Chapter 34: Two Games Won, Cui Ma Uses Force

  Zhang Fei gazed at the target a hundred paces away, swallowed hard, and thought to himself: "I've lost. No matter how confident Third Brother is, it's impossible for him to hit the bullseye ten times in a row from a hundred paces away." But if you let Third Brother not compare, that would be admitting defeat, which was absolutely not his style.

  Third Master picked up his bow, nocked an arrow and shot one, two, three, four, five arrows in a row. Third Master shot five arrows in one breath, with three hitting the bullseye. He lost, although he lost, but the remaining arrows still had to be shot, the next sixth, seventh, eighth arrows did not hit, while the last two arrows hit.

  Ten to five, San Ye lost the first game. Although he lost, he wasn't too disappointed and instead gave Du Li a fist bump, "Brother, impressive!"

  Du Li Ze's face was expressionless as he said, "Just a familiar hand!" Then he returned to the Du family camp.

  Du Ren and Du Yi came over to congratulate him. This time, Du Li was not as expressionless as he was towards Zhang Fei, but instead happily chatted with his two brothers.

  Third Master was taken aback for a moment, it seemed that he himself as an opponent had been ignored by others, no wonder, the level was simply not on the same level.

  At this time, the young man who had previously announced the trial came out again. "The first round, archery competition, Du Lisheng of the Du family wins!" After a pause, he continued, "After a short rest, the second round will begin. The second round will be a martial arts competition, each holding weapons, and the two sides will compete until one side wins!"

  As soon as the words fell, Du Ren shouted: "No need to rest, I can go on stage at any time! I don't know how you are?" After finishing, he also provocatively looked at Zhang Xiong's side.

  Choi Ahn didn't back down either and loudly said: "Anytime, bring it on!"

  "Alright, let's get started!" After finishing speaking, Du Ren raised his gun and mounted his horse, taking on a solo challenging posture.

  Choi Ahn also mounted his horse, took down the painting halberd, and assumed a fighting stance. The others, seeing this, all retreated far away from the two of them. After all, a fierce battle on horseback was too close for comfort, and it would be absolutely disastrous to get caught in the crossfire. As long as they could see clearly, even if it meant keeping a safe distance, safety was paramount.

  The two men took their stances, but neither of them was in a hurry to attack. After a while, Cui An couldn't bear it anymore and swung his spear straight at Du Ren. Du Ren thought this was great timing and also swung his long gun to meet him head-on.

  Two men fought in one place, after crossing hands, they were both surprised and amazed at each other's martial arts. Cui An was surprised that Du Ren had second-rate superior martial arts, and it absolutely belonged to the top of the second-rate. Du Ren was even more surprised by Cui An's kung fu, this young man in his early twenties, with such high martial arts skills, rarely seen in his life, he was absolutely no match for him.

  In this way, the two men went back and forth, ten rounds, twenty rounds, thirty rounds, forty... The two men fought for a full 45 rounds before deciding the winner. In the end, Du Ren was swept off his horse by Cui An's painting halberd. He remembered Ma Chao's words, so he didn't go all out. However, even so, Du Ren was still somewhat unable to withstand being swept away and suffered a minor injury.

  "Thanks for sparing our lives, you win this round!"

  Choi An smiled after listening, "You're not bad either, it's been a long time since I've met someone who can keep up with me for so long!"

  Du Renze couldn't help but let out a bitter laugh, thinking to himself that he never wanted to run into him again in this lifetime. He wondered what would happen if he knew that Cui An's actions were the result of leaving many emotions unexpressed.

  Du Ren returned to his team in defeat. Du Yi and Du Li hurried over to check on his injuries, fortunately there were no major wounds, just a bit of medicine would be fine.

  Chui An also returned to Zhang Fei's side, and Ma Chao said to him: "Fu Da, well done!"

  "Heh heh, I remember what you said, Master!"

  "Hmm, okay, I'll give you my share of food tonight too!" Ma Chao said with a smile.

  "Master, don't you forget!" Cui An swallowed hard and said.

  "Unforgettable!"

  Choi An was overjoyed after hearing this, for him eating was a very important matter, especially being able to get something from Ma Chao, which was basically impossible, and he didn't think that his master would be so generous today.

  "In the second game, Zhang Jia won."

  The young man announced the result of the second game, which was also a mere formality. The outcome was obvious to everyone.

  Du Yi walked out at this time, "Are you starting the final round now or after a while?"

  Zhang Xiong looked at Ma Chao, and Ma Chao nodded. Zhang Xiong replied: "Of course it starts now!"

  "Alright, very well. Let's go then!"

  Dui Yi suddenly appeared in the center of the crowd, Ma Chao also took out his Snow Drinking Knife and stood opposite Dui Yi. He gave Zhang Fei and Cui An a subtle glance, and both of them understood what he meant.

  Du Yi looked at Ma Chao and then asked Zhang Xiong: "Zhang Xiong, are you sure to let him come for this final round?"

