After being reborn, all I want to do is run away.

Chapter 51 Song and Qi's Choices

As Shen Xu stepped off the battle stage, everyone seemed to finally realize what had just happened, and the entire Fengming Stage erupted into a frenzied uproar.

"Sect Leader, could Shen Xu's giant wave be...?" Wang Yuanyue couldn't help but ask tentatively.

"No!" Song Qi gently shook his head.

"But we're already very close!"

At first, Shen Xu just wanted to try to see if he could unleash the Sixfold Wave, but despite having the Water element as a catalyst, he still couldn't get past the threshold of the Sixfold Wave.

One day, he had a sudden inspiration: if he could unleash two consecutive five-wave attacks and make them collide before they spread out, he could obtain a more powerful version of the five-wave attack.

He tested the quadruple wave and found that its power was about half that of the quintuple wave. Based on this, he deduced that the enhanced version of the quintuple wave should also have half the effect of the quintuple wave. So Shen Xu named that move "Pseudo-quintuple wave".

But seizing that one moment of opportunity is incredibly difficult. The speed of the five waves is already fast enough, and to unleash a second five waves before they spread is simply a pipe dream.

So Shen Xu came up with a clever trick: when condensing the waves, he would condense ten waves on the sword, first unleash the five waves that had already been stacked, then immediately stack the waves again, and finally slash out the second five waves that overlapped with the first five waves.

The reason he didn't prepare two five-fold waves directly on the sword beforehand was because he couldn't control them, and he almost seriously injured himself several times during the experiment. In the end, he had no choice but to abandon the idea and added a layered wave step instead.

The trade-off is that the power of the pseudo-six-fold wave is greatly reduced, because the power is only at its maximum when the force is concentrated into a single point, and the collision effect is also the best at that point.

Adding an extra step would increase the spread of the first five waves, thus significantly reducing the power of this technique.

His pseudo-six-fold wave technique was merely an experimental version because it was difficult to control. Any tiny disturbance could undo the entire effort, so it was essentially worthless in actual combat, but it was perfectly suited to the situation just described.

At this moment, the elder presiding over the competition spoke up, "The winner of this outer sect competition is Shen Xu!"

The six resounding bells echoed throughout Fengming Mountain, marking the birth of the top outer sect disciple and pushing the atmosphere of Fengming Platform to a new climax.

However, it seems that few people took this to heart, since compared with Shen Xu's performance just now, the title of the top outer sect disciple didn't seem to have much value.

The people in the stands were discussing how powerful Shen Xu's move was and who Shen Xu really was.

The disciples were discussing how Shen Xu had managed that move. What had he done in the white mist? Could such a powerful move really be performed by an outer disciple? And if they were in Chen Kaijia's place, could they have blocked it?

"Qiqi, it seems you've won this time!"

"A bet's a bet! Here are four thousand Nourishing Essence Pills, they're all yours." Song Qi handed Yang Qingqing an exquisite ring inlaid with a black gemstone.

"A storage ring!" Upon seeing the ring, the elders' gazes all sharpened. It should be noted that only a handful of people, including the sect leader, in the entire Green Bamboo Sword Sect possessed a storage ring.

"Where did this one come from? Is it really appropriate for the sect leader to entrust such a precious item to a young girl who hasn't even grown up yet? What's more, it contains a Nourishing Essence Pill that would make everyone here envious." For a moment, all the elders were filled with thoughts.

"Master, what is this?" Yang Qiqi asked curiously, holding the ring.

"Put it on first, and I'll explain it to you when we get back."

"Okay, Master." Yang Qiqi smiled and put the ring on the finger of her right hand. Shen Xu won the competition, and she won her master's ring. Everything made her very happy.

"Chen Feng, what do you think of Shen Xu?" Song Qi suddenly asked.

"Absolutely stunning! These are the only four words I can use to describe her," Chen Feng exclaimed.

"How does it compare to your nephew?"

"The facts show that Kai Jia is far inferior to Shen Xu."

"What do you elders think?"

Song Qi glanced around and found that all the elders had fallen silent, and no one was willing to speak.

"Since you refuse to speak, then I will speak for you!"

