Watching the smug Heliobus, Yanqing took a deep breath.
Had Pei Guang and the others' exaggerated "congratulations" affected him? Yes, when Pei Guang first called the enemy "invincible," Yanqing had a brief moment of doubt.
But then he recalled his past experiences with Pei Guang—and suddenly, it all made sense.
He understood. Pei Guang calling the Heliobus "invincible" meant it had all of Yanqing's strength, even all his sword techniques. It was, in every sense, his strongest possible opponent.
If he could defeat this "invincible self," he would surpass his current limits. As for whether he could win?
That didn't matter. He would wield his sword with his own will, no matter the outcome.
At that moment, Yanqing held a sword in his right hand. Two flying swords appeared at either side of him, with four more hovering behind his back.
But just as Yanqing moved, the Heliobus Apyra mimicked him exactly, and began taunting: "I've memorized all your techniques. Let me demonstrate them for you. Under my merciless sword intent, witness their true power."
Yanqing didn't respond to the mockery. Instead, he simply swung his sword. Each sword, responding to his will, attacked the Heliobus with pinpoint precision.
Yanqing struck first, charging with his sword in hand. The Heliobus raised its own sword to block.
Its plan was simple: block the first blow, then finish Yanqing off with its strongest technique. But in the moment it was blocked, Apyra suddenly realized that Yanqing's flying swords were also closing in from every direction.
This wasn't any sword technique: it was just pure manipulation of flying swords, striking at weak points in its defense.
"Hmph! That's all you've got?"
The Heliobus had all of Yanqing's techniques. Controlling flying swords was second nature. But as it tried to execute them, something felt off.
It could control the swords as easily as limbs, using them for any attack or defense, but Yanqing's flying swords behaved strangely.
Even attacks that seemed blockable would suddenly veer off and pierce its weak spots.
And whenever the Heliobus tried to counterattack, Yanqing dodged like a slippery eel—completely untouchable.
Worse still, when Yanqing's flying swords struck, the blades would twist and vibrate on contact. If this had been a normal enemy, those strikes would've shredded muscles or internal organs instantly.
Yanqing had learned this from Pei Guang. Back when they fought the Imbibitor Lunae and Herta's puppet, he'd already picked up some dirty, but effective, moves.
He never used them out of a swordsman's pride.
Until recently, after talking with Pei Guang again, he learned even more.
Pei Guang had never directly taught him these combat techniques, but the theories he shared were eye-opening for Yanqing.
In a friendly duel, you swing your sword with joy. Winning or losing helps build experience.
In real battle, you swing your sword with everything you've got. No talk of honor or virtue. The best technique is the one that gets your opponent killed.
The Heliobus had no real body.
So in this case, Yanqing fought with the intention to destroy it, completely.
Just as he thought, his attacks were indeed damaging it, though not harming himself in the process.
But as the battle went on, the Heliobus found itself growing weaker, while Yanqing grew stronger. And his dirty tricks? They just kept getting nastier.
For example, when a sword slashes across the throat, it vibrates and spins just before hitting; another blade pierces the enemy from below in a blind spot; two flying swords target the temples: if even one hits, it would be a critical blow.
But Heliobi are energy-based beings, and for them, this kind of attack is more frightening than truly harmful.
What really left the Heliobus stunned was that during these underhanded sword strikes, it suddenly saw a silver-haired, red-eyed, perfectly-proportioned woman slapping it across the face again and again.
The wounds in the real world didn't hurt, but the slaps in that illusion were painfully vivid.
A Heliobus that had lived for who knows how long... was actually being slapped in a hallucination?
Dueling is dueling, what's with calling someone in to slap faces? That's an insult to the art of the sword!
Watching Yanqing's way of fighting, Guinaifen shivered. "This style… feels so brutal…"
Sushang nodded. "Yeah… Just watching it gives me chills. If that sword landed on me, I'd probably lose a whole chunk of flesh…"
Pei Guang looked at the two of them. "What are you afraid of? Yanqing's on our side, and he's fighting our enemy. Against enemies, no method is too cruel. If you're still thinking about morality, then killing cleanly without torture is already merciful.
Look at Yanqing, how efficient, how merciful! Every strike is a kill move, the kind that guarantees the target has zero chance of survival. From brain to guts, not even meat scraps left. If it were a regular enemy, it would've died cleanly. That's the greatest kindness to an enemy."
Sushang: "Huh? That… actually makes sense. These moves would be perfect against Abominations of Abundance. One slash, and a chunk of meat is just gone. The lesser ones would die on the spot, and even stronger ones would take serious damage."
As they offered their sharp commentary, on the other side, the Heliobus had already been slashed dozens of times and slapped just as many, when it suddenly shouted, "Stop!"
Surprisingly, though Yanqing fought fiercely, when the other party shouted "stop," he really did stop.
The Heliobus roared in anger: "You cheated! You added something into your swords that shouldn't be there!!!"
Yanqing was confused.
Added something to his swords? He didn't add anything! That was slander!
Sensing his thoughts, Yanqing's swords also buzzed in agreement.
Pei Guang walked over and looked at the Heliobus. "Cheated? Look, I wish we were being dishonorable, but this time we really didn't cheat."
At that moment, Tail also flew out. "Ahem, I can confirm that. Apyra, you're just bad."
Apyra: "Impossible! Absolutely impossible! I've memorized all his techniques! None of them include those attacks, and definitely not…"
It recalled that face-slapping feeling with every strike. Did they know how much emotional damage those slaps had done?
Before Yanqing could even respond, Pei Guang interrupted: "That was in the past! You're a Heliobus, if you're weak, train more. If you can't lose, don't play. The past is the past, and now is now. If you keep mistaking the past for the present, then why don't you go back to comparing yourself to when you were just born?"
Everyone couldn't help but applaud Pei Guang's taunt.
Guinaifen: "Savage! That was savage!"
Sushang: "Not a single curse word, but I still feel that Heliobus got absolutely roasted."
Tail: "Apyra, if I were you, I'd kill myself."
Huohuo: "Don't say that! If it dies, how are we going to bring the Heliobus back?"
At that moment, Yanqing's eyes sparkled as he looked at Pei Guang, full of excitement. "What you said was great, sir. If you're weak, train more. The past is the past, now is now. I've never felt this in the zone before!"
And with his taunt echoing, Apyra seemed to see those same figures that had slapped it now mocking it:
"If you're weak, train more!"
"If you can't lose, don't play!"
Assaulted by ridicule in both the real world and in its mind, the Heliobus's mental state completely collapsed.