First Clash with Lu Ren

"Xu Yang is breaking through to Qi Gathering."

Everyone watched Xu Yang, immersed in the Mountain-Shaking Bear Fist, and realized what was happening. They were all shocked.

Some took the opportunity to study Xu Yang's fist technique closely, while others tried to approach him, but Qiu Wenjie stopped them.

Zhang Hong and Zhang Yong hurried over and surrounded Xu Yang with Qiu Wenjie.

"He only has a ten percent chance of success. There's no way he can make it!"

Qian Jiaxing unconsciously clenched his fists.

He had once been on good terms with Xu Yang, but after siding with Lu Ren, he had stopped paying Xu Yang any attention. He had believed Xu Yang couldn't succeed in gathering qi.

"Thinking he can keep pace with Lu Ren is pure wishful thinking."

Luo Dehu sneered inwardly. Breaking through didn't mean anything; only successfully gathering qi counted.

"Hurry and get Brother Lu Ren!"

After a while, when he saw that Xu Yang had not only avoided failure but that the aura around him was growing stronger and stronger, Luo Dehu secretly instructed Qian Jiaxing to fetch Lu Ren.

As for sabotaging the breakthrough, he didn't have the nerve. If he dared to interfere, Lin Cheng would surely kill him.

"Okay!"

Qian Jiaxing quickly left.

Xu Yang had no idea how many times he had practiced the Mountain-Shaking Bear Fist. He only slowly stopped once the true qi in his meridians stopped increasing.

[Cultivation: Entry Level of Qi Gathering]

[Mountain-Shaking Bear Fist · Minor Achievement (2/500)]

"I did it!"

The Mountain-Shaking Bear Fist's progress had increased by one point, and his cultivation was no longer listed as having none. It had become Entry Level of Qi Gathering.

Even though he had known all along that there would be no surprises in his breakthrough, a hint of joy still appeared on Xu Yang's face. From this moment on, he had truly stepped into the world of martial arts.

Two months of arduous cultivation had finally paid off today.

At this moment, he finally understood why Qi-Gathering Martial Artists held such lofty status. Now, he could kill his former self with a single move.

"Congratulations on successfully gathering qi, Senior Brother Xu!"

Qiu Wenjie was the first to rush over, even happier than Xu Yang. He couldn't believe his father's gamble had really paid off.

Even if Xu Yang didn't become a guest martial artist of the Qiu Family, he would still remember this kindness shown to him in his time of need.

Zhang Hong gave him a thumbs-up. "I knew you could do it."

As he spoke, his eyes were full of envy.

The crowd began to surge over to congratulate Xu Yang, including the brothers Zhou Yang and Zhou Yuan, who had a grudge against him.

At that moment, they only wanted to lower their profiles, because they could no longer afford to offend Xu Yang.

Zhang Yong stood at a distance without approaching, but in his heart, he had already admitted that he was inferior to Xu Yang.

"Even though Xu Yang is only three days behind, Senior Brother Xu's talent really can rival Senior Brother Lu Ren's."

"Once might be a fluke, twice might be luck, but breaking through and gathering qi is the same kind of thing. You can't call it luck anymore."

Those around them recalled what had happened before and began discussing Xu Yang's and Lu Ren's talents. Many believed Xu Yang's talent was no worse than Lu Ren's.

"If anything, Senior Brother Xu might be even more talented. Just look at how much support the Huang Family has given Lu Ren, compared with how little Senior Brother Xu has received."

Some even thought Xu Yang was more talented than Lu Ren, because Xu Yang's cultivation resources had always been inferior to Lu Ren's—not even half as much.

"You lot don't know the whole story. This month, Xu Yang spent more money at the Medicine Hall than Senior Brother Lu Ren did."

Luo Dehu's sarcastic voice rang out. "Xu Yang's success in gathering qi was probably just luck. With a thirty percent chance of success, maybe good fortune simply landed on him.

"Senior Brother Lu Ren, on the other hand, has genuine ability. He said he'd break through this month, and he did. The two of them aren't even in the same league.

