Crossing Realms in Battle

The shattered bluestone fragments still lay scattered across the ground, left uncleared for a long while.

That punch had deeply imprinted itself upon everyone present. The gazes of many participating disciples toward Shen Yuan had changed from disdain to wariness.

Before long, the drawing ceremony for the preliminary finals officially began.

The fifty advancing disciples stepped forward in turn to draw wooden lots. They would face each other in pairs; the losers would be eliminated, while the winners continued onward until the top ten were decided and entered the final round.

Wang Dong had poor luck. In the first round of the preliminary finals, he drew an opponent at the Body Tempering Seventh Layer. After dozens of hard-fought exchanges, he ultimately lost by a narrow margin and left the competition regretfully.

After coming down from the stage, the fat man wore a dejected expression, yet he still hurried to Shen Yuan's side at once.

"Ah, this is as far as I go. But you have to fight all the way to the end!" Wang Dong wiped his face, then stuffed over several low-grade pills he had secretly saved that could replenish qi and blood. "Take them. Fighting on the stage takes a lot out of you. They might save your life at a critical moment."

Shen Yuan accepted the pills, warmth rising in his heart. At the bottom rung of this sect, where everyone sought advantage and avoided harm, Wang Dong's friendship was especially precious.

It was Shen Yuan's turn to draw.

He reached into the wooden box and took out a wooden lot with the character "Seven" engraved upon it.

"Seventh arena. Your opponent is Lin Hao," the registration disciple announced loudly.

Nearby disciples murmured among themselves. "Lin Hao? Body Tempering Eighth Layer! He's one of the stronger outer sect reserve disciples. His Mountain-Splitting Force is incredibly fierce, and he has reached the preliminary finals for two consecutive years already."

Body Tempering Eighth Layer!

Two minor realms above Shen Yuan.

Wang Dong's expression instantly turned grave. "Oh no. You ran into such a tough opponent in the first round of the preliminary finals. Lin Hao's Mountain-Splitting Force relies on immense brute strength. Meeting him head-on would put you at a huge disadvantage."

Shen Yuan's expression did not change.

Body Tempering Sixth Layer against the Body Tempering Eighth Layer—the realm gap was plain to see. Yet he possessed the fully deduced True Subduing Tiger Fist, along with the experience of countless simulated higher-realm battles in the Martial Arts Simulation Space.

"Seventh arena. Shen Yuan and Lin Hao, come onto the stage."

As the elder's voice fell, Shen Yuan sprang onto the seventh arena.

Opposite him, a burly young man strode onto the stage. His muscles were knotted all over his body, and his qi and blood were abundant. It was Lin Hao.

Lin Hao looked Shen Yuan up and down. There was some caution in his eyes, but also a trace of pride.

"I saw your strength during the preliminary test. It was indeed impressive. Unfortunately, the gap in our realms is right there. I advise you to concede now, so you do not suffer severe injuries." Lin Hao spoke in a deep, muffled voice.

"We'll know who wins only after we fight," Shen Yuan replied calmly.

"Then excuse me!"

Lin Hao said no more. He stomped hard on the arena, causing the bluestone floor to tremble slightly. Mountain-Splitting Force surged through him, and his fists glowed red with qi and blood like two massive warhammers as they smashed straight toward Shen Yuan.

Mountain-Splitting Force pursued overwhelming power. Every punch was heavy and forceful; broken tendons and shattered bones were common if one was struck.

Rumble! The first punch howled toward him.

Shen Yuan did not dare use the True Subduing Tiger Fist to meet it head-on with full force. With the gap in their realms, his body would suffer in a direct clash. His footwork unfolded as he nimbly dodged aside.

The fist slammed into the arena floor, sending stone shards flying.

"Dodging? How long can you keep dodging?!" Lin Hao roared, unleashing a barrage of punches. His fist wind enveloped a wide area, leaving Shen Yuan no room to maneuver.

Loud bangs rang out endlessly across the arena.

Shen Yuan continued to evade while observing the flaws in the circulation of his opponent's techniques. In the Martial Arts Simulation Space, he had simulated battles against Mountain-Splitting Force before. He knew very well that its strength lay in its power, while its weakness was slow turns and transitions between moves, along with tremendous stamina consumption in prolonged battles.

