At a hidden spot near the Genius Summit, two figures clad in silver armor stood atop the branches of an inconspicuous tree.
"What do you think about him?" One of the silver figures asked. Though the night had enough lighting, their features couldn't be seen.
"I don't think I have seen enough to fully come up with a good evaluation." The other figure replied.
"He isn't simple. I have a feeling that he would be able to defeat Xin Wuheng but it won't be that easily done."
"True. Even before they have fought, just from their auras and confidence already qualifies them to be in the top ten at the camp."
"Let's observe the fight and see what they have up their sleeves. I hope they won't disappoint the Lord."
***
Qiu Mengyu frowned when she saw how her fellow clansman had been effortlessly overpowered and treated like a plaything.
'I didn't expect another Xin Wuheng to appear from the Zhao Clan. I don't think Zhao Linglong would be as formidable as him even when his high cultivation is brought into the picture.'
'To be able to emotionally and physically damage Qiu Changyi like that, I don't know what to say.'
'I don't think I can handle any of his moves. He outclasses me in everything when he probably hasn't even gone all out.'
Qiu Mengyu nervously bit on her thumb, a minor action that she normally does when she is troubled by something.
'The Zhao Clan has produced unpredictable monsters this time round. Their chances of being the top clan in Sun Feather City are high if Zhao Wei is really as incredible as he is right now.'
'After this competition, I would try to sweet talk him. With my beauty and level of influence, he wouldn't be able to resist my suggestions easily. I am pretty confident in my seduction skills. I can easily have men at the tip of my fingers if I play my cards right.'
And then as if sensing her own peculiar behavior, Qiu Mengyu immediately removed her thumb from her mouth before subtly looking around in self-awareness.
She then put a small pretty smile on her lips as she gazed at the two young men in the arena with immense interest.
'Show me what you got, Zhao Wei.'
Qiu Mengyu wasn't by herself as many others, anticipating the beginning of the supposed legendary fight, also shared the same thought.
To find the overall strength of Zhao Wei and peer through the enigmatic fog surrounding his being.
They really didn't know him at all except for those from the Zhao Clan but if they were suddenly asked about Zhao Wei then they wouldn't have a concrete answer.
***
Zhao Wei had a relaxed expression on his face as he studied his opponent.
Xin Wuheng also did the same.
The distance between them was almost negligible.
Each one of them was confident in their speed. It didn't matter where they stood in the arena.
'Close combat, hmm? Good.' Xin Wuheng thought as he analyzed the extremely small distance between himself and Zhao Wei.
'Even though I can't see his cultivation with my special instigative technique. His true cultivation should be anything below the Seventh Rank of Martial Master Realm. His Peak Fifth Rank Realm has a high possibility of being a lie after all I am just like him.'
'I am the type to not show all that I have.' Xin Wuheng took a battle stance while adorning a serious expression on his face.
Despite his serious approach, his whole body was relaxed and his breath was as steady as Mount Tai.
Zhao Wei also mirrored Xin Wuheng's action but he didn't lose that maniacal glint from his dark, abyssal eyes.
He couldn't wait to begin the fight.
SHWAAH!
SHWAAH!
Both of them moved at the same time and started exchanging blows.
From hand-to-hand combat, kicks against kicks, palm against palm, the thunderous blows between Zhao Wei and Xin Wuheng caused the very air to crackle with tension that it almost felt palpable.
Surprisingly, they had barely moved from the spot they had started fighting which signified that both of them were almost equal in strength.
But was that the truth?
[Tyrant Fists]
Zhao Wei executed his first ever technique in this world and it was just a core-ranked technique.
His fist was lightning fast, packed with the strength of his arm muscles and pinpoint precision.
The air seemed to distort and quiver under the incoming might of the devastating fist that surpassed the speed of sound.
Time seemed to have slowed down at that very moment as Xin Wuheng sighed helplessly as he perceived the lethality of Zhao Wei's punch.
It was a punch that could probably decimate anyone below the Sixth Rank into a bloody donut.
Even those of the sixth rank wouldn't necessarily survive under its annihilatory impact.
I have been pressured already, Xin Wuheng thought with a frown on his face as he used one of his Peak-ranked palm techniques that he had also trained to the Peak level.
[Taiji Cloudy Palm]
Xin Wuheng's palms seemed to turn into a cloudy diagram of black and white, an alternation between yin and yang, control and recklessness, softness and hardness.
He then faced Zhao Wei's supersonic attack with a fearless glint in his eyes.
BOOM!
When both of them clashed, a shockwave of undeniable might spread like a tsunami and impact the whole arena.
Those who were near the battle stage felt the effects more vividly as they coughed up blood since their bodies had been hurt by the weakened shockwaves. Everyone was taken by surprise by the intensity of their blows.
