After being reborn, all I want to do is run away.

Chapter 69 Offense and Defense Transition

"A swordsman's sincerity lies in the sword!" Shen Xu murmured repeatedly, his eyes regaining their light.

When he looked at the white-robed youth again, he saw not an invincible enemy, but a treasure trove of countless sword techniques.

He now understood Master Qingzhu's good intentions. The reason he made the white-robed youth only defend and not attack was so that those who came here could gain knowledge of swordsmanship. And those who could defeat the white-robed youth with the swordsmanship they learned could obtain the final inheritance he left behind.

A sword was thrust at the white-robed youth, who immediately parried with his own sword. Although this scene had been repeated hundreds and thousands of times, Shen Xu noticed something different during the white-robed youth's sword strike this time.

He initially thought the young man in white had anticipated his attacks, which was why he was able to defend against them every time. However, by sensing the young man's movements, he felt that things weren't so simple, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why.

Since he can't figure it out, he should keep attacking. If once isn't enough, then twice, three times, ten times, a hundred times, a thousand times... As long as he keeps observing and learning, keeps improving his moves, and keeps reducing his weaknesses, he will eventually figure out why the white-robed youth was able to defend against his attacks at the same level.

Time passed slowly. There was no concept of time in the Cloud and Mist Bamboo Realm. He had no idea how much time had passed in the outside world. He only knew that he had attacked the white-robed youth countless times.

From initially attacking haphazardly based on his conscious experience without any strategy, to now combining various attacks such as slashing, thrusting, and parrying to the maximum extent, and even changing his moves multiple times in an instant to deceive the enemy, coupled with the inspiration he gained from his previous life's combat experience, his swordsmanship has made great progress.

But he still never touched the white-clad youth's clothes. After dealing with him for so long, he clearly realized that the white-clad youth's parry could not be achieved by simple prediction. No matter how accurate the prediction was, as long as the sample size was large enough, he would always be wrong once.

But no matter how he changed his moves before attacking, the young man in white never made a single mistake in his prediction. If he wasn't a god, then he must have had other ways to help him.

Suddenly, Shen Xu felt a jolt in his heart, as if a flash of inspiration had crossed his mind, and he instantly grasped a crucial point.

With a mind at ease, the powerful force of water swept across like a whirlwind, quickly dispersing the thin mist that permeated the circular area.

Immediately afterward, he flashed forward like an arrow released from a bow, hurtling towards the white-robed youth. The long sword in his hand gleamed coldly, and he swung it down fiercely with a sharp aura.

Faced with Shen Xu's sudden attack, the white-robed youth remained calm and easily parried with his agile movements and superb swordsmanship, but his actions were no longer as decisive as before.

Shen Xu keenly noticed this change and was overjoyed. He pressed his advantage, flicking his wrist, and the longsword that was originally slashing down suddenly changed direction, thrusting straight towards the white-robed youth's chest like a venomous snake emerging from its hole.

Seeing this, the white-robed youth immediately tried to raise his sword to parry. Just as he was about to defend, Shen Xu changed his move and slashed at his neck. The white-robed youth reacted quickly enough and blocked Shen Xu's attack with his sword in the path of the slash.

Just then, Shen Xu slightly shifted his body, and with lightning speed, his left hand drew the Cold Moon sword from his waist and stabbed it towards the white-robed youth's chest.

Shen Xu had already calculated everything. Since the young man in white chose to block his upward slash with his sword, he would definitely not be able to stop Han Yue's attack.

As Shen Xu expected, the tip of the Cold Moon Sword pierced the air instantly and accurately entered the chest of the white-robed youth.

In an instant, the white-robed youth seemed to let out a painful groan. Then, his body seemed to be enveloped by an invisible force, gradually becoming blurred, and finally turning into a cloud of white mist, dissipating into the void.

Watching the white-robed youth disappear, Shen Xu, who was carrying two swords, breathed a deep sigh of relief. If the white mist surrounding them had still existed, the white-robed youth would have noticed his action of drawing his sword, and in that case, he would never have chosen to block his other attack in that way.

