Chapter Eighteen: The Gentle Rain Sword

The iron sword’s material, after all, could not withstand the massive axe wielded by Shi Mingfeng. After repeated clashes, the blade had already developed several notches.

“Your sword can no longer bear my strength. Let’s see how you plan to stop me now,” Shi Mingfeng observed the damage and hastened his assault.

White streaks of light appeared on the axe’s surface, rapidly covering the blade. It was the same martial technique once used by Shi Wansan, but the energy now seemed purer and denser.

With tremendous force, the axe came down headlong. Yu Qi could only raise his iron sword to block.

Crack!

The iron sword shattered on impact. Yet the axe’s momentum remained unbroken, still descending toward Yu Qi’s chest. If it struck, his body would surely split in two like a fragile hut.

In a desperate move, Yu Qi’s left hand grabbed the hilt of the Demon Seed sword, placing it before the axe’s blade.

The hilt stopped the axe’s strike, but the force still penetrated Yu Qi’s body, sending him flying. His internal organs trembled under the assault. Mid-air, a sudden surge of blood rose in his throat. With a spurt, he spat blood, which blossomed like a crimson flower before he crashed to the ground.

Hidden in the bushes, Li Changchu watched Yu Qi being flung away, his heart tightening with anxiety. Helpless, all he could do was silently pray.

Lying on the ground, Yu Qi looked up at Shi Mingfeng, who was advancing slowly with his giant axe. Clutching the broken iron sword in his right hand, he prepared to fight again.

Shi Mingfeng smiled cruelly at the blood at the corner of Yu Qi’s mouth. “You dared cripple my son; now I’ll make you taste what it means to be powerless.”

In his eyes, Yu Qi was just a fish caught in a net—no matter how much he struggled, he could not break free. Shi Mingfeng intended to torment him slowly.

Seeing Shi Mingfeng’s confidence, Yu Qi’s lips curled into a faint smile.

The smile stirred an inexplicable fury within Shi Mingfeng. He suddenly quickened his pace. “Still defiant at death’s door? I’ll chop off your legs first and see how you stand then.”

Yu Qi said nothing, only a faint smile playing on his lips. When Shi Mingfeng’s axe descended, Yu Qi fearlessly braced forward with his iron sword, blocking the blow once more. The fractured blade gained another notch of damage.

After intercepting the strike, Yu Qi swiftly twisted his body and slashed the broken blade toward Shi Mingfeng’s abdomen—but the attack was blocked.

“Desperate flailing,” Shi Mingfeng sneered, catching the broken blade and swinging his axe again.

Yu Qi blocked the blow and then shifted the broken blade’s direction, sliding it toward Shi Mingfeng once more. Still, the attack was ineffective.

Shi Mingfeng could not fathom Yu Qi’s intentions—his strikes were always easily intercepted.

Unnoticed by Shi Mingfeng, each of Yu Qi’s attacks caused gray droplets of water to form, suspended in the air around them.

After dozens of clashes, Yu Qi’s broken blade shattered again, leaving only a fragment attached to the hilt. Meanwhile, the droplets around Shi Mingfeng grew from one to over ten.

At last, Shi Mingfeng sensed the anomaly. Staring at the hovering droplets, his face filled with fear. From these strange beads, he detected an aura that threatened his very life.

“Damn it, what is this?” Shi Mingfeng roared, channeling his inner power to dispel the droplets. But they clung to him like stubborn weeds, never dispersing.

Seeing the droplets, Yu Qi’s face paled. Using them had nearly exhausted his internal energy.

These droplets were the hallmark of Yu family’s heirloom sword technique—the Light Rain Sword. Yu Qi had held back from unleashing it at full strength to gauge his own power against Shi Mingfeng’s. The results were clear—he was weaker. But he could feel that at full power, he would surpass his opponent. The pain afterward, however, would rob him of his fighting ability, leaving him vulnerable to the surrounding servants’ attack.

Secondly, he lacked a proper sword. The Light Rain Sword was a blade technique that required a sword to perform. Yu Qi only had a hilt capable of blocking blows. Fortunately, he had seized an iron sword from one of the Ironstone Manor’s sword-wielding servants.

A faint smile lingered on Yu Qi’s lips as he calmly addressed Shi Mingfeng: “You should be glad. You’re witnessing a top-tier martial art—one many dream of mastering.”

“Top-tier martial art? Impossible,” Shi Mingfeng scoffed, disbelief etched on his face. Yet the droplets forced him to reconsider. This was the unmistakable signature of a renowned supreme technique.

He never expected a boy from this ordinary town to wield such a formidable skill.

Suddenly, realization dawned on him, deepening the shock in his eyes. “You... you are from the Yu family!”

As a martial artist, Shi Mingfeng was familiar with top sword techniques. In his memory, only the Yu family of Cang County could conjure raindrop-like manifestations with their sword art.

Yet, according to rumors, the Yu family had been destroyed over ten days ago. He never imagined he would encounter a survivor in this small town.

Hearing this, a flicker of surprise crossed Yu Qi’s face before it hardened into cold resolve. “Anyone who knows my identity must die.”

The fame of the Light Rain Sword was so great that even in this remote village, it was recognized. If his identity were exposed, those who annihilated the Yu family would come hunting him. The thought sent chills through him.

Shi Mingfeng bellowed, unwilling to die at Yu Qi’s hands. White light surged over his axe as he swung it down again.

Yu Qi leapt backward swiftly, evading the blow.

He tucked the Demon Seed sword hilt into his chest and raised his left arm, fingers slowly unfurling toward Shi Mingfeng. This motion seemed to awaken the droplets, which stirred violently, radiating waves of annihilating energy.

Feeling this terrifying power, Shi Mingfeng’s fear deepened. He charged at Yu Qi, knowing that killing him would dissolve the droplets.

Driven perhaps by the instinct of survival, his speed suddenly spiked. In the next instant, he was before Yu Qi, axe enveloped by gusts of wind, descending fiercely.