Chapter 4

Riding on Shi Long's own momentum, he ruthlessly pushed forward with both palms printed directly against Shi Long's chest.

Sounds of cracking bones emanated from the point of impact, and Shi Long's body flew backward like a cannonball.

Having flown back and crashed to the ground, Shi Long convulsed a few times before going completely still. The white-bearded elder on the sidelines saw that the situation was turning south, so he hurriedly flew over to Shi Long, frantically fed a medicinal pill into his mouth, and then scooped him up to fly away.

The surrounding crowd had yet to snap out of the daze of Shi Qingyun and the others' battle when they witnessed this scene, and a sudden uproar erupted.

"He actually defeated Shi Long!"

"How vicious! I saw Shi Long about to be beaten to death by him-this was just a spar, was there any need to use such heavy hands?"

As soon as these words were spoken, people nearby immediately retorted.

"Are you blind? It was obviously Shi Long who struck heavily first, alright! Shi Qingyun merely mounted a counterattack."

"That's right, exactly! Shi Long brought this upon himself!"

The cute little girl who had spoken earlier also had little stars shining in her eyes as she cast a look of adoration toward Shi Qingyun's direction.

Chapter 6: Various Reactions

This little brother is truly amazing! Not only is he so handsome, but he's also so strong!

That hateful Shi Long must have seen how handsome little brother is, which is why every single blow was aimed right at his face!

The cute little girl thought this to herself with puffed-up cheeks, though a moment later she threw herself into cheering for Shi Qingyun's victory.

She waved her arms and shouted amidst the crowd, looking every bit like a pure little fan-girl!

Shi Qingyun slowly opened his eyes, and the Taiji Dao Diagram beneath his feet had long since vanished.

Chunks of oversized sweat droplets hung on Shi Qingyun's head as he panted heavily.

At this very moment, Shi Qingyun felt that he was extremely drained! His internal blood-qi had been completely exhausted. He chuckled bitterly in his heart: I wonder how long it will take to recover, though judging by my physique, it shouldn't take too long!

Shi Qingyun did not pay excessive attention to the cheers of the surrounding crowd. He merely glanced around and, escorted by the admiring gazes of the multitude, walked back to his own courtyard.

Upon returning home, he did not do anything else. He entered his room, dropped onto the bed, and fell fast asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.

Shi Qingyun's breathing gradually grew steady. With each inhalation and exhalation, it felt as though he were resonating with the Great Dao, and a Taiji Dao Diagram materialized around Shi Qingyun's body just like that.

It began to revolve slowly around Shi Qingyun, and wisps of black and white qi drifting through heaven and earth gradually drilled into Shi Qingyun's body along with the rhythm of his breathing.

Shi Qingyun's physique emitted a faint halo. In his sleep, he resembled an immortal fallen into a deep slumber, a sliver of sacred radiance resting upon his delicate face.

In his dreams, Shi Qingyun felt streams of warm qi flowing into his body, much like a parched tract of land receiving a gush of sweet springwater.

The next day, before the sky had even grown bright, Shi Qingyun opened his eyes.

The various strange phenomena upon his body had long since vanished.

Shi Qingyun felt a sense of ease, and the discomfort in his body had already disappeared.

He stretched his limbs, felt the abundant power surging within, and felt a hint of amazement at his own recovery speed.

Yet he was also immensely joyful; he had known of his powerful physique in the past, but now he possessed a deeper understanding of it.

Shi Qingyun came out into the courtyard, closed his eyes, and carefully reflected upon yesterday's battle.

Having gone straight to sleep upon returning yesterday, he had not yet had the time to properly comprehend the gains from that fight.

He assumed a stance and slowly began to throw punches, and a Taiji design gradually materialized beneath Shi Qingyun's feet.

As his fist forms grew deeper, the Taiji design grew increasingly clear.

Upon the design, two black and white swimming fish seemed to appear, chasing each other as the pattern slowly rotated beneath Shi Qingyun's feet.

As the design turned, gusts of wind rose within the courtyard, whipping Shi Qingyun's robes into a snapping frenzy.

With a sweeping cloud-hand motion, Shi Qingyun slowly reined in his momentum, and the surrounding winds subsided as well.

"It looks to be around five thousand catties of force with a single swing of the arm. This is still just the foundation laid in the early stage. Once I undergo the baptism and step onto the path of cultivation, my strength will definitely experience an explosive surge."

Shi Qingyun was still quite pleased to possess such strength. After all, he neither possessed any heavenly treasures to aid his cultivation nor any renowned masters to guide him.

Being able to attain such strength could already be considered formidable.

"Still, I must guard against retaliation from Shi Long and his faction."

Meanwhile, yesterday's battle between Shi Long and Shi Qingyun had also reached the ears of certain individuals.

Inside a resplendent and magnificent grand hall, an old man with a full head of white hair sat atop a woven mat.

All manner of strange phenomena manifested around him, with the figures of various ferocious birds and fierce beasts appearing in his vicinity.

Before long, they all transformed into individual runes that formed a large array around the old man, illuminating the entire grand hall brightly.

A person dressed entirely in black, completely shrouded in dark garments, was standing before the old man at this moment, reporting this matter to him.

"Oh? Could it be that our Martial King Manor is about to produce yet another genius?" A look of interest appeared on the old man's face.

It sounded like a question, but the black-clad figure standing on the side did not dare to answer.

The old man turned his head, looked at the black-clad figure, and said, "Go tell those other old fogies not to stretch their hands out too far!"

