As soon as they clashed, Xiao Jie realized the White Ape was not joking about chopping him up.
Within a single exchange, a blade hit him and took off one-third of his health bar.
Damn, this guy is serious!
Xiao Jie was shocked, although the White Ape said it was just a spar and he probably wouldn’t go all out, after all, his life was on the line, so he dared not take it lightly.
Seeing the White Ape’s second chop coming, Xiao Jie quickly dodged—Hawk Roll!
Yet, like a shadow, the White Ape appeared right next to Xiao Jie as soon as he landed.
A blade came slashing down.
Xiao Jie swiftly parried!
Clang! He actually managed to block the strike, but seeing the White Ape’s mocking expression, Xiao Jie immediately realized it must be because the opponent hadn’t used full force.
Combat Skills—Counterattack!
This move could only be used after a successful deflection, immediately triggering a counterattack that inflicted 100% weapon damage and suppressed the opponent.
However, as Xiao Jie’s blade just reversed its direction, the White Ape casually flicked it aside, then kicked him, sending him tumbling.
"Kid, bring out all you’ve got! I haven’t had a good fight with anyone in a long time."
Bring it on! Xiao Jie also abandoned any thought of holding back.
Since you’re being so cocky, monkey, I’ll go all out then.
The White Ape casually stepped back dodging the blade.
Combat Skills—Thrust!
Yet the White Ape merely sidestepped, evading again.
Rolling Blade Slash! Xiao Jie didn’t care about the damage anymore, just wanting to land at least one hit.
A slash went out, and it seemed to hit the White Ape, but the next second, it vanished, leaving only an afterimage.
"Too slow, kid." Suddenly, the voice of the White Ape came from behind, and as Xiao Jie was getting up, he was chopped in the back again, reducing his health bar by more than half.
Gale Saber Technique!
Xiao Jie stopped using combat skills and just began wildly slashing with his saber at the White Ape.
His Gale Saber Technique had reached LV6, which could increase his attack speed by 60% after it was fully stacked. If fully stacked, there might still be a chance.
Yet even this simple plan proved difficult to achieve; Xiao Jie’s saber attacks furiously aimed at the White Ape, who moved like a shadow, elusively, with each strike hitting empty air.
Occasionally a strike seemed to hit but then turned out to be just an afterimage.
While dodging, the White Ape even had the leisure to give pointers.
"You need to connect with the sixth move."
"Don’t be so rigid, your blade should have more spirit."
"Your steps are too poor, don’t just attack in place, move and strike simultaneously."
Xiao Jie thought to himself that it was easy for the White Ape to say, but when the skill discrepancy was too vast, no maneuver seemed effective.
He strongly suspected that the White Ape had invincible frames during dodges, for how else could it vanish instantly even though sometimes the strikes clearly hit?
Having played the game for so long, Xiao Jie had encountered numerous saber techniques and swordsmanship, and generally, their martial arts effects were within a reasonable balance.
Only the saber technique used by the White Ape in front of him, according to Xiao Jie’s gaming experience, was completely elusive in its effect, definitely something exceptional. This saber technique was at least a Rare Technique, perhaps even a Supreme Divine Skill.
Fortunately, the White Ape did not really intend to kill, just continuously dodging and occasionally swinging a blade, always veering away in the moment it would hit Xiao Jie, scaring him profoundly.
After dozens of moves, Xiao Jie’s Gale Saber Technique had already completed seven or eight full rotations, yet he had not even touched a single hair on the White Ape.
Another kick flipped Xiao Jie over, but the White Ape then leaped far backward.
"No more, no more, your kung fu is too poor, it’s no fun playing with you."
Xiao Jie breathed a sigh of relief only to suddenly notice a line of system notifications.
System Notification: Your Gale Saber Technique experience +3.
System Notification: Your Gale Saber Technique experience +4.
In just a few minutes, the skill experience had increased by over four hundred. He was nearly reaching LV7.
He was both shocked and overjoyed. Indeed, sparring with a master granted much experience.
"Senior, don’t go, I haven’t given it my all yet."
Saying this, he slashed out again.
Clang! This strike, however, was blocked by the White Ape.
"Kid, who taught you this move?" the White Ape asked sternly.
Xiao Jie startled, in that instant the White Ape’s expression was incredibly ferocious, almost as if it was about to go berserk.
Xiao Jie hurriedly explained, "I comprehended it myself while chopping wood."
"You’ve been a woodcutter too?"
"Yes, my wood-chopping skills are even better than my saber skills."
This was no boast—Expert Level Chopping Wood, after all.
Only then did the White Ape return to normal, "Hmph, refrain from using that move in front of me again."
Xiao Jie wondered to himself but did not ask. Instead, he quickly pondered why the White Ape had such a strong reaction.
When giving gifts before, he had given a piece of dry firewood, and it too dropped favorability, originally thinking the gift was too crude but now it seemed to be because of the connection to woodcutting.
One Cut, Two Pieces was also a saber skill realized from chopping wood.
Xiao Jie suddenly thought of the woodcutter outside Monkey Valley—could he be related?
The woodcutter had lost a monkey named Mao Mao; the valley’s monkeys went berserk at its mention, indicating Mao Mao was of no ordinary status.
The White Ape’s sensitivity to dry firewood and woodcutting.
Could it be Mao Mao was related to the White Ape? Was the White Ape a relative or elder of Mao Mao, possibly its father or grandfather?
This seemed highly likely, considering the age; the White Ape must have lived several decades at least.