Sparring Match

"This thing is not simple!" The village chief took one look and was startled, his expression turning grave.

"Village Chief, what kind of monkey is this?" a child asked.

"This is no ordinary ape." As Shi Yunfeng spoke, he lifted its two small legs to examine them closely. The others followed his gaze, astonished to discover that its feet were scarlet, as red as burning embers.

If one weren't paying attention, the golden fur on its legs would hide them; one had to lift the legs to see that the feet were fire-red and incredibly vivid.

"Whoosh..." With a surge of strong wind, three fledglings descended onto the grassy ground by the lake.

It was Little Shi Hao returning from a walk with the three Green-Scaled Eagle chicks.

"Grandpa Chief, what are you all looking at?" Shi Hao trotted over and saw the crowd surrounding a golden Furry Ball.

This golden sphere looked harmless, like a little glutton, devoid of any dangerous aura.

"In ancient legends, there is a peerless fierce beast called the Zhu Yan. It resembles an ape, with scarlet feet and a white head. Its mere appearance signals that a region is about to fall into chaos. However, this should be a descendant; its bloodline may no longer be pure. Its head is not white, and for some reason, it has suffered heavy injuries," Shi Yunfeng said.

It's nothing much, it just went to snatch a treasure and fight. It won, but not entirely—the Mountain Treasure it got its hands on was lost, leaving it with nothing but wounds, forcing it to undergo metamorphosis to save its life, Bai Yixin thought to himself, smiling as he realized he was the one who had picked up the scraps.

"Brother Little White, why are you smiling so happily?" Shi Hao asked as he reached out to pat the monkey's head, noticing Bai Yixin standing to the side with a radiant grin.

"Little One, it's nothing. I just thought of something happy." Bai Yixin patted Shi Hao, who was a head shorter than him.

"What happy thing? Can you tell me?" Shi Hao asked.

"Uh, my strength has broken through thirty thousand catties," Bai Yixin said after a moment of hesitation.

It was hard to explain the Mountain Treasure, or how he knew the bone block he picked up was the treasure, so he simply changed the subject to his breakthrough in strength.

"Brother Little White, you're so fast! Hehe, but Brother Little White, I could already lift a thirty-thousand-catty boulder the day before yesterday!" Shi Hao said happily.

"Well done, Little One. Do you want to spar with me? Let's see how much you've improved during this time," Bai Yixin said with a smile.

"Okay, but Brother Little White, you can't fly into the sky this time. You cheated like that last time," Shi Hao said, rolling his eyes.

"Hmph, today is not like the past! Last time I was going easy on you and didn't use spirit power. Besides, I didn't expect you to be so cunning—you even faked a faint!"

Bai Yixin recalled their last spar. He didn't know who the kid had learned from, but he had secretly learned to fake a faint and then launched a sneak attack while Bai Yixin went to check on him. How shameless!

"Hehe, that's all thanks to your teaching, Brother Little White!" Shi Hao said sheepishly.

"..."

"Emm, it's just that I tricked you a few more times, but last time you actually sneak-attacked and kicked my kidneys!" Bai Yixin was speechless; he had never taught Shi Hao to kick his kidneys.

"It's one thing to do that to outsiders, but I'm your brother! You actually kicked my kidneys—kidneys are a man's treasure. When sparring with your own people, you can't aim for that spot, you know!"

"I know, Brother Little White, I'm sorry," Shi Hao said, blinking his pitiful eyes.

"Alright, if I were truly angry, I would have hung you up and spanked you long ago."

Bai Yixin helplessly patted Shi Hao's head. Do you really think my Foundation Establishment cultivation is just for show?

Amidst their banter, Bai Yixin and Shi Hao arrived at the training ground outside the village.

Clearing away the boulders piled on the open ground, the two stood a hundred meters apart, ready to begin today's spar.

The spar did not involve precious techniques, but was a pure contest of rune-enhanced physical strength.

Little One's movements were simple and extremely fast. He grabbed a heavy boulder nearby and swung it with force; the wind whistled as the boulder soared through the air toward Bai Yixin.

At the same time, he leaped over twenty meters, diving forward like a dragon. Though small, his aura was shockingly powerful.

Little One took the initiative to attack Bai Yixin!

"Great momentum, just in time!" Bai Yixin's fighting spirit soared. A battle that cannot take my life, whether I succeed or fail, will only make me stronger!

With a boom, the giant rock flew over, fierce and heavy. Such an impact looked truly alarming.

Watching the incoming boulder, Bai Yixin moved his body, as powerful and agile as a Demon Ape. With a shift of his feet, he moved a dozen meters to the side. Then, runes flickered and rapidly lit up between his arms, causing his entire body to become hazy and covered in a layer of precious radiance.

Once Bai Yixin's arms were fully illuminated, he felt fearless and charged toward Little One to engage him.

With runes flickering, he possessed astonishing speed and divine power.

Bai Yixin leaped from the ground, his left fist swinging like a heavy hammer from right to left to smash the incoming boulder, while his right fist remained hidden behind him, ready to strike.

With a loud bang, the boulder was smashed into pieces, and a cloud of dust exploded outward.

Little One's divine light flickered as he pounced through the air. Seeing Bai Yixin's response, he wasn't the least bit surprised. The moment he was about to charge into the dust, rays of light bloomed within his body, and Divine Radiance erupted, tempering the essence of heaven and earth, causing his palms and fingers to turn pearly white.

"Boom!"

Inside the dust, their fists and palms collided, producing a loud sound as if a mountain peak had collapsed!

The fist and palm touched and instantly separated. Little One's body sank sharply, and his right leg whipped up from behind like a scorpion's tail, swift and fierce.

Bai Yixin stepped forward with his right foot, his left arm suddenly lifting to block the kick. Then, using the strength of his waist, he spun sharply to the right, his left foot lashing out like lightning.

Little One's reaction was not slow; he clasped his hands together to block the upward kick aimed at his chin. Using that force, he performed a backflip in mid-air and landed more than ten meters away.

However, Bai Yixin wouldn't let Little One neutralize his offensive so easily.

Little One's mid-air maneuver was exactly the opportunity Bai Yixin needed!

"Boom!"

Bai Yixin slammed his right palm into the ground, leaving a clear handprint as he used the force to transition his upward kick into a diagonal aerial strike, launching himself straight toward Little One, who was suspended in mid-air with no leverage.

"Bang!"

Little One's expression turned grave. Caught in the moment where his old strength had faded and his new strength had yet to arise, he had no choice but to throw a palm strike to meet the kick flying toward his chest.

It was as if an elephant had collided with a mountain cliff; the boom echoed like a thunderclap.

Little One felt a sharp, piercing pain in his palm, and the runes upon his hand flickered in and out of existence.

Although he had blocked the move, his right hand had suffered heavy damage, rendering it unable to exert full force for at least a short while.

Even so, Little One's situation did not improve; instead of landing, he was sent flying another dozen meters higher into the air.

"Hehe, since you've gone up, don't even think about coming back down!"

Taking advantage of the fact that Little One had no leverage in the air, Bai Yixin struck repeatedly, batting Little One upward like a shuttlecock. As long as he didn't let him touch the ground, Little One could never be his match.

After all, Little One couldn't fly.

"Waaaaah!"

"Brother Little White, I surrender!"

Faced with a Bai Yixin who refused to give him a single opening, Little One struggled up and down in mid-air for over ten minutes before finally having no choice but to concede.