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Chapter 237 - 214 Sword Grasping

Chapter 237: Chapter 214 Sword Grasping

Li Li suddenly barked angrily, both hands gripping her sword as she charged at Wu Li.

Tina, standing beside Wu Li, was startled and immediately shouted discontentedly, "Lily, what are you doing?"

Li Li didn’t answer Tina, instead charging forward rudely, as Wu Li sidestepped to avoid any accidental harm to Tina.

Swish!

Li Li raised her sword above her head with both hands and brought it down forcefully.

As the final type of longsword crafted specifically for ancient battlefields, the Han Sword was particularly suited for slashing. The thickness and hardness of the Eight-sided Han Sword were unparalleled, making it extremely imposing in frontal cuts, though it also consumed a great deal of physical strength. At this moment, Li Li had no intention of conserving energy as she attacked with both hands wielding the sword.

Wu Li held his knife in one hand and, starting from below, flicked it upward in an upward strike that clashed directly with Li Li’s Han Sword.

Drill!

Five Elements Fist Power could also be applied to sword technique. Wu Li used the Inverted Pearl Curtain technique, where the knife’s trajectory fell like an upside-down waterfall, flowing upward. Upon contact with Li Li’s Han Sword, the blade of the knife rotated at an angle, sweeping diagonally upward.

Clang!

Sizzle!

After the collision, there came a grating friction noise.

Li Li’s Han Sword trembled uncontrollably in her hands. She felt as though her sword had encountered a powerful undercurrent beneath the sea, helplessly caught in a swirling eddy.

Ultimately, the longsword was knocked from her grasp, spiraling towards Li San, who was standing to the side.

"As the saying goes, one good turn deserves another."

"Ha ha, great knife technique!"

Li San, also unmoving, snatched the flying Han Sword out of the air.

"You!"

Li Li stared at Wu Li in surprise. She remembered Wu Li as someone who practiced boxing and could compete in the UFC, which was quite impressive; she might not beat him with her bare hands, but with weapons, it was a different story.

Earlier, when she had asked Wu Li whether he knew how to use weapons, regardless of his answer, she had intended to strike, particularly to prove herself better than Wu Li in front of Tina. Since Wu Li had conceded he was familiar with weapons, Li Li showed no mercy, attacking with full force to make Wu Li look foolish. Yet he couldn’t even take one of her strikes.

"Alright, you’re no match for Master Wu. Stop causing trouble," Li San said as he walked over, holding the Han Sword reversed in his hand.

"She’s my sister, a bit impulsive," Wu Li nodded, unfazed.

"Brother, you two know each other?" asked Li Li.

"He’s the expert I told you about, the one who helped me that night," Li San explained.

"The number one in Southeast Asia?" Li Li looked incredulously at Wu Li, but she couldn’t disbelieve it as it was Li San’s own assessment.

"Lily, why did you have to get physical for no good reason?" Tina chided.

"Hmph!" Li Li was even more displeased, "Just a friendly bout."

"I have something to discuss with Master Wu. You two go have a look around," Li San suggested.

Tina glanced at Wu Li, biting her lip. She had much she wanted to say to Wu Li, but seeing he had important matters to attend to, she reluctantly stepped back, allowing Wu Li to follow Li San away.

Li San led Wu Li over to the rest area, and they sat down on two sofas.

"Master Wu, we’ve finished interrogating that black man who came to kidnap you that night," Li San started bluntly.

Wu Li looked at the other man, "What did he say?"

Li San: "He’s from the Bill Brothers Association."

Wu Li: "What kind of organization is the Bill Brothers Association?"

Li San: "It’s a criminal organization. They’ve only started to make a name for themselves in New York in the last two years. Their boss is named Bill. My intelligence suggests he might be a retired soldier from a special Israeli force; skilled and ruthless. On the surface in New York, they do high-interest loan sharking and the sex trade, but in reality, drug trafficking and human smuggling are their main business."

Wu Li nodded: "Why did they send someone to capture me?"

Li San looked at Wu Li meaningfully, smiling, "Before they grabbed you, they had caught a woman and had settled a deal with some big shot, but the woman escaped; her father is named Bertrand, who previously sold his daughter to the Bill Brothers Association. They wanted to use Bertrand to find her again, but Bertrand disappeared too. They were searching for him everywhere and noticed that you were also looking for this man, so they set their sights on you."

Wu Li glanced at Tina, who was not far away. She happened to be looking at him too. Their eyes met briefly before Tina looked away.

"What a coincidence," Li San continued, "Li Li came to me today asking for help because human traffickers were targeting her friend Tina, and you happen to know Tina, plus you’re looking for Bertrand... So, Tina is the woman the Bill Brothers are looking for, and her father is Bertrand?"

Wu Li smiled and nodded, "Right, Tina’s father is Bertrand. I didn’t expect it to be such a coincidence."

Tina’s friend was Li San’s sister, and he had come to know Li San.

Wu Li suspected that the system had everything planned when it assigned him the mission; otherwise, it wouldn’t be such a coincidence.

"So, why are you looking for Bertrand?" Li San asked.

Wu Li didn’t answer; he couldn’t exactly say it was to complete a system mission.

"Do you want to go after the Bill Brothers Association?" Li San pressed, his expression much more serious this time.

