6,800 kilograms?
What kind of concept was that?
Jiang Qingzhu remembered that her own limit punch power had only barely reached 2,000 kilograms. Even so, it had already far surpassed most Second-Tier Level Four martial artists, ranking first in the entire school... Well, second now.
For ordinary martial artists who had just entered the Third-Tier, their limit punch power was 6,000 kilograms.
That was already a number capable of holding back ordinary martial artists for decades, even their entire lives.
Yet it had been reached—and surpassed—by someone who had only just entered the Second-Tier and had not even cultivated a Breathing Technique.
Jiang Qingzhu could not help but think.
If that 6,800-kilogram figure was Ye Li's limit punch power, then during their match that afternoon, he had actually been fully capable of finding an opening and seriously injuring her with a single punch.
But in the end, he had not done so. He had merely landed a painless punch and palm strike on her face.
He had only knocked her unconscious.
This could no longer be called going easy on her. He had practically opened the floodgates!
Jiang Qingzhu's heart was shaken beyond measure, and a wave of shame rose from the bottom of her heart.
Ye Li had shown her such mercy, yet she had confidently spouted arrogant words like, "You can't beat me," and, "It's over."
It was simply... too embarrassing!
A true genius should be like Ye Li.
Not only did he hide his strength, but he also made sure his opponent never realized it, leading them to believe it was an evenly matched battle.
"If I hadn't forgotten my great spear today, one thrust would have sent you flying!"
Recalling Ye Li's words, Jiang Qingzhu pressed her red lips tightly together.
She had originally thought they were incomprehensible boasts. Looking at it now, he really had not been wrong.
To defeat her barehanded while she wielded the Silver Dragon White Spear—such strength was practically guaranteed to shine brilliantly in this year's Martial Exam.
And there was also that Martial Arts Talent capable of rapidly repairing his body. Though its grade was unknown, it was at least no lower than A-Grade.
Taking everything together, Ye Li's strength was already enough to place him firmly among the absolute first echelon of Martial Arts High Schools across all of Ying Province.
His chances of competing for the championship were also extremely high!
Just as Jiang Qingzhu was shaken by the number displayed on the Punch Power Tester,
words kept appearing on Ye Li's panel.
[1000 Malice Points consumed. Beginning enhancement of Third-Tier Martial Skill: Riding the Wind Dragon Classic!] [Your Spear Martial Saint Body has taken effect. Martial skills that once seemed like heavenly tomes now appear rather simple to you...] [Buff gained: Cultivation Speed Boost 500%!] [It is as though the answer to a complicated advanced mathematics problem has been handed directly to you. Now, all you need to do is copy down the lengthy answer!] [Cultivation accelerating!] [As Malice Points are consumed, your understanding of this precious martial skill grows ever deeper. You begin to comprehend the meaning of "wandering dragon."] [The so-called wandering dragon means that when this martial skill is unleashed, the great spear can be wielded with the swiftness and ferocity of a roaming flood dragon. Both the spearhead and shaft possess tremendous destructive power, enough to easily tear apart the defenses of martial artists of the same tier!] [Having understood this, you begin to devote yourself to hard training in this aspect...] [Ding! Cultivation complete!] [Riding the Wind Dragon Classic: Mastery (70%)] [Evaluation: The gains from this cultivation were roughly equivalent to twenty years of your previous bitter training. With twenty years of effort behind it, who could possibly withstand it?] [Remaining Malice Points: 3400]
Twenty years of bitter training had only brought the Riding the Wind Dragon Classic to Mastery?
Ye Li's lips twitched slightly, but he did not choose to go all in at once.
Martial skill proficiency was divided into five stages: Beginner, Proficient, Mastery, Great Mastery, and Perfection.
At this rate, less than another thousand Malice Points would be enough to raise the Riding the Wind Dragon Classic to Perfection.
He vaguely remembered that a single Second-Tier Premium Martial Skill had previously cost him 3,000 Malice Points. Yet now, a higher-tier Premium Martial Skill had only cost 1,000 points to reach Great Mastery.
