Practice Partner

In just a few brief exchanges, the Soul Fighting Platform had transformed into a battle between six spiders and Li Ruolan.

Li Ruolan was ultimately holding back; otherwise, she could have slain the Dream-Weaving Spiders with a single strike, never giving Duan Fan the chance to unleash his soul skills in succession.

But this was, after all, a practical combat class, not a real-life engagement.

Li Ruolan only needed to apply pressure to Duan Fan.

Compared to his first fight with Li Ruolan, Duan Fan now controlled the six spiders with much greater fluidity, and even without Li Ruolan using her soul skills, he was able to exert a certain amount of pressure on her.

Within Duan Fan's field of vision, he could occasionally predict Li Ruolan's movements, allowing him to launch more effective attacks.

Furthermore, the entire scene of Li Ruolan's combat was laid bare in Duan Fan's mind, including the details of the fight, her positioning, and more.

Duan Fan could easily pinpoint the weaknesses in Li Ruolan's combat style, manipulating the Dream-Weaving Spiders to pile even more pressure upon her.

All of this was thanks to the Eye of Insight.

Duan Fan had long since grown accustomed to using the Eye of Insight in battle to maximize his combat advantages.

The reason he had been able to handle Wen Xiyue with such ease was also due to the Eye of Insight.

Although Wen Xiyue's Black-Striped Ghost Leopard Martial Soul was fast, once her movements were predicted and her offensive details magnified, she could only be led by the nose by Duan Fan.

The battle on the Soul Fighting Platform quickly reached a fever pitch.

Duan Fan's control over the six spiders became increasingly fierce, finally forcing Li Ruolan to utilize her soul skills.

Once Li Ruolan activated her soul skills, she immediately turned the tide of the battle.

She cut down two spiders with lightning speed, carving out a path before charging straight toward Duan Fan.

Duan Fan naturally wouldn't stand there like a fool waiting for Li Ruolan to reach him; the second she charged, he shifted his position, simultaneously maneuvering the remaining spiders to intercept her.

In their previous bouts, it wasn't as if Li Ruolan hadn't closed in on Duan Fan before, but he had always managed to turn danger into safety.

Do not be fooled by the fact that Duan Fan was busy controlling six spiders and seemed to have no time for anything else.

In reality, he maintained excellent control over his own positioning, adjusting his location as the battle shifted to ensure he always kept a safe distance from Li Ruolan.

This was why one could learn so much from practical combat classes.

Li Ruolan taught Duan Fan many combat nuances; while applying pressure bit by bit, she was also helping him better discover his own strengths and flaws so he could leverage the former and mitigate the latter.

Before she used her soul skills, Li Ruolan was simply letting Duan Fan enjoy the fight, allowing him to unleash his combat capabilities to the fullest.

Now that she had activated her soul skills, however, she was forcing Duan Fan to seek out opportunities amidst hardship and to gain a deeper understanding of his own shortcomings.

The Dream-Weaving Spiders Duan Fan drew were powerful, but Duan Fan himself possessed little in the way of combat ability.

For Duan Fan to fight Li Ruolan—who held an Iron Sword—while armed only with a writing brush was practically suicide.

Facing Li Ruolan's relentless advance, Duan Fan felt immense pressure.

It was precisely under this pressure that his combat experience continued to accumulate.

He used the Eye of Insight more and more frequently, and his mastery of it grew increasingly refined.

Now, the moment he saw the combat unfolding, he could identify his opponent's weaknesses and his own optimal choices much faster.

At the same time, it made Duan Fan realize more profoundly that an absolute gap in strength could not be bridged by any amount of technique.

This was one of the driving forces that motivated him to cultivate with such desperation.

Before long, all six of Duan Fan's spiders had fallen beneath Li Ruolan's Iron Sword.

The moment the last spider dissolved into silver specks of light, Duan Fan's defeat was sealed.

However, Duan Fan did not give up just because his spiders had been wiped out.

He fought to the very last second with his Fantasy Pen, even attempting to use it as a weapon to challenge Li Ruolan's swordsmanship.

Of course, the outcome was without suspense: Duan Fan was defeated.

Though he lost, having fought Li Ruolan for such a long time and displaying such a brilliant combat performance, Duan Fan could be considered to have lost with honor.

After the battle ended, the students below the Soul Fighting Platform applauded vigorously, which served as a testament to Duan Fan's strength.

Li Ruolan offered no critique of Duan Fan's recent performance, instead saying, "You've improved a bit more since last time. I have nothing left to say; reflect on it yourself. Go directly to the Mimicry Cultivation Area to train."

"Understood, Teacher!"

Duan Fan replied quickly, then hurried off the Soul Fighting Platform, intending to head outside the arena.

It was then that Li Ruolan suddenly called out to him.

"Oh, there's one more thing I forgot to mention. Duan Fan, wait a moment."

Duan Fan turned back, looking somewhat puzzled.

Li Ruolan wasn't speaking to Duan Fan alone; her gaze swept over all the students as she smiled and said:

"I have some good news for you all. Tomorrow, during the practical combat class, three seniors from the Advanced Class will come to provide guidance. You'd better pull yourselves together and try to get a little stronger today so you won't be timid when you face them tomorrow."

With that, Li Ruolan signaled to Duan Fan that he could leave.

Duan Fan left quite decisively, not lingering in the slightest because of Li Ruolan's announcement.

As for the other students in Junior Class Ten, they all wore expressions of anticipation after hearing the news.

"The seniors from the three Advanced Classes are all at least three-ringed; I wonder how strong they really are."

"It's also pretty good that we can switch to a different combat practice object tomorrow."

Duan Fan was actually feeling a bit expectant, but compared to tomorrow, he was even more looking forward to his training in the Mimicry Cultivation Area later.

"I'll strive to reach the first level of the Diamond Skill today!"

After leaving the Soul Fighting Arena, Duan Fan quickly arrived at the cultivation area and entered the wooden training hut specifically built for him.

Duan Fan didn't have much interest in the calligraphy and paintings inside the hut, nor did he feel that this kind of "immersive environment" could bring about a better state of cultivation.

At least for him, that was the case.

In his view, the reason cultivation could speed up was mainly due to the special stones embedded in the hut and the ground.

Duan Fan sat cross-legged and quickly entered a state of cultivation.

Compared to his previous meditative cultivation, Duan Fan had now incorporated the Diamond Skill for body tempering.

He practiced his cultivation while simultaneously tempering his body.

The biggest difference between these two methods of cultivation was the physical sensation.

Meditative cultivation focused on the word "stillness."

Meanwhile, Diamond Skill body tempering was all about the word "pain."

If this pain weren't somewhat bearable, and if Duan Fan's willpower hadn't always been so strong, such training would have been impossible to sustain.

Duan Fan practiced for a full day.

By the time he finished his session, he had truly reached the first level of the Diamond Skill.