"After all, I'm not dead yet!"

The old man let out a cold snort and waved his hand to dismiss the black-clad figure.

The black-clad figure acknowledged the command, flashed, and vanished on the spot.

Meanwhile, elsewhere.

Shi Long was currently lying on a bed seemingly crafted from jade.

Standing at the head of his bed was a burly middle-aged man with his hands clasped behind his back. The might radiating from him revealed him to be a person of high authority and lofty status.

Meanwhile, a comely, voluptuous woman draped over Shi Long was weeping bitterly!

"Lord Husband! You must seek justice for Long'er!"

"That little bastard actually beat Long'er so severely!"

As the woman spoke, the gloomy expression on the face of the silent middle-aged man grew even darker.

"This matter isn't so simple! On previous occasions when Long'er beat others half to death, those people chose not to bicker over it out of regard for Father's face and power!"

"However, they have long harbored dissatisfaction regarding Long'er's methods! If we make a fuss now that they've seized such a good opportunity, it definitely won't end well!"

The middle-aged man's words reflected the current state of affairs within the Martial King Manor. Although Shi Hao's lineage had seen some leave and others submit over the years, there were still a few old fellows watching from above.

This time, Shi Long's actions were intended both to suppress the strength of the younger generation of Shi Hao's lineage and to test the bottom line of those old fellows.

He simply hadn't expected to stumble so hard over Shi Qingyun this time.

At the mere thought of Shi Qingyun, a trace of murderous intent surfaced on the middle-aged man's face, though it was quickly concealed once more.

Over the years, he had considered driving them to absolute extermination, but the Martial King would not consent, and if he truly did so, the Stone Emperor would also intervene.

Thus, over the years, they could only encroach step by step.

The woman was deeply dissatisfied with the middle-aged man's words, angrily demanding, "Are we just supposed to stand by and watch that brat live in unbridled ease and joy?"

"He is your son! Are you simply going to do nothing?!"

The man could only respond with a helpless sigh, "Rest assured, my wife. With such a genius emerging, I imagine certain people will not sit idly by! After all, a Shi Ziling already appeared back then; they certainly won't sit around and wait for Shi Qingyun to grow up!"

"If they couldn't move Shi Ziling back then, could they not even deal with a mere fledgling?"

Hearing this, the woman could only nod helplessly. She reached out to stroke Shi Long's face with deep affection and pity.

"Mother will surely vent this deep grievance for you!"

Chapter 7: Refining the Self with Yin-Yang Qi

Shi Qingyun spent the next few days in vigilance, constantly guarding against any covert moves from Shi Long and his faction.

Yet after waiting several days without discovering any signs of them making a move, he gradually set his mind at ease.

Still, a trace of puzzlement lingered in his heart: why hadn't they retaliated against him? Whenever he hit a dead end in his thoughts, Shi Qingyun simply stopped pondering it.

Over the past few days, he had kept himself confined to his small courtyard, spending every day either studying rune knowledge or tempering his physique!

Having fought a match with Shi Long, he felt improvements across all aspects of his body, and his physical strength was slowly increasing as well.

After that battle, he could be considered somewhat famous within this Martial King Manor; in the minds of the manor's younger generation, he was a genius of moderate renown.

During this period, quite a few people came to his small courtyard to befriend him, though they were all the progeny of individuals with a certain standing in the Martial King Manor.

Shi Qingyun didn't even need to guess the reason-those without backgrounds wouldn't dare risk antagonizing Shi Long just to befriend him.

Shi Qingyun didn't care much about this.

To those who came to befriend him, Shi Qingyun did not slight them. Although he knew he wouldn't stay long in this Martial King Manor, he still needed to maintain good relations so his daily life wouldn't be disturbed!

Among them was that same little girl who had cheered for him at the sparring grounds back then. Shi Qingyun held a rather deep impression of her.

The little girl was called Shi Feier, a cute and cheerful girl, though primarily it was her brazenly adulatory expression that made it impossible for Shi Qingyun not to notice her.

Another major reason was that her father held the post of an instruction elder within the Martial King Manor, carrying a noble status.

Furthermore, Shi Qingyun had learned several things from her lips.

It turned out that Shi Long's father had intended to slash Shi Qingyun's cultivation resources. Originally, these allocations had already been finalized, but Shi Long's father had tried to alter them upon taking office, which naturally met with opposition.

In the end, it seemed the Martial King stepped in and issued a stern warning to Shi Long's father, causing him to drop the matter.

In Shi Qingyun's view, these issues were of no great consequence. For one, these resources had not yet fallen into his hands and would only be disbursed once he stepped onto the path of cultivation.

Secondly, Shi Qingyun did not know when he might leave the Martial King Manor, as he already harbored intentions in that direction.

Having offended certain people in the Martial King Manor, it was no longer suitable for him to remain here. Although someone had his back, the person supporting him merely looked after his daily life out of sentimental obligation.

No substantive benefits were provided to him in other aspects.

Moreover, remaining in the Martial King Manor always felt somewhat constraining, placing fetters on whatever future actions he might take.

Actually, in Shi Qingyun's view, the retaliation from Shi Long and his group had arrived somewhat too lightly and somewhat too late, feeling more like they were merely broadcasting a message to the outside world that they cared about the matter.

They had never intended to cause any genuine harm to Shi Qingyun!

Perhaps there were deeper, unseen power struggles at play that Shi Qingyun did not fully grasp.

He shook his head to banish the excess thoughts, deciding he could only take things one step at a time.