Who Was the Waste?

"Hahaha, good! That's for the best!"

Zhang Lingyun burst out laughing, then darted straight onto the platform.

"Qin Shaofeng, if you can withstand three moves from me, I'll admit defeat." Zhang Lingyun's face was full of arrogance and pride, and a vicious glint flickered in his eyes.

He had wanted to lay hands on Qin Shaofeng for a long time. Especially after Qin Shaofeng had made him suffer such a huge loss at the Beast Arena, he had wanted nothing more than to grind Qin Shaofeng's bones to dust.

Now that he had a chance to openly teach Qin Shaofeng a lesson, he certainly wouldn't pass it up.

He had already decided: he would defeat Qin Shaofeng by the cruelest means, then cripple him and turn him into a complete invalid.

As for whether he was a match for Qin Shaofeng, Zhang Lingyun had no doubts at all.

After all, he had reached the Body Tempering Ninth Level. In the past, he could never have been a match for Qin Shaofeng, but things were different now.

Qin Shaofeng's dantian had already been destroyed. Even if he had once been a Houtian Fifth Level expert, at most he was now about as strong as someone at the Body Tempering Second or Third Level.

How could someone like that possibly be a match for him, Zhang Lingyun?

"Very well!"

Qin Shaofeng gave a cold smile and leaped onto the platform too. Looking at Zhang Lingyun, he said calmly, "Three moves aren't necessary. If you can take one punch from me, I'll admit defeat."

Zhang Lingyun's expression briefly turned blank at that calm tone, then darkened in an instant.

One punch?

This waste actually dared to say he could defeat him with one punch?

Zhang Lingyun's heart was filled with towering rage.

The crowd was equally stunned. They stared at Qin Shaofeng in disbelief. Had the blow that destroyed his dantian also ruined his brain? How could he dare say something like that?

"One punch?" Zhang Lingyun suddenly burst out laughing. "If you'd said that before your dantian was destroyed, Qin Shaofeng, I might have believed you. But now you're nothing but a waste. You think you can defeat me with one punch? Keep dreaming!"

Keep dreaming?

Qin Shaofeng smiled. He wasn't what he used to be. Even now, he was still at the Houtian First Layer. One punch for Zhang Lingyun was already giving him too much credit.

"Enough talk. I'm coming." Qin Shaofeng had no desire to waste words with Zhang Lingyun.

As soon as he finished speaking, Qin Shaofeng leaned forward slightly and clenched his right fist, then drove it toward Zhang Lingyun.

"Hmph! Let's see how you, a waste, plan to beat me with one punch!"

A cruel glint flashed in Zhang Lingyun's eyes. He didn't retreat; instead, he raised his own fist and charged straight at Qin Shaofeng.

He held nothing back. All the Inner Qi of his Body Tempering Ninth Level surged into his fist. He wanted to finish Qin Shaofeng with one punch and make him understand that a waste would always be a waste.

The air around Qin Shaofeng and Zhang Lingyun began to tremble faintly beneath the force of their fists. Their surging power howled, and their clothes snapped in the wind.

Something about this scene clearly wasn't right!

Zhang Lingyun was one thing. With the Inner Qi of the Body Tempering Ninth Level behind his punch, such force was perfectly normal.

But why was Qin Shaofeng's punch just as powerful?

In fact, it seemed that Qin Shaofeng had the upper hand!

Suddenly, Zhang Lingyun's expression changed. His earlier confidence vanished.

He could feel how oppressive the force of Qin Shaofeng's incoming punch was. But it was already too late to retreat, so he had no choice but to grit his teeth and meet it head-on.

Bang!

Their fists collided. Zhang Lingyun's right hand went numb, and a terrifying force came crashing from Qin Shaofeng's fist. It was far beyond anything he could withstand.

This wasn't the power of the Body Tempering Realm. This was the power of a Houtian Martial Artist!

Zhang Lingyun was horrified, and utterly shocked.

Was Qin Shaofeng still a Houtian Martial Artist?

"Hmph!"

There was no time to think. Zhang Lingyun let out a muffled groan, his body jolted, and he was sent flying. In the end, he fell off the platform like a scrap of cloth.

Worse still, the heavy fall made Zhang Lingyun spit out a mouthful of blood. His face turned pale; he had clearly been severely injured!

This...

Everyone present was stunned by the sight!

One punch!

It really had taken just one punch. Zhang Lingyun had been utterly powerless to resist and had been blasted off the platform by Qin Shaofeng.

Below the platform, Zhang Chongshan's expression turned grim. Beside him, Zhang Lingtian had leaped to his feet in shock, staring at Qin Shaofeng with disbelief.

Houtian Inner Qi!

It was Houtian Inner Qi!

How could this be?

I had personally destroyed Qin Shaofeng's dantian. How could he still have Houtian Inner Qi?

"How is this possible? How is this possible..."

Below the platform, Zhang Lingtian stared blankly. He couldn't accept this brutal truth.

Just then, Qin Shaofeng spoke from the platform.

"Zhang Lingyun, you kept calling me a waste. But what about now? You couldn't even take one punch from me, a waste. So what does that make you?"

"Pfft!"

Zhang Lingyun was lying on the ground below the platform. When he heard Qin Shaofeng's words, his expression twisted even more bitterly. Unable to bear the humiliation, he spat out another mouthful of blood and fainted.

At the sight, the Zhang Family members' expressions all changed, turning exceptionally ugly. Zhang Chongshan, the Zhang Family Patriarch, looked especially grim.

