Starting My Cultivation With Time Management

Chapter 407: Chapter 40 This Senior Sister Is Very Cautious

In the valley, Sword Qi crisscrossed.

The two fought from noon to evening, with Senior Sister An initially losing every match, but as she gradually adapted to the rhythm of two swords against three, her win rate slowly began to rebound.

By dusk, her win rate had evened out to fifty-fifty, making Ling Yunpo click his tongue in admiration.

Was this truly because of her Innate Sword Heart’s extraordinary talent, or was Senior Sister An’s swordsmanship attainment off the charts?

However, by sparring with Senior Sister An, Ling Yunpo also discovered the weaknesses in his own method of fighting.

In theory, fighting with three swords against two should be a huge advantage.

For example, if I tie up your two swords with my two, and then use the third sword to kill you, what will you use to block?

But in reality, the possibility of blocking two swords with a single one did exist. The precondition was that your own Flying Sword had to have a very small roaming range so that after blocking one sword, it could immediately move to block the other.

The tactics Senior Sister An adopted were not the aggressive maneuvers of the Seven Kills Sword Techniques but a move from the Shushan Dual Sword Technique, known as “Measured Advance and Retreat.”

First, she defended herself with the Harsh Cold Sword, focusing solely on defense within a small area;

Second, she attacked with all her might using the Flying Smoke Sword, not entangling with other flying swords but relentlessly pursuing Ling Yunpo.

The separation of her two swords into offensive and defensive roles was precisely “Measured Advance and Retreat.”

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On Ling Yunpo’s side, to cope with the pursuit of the Flying Smoke Sword, he had no choice but to keep the Qing Ping Sword nearby for his defense.

Meanwhile, to avoid being attacked without responding, he sent the Thunder Punishment Sword to strike at Senior Sister An.

What about the Myriad Bamboos Sword, controlled by his external incarnation?

If it flew over to coordinate with the Thunder Punishment Sword, attacking Senior Sister An from two directions, she would weave the Harsh Cold Sword into an airtight defense, using small-scale movements to mitigate the disadvantage of being attacked by both swords. At the same time, she intensified her attack with the Flying Smoke Sword, putting enormous pressure on Ling Yunpo’s defense.

Ling Yunpo’s prolonged attack was unsuccessful, and his own defenses were on the verge of collapse, so he had to withdraw the Myriad Bamboos Sword to assist the Qing Ping Sword in fending off the Flying Smoke Sword, quickly curtailing Senior Sister’s aggressive momentum.

With the immediate danger mitigated, Ling Yunpo naturally wanted to withdraw the Myriad Bamboos Sword and attack Senior Sister again.

But as soon as the Myriad Bamboos Sword left, An Zhisu would repeat her trick, defending fiercely with the Harsh Cold Sword while pressing the attack with the Flying Smoke Sword, forcing Ling Yunpo to continue retracting the Myriad Bamboos Sword for rescue.

In summary, it was a strategy of forcing a trade—a strike for a strike—pressuring him into rescue. Ling Yunpo was willing to call it “Exchange Tactics.”

Ever since Senior Sister An adopted the Exchange Tactics, after a dozen or so matches, the win rate had reached roughly fifty-fifty:

In the matches he won, Ling Yunpo had finally capitalized on the pincer attack advantage of the Thunder Punishment Sword and Myriad Bamboos Sword to break through the defense of the Harsh Cold Sword, bringing the sword’s edge to Senior Sister’s throat.

In the matches he lost, Ling Yunpo had not managed to penetrate Senior Sister’s defense, and his own defense sprung a leak, with the Flying Smoke Sword piercing through his guard and reaching his neck.

“Have you noticed?” Ling Yunpo, who had just lost another match, couldn’t help but speak, “The truly formidable part of your Senior Sister isn’t the Innate Sword Heart itself, but her great knack for maximizing her advantages while minimizing her disadvantages to the greatest extent.”

“Her strength lies in deeper swordsmanship attainment and more experience than you; her disadvantage is that she can’t control as many flying swords as you. Therefore, she deliberately separates her swords, forcing you to also split your swords, effectively eliminating the possibility of a Triple Sword Strike from the outset.”

“I see… Ah, I mean, I’d realized that already,” Ling Yunpo had an epiphany and immediately replied with a sneer, “In that case, I also need to play to my strengths.”

Then what are the strengths of having an Innate Sword Bone?

Well, it’s an enhanced resistance to Sword Qi and Sword Intent, the ability to resonate with flying swords, and even more powerful control over flying swords.

