Chapter 97 The Power of Game Skills

Chapter 97: Chapter 7: The Power of Game Skills

THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP!

Amidst the rapid, roaring heartbeat, Nie Fei, who had been sent flying by the overwhelming power of the Azure Dragon Shocking Horn, had just landed. However, Feng Yin’s sudden assault arrived in a flash.

Nie Fei remained completely unfazed by the peril. The eyes beneath her helmet grew an even darker shade of red. With a sharp turn, her body moved as if teleporting, executing a triangular displacement. In a split second, she dodged Feng Yin’s Soaring Dragon Sky-Piercing!

At the same time, she appeared at Feng Yin’s side. Without warning, she had already switched to a reverse grip on her blade, thrusting it swiftly toward his lower back.

Absolute Blade: Circulation Kill!

At this moment, Feng Yin’s Fixed Form had not yet ended, leaving him unable to gather new strength. This ingenious evasion and counterattack instantly pushed him into a corner. In the blink of an eye, the two had entered the climax of their battle, and just as quickly, the tide had turned. The students watching from the sidelines couldn’t even react in time.

Xiao Yu saw everything clearly and was terrified that Feng Yin was about to be struck. Yet, even while still in the midst of his Soaring Dragon Sky-Piercing offensive, Feng Yin’s footwork abruptly changed, stomping down heavily in an unexpected shift of direction!

Wolf Leap Step!

Moving like a ghost, his entire body shifted laterally without warning, dodging Nie Fei’s reverse backstab on the spot. Immediately following was a Returning Sword Counter-Cut! The situation reversed once again!

At this time, Nie Fei had just recovered from the extremely brief stiffness of the Circular Kill Fixed Form. Just as she was about to pull back to defend herself, she found that Feng Yin’s Dragon and Snake Sword had firmly stopped right against the side of her neck.

Game over!

Outside the arena, Xie Jingyuan and Ding Qi, who had been watching with great interest, both experienced a sharp glint in their eyes. Ding Qi whipped his head around to look at Xie Jingyuan, his rugged, warrior-like face full of jealousy. "He’s only at the Fierce Upper tier, yet he can actively initiate Fixed Formation Techniques? Where did you find this monster?"

Xie Jingyuan was equally astounded inside, but his composure was impeccable. He merely revealed a mysterious smile. "Old Ding, true super geniuses can always achieve the impossible." In a cheerful mood, he gently patted the disgruntled Ding Qi. "Your disciple isn’t bad either. She almost won."

"Cut the crap." Ding Qi aggressively jerked his shoulder, knocking Xie Jingyuan’s hand away, his beard practically bristling. "Old Xie, oh, Old Xie, I never knew you could be so smug!"

Xie Jingyuan’s lips curled up. "How could it be the same?"

Things were different now. In the past, he hadn’t possessed a genius disciple. But now it was different. He was going to return every single grievance those old geezers had forced upon him in the past! How satisfying!

However, for Feng Yin to autonomously interrupt his Fixed Form—that was something only veteran Fierce-level powerhouses who had at least touched the Instant Level Realm could accomplish. Just as Old Monster Ding said, Feng Yin truly was a monster! A monstrous disciple that practically fell right into his lap. As Xie Jingyuan thought about this, his expression grew even more delighted.

Inside the arena.

Nie Fei turned her head and stared intently at Feng Yin. A faint voice echoed from beneath her helmet. "You can actually interrupt the power generation of a Fixed Form. I lost."

Feng Yin retracted his sword’s edge. "A calculated move against an unprepared one. I just won by a hair."

"Wow! You won!" Xiao Yu jumped up from the sidelines, giggling as she dashed into the arena. She ran up to Feng Yin and grabbed him. "Eldest Junior Brother, how did you do that? Why could you change directions before the Soaring Dragon Sky-Piercing had even finished?"

Feng Yin took off his helmet and smiled faintly at Xiao Yu. "I’m not too sure myself..."

In reality, Feng Yin knew exactly why. The Ultimate Techniques and Fixed Forms of Extraordinary Martial Arts, especially the "Skill Type" Fixed Forms, all possessed formidable power. Correspondingly, such terrifying, explosive techniques would fully mobilize the user’s entire musculature, bones, and mental will. Once unleashed, it was incredibly difficult to interrupt the motion and change tactics before the technique had concluded.

Therefore, in a duel between Fierce-level powerhouses, the moment they began employing Fixed Forms often signaled the end of the battle. Going offense against offense, the weaker one would have their technique broken and perish. Alternatively, one party would dodge their opponent’s Fixed Form, taking advantage of the stiffness caused by the all-out burst of power to deliver a lethal counterattack.

