Martial Saint with Passives

"Is there any doubt? Senior Brother Shi placed fourth in the last competition, and now he’s already at the Late-stage Refining Organ Realm, on the verge of breaking through to the Peak! His Saber Technique is overwhelmingly powerful. How can a rookie like Jiang Che, who just broke through, possibly compare?"

In the stands, Situ Zhen, the head of the Thunder Shock Courtyard, turned directly to Xu Qingshan and said, "Old Xu, care to make a bet? I’ll wager that your precious disciple can’t last ten moves against Shi Poyue!"

Xu Qingshan’s eyes widened, and he readily accepted. "A bet it is! If my disciple wins, that fifty-year-old vintage of Fire Soul Wine you’ve been hoarding is mine!"

"Fine! It’s a deal! If my disciple wins, you’ll have to give me a pound of Cold Spirit Tea!"

"Done!"

...

On the fighting stage, the burly Shi Poyue stood like an iron tower, wielding a massive, thick-backed broadsaber. An immense, stifling pressure emanated from him.

He looked at Jiang Che and said in a deep, booming voice, "Kid, you’re not bad. It’s no small feat to break through to the Refining Organ Realm at your age. But this is where your road ends."

Jiang Che watched him calmly and made a gesture to begin.

"Hah!"

Shi Poyue spoke no more. With a thunderous roar, the bluestone stage beneath his feet instantly cracked!

He charged like an enraged bull, bringing his saber down with unstoppable force!

Before the blade even arrived, the sheer force of its wind was sharp enough to sting one’s cheeks!

Facing this earth-shattering strike, Jiang Che neither dodged nor retreated. He simply raised his right hand, which was covered by a dark silver glove.

CLANG!!

A deafening shriek of metal on metal rang out!

Shi Poyue’s strike, powerful enough to shatter stone tablets, had been stopped dead by Jiang Che’s single fist!

"What?!"

Shi Poyue’s pupils contracted.

"A little interesting." He shed his contempt. "Again!"

He shifted his Saber Momentum, unleashing a barrage of attacks as fierce as a raging storm!

Jiang Che continued to meet saber with fist.

Every impact sent blinding sparks flying and created a deep, muffled boom.

The more Shi Poyue fought, the more shocked he became.

He found that no matter how ferocious his Saber Technique became, his opponent would effortlessly neutralize it. Those fists seemed indestructible!

The spectators in the stands gradually realized something was off.

"What’s going on? Senior Brother Shi... can’t seem to gain the upper hand?"

"That Jiang Che can go head-to-head with Senior Brother Shi’s Saber Technique and not lose any ground?!"

Unable to break through after such a long assault, Shi Poyue finally lost his patience.

He abruptly took a step back and a deep breath, crazily channeling all the Qi Force in his body into his massive saber!

Sparks of electricity began to faintly flicker across the blade!

"Watch out, kid! Face my ultimate move, the Thunder Shock Slash!"

In the stands, everyone familiar with Shi Poyue tensed up.

"It’s the Thunder Shock Slash! Shi Poyue’s about to win!"

"That move is incredibly powerful! There’s no way Jiang Che can block it!"

Situ Zhen shot a smug look at Xu Qingshan, as if he could already taste the Cold Spirit Tea he had won.

The disciples from the Yunhai Courtyard all broke out in a cold sweat for Jiang Che.

However, just as the saber, now imbued with the might of a thunderbolt, was about to descend, Jiang Che—who had been on the passive defense the entire time—finally made his move!

He neither dodged nor blocked.

Instead, in the split second before the blade struck, he threw a punch of his own!

This punch had no astonishing power, no brilliant flash of light.

It was just an ordinary, simple punch.

But, to everyone’s astonishment, Jiang Che’s fist, though thrown second, arrived first, striking precisely on the spine of Shi Poyue’s massive saber!

CLANG—HUMMMMM!!

After an unprecedentedly loud crash, the massive saber in Shi Poyue’s hands let out a violent hum. The force of the punch sent it flying from his grasp, where it landed and stuck, quivering, in a corner of the stage!

As for Shi Poyue, he looked as if he’d been struck by lightning. He staggered back seven or eight steps before collapsing onto his rear, where he coughed up a mouthful of blood, his face a mask of utter disbelief!

Jiang Che retracted his fist and regarded him calmly.

He won.

The entire arena was plunged into a deathly silence.