Ch 6. Show me your best shot

Zhang quickly jumps into the air, catching everyone off guard. Edward’s eyes follow his presence but the faint glare from the sun momentarily blinds him. The seniors stand up from their chairs, not knowing what Zhang is doing.

Zhang swings one of his blades with force. Edward quickly shifted his body to the right to avoid his attack. Kiara stares off in confusion, not knowing what Zhang just did. For a second it looked like Zhang missed.

Just as Edward dodged the offensive strike, the courtyard floor suddenly erupted. A whirlwind of razor-sharp slashes tore through the ground where Edward had stood, slicing through the marble floor.

“What the” Kiara mutters to herself, not knowing what just happened. Anby taps on Kiara’s shoulder, “That was Zhang’s spiritual technique, Kiara.”

“Spiritual technique?” Kiara’s eyes dart back to the battle as Zhang slowly descends back onto the ground. Edward quickly moves over to clash blades with Zhang who blocks it with double katanas. The metallic sounds echoed throughout the courtyard.

“Yeah. A spiritual technique is basically a specialized ability,” Anby calmly explains, as Zhang spun his blade at Edward, forcing him to dodge once again, “ Once you reach a certain point in your training, you're presented with options for your technique.”

Edward fluently steps away from Zhang as he continuously swings his blade towards him. His movements were relentless and precise.

Anby continues, her eyes never leaving the battle, “You choose the technique that resonates with you the most and pours your spiritual energy into it. That’s what gives it its power.”

Kiara’s mind raced as she tried to absorb what Anby said while keeping up with the rapid exchange between Edward and Zhang. She had never seen this type of combat before- one that blurred the line between raw power and something more extraordinary.

Edward swiftly acts fast, disorienting Zhang by moving around him with quick speed. Everything appeared to be like a blur to Kiara, her grandfather’s movements were too quick. The children’s eyes widened further, anticipating Zhang’s next move.

Zhang exhaling heavily, swings his blade at Edward’s shin causing him to wince in pain. Edward quickly repositions himself below Zhang, with his arm outstretched next to his side. His eyes narrowed, his spiritual pressure quickly becoming more intense, then in an instant, “Release.”

In the blink of an eye, a spirit companion- a shinigami, strikes Zhang’s side, causing him to recoil in pain. Edward’s trusty shinigami- a hawk. He swiftly trips Zhang on his feet, causing him to fall on his back on the marble floor. Edward swiftly motions his shinigami to dive straight into Zhang, “ Surge. Thunderbird.”

A wave of electricity engulfs the shinigami transforming it from a normal hawk into a majestic blue bird with yellow highlights on its wings, its eyes sparking electricity. Edward holds Zhang by placing his foot on his chest, making him squirm, trying to get Edward to release him.

“If you want to be released, you should have said so,” Edward calmly explains, stepping off Zhang's chest as the thunderbird dives straight into his chest, electrocuting him for a couple of seconds. Zhang grits his teeth, enduring the shock for several long seconds before the energy finally dissipates.

The crowd watched anxiously, their mouths wide open as the five-second timer started for Zhang who was still lying on the ground. After a couple of seconds, Edward was considered the winner of the round.

Zhang slowly gets up, but the electrical energy still affects his body. The kids mutter amongst themselves. Kiara couldn’t believe that her Grandfather effortlessly defeated Zhang in a duel. Adam smiles to himself, Anby is busy writing down everything she saw, while Seth is busy sleeping next to a pillar, missing the entire battle.

“Edward just defeated Zhang so effortlessly.”

“He just defeated our next Arbiter, “ one kid mutters, “ Our next leader… defeated just like that.”

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Zhang slowly gets back into a fighting stance. Edward’s thunderbird slowly perches itself back on his shoulder, shaking sparks of electricity. Edward raises his sword back and positions himself back into his stance, “ Come on kid. I trained you better than this.”

“Yes, you did,” Zhang coldly mutters. The cloaked man throws his hand down, signaling the second round. The thunderbird quickly launches itself towards Zhang at high speeds. Anticipating this, he swiftly dodges the attack, charging towards Edward, who motions the thunderbird to re-circle itself back to him.

Zhang’s eyes dart around, he quickly swings his blades clashing with Edward’s, and the thunderbird quickly dives itself back into an attack. He releases his blades, dodging the bird’s attack. Zhang was at a disadvantage, he was swiftly dodging and jumping around, clashing with Edward, sparks flying around while also looking out for his shinigami.

