Chapter 563 - 184: Sword in Hand, Bathed in Moonlight, Sword Qi Like a Dragon!

Chapter 563: Chapter 184: Sword in Hand, Bathed in Moonlight, Sword Qi Like a Dragon!

"Ha... Ha... Ha... Ha..."

"Ha... Ha... Ha... Ha..."

Aoto and Shinno both opened their mouths slightly, breathing heavily.

It’s not because their bodies felt too exhausted.

Rather, the intense high-speed exchange of attacks and defenses just now pushed their nerves to the limit, causing them to unconsciously hold their breath and keep their eyes wide open.

Until the two "Silver Snakes" once again separated, they only instinctively realized how dry their eyes were and the chest ached due to a protest of insufficient oxygen.

The two swordsmen temporarily "paused the fight"... yet the air remained charged with a tense atmosphere.

Their alternating gasps continued to accumulate an eerie sense of tension on the bridge.

In the next instant, when this atmosphere reached a suffocating climax, shadows flickered! The moonlight danced! Two brilliant "Silver Snakes" once more lunged and ripped at each other!

Shinno’s middle-rank posture glittered coldly as his sword aimed straight for Aoto’s chest.

Pressing his body weight extremely low, Aoto, in a near kneeling position, swept the sword hidden behind his right side upwards, intending to break Shinno’s attack.

But just then, Aoto suddenly felt his left leg go numb and tingly, with a faint pain emanating from his knee.

Not due to an attack... It’s a signal from his leg of being "overburdened."

The relentless battles of the night had left Aoto’s limbs somewhat disobedient.

Though the numbing sensation in his left leg wasn’t strong, came unexpectedly yet faded quickly, this sudden hindrance made Aoto’s move lose form uncontrollably.

The dire consequence of the distorted action quickly unfolded on Aoto.

The trajectory of his sword swing deviated due to the mishap, failing to perfectly block Shinno’s strike.

Though he managed to deflect Shinno’s sword, preventing it from hitting his chest, the sharp tip still grazed Aoto’s right upper arm, tearing the sleeve of his kimono.

Aoto swiftly glanced at his wounded right upper arm—though bleeding quite a bit, it wasn’t deep enough to impair his movements.

With strength at his toes, Aoto leaped back swiftly.

Shinno pressed forward, not allowing Aoto any chance to widen their distance... yet this was the moment Aoto was waiting for.

In the fleeting chance as Shinno charged at him, Aoto freed his left hand and tore off the torn sleeve from his right arm, casting it like a net towards Shinno’s face.

With the garment fabric rapidly expanding in his view, Shinno frowned slightly, instinctively swung his sword downwards, splitting the material in half.

As the neatly halved fabric fell to the left and right... a point of light rushed straight for Shinno’s nose!

Like a map revealing a hidden dagger, behind the split fabric was the sword tip... Aoto’s piercing sword tip!

The sword, aimed straight at Shinno’s face, drew a straight line of light and swept up a gust of wind.

With his pupils contracting severely, Shinno sharply twisted his head to the left, as his originally aimed strike at Aoto hurriedly pivoted upright to the front of his body.

Slash—!

The Ghost-Slaying’s sword edge aimed at Shinno’s face clashed fiercely with the upright blade back of Shinno’s sword, like two welding rods colliding, sparking a series of dancing sparks, illuminating Shinno’s face.

Shinno’s timely defense diverted the Ghost-Slaying’s trajectory, failing to hit Shinno’s face squarely, only leaving a deep bloody mark on his right cheek.

In an instant, a small half of Shinno’s face was soaked with fresh blood from his own body.

The momentum of attack and defense... switched within mere seconds! Now Aoto embarked on pursuing the injured Shinno.

Aoto, who had been gripping his sword tightly earlier, now loosened his grip slightly, giving the sword tip a delicate rhythm... this mimicked the One-Sword Style’s technique.

The gentle twitching of the sword tip prevented stiffness, allowing rapid responses to any movements of his opponent, and making it difficult for Shinno to perceive his true intentions—this is one of the most notable features of the One-Sword Style.

Due to frequent sparring with swordsmen wielding the One-Sword Style, Aoto was most familiar with this swordsmanship aside from the Natural Reasoning Heart Stream.

Utilizing "Sword Genius" and "Ghost Heart," Aoto unwittingly "mastered" a few classic techniques of the One-Sword Style.

Relaxing his grip on the sword, Aoto swung swiftly, weaving a dense net of silver light that swept towards Shinno with overwhelming force.

Unable to evade through movement in time... Shinno clenched his jaw, lowered his stance, deciding to clash swords with Aoto! To meet Aoto head-on!

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang...

Two Silver Snakes, each occupying their sphere in mid-air, continuously intertwining, repeating the process of "collision, separation, collision again, separation again."

On the echoing bridge surface, the sound of metal clashing repeatedly resonated... but only one red-dressed girl was fortunate enough to witness.

Every strike of Aoto was nearly full force.

And every defense from Shinno was fought with all his might, while defending against Aoto’s attacks, he occasionally launched fierce counterattacks.

The storm-like offense and defense... both sides faced the same thing, a single moment of relaxation would bring enough a deadly blow to settle the victory or loss.

The fierce clashing chipped three new notches into the Ghost-Slaying’s sword edge in this mere ten seconds.