Stepping on the Demoness to become the strongest

Why did they send Lin Ning first?

Because her role in the team is that of a shock trooper, and in most cases, she's the first to charge in.

It's just right to let Sister Lin get used to combat in advance, which is also Yan Yu's intention for personally leading the team in this "rookie pass."

Chosen by Yan Yu to fight first, Lin Ning wasn't too scared.

After all, they said it was a "combat drill," which meant they wouldn't really try to kill her… right?

Although she felt the risk was not great, nervousness was still inevitable.

Lin Ning took a deep breath and activated her Shifting Technique.

Charge!

She closed in on the puppet in an instant, abruptly halting with the Cloud Ascension Technique and smoothly transitioning to the Wood Bending Charm, her right arm muscles swelling rapidly.

"Lightning assault?" Su Yunjin was secretly shocked.

Going from Shifting Technique to Cloud Ascension Technique, then to Attack Spell Technique, and instantly charging to punch you dead, this ultra-fast triple technique chain was Captain Yan Yu's signature maneuver.

He defeated the representatives of the other three forces with it in the Four Institutes Tournament, and all the team members had seen it in the video afterwards, but little did they expect that Sister Lin had already learned it.

Before she could say anything, Yan Yu suddenly said,

"Too slow."

As Lin Ning switched to the Wood Bending Charm, the close-range puppet had already raised its Green Bamboo Sword high and slashed down.

Because the switch to the charm was half a beat late, counterattacking would surely result in being hit first; Lin Ning could only raise her fist in a hurry.

Fist against the blade!

The Wood Bending Charm not only amplified her limb strength but also appropriately protected her limbs from being harmed by the blowback. However, compared to the specialized defensive Earth-Element Sturdiness Curse, the Bending Charm only reduced damage rather than provided immunity, protected only the limb exerting force, and did not nullify pain.

Although the Green Bamboo Sword seemed to be made of bamboo, its hardness naturally could not be compared with ordinary plants. When her fist struck, the comic scene of "my flesh fist breaking your steel weapon" did not occur; instead, Lin Ning stepped back several paces in pain, tears almost coming out.

Biting back her pain, she quickly activated her Shifting Technique and rapidly retreated sideways, avoiding the puppet's follow-up slashing, and extended the other hand into a tight fist.

Flame Curse!

Fire suddenly erupted from the ground, but the Sword-bearing Puppet, though seemingly cumbersome, was actually agile. It sidestepped the flames the moment they appeared, largely evading the burning range and only leaving slight scorched marks on its surface.

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"The Flame Curse has almost a half-second delay from casting to release, making it quite easy to dodge," Yan Yu explained to the rest on the side. "Such delayed spells must be used in combination with other attacks, like for restricting the enemy's movement or attacking when they can't dodge. Remember, using it alone is absolutely the wrong approach."

While he calmly explained to the others, Lin Ning, now exemplifying what not to do, was being chased around by the puppet, looking very disheveled.

The Sword-bearing Puppet didn't move its legs while moving; rather, it was as if it were suspended by invisible threads, then approached like the Shifting Technique, forcing Lin Ning to maintain distance with the same technique.

Luckily, Lin Ning had also practiced "Propulsion Tactics" for a while. She accelerated with the Shifting Technique and then abruptly stopped, continuing high-speed movement with inertia while swiftly seizing the moment to shoot out an Impact Curse, forcing the puppet to use its sword for defense.

No matter where her Impact Curse was aimed, the puppet merely needed to rotate its wrist to move the Green Bamboo Sword to the corresponding position, effortlessly blocking the curse technique without the sword even wobbling.

The so-called sharpness of metallic energy, in front of a superior Immortal Sword, was as fragile as an egg.

"Enough," said Yan Yu, seeing that Lin Ning was about to enter a hit-and-run warfare. "Lin Ning, return to the team! Chen Lingyun, get ready to take over."

Jiang Weiming and the other three Cultivators exchanged glances and finally realized what Yan Yu intended to do.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

This was training for battle!

As Lin Ning swiftly ran back, the Sword-bearing Puppet, sure enough, chased her for a distance then suddenly stopped, only continuing to gesture with the sword to the group as if to say "come and fight."

Chen Lingyun entered the battlefield, keeping some distance from the puppet, and suddenly shot out an Impact Curse to seize the initiative.

The Sword-bearing Puppet moved swiftly to block the curse aimed at its chest, but at its feet, flames suddenly erupted.