  "Not bad, it's him. What, Du Yi, you're afraid?" Zhang Xiong said firmly.

  Du Yi was taken aback, but immediately burst out laughing as if he had heard the most hilarious joke. He laughed so hard that he doubled over, tears almost streaming down his face. However, he soon regained his composure.

  Du Yi pointed at Zhang Xiong and said, "Zhang Xiong! Zhang Xiong! I didn't expect that after all these years, you're even more interesting than before!"

  Zhang Xiong didn't say a word either, he just looked at Du Yi coldly.

  Du Yi continued: "I, Du Yi, have been roaming the world for nearly twenty years. To say nothing of standing in front of me being just a young man, even if Wang Yue were here, I would not be afraid!"

  He is indeed confident in himself, and the nickname "Yōshū no Kettō" (The Strongest of Yō Province) is not just for show. Can someone without ability have such a cool nickname?

  Du Yi used to be on the same level as Zhang Xiong, but he was troubled by emotions and later became disheartened. His eyes only had sword in them. So Du Yi delved into the way of the sword for another ten years, and now he is no longer at his original level.

  Du Yi drew his sword, with his right hand grasping the hilt and his left hand supporting the tip, looking at Ma Chao said: "Lelang Du Yi Du Zhongming, sword name Zhanqing, please instruct!"

  Ma Chao originally wanted to tease "Youzhou's inferior", but seeing that everyone was so serious about it, he couldn't help but be serious too, and also discovered that the opponent had a kind of master's aura.

  He drew his sword and said, "Ma Chao's 'Fengyin' horse, Mengqi rises, the name of the sword is 'Xueyin', please!" After finishing speaking, Ma Chao used his left index finger to pluck the blade, then charged at Du Yi.

  Ma Chao wanted to take the initiative, he had a feeling that he would absolutely not be able to beat Du Yi for the time being. Similarly, Du Yi thought it was impossible to defeat himself in a short period of time.

  A master's single move reveals whether he has it or not; when two masters engage, they can't help but secretly admire each other.

  Ma Chao was surprised that Du Yi was even more difficult to deal with than he had imagined, while Du Yi was shocked that his twenty years of sword practice couldn't gain him the slightest advantage over this young man. How could he not be shocked? He thought he had already stopped underestimating his opponent, but after clashing swords, he realized that he still underestimated him. Upon reflection, it made sense - without any skills, how could one possibly make it to the final crucial round?

  But Du Yi was also surprised, where did Zhang Xiong find such a strong master in these three days? The previous one with a fierce appearance, and this time another more heaven-defying young man came. He's like a mute eating bitter melon, having grievances but unable to express them.

  Ma Chao took the initiative and used his sword to sweep horizontally at Du Yi. Don't think that this is just a simple move, as the moves can change at any time.

  Dui Yi would not be foolish enough to use his sword to block, he had already seen that Ma Chao's strength was boundless. Judging from Dui Yi's experience, just the weight of the knife alone must have been several tens of kilograms, yet this young man held it as if it were a toy, and it was fundamentally not something that his sword could withstand.

  Meeting a powerful person, the key is to cleverly break their strength, making their exerted force useless. So Du Yi didn't engage in a direct confrontation with Ma Chao's troops; instead, he was looking for opportunities to attack his vital weaknesses.

  Ma Chao was under great pressure, and he hadn't expected Du Yi's experience and martial arts to be so extraordinary. If he wasn't careful, he might even lose. But of course, he wouldn't lose; he too was looking for an opportunity to defeat his opponent with a single move.

  Ma Chao accelerated the pace of his moves, and on the field, he seemed to be in control, but despite being in control, he couldn't gain the upper hand over his opponent. Du Yi appeared to be on the defensive, but he always managed to find opportunities to counterattack Ma Chao with a single sword strike, fortunately, Ma Chao didn't become flustered.

  At this time, Ma Chao's Snow Drinking Sword and Du Yi's Cutting Sentiment Sword collided. However, Ma Chao didn't use enough force; he thought they wouldn't collide, and by the time he reacted, it was too late to add more strength.

  Du Yi hastily withdrew his sword, and Ma Chao quickly used force, the blade sweeping towards Du Yi's right wrist. Du Yi sheathed his sword quickly, but Ma Chao's knife swept empty air. However, Du Yi still broke out in a cold sweat, secretly blaming himself for making a mistake in the heat of the moment, and vowing not to do so again next time.

  But having not won for such a long time, Du Yi was indeed getting anxious. As the renowned "One Sword of Youzhou", he was also a notable figure among all the wandering knights in the world. Yet today, he had lost face to a teenager, and if this were to spread, wouldn't it be even more humiliating?

  No, he must try harder to win quickly. The more he thought this way, the easier it was for him to make mistakes. As a result, he kept hoping that Ma Chao would make a mistake, and then he could win himself. Wasn't this an opportunity? For some reason, Ma Chao suddenly slipped his foot while fighting, looking like he was about to fall. Du Yi's eyes lit up, what a good chance, he quickly took a step forward, stabbing his sword towards Ma Chao.

