Fierce Battle

Fierce Battle

Ye Yun retreated more than ten steps before stopping, feeling the blood and qi in his chest churn from the shock.

Though they had exchanged only a few moves, Ye Yun had already felt the wealth of combat experience possessed by his senior brother Zhou Yuan.

As expected of an expert on the Hundred Strong Ranking—he truly could not be underestimated.

On the other side, Zhou Yuan also put away his contempt for Ye Yun. Though he had sounded quite polite earlier, he had still looked down somewhat on this junior brother in his heart.

The moment Zhou Yuan steadied himself, he charged at Ye Yun with astonishing speed. His palms turned even darker, a hallmark of his renowned martial art, the Primordial Hand.

The Primordial Hand was relatively easy to learn among mid-tier martial arts, but reaching a profound level was exceedingly difficult. One had to strike rocks with one's palms every day. Only when one could split steel barehanded, with the steel breaking while the hand felt no pain, could it be considered mastery.

Judging by Zhou Yuan's Primordial Hand, he was not far from mastery.

Seeing Zhou Yuan's attack about to arrive, Ye Yun did not choose to receive it head-on. Instead, he evaded with his movement technique, then used the Nine Yin Cold Claw to strike at Zhou Yuan's blind spot.

Zhou Yuan did not panic. Whenever Ye Yun was about to land a blow, he always blocked or evaded it in time.

Although every attack was blocked, each of Ye Yun's strikes carried Ice Force. As the icy force continued to invade, even though Zhou Yuan had not been injured, his true qi was being rapidly depleted.

Ye Yun and Zhou Yuan constantly countered each other's moves, fighting neck and neck. One exchange, two exchanges... Before long, they had traded over a hundred rounds, yet neither could do anything to the other.

The high-intensity battle was draining Ye Yun's stamina rather quickly. However, amid their continuous exchanges and the invasion of Ice Force, Zhou Yuan's true qi was likely being depleted even faster.

Zhou Yuan was equally helpless. During his exchanges with Ye Yun, the other's attacks always carried a thread of bone-piercing icy force that continually invaded his body. Though his true qi blocked it, precisely because of that, his true qi consumption had increased sharply.

The Fifth Elder watched the two fighting below the stage, a faint curve appearing at his lips. The sect has improved greatly over these years. Even the last few on the Hundred Strong Ranking possess such strength, far surpassing my generation back then!

The battle on the stage continued as Ye Yun and Zhou Yuan became entangled once more. Perhaps Zhou Yuan had realized that dragging things out would be disadvantageous to him.

Thus, he immediately launched a fierce assault. Seeing Zhou Yuan's change, Ye Yun could only push his movement technique to its limit to avoid being struck.

Zhou Yuan discovered that Ye Yun's speed could actually rise once again, allowing him to dodge attack after attack. Gritting his teeth, he realized it was time to use that move.

"Qi Burst Formula!"

Ye Yun saw Zhou Yuan's aura surge by a great deal in an instant and immediately sensed trouble. This Qi Burst Formula was likely some kind of explosive secret art.

After using the secret art, Zhou Yuan attacked Ye Yun again. This time, his speed was far greater than before, and the force of his attacks had increased drastically. Ye Yun could only struggle to hold on beneath his assault.

Under this passive defense, flaws gradually appeared in Ye Yun's movements. Seizing the opportunity, Zhou Yuan gathered all his true qi into his hand and attacked Ye Yun.

Feeling the formidable power contained in Zhou Yuan's hand, Ye Yun knew he could not dodge it. The Selfless Realm opened in an instant, and in that very moment, he sank completely into that wondrous state.

Facing Zhou Yuan's imminent attack, Ye Yun's battle instincts instantly responded. The characteristics of Treading Snow Without Trace immediately unfolded. His figure flickered, leaving behind a lifelike afterimage, while he himself flashed behind Zhou Yuan.

