95 Chapter 94: Esoteric Five Elements (1/2)
I dodged. Wu Xing's fist hit the ground, the tremendous impact causing a slight quake. Fortunately, I was already moving and avoiding falling over in an embarrassing manner. Using Tui, I retreated to a safe distance.
I was mistaken.
”Hah!”
Wu Xing threw out a hand and a stream of fire erupted. My eyes widened when I saw the ranged attack surging toward me and I twisted my feet in reflex to change the trajectory of my retreat. The stream of flames roared past, almost scalding my cheek and arm.
”Phew!”
Realizing there was nowhere I could truly be safe within the arena, I decided to close in and instead capitalize on what I believed to be my advantage in close combat. Using Jin, I dodged another burst of flames and closed in, swinging around for a roundhouse kick.
Bam!
Wu Xing parried the blow with both his arms, then followed up with a counterattack that threw me off my feet and sent me staggering away. I ducked his next punch and retaliated with a kick, but he jabbed his elbow down to block my foot and then threw a hook with his other arm. I dodged that one by dropping to the ground, then swung my leg out to knock him off his feet, but he jumped back before throwing his right arm down to hurl a fireball at me.
Boom!
I managed to deflect that one by freezing the space around me. A thick fog materialized as ice clashed against fire, the temperatures wildly swinging from one extreme end to another. I then stumbled out of the fog, coughing.
”Hmph.”
”?!”
Wu Xing was unfazed, and he threw a blazing punch that ripped through most of the fog, almost catching me in the face. I took a step back, just narrowly moving to a position just out of his reach, and then responded with a kick to his chest.
”Kuh!”
The leg was longer than the arm, and thus he was within my kicking reach even though I was out of his punching reach. The kick caught him by surprise and he staggered back. However, as my counterattack was hasty, it didn't seem to do much damage.
”You!”
I dropped to the ground when my opponent swung his arm forward, blasting the space above my scalp and hair with a torrent of flames. I tried to sweep my opponent off his legs, but this time he was prepared, shifting his feet to block my kick.
Wu Xing then slammed his foot down, hoping to stomp on me, but I managed to roll away. Hopping to my feet, I lashed out with a reflexive kick to lengthen the distance between us. Wu Xing, however, realized my intention and swiftly switched tactics, throwing out a hand to bath me in flames. I cursed as I was blasted backward, my body smoldering from the heat.
”Oh, you survived that?”
Sneering, Wu Xing closed in while I was still trying to get up. I immediately froze his next burst of flames, conjuring a wall of ice. Wu Xing remained undaunted, and he smashed through the wall of ice with a lightning fist that resembled Qi Fu Ren when he was live.
”Metal element now?”
My eyes widened and I hastily threw up my arms to block Wu Xing's punch in reflex. His fist struck my crossed arms and a vicious current of electricity instantly coursed through my body, electrocuting me.
”Argh!”
”Just get knocked out already!”
Spinning about, Wu Xing threw another lightning punch that I managed to block, but just barely. This time, I gathered my inner qi to form a defense against the invasive lightning, but even then the punch still did a fair amount of damage to me.
My body fuming, I used Tui to widen the distance between us. Wu Xing switched back to fire, throwing a fireball from long range, but I managed to freeze that projectile before it hit me.
”Huff…”
Breathing heavily, I wiped the blood from my mouth. That lightning punch didn't just electrocute me, it also delivered quite a bit of internal damage. Nothing debilitating, though. As long as I could recover my breath, I was still ready to go.
”Always freezing my fire, huh? How about this, then?”
Scowling, Wu Xing threw another punch, but this time plants erupted in place of the flames. I ducked a whip from a particularly vicious vine, then used my footwork techniques to escape a sudden growth of a thorny thicket. Wooden branches coiled before lashing out violently, vines tried to ensnare me, and razor-sharp leaves tried to cut me.
I had to continue moving, using consecutive footwork to dodge the wild, rampant growth of trees. Wu Xing was certainly displaying his mastery of the five elements here, using wood element now. Cursing, I froze an encroaching thicket of thorny plants and foliage with ice, but the rest of the wood seemed to absorb the moisture and grow more uncontrollably.
This guy…!
He was strong…much stronger than any opponent I had ever faced. His skills surpassed even Wu Hei Gui…no wonder Wu Hei Gui lost to him.
However, it wasn't as if I was completely helpless before him.
Gathering qi into my hands, I executed Ghost Shadow Sword. Shadowy, icy blades materialized around me and cut the plants apart. With a yell, I dashed forward with Jin, carving a path through the thicket of brutal plants with multiple shadowy swords, and headed straight for the gloating, unmoving Wu Xing.
I realized I could end this if I knocked out the controller.
”Oh? That's a technique I haven't seen before.”
