Chapter 41
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Chapter 41: Qian Ruming’s Magical Weapon
Lou Yun’s body bent slightly. He pushed off with his feet, shooting straight toward Qian Ruming. The Stone Sword swept horizontally. Without using any weapon techniques, he thrust it directly at Qian Ruming’s chest.
Not employing weapon techniques didn’t mean he was holding back. It was meant to test the waters, to probe Qian Ruming’s limits.
Qian Ruming remained expressionless. Only when the coldly gleaming Stone Sword was about to pierce her chest did her feet flow backward like drifting clouds.
Lou Yun’s probe, of course, wouldn’t be so simple. The instant the sword tip met empty air, the blade suddenly dropped downward. Its tip touched the ground and pushed hard. The Stone Sword’s thick, heavy blade bent under the pressure. Lou Yun used this recoiling force to propel his entire body into the air. Flipping upside down in mid-air, he lifted his leg and slammed it down fiercely towards Qian Ruming.
Qian Ruming could still have dodged. However, having seen the two footprints Lou Yun left on the bluestone floor earlier, she deliberately wanted to test how strong his force was. So she raised her right arm to meet Lou Yun’s descending leg.
"Bang!"
Arm and leg collided. Lou Yun clearly felt a far more powerful recoil surge up his leg. His body flipped over again in the air before landing two meters away.
Impressive force indeed!
Qian Ruming was inwardly surprised. Given Lou Yun’s current status as a beginner two-star magical weapons master, he shouldn’t logically be capable of generating such a powerful force. Could it be this kid specifically trained in body refinement? Seeing him attack using a common weapon, that must be it. Though it was puzzling why he would choose to learn body refinement like a common weapons master instead of cultivating with a magical weapon.
Although Liu Chi had indeed sent someone to give a heads-up, he hadn’t mentioned a single detail about Lou Yun. Therefore, within the entire Ancient Weapon Academy, only Lou Qian and Liu Ruyan truly knew Lou Yun’s background. Qian Ruming naturally wouldn’t guess that Lou Yun hadn’t even possessed a magical weapon before the age of sixteen.
The instant Lou Yun’s feet touched the ground, without any pause, he pushed off with his toes and charged forward again.
"Star-tier upper-level weapon technique, Sword Dance of Wind and Thunder!"
This time, Lou Yun employed a weapon technique!
The Stone Sword whirled through the air, transforming into a black streak of lightning accompanied by rumbling thunderclaps, crashing down towards Qian Ruming.
When Lou Yun had first used this move, there had only been faint thunder. Now the thunder was this clear, a testament to his significantly enhanced weapon spirit power.
The corner of Qian Ruming’s mouth lifted slightly. With a flick of her wrist, a crisp series of "click-clack" sounds rang out. An abacus, palm-sized, appeared in her hand.
"Clang!"
The Stone Sword slammed heavily onto the beads of the abacus. Sparks flew instantly. The tremendous impact forced Lou Yun to stagger back rapidly.
Qian Ruming’s feet, however, seemed rooted to the spot, unmoving.
"No wonder she’s called Qian Ruming. Her magical weapon is actually an abacus! Who knows what she was thinking when she condensed it!" Lou Yun stared at the abacus in Qian Ruming’s hand, his mind racing for his next move. "Still, worthy of being a mystery rank three-star magical weapons master. My attacks are basically useless against her!"
Qian Ruming waved the abacus in her hand, grinning as she said, "Now it’s my turn to attack!"
The words were barely out of her mouth when Lou Yun saw only a blur before his eyes. Accompanied by the crisp clicking of abacus beads, the abacus was already right in front of him.
So fast!
Lou Yun was inwardly horrified. His body desperately flipped backward, bending almost into a ninety-degree angle. He narrowly avoided the blow.
Standing back up, an idea suddenly flashed in Lou Yun’s mind!
No matter how Qian Ruming attacked, her abacus had a fatal flaw: when used, the beads collided, creating noise. This was like a warning bell! He could use this sound to dodge her attacks. At the very least, he could hold out for a few more rounds!
Qian Ruming seemed unwilling to give Lou Yun a chance to catch his breath either. Her figure flashed as she attacked again. Lou Yun relied on his hearing, following the direction of the sound, and thrust his sword fiercely towards it.
Yet, at that very moment, he saw Qian Ruming’s face before him twist into a strange smile. Immediately after, he distinctly heard the exact same clicking sound of abacus beads coming from behind him!
Two identical sounds rang out simultaneously, one in front, one behind!
Lou Yun had no time to figure out what was happening. Gritting his teeth, the Dream Emperor Sword materialized in his right hand. Without looking, he thrust backward towards the source of the sound behind him.
"Clang! Clang!"
Two crisp clanging sounds rang out, and Lou Yun’s body trembled in response, with a numbing sensation simultaneously rushing through both his arms. He looked up and saw Qian Ruming standing before him with a smile spread across her face.
Lou Yun’s pupils suddenly contracted sharply, for he noticed that each of Qian Ruming’s hands was gripping an abacus.
"Haha, kid, were you trying to judge my attack position through the sound of my abacus beads clashing? That’s a clever thought," Qian Ruming shook both abacuses while speaking, not a single sound escaping from them.
In an instant, Lou Yun understood. Qian Ruming had deliberately let him hear the clashing sounds earlier, all to mislead him into a wrong judgment. In truth, her abacus could both produce sound and remain silent, and it could even split into two separate ones.
