The Song Dynasty was the king for thirteen years before he knew that he was Tianlong.

Chapter 426 Tracking
Lin Meng leaped onto the roof again, and this time without saying a word, he drew his sword with a clang, then looked at Zhao Ti with a complicated expression.

The kid has ill intentions; I've come to my senses.

It's not that he's kindly trying to save face or give me a way out; rather, he's forcing me to take action. I have no choice but to fight him. Everything is under his control, and he's manipulating me like a puppet!
The kid made excuses for himself twice, saying that he wasn't forced off the roof, but was looking for weapons. It was a blatant scheme, and for the sake of his reputation and the martial arts school, he couldn't refuse such a reason. So he had to go along with what the kid said and do what the kid intended.

That's wicked, insidious, and incredibly cunning!

Lin Meng grew angrier the more he thought about it: "Hey, young man, you..."

Zhao Ti blinked: "Master Lin, you should just draw your sword first. Do you want me to have three more moves?"

"I..." Lin Meng's expression froze upon hearing this: "I, Lin, will not give in to you."

"Oh?" Zhao Ti couldn't help but smile. "Indeed, letting me have three moves is a bit unfair to Master Lin."

"No, no, no..." Lin Meng shook his head hurriedly upon hearing this: "Since you came here to spar, letting others have their moves would lose the true meaning of sparring. In a sparring match, both people should use their strengths and compete with all their might. There is no reason for one to let the other have their way. When both of you attack, whoever is more skilled can seize the initiative. That is the proper way."

Zhao Ti nodded, suppressing a laugh, and said meaningfully, "Master Lin is right, then... Master Lin, please make your move."

“Lin…” Lin Meng gestured towards the cloth bag in Zhao Ti’s hand: “Why aren’t you drawing your weapon?”

Zhao Ti glanced at the cloth and said, "My weapon is too shy to be seen, unlike Master Lin's precious sword, which shines brightly and is quite valuable."

"You..." Lin Meng thought he was being sarcastic, and his anger surged: "Nonsense! What's shameful about weapons? That's utter nonsense!"

After he finished speaking, he could no longer restrain himself. He made a sword gesture with his left hand, his body swayed, and with a swift movement, he thrust towards Zhao Ti like a python emerging from its cave.

Zhao Ti shouted "Good!" and then jumped aside to dodge. This time he did not rush to make a move, fearing that Lin Meng would not be able to withstand it. He simply dodged and weaved, observing the opponent's moves and figuring out the points of force exertion in the opponent's movement and swordsmanship.

In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen moves had passed, and Zhao Ti had not only not taken the initiative to attack, but had not even opened the cloth bag. Lin Meng's expression couldn't help but show some anxiety.

He had already prepared himself for an 80% chance of losing. His opponent's swift sword was truly astonishing. He was not only in a difficult position, but also forced to use a sword that was not his most proficient weapon. His chances of winning were really slim.

They can just spar with me without even drawing their weapons. Who do they think they are?

If they look down on you, so be it. You can just put up with it and it will pass. But what will your disciples think?
Thinking of this, he took a deep breath, and his other hand was not idle either. He actually used his fist technique in combination with his sword technique to make a powerful sound.

"Huh?" Zhao Ti exclaimed in surprise. He didn't know any martial arts, and although he had a lot of internal strength, he hadn't learned any palm and finger techniques. He relied entirely on the Peach Blossom Sword Technique. Seeing Lin Meng cooperating with him, he couldn't help but be very curious.

"Aren't you going to draw your sword yet!" Lin roared, but his voice contained a hint of inexplicable weakness.

"Draw your sword?" Zhao Ti's lips twitched, and he sighed softly, "Even an ugly daughter-in-law has to meet her in-laws, so I'll draw my sword."

After saying that, he shook open the cloth bag in his hand, revealing a simple iron plate inside. Then, with a flash of pink light, it met Lin Meng's sword.

"Ah, this..." Lin Meng finally saw clearly that the so-called sword was actually a piece of broken iron that was not even a sword blank. It was held in place by two pieces of hardwood and had a faint rust on it.

"Is this your sword?" he shouted, so angry that blood rushed to his head and his vision blurred.

"It's my sword. It's so simple that I'm ashamed to show it," Zhao Ti said, shaking his head as he earnestly began exchanging blows with his opponent.

"I'm so angry!" Lin Meng felt he had never been so angry in his life. Putting aside everything that had happened before, the other party actually used this thing to spar with him. This was really too much of a contempt for him.

"Master Lin, don't be angry." Zhao Ti saw that his face was flushed red and couldn't help but persuade him, "I really didn't have a sword at home, so I used this as a weapon. I had no other intentions. Master Lin, don't overthink it."