Wu Xing seemed more amused than alarm. Throwing a hand upward, he conjured a wall of flames to thwart my progress, but I merely froze it. Smashing through the glacial wall, I swung my ice shadow swords down on him.
”Kuh!”
Realizing that he could no longer afford to underestimate me, Wu Xing stomped on the ground. A wall of earth erupted from the floor this time, partially to block my attack, and partially as a form of offense. A few spiky rocks surged toward me, seeking to impale me.
”Uwaaaaah!”
Bellowing, I swung my ice shadow swords, seeking to either obliterate the ice wall or freeze it, but to my amazement the sturdy surface held strong. I did manage to shatter the rock spikes that were thrusting toward me, but after much effort and at the cost of several of my ice shadow swords. Heaving, I jumped back to get out of the spiky rocks' range.
Five elements principle…earth counters water.
That must be why my ice attacks – which was primarily based off the element of water – were not as effective against Wu Xing's earth barrier. Clicking my tongue, I decided to find a way around it. Making use of my footwork, I dodged the remaining spiky rocks and circled around to exploit an opening.
Fortunately, while earth was strong, sturdy and unyielding, it was also cumbersome and slow. Unlike the fast, brutal and aggressive attacks of fire, or the flexible, nimble wood, earth relied on overwhelming power to compensate for its lack of speed and agility. Even so, I was certain there was an area of vulnerability.
I just needed to find it.
”Hah!” Wu Xing cried out, his voice muffled. The next moment, I saw a torrent of flames erupt toward me.
As I suspected, Wu Xing had to lower part of his defenses to execute an attack of a different element, otherwise the contrasting qi would clash against each other. Seizing the opportunity, I advanced and closed in on his position, hurling an icy shadow sword through the opening. Wu Xing's eyes widened and he quickly threw up a clod of earth to plug the gap in his defenses, which caused my sword to shatter upon impact.
Twirling in midair, I kicked the stream of flames and immediately froze it. Sliding down on the frozen path I had just forged for myself, I ran a few meters before jumping up – just as a row of spiky rocks obliterated the ice bridge – and threw myself forward. Flipping in midair and weaving through a dozen rocky spikes trying to impale me, I landed right on top of the almost dome-shaped barrier of earth that Wu Xing had created to protect himself.
Seismic Step.
BOOM!
”Ugh!”
Within the earth barrier, Wu Xing felt a shockwave hit him like a truck, pinning him down to the ground and crushing him. A spurt of blood erupted from his mouth as he squirmed underneath the overwhelming pressure, his body almost ripped apart by the powerful strike.
Fortunately for him, his earth barrer had absorbed most of the blow, so he only sustained ”minimal” damage. Far from being incapacitated, he slowly climbed back to his feet, wiping the blood from his mouth and glaring at me.
”You…”
I replied with a kick. Wu Xing dodged and then retaliated with a Lightning Punch, sure that his flaming attacks no longer had much of an effect. His eyes narrowed when he realized that he couldn't afford to underestimate me.
”Were you hiding your true strength all this while? I've never heard of anyone outside of the Four or Five Star Constitution cultivators being able to break through my defenses! Just who the hell are you? Aren't you supposed to be a One Star Constitution cultivator?”
”That's the problem with you guys. You place too much stock and value in all these arbitrary measurement systems and view people according to talent, ranks, stages, levels or whatever. But something like a human's potential can never be captured by anything as mundane as numbers…they can never be quantified properly!”
With a yell, I executed another kick that forced Wu Xing to back off. Gritting his teeth, he threw his arm forward.
”What bullshit…don't underestimate me!”
This time, he unleashed a forceful torrent of water that would have pierced a hole through me, had I not dodged it in time. Wu Xing then followed up with punches and kicks that swirled with massive waves of water, threatening to flood the room and sweep me away in their irresistible currents, washing everything away.
”You're the one who is underestimating me.”
Instead of going with the flow, I stomped on the ground and executed my Heaven and Earth Yuan Yin Frost technique, freezing the entire training room in one go. The waters and currents all turned into ice, frozen in place and unmoving.
”Have you forgotten who you are facing?”
”You…!”
Evidently he had. Wu Xing backed off, his face pale. I didn't care, smashing through the ice to kick him in the chest. Realizing that he was cornered, Wu Xing decided to confront this attack head-on. With a determined roar, he surged forward, lightning crackling around his fist as he met my kick. Our strikes and qi collided in a massive explosion that obliterated the ice all around us, sending the glacial crystals raining down around us like snow.
”Huff…huff…”
The intense lightning had vaporized the ice around him into steam, wreathing the kneeling Wu Xing in a protective electric aura. As for me, I was forced to back off a few steps, and was trying to regain my balance and breathing.
Both of us regarded each other warily, acknowledging the other's strength grudgingly. Let down my guard, and I would be the one on the floor. Wu Xing realized the same went for him, and he wearily climbed to his feet.