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Talu swung the staff in a wide arc. Her intention was blatantly clear and her speed unhurried—an attack easily dodged, which in a formal duel would serve as nothing more than a courteous opening probe. Chen Chuan did not choose to evade. He could tell that, although it was merely an opening probe, the jin coursing through it was seamlessly connected from beginning to end, exceptionally fluid, and far superior to what she had displayed in their previous spar. He stepped straight forward and blocked with the spine of his blade. With a resonant clang, the staff was caught. Talu let out a sharp cry, pulling the staff back and thrusting forward, but with a flick of his blade, he parried it once more. Immediately after, an ear-numbing roar echoed through the air as a flurry of staff shadows descended from every direction. Parrying the blows, Chen Chuan noticed that Talu's physical strength had not increased much, but her jin had undergone a noticeable shift. This time, it was no longer just two distinct waves of jin; layer upon layer surged forward, overlapping in an unbroken sequence like the relentless current of a flowing river. Having experienced the Danliu School's techniques before, he recognized with little effort that this was Danliu's two-stage jin. The difference was that the vibrational force of the staff had been integrated into it, linking one cycle of two-stage jin to the next and creating an inexhaustible stream of power. This transitional technique, by his judgment, was likely adapted from Anyao Arena's secret art. This was not as simple as merely adding the staff's force. The jin of both Anyao Arena and Danliu School targeted mutated tissue, and layering it continuously like this was enough to exert far greater disruption and devastation on an opponent's mutated tissue. The staff played a crucial role here; having a mutated weapon in hand had given Talu's combat prowess a qualitative leap. Were this a life-or-death battle, the simplest way to counter it would be to clash directly against her jin, crushing it beneath a higher order of Mind Jin to disperse the force at once. However, since Talu had requested a spar to exchange moves, meeting her with technique was far more appropriate. He immediately shifted to external conditioning jin. The incoming jin resonated relentlessly with his mutated tissue, causing a tingling, swollen sensation that made it difficult to coalesce—clearly, her technique could target external conditioning as well. He realized that relying purely on external conditioning jin to defend without attacking might hold up for a short while, but over time, his guard would likely be shattered by the vibrations. Inwardly, he could not help but admire the subtlety of her jin. Given the self-imposed constraints of this spar, he had to take the offensive and check her momentum to disrupt her flow of force. Thus, he no longer remained planted on the defensive. Lifting his blade with a sudden snap, he allowed the staff to strike his shoulder, absorbing the blow with basic external conditioning jin. Moving forward at roughly the same speed as her, his blade flashed as he slashed outward. The moment Chen Chuan chose to tank the impact, Talu had already adjusted her breathing. As he advanced, she retreated a step, maintaining the exact distance between them. Then, shifting her front grip on the staff, she angled the forward tip to the side as though preparing to parry and deflect. Yet as the blade drew near, she suddenly yelled, pressing down with her lead hand while thrusting her rear hand upward, slamming the exposed butt of the staff violently against the blade. With a sharp crack, the blade snapped instantly, its severed tip hurtling away. This was Danliu School's signature two-stage blade-breaking jin, designed specifically to counter Anyao Arena's sword techniques. In that split second, force focused at the tip of the staff, and a mere tap could shatter a weapon clean through. And once an Anyao fighter lost their blade, more than half of their arts were rendered useless. This technique was undeniably effective against Anyao practitioners, but Chen Chuan did not rely on swordsmanship alone. Unfazed in the slightest as the front section of the blade flew off, he seized the exact moment she exerted her force to crowd inside, thrusting the broken blade forward like a dagger. A long staff became virtually useless once an opponent closed the distance, yet at that critical moment, Talu executed another transformation. With a sharp wrench of her hands, the long staff snapped in two with a loud crack, separating into a pair of short batons. A twist of her wrists parried the broken blade aside before both batons lunged forward in unison. As Chen Chuan swayed back to evade, she pivoted her body. The two batons swung high and low with whistling howls through the air—smashing, flicking, chopping, and striking from every conceivable angle. Matching her in both strength and speed, Chen Chuan parried more than ten exchanges in a row. He soon realized that as her momentum unfolded, the jin behind the batons grew heavier and heavier. This was not due to an increase in raw muscular power, but because her application of jin was becoming smoother, her exertion more efficient, and perhaps subtle changes and growth were occurring within certain areas of her mutated tissue. Even though he suppressed his overall prowess, his combat experience could not be willed away. Consequently, he swiftly caught a fleeting hitch in her breathing—perhaps caused by an uncalibrated rhythm in her assault, or perhaps a lingering flaw in the synthesis of the two schools' jin. In any case, it was a flaw. He knew Talu's purpose in sparring was not only to gain better command over her jin, but also to have him help identify vulnerabilities in her offense. Without hesitation, he struck