Douluo Dalu: Legend Of Xiao Yan

A few days passed by in peace. During this time period, Xiao Yan's arm injury completely healed up and has started in concocting pills once more.

While Xun Er and Ma Xiaotao, except that night previously, returned to their dormitory and had continued on sparring against each other and shopping with Xiao Yan and Zi Yan when they're bored.

Also, Tang San and Xiao Wu had apparently returned back to their respective dormitory at the academy that certain night because the former's parents wanted to know the school they were going.

Tang Hao had stayed with his son's room to sleep on Oscar's bed, said person had apparently gone and meditated outside on the ground the entire night, while Ah Yin was with Xiao Wu and sleeping on Ning Rongrong's bed because she was gone to get her third spirit ring. The next morning the quartet had toured the entire academy but that was a story for another time.

*Ding!*

The sound of metal clashing was heard, both of ordinary steel and reinforced by spirit power.

Xiao Yan focused his eyes on Tang San, vice versa as well, their swords clashing at one another once more. The two were using katanas as they pushed their blades to attack each other.

Tang San parried an attack going towards his neck, his hands on his sword buckling from the force of attack from Xiao Yan's strength, and he counterattacked; by taking using his Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track towards the latter and enter his attack range with his sword aiming to slash cut him apart.

Xiao Yan, knowing Tang San had entered his attack range, narrowed his eyes and grasped his sword tightly by his right side and immediately swung his sword by 45-degrees down-upwards that would cut the latter from his left rib to his shoulder.

But Tang San had blocked that flawlessly and gracefully, and he used that momentum of blocking Xiao Yan's attack to rise his sword above his head and pushed the handle of the sword down; causing the blade to come down towards the latter's head; meaning to cut him in two from head to crotch. Sadly for him however, Xiao Yan had used his Instant Movement Technique to disappear and reappear behind Tang San, he tilted the sword upside-down and turned to cut the latter's neck.

Which Tang San blocked with the blade of the sword, pouring more spirit power into the blade to make it more durable to defend against Xiao Yan's attack, which proved effective as his spirit power is much higher than the latter due to him awakening his bloodline and true spirit; causing his spirit power to skyrocket to rank 40.

The force of the blade caused Tang San to slide back in place and hissed in pain, but otherwise fine, he then used that moment of slight pause to also use Instant Movement Technique to disappear and reappear several meters away from Xiao Yan's position.

The two of them locked eyes for a moment before they started their sword fight once more, moving at speeds no ordinary person could perceive with their eyes.

"...Is this normal?" Zi Yan, Ah Yin and Tang Hao all simultaneously muttered from the side as they attentively watched the fight between Xiao Yan and Tang San with a bowl of popcorn in hand, receiving numerous nods from the others watching the fight as well.

They were currently sparring against each other with swords at the training yard of the academy while their friends and family were watching them.

"Strength is necessary when swinging and slashing your sword around." Tang San said, his long blue hair tied into a ponytail by Xiao Wu: with his physique and facial features, he looks like a gorgeous outgoing tomboy. He jumped back away from Xiao Yan and lowered his sword. "But as you can see, the most important part when fighting with a sword is not your strength but your footwork." Xiao Yan nodded in understanding.

When using a sword, strength is important so the user could swing the sword around and cut the things the user wants to easily. But when fighting with a sword? Movement is the most important.

Xiao Yan had already known that, that was the sole reason why he was most focused in mastering his movement techniques more than his other techniques in his past memories.

He has a lot of techniques, all except sword related ones, and Tang San is the only person so skilled in numerous weaponry to hopefully teach him a sword skill or two.

Tang San let out a sigh. .

"We've been sparring like this for the past few years Yan, and honestly, your foundations are perfect. Your strength, abnormal. Your footwork? Above mine. Your eye coordination? Hm, needs a bit of work but I'm sure you'll figure that out. All you need is a style for your sword."

"Style? You mean sword techniques?" Xiao Yan asked. The term already familiar to him since he is cultured.

Tang San made a so-so hand gesture.

"They're the same but different. Sword styles are more like main categories and sword techniques are subcategories belonging to certain criteria of categories. For example, a sword styles that mostly focuses on the soft and hard sword techniques. Their movement techniques consists of being soft and flexible that it would be hard for anyone to hit them. While their attacks and defenses are that they hit hard and be durable respectively. Hence, Soft and Hard Sword Style."

"..."

Xiao Yan, and everyone by the side, were looking at Tang San weirdly.

"Hm? What? Did I say something wrong?" Noticing the weird looks he was getting, Tang San looked at everyone in confusion.

