Naked Sword Art

Chapter 430: Perfect Sword Sense

Tssz~

’What!?’ Chu Piao’s eyes widened in shock.

Chu Piao’s eyes widened in disbelief. His attack—his seamless flurry of strikes—had been blocked.

To the spectators, it merely looked like a well-practiced sword formation. Slightly faster, slightly sharper—impressive, but not extraordinary.

But Chu Piao knew better.

He alone understood that what he had unleashed wasn’t something a person could block through training or skill. Not even luck would’ve saved Xiao Fang from that barrage.

’How...?’

Chu Piao halted mid-motion, staring at Xiao Fang with a conflicted expression.

What he was witnessing bordered on the impossible. The precision, the timing—if he didn’t know any better, he would’ve believed Xiao Fang had rehearsed blocking that exact sequence, frame by frame.

And then the realization struck him like a cold blade through the heart:

Xiao Fang wasn’t listening anymore. He wasn’t reacting with his ears, his eyes, or any external sense.

He was moving purely by instinct.

A swordsman’s instinct... elevated to perfection.

Chu Piao felt the chill of that revelation run down his spine.

And as for Xiao Fang—he wasn’t awed by what he had achieved. He didn’t marvel at himself, nor did he smile. To him, this was always within his ability, he had just never been pushed this far.

A chill ran down Chu Piao’s spine as he finally grasped the true scope of Xiao Fang’s ability.

[ Perfect Sword Sense ]

This... this was what every Divine Swordsman’s Sword Instinct strove toward. And now, before his very eyes, Chu Piao was witnessing Xiao Fang achieve it.

A cold breath slipped from Xiao Fang’s lips as Sword Qi frosted the air around him. But the truth was—Xiao Fang was lucky.

[ Perfect Sword Sense ] wasn’t a technique. It wasn’t something he could activate at will. It was a state—a flawless convergence of instinct, clarity, and mastery that could only be reached in the crucible of battle. And even then, only by chance. He had no idea how long it would last. A few more strikes, perhaps—and then it would be gone.

But what Xiao Fang didn’t know was that Chu Piao had already begun to undergo a transformation of his own.

Just by clashing blades with Xiao Fang, just by witnessing that divine sword state, Chu Piao’s mind had been lit aflame with comprehension. Inspiration surged through him like lightning cracking across a dark sky.

The two vanished.

Then—

Slash. Slash. Slash.

Each of Chu Piao’s flawless attacks—precise, sharp, brutal—was blocked.

The very sword formation he had spent a year in seclusion perfecting... was being deflected like it was nothing. Each strike was meant to create an opening, an inevitable path to victory. But Xiao Fang stood unshaken, like a wall of sword light.

And yet, instead of despair, Chu Piao felt exhilaration.

Because he, too, possessed a rare gift—a monstrous ability to comprehend. With every exchange, he adapted. He learned. His attacks grew more refined, more instinctive, sharper than ever before.

He was entering a state of his own.

Finally, a breath of frost escaped Chu Piao’s mouth as Sword Qi began to crystallize in the air around him. His eyes turned razor-sharp, the eyes of a predator locking onto its prey.

Suddenly, Xiao Fang was full of openings.

"I can see it," Chu Piao thought.

The crowd was utterly silent. Even the announcers had gone quiet, realizing they were witnessing something extraordinary—something that surpassed what they had words for.

Perfect Sword Sense vs. Perfect Sword Strikes.

An immovable object vs. An unstoppable force.

The Fallen Prince vs. The Top Prodigy

They attacked, but this time, there weren’t any exchanges. Chu Piao attacked, Xiao Fang defended.

Faster. Faster. Faster.

No one budged.

The reinforced stage was now scarred with deep gashes—like a battlefield torn apart by invisible titans.

Xun Wei felt her heartbeat racing.

"What am I seeing right now," she said under her breath.

Supreme Elder Song also watched with wide eyes. She suspected Xiao Fang was something extraordinary, but what she was seeing now gave her goosebumps.

This was art.

Xiao Fang gritted his teeth. He couldn’t keep this up. Perfect Sword Sense wasn’t endless. His time was running out—while Chu Piao was only getting sharper, faster, deadlier.

He had to end it now.

Chu Piao twisted mid-air and spun, unleashing a wide horizontal slash meant to drive Xiao Fang back. But Xiao Fang ducked low and answered with a rising thrust. The edge of his blade sliced cleanly across Chu Piao’s cheek.

Suddenly, Chu Piao’s empty eyes flashed.

Xiao Fang’s body tensed—his senses told him exactly what was coming. An impossible strike, yet Xiao Fang knew he could defend it. But he also needed to create distance between them till Chu Piao’s cut bled.

So, Xiao Fang pivoted, and kicked towards Chu Piao’s chest trying to catch him off guard—but this time, Chu Piao had delayed his strike by half a breath, just enough to mislead him.

Xiao Fang missed.

Then—another impossible strike.

Shhhkt.

A flash of steel.

A sting.

Xiao Fang landed, skidding backward across the stage.

Silence.

Both stood still, both were cut, but who was going to bleed first?

Finally, a tiny, thin line of red appeared on Xiao Fang’s jaw. A shallow cut—barely more than a scratch—but it was enough.

Chu Piao’s cut was still white, it was clear at that point that Xiao Fang hadn’t cut him deep enough.

From the stands, no one dared to cheer. The air still buzzed with tension, as if the arena itself couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

The two of them stood still.

"...You got me," Xiao Fang said, exhaling slowly. His shoulders relaxed as he sheathed his sword. He wiped at the blood trailing down his skin, then gave a faint smile. "That makes you the winner."

Chu Piao let out a breath, his blade lowering. "All that for just a scratch, but a win is a win."

Xiao Fang nodded. "I’ll honor our deal. We go with your plan."

Chu Piao smirked. "Good. I’d hate to let them live."

With his body still emitting Sword Qi, Chu Piao was itching to kill, now more than ever.

Xiao Fang shook his head as he took out the item he requested Matriarch Shi to give him before the match.

"What is that?" Chu Piao asked.

Xiao Fang now held a black ball in his hand the size of an apple.

For the first time since the match began, the announcer finally spoke:

"Is that a smoke bomb?"

"It seems he wants to blind his opponent."

"He’s blindfolded already, so that would give Long Wang a massive advantage. What will Chu Piao do?"

Little did they know, Xiao Fang had no intention of using it against Chu Piao.