“Whoa,” Adam exclaimed, his eyes examining their movements, “ They are giving it their all… and for what? It’s just a sparring match.”

“Who cares? Look at them go,” one of the younger kids yelled out, “ Edward is keeping up with Zhang.”

“It’s like a …whirlwind,” one of the kids whispered, clutching her friend’s arm, as sparks flew from the clashing blades. The thunderbird dives itself towards Zhang, but acting quickly, he blocks it with his double blades. Electricity flies everywhere, but the intense speed knocks the blades out of Zhang’s hands, allowing the bird to hit Zhang black in the chest.

Edward, taking advantage of the situation, charges towards Zhang, whose hands start to glow with spiritual energy. He swiftly swipes his hands in an x shape, Edward’s eyes open wide in confusion and shock. An x-shaped slice appeared on Edward’s chest, causing Kiara to get cold feet. She started panicking, her eyes opening wide in fear. Edward coughs up blood, but a smirk appears on his face, “ Not bad kid.”

Zhang slowly walks over to pick up his katanas, his gaze narrowing on Edward. Quickly getting up, Edward smiles towards Zhang, “How did you do that? I’ve never seen you do that before.”

Zhang raises his blades towards Edward, a smirk growing on his face, "My air slashes are created by embedding spiritual energy into my blades, I just did the same thing with my hands,” he dashes towards Edward, swinging his blades with major force. Edward swiftly blocks it with his blade, sparks flying from both sides.

“I see,” Edward calmly says, his tone soft but impressed. Zhang releases one of his blades to swing it quickly at Edward’s side, but it never makes contact. Edward reacted quickly and pushed Zhang far away from him with great force suddenly- a huge slice appeared on Edward’s side.

I see it was a delayed attack. You made me think you didn’t launch your attack on me, well played. Edward thought to himself, as Zhang rushed over to Edward, putting him into a headlock. His arms and legs quickly locked Edward in place on the ground at high speeds. A shockwave appears as he throws Edward onto the ground.

Everyone’s eyes widened in shock, their mouths frozen, anticipating what was going to happen next. One of the kids started the 5-second timer, their loud voice contrasted with the silence of the crowd.

“That’s the end of round two. Zhang is the winner.” the cloaked man announced to the ground. Many of the kids whispered amongst themselves, not knowing who was going to win now. Some believe that Zhang cheated in the battle. Adam glances to see Kiara digging her fingers into his arm, “ Kiara. Can you please let go?”

Kiara, realizing what she was doing, quickly released her fingers from Adam’s arm, “Sorry. Anxiety crept on me,” her eyes looked in on Edward’s wounds. A few healers arrive to help heal Edward’s wounds.

After a couple of minutes, the matches resumed as usual. The seniors snickered among themselves, their voices stiff and surly. Everyone was patiently waiting for what was going to happen next.

The cloaked man stares blankly at Edward, his eyes devoid of life. Edward walks forward, a wide smile across his face, “You having fun?”

“Not really,” Zhang says, his voice low but his tone uncertain, “This is not supposed to be fun, this is just a simple showing of our strength.” Edward’s eyes narrow at Zhang’s words, disappointed in his answer.

“Do you want to be able to do that, Kiara?” Adam curiously questions. His eyes gaze set on her. Kiara didn’t respond right away, her eyes somber and passive.

They’re fighting on a completely different level… Is this the power I’m supposed to reach? Kiara thinks to herself, clutching her hands into fists. An invisible force rests on her shoulder.

What would happen if I got compared to Grandpa? Something twisted inside her stomach, Would they have high expectations of me- Am I good enough?

At this moment, she couldn’t shake off the feeling of doubt and uncertainty from herself. An unease wrapped around her like a shadow. The results of her future evaluation are still in her mind.

Am I exaggerating things? Am I worrying too much? Kiara’s mind raced, grasping for reassurance, I haven’t seen what all the kids here can do yet… maybe I’m jumping to conclusions.

She tried to shake off the feeling, but the weight of it still hung on her shoulder.

Edward steps forward, his footsteps heavy on the marble floor. The thunderbird circles the area, awaiting Edward’s command. Zhang’s eyes narrow as he raises his blades.

“I’m gonna win this duel,” Zhang’s voice was stern and full of conviction. Edward’s eyes narrow in disappointment, “ I don’t think so kid. I’m still the more experienced one here.”

The cloaked man raises his hand one more time, the crowd anticipates the opponent's next move. In a swift motion, the man’s hand falls, signaling the final round. “Begin.”