Being able to do what Feng Yin did—adjusting and transforming a Fixed Form that had already been unleashed in an explosive burst—was something only those at the Instant Level Realm, or "Super Fierce Level" experts extremely close to the Instant Level, could achieve. For instance, that night in Sin City, when Ya Lie faced him in combat, he had adjusted his own Fixed Form in the face of Feng Yin’s reckless, mutually assured destruction tactics.

But Feng Yin was different from everyone else. The very moment he learned the Fixed Form, he discovered something during his private experiments: he could rely on his supernatural Game Skills from the "game" to interrupt and alter his Fixed Form. Stealing Step, Wolf Leap... perhaps even the unused Shadow Flash could achieve this effect.

Naturally, this placed an immense burden on his physical body. Yet, in crucial, decisive moments, this extra ability to change moves was his most powerful trump card.

Beside him, Nie Fei also removed her helmet, revealing a beautiful face brimming with heroic spirit. "Feng Yin, what are your... plans next?"

Feng Yin thought for a moment. "I suppose I’ll continue my daily cultivation, and then follow my master’s instructions to spar with others until the Rookie Tournament."

Nie Fei opened her mouth but then hesitated and closed it.

On the other side, Ding Qi and Xie Jingyuan had already walked over. The fierce, general-like man had lost the displeased look from his earlier standoff with Xie Jingyuan. At this moment, he sported a hearty smile. "Feng Yin, very good, you are very good. With such strength, I’m afraid you are one of the top monsters among the new generation of Celestial Essence."

Feng Yin found such praise a bit overwhelming. "Actually, it was just a calculated move against an unexpected one. Nie Fei is very strong. If we fight again next time, the outcome would be uncertain."

"Well said!" Ding Qi’s eyes lit up. He clapped his hands and turned his head to look at Xie Jingyuan. "Old Xie, an idea just popped into my head. See if you think it’s appropriate."

Xie Jingyuan vaguely guessed what he meant and smiled. "You speak first. Let me hear it."

Ding Qi chuckled mischievously. "Since you’re always swamped with work anyway, why not let Feng Yin stay with me and serve as a sparring partner for Nie Fei? How about it?"

Beside them, Nie Fei’s eyes lit up slightly. Clearly, Ding Qi’s suggestion was exactly what she had wanted to propose to Feng Yin just now. She just hadn’t possessed the thick skin to say it out loud.

Xie Jingyuan smiled faintly. "So you want my Feng Yin to be your precious disciple’s sparring partner, huh?"

Ding Qi burst into laughter. "Look at what you’re saying, Old Xie. Don’t tell me you can’t tell that Feng Yin’s fundamentals are simply nowhere near as good as Nie Fei’s. If it weren’t for that Fixed Form interruption just now, he would have been the one to lose." He muttered, "It’s hard to say who would be acting as the sparring partner for whom."

Xie Jingyuan chuckled softly and looked at Feng Yin. "Feng Yin, what about you? What do you think?"

Before Feng Yin could speak, Xiao Yu beside him grew excited. "Yay, yay! I want to come play too~"

Feng Yin looked at Nie Fei. The handsome girl was also looking back at him with expectant eyes. In truth, Ding Qi’s suggestion perfectly aligned with his own desires. Only by fighting against true experts could he better elevate his strength. Without a doubt, Nie Fei was exactly that kind of expert. He nodded in agreement. "I do indeed want to practice more with Nie Fei. She’s incredibly formidable."

Hearing his words, Nie Fei revealed a faint smile.

"This person is not bad," she thought to herself.

With that, this "dojo challenge" came to an end.

...

Three days later, deep into the night.

Feng Yin stood in front of the mirror. He selected the Owl’s Badge and applied it to his Armor, replacing the previous one.

[Do you wish to equip the Engraving ’Owl’s Badge’? Armor-type Engravings can only be changed once before the start of each level. ’Yes / No’]

[Yes]

[Engraving equipped. Armor Form switched to ’Owl Hunting’. All base Attributes increased. Relevant Traits unlocked.]

Expectation filled Feng Yin’s eyes. Tonight was once again the time to "enter." Over the past few days, he had relied on the Bloodthirsty Traits of his Wolf Slaughter Form to fully restore his Armor’s Durability. It was time to see the appearance and effects of his new form.

The next moment, he manifested the Armor and looked at himself in the mirror. An Armor entirely different from the Wolf Slaughter Form appeared before his eyes.

***