"I don’t know what grievances you have with the Bill Brothers Association, but if it’s only you by yourself, I advise you not to provoke them; these past two years, the Bill Brothers Association and our Hongmen have had several frictions, clashing a few times. They are not weak, and most importantly, they are ruthless and brazen. Although Hongmen isn’t afraid of them, we also wouldn’t provoke such an adversary on our own."

Wu Li nodded, considering Hongmen’s power in a significant city like New York wouldn’t be weak, and if they were wary of the Bill Brothers Association, it was obvious they were not to be trifled with.

"Master Li, could you provide me with detailed information about the Bill Brothers Association?" Wu Li requested.

Li San looked at Wu Li, silent for a moment, then smiled, "Sure, I’ll give it to you later."

Wu Li: "Thanks a lot."

Li San: "Hongmen owes you a favor, no need to be polite for such a small matter."

Wu Li nodded: "Did you find the man with the knife that night?"

Li San: "Still investigating."

Wu Li looked at Li San: "If you find him, can you let me know?"

Li San laughed: "I said that night, I have decided to kill him."

Wu Li met his gaze and smiled: "I’ve said it too, I feel the same way."

"Haha!" Li San burst into laughter, "Master Wu, I’ve mentioned before that I’d like to learn from your Xingyi Fist, why not today instead of choosing another day?"

Wu Li stood up: "Sure."

He had come to Li San today not only for information but also with the idea of sparring with him.

How could he miss the chance to face a master?

The main reason Wu Li had agreed to a private boxing match with the Muay Thai King Basong was his love for dueling with the strong.

As they spoke, they walked towards the center of the room.

"Sister, have you finished talking?" Li Li hurried over to the two men, "If you’re done, let’s talk about my matter."

"No rush." Li San pointed at Wu Li, "I’ll spar with Master Wu first."

"You’re sparring?" Li Li said with surprised delight, "That’s great!"

Li Li turned and pulled Tina to the side of the room: "My brother is going to spar with Wu Li. Watch closely and see what real skill is!"

Tina frowned: "Why start fighting after just a few words?"

Li Li was unperturbed: "It’s normal for martial artists to spar."

"I tell you, my brother is sure to win!" Li Li winked at Tina.

Tina bit her lip, looking at Wu Li not far away: "I don’t believe it."

Yo!" Li Li’s eyebrows raised, and then, with a twinkle in her eye, she leaned in close to Tina’s ear, "Then shall we make a bet?"

Tina turned her head to look at her: "What bet?"

"If my brother wins, you let me kiss you!" Li Li said with a mischievous smile.

Tina blushed, "And if Wu Li wins?"

"I’ll let you kiss me," Li Li laughed.

Tina gently pushed Li Li away and glared at her with pretend annoyance.

Her eyes shimmered, seductive as silk, which caught Li Li off guard, prompting her to ask: "So, do you bet or not?"

Tina, looking at Wu Li in the distance, bit her lip, a smile crossing her face: "I bet!"

Seeing Tina gazing at Wu Li with eyes almost watering, Li Li couldn’t help but grind her teeth, "Hmph, just don’t regret it."

In the center, Li San, moved by a thought, said to Wu Li: "How about starting with weapons?"

Wu Li did not hesitate: "Sure, what do you want to compare?"

Li San: "Sword Grasping, ever tried it?"

Wu Li’s eyes lit up: "I can give it a try."

Sword Grasping is actually a form of Pushing Hands but with short knives: two people stand facing each other, each holding two short knives and, like Pushing Hands, they press the blades together and push against each other to see who can break through the opponent’s defense and touch the other’s body with the knife first.

During the period of the Republic, Sword Grasping was insanely popular in the Tianjin Martial Arts community for a time. Back then, if two martial artists were to prove their skills, they would almost certainly use Sword Grasping, but unfortunately, this way of playing gradually became lost, and fewer and fewer people knew how to do it.

Wu Li remembered his grandfather mentioning this form of martial arts when he was a child. The essence of Kung Fu lay in weaponry, but weapon fighting was too dangerous. Sword Grasping was somewhere in between: it allowed one to experience the danger and thrill of dancing on the edge of a blade, and it was relatively safe, avoiding life-and-death struggles.

Now that Li San had suddenly proposed Sword Grasping, Wu Li was like a child seeing a new toy and naturally would not refuse.

Li San saw that Wu Li had agreed and then said to Li Li: "Go get that pair of Short Knives from my collection."

"Wait here."

Li Li turned and ran off, quickly returning with two sheathed Short Knives.

Li Li handed the Short Knives to Wu Li, who reached out to take them.

The Knife Handles and Sword Sheaths were black, with cloud patterns and beast faces and Wu Li drew the two Short Knives.

The blades were thirty centimeters long, five centimeters wide, sharpened on one side, and had layers of extremely fine Fish Scale Patterns.

Wu Li held the double blades and swung them—a good feel in his hands.

Opposite him, Li San had already taken out the two daggers he always carried on his person.

The two closed in on each other, raising their hands, knife points down, blades facing each other.

Blades interlocked, they both looked into each other’s eyes.

"Tai Chi, Li San."

"Xingyi, Wu Li."

"Please!"

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