"Don't think too much? How can I not think too much!" Lin Meng thought to himself as he wielded his sword with incredible skill. "With such high martial arts skills, who would believe that I don't even have a sword at home? Not even a fool would believe it."

At this moment, all the martial arts disciples below were stunned. They hadn't seen clearly when Zhao Ti used his weapon twice before, but now they saw that it was just a piece of iron, and they immediately erupted in an uproar.

It should be known that Lin Meng was extremely famous in Yuzhou. Among the masters of various martial arts schools, he was recognized as one of the best in martial arts. He was proficient in all eighteen weapons and had mastered a powerful Iron Sand Palm that could split stone tablets. He had hardly encountered any opponents.

In the past, there have been people who came to challenge the school, but they were either directly defeated by the two deputy masters, Xu and Zhang, or they lost to Lin Meng after less than ten moves.

But what's going on here? Not only did the master jump off the roof twice to retrieve his weapon, but how come the opponent can fight the master for so long with just a piece of iron?

Even the master of the martial arts school used Iron Sand Palm combined with swordsmanship, but still couldn't defeat the opponent, who seemed to be quite relaxed.

Could it be... that the martial arts skills of this challenger far surpass those of the master?
The disciples discussed amongst themselves, their expressions shocked and filled with disbelief.

At this moment, although Zhao Ti took out his iron sword, he still did not attack first, but focused on countering Lin Meng's moves.

Although swordsmanship was not Lin Meng's forte, he was very experienced and knew many sword moves, with five or six sets of sword techniques in his mind.

He used it in turn. At first, Zhao Ti parried with his iron sword, but later he gradually learned to counter it, which only made him angrier.

In his mind, this was simply impossible. How could anyone completely break through moves they didn't understand without dodging, avoiding, or even slightly clashing with them? Unless they already knew these moves inside and out and had studied them thoroughly!

Could it be that another martial arts school hired someone to deliberately damage their reputation? After all, the owners of other martial arts schools generally know the basics of their martial arts style.

But what kind of influence do those people have to hire such a young expert? And it doesn't seem like it; if they're going to cause trouble, why would they use a piece of iron instead of a weapon, and why would they arrive in the middle of the night? Could it be… Lin Meng's heart suddenly skipped a beat. Could the opponent be some kind of unparalleled genius, capable of instantly devising a way to counter their moves in the heat of battle?!
His master once said that there was such a martial arts genius in the world. Martial arts had no obstacles for him. He could learn anything and understand anything he saw. He could not only learn it at a glance, but also easily crack it.

Could it be that I've encountered such a martial arts genius? But how could my small martial arts school have caught his eye? Although I have a good reputation in Yuzhou, it's only within the city limits. How would any martial arts masters outside the city know who I am?

Although his martial arts skills were decent enough to be considered above average, he was mainly good at business. Back then, he fabricated a story about entering the mountains to suppress bandits, paid people to spread it around, and gave himself the nickname "Iron Tower Guardian of the Mountain." Gradually, he rose to fame. How could he compare to such a peerless genius!

Lin Meng inwardly groaned, wishing he could just throw down his sword and admit defeat. But seeing Zhao Ti meticulously dissecting his moves, seemingly very serious, he dared not do so, fearing he might anger his opponent and cause some unmanageable consequences.

At this moment, he was truly like someone being given a challenge, no longer seeking victory, but simply unleashing his full power to force his opponent to break through his defenses. He felt a mixture of shock, anger, fear, and helplessness.

Zhao Ti was indeed seriously trying to break his opponent's sword moves, but the more he tried, the more confused he became. By observing and speculating on the force exertion and trajectory of his opponent's moves, he was able to make a rough judgment.

Although the internal energy circulation path is invisible, for some reason, I can detect clues from those subtle movements and auras, as if I can see the big picture from small details and make a rough guess.

While it can't be said to be 100% accurate, it's about 70 or 80 points, and even if it's 20 or 30 points off, it's enough to break through the opponent's sword techniques one by one.

In particular, during the process of breaking through, I actually learned quite a few of these tricks, which was a truly unexpected gain.

Swordsmanship can be broadly divided into two types: one type does not require internal energy to control, but emphasizes unpredictability, agility, and on-the-spot variables, and is entirely controlled by external forces.

Those with good basic memory can memorize the general idea after watching it a few times. Whether they can practice and use it depends on their individual comprehension and talent. Ten people might use the same move in ten different ways, with varying degrees of power.

Another type requires internal energy to infuse and use, which can be further divided into two types. The latter can be easily controlled using only internal energy and is relatively simple to learn.

