The blade’s edge glinted dangerously close to the eyes, carrying with it a faint bloody aura. This scene caused waves of gasps from the spectators below.

Liang Ping couldn’t help but cry out, “Be careful!”

Blade combat differed from spear fighting. While spear contests were more dangerous than archery, blade combat was even more perilous than spear fighting. One small mistake could draw blood, and with Huang Xiong’s tremendous strength, failing to control the blade could lead to disaster.

This youth might be casual usually, but how could he lose focus at such a crucial moment? Liang Ping worried anxiously – distraction during blade combat was forbidden!

Huang Xiong seized this opportune moment, slashing diagonally. He Yan appeared to have nowhere to dodge and was about to have the blade at his throat when the youth suddenly looked up, revealing a cunning smile.

“This is bad,” Huang Xiong thought to himself, attempting to withdraw, but in the next moment, He Yan’s left sword was already above his long blade, while his right sword had somehow circled behind him. In his panic, Huang Xiong ducked to avoid it, only to see the youth’s smile widen as he brought both hands together. The paired swords merged into one strike, chopping directly at Huang Xiong’s head. When Huang Xiong tried to block, he was already a step too late.

The blade stopped at his forehead, but the sharp edge had already drawn a thin line of blood.

The entire arena fell silent.

After a moment, He Yan sheathed his swords and pulled out a crumpled handkerchief to offer him. “Thank you for the match.”

Looking at He Yan’s handkerchief without taking it, Huang Xiong asked, “Earlier, you weren’t distracted – you were deceiving me?”

“All’s fair in war,” He Yan replied with a smile. “Don’t you agree?”

Having done this for many years, she knew to never let her guard down, especially during competitions. Even if Xiao Jue had arrived earlier – or even the Emperor himself – she wouldn’t have wavered for a moment. However, Huang Xiong’s swordplay was extraordinary, and since she wasn’t particularly skilled with swords, how could she have won so easily without employing some tactics? She had deliberately created an opening to lure Huang Xiong in, like a mantis catching a cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.

Thinking about it, she was quite clever. Xiao Jue probably wouldn’t have imagined that the person he once called “stupid” had now learned to use strategy and became quite resourceful. Pleased with this thought, He Yan looked down at the audience, hoping to see Xiao Jue gazing at her admiringly. However, she found no trace of him or Shen Han – only Cheng Li Su excitedly waving his headband at her.

He just left like that? He Yan was momentarily stunned.

Had he even seen her impressive display?

Before she could process this thought, a crowd of people swarmed around her. Having shown her prowess once again, half of Liangzhou Wei’s recruits were completely won over. Her mastery of archery, spear fighting, and swordplay truly set her apart from the rest. However, the other half found her arrogance even more unbearable, saying, “Using only tricks and schemes isn’t the righteous way. If you’ve got real skill, fight fairly! It’s only because you know you’re not as good as your opponent that you resort to deception.”

“That just proves how clever she is!” others argued back.

Wang Ba walked away among the recruits, his feelings complicated. On one hand, he hoped He Yan would keep winning, proving herself a true warrior. Losing to a strong opponent was understandable – after all, no one in the entire Liangzhou Wei could defeat him.

But on the other hand, Wang Ba felt resentful. Why did so many people lose to He Yan, yet he was the only one who had to call her “Boss”?

Why him?!

Though thinking about it again, Huang Xiong was over forty and lost to a sixteen-year-old youth, which seemed even more pathetic than his situation. This thought finally gave Wang Ba some comfort, and he let out a temporary sigh of relief.

…

In the forest below Bai Yue Shan at Liangzhou Wei, two people were walking slowly.

The dense forest canopy filtered the sunlight, creating a cool and pleasant atmosphere. Birds chirped, and the scenery of Bai Yue Shan was uniquely beautiful.

“You watched the martial arts competition earlier,” Xiao Jue said. “What did you think?”

Shen Han pondered carefully before responding, “Liang Ping has recruited a good soldier. He Yan is a promising talent. To excel in archery, spear fighting, and swordplay individually is rare enough. To be skilled in all of them is exceptional – there isn’t another recruit like him in this batch at Liangzhou Wei.”

“What about his swordplay?” Xiao Jue asked.

“It seems He Yan’s swordplay isn’t as refined as Huang Xiong’s, but he makes up for it with agile footwork and quick thinking – he’s not rigid in his approach and knows how to use strategy,” Shen Han answered.

He Yan’s weaknesses were quite apparent. If the match had continued for another quarter hour, He Yan would have certainly lost. He probably realized this himself, which is why he feigned distraction to bait Huang Xiong into attacking rashly, ultimately defeating him.

“What do you think about him joining the Jiu Qi Ying?” Xiao Jue asked casually.

“This youth is young but clever and strategic, not blindly brave. He’s skilled in archery and horsemanship, exceptional in martial arts, and I hear he’s literate too. If we’re choosing from this batch of recruits, he would be the best choice,” Shen Han said carefully.

“You think so too?” Xiao Jue turned around, his tone noncommittal.

Shen Han observed the young man’s expression. The young Commander Xiao was known for keeping his emotions hidden, and his current calm expression revealed nothing, but Shen Han sensed he didn’t quite agree with his assessment.

“Commander… do you find something concerning about him?”

“This person is suspicious,” Xiao Jue said.

Shen Han was stunned.

“In today’s sword match, his swordplay wasn’t particularly refined, but his footwork matches that taught to the Charging Infantry.”

The Charging Infantry, who fought at the frontlines and faced death constantly, were trained in extremely agile footwork. During He Yan’s match with Huang Xiong, though his swordplay was inferior, he dodged every strike. Those instinctive retreating movements were clearly from the Charging Infantry. He Yan seemed to have noticed this and tried to disguise it, but instinctive movements couldn’t always be hidden.

“This… this…” Shen Han said, “How is this possible? He’s only sixteen – could he have already been in battle before?”

“It’s precisely because it’s impossible that he’s suspicious,” Xiao Jue replied.

Given the current tense situation, Shen Han had to be cautious. After hesitating, he asked Xiao Jue, “Commander, what should we do now?”

“I want to test this person,” Xiao Jue answered.

“How does the Commander plan to test him?”

“He’s been winning every match on the training grounds, one per day. Tomorrow, you’ll select three instructors to compete with him in mounted archery.”

Shen Han hesitated, “Isn’t that inappropriate? If he wins…” If He Yan won, how would the recruits view their instructors who couldn’t even defeat a soldier?

Xiao Jue stopped walking and said calmly, “If he wins, then he has something to hide.”

“Such a prodigy doesn’t exist in this world, and even if one did, they wouldn’t appear in Liangzhou Wei.”