Truly powerful!
It was praise spoken from the bottom of Lou Yun’s heart, yet he felt no discouragement or despair over Qian Ruming’s strength; instead, it ignited his competitive spirit.
Seeing the smile appear on Lou Yun’s face, Qian Ruming laughed inside her mind. She was growing fonder of this kid—despite clearly being at a disadvantage, he never faltered but fought with increasing bravery, a mentality truly admirable.
"Kid, you’ve survived five moves now. You’ve been assigned to the C-level group for newcomers!"
C-level?
Lou Yun thought of Lou Qian, who was precisely in the C-level group. Although he longed to join her there, he had no intention of giving up now. Never before had he encountered such a formidable opponent who allowed him to unleash all-out attacks freely, and he couldn’t waste this chance!
The onlookers watched with gasps of delight; the fight was incredibly thrilling. Lou Yun’s ability to wield two completely different weapons at once with both hands matched Qian Ruming’s use of abacuses simultaneously, creating a feel of an evenly matched contest. Thus, most of the spectators inwardly hoped Lou Yun could last as long as possible against Qian Ruming.
Next, Lou Yun lunged forward again, the Dream Emperor Sword in his left hand and the Stone Sword in his right, sometimes attacking simultaneously and other times separately. Occasionally, he even added kicks or knee strikes—in short, Lou Yun employed all his abilities to unleash a continuous barrage of attacks on Qian Ruming.
Yet, this almost frantic assault posed almost no threat to Qian Ruming, who always dodged each strike with effortless ease.
Qian Ruming focused solely on evasion without counterattacking because she aimed to observe what weapon techniques Lou Yun knew. But after watching for a while, she felt slightly disappointed; the kid seemed to know only one weapon technique, and just a single move at that!
No sooner had this thought crossed her mind than Lou Yun charged straight at her with the Stone Sword. Qian Ruming raised her abacus and blocked it easily.
Previously, when blocked, Lou Yun would retreat quickly or switch tactics. This time, though, he didn’t retreat but gave a slight smile and shouted loudly, "Explode!"
A bright ball of light suddenly flared on the Stone Sword from Lou Yun rapidly intensifying his spiritual energy. The light grew increasingly brilliant, followed by a "boom" as it exploded open.
Blinding flashes of intense light scattered in all directions, with dust flying up from the powerful explosion. Smoke billowed from the blast, nearly blanketing the entire open area.
After a long moment, the smoke finally cleared, revealing the scene. Lou Yun stood unharmed since he had already flown back to escape the instant of the explosion, though his eyes held a trace of disappointment.
About three meters away stood Qian Ruming. Despite being directly hit by the explosion, she showed no injuries—her body was shielded front and back by her two abacuses, fully expanded for protection in that critical split-second.
Lou Yun’s earlier frantic attacks had all been preparation for this one technique: Sword Piercing Cloud Shadows. He had succeeded in executing it, but Qian Ruming’s strength proved overwhelming.
Originally, Lou Yun’s spiritual energy only allowed him to use this explosive move once a day. But after upgrading his magical weapon and increasing his spiritual energy, he could now deploy it at least twice.
The sudden explosion caught Qian Ruming off guard. If not for her swift reaction, she might have avoided injury but at least suffered some awkwardness. Now seeming angered, her face stiffened as she said, "Kid, I’m getting serious next!"
At the same time, Qian Ruming flexed her hands, gripped the now-body-sized abacuses standing before her, gave them a quick shake, and the two clashed together, emitting an ear-splitting clang.
The naked eye could clearly see a brilliant white light flare up on both abacuses, so dazzling it was utterly blinding. With a roar from Qian Ruming, countless white shadows surged like a tidal wave, hurtling toward Lou Yun.
"Mid-tier moon-grade weapon technique, Thousand Bead Barrage from the Iron Calculation Tactic!"
Hearing the name, the spectators were stunned. Many had witnessed this move before, knowing it was among Qian Ruming’s strongest techniques. But now, she was unleashing it on Lou Yun, who seemed unlikely to withstand it.
Lou Yun saw only a dense swarm, endless shadows suddenly appearing above and below him. Focusing, he realized they were abacus beads from the abacus—enforced with Qian Ruming’s spiritual energy, their number had multiplied over tenfold. Zipping at high speeds with a whooshing sound, they flew directly at him.
If those abacus beads hit him, Lou Yun’s body would undoubtedly become riddled like a sieve!
Of course, Lou Yun knew the outcome couldn’t be that dire, as Qian Ruming would never use her full strength—that would be intentional murder.
Lou Yun’s expression instantly turned grave. He recalled he had a move perfect for this moment: the final technique of Sword Dance of Wind and Thunder, which he hadn’t used until now.
Lou Yun suddenly swung his arm, sheathing the Stone Sword on his back, then took the Dream Emperor Sword into his right hand and gripped it firmly with both hands at his center.
As a gentle white light began to glow, Lou Yun hurled the Dream Emperor Sword into the air.
"Star-tier upper-level weapon technique, Rain-Sweeping Waterfall from Sword Dance of Wind and Thunder!"
The Dream Emperor Sword split sharply in midair into two blades. One burst into a dazzling white light, shattering into granular particles like raindrops. It arced like a waterfall, cascading through the sky and showering earthward—naturally meeting Qian Ruming’s incoming abacus beads.
Raindrops versus abacus beads!
