After Rebirth, the Heroine is Consumed by Overwhelming Regret Chapter 11

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere instantly froze.
Yu Yan’s tone was serious, as if this was a grave matter that absolutely had to be corrected. But to others, her words didn’t sound like correcting a mistake, but a clear challenge.
Skinny Monkey sneered. “She was the one who offended me first. Giving her a chance is already a loss for me. But, I’m a generous person and won’t fuss over such small matters. As you said, where should we fight?”
Qi Qing cried out inwardly. How could she dare to accept the challenge?
Although her spiritual sense had reached the Nascent Soul realm, meaning she wouldn’t lose strategically, her body only had a Foundation Establishment cultivation base. It was like having immense water pressure but only a tiny faucet; she couldn’t unleash her full power.
Her opponent, however, was at the mid-Core Formation realm, a whole level higher. If she went up like this, she was bound to lose.
“What, scared?” Skinny Monkey jeered. “If you’re scared, why bother bargaining? Such bold words, but it turns out you’re all show and no go, huh?”
Qi Qing felt helpless. Her opponent was being so confrontational, leaving her no room to refuse. Perhaps Yu Yan meant well, but Qi Qing simply didn’t have the ability to fight. With more and more onlookers gathering, even if she wanted to run, there was no chance.
She could only say, “How about the training grounds out back?”
The Heavenly Sword Sect valued martial prowess, and private duels between disciples were not forbidden, as long as no lives were lost. They were free to spar. Thus, there were many training grounds. Just a short distance from the dormitory supervisor’s gate, there was a slightly old platform.
Skinny Monkey curled his lip and agreed, then headed off first.
The other onlookers followed. Qi Qing lagged behind, originally planning to feint and use the chance to escape, but her opponent was prepared. He walked a few steps then turned back, apparently to watch her.
“Don’t be afraid, I’ll support you.”
Just as she was worrying, Yu Yan suddenly whispered in her ear. Qi Qing looked over in surprise, only seeing her light veil.
Just as she was wondering if she had misheard, she suddenly felt Yu Yan’s hand reach over. First, it gently squeezed her hand, and then a sensation like a silken thread came from that direction.
The thread was exceptionally beautiful, a faint cyan color. The moment it entered her body, it synchronized her movements with Yu Yan’s. Because they were already walking side-by-side, the change wasn’t obvious; only she, the one involved, was subtly aware of it.
So that was it, puppetry.
Advanced puppeteers could control people invisibly, and the puppets could also have their own consciousness. This kind of control often allowed them to complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses, enabling the puppet to unleash its greatest power.
She suddenly felt a surge of excitement.
Even the most timid person wouldn’t be completely devoid of anger after being insulted. She had wanted to back down because she lacked the ability; if she had the ability and still backed down, she would be a complete coward.
She was about to leave the Heavenly Sword Sect. If she didn’t win this fight impressively, not only would she lose face, but she would also tarnish the reputation of Yu Yan, who was about to take her in.
She squeezed Yu Yan’s hand back to show she understood.
Yu Yan winked at her from behind the veil, looking both beautiful and cute.
Soon, the crowd arrived at the training platform and made way for them. Qi Qing glanced around; there were roughly two to three hundred people, all outer sect disciples who had finished their classes and had nothing better to do. Everyone loved a free show. Some even called their friends over, and the number of onlookers grew.
She looked at Skinny Monkey opposite her. He clearly hadn’t expected so many people either, and his expression was a bit tense. But when his eyes met Qi Qing’s, he snorted coldly and put on an air of being determined to win.
Qi Qing also composed herself and walked onto the platform.
Private duels had no referees; fairness depended entirely on both parties.
However, they were expected to stop before causing serious harm, and no lives were to be lost.
With so many people watching, Qi Qing wasn’t afraid he would use lethal force. However, this person was sinister and cunning, and might resort to some vicious moves.
The book mentioned he had a pot of poisonous bees, usually nourished with white sugar and spiritual energy, which he rarely showed to others. He eventually used them in a fight against a fellow disciple. Although Qi Qing didn’t think their current match was important enough for him to use his trump card, it was always good to be careful.
“Today, I ask everyone to bear witness. Qi Qing offended me before, and I’m willing to give her a chance to make amends. This match is a friendly spar. If she wins, I’ll kneel and call her ‘Grandma.’ If I win, she’ll kneel and call me ‘Grandpa,’ and she’ll have to apologize to me!”
