Prodigy

Before his words had even faded, Liu Feng's aura erupted with a thunderous boom!

The pressure of Foundation Establishment Level 4 spread like a tide. Several Outer Sect disciples standing nearby were shaken back again and again, their faces turning pale.

"Foundation Establishment Level 4! Senior Brother Liu has broken through again!"

"What terrifying pressure! This is what a true Inner Sect elite looks like!"

"Qin Yuan is finished..."

On the elevated platform, Liu Zhenshan of Third Peak gave a slight nod, satisfaction gleaming in his eyes. Elder Li of Seventh Peak narrowed his eyes as he studied Qin Yuan thoughtfully.

Lin Qing'er and Liu Han sat in the Seventh Peak disciples' area, both clenching their fists nervously.

"Brother Qin Yuan..." Lin Qing'er's face had gone pale.

Liu Han remained silent. She could not see through Qin Yuan's cultivation either, but her instincts told her that today's Qin Yuan was utterly different from the one three days ago.

In the arena, Qin Yuan faced Liu Feng's pressure without even the corner of his robes stirring.

He slowly raised his right hand, spread his five fingers, and then—

Gently clenched them.

Boom—!!!

A pressure far more vast, solid, and terrifying than Liu Feng's erupted from Qin Yuan like a volcano, shooting into the sky!

The aura of the Foundation Establishment Realm was unleashed without restraint, climbing steadily higher!

Foundation Establishment Level 1!

Foundation Establishment Level 2!

Foundation Establishment Level 3!

Foundation Establishment Level 4!

Foundation Establishment Level 5!

Foundation Establishment Level 6!!!

When his aura stabilized firmly at the peak of Foundation Establishment Level 6, the entire venue fell deathly silent.

The cruel grin on Liu Feng's face froze completely, turning into incredulous horror.

On the elevated platform, Wang Zhenshan abruptly rose to his feet, even knocking over his chair.

Elder Li of Seventh Peak's pupils contracted sharply.

Every elder and disciple stared wide-eyed, mouths hanging open like a flock of ducks with their necks clutched tight.

Lin Qing'er covered her mouth, her almond eyes filled with shock. With a crack, Liu Han crushed the teacup in her hand. Tea splashed all over her, but she did not notice in the slightest.

Foundation Establishment Level 6?

Three days ago, Qin Yuan had only been at Level 7 Qi Condensation!

Three days, from Level 7 Qi Condensation to Foundation Establishment Level 6?!

This had already surpassed everyone's understanding and overturned the most basic common sense of the cultivation world!

"N-No way!" Liu Feng's voice trembled, as though he were forcing the words through clenched teeth. "You must have used a forbidden art that burns away your lifespan! Right! It has to be that! A flimsy realm like yours can be broken with one move!"

He was trying to convince himself, and also trying to bolster his own courage.

Qin Yuan looked at him and suddenly smiled.

The smile was faint, yet it sent a chill through Liu Feng's entire body.

"There's nothing impossible about it," Qin Yuan said. "Just like how there's nothing impossible about me beating you to death right now."

The instant he finished speaking, he moved.

There was no gathering of power, no flashy technique—just one simple step forward.

Yet as that step fell, the entire ground of the martial arena trembled slightly! Qin Yuan's figure blurred in an instant, and when it became clear again, he was already standing before Liu Feng!

Fast! So fast that Liu Feng had no time to react at all!

All he saw was a fist rapidly enlarging before his eyes, the spiritual power wrapped around it so dense that it made him suffocate!

"No—!!!" Liu Feng roared wildly. He exhausted all his spiritual power, stacking his palms before his chest to block the blow, while simultaneously activating every ounce of power in a defensive artifact—a small bronze shield that instantly expanded before him.

Then the fist arrived.

Clang—!!!

A deafening explosion rang out!

The small bronze shield exploded into fragments that filled the sky as though it were made of paper! Every bone in Liu Feng's palms shattered inch by inch. He was sent flying like a torn sack, vomiting a great mouthful of blood mixed with chunks of organs before he even hit the ground!

Bang—!!!

He crashed heavily onto the bluestone floor thirty zhang away, blasting a deep crater into it as dust billowed everywhere.

The entire venue was silent as a grave.

Everyone stared blankly at the crater, then looked back at Qin Yuan, who stood in the arena with his fist withdrawn.

One move?

No, that could not even be called a move. It had merely been a casual punch.

Liu Feng, at Foundation Establishment Level 4 and one of Third Peak's finest among the younger generation, had been sent flying by a single punch, his fate unknown?

The dead silence lasted for three breaths before the crowd erupted!

"He... he really did it with one punch..."

"Foundation Establishment Level 6! Foundation Establishment Level 6 in three days! Is he a monster?!"

"Is Senior Brother Liu dead?!"

