Is This the Blood Tempering Realm?

Zhang Tian rapidly crossed his arms in front of his chest.

He unleashed a series of incredibly flashy combo punches on the sparring ring.

Faint traces of blood energy clung to his fists, creating visible ripples of airflow with every movement.

The wind from his punches surged.

Sonic booms exploded in the air.

"Come on, Gu Yuan, attack me with everything you've got!"

Zhang Tian spread his legs slightly and let his hands hang loosely at his sides.

He struck an extremely casual opening stance.

"Today, if I use even a single shred of blood energy, I'll consider myself the loser!"

The surrounding students heard the commotion and stopped their training one after another.

The crowd gathered curiously around the edge of the ring.

"Who's that blond guy? He's got a retro vibe... reminds me of the... Mosaic Family."

"What the hell, Mosaic Family? I think you mean the Shaqima Family!"

"If I'm not mistaken, you two are trying to say Shamate, right?"

The buzzing of whispers spread through the air.

"I heard he's a top student from Martial University, a formal martial artist! Is he here to mentor that high schooler?"

"That blond guy is from Martial University? Doesn't look like it, looks more like he works at a hair salon."

"Don't judge a book by its cover; he's a formal martial artist."

"A Martial University student fighting a high schooler? That's just bullying."

"Didn't you hear? He said he wouldn't use blood energy and would just stand there and take it. This is called feeding moves; he's helping a junior."

"Even without blood energy, a formal martial artist's raw physical strength and combat technique are far beyond what a Blood Tempering realm can handle. This isn't even a fight on the same level."

Gu Yuan stood below the ring.

The surrounding discussions fell entirely into his ears.

He swept his gaze toward Zhang Tian, whose nostrils were practically pointed at the sky.

No blood energy?

Standing there to be hit?

This was practically a perfect punching bag sent by the heavens.

If he didn't give the guy a good beating, he would be doing a disservice to such bold words.

Gu Yuan pressed one hand against the edge of the ring. With a light push from his legs, he vaulted onto the platform with ease.

Several sharp-eyed martial arts instructors below exchanged glances.

"That kid's core strength is impressive."

"His control over his body is extremely high; he's definitely not an ordinary Blood Tempering realm."

Gu Yuan looked up.

"Brother Tian, be careful."

Gu Yuan offered a reminder.

"Brother Tian, make sure you're ready."

"Come on! Stop dawdling!"

Zhang Tian waved his hand dismissively.

Gu Yuan stopped wasting words and stomped his foot hard against the ring surface.

He shot straight toward Zhang Tian.

He clenched his right fist, channeling blood energy into it, and unleashed a fierce gust of wind as he aimed directly for Zhang Tian's chest.

For this punch, he controlled his strength, using only about twenty percent of his power.

But for a high schooler in the Blood Tempering realm, this was already the limit of explosive output.

Zhang Tian's eyes narrowed slightly.

He crossed his right arm in front of his chest, preparing to take the punch head-on.

No matter how strong a Blood Tempering realm's power was, it had its limits.

He was a formal martial artist who had undergone systematic training at Martial University.

His physical toughness was far beyond what a Blood Tempering realm could compare to.

Bang!

A dull thud exploded across the ring.

The fist and forearm collided with a solid thud.

Zhang Tian's body swayed violently.

His right foot involuntarily retreated two steps.

The soles of his shoes scraped a black mark across the platform before he could barely steady himself.

He lowered his head to glance at his forearm.

A wave of intense numbness surged up his arm.

What immense strength!

What kind of monster is this kid? This completely exceeds all expectations.

Is this really the kind of power a Blood Tempering Realm cultivator can produce?

"Not bad, Gu Yuan! That punch had some real weight to it!"

Zhang Tian shook his arm, regained his footing, and forced an excited posture.

"Again!"

Gu Yuan didn't waste words.

His left fist followed immediately.

Twisting his waist, he channeled power from the ground up through his entire body and struck out once more.

Bang!

Zhang Tian retreated a few more steps.

"Damn, such heavy punches?"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Gu Yuan threw punches in rapid succession.

Every strike landed with pinpoint accuracy on Zhang Tian's crossed, blocking forearms.

Zhang Tian was forced back repeatedly, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.

But he had already talked big, vowing not to use his blood energy.

In front of so many people, how could a dignified student of Martial University go back on his word to a high schooler?

