284: Chapter 143 Sword Sect Discusses the Dao_5 284: Chapter 143 Sword Sect Discusses the Dao_5 An Enlightenment Sword Peak disciple asked with a distressed expression, “Why are you asking him?”
Cao Zhen answered as if it were obvious, “Asking him naturally means to seek him out for a Dao debate.”
The crowd had just lost the sword debate, and it was the kind of defeat that left them battered and bruised.
Each of them was already in a foul mood, and now seeing Cao Zhen, who had just lost money yesterday, they all felt infuriated.
“You want to debate Dao with him?
Do you know that he only debates swordsmanship, so if you challenge him, it will be a sword debate.
You, a disciple of the Sword Sect, want to challenge him in swordsmanship?”
“Peak Master Cao, have you gone mad?
Do you know to what level Wu Jianzi has grasped the theories of the Sword Dao?”
“Wu Jianzi has come this far because none of us who prioritize the Sword Dao could stand in his way.
Even more to the point, and pardon the bluntness, he didn’t stay at the Podium of Succession of each peak longer than it took him to travel to it.
All of us debate Dao with him, and with just a sentence or two, he leaves us speechless and unable to retort.
And you want to challenge him to a sword debate?”
“Do you even know the state of your Four Treasures Peak?”
“The reason why Four Treasures Peak ended up last is precisely because you couldn’t recognize your own limits, and now, without any self-awareness, you want to go and debate swordsmanship?”
“As a Peak Master, if you go up there and lose, you will bring great shame upon yourself!”
“You would just bring more disgrace to our Hundred Peaks Sect!”
At Cao Zhen’s side, Yan Yourong drew her Grieving Anger Dragon Blade with a clang and said, “You dare insult my master!”
“You Rong, let’s not bother with them for now.”
Cao Zhen stopped the eager Yan Yourong and spoke, “The Sect Leader True Person said to find a way to keep the other party for three days, and the people from the other peaks should also step up.
What, you want the Sect Leader True Person?”
“We never said that.
You want to go find him?
Flying Sword Peak, Wu Jianzi should have already gone to the last Flying Sword Peak by now.”
Upon hearing this, Cao Zhen did not delay any further and immediately boarded the Immortal Cloud Carriage, dashing towards Flying Sword Peak.
Among all the sword peaks of the Hundred Peaks Sect, Flying Sword Peak was the strongest.
After this round of the Hundred Peaks contest concluded, Flying Sword Peak’s ranking was third, only behind Flying Immortal Peak and Five Elements Peak.
At the foot of Flying Sword Peak.
On the enormous Podium of Succession, a young man dressed in white stood with his hands behind his back and a smile on his face, exuding a sense of grace and elegance.
Face-to-face with him, several Flying Sword Peak disciples bore a gravity to the utmost degree, and at a distance, yet more disciples from Flying Sword Peak were scratching their heads and pondering earnestly.
Suddenly, among the group of Flying Sword Peak disciples, one dressed in black with a solemn expression asked, “May I ask Brother Wu Jianzi, in the Way of the Sword, what constitutes speed?”
Wu Jianzi looked at the crowd with a calm gaze and slowly said, “Speed lies in anticipating the enemy’s moves first!”
“Anticipating the enemy’s moves first?” The one who asked the question showed a look of astonishment on his face.
Without any hesitation, Wu Jianzi continued, “When it comes to swordsmanship, everyone pursues a faster speed of drawing the sword.
Those of equal Cultivation Realm and quite similar strength typically have comparable sword-drawing speeds.
So, even if you practice your sword-drawing speed to make it faster, how much faster can it be than others?
However, under the same Cultivation Realm, when two swordsmen confront each other, why does one seem to strike faster?
That’s where anticipating comes into play.
You launch an attack before your opponent makes their move.
You predict what move they will make, then strike before they do.
The enemy’s hand hasn’t even lifted, while your longsword is already targeting their weak spot.
No matter how fast they are, they can’t be faster than you.
Every move a person makes must have certain signs.
Therefore, the essence lies in anticipating the enemy’s moves first.”
Everyone fell silent at once.
Wu Jianzi shook his head lightly—this was it?
His visit to the Hundred Peaks Sect had been a disappointment to him.
He was about to turn and leave.
Within the group of Flying Sword Peak disciples, a voice suddenly rang out, “How can one anticipate the enemy’s moves first?
To achieve this, you must discern your opponent’s techniques, but what if your opponent’s every move leaves no trace to follow, and their swordsmanship is ethereal and elusive, beyond comprehension.
How can you then anticipate the enemy’s moves first?
In the Way of the Sword, to reach the pinnacle, you must forget everything, discard all techniques, and be unfettered by any constraints.
After all, the sword is dead, and the man is alive.”
As the words settled, the surrounding disciples all joined in response.
“That’s right, Brother speaks the truth!”
“Brother’s words are profoundly true.”
“It’s easy to say ‘anticipate the enemy’s moves first,’ but how can one truly achieve it!”
The face of each disciple from Flying Sword Peak shone with intelligence.
Truly fitting for their Brother, Wang Jian, who clinched the fourth spot in this session’s Hundred Peaks contest by comparing methods and competing in spells.
“You do have some merit,” Wu Jianzi nodded slightly, but still without deep thought, he continued, “Attack without defense.
Advance without retreat.
Every move is an attack; by pressuring the enemy to defend, there is no need for you to defend, thus naturally you can anticipate the enemy first.”
“This…” Wang Jian was momentarily taken aback.
The answer was so simple, yet he found himself unable to refute it at the moment.
Disappointed, Wu Jianzi shook his head.
Was this all they could muster?
It seemed he had expected too much.
It was time to move on to the next sect.
“Gentlemen, I would like to inquire about a problem, what is the ultimate realm of the Way of the Sword?”
Below, there was only silence.
Such a question couldn’t be answered casually, and before answering, they had already thought about how the other party would question them in return.
Wu Jianzi looked around at the quiet crowd and turned to walk away from the Dao discussion platform.