during that gap, slashing his blade against the baton to pry open her centerline defense. Shifting from defense to offense, he stepped in to press the attack, unleashing a flurry of slashes. The baton that had been deflected could not recover in time, forcing Talu to parry with only a single baton. Knowing how she generated force and reading her breathing, Chen Chuan struck precisely at the nodes of her exertion every time, preventing her from gathering full power. Each slash forced her half a step backward, causing her tight, unified jin to unravel. After more than a dozen consecutive strikes, sensing that the resistance before him had dwindled to near nothing, Chen Chuan snapped his blade upward. With a sharp clang, that half of the staff was sent flying. Yet he could tell that at the very last moment, Talu had relinquished it intentionally. Leaning back to evade the broken blade, she twisted her torso and closed the distance. With complete mastery over the flow of his jin, Chen Chuan lowered the blade, arresting it right against her shoulder. Talu paid it no heed, using the rotation of her body to whip her remaining baton toward his ribs. He swatted the baton aside with an open palm, only to find there was no force behind it at all. Talu barked a shout, her free hand suddenly snatching toward his elbow. Danliu School focused primarily on unarmed combat, excelling most in freeform strikes while incorporating various seizing techniques. This move, "Injury Reversal," was specifically meant to turn the tables in a crisis. Yet for the same reason as before, while this move was effective against Anyao practitioners, it failed against Chen Chuan. With a fluid twist of his hand, he not only brushed off her hold but seized her wrist in turn. His seizing jin shot into her body in an instant, numbing the entire side of her torso. Before she could recover, the broken blade was already resting against her neck. Seeing this, she abandoned any thought of continuing. Noticing her tense body relax, Chen Chuan released her and stepped back a few paces. Talu worked the stiffness out of her numb side. Straightening up, she bowed deeply to him and said solemnly, "Mr. Chen, thank you very much!" Chen Chuan cupped his hands in return. "No need to be polite." When Talu straightened again, far from being discouraged by her loss, she looked exceptionally invigorated. In the clash just now, she had grasped many nuances she likely could never have mastered on her own even after prolonged contemplation. Once she absorbed and digested them, her strength would undoubtedly take another major stride forward. Chen Chuan had not walked away empty-handed either. The way Talu expressed her jin had provided him with ample inspiration—especially how combining the staff's vibrational force with her own internal power multiplied her combat effectiveness. This made him realize that the jin he was developing shouldn't exist in isolation; it should also be able to integrate with the weapons he wielded to a certain extent. When channeling power through a weapon, it needed to produce even greater strength than bare hands and feet could, thereby bringing out the true advantages of weaponry. Once the Xuejun Saber awakened, he could explore this further. Since it was still early, he did not linger. Accompanied by Talu, who had reaped immense gains, he left the area and returned to the island surface. To express gratitude for his help in repelling Anyao Arena, Uncle Gan had specially arranged a bonfire feast, preparing an abundance of local delicacies from the island. Chen Chuan was in no rush for those brief hours. After tasting the food, he returned alone to the fissure to resume his cultivation. Free of distractions, he settled back into his previous routine—accumulating mental energy in the fissure by night, and returning to the lotus pedestal during the day to unwind while engaging in other forms of training. At times, he also tried his hand at coaching some of the Danliu School disciples. Having observed many of Danliu School's secret techniques earlier, even though he did not practice them himself, his breadth of knowledge made them easy to comprehend. With a single glance, he could tell which stage a disciple was in and pinpoint their specific flaws. Because his guidance yielded immediate results, more and more disciples came to seek his instruction. He did not mind this at all. The Danliu School had only around twenty disciples in total, and most of them were children; only three or four were at a level where they could truly benefit from his pointers. Moreover, he held a teaching certificate from Wuyi. While receiving resources, he would certainly be required to teach students, so this was a good opportunity to familiarize himself with the role. A few days later, the gale that had battered the island for more than ten consecutive days finally died down. That day, when he emerged from the fissure and returned to the cliffside, he looked out to see a clear, brilliant blue sky dotted with white sails across the sea. A thick plume of grayish-white mist rose from the island, soaring high into the sky. It was already late July, and not much time remained. By late August, he would have to head back. Turning back to glance at the terrace, he saw many disciples practicing their forms under Uncle Gan's instruction, but Talu was nowhere to be seen. Thinking back, he realized he hadn't seen her for several days. This was rather unusual. After a moment's thought, he walked over to Uncle Gan and asked, "Uncle Gan, where has Talu been these past few days?" Uncle Gan replied, "I was just about to tell you, Mr. Chen." Dismissing the disciples to practice on their own, he continued, "People from the Ocean Exploration Group have arrived on Luowang Island. They sent someone over earlier to invite Talu, claiming they want to discuss the continued existence of the dojo."