The Spear Martial Saint Body had undoubtedly contributed to this, but Ye Li felt that it was also inseparable from his own persistence and effort.
Even if an old martial artist who had trained for years and a young martial artist who had just begun training possessed the same talent in their youth, their speed in learning a martial skill would still differ.
The former would naturally be much faster than the latter.
"I've finished reading it."
Ye Li looked at the distracted Jiang Qingzhu, handed over the manual, and said,
"Now I'll start teaching you. Are you ready?"
"That fast?" Jiang Qingzhu came back to her senses and asked in surprise.
Then she stood up. "Should I perform it once for you now?"
She thought Ye Li had merely skimmed through it and wanted to first assess her proficiency.
"No need to make things so troublesome."
Ye Li rose as well, walked over to the weapon rack in the corner of the room, and took down a pitch-black great spear.
He turned to Jiang Qingzhu and said calmly,
"Just use the Riding the Wind Dragon Classic and attack me. Tempering oneself through battle has always been the fastest method of improvement."
Of course, spending points did not count.
"Attack you?"
Jiang Qingzhu froze. How was he supposed to guide her to a breakthrough?
Was he planning to point out the flaws in her martial skill?
Though puzzled, after seeing Ye Li nod in confirmation, she still swiftly brushed the ring on her hand and summoned a snow-white long spear.
It once again blended with her aura, enhancing her imposing presence.
He had thought this spear was rather interesting last time. Seeing it a second time only confirmed it...
Ye Li watched the silver-white spear and nodded slightly.
"Silver Dragon White Spear, a Second-Tier Top-Grade Treasure Tool."
Noticing Ye Li's gaze lingering on her weapon, Jiang Qingzhu said in her cool voice,
"It can enhance both the outward release of my cold qi and the power of my martial skills."
"Come." Ye Li lowered his chin and raised his great spear.
His gaze rested calmly on the figure opposite him.
Jiang Qingzhu nodded and took a deep breath.
As she activated her Breathing Technique, true qi began surging through her body.
The next second, her figure vanished from where she stood.
Once she became serious, she was several degrees faster than she had been during their fight that afternoon!
When she reappeared, Jiang Qingzhu was already less than three feet away from Ye Li.
The seven-foot white spear crashed toward Ye Li's centerline like a flood dragon emerging from the sea.
The sharp spearhead glowed white, piercing through the air directly, unstoppable in its momentum!
Ye Li lowered his dark eyes.
Jiang Qingzhu's Riding the Wind Dragon Classic should have reached the Proficient level. White radiance capable of "breaking armor" had already emerged around her spearhead.
Among people her age, that was already an exceptionally impressive accomplishment.
But after cultivating the Riding the Wind Dragon Classic to Great Mastery, Jiang Qingzhu's attack route was simply far too obvious in his eyes.
Surging true qi erupted within Ye Li's body, rapidly circulating through the acupoints opened by the Riding the Wind Dragon Classic.
Bzzzt—
Along with a resounding spear cry, an illusory flood dragon phantom suddenly appeared around Ye Li's pitch-black great spear!
At that moment, Jiang Qingzhu's spearhead had already reached him.
Ye Li shifted slightly aside, evading her spearhead with an extremely subtle movement. His right hand gripping the spear lifted faintly before suddenly exerting force, casually sweeping it toward Jiang Qingzhu's body.
His movements flowed like running water from beginning to end, without the slightest hint of sluggishness.
And the instant that pitch-black great spear danced, the air immediately let out a tearing shriek, while phantom dragon scales flickered in and out of sight!
This was!
Seeing that strange sight on the spear shaft, Jiang Qingzhu's eyes filled with overwhelming shock.
That phantom was precisely what she had dreamed of day and night.
It was the phenomenon that would only appear after cultivating the Riding the Wind Dragon Classic to Great Mastery!
How could this be possible?
From the moment he obtained the Riding the Wind Dragon Classic until now, no more than ten minutes had passed!
Before you continue