"Don't forget, Xu Yang has Grade C Inferior Bone Structure, while Senior Brother Lu Ren has Grade B Superior Bone Structure."

At those words, everyone who had just thought Xu Yang was a genius felt that Luo Dehu had a point.

Whether a breakthrough succeeded or failed involved a certain amount of luck. Some people broke through successfully thanks to good fortune, then remained stuck at Entry Level of Qi Gathering, unable to make further progress.

Moreover, these people all had some connections. They knew that before gathering qi, bone structure wasn't the most important thing, but after gathering qi, its importance became apparent.

Given the same portion of Blood-Qi Powder, someone with good bone structure could absorb eighty percent of its medicinal potency, while someone with poor bone structure could absorb only fifty percent, or even less.

Luo Dehu was secretly pleased with this result.

His task was to make everyone understand, after Xu Yang's breakthrough, that even if Xu Yang succeeded in gathering qi, his potential was still far inferior to Lu Ren's.

If the Huang Family thought the two were equally talented, Lu Ren's position would be threatened.

Having chosen a side, Luo Dehu naturally knew he had to see it through.

Suddenly, he felt the light before him dim.

Looking up, he saw that Xu Yang had approached at some point.

"Xu Yang, you..." Luo Dehu's voice trembled a little.

After all, the person he had been slandering was no longer an ordinary man, but a Qi-Gathering Martial Artist.

Xu Yang didn't waste words. He struck out with a palm.

Lu Ren's success in gathering qi after two months was due to his talent, but Xu Yang's own success after two months was just dumb luck? What did all his hard work count for, then?

He had understood why Luo Dehu had been sarcastic before: it was jealousy. He could let it slide and put it down to human nature.

But now he was still being sarcastic. That was clearly deliberate troublemaking, and there was a good chance Lu Ren had put him up to it.

"Stop!"

A hand suddenly shot in from the side, trying to intercept Xu Yang's palm and shield Luo Dehu.

It was Lu Ren, who had just hurried over.

But Xu Yang seemed to have expected it. Just as their hands were about to collide, he suddenly pressed his palm downward, knocking Lu Ren's hand aside before striking Luo Dehu.

"Bang!"

With a scream, Luo Dehu flew back three or four meters.

"You..."

Lu Ren was furious. In recent days, no one had dared slight him. He had already spoken up, yet Xu Yang still dared to strike.

His wrist traced an arc. With a crisp crackle of bones and sinews, he chopped a palm toward Xu Yang.

That strike could certainly be called a sneak attack. Xu Yang's hand had only just knocked Luo Dehu flying, so it should have been nearly impossible for him to block Lu Ren's blow.

The sharp gust of wind swept toward him, stirring Xu Yang's hair. Yet, just like before, he seemed to have expected it. His whole body erupted with crackling sounds, and as his true qi surged, he suddenly struck out with his other hand.

The next moment, their palms collided.

"Boom!"

Their energies burst apart. Xu Yang felt as though he had struck a solid boulder, and his palm went numb.

He couldn't help but shudder. He felt his true qi had been knocked back into him, and he stumbled backward.

Lu Ren's reaction was much the same.

He felt that Xu Yang's palm force was only slightly weaker than his own. His palm had gone numb too, and the rebounding force sent him stumbling back.

"He just broke through, yet his palm force is this powerful. The depth of his true qi is no less than mine."

Lu Ren was shaken. He realized that all along, he had still underestimated Xu Yang.

Xu Yang's martial foundation was every bit as solid as his own, perhaps even more so.

When Lu Ren had just broken through, he couldn't possibly have unleashed such powerful palm force. If he hadn't broken through a few days before Xu Yang, he wouldn't have been able to knock Xu Yang back.

He had no idea that Xu Yang's method of breaking through had been completely different from his own.

"What are you two doing?"

Just as they both raised their palms, ready to test each other again, Sun Tao walked over from the Inner Courtyard.

Xu Yang lowered his raised hand. "Keep your dog in line. Don't let him bark."

Lu Ren said nothing. He turned and helped Qian Jiaxing lift Luo Dehu to his feet, then headed back to the Inner Courtyard.