Three Kingdoms: Rebirth of Liu Bei, the Zhaolie

Seeing that he couldn't persuade Liu Bei and Cuan Heizi, Fifth Guang could only sigh and say:

"Both of you are masters of swordsmanship. The sparring should be stopped when it is at its most intense, and no one should be allowed to cause any harm."

Cuan Heizi said calmly:

"Fifth Brother, rest assured. I will show mercy."

Liu Bei also said:

"Fifth Lord, there's no need to worry. I know what I'm doing. I will never harm Brother Cuan, nor will I let him harm me."

Cuan Heizi let out another cold laugh upon hearing this.

So Wen Xuan had someone bring a six-foot-long sword and gave it to Liu Bei.

Liu Bei drew his longsword, gripping the hilt tightly with his left hand and his right hand, and then tested a few sword moves.

As the longsword spun in circles, it produced a series of sharp, resonant sounds, which were quite striking.

On the surface, it's not clear how much effort Liu Bei put in.

It appears to be extremely lightweight.

Everyone couldn't help but cheer.

The saying goes, "A true expert's skill is immediately apparent."

Although Liu Bei was only testing his sword, these few sword moves were incredibly smooth and powerful.

Cuan Heizi, who had initially looked down on Liu Bei, couldn't help but put aside his arrogance and dared not underestimate him anymore, and began to deal with him cautiously.

Cuan Heizi then made a few moves, loosened his wrists, and prepared for the battle.

Soon, Liu Bei finished testing the sword.

He felt his muscles and bones awaken, and his wrists were fully flexible, so he said to Wen Xuan:

"Okay, I'm ready."

Wen Xuan glanced at Cuan Heizi.

Cuan Heizi nodded.

Wen Xuan immediately said:

"This is a martial arts contest, not a life-or-death battle. Both of you should naturally use your full strength in your fighting techniques, but also hold back at crucial moments. Alright! Begin—"

He hadn't finished speaking.

Cuan Heizi suddenly lowered his body, having already assumed a fighting stance.

Liu Bei had read many ancient martial arts manuals, including those on fists, swords, knives, and spears. Therefore, he immediately recognized that Cuan Heizi's stance was the "Tiger Crouching Stance".

The "Tiger Crouching Posture" means, as the name suggests, that one is like a tiger crouching on the ground, ready to pounce and tear at a person's throat at any moment.

Before launching an attack, any ferocious beast, whether lion, tiger, leopard, or wolf, will often first retract its body, crouch low to gather strength, watch its prey, and wait for the right moment. With a whoosh, it will leap and pounce, often tearing through its prey's throat with its sharp teeth in one swift motion.

The Tiger Stance in this two-handed sword technique perfectly captures its essence.

At this moment, Cuan Heizi stood with his left foot forward and his right foot back, his whole body in a semi-squatting position. He gripped the front of the sword hilt tightly with his right hand and the back of the hilt with his left hand. His arms were crossed in front of his hips, and the long sword was at a 45-degree angle, pointing diagonally upwards, with the tip of the sword pointing directly at Liu Bei's throat.

Cuan Heizi's eyes also began to gleam, staring intently into Liu Bei's eyes.

If Liu Bei's eyes relax even slightly, revealing even the slightest fear or panic, his entire body will shoot out like an arrow, directly piercing Liu Bei's throat with the long sword in his hand.

In a battle between masters, life and death can be decided in an instant; the slightest hint of weakness can lead to certain death.

Therefore, even if the opponent is a highly skilled master swordsman, one must not panic when facing them, but rather must muster courage and boldness to calmly deal with the situation.

At this time, one's Dao heart must be as firm as a rock, one must stabilize one's mind and not reveal the slightest flaw, so as not to give the opponent an opportunity to take advantage.

As soon as Cuan Heizi came up, he adopted a tiger-like stance, and his whole body was filled with a strong killing intent.

Not only Liu Bei, who was facing him, deeply felt this.

The onlookers were all deeply shocked.

Geng Yong, Qian Zhao, Zhang Fei, Wu Tu Lu, and others couldn't help but feel worried for Liu Bei, and their palms began to sweat uncontrollably due to their nervousness.

Qian Zhao wanted to remind Liu Bei, but was afraid of disturbing him, so she could only hesitate and remain uneasy, her body even began to tremble slightly uncontrollably.

Cuan Heizi's imposing, tiger-like stance and murderous aura were so chilling that they sent shivers down one's spine.

His imposing aura and the sharpness of his sword tip made people feel extremely uneasy.

Even Wen Xuan and Wu Guang couldn't help but start to worry about Liu Bei.

Facing the long sword that Cuan Heizi could thrust at his throat at any moment, Liu Bei calmly assumed a fighting stance.

He gripped a six-foot-long sword tightly with both hands, his right foot forward and his left foot back, the tip of the sword pointing diagonally at the ground directly in front of him, and the tip of the sword slightly shifting left and right, sometimes pointing to the left front and sometimes to the right front.

His sword tip pointed downwards, exactly the opposite of Cuan Heizi's sword stance.

Those who witnessed this couldn't help but feel worried, not understanding what Liu Bei meant.

