I can only beat noobs.

Chapter 72 Conspiracy
The moonlight was hazy in the courtyard.

Xiao Zhuyun, dressed in black, exuded a mysterious beauty. With a sword in hand, a night breeze blew by, causing her clothes to flutter, making her appear like a celestial being.

"I witnessed Brother Chen's swordsmanship yesterday and have long wanted to learn from him."

Her tone carried a powerful confidence, quite different from her usual gentleness, revealing the sharpness unique to a martial artist.

Chen Ming was somewhat surprised. It seemed that she had been holding back her strength during the martial arts competition yesterday, letting that young master Qin pass the time.

"Brother Chen, be careful!"

Xiao Zhuyun gave a soft shout, drew her sword, and a flash of cold light appeared, heading straight for Chen Ming's chest.

An expert will know if there is one as soon as he takes action.

This sword strike put immense pressure on Chen Ming, who focused all his attention on dealing with it, slashing upwards with his longsword, aiming straight for the other man's wrist.

"it is good!"

Xiao Zhuyun's eyes lit up. She had never seen such a solution before; it was extremely ingenious.

In the blink of an eye, with a flick of his wrist, the sword flashed and pointed at his shoulder.

This is faster than lightning.

Before Chen Ming could think, his body reacted on its own. His shoulder slumped, and his longsword changed direction, meeting her sword head-on.

brush brush...

In the blink of an eye, the two had already exchanged seven or eight moves.

The two spectators were dazzled by the spectacle.

Huo Qianqian only had a ninth-grade cultivation level, so she couldn't see anything clearly.

Zhang Mingyu's eyes lit up with excitement. He thought that with their combined strength, that scoundrel would definitely be no match for them.

……

"What amazing swordsmanship."

Chen Ming became increasingly alarmed as the fight progressed. Her swordsmanship was exceptionally high and incredibly shrewd, clearly demonstrating a wealth of combat experience.

The key is that her swordsmanship is incredibly exquisite, and she often uses ingenious moves to defuse his attacks in unexpected ways.

Her strength is in no way inferior to that of the young master of the Qin family.

The profound heritage of these sects and families should not be underestimated.

If it were him yesterday, he might not have been able to win against her.

Now——

Chen Ming changed his stance, using his knife to execute sword techniques, and for the first time used the "Swallow Return Sword Technique" in front of outsiders.

Since Huo Chengkun married a disciple of the Xiaoshui Sect, the Xiaoshui Sect should know about Huo Chengkun's sect background, so there's no need for them to hide anything from her.

Once he revealed his true strength, he instantly suppressed Xiao Zhuyun's sword light and firmly gained the upper hand.

"This is--"

Zhang Mingyu, who was standing to the side, became a little breathless as he watched. This was clearly the original form of the "Five Elements Sword Technique".

He looked at it greedily, afraid of missing a single detail.

……

After another dozen or so moves...

Xiao Zhuyun suddenly stopped and stepped back several meters away, looking somewhat disappointed. "Brother Chen's swordsmanship is superb. I am completely convinced of my defeat."

You have defeated a level 39 opponent and gained 1100 experience points.

Her cultivation level was even higher than Gu Yuantao's.

Chen Ming was delighted and said, "Your swordsmanship is extremely skilled. However, you have never been in a life-or-death battle, so your sword moves lack a bit of ruthlessness."

He pointed out her problem.

I'm sure she has someone who trains her in combat regularly. But that kind of training is fundamentally different from real combat.

When sparring with fellow disciples, one subconsciously understands that the other will not harm them. Over time, this makes their sword strikes less ruthless. "Brother Chen is absolutely right," Xiao Zhuyun nodded solemnly. She had originally thought that her strength was among the top of the seventh-rank disciples in Jiangzhou.

Her encounter with Qin Jinlin yesterday further solidified her belief in this.

To everyone's surprise, he was defeated by an unknown young man today. Moreover, he had only broken through to the seventh rank less than a month ago.

Xiao Zhuyun couldn't help but recall her master's words: "Many heroes emerge from the wilderness; when roaming the martial world, never underestimate anyone."

"Brother Chen, how did you see the flaw in my move 'The Phoenix Arrives'?"

Next, she asked Chen Ming for advice.

"The young lady's sword strike was too focused on speed, making her appear top-heavy..."

Chen Ming shared his thoughts without reservation, pointing out the problems with her moves and explaining how he would counter them.

Xiao Zhuyun listened with a look of amazement in her eyes and kept asking questions.

And so, the two reviewed the battle they had just fought. She felt enlightened and gained a lot, and her depressed mood was swept away.

Before leaving, she bowed deeply to Chen Ming and said gratefully, "Thank you for your guidance, Brother Chen. I will come to ask for your advice again in the future."

"You're welcome anytime," Chen Ming sincerely invited.

The reason he was so dedicated to instructing her was because she had the potential to become his training partner.

……

For the next two days, Gu Yuantao came to spar with Chen Ming every morning, but his cousin didn't come along. He was probably afraid Chen Ming would bring up the matter of fighting him again.

On the third day, after Chen Ming defeated Gu Yuantao, he received 300 experience points, the same as the day before. This means that he can get a fixed 300 experience points every day he fights once.

Adding the 100 points from the group of students in the morning, that's 400 points a day, and over 10,000 points a month.

It's still a bit too little.

It's best to find several practice partners.

After dealing with Sun Shicai, I must visit the seventh-rank martial artists in the city as much as possible. I'm sure I can find a few who are willing to spar with him.

That night.

Xiao Zhuyun and the other two arrived again, still dressed in black, and entered through the back door.

"That scoundrel Sun really does have powerful backers."

Xiao Zhuyun said with a heavy expression, "Today, his adversary suddenly attacked him in court, exposing his collusion with pirates to Zhao Shouchang. Zhao Shouchang was furious and was about to punish him, but someone stepped in to protect him."

As she spoke, she still couldn't help but feel a lingering fear.

If she had followed her original plan to arrest or kill Sun Shicai and then report the matter to the Six Doors, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

"Fortunately, Brother Chen had the foresight. Otherwise..."

At this moment, Zhang Mingyu, not wanting her to blame herself too much, changed the subject, "Junior brother, do you know who that scoundrel Sun's backer is?"

"Who?"

Chen Ming didn't guess blindly. Although he already had someone in mind, there was no need to say it. Showing too much intelligence wasn't a good thing.

When it's time to play dumb, you have to play dumb.

Zhang Mingyu smiled bitterly, "It was Yu Xiuming. You would never guess that Yu Xiuming would defend Sun Shicai to the death in front of Admiral Zhao. He said that Sun was colluding with pirates, which was at his behest, so as to monitor the pirates' movements."

Yu Xiuming, a fifth-rank military officer and a fourth-rank martial arts expert, was formerly the highest-ranking official in Qingfeng City. He personally endorsed Sun Shicai, and even Zhao Shouchang had to give him some face.

Zhang Mingyu couldn't understand it at all. "How exactly did that scoundrel manage to get close to Yu Xiuming?"

Chen Ming said, "I'm afraid they'll only know the answer themselves."

Even Zhuang Xiaotian didn't know about the relationship between Yu Xiuming and Sun Shicai, which shows that their relationship was quite secretive.

Xiao Zhuyun asked, "Brother Chen, what should we do next?"

She now has considerable faith in Chen Ming, and the first thing she asked him was his opinion.

Chen Ming pondered for a moment and said, "It seems that we have no choice but to use an open strategy."

(End of this chapter)