My Junior Brother Was Stronger Than Me?

For the next half month, the cultivation chamber scarcely knew a moment's peace.

The roar of colliding spells and the hum of surging spiritual power became its only refrain.

Chu Bai and Wang Qingli trained against each other relentlessly in that enclosed space.

What began as guided exchanges became all-out attack and defense. Their coordination grew ever smoother, while Chu Bai's rate of improvement left Wang Qingli's heart pounding.

"Again!"

At the center of the chamber, Chu Bai gave a low shout and shot forward like lightning.

Crimson flames suddenly flared beneath his feet. He left an afterimage as he crossed several yards in an instant and closed in at Wang Qingli's side.

It was Firestep Dash, which he had just raised to the Proficient Level.

"So fast!"

Wang Qingli's pupils contracted, and she instinctively raised her heavy Tortoise-Shell Earth Shield.

This time, however, Chu Bai did not attack with a simple punch or a Spirit Water Needle.

He reached out with one hand, cloud qi curling around his palm. His seemingly weightless strike landed on the Earth Shield without a sound.

In the next instant, the shield, solid as it had been, rippled violently like water.

A strange force traveled across its surface. It easily dissolved the shield's rebounding force, then clung like a maggot to bone and wound upward, trying to lock Wang Qingli's wrist.

Formless Cloud Hand!

"How is that possible?!"

Wang Qingli's expression changed drastically. Before that cloud qi, her Protective Spiritual Radiance seemed as flimsy as paper.

For the first time, that force—both hard and soft—made defending feel difficult.

She hurriedly changed tactics, driving Chu Bai back with several earth spikes and seizing the chance to open some distance.

"Whew..."

Wang Qingli steadied herself and stared at the composed young man opposite her. Stormy waves