Those who don't understand swordsmanship naturally can't see the intricacies involved.

The stance Liu Bei adopted is also famous in the sword manual, called "Parting the Grass to Find the Snake Stance".

If Cuan Heizi's Tiger Crouching Stance is an offensive sword stance, then Liu Bei's Snake-Seeking Stance is a defensive sword stance.

Cuan Heizi had been practicing swordsmanship with King Yue of Liaodong for many years. With just one glance, he could tell that Liu Bei's two-handed sword stance had completely blocked his attack from the left, center, and right.

On the left flank, Liu Bei can block with his sword, then advance and sweep forward to kill him.

In the middle, Liu Bei parried with his sword, disrupting the opponent's sword path while simultaneously advancing and sweeping forward, ready to strike directly at the opponent's face.

On the right flank, Liu Bei also blocked with his sword, then advanced and swept forward, launching a fierce attack. The same applies to the left flank.

Liu Bei's "Searching for the Snake in the Grass" formation, seemingly revealing a major flaw and intended to lure the enemy into attacking, was actually a combination of defense and offense, integrating both.

Not only can it completely block the opponent's sword path, but it can also take advantage of the situation to counterattack, making it impossible for the opponent to defend against.

But Cuan Heizi was no ordinary swordsman. He not only studied under the famous swordsman Wang Yue of Liaodong, but also practiced swordsmanship for many years and had rich practical experience.

It can be said that his two-handed swordsmanship is highly skilled and experienced.

When masters clash, their techniques may seem simple, but they have already anticipated all of their opponent's moves and devised countermeasures.

Just like playing Go, a master can see the board's trajectory seven, eight, or even a dozen moves ahead.

Even in modern boxing, kickboxing, and mixed martial arts competitions, audiences often find matches between two equally skilled fighters unexciting.

That's because both sides are evenly matched, and many of their moves are easily anticipated and countered, leaving them with no opportunity to execute them. They are forced to rely on the simplest and most effective methods. Often, even after three rounds, it's impossible to determine who has won or lost.

However, in a duel between a skilled opponent and a novice, the skilled opponent often uses their techniques haphazardly and in a dazzling display, quickly resulting in a knockout (KO) or technical knockout (TKO). The winner is immediately apparent.

At this moment, Liu Bei and Cuan Heizi were having a swordsmanship contest. Since both of them were experts and could see through each other's attacks and defenses at a glance, neither dared to make a rash move.

Liu Bei had already prepared an impenetrable defense for his throat.

He knew that Cuan Heizi on the other side would definitely change his tactics midway through.

Although he didn't know how Cuan Kuroko would change his tactics, he was prepared to adapt to any situation.

Both sides were completely focused.

It seems that they have forgotten the entire world.

Cuan Heizi's lips curled slightly, and he suddenly moved.

He leaped forward with his left foot, followed by a sliding step with his right, while simultaneously thrusting his long sword straight at Liu Bei's throat.

Liu Bei immediately drew his sword to intercept him.

Cuan Heizi had anticipated Liu Bei's move. He suddenly twisted his wrists, and the sword tip that was originally thrusting upwards suddenly came to his right side. He then slashed upwards, combining offense and defense, aiming for Liu Bei's chest and ribs.

These sword techniques might take half a minute to explain, but in actual combat, they are completed in the blink of an eye.

In real combat, speed, accuracy, and ruthlessness are key.

Not at all muddle-headed.

Faced with Cuan Heizi's sudden change of tactics, Liu Bei remained calm and instead of retreating, he bravely advanced to meet him, his sword tip sinking downwards in the process.

A "ding" sounded.

The two swords clashed.

Because Liu Bei's entire body surged forward, the force on the sword was immense.

But to everyone's surprise, Cuan Heizi, who was as thin as a bamboo pole, was no less powerful than Liu Bei.

The two men, swords and all, collided violently.

However, Liu Bei had no intention of engaging in a physical contest with him. While protecting his left side with his longsword, he executed a dragon spin, appearing behind Cuan Heizi like a rapidly spinning top. He spun his longsword around Cuan Heizi's head and, using the force of his twisting waist and hips, delivered a powerful "snake-slaying" strike, slashing down diagonally.

A sword slashed down on Cuan Heizi's back.

Because Liu Bei executed the Dragon Turn so quickly, Cuan Heizi's upward slashing sword technique was awkward to change between defense and attack, and he had no time to react at all.

The onlookers couldn't help but gasp in surprise.

Everyone thought that Liu Bei's fierce sword strike would surely leave Cuan Heizi severely injured and lying on the ground.

Then, when Liu Bei's sword tip was less than half an inch (1 centimeter) from Cuan Heizi's head, it suddenly stopped abruptly.

Feeling the intense killing intent brought by the cool sensation behind his head, Cuan Heizi froze on the spot, too frightened to move, and couldn't help but close his eyes.

He looked like he was resigned to his fate.

……

If they retreat, do not pursue them hastily; if they advance rapidly, do not retreat hastily. Always remain still and wait for their movement, be at ease and wait for them to tire themselves out—the principle is subtle yet profound.

—Yu Dayou, *The Sword Classic* (Ming Dynasty)