Cultivation Nerd-Chapter 219: Openings

As I saw the wind blade speeding toward the old man, who was summoning every ounce of power just to stand a chance at blocking it, a thought crossed my mind: did he even understand dodging?

I had to consciously hold back, weakening the technique just in case his blocking wasn’t enough and it might end up bisecting him.

Normally, even a full-powered Falling Moon Claw would struggle to kill a Foundation Establishment Cultivator. But that was assuming the cultivator belonged to the Blazing Sun Sect and had an Earth Grade defensive technique.

Wind clashed against wind, and Grandpa crushed the weakened Falling Moon Claw.

Before I could say anything, he swung his hand in a gesture similar to mine when casting the Falling Moon Claw, though it was more of a slap than a precise cut. He didn’t even employ an Earth Grade Technique, just an AOE gust of wind that sent me flying toward the cavern walls.

“Some attacks just can’t be dodged,” Grandpa said as if dispensing some ancient wisdom.

But my technique could have been dodged. He’d chosen one of the riskiest ways to handle an attack like mine.

As I hurtled toward the cavern wall, I cushioned my landing with a thick barrier of jelly-like jade that no longer looked translucent. It felt like landing harshly on a soft blob, a strangely comfortable impact.

Almost immediately, I was back on my feet, ready to defend or attack again.

From what I’d seen so far, Grandpa’s element was undoubtedly wind. He had developed several techniques from his comprehension of it: an invisibility-enhancing movement technique, a suction force, and an AOE blast.

But it was a poor configuration of techniques. Foundation Establishment was named so for a reason; it was a stage to build a solid foundation, not to cover every weakness. With this array of techniques, the odds of Grandpa ever breaking through to Core Formation were slim to none. More likely, he’d fail and lose all his cultivation, the standard backlash for failing to advance to Foundation Establishment. Many had tried to break through while injured and died.

Yet despite everything, Grandpa launched another attack, closing in on me with his movement technique.

By now, I’d started to get a feel for his rhythm. Despite wielding wind, he fought with aggressive ferocity. A style that clashed with his element, and his techniques didn’t support it well either.

As he closed within arm’s reach, he began throwing fast punches that left ghostly afterimages, making him look like a many-armed Ashura. His speed was dizzying; it was impossible to tell which arm would strike.

It looked like a Mortal Grade Technique. Effective, especially against those of lower cultivation.

But again, most techniques were effective against weaker cultivators.

Instead of playing by his rules, I activated Galloping Horse Power Technique, quickly retreating so that his punches hit empty air, rendering the real one irrelevant.

As I moved back, my back hit something. There wasn’t much space left behind me; I was literally up against the wall.

Seeing the flurry of punches coming my way, I scrambled to think of a strategy. With less than a second before he closed in, only one idea came to mind, though I wasn't sure how effective it would be.

Dancing Jade Armor: Ashura!

I went through the motions of summoning a jade soldier but only made their arms this time. The jade arms floated mid-air, each clashing with one of his afterimages. I formed green jade gloves over my fists and struck out as well.

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To my surprise, his attacks were so fast that he was hitting through every afterimage. Technically, each punch was real.

As we engaged in a hand-to-hand exchange, I expected the old man's experience to overpower me, but instead, we were evenly matched. Either he wasn't putting in his full effort, or he didn't have as much battle experience as I'd thought. The former didn't make much sense; he had no reason to hold back in a punch barrage that wouldn't cause me lasting harm.

Our clash felt strange. The spar was challenging; he outclassed me physically, and I was mostly on the defensive. Yet, this wasn't pushing me to my limits.

Maybe this was how normal spars were supposed to feel. But it was nothing like the spars I was used to... When I sparred with Song Song, it was overwhelming. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't beat her, but lasting even a second longer against her was proof of improvement. I could go all out with killing intent, knowing my attacks wouldn't scratch her. Each spar pushed my mind to its limits, forcing me to predict her moves since I couldn't keep up with her speed.

I canceled the jade arms and leaned into his punches now that I knew each one was real.

As a punch neared, a small jade barrier formed just in time, absorbing the impact but shattering under the force. At this close range, I surged forward, closing the gap until I was just inches from him, and headbutted him square on the nose.

This kind of move would've gotten me floored ten out of ten times against Song Song.

Given our physical differences, I barely harmed him. Still, it was enough to make him stagger back a step, allowing me to slip past and free myself from the wall.

Before I could press the advantage of being behind him, he swung his arm, summoning a gust of wind that pushed me back. I could've tried to brute force through it, but there was little point.

His techniques resembled Earth Grade, an advantage for Foundation Establishment Cultivators. Yet, they lacked the refinement to truly be Earth Grade, and they would never reach a Trace.

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This was why I wasn't as cautious as I might have been otherwise. A Trace mid-battle could shift the entire balance, which was a risk I wasn't willing to take lightly, regardless of the opponent.

Martial Techniques here were like martial arts back in my world; they were used to bridge gaps in strength and often decided the outcome between two evenly-matched fighters.

In this case, Earth Grade techniques could close the gap between Qi Gathering and Foundation Establishment. But if both fighters were equally skilled… Well, there was a reason weight classes existed in my last world.

It didn't seem like my grandfather had learned any of the Earth Grade Techniques we'd brought back. Maybe he saw himself as too old for new tricks and was content with his current moveset.