If he backed down now, where would he put his face?

If word got back to school, how could he ever show his face in his social circle again?

After a few rounds.

Zhang Tian's heels were already touching the edge of the ring.

His forearms were flushed bright red.

Dense, tiny blood spots were already seeping out beneath his skin.

"Hoo..."

Zhang Tian exhaled a breath of stale air.

He shook his aching arms and stood upright once more.

He forced himself to suppress the shock in his heart.

"Not bad, not bad! To have this kind of force in the Blood Tempering Realm, you have indeed made significant progress, but..."

He let his hands drop back to his sides.

He forcibly maintained the demeanor of an expert.

"If this is the extent of your ability, it's still not enough."

Someone off the stage shouted at the top of their lungs.

"Go, Yellow Hair! Don't let a high schooler knock you off!"

Someone else chimed in.

"Exactly! A Martial University student losing to a high schooler wouldn't sound very good!"

Zhang Tian's face twitched.

What do you mean, losing to a high schooler?

I'm feeding him moves! Do you even know what feeding moves is? You bunch of ignorant fools!

Zhang Tian took a deep breath.

He reset into his starting stance.

His gaze locked onto Gu Yuan.

"Continue. Whatever trump cards you have left, show them all."

Gu Yuan stood in the center of the ring.

His breathing remained steady.

He watched Zhang Tian, who was still stubbornly refusing to admit defeat.

This habit of Zhang Tian's—valuing face over everything else and suffering for it—truly hadn't changed one bit.

Fine, since that was the case, he would just have to turn up the pressure.

This time, Zhang Tian dared not be arrogant.

His feet moved rapidly across the platform.

He attempted to create distance and readjust his defensive rhythm.

But Gu Yuan's speed was not a whit inferior to his own.

Every step landed precisely in the gaps of Zhang Tian's retreat.

He gave his opponent absolutely no chance to catch a breath.

Zhang Tian had only just steadied his footing.

The wind of a fist arrived once more.

This time, the speed of the punch increased abruptly.

The force behind it was even heavier.

Carrying a piercing whistle through the air, the fist charged straight for Zhang Tian's chest.

Zhang Tian was forced to raise his arms to block.

It was the same spot again.

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

Three punches.

Zhang Tian's right arm went completely numb.

He gritted his teeth.

His right foot kicked back fiercely.

His entire body shifted horizontally to the left.

He wanted to dodge this damn combo.

Gu Yuan's left fist seemed to have been waiting at his landing spot in advance.

Zhang Tian's eyes widened abruptly.

In this moment, the reason in his mind completely collapsed.

Whatever face, whatever promise—it was all cast to the nine heavens.

Instinct took over everything.

He couldn't dodge it!

Zhang Tian gave up on blocking.

His right fist clenched tight.

A layer of pale red blood-energy light surged violently from his knuckles.

He met Gu Yuan's fist head-on.

Boom!

The two fists collided.

A burst of air exploded between them.

A shockwave far exceeding the previous ones rippled outward.

Zhang Tian looked down.

He stared at the blood-energy light swirling over his knuckles.

The corner of his mouth couldn't help but twitch; he had been forced to unleash his blood-energy.

It was an instinctive protective reaction when his body sensed a lethal threat.

It was over.

The arena was silent for two seconds.

Immediately after, the surrounding students began to jeer.

"Hahaha, a Martial University student was forced to use his blood-energy!"

"He said he wouldn't use it, talk about a slap in the face!"

"That high schooler is so fierce! He actually forced a formal martial artist into breaking his defense!"

The coaches below the stage who had been questioning him just moments ago now had their eyes wide open.

"This is impossible. How could a Blood Tempering Realm practitioner unleash a combo with this much force?"

"This high schooler actually managed to force a formal martial artist's blood energy out!"

Zhang Tian ignored the commotion below and slowly raised his head.

Looking at Gu Yuan, whose breathing remained steady across from him, a stormy sea surged within his mind.

He retracted his stance and took two steps back.

He shook his right arm, which was still trembling.

This was simply not the kind of strength a Blood Tempering Realm practitioner should possess.

Even a martial artist who had just broken through to the Qi Condensation Realm shouldn't have been able to push him to this extent.

He stared at Gu Yuan.

"Are you really at the Blood Tempering Realm?"