念御气，气御掌，掌引红莲 (Hong Lian, Red Lotus).

Qisha's move was clearly a life-threatening attack.

Uesugi Jin could neither avoid nor block it, so she had to grit her teeth and endure...

The move began, and fiery light burst forth, dazzling and earth-shattering.

The move landed, fresh blood scorched, and life hung by a thread.

Clearly, this strike had severely injured Uesugi Jin, but... she did not die.

Under the close-range direct hit of [Li Bai Ba Shi - Orochi Nagi], Uesugi Jin relied on pure defense and hit points to survive, with only a "thread" of life remaining.

And what was a chance for her was, of course, a possibility of death for Qisha.

"Cough..." In that instant, Uesugi Jin endured the severe pain brought by her injuries, forcefully roused her fighting spirit, and coughed out a mouthful of stagnant blood from her mouth, her aura in that instant... returning to a smooth state.

The ultimate move was unleashed at this moment!

[Name: Guichan Liuduan (Sixfold Ghost Zen Severance)]

[Skill Card Attribute: Active skill, disappears after one use]

[Skill Category: Martial Arts, Spiritual Arts]

[Effect: Wu Wang Cheng Fa (Unfounded Dharma), Shen Mi Duo Shi (Bewildering World), Tu Yin Sha Jie (Slaughter Seal Killing Realm), Fu Lun Tian Zang (Auxiliary Wheel Celestial Burial), Zhong Xiang Wei Mie (All Forms Cease), Fan Gui Tong Bei (Brahma Ghosts Grieve Together) (These six forms will be activated continuously and cannot be interrupted)]

[Consumption: Can only be used when the user is in a near-death state, no consumption]

[Learning Conditions: Martial Arts Specialization S, Spiritual Arts Specialization C]

[Remarks: Exclusive ultimate skill of Gui Rulai (Ghost Tathagata), unmatched in power, making ghosts weep and heaven tremble.]

Uesugi Jin's desperate counterattack was a skill, but in reality, it was equivalent to six moves. The only drawback of this skill was... after activation, as long as the user did not die or have important limbs severed, they had to perform all six moves in order before stopping.

If the opponent had seen the six moves of [Guichan Liuduan] beforehand, they could naturally take advantage of this and strike first.

Unfortunately... Qisha had never seen this skill before, and all he could rely on was his on-the-spot reaction...

"Die!" When making her move, Uesugi Jin's eyes were sharp and her killing intent was terrifying. She also roared, determined to end her opponent.

At that moment, a ghastly aura suddenly formed, attaching itself to the blade of the Sadame Naga (Fixed Length), drawing out a continuous attack of six magic-filled moves.

Qisha also understood... the incoming attack was no small matter. He immediately adjusted his stance again, spreading his arms and gathering his energy to withstand the power of the Six Severances.

However, [Guichan Liuduan] combined meditation and killing intent, filled with awe-inspiring murderous aura. In the ghostly aura, the light of the blade suddenly burst forth, pouring down like a waterfall. In the blink of an eye... even a top expert like Qisha could not retreat unscathed when facing such a move for the first time.

...

"Heh... it seems the outcome will soon be revealed." At the same time, in the [Sengoku (Warring States)] viewing space, Date Makoto's lips revealed a cold smile.

"Oh?" Not being able to see this point, Akechi Nobusada looked to the side in doubt, "Do you think Qisha has run out of tricks?"

"Of course he hasn't run out of tricks. On the contrary... he still has at least three or four attack methods that can instantly kill Senior Uesugi that he hasn't used." Date replied, "But... he won't have a chance to use them."

"Why?" Sasaki Mei also chimed in to ask at this time.

"Two reasons." Date Makoto replied, "First, because his 'defense' is super bad..."

He paused for a second and explained, "Although his 'attack' and 'counterattack' techniques can be called perfect, without the slightest flaw... once he falls into a passive defensive rhythm, his simple and naive defensive movements are exposed."

"Of course, someone of his level won't leave his weaknesses unattended; Qisha also has a strategy to make up for his 'simple defensive style,' which is—to shorten the 'defensive' process to the limit."

"Simply put, it's to quickly deal with it in a clumsy way when 'defense is inevitable,' and then launch a counterattack in a 'timeframe when ordinary people are still defending.'"

"What is the 'timeframe when ordinary people are still defending'?" Akechi Nobusada asked again.

