be difficult to determine a victor.”
Yan spread his left hand, conveying his helplessness.
“Ultimately, this is still an RPG game. So, let’s bring out all our true abilities, integrate them into our skills, and fight with everything we’ve got to decide a winner, shall we?”
“Alright.”
Guan Ying’s cheerful agreement, surprisingly, made Yan feel a bit embarrassed.
Truth be told, if it were purely a martial arts contest, Guan Ying might be evenly matched with Yan, but when considering in-game skills and mechanics, Guan Ying’s chances of winning were indeed very low.
After all, besides his unusually high stats, Yan was undeniably a powerful player with exceptional skill.
Even if his attributes were restricted to be similar to other players by [Weakening Spear], he could still emerge victorious through his superior control.
Such was he, facing Guan Ying’s challenge in the arena, appearing overly confident…
‘As if!’
He currently had no idea how to approach Guan Ying and his Guan Gong saber.
“Alright, I’m coming!”
Guan Ying swept his great saber to his right rear, lowering his stance as if poised to launch an attack.
“Mm.”
Yan replied seriously. To be honest, he really couldn’t grasp Guan Ying’s fighting style.
After all, he had never heard of a corresponding class for the Guan Gong saber in the game, and this was his first time encountering the Guan Gong saber as a weapon type in `Companion God Realm`.
‘What kind of skills could he possibly have?’
Yan watched Guan Ying with apprehension, then saw him move!
“Rainbow Thrust!”
‘Huh?’
Yan froze instantly.
Guan Ying rapidly closed the distance with Yan using the displacement of [Rainbow Thrust], then immediately activated the spear-type skill [Collapsing Spear].
“Backjump!”
Yan quickly snapped back to his senses, using the Backjump skill to evade Guan Ying’s [Collapsing Spear].
“Hey, hey, what’s going on? A Guan Gong saber weapon has no Guan Gong saber skills? Why are you using spear-type skills?”
He grumbled incessantly, voicing the confusion in his heart.
Guan Ying looked at him and smiled, but offered no reply, merely closing in.
Yan scratched his head in exasperation. He had expected the Guan Saber class to have its own set of skills, but it turned out to be spear-type…
Well, long-handled weapons do inherently intertwine and influence each other. Even the ‘Collapse’ (å´©) spear technique in traditional spearmanship was adapted from staff techniques, so a Guan saber using spear-type skills isn’t… isn’t… it’s…
It’s… not strange! That’s right!
Yan finally convinced himself, redirecting his attention back to the battlefield.
Since Guan Ying was using spear-type skills, Yan had nothing to fear. His understanding of his own class skills was now exceptionally profound.
It could be said that in this game, no one wielding a spear could defeat him…
‘Probably?’
Yan nodded confidently, aiming the cold glint of his spear tip at Guan Ying, who was twenty yards away.
“Piercing Flash!”
His form dissolved into an afterimage, and in the blink of an eye, he flickered behind Guan Ying. Wielding the long spear in his hand, he was about to use the [Collapsing Spear] skill to knock Guan Ying airborne and initiate a combo.
But then, Guan Ying suddenly turned around, a playful, shallow smile gracing his face.
‘This isn’t good!’
Yan immediately sensed trouble, canceling his skill to dodge, but it was already too late.
“Forceful Mount Hua Cleave!”
Before Yan could evade, Guan Ying’s great saber chopped down straight towards him. Unlike the previous chop, this one came with a system-determined [skill], not a ‘free attack’ move that Yan could simply block.
The saber strike landed squarely on Yan. Fortunately, the move seemed to lack any crowd control effects. Yan, in a panic, used a reverse Rainbow Thrust to put distance between himself and Guan Ying, only then checking his health bar.
“Holy crap, one hit took out half my health? What kind of insane damage is that?”
Yan exclaimed dramatically, looking at Guan Ying with a hint of disbelief.
“Hahaha…”
Guan Ying seemed unable to contain his laughter, thoroughly amused by Yan’s overly shocked expression, and burst into hearty laughter.
“You absolutely have to explain this to me! That wasn’t a Lancer’s skill, was it?”
Yan felt as though he was being mocked…
‘Oh well, never mind.’
He frowned helplessly, asking with a wry smile.
“Ah… my apologies, my apologies. I wasn’t entirely truthful just now; I just wanted to catch you by surprise…”
Guan Ying pressed his palms together, apologizing sincerely to Yan, though the smile at the corners of his mouth hadn’t quite faded.
“Well, you certainly succeeded…”
Yan shrugged helplessly.
“Pfft, *cough*…”
Guan Ying forcefully suppressed his laughter, then seriously began to explain to Yan.
“This is an inherent ability of my weapon.”
He stood the Guan Gong saber beside him; its tall blade and long handle exuded an imposing aura.
“[Azure Underworld Guan Gong Saber]: ATK+15%, HP+20%, Critical Rate+20%. Inherent Ability: The wielder can simultaneously learn both spear-type and saber-type skills. Skills from both categories can be merged, with their effects and damage stacking and amplifying.”
“That [Forceful Mount Hua Cleave] move just now was a new skill I created by merging four skills: [Collapsing Face] (spear-type), [Cleave] (saber-type), [Mountain-Splitting Saber] (saber-type), and [Earth-Shaking Spear] (spear-type). The damage is also the combined damage of all four skills.”
“Furthermore, I specifically merged them according to the saber techniques I learned in reality, making them incredibly intuitive to use.”
Guan Ying chuckled, a hint of pride in his voice.
Yan’s heart wasn’t just experiencing a small ripple; it was undergoing a veritable tsunami.
“Damn it! Skill merging? And the damage stacks?”
Yan pressed his forehead, wincing.
“This inherent ability of your Companion Weapon…”
“…is simply too overpowered, isn’t it?”