  But as he thrust his sword at Ma Chao, he found that Ma Chao smiled at him, no good, he had fallen into the trap, but it was too late to withdraw his move. Because Ma Chao's body, which was about to fall, had already stood firm, and his knife lightly tapped the incoming sword, and the emotions sword flew out, but while the sword flew out, Du Yi had already retreated several steps.

  When Dui Yi realized he was being tricked, the sword was about to be touched by the knife. He decisively abandoned his sword and retreated. Ma Chao's speed was fast, but he still underestimated Dui Yi's speed. Dui Yi couldn't retrieve his sword in time, but abandoning it and retreating himself wasn't a problem.

  Only to see Dui Yi pull out a soft sword from his waist, Ma Chao saw it and thought, "Indeed, you have the wisdom of Zhang Liang, and people have crossed walls with ladders." Immediately, Ma Chao launched another round of attack.

  Zhang Xiong's eyebrows furrowed as soon as he saw it. He had known Du Yi for so many years, but this was the first time he knew that Du Yi still wore a soft sword around his waist. Du Yi indeed lived up to his reputation as the number one swordsman of Youzhou.

  Ma Chao launched another round of attack, and Du Yi could no longer withstand it. After all, the soft sword was not the same as the previous Zhanqing Sword, and it didn't feel right in his hand at all. He had been wandering the world for nearly twenty years, and he couldn't remember how many years it had been since he last used this sword. Who would have thought that today, it would be used again in the hands of a junior?

  The two men fought nearly a hundred rounds, and Du Yi still lost. When the knife tip pointed at his chest, he had a feeling that he might be old, over thirty years old, younger than older people, but compared to Ma Chao's junior, he was indeed much older.

  "I'm no match for you! You win!" Du Yi was too embarrassed to admit defeat, so he could only say that.

  Ma Chao saluted him with a fist, without saying a word. Du Yi didn't care about the person, but his kung fu was indeed not bad, and he was a worthy opponent to be respected.

  Ma Chao may have won, but that doesn't mean his martial arts skills are superior to Du Yi's. He knows it was only with the addition of his own strength that he achieved victory, and in terms of moves, he wasn't necessarily stronger than others by much. Ma Chao kept reminding himself not to underestimate people from all over the world.

  Du Yi picked up the Zhan Qing sword and sheathed it. He walked in front of Ma Chao first, "You won, but I hope we have a chance to try again in the future!"

  "I'm willing to accompany you!" Ma Chao replied.

  "Zhang Xiong, I, Du Yi, am a man of my word. What I said before is what I'll do. I'll immediately bring people back to Lewang and our grudges will be settled once and for all! I can ignore your face, but I cannot ignore the face of the deceased Xiao Yu!" Du Yi said expressionlessly to Zhang Xiong.

  Finally he turned back to his side, "However, from today on, I, Du Yi, will put aside the past and wipe out all grudges between me and Zhang Xiong. If anyone dares to trouble the Zhang family again, I, Du Yi, will be the first to not let them off! Let's go."

  Du Ren and Du Li didn't say anything either, so a group of over ten people left the clearing in the woods.

  Looking at Du Yi's desolate back, Zhang Xiong opened his mouth, he wanted to say something, but he also knew that the current result was already the best, no matter what he said or did, he and Du Yi could not return to the brotherly relationship of over a decade ago.

  Du Yi's approach is still understandable for Zhang Xiong. If he were in his shoes, he might have done even more extreme things. It's all fate playing tricks on people, and he can't help but feel a sense of regret.

  Ma Chao said to Zhang Xiong: "Don't worry about it, he will come around."

  Ma Chao thought to himself that it seems not everyone is like Liu Bei, some things are not a matter of who was right or wrong, but rather the will of heaven playing tricks on people.

  Zhang Fei didn't think much of it in his heart, he just felt that Du Yi finally acted like a man, right, that's what it means to be a man.

  Choi Ahn's thoughts were even simpler, and finally, he could eat the meal that his master had left for him at night.

  And the last onlooker Zhang Sheng just kept shaking his head, and no one knew what he was thinking.

  In a burial ground outside Zhuoxian City, Du Yi wept loudly in front of a tombstone, those who heard him were heartbroken, and those who listened shed tears.

  He cried and said, "Xiaoyu, you may not believe me, but I'm really not the same person as before! The grudge between Zhang Xiong and me is also settled from now on. I know this is what you wanted to see, unfortunately, you didn't get to see it with your own eyes. Heaven is unfair, I didn't expect you to go like that, what's the point of my life now?!

  Starting from today, I will return to my hometown in Le Lang and never go out again. In the future, I will send someone to visit you. This life we have no fate, but I believe that next life you will definitely like me! Xiaoyu, I'm leaving, take care of yourself!"

  After finishing speaking, Du Yi mounted his horse and left. Only the wine sprinkled in front of the tomb proved that someone had been here before.