Another technique involves channeling internal energy into the arm and sword, allowing for diverse applications and unleashing immense power, as well as creating special scene effects. The Peach Blossom Sword Technique exemplifies this type of swordsmanship.

At this moment, Lin Meng used both internal and external techniques, but none were as profound as the Peach Blossom Sword Technique, yet Zhao Ti actually learned quite a bit from it.

Is this another characteristic of martial arts enlightenment? Not only can one learn and master secret manuals in no time, but one can also learn some things by observing the subtle details of others' power exertion during sparring?
He was greatly shocked. If that were the case, wouldn't he learn more and accumulate more knowledge by fighting against others?
It's not just about gaining experience in battle and improving combat skills; more importantly, it's about learning the opponent's moves.

You can't learn internal strength, but learning the techniques to generate power is already incredibly powerful. Even if you only achieve 10% or 20%, it's still astonishing!
He couldn't help but get excited, and became even more serious, almost obsessively dissecting Lin Meng's moves.

Lin Meng complained bitterly, feeling as if he were stuck to the wall. He couldn't even back down and admit defeat, as if his opponent had trapped him in a circle, forcing him to keep attacking and feeding the opponent with his moves.

Before he knew it, hundreds of moves had passed. Although Lin Meng knew many sword techniques, he had already used them all. He racked his brains but could not think of any new moves, so he had no choice but to start all over again.

"Hmm?" Zhao Ti was slightly taken aback upon seeing this: "Is that all?"

Lin Meng retorted angrily, "That's all, that's all! I, Lin, already stand out among all the martial arts school masters for knowing so many sword techniques. Tell me, who else in those schools knows so many sword skills? You, are you still not satisfied?"

Zhao Ti thought for a moment and then smiled and said, "Since Master Lin has exhausted all his knowledge, it would be impolite not to reciprocate. Master Lin, please accept my sword strike."

Upon hearing this, Lin Meng was startled and immediately became extremely cautious and alert. At this moment, he knew that his opponent's martial arts were several times better than his own, and he feared that he would not be able to withstand this sword strike.

Suddenly, a pink light emanated from the iron sword in Zhao Ti's hand. This light was not dazzling, but rather stunningly beautiful, and it instantly reached Lin Meng's side.

"Ah..." Lin Meng's eyes widened to almost the size of eggs. He mustered all his inner strength and raised his sword to block.

The pink light, though seemingly gentle, was actually incredibly fast. Just as he raised his sword, a peach blossom suddenly bloomed within the light.

The peach blossom, complete with petals and stamens, directly locked onto Lin Meng's sword. With a crisp "crack," the sword in Lin Meng's hand snapped in two.

Then, the light reached his throat in an instant, and Lin Meng's face immediately turned ashen. He cried out, thinking to himself, "My life is over."

But then Zhao Ti laughed and said, "Master Lin, you may leave."

Then he saw the iron sword in his hand suddenly stop, then in the blink of an eye reverse, and the smooth part of the iron plate gently patted Lin Meng's shoulder, causing Lin Meng to fall off the roof for the third time.

With a loud crash, Lin Meng was stunned for a moment, but he struggled to his feet and looked up at the roof, only to find that Zhao Ti had already disappeared.

He could control his internal energy with complete ease; this was the mark of a top-tier master, an absolute master! For a moment, his face was blank, and he was speechless for a long time.

Zhao Ti had already left the martial arts school, but he looked unhappy. He was not satisfied. Lin Meng's martial arts skills were still too low. He couldn't even withstand one of his moves. It seemed that the story of him single-handedly wiping out the bandits in the mountains was fake. It was either a rumor or someone had exaggerated it.

But his opponent was already the best martial arts school in Yuzhou City. If he couldn't do it, other martial arts schools would probably be even worse. So he could only find someone from the martial arts world to spar with. But where could he find a martial arts master?

As Zhao Ti was walking and pondering, he suddenly saw a dark shadow leap over the rooftops in the distance, bounce a few times, and then disappear.

Hmm? This is… Zhao Ti raised his eyebrows, his mind immediately racing. Is this a notorious thief who travels at night, or someone else? His lightness skill is not weak, so his martial arts must be extremely high.

He pondered for a moment, then followed ahead. If they were thieves, he would try to capture them; if they were江湖人 (jianghu people), and there was no danger to the people, he could have a friendly spar with them.

Zhao Ti unleashed the Four Extremes Flowing Light Steps and soon spotted the dark figure again. The figure's movements were incredibly fast, unlike his own. It leaped and swayed like a willow in the wind, its speed was almost like flying, and it was also quite beautiful.

Just then, he saw the dark figure heading straight west, heading towards the southwest city. He took a deep breath and chased after it closely.

(End of this chapter)