By contrast, smiles spread across the Qin Family's side. Old Master Qin was especially pleased, stroking his beard with narrowed eyes.

"Qin Shaofeng!"

Seeing his younger brother lying injured on the ground, then humiliated by Qin Shaofeng until he passed out, Zhang Lingtian sprang to his feet. He fixed Qin Shaofeng with a furious glare and growled.

Qin Shaofeng paid no mind to Zhang Lingtian's anger. He simply turned to face him and said coolly, "Come on up!"

The scene fell silent once more.

Though they didn't know how, everyone was sure of one thing: Qin Shaofeng seemed to have restored his destroyed dantian, and his cultivation had returned to the Houtian First Layer.

The reason no one had sensed it earlier was that Qin Shaofeng had deliberately circulated the Yi Jin Jing to conceal his aura.

But once he unleashed his power, his aura had been laid bare.

Houtian First Layer. There was no doubt about it.

Everyone also knew that Zhang Lingtian was at the Houtian Third Level—and at its peak. Yet Qin Shaofeng still looked completely relaxed.

Did he have some other trick up his sleeve?

No one knew, but they couldn't help feeling a little anticipation for this contest, whose winner had seemed decided from the start.

At that moment, Zhang Lingtian was both shocked and furious. He had actually been challenged.

That was right. In Zhang Lingtian's eyes, Qin Shaofeng's cool invitation was a provocation.

"Since you're begging to die, I'll grant your wish!"

A sharp glint flashed in his eyes. Zhang Lingtian shouted, leaped up, and landed on the platform.

Not only had Qin Shaofeng badly injured and humiliated his younger brother, he had even dared to provoke him. Qin Shaofeng had to die!

The moment he landed on the platform, Zhang Lingtian's whole body trembled, and his aura surged wildly.

In an instant, spiraling currents of energy appeared faintly around him. Zhang Lingtian stood proudly within them, his presence astonishingly powerful.

"Inner Qi taking form! That's Inner Qi taking form! Heavens, Zhang Lingtian has broken through to the Houtian Fourth Level!"

A cry of alarm suddenly rang out from the crowd. The whole scene immediately erupted into a commotion.

Inner Qi could be activated at the Body Tempering Third Level. After one passed through the Body Tempering Realm, that Inner Qi would transform into Houtian Inner Qi.

Houtian Inner Qi was far stronger than the Inner Qi of the Body Tempering Realm, and much easier to control.

More importantly, once someone cultivated Houtian Inner Qi to a certain level—when they reached the Houtian Fourth Level—they could begin to control and wield it, forming tangible attacks outside the body.

Clearly, no one had known that Zhang Lingtian had suddenly advanced to the Houtian Fourth Level.

At that moment, Zhang Lingtian was deliberately displaying his Inner Qi taking form, hoping to crush Qin Shaofeng with his presence. He wanted Qin Shaofeng to understand that the gap between them was now enormous.

He was no longer Lanjiang City's perennial runner-up among the younger generation, and Qin Shaofeng was no longer Lanjiang City's greatest prodigy.

What he didn't know was that the moment Qin Shaofeng had seen him, he had used Fiery Golden Eyes and learned his exact status.

Character: Zhang Lingtian

Level: Houtian Fourth Level

Inner Qi Points: 150/150

Skill: Extreme Collapse Fist

Although Qin Shaofeng was behind Zhang Lingtian in cultivation level, thanks to the Yi Jin Jing, his Inner Qi was four times greater than Zhang Lingtian's.

That gave Qin Shaofeng a considerable advantage.

"Make your move! I'll give you three moves."

Zhang Lingtian stood with his hands behind his back, looking every bit the master as he spoke to Qin Shaofeng.

Three moves again?

The crowd's hearts tightened. They couldn't help thinking of what had happened with Zhang Lingyun earlier.

But Zhang Lingtian's three moves meant that he would give Qin Shaofeng three chances to attack, not that he would defeat Zhang Lingyun within three moves.

That only made Zhang Lingtian's confidence all the more apparent.

In fact, he had done it on purpose.

He wanted to avenge his younger brother, so he had offered Qin Shaofeng three moves.

Then, once the three moves were over, he would defeat Qin Shaofeng in one.

Three moves?

A cold smile appeared at the corner of Qin Shaofeng's mouth, but this time he didn't say anything.

Actually, this was exactly what he had hoped for. The more confident Zhang Lingtian was, the more he underestimated Qin Shaofeng—and the better.

Earlier, when Qin Shaofeng had used Fiery Golden Eyes on Zhang Lingtian, he had learned more than just his attributes. One piece of information had caught his attention.

Weakness: Dantian

Fiery Golden Eyes' other ability had finally revealed itself.

Zhang Lingtian's weakness had been exposed just like that.

His dantian?

Qin Shaofeng narrowed his eyes slightly, a thought coming to him.

If he used that move, Zhang Lingtian probably wouldn't be able to withstand it.

But that was fine. Hadn't Zhang Lingtian destroyed his dantian?

He should return the favor in kind!

As he thought this, Qin Shaofeng suddenly moved.

In an instant, his Inner Qi Points dropped by 10. Inner Qi flowed from his dantian into his legs, and Qin Shaofeng's speed abruptly increased.

This was how Houtian Inner Qi was used. Compared to the Inner Qi of the Body Tempering Realm, Houtian Inner Qi could greatly enhance both the force of an attack and the body's defenses.

It could also increase one's speed.

That was precisely why the gap between the Body Tempering Realm and the Houtian Realm was so immense.