Her first move was not a single strike; it was a double hit!

"Do you see?" Yan Yu immediately affirmed the action, saying to everyone, "The first strike draws the opponent's attention, creating an opportunity for the second strike to hit. That's what I was talking about in terms of move coordination."

Lin Ning gasped for breath, hands bracing against her knees, and looked ahead with a mix of reluctance and resolve.

I can do that too! It's just... I was the first to fight, I just hadn't thought of it!

"Doesn't seem very useful?" Jiang Weiming asked from the side.

The puppet was hit squarely by the flames that had erupted, but instead of being hindered, it charged out of the fire charred black, rapidly flying toward Chen Lingyun.

Chen Lingyun stood her ground, ready to engage the enemy. With her smart wit, she could of course see that what Yan Yu had everyone practice was "facing the real pressure of the battlefield." It would be meaningless if she were to activate the Shifting Technique and employ hit-and-run tactics, not letting the sword-bearing puppet get close...

The sword-bearing puppet flew extremely fast, and in no time it reached Chen Lingyun's position, the Green Bamboo Sword thrusting downward from above.

Chen Lingyun quickly activated the Earth-Element Sturdiness Curse and stretched out her left hand to grab the blade.

She caught it.

But it broke free.

With just a slight twist, the Green Bamboo Sword flicked Chen Lingyun's fingers open.

Chen Lingyun wasn't flustered, or rather, this was still within her expectations. She stepped half a pace forward, almost pressed close against the puppet, and her left hand again brushed toward its sword-wielding wrist.

The True Yuan of the Water-based Runescript was quickly stimulated, and upon touch, it rushed into the puppet's wrist. Suddenly, the puppet flew backwards rapidly, creating distance, with the wrist of its sword-wielding hand dangling at an odd angle, seemingly restricted in its movements.

Hmm, the Runescript really did come in handy.

Chen Lingyun remained where she was, not rushing to continue the chase, showing a thoughtful and sweet smile on her face, while the onlookers outside the field were dumbstruck.

In the previous round, Lin Ning had been chased around by the puppet; but now that Chen Lingyun took the stage, the situation reversed immediately, forcing the sword-bearing puppet to retreat?

Is there really such a big difference in strength between these two?

"It's simple," Yan Yu seemed to read the question in everyone's minds and said calmly, "It's difficult without information; it's not difficult once you choose the right tactics."

Lin Ning was slightly taken aback, then she began to ponder.

That's right, judging from the puppet's performance, the Flame Curse didn't do much damage, the Impact Curse was easily blocked by the sword, but it couldn't resist a close-range Runescript; even that sword couldn't penetrate the defense of the Barrier Charm...

"Su Yunjin, get ready," Yan Yu reminded.

"Okay," Su Yunjin clenched her fists nervously, her body trembling slightly against her will.

Seeing this, Lin Ning moved closer and whispered in her ear:

"It's not that difficult, just remember to initiate the Barrier Charm first, and it will block its attacks. Don't counterattack with the Flame Curse, as it doesn't cause significant damage even if it takes a direct hit..."

The sword-bearing puppet on the field raised its right arm, the blade vibrated, and it overcame the obstruction of the Runescript, its wrist becoming agile once again.

It relaunched its attack, this time with a horizontal slash of the long sword from close behind. Yan Yu, observing from the outside, could see clearly that there was no Sword Control Technique involved, it was just a pure slash.

Chen Lingyun raised her right arm, initiating the Barrier Charm directly to block, as the Green Bamboo Sword collided with her forearm, emitting a dull thud.

She repeated her previous maneuver, stepping forward, but this time the puppet didn't give her the chance to engage in close quarters, quickly pulling back to create distance.

Yan Yu silently concluded that Sister Lin was good at designing tactics and seizing opportunities, the downside being her on-the-spot reaction to abrupt situations wasn't strong. However, the puppet's moves were too simplistic and its speed not fast enough to put any pressure on Chen Lingyun. On the contrary, it was being countered by her and wasn't effective for training purposes.

"Come back, Chen Lingyun!" He called out without much hesitation, "Next one, go, Su Yunjin!"

As soon as Su Yunjin heard it was her turn, she tensed up immediately.

But an unexpected comment from the side broke her tense state... She heard Lin Ning unable to resist calling out:

"This is not the time to be playing Pokémon!"