Chapter 82 - Are Beasts Afraid Of Fire? (1/2)
From his words, Tai Bu understood three things. Jun Qian was exhausted, probably from using his wax domain from the very start of his fight. He had an idea as to who the Light-Breaker Pavilion would send out, and if Jun Qian himself called that person 'powerful', it could only mean the truth.
And last of all, Tai Bu understood that Jun Qian would now fight him completely unrestrained. His full power against Tai Bu in a last attempt to down their numbers.
”He is very talkative during a fight” thought Tai Bu. It was only then he realized the snicker on Jun Qian's lips.
A simple glance down made Tai Bu's heart skip a beat. A tentacle of wax was slowly wrapping around his foot.
How could it have gone unnoticed?! Unknowingly, Tai Bu had stepped in the remnants of Jun Qian's wax domain, which was enough for the latter to activate his technique.
”Luckily for me, my weapon has range” Tai Bu calmed himself, ”Attacking the wax won't do any good. It is not the type of wax that my whip can burn down either. I just have to defeat him from here before the wax takes over me, right?”
The young man unfurled his Flaming Whip, making the air crack with every rotation.
Jun Qian stood in place, in a shallow pool of grey wax. He was trying to conserve his energy as best as possible.
”Tch. I'm still within his whip's reach but I can't get further away or I won't be able to control the wax anymore.”
By a strange twist of fate it seemed like both cultivators reach were similar. But where Jun Qian had the advantage in that his technique was infallible once the wax tentacle had touched their enemy, Tai Bu had another advantage.
The Flaming Whip cracked once. The tip of the whip was much too fast for their eyes to follow. At the last moment, Jun Qian erected a wax shield in front of him.
The second crack of the whip resounded right after the shield had burst into hundreds of pieces. It happened so fast that when the sound reached their ears, the whip was already back above Tai Bu's head, twirling.
”A measly wax shield won't stop me, Brother Jun” Tai Bu said in a low voice while taking a deep inspiration, ”Star-Sword Canon, first form: Cleaving Meteor!”
A ring of soft yellow light appeared above Tai Bu's head. In reality only the tip of the Flaming Whip was glowing as the technique was charging but because of its motion, an entire arc had appeared, casting light onto Tai Bu, making him look like an heavenly apparition.
Jun Qian condensed his wax into a large barrier above his head. In the face of Cleaving Meteor, the area that needed protection was relatively small. The power of the strike, though, added to the momentum of the whip was something that truly terrified him.
Tai Bu's leg had only been taken by the wax up until the knee. Could Jun Qian manage to resist the Flaming Whip's strikes until the wax covered his arms?
It was a risky bet.
C-CRACKK!
The lash of the whip had traced a line of blood along Jun Qian's shoulder, straight to his hip. Had the wax not protected him, the force of Tai Bu's whip would have cleaved him entirely in two pieces.
Jun Qian was breathing heavily, clutching his side with one arm, a crazed look in his eyes that somehow remained cold.
Tai Bu closed his eyes for a split second. The technique he was about to use would end the fight but he needed to concentrate a bit more. He had never attempted it with a whip before, only with swords.
”Star-Sword Canon, second form: Pier-” Tai Bu opened his eyes just in time to see a blurry figure stop behind Jun Qian.
”Nice whip you got there. I wonder how hot its flames are.”
Jun Qian's heart stopped for a brief moment. A voice had spoken behind him, and he instantly knew who the voice belonged to. Not sparing a look toward Tai Bu despite the terrifying attack that was coming, Jun Qian spun on his feet.
”Daoju Kai, you-”
Interrupting the second fighter, this time with actions and not words, Daoju Kai's palm spun to the side. Jun Qian had not managed to even start his sentence when the power of a cannon blasted the side of his face.
A single palm strike sent him flying a few meters before he crashed heavily onto the ground. The Beast Daoju Kai had sent the Wax Master into unconsciousness in one strike.
”-cing Heavens!” Tai Bu finished his incantation before the backlash of having his technique stopped from unleashing struck him. With the power of his wrist, he had managed to change the path of his attack at the last moment, ensuring his whip would go towards Daoju Kai instead of Jun Qian.