This wasn't the first time he had used a second sword to attack the young man in white, but he hadn't succeeded before.

He should have realized earlier that the young man in white was using the white mist to predict his attacks. But if the young man in white could use it, could he use it too?

Thinking of how the young man in white easily defended against every attack he received using the mist, Shen Xu was immediately captivated.

However, it was clear that his idea was similar to that of Master Qingzhu. Before Shen Xu could recover from the excitement of defeating the white-robed youth, another white mist arrived at the center of the circular area and transformed into a youth figure that looked exactly like the previous white-robed youth. However, it was obvious that this white-robed youth had more lively eyes.

After the young man in white appeared, he picked up the sword that the previous young man in white had dropped, and then looked at him, which immediately set off alarm bells in Shen Xu's mind.

He stared at the distinguished young man in white before him, a strong sense of unease rising within him; his intuition told him that the visitor meant no good.

So, before his opponent could make a move, he preemptively recalled the spreading mist back into the circular area. In an instant, the thick white mist rose again, as if forming a heavy curtain.

However, in that instant when the white mist surged, the white-robed youth's attack swept in like a whirlwind. The sword in his hand moved like a nimble dragon, drawing sharp arcs through the air.

Faced with such a swift attack, he intended to use the mist to predict his opponent's sword moves, just like the previous young man in white. However, it was clear that this young man in white had no intention of giving him any chance to catch his breath.

The sword in the white-clad youth's hand seemed to have a life of its own under his control. The connection between each move was incredibly exquisite, and the transitions between moves were smooth and natural, without any flaws. It was as if it were a masterpiece, like a gazelle hanging its horns without leaving a trace.

As Shen Xu experienced the young man's superb swordsmanship, he was horrified. At this moment, he had no room for any thought of counterattack. He was now in a very passive position, completely led by the nose by the white-robed Taoist, with no room for retaliation.

He was completely on the defensive, struggling to cope with the youth's relentless attacks, and had no time to manipulate the surrounding fog to help him anticipate attacks.

Each attack from the young man in white was exquisitely precise, forcing him to use all his mental strength to counter it. Gradually, he felt increasingly powerless, his mental state strained to the point of near collapse.

Finally, in a fleeting moment, the young man swung the back of his sword with lightning speed, striking Shen Xu's wrist accurately.

With a crisp clang, the longsword that Shen Xu was holding fell to the ground.

Immediately afterward, before Shen Xu could even react, the tip of the young man's sword was already pressed against his neck, the icy touch sending chills down his spine.

In an instant, Shen Xu felt the scent of death spreading, as if an invisible hand was tightly gripping his throat, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.

But in the end, the young man in white did not push the sword forward. Instead, he flicked his wrist, neatly and cleanly retracted the sword, turned around, and stepped back to the center of the circular area.

Seeing this, Shen Xu finally felt a huge weight lifted from his heart. He took a few deep breaths, trying to calm his still rapidly beating heart.

After calming himself down, Shen Xu slowly bent down and picked up the sword that had fallen to the ground. When he stood up again, his eyes became extremely serious. Recalling the thrilling scene just now, he couldn't help but feel lingering fear.

Although he was defeated after only a few moves, at least he wasn't killed in one blow.

However, Shen Xu was also well aware that with his current swordsmanship skills, defeating the white-robed youth was practically a pipe dream.

However, if he could skillfully use the surrounding mist to predict his opponent's attack trajectory, just like that young man in white, then perhaps he would still have a chance of winning.

This is probably the only solution that Master Qingzhu left for the challengers.

"So, it's practically impossible for someone who hasn't grasped the essence of water to inherit the legacy of True Man Qingzhu!" This thought popped into Shen Xu's mind, but he quickly dismissed it. There was no point in him worrying about such things now.

"But how do you predict attacks using white mist?" Shen Xu reached his hand into the white mist, wanting to experiment on himself first.