"Hmm..." Date Makoto thought for a moment and continued, "Let's take an example... Suppose A uses an axe to chop at B, and B raises his shield to block; normally, in this kind of attack and defense, after the axe touches the shield, there will still be a contest of strength between the two sides. If A's strength is greater, B's hand holding the shield will be pressed down a bit, and vice versa, A's hand will be numb or bounced back... After this 'contest' process is over, both sides will unload their strength, reorganize their stances, and start the next attack and defense. And the time spent in this process... this ambiguous but short moment that both the attacking and defending sides tacitly agree to wait for... does not exist for Qisha." He paused for half a second, then said, "Qisha's defense ends the moment the axe and shield make contact... As for whether the person wielding the axe will deflect the axe blade to cut down? Whether this axe is just a weak feint? Whether the power of the axe will split the shield in half? He doesn't consider any of these things... All he has to do is wait for the end of this 'inevitable defense' moment, and then immediately bring the battle back to the area he is good at—attacking."

"Okay... Even if, as you said, his defensive ability is terrible, and..." Akechi Nobusada glanced at the field, "He is now being forced into a state of 'continuous defense' by [Guichan Liuduan]... But how do you know that after this round of skill combos, he won't be able to bring the rhythm back to the 'counterattack' situation with a counterattack?"

"That's the 'second reason' I'm about to say..." Date Makoto continued, "Qisha's will to win is far inferior to Senior Uesugi's."

"You mean he's holding back?" Sasaki Mei asked again.

"It can't be said that he's holding back..." Date Makoto said, "It's just... compared to Senior Uesugi's 'must-win' aura, Qisha's enthusiasm seems to be more focused on enjoying the battle itself..." He spread his hands and continued with a playful smile, "This... is a qualitative difference."

...

We all know that in most film and television or literary works, when someone is "explaining" the battle, time seems to pass very slowly.

The same is true now...

By the time Date Makoto and the others finished their conversation, Uesugi Jin's [Guichan Liuduan] had just finished releasing.

Qisha... dodged four moves and blocked two moves; although he was injured, his condition was still better than Uesugi Jin's.

However, in his own opinion, he was in great danger.

"This won't do... If she keeps connecting with these kinds of skills, I'm the one who's going to die..." At this moment, Qisha thought to himself, "Let's end this 'sparring' here... It wouldn't be good to be beaten to death in the end for watching more moves... I have to quickly use 'Soul Intent' to interrupt her continuous attacks and then send her to heaven..."

If he had this idea at the beginning of the match, he would have already won.

Whether it was the first-tier [Zhi Quan (Supreme Fist)] or the second-tier [Xiong Xing Hao Yan (Fierce Star Blazing Flame)], Qisha's two Soul Intents were abilities that did not require testing, did not need to be kept secret, and were sure to work.

If Uesugi Jin had these two Soul Intents, she would definitely have used them at the beginning of the battle.

But Qisha... didn't use them.

He was like those giants of light from the M78 Nebula, who kept saying they wanted to protect the Earth, but every time a monster attacked, they would hold back the long-range ultimate skill that could blast their opponents to pieces, and instead go up and play karate, judo, wrestling, and mud wrestling with the monsters...

After destroying half a city and causing losses of who knows how many billions of yen, they would finally use their ultimate move to blast their opponents to death.

In the end, they would often stand in a pile of rubble, looking proudly at the devastated land with a satisfied nod, shout "爽 (Shuang, Awesome)!", and then fly away.

At that moment, the small light on their chest that was constantly flashing and making a sound like a siren seemed to be shouting—Earthlings, you can call the police, but you can't do anything to me.

Their deeply hidden merit and fame, as well as the rule that they have to change a relative to work on Earth every year or two, have already revealed the truth about the bursting of the island nation's bubble economy.

It's getting a bit off topic... In short, as Date Makoto said, the biggest difference between Qisha, who came to S3 to "spar with experts," and Uesugi Jin was—the will to win.

Those who fight with their backs to the water have endless fierce attacks.

Those who wait for the battle to end retreat step by step with no way out.

When Qisha felt that he "had to get serious and end the battle," the battle had actually already ended.

The remaining momentum of [Guichan Liuduan] had not dissipated, and Uesugi Jin's next skill was already ready...

Then, Sadame Naga flashed, and a move of [Yun Tian Zhan Xing Jue (Falling Sky Star Severing Art)] collapsed and arrived.

A fierce star fell in response to the tribulation.