Rising Wave, as a foundational move, isn't simple because of its sword technique.
It is a beginning.
All the sword techniques of the "Six Forms of Ice" derive from Rising Wave. With this initial move, the surrounding energy is already disturbed by the sword's momentum, but because the spiritual energy unleashed by the sword tip is invisible, one might mistakenly think nothing has changed.
It's like a pebble falling into a lake; it seems to disappear without a trace, but the calm of the water's surface has already been broken.
The opponent is already caught in the trap.
With just the first move, Li Changhua's arrogance was reduced by seventy percent, and this was without Tao Mian going all out.
Tao Mian certainly didn't want to defeat his opponent too quickly.
He should at least let him finish teaching the second form!
Good teachers are common, but such resilient sparring partners are rare.
Li Changhua had already sensed the vast disparity in their strengths. As the one involved, he could more intuitively feel the power of that move.
The best course of action for him now would be to immediately concede and admit he couldn't match his opponent.
But in front of these hundreds of people, if he, the one who provoked first, were to lose, how would the Tongshan Sect view him? What would his fellow disciples say about him?
Li Changhua couldn't accept this blow.
Being beaten and humiliated or conceding in public, he chose the former.
He raised his sword again.
Tao Mian knew his stubborn nature wouldn't easily yield. This was within his expectations.
He still stood behind Shen Bozhou.
"Little Six, watch the direction of his sword energy. I've taught you."
Tao Mian spoke softly from behind Shen Bozhou, a voice only the two of them could hear.
Shen Bozhou nodded.
Although he couldn't make progress in sword techniques, through his relentless efforts, his five senses had greatly improved compared to before.
While in the mountains, Tao Mian had specifically trained him.
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Just like back then, Little Tao Immortal infused a wisp of spiritual power into his brow, instructing him to close his eyes, follow the spiritual power in a trance, and describe what he saw, heard, smelled, and felt.
Rain. Dampness.
Narrow cobblestone street. Dripping eaves.
Oil-paper umbrella. Green skirt hem.
A young girl hurriedly crossed through the rain, holding an unopened umbrella, her face obscured by it.
At this moment, Tao Mian withdrew his hand, smiling as he watched his sixth disciple slowly open his eyes, lightly tapping above his left brow.
Little Tao Immortal said he saw a distinct mole on the girl's brow.
Indeed, a master is always a master.
Shen Bozhou now focused, his gaze quietly fixed on Li Changhua opposite him.
Waiting for the opponent to make the first move.
Li Changhua seemed to have been shadowed by the previous sword strike, taking a long time to mentally prepare himself.
He took a deep breath and swung his sword again!
This move was more complex than before, raising a storm of sand and wind, making it difficult to see. Shen Bozhou instinctively wanted to close his eyes, but Tao Mian's voice, like a wind chime under the eaves, sounded from behind him.
"Little Six, keep your eyes open, you can see it."
Shen Bozhou always listened to his master. Although the fierce wind blew everything into chaos, and the flying sand tried to invade his eyes, he kept them open, striving to see through the opponent's sword momentum.
He saw it.
The sandstorm obstructed his vision but also clearly revealed the flow of sword energy. Shen Bozhou saw a stream of energy moving against the wind, rising from below, followed by another horizontal sword strike.
Two streams of sword energy, one after the other, in different directions. Shen Bozhou reported back to his master.
"Little Taoist Tao, I see it clearly."
"Very good."
Tao Mian never hesitated to praise his disciple's progress. He once again controlled the Frost Cold in Liu Chuan's hand.
A sword of cold suddenly arose, a sword of frost intention was born.
This time, the sword's starting technique was noticeably different from before. Frost Cold drew a small, unclosed arc in the air, about the size of a plate.
As the arc became visible, it expanded, gradually encompassing a standing person, and continued to expand outward.
The tip of Frost Cold remained in the same position, with a continuous flow of spiritual power, waves of spirit emanating from the sword tip.
The crowd didn't understand why Shen Bozhou's sword was like this, but soon, when Li Changhua attacked, they immediately understood.
Shen Bozhou's body moved.
His sword seemed to casually tap two points in the air, and from those points, two extremely fierce streams of sword energy erupted. Those two streams of sword energy, like deep pools with strong suction, devoured the two previous sword strikes from Li Changhua!
Li Changhua suddenly felt as if he had entered an invisible quagmire. He could clearly see the opponent's position, but he couldn't get closer, his legs and torso felt as if they were being heavily dragged by water ghosts, almost causing him to kneel!
It turned out that the initial "arc" had become a swamp filled with spiritual power. Anyone who mistakenly entered would face the fate of being swallowed!
Li Changhua gritted his teeth, refusing to kneel. Fortunately, his arms could still move freely. He raised his heavy sword with effort, striking down. Yet, a single sword easily blocked the heavy sword's blade.
Shen Bozhou's eyes were emotionless. When their gazes met, Li Changhua saw those eyes clearly.
At that moment, he felt as if he was being looked down upon by a godlike statue.
Those eyes shouldn't belong to someone so young.
He hesitated for a moment, his sword faltering. At this point, Shen Bozhou's hand gently twisted, the Frost Cold sword clinging tightly to the heavy sword's blade.
He heard Tao Mian's voice once more.
"Little Six, this second form of the Ice Six Forms is a move to deal with multiple opponents. Even though there's only this foolish boy in front of you, I'll demonstrate it for you."
Shen Bozhou couldn't help but hold his breath.
The confrontation between the two attracted everyone's attention. The silence of this moment was particularly abrupt, with disciples widening their eyes, fearing to miss a second.
Tao Mian's hand, one of which was behind his back, bent at the wrist, four fingers lightly raised.
In the next instant, a sudden change occurred in front of the martial arts stage! In the previously empty space, dozens of points of spiritual power explosions suddenly appeared! Li Changhua, caught in one of them, let out a scream, struck down by the powerful and concentrated force. The disciples standing in the front row were also extremely unlucky, with four or five of them getting caught up in it!
Sect Leader Wu and Elder Daochen, seeing the situation turning unfavorable, quickly set up barriers to protect the disciples on the field, but their actions were already a bit late. Those affected disciples lay on the ground, wailing in pain.
As for Li Changhua, who was at the core, he was the most unfortunate, already knocked unconscious by the spiritual power.
The Tongshan Sect was in chaos from the sect leader to the disciples, while Tao Mian leisurely continued to impart the secret techniques to his disciple.
"One sword forms a circle, a swamp grows within. Those trapped in this swamp will find their feet sinking and bodies falling, unable to gain freedom. Disciple, this is the second form—Sinking Swamp."
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