"What skill is there in nothing but dodging?!" Lin Hao grew increasingly impatient. The qi and blood of the Body Tempering Eighth Layer poured forth madly, yet he could not even touch the corner of Shen Yuan's clothes.

Countless disciples watched below the stage. Zhao Kun sat in the viewing seats, staring darkly at the arena. He hoped Lin Hao would cripple Shen Yuan outright.

"Shen Yuan, all you can do is dodge. Is that all you've got?" Lin Hao shouted. He suddenly feinted with a heavy punch, then stomped the ground and twisted sideways, driving an elbow toward Shen Yuan's waist and ribs.

This was a hidden variation of Mountain-Splitting Force, one few people could predict.

Quite a few disciples below the stage cried out in alarm.

Shen Yuan's pupils contracted. He had seen this move during simulated battles in the Martial Arts Simulation Space!

At the critical moment, Shen Yuan abruptly lowered his body and narrowly avoided the elbow strike. At the same time, the True Subduing Tiger Fist erupted at full power!

A glow of qi and blood even stronger than before surged over his fist, no longer possessing the restrained force of the ordinary Subduing Tiger Fist.

True Subduing Tiger Fist!

His punch struck precisely at Lin Hao's elbow joint!

Bang!!

Pain shot through Lin Hao's massive body. His arm went numb, and a huge opening appeared in his moves.

Seizing the chance, Shen Yuan unleashed an unbroken stream of punches, striking the same spot again and again.

Lin Hao roared and endured the pain as he activated all his qi and blood, trying to force a counterattack. Yet the force of the True Subduing Tiger Fist layered upon itself, continuously seeping into his meridians.

Though his realm was higher, his techniques were completely restrained.

After dozens of exchanges, Lin Hao's stamina had been depleted far more than Shen Yuan's. Mountain-Splitting Force consumed tremendous energy, and after failing to win for so long, his mindset became increasingly impatient, revealing more and more flaws.

"It's over."

Seizing the instant when his opponent's previous force had been exhausted, Shen Yuan poured out all the qi and blood in his body without reservation and unleashed the strongest strike of the True Subduing Tiger Fist.

Bang!

The heavy punch slammed into Lin Hao's chest.

"Urgh!!"

Lin Hao groaned, his massive body staggering backward. His feet slipped repeatedly, and when he reached the edge of the arena, he could no longer keep his balance. He tumbled off the stage!

The entire crowd erupted!

A Body Tempering Sixth Layer cultivator had defeated a Body Tempering Eighth Layer cultivator across two realms!

"He won! Shen Yuan won!" Wang Dong jumped up in excitement.

On the viewing platform, several outer sect elders exchanged glances, their eyes filled with shock.

"Winning across two realms... this boy's combat insight is truly rare!"

Zhao Kun sat in his seat, his fingers clenched until they turned white. He had never imagined that Shen Yuan could even defeat Lin Hao of the Body Tempering Eighth Layer.

The preliminary finals continued round after round.

Shen Yuan fought his way through every opponent. When facing Body Tempering Seventh Layer opponents, his True Subduing Tiger Fist swept them aside in swift battles; when facing equally formidable Body Tempering Eighth Layer opponents, he relied on the combat experience gained through deduction to maneuver around them, seek out flaws, and seize opportunities for a decisive strike.

With every victory, Martial Dao Points flowed steadily into his account, while the Heavenly Stele mission's double rewards remained in effect.

After fighting his way onward, Shen Yuan gained several more fresh wounds, and his qi and blood had been heavily depleted. Yet his combat experience was also soaring at a rapid pace.

Before he realized it, the preliminary finals were nearing their end.

The list of those advancing to the final round was announced.

Shen Yuan was prominently among them.

And the greatest opponent in the final round was Zhao Kun, the number one disciple of the outer sect and a Body Tempering Ninth Stage cultivator.

The crowd below the stage erupted. Everyone realized that in the upcoming finals, Shen Yuan would face Zhao Kun.

Liu Er stood in a corner of the crowd, cold sweat beading on his forehead. He had made a wager with Shen Yuan: if Shen Yuan passed the assessment, he would kneel in public and apologize. Now that Shen Yuan had reached the final round, he was only a few final steps away from passing the assessment.

Malicious thoughts arose in Liu Er's heart. He quietly retreated, intending to secretly contact some people and use any means necessary to prevent Shen Yuan from stepping onto the final arena before the finals began.