Chapter 294: What Did I Teach You?
Did that strike hurt?
Yes, it hurt a lot.
If Bai Luo had used the blade edge, Teppei would probably have been unable to stand after that one blow.
Even so, Teppei could tell that compared to before, the current Bai Luo's swordsmanship was nowhere near as terrifying.
"Yah—!"
Enduring the pain, Teppei closed the distance, Hakuen Michimitsu Amenoma slashing fast enough to leave afterimages.
Throat, artery, heart—
Every one of his strikes aimed directly at Bai Luo's vital spots.
Yet Bai Luo avoided them all with effortless precision.
After so long on the battlefield, Teppei had naturally picked up some habits—his techniques had become broad, forceful, and wild, making his katana feel more like a greatsword.
But no matter how much his swordsmanship changed, one thing could never change:
All his foundations were taught by Bai Luo.
He raised his sword.
From the way he gripped the handle, Bai Luo could tell whether he would perform a downward slash or a diagonal strike.
He pulled back the blade.
From his stance, Bai Luo could judge whether he intended to dodge or was hiding a killing move.
Even a glance from Teppei's eyes could reveal which direction his next attack would come from.
This was a battle… he was destined to lose.
As for Bai Luo—aside from being suppressed for a moment in the very first exchange, he soon began to fight with complete ease.
In truth, he could've dodged that first strike as well.
He simply wanted to test something.
Two things, in fact:
First, to check Teppei's strength and see how far he had grown.
Second, to see whether, in this Hei state, mimicking Battousai's skills would actually work.
If they did, even a blunt Reverse Blade Sword could injure Teppei.
But his strike hadn't even torn Teppei's clothing—which put his mind at ease.
After deflecting another attack, Bai Luo launched his first active offensive move in the entire fight.
He practically copied the technique Teppei had just used—but faster, and stronger.
With the same move, Teppei's strikes had been easy for Bai Luo to dodge.
But when Bai Luo used it, Teppei's evasions were barely successful.
Eventually, he fell messily onto the sand, watching as Bai Luo pressed the Reverse Blade Sword toward his face.
"You sure picked up a lot during your time in the army."
Bai Luo smiled as he looked at the sand-covered Teppei.
The contempt in his eyes made Teppei knock the Reverse Blade Sword aside and launch another counterattack.
But Bai Luo seemed to have predicted it completely.
Using the momentum from Teppei's deflection, he spun and struck Teppei's blade.
The impact split the skin of Teppei's tiger's-mouth, streaks of blood staining the handle of the Hakuen Michimitsu Amenoma.
"You clearly have your own path to walk. Why insist on following Battousai's path with no way back?"
As Teppei stood and charged again, Bai Luo raised his sword as if to block—but instead slipped past, striking Teppei's wrist.
Even though the blade had no edge, a hit from a metal slab like that was definitely painful.
Teppei's wrist immediately turned bruised and purple.
But he still did not loosen his grip.
"This path—aren't you the one who led me onto it?!"
With a grinding sound, Teppei gritted his teeth and, even in this state, swung a fast, fierce strike.
And instead of aiming for Bai Luo's throat, he went for the abdomen.
This time, even Bai Luo couldn't dodge.
Feeling the sharp sting in his stomach, Bai Luo glanced at him in mild surprise.
This black outfit of his… wasn't ordinary.
It looked like ordinary fabric, but in reality, it could easily stop bullets.
Even with Hakuen Michimitsu Amenoma, cutting through his coat was no simple task.
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
Bai Luo casually blocked Teppei's second slash, then kicked him squarely in the stomach, sending him flying.
"Other than the most basic fundamentals of swordsmanship, I taught you nothing. You've never even called me 'sensei' once—so where did you get the idea that I led you onto this path?"
He wasn't wrong.
Even those so-called basic sword techniques were things Teppei learned in the village dojo long before he met Bai Luo.
Bai Luo merely made him repeat those foundational movements over and over.
Simply put… apart from the theory behind the Hiten Mitsurugi Style technique, Bai Luo hadn't taught him anything about swordsmanship.
From their very first duel, Bai Luo knew what kind of path Teppei was better suited for.
That was when he pointed out the road Teppei should walk.
But apparently… Teppei misunderstood him and kept going farther and farther down the wrong path.
"..."
Teppei pursed his lips.
Even if he didn't want to admit it, he knew very clearly that Bai Luo was right.
Aside from the Hiten Mitsurugi Style technique, Bai Luo had taught him no skill at all.
And as for the Hiten Mitsurugi Style that Bai Luo used—he didn't know a single move from it.
"A sword is a murderous weapon. Swordsmanship is the art of killing. A person who doesn't want to kill… is not suited to wield a sword. I made that very clear to you from the start."
At first, Bai Luo did consider training him as a swordsman. But under Lingling's supervision, Teppei displayed exceptional medical talent.
Even Lingling often praised just how gifted Teppei was.
From that point on, Bai Luo had already intended for him to study medicine.
That was also why he frequently lingered in the infirmary camps—and Bai Luo never stopped him.
Because, in Bai Luo's eyes, that was Teppei's true battlefield.
The reason he taught Teppei the Hiten Mitsurugi Style was so that, as a field medic, he could at least protect his own life in battle.
But after Bai Luo spent some time fooling around on Narukami Island with Yae Miko… the kid somehow grew crooked.
Bai Luo had let him "die" so many times so he could understand the value of life—to instill a sense of reverence for it. And to give him more experience treating various blade wounds under Lingling.
Unfortunately, the kid misunderstood completely.
Teppei thought Bai Luo wanted him to learn to face death—and to kill.
When in reality, Bai Luo wanted him to learn to save.
Still, the kid wasn't beyond saving.
If he truly possessed the intense killing intent he claimed to have, then just now, with the Hiten Mitsurugi Style technique backing him, his blade would have slashed at Bai Luo's throat—not his abdomen.
And more importantly: Gorou's evaluation of him.
Showing signs of becoming a second Battousai, he said, even capable of becoming the new general—able to manage the army as well as Gorou could.
Which meant that on the battlefield, he spent far more time commanding than killing.
His actual kill count was far lower than he boasted.
He could be saved.
But this time, Bai Luo wasn't the one doing the saving.
The only person who could save him was himself.
Only by recognizing the path he was truly meant to walk could he achieve self-redemption.
Whether he could gain the attention of the gods in the end… depended on how hard Bai Luo's metaphorical "kick" landed.
. . . . .
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