If that’s the case…

Seeing Ling Yunpo deep in thought and silent, An Zhisu didn’t rush him but took out a handkerchief to wipe the fine sweat from her face and neck.

She was a Shushan cultivator, her body having undergone the Marrow Cleansing process. Sweating was not a natural response to cool the body down but rather an instinctual reaction to the body being exhausted and weakened due to excessive mental exertion—it was quite similar to how some people sweat easily when nervous.

“I’m fine.” Ling Yunpo suddenly raised his head and smiled, “Should Senior Sister take a rest and recuperate your spirit?”

“No need,” An Zhisu said softly, “Junior Brother, go ahead.”

“Alright!” Ling Yunpo laughed heartily and released three swords at the same time.

The Green Duckweed Sword took the left flank, the Thunder Punishment Sword took the right, and the Myriad Bamboos Sword drew an arc from above, slashing down. The three swords attacked An Zhisu from three directions without attempting to block the Flying Smoke Sword shot by Senior Sister.

An Zhisu quickly mobilized the Flying Smoke Sword, drawing a scorching trail in the air as it hurtled straight toward Ling Yunpo’s chest.

Immediately after, both of them abruptly stopped their flying swords—upon closer inspection, the three swords flew faster and would strike An Zhisu first.

“I’ve lost.” An Zhisu retracted her sword and asked with a frown, “Full offense with no defense, how did Junior Brother come up with this tactic?”

“Senior Sister, doesn’t our Seven Kills Sword Technique prioritize offense over defense?” Ling Yunpo replied with a counter-question.

“Indeed.” An Zhisu nodded, “But that’s under the precondition of a real life-and-death struggle.”

“If it were in the White Jade Capital’s major competition, to use this move and exchange injuries with the opponent is actually not worthwhile.”

“Do you remember? The secret mechanism of the White Jade Capital ensures that trialists will not die from grave injuries, meaning you’d be teleported out of the battlefield a moment before being defeated by a killing blow.”

“However, the non-fatal injuries you sustain in a duel will accumulate over time.”

“In other words, not only must you prevent yourself from being defeated, but you also need to strive to win without injury. Otherwise, if the injuries are too severe to recover before your next duel, they will inevitably affect your subsequent performance.”

“Senior Sister, I’m fully aware,” Ling Yunpo said calmly, “But if I encounter someone stronger than myself, even if I focus on defensive counterattacks, my opponent may not give me the opportunity.”

“On the contrary, if I choose full offense with no defense, my opponent is either forced to defend with all their might or exchange blows with me.”

“If they choose the former, I can take advantage of the Seven Kills Sword Technique and the tactic of controlling three swords at the same time; if they choose the latter, with the strength of my Innate Sword Bone and the evasions of the Cloud-Parting Eight Trigrams Step, it’s not certain that I will suffer serious injuries…”

Ling Yunpo spoke earnestly and at length while An Zhisu fell silent, her head lowered without a word.

Suddenly, she remembered that the strategies her junior brother was talking about were all too familiar to her—weren’t they the very combat style her master, Su Jian, was most proficient in? Aggressive and swift, attacking as defense. After Ling Yunpo had become a disciple of Qingluo Peak, it was An Zhisu herself who had personally demonstrated these fierce and rapid techniques to him.

Back then, An Zhisu could still teach him to “seize the initiative” and “risk it all.”

But now, An Zhisu’s mindset had inexplicably changed, and she was unwilling to let her junior brother get hurt at all.

Even if it was just a “possible” injury.

“It’s not okay.” An Zhisu suddenly furrowed her brows and spoke seriously, “I’m not saying you shouldn’t use a strategy of full offense with no defense. I just think… it should only be used as a last resort, not something you resort to lightly! What if you’re unlucky and really get severely injured?”

“How about this, I’ll help you design a ‘Triple Sword Strike Technique’ based on the theory of the Two-Handed Sword Technique, tailored for those formidable opponents you have trouble with. But Junior Brother, you must also promise Senior Sister not to easily choose a strategy of full offense with no defense, is that okay?”

Hearing her say this, Ling Yunpo was baffled.

Senior Sister, when you’ve taught me things before, there were never conditions or exchanges!

However, seeing Senior Sister’s eyes, usually as gentle as autumn water, now bearing a rare hint of pleading and sorrow, Ling Yunpo felt a sudden pang in his heart, an unbearable discomfort.

“Alright, alright, alright.” He hurriedly agreed, resolutely adding, “I promise Senior Sister. From now on, unless there is really no way out, I will never lightly choose to fight with full offense and no defense!”