Over the next few minutes, more wind attacks flew my way, and I dodged most of them while noting the old man's repertoire of moves.

First came a silent wind movement technique, followed by an area-of-effect blast, then an incredibly fast kick accelerated by the absence of wind resistance.

Essentially, all his attacks were combinations of these three techniques used in various ways.

He wielded his element skillfully, demonstrating decades of experience. Yet his fighting style didn't align with the wind element at all. A speed-blitz approach would have been more effective and might have defeated me in a few moves.

Still, the more he showcased his attempts to create wind techniques to cover his weaknesses and compensate for the clan's lack of Earth Grade Techniques, the clearer it became that even with top-tier talent, my grandfather would fail to break through to Core Formation. His foundation was lackluster.

In gaming terms, he'd allocated skill points to all the wrong trees.

Either way, I had seen enough; it was time to end this.

I summoned a giant green skeletal arm, swinging it down toward my grandfather.

I expected him to jump back or attempt to block it and fail.

But although my grandfather lacked the combat experience someone his age should have, he was no fool. He might have learned much more than I had during this fight.

Instead of blocking or retreating, he charged straight at me with a confident smile, employing his wind movement technique to move faster than I could normally react.

My first thought was to use the lightning array, but I immediately dismissed it. That could actually injure him. I didn't want Grandpa entering the upcoming war wounded, that could lead to his death.

There were other techniques I could use, moves that wouldn't harm someone like Song Song, who could devise a counterattack or defense before they even landed. But Grandpa was no Song Song, and he lacked a lot when compared to her, that much was clear.

It was clear that with this one move, he had cornered me, and I couldn't handle the situation without risking injury to him.

This was his victory...

The giant jade skeletal arm dissipated into green mist, and before it vanished completely, Grandpa was already within arm's reach.

So, I used more than half my Qi to form a bubblegum-like cocoon around myself. His punch caused ripples across the sphere, pushing me back until the cocoon smashed against the wall. There were no shockwaves; I tumbled inside, feeling as if I were in a water balloon.

But in the end, I was unharmed. I dismissed the cocoon and raised my hands in surrender.

"Okay, you win," I said.

The old man frowned. "Ah, what a shame. I was just shaking off the rust. It's been decades since I fought someone like this."

Usually, elders and cultivators at his stage rarely fought one another; they mostly bullied younger cultivators and acted as deterrents.

"You are pretty talented when it comes to fighting and quick on your feet. But you really need to work on fixing that creepy look of yours," Grandpa said, smiling as he did some light stretches. He seemed quite energetic.

Fighting talent? I suppose that made sense in a place like this. Usually, I was more of a preparation kind of guy, which helped me perform better in fights.

When I thought of fighting talent, I always thought of Song Song. Even if we were at the same cultivation stage, I couldn't see myself defeating her without extensive preparation.

"Do you want to go another round?" Grandpa asked.

"No," I shook my head. "I have to save some Qi for cultivating later."

This fight had been somewhat dull. The gap between a place like this and the Blazing Sun Sect wasn't just about cultivation talent but also fighting talent.

There were plenty of peak Qi Gathering cultivators in the Blazing Sun Sect who could probably defeat my grandfather.

"Ah, well, that's a shame," the old man shrugged. "But we should spar again sometime. I learned a bit in this fight."

A proud man like my grandfather openly admitting that? Was this the same man who was willing to start a civil war out of pride?

"You should try dodging more," I said, offering genuine advice but also trying to gauge his reaction. "Wind isn't exactly a strong defensive element."

For the grand image I had of him, I expected he'd either grudgingly accept or silently acknowledge it while outwardly refusing, all because of his pride.

"The last time I tried dodging, some Fu bastard lopped off my brother's head," he said calmly.

Ah, shit.

The revelation crumbled all my assumptions and plans, sometimes it was to predict these kinds of interactions. There was a deeper reason he no longer dodged attacks. It was likely the same reason he'd developed such an unusual collection of wind techniques.

"Anyway, you did well," Grandpa said. "You're able to defend against and evade most Foundation Establishment cultivators. The best the clans have to offer is Foundation Establishment, so you should be safe on any mission."

"The clans?" I asked, a bit puzzled.

Why was he bringing up clans? Shouldn't we be more concerned about monstrous beasts?

Don't tell me… Was there some kind of hidden plot unfolding? Were the clans planning to take advantage of this chaotic moment to backstab each other?

Great. Complications. I might seem capable of navigating these things, but that was mostly because I worked alongside Song Song. She always ensured my safety.

But here? That wasn't a mess I wanted to get tangled in.

"I meant 'the clans' in more of a metaphorical sense, you know, as a figure of speech," Grandpa said, backtracking quickly. "Anyway, there will be a meeting here in the underground cavern next Monday. We'll assign jobs for everyone in the clan and review protocols for emergencies and worst-case scenarios."

One week... That was all the time I had to pack as much training as possible into Wu Yan. I'd also have to prepare a regimen for her to follow for the time I'd be away.

A week wasn't much for someone with Wu Yan's learning speed. Plus, I couldn't just write things down for her since she didn't have eyes to read.

In addition, I'd need to set aside hours each day for my cultivation since skipping it wasn't an option.

I had a lot to get done…