"A sword style huh...?" Xiao Yan mumbled as he stared down at the katana in his hand. Knowing that those quick sword style he used during the Jia Lie Clan genocide was an imitation of he thought as Iaido.

Iaido, as what Xiao Yan remembers, is a Japanese sword style that emphasizes of being aware and capable of quickly drawing the sword and responding to sudden attacks.

He wouldn't normally be able to use this sort of sword style, due to his spirit being scabbard-less. He was only able to do a Iaido when saving Tang San at the Jia Lie Clan was because he brought a scabbard along as a way to hide his spirit; by quickly drawing out the blade and sheathing it back before anyone noticed it.

'Heh, here I am still having no sword style and had ambitiously thought of a sword domain.' Xiao Yan shook those thoughts away and paid it no mine. After all, would he give up just because of a little setback? Hell no.

As someone whose seen and read a lot of epic sword fights in his previous world, Xiao Yan wants to replicate some of that epicness for himself as well.

"To think that Yan-gege would have something he's not great at, and it had to be his spirit." Zi Yan mumbled towards Xiao Wu, Ma Xiaotao and Xun Er who all nodded in agreement.

Xiao Yan, who has enhanced senses, heard what Zi Yan had said and felt his lips twitched.

'Zi Yan, everyone, I know your expectations of me are high and all but come one! I'm still human here, mostly, I ain't perfect.'

Just as Xiao Yan was about to sulked in the corner, he and everyone else around, heard an obnoxious yell of a very familiar fatty.

"We're back bitches!" Ma Hongjun yelled as he, out of nowhere, arrives by the air and dropping down feet first to the ground making a small crater around him.

Three dazzling optimal spirit ring configuration surrounded him as he did a bodybuilder pose.

"Yo boi, Ma Hongjun, is back babies! And more powerful than ever–ack!" He was interrupted with a hand chop to the head by the sudden appearance of Dai Mubai, who arrived with Grandmaster, Zhao Wuji, Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong.

"Fatty, shut the fuċk up." He said with a annoyed expression.

"W-What the hell man?!" Ma Hongjun turned and cried out indignantly towards Dai Mubai.

"Ever since you got your third spirit ring, you've been annoying us for the past couple of days; by boasting shit." Dai Mubai said, everyone who was with him nodded with the same feeling of annoyance.

"Oh come on, I'm not that bad." Ma Hongjun rolled his eyes.

"After getting your spirit ring, you idiotically challenged a eight thousand years old spirit beast to a death battle with you getting beat black and blue." Zhu Zhuqing monotonously said with a deadpanned expression.

"Well I, uh, you know, I was just... got caught in the moment?" Ma Hongjun scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Even after that, you keep challenging other powerful thousand years old spirit beast which, unsurprisingly, got beat up once more." Ning Rongrong added.

"Uh I–"

"You also been bragging about your achievement of being a Spirit Elder to the local whores in the town we were spending the night in to get game in bed, which ended up with us spending another couple of days there because we had to deal with some scandal of you somehow banging the daughter of the mayor, in the guy's home no less. Which I'm honestly baffled on how you were able to do so as well..." Zhao Wuji said and added the last part as a whisper of jealousy and envy.

"Well–"

"Everyone rest up, I'm sure you're all tired and so am I so go and take a rest. Then all of the students has to go back here, I have an announcement to make. Dismissed." Grandmaster said with a stoic expression. He then turned around to head towards the direction of Flender, Tang Hao and Ah Yin. "One last thing however, Ma Hongjun, for all the trouble you've cause, run twenty-five ŀȧps from here to Suotuo City without using your spirit: and make sure to finish before sunset." Ma Hongjun's face quickly drained of all colors.

Zhu Zhuqing, wearing a long sleeve silk jacket over a sleeveless white shirt and tight looking long black pants, walked with grace and fluidity towards a slightly sweaty Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan and Tang San had immediately stopped their spar awhile ago because the latter wanted to welcome his teacher back.

"...Hey." Zhu Zhuqing awkwardly said. Her face slightly flustered.

"Hey to you too as well." Xiao Yan chuckled, not minding her awkwardness, making Zhu Zhuqing relaxed and lips upturned into a smile. They both then started a conversation about the latter's adventure at the Star Dou Great Forest as they walked towards where everyone is gathered together.

"Oh and who was that girl you were sparring with? Is she a newcomer?"

"...That was Tang San."

"...Wut? H-How?!" She was honestly shocked and in disbelief at the feminine appearance of Tang San.

"It's a long story."