When Zhou Yuan saw that he had successfully struck Ye Yun, a flash of delight appeared on his face. But in the next instant, his expression changed dramatically, because the Ye Yun he had attacked was slowly fading away.

A gust of fist wind appeared behind him. Before he could dodge, Ye Yun's full-force punch slammed into his back. Zhou Yuan spat out a mouthful of blood, then collapsed to the ground as if all strength had left him.

After landing the attack, Ye Yun also withdrew from the Selfless Realm. He forced himself not to collapse and breathed rapidly and weakly.

If not for the Selfless Realm just now, even if he had thought of that method, he could not have executed it in an instant. The deeper Ye Yun's comprehension of the Selfless Realm became, the more extraordinary he found this martial art.

After a while, Zhou Yuan finally recovered enough to rise from the ground, while Ye Yun's breathing gradually steadied as well.

After getting up, Zhou Yuan turned and looked at Ye Yun with a complicated expression. "Junior Brother, what fine methods. Senior Brother is inferior. The ninety-fifth position on the Hundred Strong Ranking now belongs to you."

"Senior Brother flatters me. I only won by luck. Being able to spar with Senior Brother today has benefited me greatly," Ye Yun said to Zhou Yuan.

At this moment, the Fifth Elder below the stage said, "You two, stop forcing yourselves to hold on. Ye Yun has won this challenge and successfully obtained the ninety-fifth position on the Hundred Strong Ranking, while Zhou Yuan drops to ninety-sixth. As for the benefits of the Hundred Strong Ranking, ask Zhou Yuan yourself."

After announcing the result, the Fifth Elder turned and walked toward the main hall.

Seeing the Fifth Elder leave, Ye Yun and Zhou Yuan exchanged a glance. Then each of them sat cross-legged and circulated their cultivation techniques to restore their true qi.

Ye Yun spent about an hour before barely restoring the true qi in his body. When he opened his eyes, he found that Zhou Yuan had already recovered and was waiting in the distance for him to awaken.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting, Senior Brother," Ye Yun said apologetically to Zhou Yuan.

"It is fine. I only just finished recovering my true qi myself, so I have not waited long. As for the benefits of the Hundred Strong Ranking, Junior Brother Ye, let us talk as we walk," Zhou Yuan said to Ye Yun.

Hearing Zhou Yuan's words, Ye Yun nodded and headed down the mountain with him.

"Speaking of the benefits of the Hundred Strong Ranking, there are several tiers. People like us, ranked seventieth and below, can receive two Spirit Stones every month. From seventieth onward, every advancement of ten places grants one additional Spirit Stone per month. The top ten receive extra rewards in addition to Spirit Stones, though I do not know what those are. Besides that, disciples on the Hundred Strong Ranking may participate directly in the Great Dynasty Tournament without going through selection. Junior Brother Ye, do you understand?"

After hearing Zhou Yuan's explanation, Ye Yun finally understood how generous the benefits of reaching the Hundred Strong Ranking were.

Spirit Stones were minerals excavated from veins condensed from the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. They were filled with that spiritual energy and could assist cultivation, greatly increasing the cultivation speed of Qi Refining Realm martial artists. They were also the most widely circulated currency in the entire cultivation world. Based on the impurities within them, they were divided into four grades: high, middle, low, and supreme.

On the market, a single Low-Grade Spirit Stone could sell for ten thousand taels of gold, and demand still far exceeded supply.

"Thank you, Senior Brother Zhou Yuan, for clearing up my doubts. I have troubled you greatly; I truly feel embarrassed," Ye Yun thanked Zhou Yuan.

"Since that is so, I shall take my leave first. As for the Spirit Stones, Junior Brother can simply collect them at the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall. If there is another chance, we can spar again," Zhou Yuan said in farewell.

"If Senior Brother has matters to attend to, then go ahead. Given the chance, I would also like to fight Senior Brother again." Hearing Ye Yun's words, Zhou Yuan nodded in acknowledgment, then turned and left.

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(End of Chapter)