Chapter 100: Exchanging a Few Moves

Hearing Su Yi agree, Lie Que couldn’t help but breathe a little easier. Though he had been prepared for rejection, he certainly hadn’t wanted it—after all, wouldn’t that mean the other looked down on him and disdained exchanging blows? Had this been before yesterday, he would never have given Su Yi the time of day, but once Su Yi gained real strength, Lie Que had no choice but to adjust his attitude. In a sense, this was both fear and respect for the strong.

Realizing this, Lie Que gave a bitter smile to himself, then shook his head and looked at Su Yi. “In that case, let's begin!” he declared. This was, after all, a spur-of-the-moment decision—he couldn’t delay too long, as he still had to report back on the procurement of medicinal herbs.

Win or lose, it was best to finish within a few moves! As soon as the words left his lips, Lie Que let out a low shout, and a surge of vigorous fighting energy immediately swept out. His right hand lifted, and the skin of his palm gradually turned a fiery red, clearly gathering not a small amount of power.

Noticing the shift in color on Lie Que’s hand and the unreserved release of fighting energy, Su Yi was slightly surprised. To go all out from the beginning was obviously to avoid pointless entanglement. In the face of a gap in strength, this was indeed the wiser choice.

Lie Que’s aura climbed steadily toward its peak. His eyes locked onto Su Yi, and suddenly, his body flashed forward, a gust of wind rushing with him as he charged at Su Yi. The wind sent fallen leaves and wild grass swirling in all directions.

Reaching Su Yi, Lie Que’s right palm shot out like lightning, aiming straight for Su Yi’s chest. In that instant, the fiery-red palm exploded with a surge of fierce fighting energy, as if to tear Su Yi’s body apart.

The powerful blast of energy whipped Su Yi’s hair and made his clothes crackle and snap, yet failed to move him an inch. Watching Lie Que’s ferocious palm strike, Su Yi stood rooted, unmoving, neither dodging nor preparing to defend or counterattack. It seemed he intended to simply stand there and take the blow.

Seeing Su Yi neither evade nor defend, Lie Que’s gaze turned cold, but he knew Su Yi must have the strength to be so calm. His frustration did not flare; instead, he gritted his teeth and channeled even more fighting energy into his right hand.

A dull thud rang out where palm met chest. The explosive force shot out in all directions. Both Su Yi and Lie Que staggered back several steps from the recoil, though Su Yi, after merely swaying in place, only retreated a few steps, while Lie Que was sent back much farther.

Though both were knocked back, Su Yi’s expression betrayed no discomfort—on the contrary, he felt a secret thrill. To test the toughness of his own body, he’d taken a risk, receiving Lie Que’s full-force strike without tensing his muscles, yet emerged completely unharmed.

A sixth-level fighter’s all-out attack hadn’t even scratched him. Su Yi’s heart pounded with excitement; he now understood even more deeply the formidable strength of his own body.

Seeing Su Yi unscathed after taking his strike head-on, Lie Que’s face changed. He had known Su Yi’s attacks were strong, but hadn’t expected such defense. With a hint of amazement, he asked, “Is this the effect of training your body exclusively?”

Lie Que’s own body had been somewhat strengthened by fighting energy, but on this continent where nearly everyone practiced energy cultivation, that wasn’t much of an advantage. Unless one trained an earth-attribute energy, or tempered the body with rare treasures or magical beast blood, the body alone wasn’t that strong. Lie Que himself wouldn’t dare take a full-force blow from a sixth-level, or even a fifth-level, fighter as Su Yi just had.

Hearing the question, Su Yi shrugged. “More or less.”

“Good! Next, I’ll use a combat technique!” Lie Que shouted, swinging his right arm, his palm curling into a fist. Fighting energy surged violently within him, and his fiery fist seemed to emit a crimson glow.

In the next instant, Lie Que charged forward like a raging storm, reaching Su Yi in a blink. His fist smashed down, a red energy cone flickering at its tip like a venomous viper striking at Su Yi’s chest.

Sensing the increased ferocity of the attack, Su Yi inwardly praised the advantage of combat techniques. It was a pity he himself couldn’t train in them. This time, he had no intention of taking the attack head-on without reservation; if he suffered an injury, it would be far from ideal, especially since the Lie family’s techniques weren’t weak.

Last time, Zhong Yuan, who had attacked him, had also used a combat technique—but only a low-level one, since the highest-level technique in the Auburn family was only low-grade Profound rank. Even so, Zhong Yuan’s raw strength alone had nearly beaten Su Yi to the point of spitting blood and barely standing—such was the difference in power.

When the gap is wide enough, even a weaker combat technique provides overwhelming advantage. Yet in yesterday’s tournament, Su Yi hadn’t expected Auburn Yu not to use his family’s highest technique—whether due to fear or some other reason, he didn’t know.

Even if Auburn Yu had used it, Su Yi was confident of victory. After all, Deyuan, also a seventh-level fighter, had unleashed a Profound rank technique and still been defeated by Su Yi’s fist.

These thoughts flashed through Su Yi’s mind in an instant. Lie Que’s fist was already upon him. Su Yi frowned, lifting his arms to cross before his chest, muscles tensing. He was confident he could take the blow unharmed, but as it was his chest—a vital spot—there was no need to be reckless.

As Su Yi raised his arms, Lie Que’s punch landed hard upon them.

Boom!

The force exploded, a blast more than twice as fierce as before erupting outward from where they stood, scattering stones and dust across the ground. For a moment, the air was thick with swirling grit.

As the dust settled, their figures emerged. The distance between them had widened again—they had both been shaken back—but Su Yi seemed entirely unaffected, his face serene as though he’d never been attacked. In contrast, Lie Que’s condition was much worse.

Though he remained standing, Lie Que’s mouth twitched and his right hand trembled. His attack had not lacked power, but Su Yi’s body was like solid rock, and the impact left his own hand aching with pain.

Having received Lie Que’s attack without a scratch, Su Yi lowered his arms and shook them out, glancing at his opponent, who seemed rather dispirited. He exhaled softly, “Well? Do you want to continue?”

“No need.” Seeing Su Yi’s effortless composure, Lie Que felt a wave of dejection. To stand there and let him attack, yet remain completely unscathed despite his best efforts—who wouldn’t feel bitter and helpless in his place?

Lie Que had always believed that, though his talent wasn’t exceptional, he was not far behind the best. Among his peers in the Lie family, only Lie Yan surpassed him, and his ranking in the tournament proved as much. Yet today, he had tasted true defeat—this feeling was far stronger than anything Lie Yan had given him.

Though reluctant to admit it, Su Yi now stood above all his peers, Lie Que included, just as he had in the past. With a sigh, Lie Que gave Su Yi a long, searching look. “Su Yi, you’re truly strong now. I wonder how far you’ll go… I hope we’ll have the chance to cross paths again.”

With that, Lie Que turned and walked away, his stride quickening—whether to avoid facing Su Yi any longer, or because he was in a hurry to report back, none could say.

Su Yi was momentarily taken aback by Lie Que’s words, then smiled. He understood that Lie Que’s wish to meet again was as much a promise to himself as to Su Yi—perhaps, after this, Lie Que would devote himself to training with renewed determination.

Though Su Yi didn’t think highly of the Lie family, they were at least a little better than the Auburns. Of course, he knew this change was entirely due to strength; before they’d witnessed what he could do, even Lie Que had looked down on him.

That was why he had to become even stronger, to command even greater respect.

With this thought, Su Yi clenched his fists tightly. The desire to leave Changling City and search for the Blood of Heaven and Earth surged within him. Without further delay, he set off in the direction of Meiya, unable to contain his anticipation.