On the elevated platform, Wang Zhenshan's eyes split with fury as he prepared to rush down, only to be firmly held back by several elders beside him.

"Elder Wang! The rules of the competition say life and death are left to fate! If you interfere, the Sect Master..."

Wang Zhenshan trembled all over as he glared at Qin Yuan, the killing intent in his eyes nearly solidifying into substance.

As the dust dispersed, Liu Feng stirred with difficulty in the crater. He was not dead, but his breastbone had been completely shattered, his organs displaced, and more than half his meridians severed. Even if he survived, seventy percent of his cultivation would be ruined.

Qin Yuan had held back in that punch.

Not out of mercy, but because he wanted Liu Feng to lie there like a dead dog before everyone's eyes, so that all could see the fate of those who offended him.

The steward came back to his senses and announced in a dry voice, "The challenge is over... Qin Yuan wins."

No one cheered. There was only suppressed shock and fear.

Qin Yuan turned, preparing to leave the stage.

"Wait."

Elder Li of Seventh Peak suddenly spoke. He rose to his feet, forcing a kindly smile onto his face. "Qin Yuan, your talent is exceptional and your combat strength astonishing. Seventh Peak is willing to make an exception and accept you as a Direct Disciple. Resources will be prioritized for you, and you may choose any cultivation technique you wish. Are you willing?"

The entire venue burst into an uproar!

A Direct Disciple! That was the core of the Inner Sect, personally taught by a peak master or elder, with an honored status and resources far surpassing those of ordinary Inner Sect disciples!

Everyone looked toward Qin Yuan, waiting for his answer.

Qin Yuan raised his head, looked at Elder Li, then swept his gaze over Wang Zhenshan's livid face on Third Peak's platform. He suddenly smiled.

"Thank you for your favor, Elder Li," he said. "But I already have a preference."

"Oh? Which peak?" Elder Li pressed.

Qin Yuan spoke each word clearly. "Fifth Peak."

The entire venue fell silent once more.

Fifth Peak?

Among the Nine Peaks of the Xuan Yuan Sect, Fifth Peak was the weakest and poorest in resources. It had not produced any notable talent in nearly a hundred years. A monstrous genius like Qin Yuan actually wanted to join Fifth Peak?!

In Fifth Peak's area, several elders and disciples who had been drowsing moments ago were all stunned. Then wild joy surged into their hearts!

Elder Li's face darkened. "Qin Yuan, have you thought this through? What can Fifth Peak give you? What Seventh Peak can give you is ten times, a hundred times what Fifth Peak can offer!"

"I have thought it through," Qin Yuan said calmly. "I'm going to Fifth Peak."

"You!" Anger flashed through Elder Li's eyes, but before so many people, he could not make a scene. He could only snort coldly. "I hope you won't regret this in the future."

Qin Yuan ignored him and turned to leave the stage.

Wherever he passed, the crowd automatically parted to make way. Every Outer Sect disciple looked at him with reverence, worship, and a trace of fervor—Qin Yuan had shown them through his actions that Outer Sect disciples, too, could defy heaven and change their fate!

Lin Qing'er and Liu Han came forward to meet him.

"Brother Qin Yuan! You were incredible!" Lin Qing'er's little face was flushed red with excitement.

Liu Han looked at Qin Yuan with a complicated expression. After a long while, she finally said softly, "Congratulations."

She recalled saying three days ago, "You are not people of the same world," and her face heated slightly. Now it seemed that they truly were not from the same world—but Qin Yuan was the one standing in the higher one.

Qin Yuan nodded to them both. "Thank you."

Just as he was about to say something more, a young disciple came running over from Fifth Peak, panting heavily. "S-Senior Brother Qin! Elder Xu asks you to come over!"

Qin Yuan said to Lin Qing'er and Liu Han, "I'll go over first."

"Mhm, mhm! Go quickly, Brother Qin Yuan!" Lin Qing'er nodded repeatedly.

Watching Qin Yuan leave with that disciple, Liu Han suddenly said softly, "Qing'er, from now on... don't call him Brother Qin Yuan anymore."

"Huh? Why?"

"Because he has already set foot on a path that we can only look up to." Liu Han watched Qin Yuan's receding back, her gaze complicated. "From today onward, he is Fifth Peak's hope, the future pride of the Xuan Yuan Sect. And we... are merely old acquaintances."

Lin Qing'er stood there blankly, watching Qin Yuan's figure vanish into the crowd, and suddenly felt as though a piece of her heart had been hollowed out.

She knew her senior sister was right.

The young man who had once carried her on his back to climb trees and pick locust blossoms was gone forever.

In his place stood Qin Yuan, the monstrous genius at Foundation Establishment Level 6, who defeated enemies with one punch and was fought over by every peak.

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