Skinny Monkey added a couple more provocations, then drew his sword and charged forward as he spoke.
This was a standard dirty trick, aimed at seizing the initiative. Even though Qi Qing’s cultivation was much lower than his, he wouldn’t be careless or miss any opening.
As expected, Qi Qing didn’t have time to react. Her dodge was already late. A hair’s breadth miss could lead to a mile of error; if this continued, she would definitely be injured. Skinny Monkey often used this move and could already see he was about to succeed. His expression relaxed a little—defeating her in one move would be a complete victory.
But for some reason, just as his sword was about to pierce Qi Qing, she swayed lightly and it missed her.
This sway looked simple, but it was actually very subtle. A fraction of a second later and she would have been stabbed; a fraction of a second earlier and his own follow-up move would have caught her. Skinny Monkey looked up at her and saw that her face also showed surprise.
What did this mean?
Skinny Monkey was a bit confused. Although he was only an outer sect disciple and hadn’t learned all the movement techniques of the Heavenly Sword Sect, he could tell that this was definitely not the specialty of any Peak Lord. Where on earth had Qi Qing learned it?
Moreover, Qi Qing was also an outer sect disciple.
They were both outer sect disciples, neither having a renowned master to guide them. They usually learned only basic sword moves. To put it bluntly, if she really had this kind of skill, she wouldn’t still be an outer sect disciple.
Had he seen wrong? Was it a coincidence?
Skinny Monkey wasn’t sure. His first strike having failed, he immediately did a quick flip and executed a ‘parting shot’ attack. This move was also extremely sinister. Attacking from behind was something used against enemies; for it to appear in a spar between fellow disciples was considered going too far.
The crowd of onlookers grew restless, but they were quickly silenced by Skinny Monkey’s lackeys. Everyone here was an outer sect disciple; with more people on their side, they held more power, and no one wanted to provoke his group.
Others felt that all’s fair in war. Since it wasn’t their business, they just watched for the excitement. Anyway, the gap between the two was huge, so the result wouldn’t take long to become clear.
But they hadn’t expected Qi Qing to actually be able to exchange blows evenly with him. The moves they both usually practiced were more or less the same, and most of the onlookers could perform the full set. They fought back and forth with just those few moves, which was honestly a bit boring.
But gradually, some people started to notice something.
The sweat on Skinny Monkey’s forehead increased, as if he was struggling.
But why? The crowd didn’t understand. In their eyes, based on sword skills alone, the two were evenly matched. Even if he was struggling a bit, it shouldn’t be that much.
Only Skinny Monkey knew how tired he was.
His opponent seemed to be using only basic sword moves, but she clearly didn’t intend to win with them. It was as if she was just casually waving her sword around, full of openings. But if he fell for it and attacked directly, her strange movement technique would somehow lead him on a wild goose chase for several extra steps. A person’s stamina is limited. He was already panting heavily, but she didn’t show the slightest sign of fatigue.
If this continued, his stamina would give out first.
Realizing this, Skinny Monkey broke out in a sweat. He desperately searched for her openings and attacked relentlessly, but no matter how hard he tried, she was like a slippery fish—he couldn’t catch her or figure her out.
The situation was actually being controlled by her!
No, this can’t happen! He was the one who started this, the one who set the conditions. If he lost to her, wouldn’t he become a laughingstock? Besides, a man’s knees hold gold; if he knelt, how could he face anyone in the future?
He absolutely could not lose!
But he was running out of time. Skinny Monkey gritted his teeth and poured spiritual energy into his sword, planning a desperate counterattack. In spars between fellow disciples, most wouldn’t use spiritual energy; this was an unwritten rule because once spiritual energy was involved, the intensity would escalate rapidly.
But he couldn’t care about that now.
Qi Qing’s cultivation was lower than his. This way, he was sure to win.
This sword strike carried immense force; Qi Qing couldn’t possibly block it. But Qi Qing actually moved to meet it. Skinny Monkey chuckled, knowing she had already lost.
But reality wasn’t as wonderful as he imagined.
The clash of swords rang out. Before Skinny Monkey could react, his own sword was suddenly jolted from his grasp and flew into the sky. An instant later, it fell back down, plunging into the ground right in front of him.
With a clang, it nearly sliced off half his nose.