Book 14: Chapter 97
Dragon Emerges from the Clouds
Still sticking to the formation of Bai Yumo at the front and Tang Ye at the rear, Bai Yumo swung for the neck of the man hiding in his cloak. She didn’t allow the fact that she swung fast enough to create small boom sounds to compromise her control of internal energy.
Tang Ye looked relax at the back, almost as if he was going for a stroll, yet there was a faint rhythm to his movements that followed Bai Ju’s breathing. Thus, Bai Ju had no doubt that Tang Ye could instantly surpass Bai Yumo’s speed to coordinate a dangerous attack if he ever deviated from his current rhythm.
The audience couldn’t appreciate the subtleties, but the abrupt and sharp changes in contrast when Tang Ye moved kept them hooked. A heat wave spawned when he stepped with his left and then a chill that made them tremble for a second spread when he stepped with his right foot. They perceived everything in slow motion once Bai Yumo initiated her swing. They subconsciously synchronised their breathing with each other.
Bai Ju recognised the danger of internal energy that could manipulate people around them, and the contrast in his opponents’ slow and fast speeds kept him busy. However, he smiled for he enjoyed the challenge. When you were young, fearless and shining, you had the capital to rude. When you were old and inactive, you expected to be underestimated. At the end of the day, though, one thing never changed in the pugilistic world: might made right. If he feared two young kids, he’d have been unworthy of his reputation.
Bai Ju stood his ground, yet, as the only person standing still, became akin to a titanic iron nail that penetrated a tornado. Unsure what dangers belied that stillness, that base that the nail now covered, Tang Ye and Bai Yumo were persuaded they were in a passive position for a split second. After the split second of doubt past, they realised they had been deceived.
Like a dragon emerging from the clouds, Bai Ju unleashed his whip with the force of an avalanche. The mere gale generated blew their dominant momentum to oblivion.
Tang Ye’s decision to fight Bai Ju head-on was the right call, and he was perfect in its execution. Had it not been for his opponent’s overwhelming strength that didn’t need any flashy embellishments, Tang Ye would’ve had his way.
Bai Ju’s sandstorm not only disconnected the duo, but it almost crushed them, too. Despite the catastrophe-like attack, Tang Ye didn’t budge. Instead, Tang Ye brought his palms together, then blasted out cold and hot energy from them to resist.
Boom! The collision of energy resulted in a big hemisphere over five inches deep forming from the middle of the ring and extending towards the boundary.
Tang Ye had trails of blood running from his nose, while his arms felt as though they had been torn off the bones. The effort paid off as it created an opening above, where there was no hostile energy. He subsequently relaxed his body, stomped the ground and rode the wind Bai Ju created to fly up and out of the tornado’s range.
Bai Ju’s tornado eventually lost its form as a result of Tang Ye sabotaging its core, leaving the ring resembling the aftermath of a natural disaster. Meanwhile, the two who escaped continued to ascend; if Bai Ju didn’t kill them, then they’d fall to their deaths if they kept ascending at that rate.
Bai Yumo performed a spinning side kick at Tang Ye’s waist, sending him back to the ground. Tang Ye opened his eyes, then pulled on the scabbard attached to her sash. The two secured themselves on the ground without any damage, earning a standing ovation from the audience.
“Hahaha, taking a break already? Why don’t you keep your elder company for a little longer?”
Bai Ju tore through the airborne dirt, whipping apart the veil of dirt with sounds that gave him the resemblance of a slithering snake showing its tongue. By the time he said his last word, Tang Ye and Bai Yumo had moved.
Maintaining a fixed distance against a mid-ranged weapon user was foolish; closing the gap and staying in the pocket was the most ideal range. That was one reason Tang Ye deemed it appropriate to fight head on. Bai Ju, nonetheless, wasn’t so foolish or inexperienced that he didn’t realise the typical counters to his style. Treating Bai Ju as an ordinary whip user would be a fatal mistake; in fact, their weaknesses were his best strengths. That was the reason the duo was prepared for an even tougher fight compared to long-range fighting once they bridged the gap. Hence, dodging was their best option for the meantime.
As soon as the two got out of the way, the areas they previously stood split as though someone slammed the ground with an oversized axe.
Every step Bai Ju advanced, concrete would split and stones would shatter. Just as they thought highly of him, he thought highly of his opponents, so he never let himself overcommit. He expended nearly 80% of his internal energy in the last head-on clash and was now resorting to “Dragon Emerges from the Clouds”, one of his last-resort techniques he nigh never had to use. Using it as his first choice upon pulling out Iceriver Whip was extremely rare, and using it against someone younger was a first for him. Never did he expect they could escape his tornado, let alone still be running around.
Although Tang Ye impressed with his strength, it was his abilities to stay calm under duress, come up with a disengagement strategy and have the courage to trade that Bai Ju respected most.
The most lethal part of “Dragon Emerges from the Clouds” wasn’t the destructive potential, but the fact the entire attack was linked, so the last hit did as much damage as the first. Bai Ju wasn’t respected as the best whip user in Beijiang for his destructive power but his precise control of internal energy. As the force was the same at the head as it was at the tail, no matter how clever, sophisticated or strong you were, there was no weak spot to cut it off or escape through. In the meantime, you’d be tired from trying to block Bai Ju’s sneaky attacks simultaneously. When he first came up with the technique inspired by a tornado across a grass plain, his internal energy was nowhere near his current level, yet it was menace to his opponents precisely because of its flawless nature.
“Dragon Emerges from the Clouds” was a technique designed to create an opportunity, not one designed to finish an opponent. Bai Ju didn’t expect Tang Ye to clash with it head on from the start. The counter to the technique was to stop it before you were caught in it since the force would be concentrated on just your front side rather than it spread out all around you. The strategy, however, would’ve backfired if Tang Ye was fighting alone.
While Tang Ye didn’t buy much time, it was enough time for Bai Yumo to escape, and she showed great chemistry when she used the time to cut open an escape route for them. Their chemistry put to shame the couples in the pugilistic world described comparably to fiction.
“You two…”
Tang Ye and Bai Yumo tuned in to hear what their foe had to say.
Bai Ju caressed his chin and finished remarking, “could make a couple.”
The duo was mentally and physically stumped, resulting in them almost getting whipped.
Tang Ye and Bai Yumo: You fight dirty! No mind games!