”Heh” Daoju Kai struck the ground with both his palms, propelling himself to the side in a rolling motion. The accelerated whip cracked in a deafening manner but only pierced the empty space.
Before Tai Bu could muster up enough energy for another finisher, Daoju Kai was upon him. The latter's speed, hin instincts and his strange technique... All of these combined were definitely bad news for Tai Bu.
”Daoju Kai... So this is the kid, right, Master Breaker?” Patriarch Sen turned his head to look at the person on the large seat behind him.
Master Breaker grinned, ”The oldest son of the subsidiary branch from the Daoju Clan. He couldn't inherit the main branch's beast taming techniques so he turned to the Beast Style.”
Next to him, the old Gen She, the Keeper of Beasts, perked his head immediately. The Daoju Clan was known in the entirety of Blue Fire Country as the best spirit beasts cultivators. It was said that the head of the clan had a personal arsenal of over twenty fighting creatures.
They made a fortune by selling their beasts here and there, assisting governments and revolutionaries alike. Before their strength, one could only bow as the number of fighting beasts they had amassed was enough to overthrow an entire country.
”The Beast Style truly is a wonder. Who could have thought that this kid would manage to assimilate it so well in such a short time” the Beast Master said out loud.
Master Breaker answered, his face gaining another degree of seriousness, ”Kai is a very special child. It is a blessing for us that the Daoju Clan kicked him out. From his youth he has always been with and admired spirit beasts. His instinct is on par with that of a ferocious fighting creature. What's more, his Beast Style, leaving strategy behind and fully relying on his instinct and strength is something only he can do.”
Patriarch Sen blinked, although his eyes seemed to already know the answer ”Why is that?”
Master Breaker sighed ”The Beast Style is a constant all-out attack form. Every move he makes is an attack. Defence is not part of his vocabulary, neither is being passive. In such a constant state of body, he would break after a few minutes of fighting but Daoju Kai... For a boy his age, his Sea of Shinsoo is three times as large as anyone else.”
Three times as large... Although his Shinsoo was only of Liquid Realm third step quality, the sheer amount of it he had in his dantian was enough to constantly power-up a technique like the Beast Style. Only Shin Sumi, with her sixty four opened Shinsoo Doors, could maybe rival with such a deep well of energy. And even then, she had less Shinsoo in her Shinsoo Sea, instead having a higher grade of energy.
Daoju Kai... truly deserved his daoist name The Beast. As if he was spitting on the entire way of the clan who had rejected him, where they were beast masters he himself was the beast.
Daoju Kai enjoyed himself to the fullest. Like a Shadow Blossom Tiger, his claws were ripping the ground open with every move as soon as his instinct told him to move.
Tai Bu's Flaming Whip had so much trouble catching Daoju Kai that it seemed like it was avoiding him. Daoju Kai's instinctual fighting spirit was so developed that even the slightest twist of Tai Bu's wrist made him jump, before the whip could even start moving.
”He's my natural enemy, he might as well be predicting my strikes” Tai Bu thought. For some reason he was really calm, even though Daoju Kai was constantly getting closer to him.
On the opposite side, Daoju Kai too was very calm. He completely relied on his body to act, every move an attack, as always. But his mind wasn't void.
”I can't get too close. Even my reflexes aren't fast enough against his whip when I'm in a three meter... no, four meter radius. If I want to reach him there are three ways. Wait until he's drained, wait until that girl from the Cloud-Formation team gets here or catch his whip.”
Daoju Kai grinned. On all fours, all of his muscles tensed, his long nails turned into claws imbued with Shinsoo, he really looked like a devilish human beast.
”I am not going to wait any longer, prepare yourself Tai Bu! I am unbeatable!!”
Taking advantage of one of Tai Bu's attacks, Daoju Kai steadied himself. Just like any other attack coming at him, Tai Bu expected him to evade using his insane reflexes.
But instead, Daoju Kai stayed in position and let the whip strike him.
BANG
The clash of the weapon against the Beast's arm was felt throughout the entire Underground Arena. Daoju Kai's mouth splurted a bit of blood and his vision grew dim for a split second but he endured it.