“Shen Xu possesses exceptional swordsmanship talent! Such a person is not suitable for a small sect like ours. I know you don’t want to lose Lu Qingshan and then Shen Xu as well.”

But you must also know that ruining the future of a genius is equally shameful.

The Green Bamboo Sword Sect and the Green Bamboo Mountain Range are too small. It's so small that even nurturing Qi Qi requires the entire sect's strength. What's more, now we have to nurture another Chen Kaijia. What do you think I should use to nurture Green Bamboo Mountain and Shen Xu?

It is our strategy to dedicate all our resources to nurturing Qiqi, a strategy we will follow for the next ten or even several decades, and you all agree with this. This is a risk-free decision.

With Qiqi's talent, she will definitely surpass all of us here within ten years. For this reason, we had to give up nurturing Qingshan because there are too many risks in Qingshan's future growth. Shen Xu felt the same way.

The sect left us those two sword manuals in order to recruit sword geniuses like Qingshan and Shen Xu. Since they have mastered those two sword manuals, it means that it is their opportunity, and we have no reason to stand in their way.

I don't think they're ungrateful children. They'll repay even the smallest kindness tenfold. If we help them, they'll return the favor in return—it's a win-win situation. If we force them to stay, it will be a lose-lose situation!

"Do you elders agree with what I just said?" Song Qi's gaze swept over the crowd.

"The sect leader is wise!" all the elders stood up and exclaimed in unison.

"Alright, the competition isn't over yet! Sit down, everyone!" Song Qi couldn't help but sigh. If possible, he would have loved to keep Lu Qingshan and Shen Xu here as well!

The pseudo-six-fold wave consumed far more energy than two five-fold waves. Shen Xu needed to expend more energy and mental strength to control it, so his energy in his dantian was pitifully low at the moment, and he was feeling dizzy. He just wanted to quickly return to his seat and rest.

Amidst the admiring gazes of numerous disciples, Shen Xu slowly walked to his seat, sat down, and let out a deep sigh of relief, immediately feeling much more comfortable.

Ignoring the noise around him, he slowly closed his eyes and began to rest. While his physical energy was recovering, the fatigue in his soul was not so easily dispelled.

Moreover, he always felt that the soul energy he had consumed in the last battle with Han Yue had not been replenished. It was as if there was a void in his soul that was constantly devouring his soul power, preventing his soul from ever returning to its peak state.

After the dizziness in his mind slowly subsided, Shen Xu opened his eyes. When Wang Bu saw that Shen Xu had opened his eyes, he immediately became interested and pulled Lu Qingqing and Yan Qingxue to start asking him all sorts of questions.

"When I thought that Junior Brother Shen would definitely win the first place in the outer sect, I never expected that Senior Brother Chen was so well hidden."

When Senior Brother Chen showed his indomitable spirit, I thought Junior Brother Shen was definitely going to lose this time, but I realized that Junior Brother Shen was the one who had been hiding the deepest secret!

"I thought Five Waves was your ultimate move, Junior Brother Shen, but I didn't expect it to be just a normal attack!" Wang Bu exclaimed.

“Brother Wang, you’re not the only one who thinks this way! I was wondering before if it was a bit too ruthless of you, Junior Brother Shen, to use your ultimate moves to kill your opponents every time. But now it seems that you were showing mercy!” Yan Qingxue said with a smile.

"Junior Brother Shen, I want to know if that move is the sixth wave of the Overlapping Waves Sword Technique?" Lu Qingqing asked curiously.

Wang Bu and Yan Qingxue were clearly also curious about this question, and immediately three pairs of curious eyes turned to Shen Xu.

Shen Xu shook his head, "I haven't even touched the threshold of the sixth wave yet. That move just now was still only the fifth wave."

"Impossible! We've seen you use the Five Waves technique before, how could you possibly have that kind of formation?"

"I haven't finished yet. That move is indeed a five-wave attack, but it's not an ordinary five-wave attack; it's a more powerful version!" Shen Xu leaned forward slightly and said to the three of them with utmost seriousness.

Then the four of them fell into a brief silence.

"And then?" Lu Qingqing asked, frowning.

That's all! What else do you want to know?

"I now think that Junior Brother Shen, your heart is truly black!" Wang Bu exclaimed.