Chapter 115: Tactics

"That was terrifying; my neck was almost bitten off."

Chen Mobai stood up, touching his neck. His initially calm eyes began to sharpen.

Having experienced many playful duels recently, he found his mindset slightly unadjusted when suddenly facing a life-or-death battle where a single move could decide everything.

"Don't worry, I won't kill you. The snake fangs will release a toxin the moment they pierce your neck, paralyzing you."

Although Gong Xiangyu found Chen Mobai highly irritating, he still retained his rationality.

A duel was a duel. If he accidentally killed his opponent, his brilliant life would be stained with a significant blemish.

"Oh, so I should thank you then."

Chen Mobai stretched his neck. His right hand extended, a talisman already clutched between his fingers.

Water Sword Talisman!

Gong Xiangyu had watched all of Chen Mobai's previous five duel videos. He was intimately familiar with every talisman Chen Mobai had used and had even devised a counter-strategy for each one.

The moment he saw the talisman between Chen Mobai's fingers, he recognized it and immediately implemented the tactical plan he had memorized.

Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!

An eerie sound, like a spirit serpent flicking its tongue, echoed across the arena. The surrounding airflow began to abnormally swirl and twist, gradually forming the translucent silhouette of a large snake that encircled Chen Mobai, with Gong Xiangyu at its center.

Just as the translucent giant snake opened its transparent maw and lunged to bite down on Chen Mobai, several ethereal azure arrows of spiritual energy materialized in the void.

With a series of thuds.

Six arrow-shaped spiritual energies, like javelins descending from the heavens, precisely pierced the translucent giant snake that had surged before Chen Mobai: its mouth, head, neck, vital point, abdomen, and tail.

"This fellow is playing tricks."

Gong Xiangyu glanced at the Water Sword Talisman held between Chen Mobai's right fingertips and immediately realized it had not been activated.

His attention had been drawn by this gesture, leading him to impulsively make a wrong decision.

"Now for this talisman."

After activating the Azure Arrow Talisman with his left hand hidden behind his back, Chen Mobai infused spiritual energy into the Water Sword Talisman in his right hand. A pool of clear water instantly condensed into a sword shape. With a downward flick of his five fingers, he cleanly sliced off the head of the transparent giant snake that had been pinned before him by the azure spiritual arrows.

The power of the Water Sword Talisman had not yet dissipated. Chen Mobai opened his mouth and exhaled, activating the Ice Spell, freezing and strengthening the transparent water sword in his palm. Then, he flicked his finger.

With a sharp tearing sound.

Gong Xiangyu unleashed the formidable spiritual energy of his ninth Qi Condensation layer, forcefully retracting his spirit into his body and breaking free from the spiritual arrows of the Azure Arrow Talisman.

But at that very instant, the ice water sword, now without a target, streaked with a brilliant white light, like a divine sword from beyond the heavens, aiming for the space between Gong Xiangyu's eyebrows.

"Is this guy trying to kill me?!"

Fury surged within Gong Xiangyu, and he felt that holding back earlier had been a colossal mistake.

He affixed two Divine Movement Talismans to his legs, and his entire body, leaving afterimages, rapidly retreated three meters.

*Thwock!*

After missing its target, the ice water sword plunged directly into the arena, with only its hilt left protruding from the stone surface.

"Is the Water Sword Talisman really that sharp?"

Below the arena, many students watching the match were astonished by this sight.

The Water Sword Talisman was known for its ability to condense and disperse at will, and for its flexibility like a whip.

If used to strike stone, while it could leave sword marks, it certainly couldn't cut through it as effortlessly as Chen Mobai had, like slicing tofu.

"The combination of spells and talismans... although this young man's cultivation is a bit weaker, in terms of combat awareness, he is likely the best in this cohort."

The Crimson-Robed Daoist Master, seated in the commentary section, couldn't help but nod slightly upon seeing this.

"It seems this battle won't be one-sided."

The representatives from the Daoist Academies, who had initially been watching casually, now became completely serious.

Furthermore, some academy representatives were inwardly evaluating Chen Mobai's combat awareness and spell proficiency, wondering what they would do if his scores weren't high enough to admit him.

Several representatives from the lower-ranked Ten Great Academies even stood up and moved closer to the arena.

Yet, at this very moment, Chen Mobai found himself in a fierce struggle.

Gong Xiangyu's Divine Movement Talismans were of exceptionally high quality, and he also seemed to have activated another powerful talisman. Fine scales suddenly appeared on his right hand, and his eyes abruptly transformed into vertical pupils.

Water splashed from Chen Mobai's right side, the result of his Water Essence Shield colliding with Gong Xiangyu's rapidly advancing right fist.

The next attack was aimed at his left cheek.

Then his spine.

If he hadn't already mastered the Water Essence Shield to move instinctively and his Water Control spell wasn't highly proficient, he likely wouldn't have been able to withstand Gong Xiangyu's furious punches.

"That's enough. Time to test the limits of his speed."

After taking nearly ten punches, Chen Mobai had roughly figured out Gong Xiangyu's rhythm.

As his thoughts flowed, all the black water from his Water Storage Talisman poured out. Under the control of his spiritual sense, streams of water transformed into a net, covering all directions from which Gong Xiangyu could attack.

However, the latter's combat awareness was far superior to that of his previous opponents.

Gong Xiangyu's rapidly advancing figure paused for an instant, then rapidly flickered left and right, testing their respective speeds while drawing the black water to follow his movements.

Nevertheless, compared to Chen Mobai's Water Control spell, which moved with his thoughts, Gong Xiangyu's Divine Movement Talisman, requiring physical movement, still had its limits.

"Got him."

Chen Mobai's eyes shimmered with spiritual light, his spiritual sense pushed to its limit. The black water net, wielded by his Water Control spell, had sealed off all of Gong Xiangyu's movements on the arena, drawing tightly around him.

"Is this the decisive moment?"

This thought flashed through the minds of the students watching from below. They hadn't expected Gong Xiangyu to be the one forced into a desperate situation first.

Yet, just as Gong Xiangyu was about to be enveloped and trapped by the converging water net, his speed, already three times that of an ordinary person, suddenly accelerated again, allowing him to slip through the opening of the cage as it closed.

"Perfect. My Spirit Transformation Talisman is ready. It's time to display my Spirit Control Art to everyone."

After Gong Xiangyu suddenly burst forth with divine speed from the black water net, his entire body, starting from his right hand, began to sprout dark, ink-colored scales.

"You fell into my trap."

Just then, Chen Mobai's voice entered Gong Xiangyu's ears. As Gong Xiangyu furrowed his brows, wondering what nonsense the former was spouting, he suddenly realized he seemed to have stepped on a talisman.

*Crackle!*

Wooden pillars surged from the arena floor where Gong Xiangyu stood, instantly forming a sturdy wooden cage from which only an insect could escape.

"A Wood Prison Talisman. A very simple talisman, pre-arranged at the weak point of the black water net. You stepped on it yourself after you came out."

Chen Mobai remained standing in place, not moving. But as he spoke, he waved his right hand. A mass of black water, guided by his spiritual sense, gathered into a massive fist before the wooden cage, then slammed the wooden cage and Gong Xiangyu inside it directly out of the arena.