The earth below Zhao Wei and Xin Wuheng shattered into small blocks as a five-meter radius crater formed.
On Xin Wuheng's right, a deep fissure ran on the ground testifying to Zhao Wei's catastrophic fist.
Using [Taiji Cloudy Palm], at the last moment of contact, Xin Wuheng redirected the full brunt of the attack downwards.
There was no way he was going to face that attack. He could have suffered very deadly injuries to his internal organs that would likely take longer to heal.
'What a terrifying monster!' Xin Wuheng sucked in a deep breath as he struggled to contain the blood trying to escape from his mouth.
The stifling pain on his hand signified that the many small bones had been broken senselessly.
Gulp!
Xin Wuheng slightly winced before gulping the metallic liquid down his throat.
It wasn't something that he couldn't endure anyway.
Xin Wuheng then looked around at the shattered debris in the arena and also realized that he had been pushed back 20 steps away from his opponent who remained unperturbed, unshakable, and… relaxed as ever.
"Wasn't that the most basic technique in our clan?" A disciple from the Zhao Clan remarked in amazement and shock. It was Zhao Qin.
"How can a core ranked martial technique have such despair-inducing might? Is this the day when pigs will start flying in the sky?"
"Impossible! This is supposed to be impossible" Zhao Linglong almost fell from his seat due to denying the current outcome.
"How can a mere side branch disciple like him fight on par with Xin Wuheng and even hurt him?!" Zhao Linglong felt a sense of defeat and sourness rising within him.
He just couldn't stomach the thought of the little ant having such devastating power!
If his core-ranked martial technique already had such overwhelming might, then how were his middle-ranked techniques going to be?!
Only despair.
Even though he was extremely arrogant and narrow-minded, Zhao Linglong knew that he wasn't confident enough to take Zhao Wei's fist head-on. He would immediately execute [Shadow Steps] to the max and escape the range of the attack if he was lucky. The shockwaves were already proving to be a challenge and escaping unscathed wasn't an option.
"Hehe, it isn't the technique that defines the strength of a man but his experience and the number of times he has practiced the said skills." Zhao Yufei cutely smiled as she looked at Zhao Wei with unadulterated pride in her eyes.
"Such wise words, sister Yufei." Zhao Qin issued a compliment after hearing her insightful words.
Zhao Yufei shook her head lightly and pointed his smooth and delicate index finger at Zhao Wei's figure.
"I can never come up with such profound words."
"It can only be HIM."
Zhao Qin then immediately found Zhao Wei to be pleasing to the eye as she stared at his strong back muscles.
'What if I could…' Zhao Qin immediately squeezed her own cheeks to distill those hopeless imaginations from her mind.
'There is no way.' Zhao Qin thought in self-pity as she gave Yufei a meaningful side glance.
Only she, herself, knew what she was thinking.
Meanwhile, in the battle arena,
"Do you want to continue, ten moves genius? We have only shared one move since the beginning counts only as a warm-up." Zhao Wei asked in a 'caring' tone.
Xin Wuheng clicked his tongue in distaste and spat the remaining blood inside his mouth on the side.
"I had the same thought."
"I just didn't expect you to be that monstrous. Even during 'that' era there was hardly anyone who could punch like you." Xin Wuheng's eyes shone in appreciation and reminiscence. The will to fight inside of him wasn't going to waver just because of one attack. After all, he had already faced attacks more dangerous and destructive than Zhao Wei's when he had been a mighty God Lord.
'Show me all those skills that you have accumulated over the years. A former God Lord like you shouldn't be so stingy, right?' Zhao Wei crazily thought with a greedy smile on his face.
Xin Wuheng felt a chill run through his whole body when he saw that smile.
"I don't care about the era you are referring to but please… I beg of you to use all of your strength since it will really hurt like a bitch when I shift the gear." Zhao Wei pocketed his hands before stomping on the ground with one foot. A golden celestial inner strength swiftly flowed from his body via his energy pathways into the ground.
[Freezing Ice Spear Technique]
[Third Level:
His actions caught everyone by surprise.
And almost immediately, Xin Wuheng who had senses that transcended the Sixth Rank and were similar to Martial Masters plus his experience as a previous powerhouse, jumped back from his initial position and landed on the edges of the arena like a grasshopper.
The ground where he had previously been standing was nothing more than an icy landmine of destruction as 2-meter-long blue ice spikes protruded.
Xin Wuheng broke into a cold sweat.
"If I had been a few milliseconds late…"
Xin Wuheng felt that hiding his cultivation base wasn't going to help him anymore.
He would have to expose most of his strength but there was an option of giving up on the fight.
Seeing how hyped Zhao Wei was, Xin Wuheng knew that if he missed this chance to fight to his content with such a terrifying monster, then he would certainly feel regret later on.
Fight!
Keep on Fighting!
His fighting spirit rose once again as his cultivation base 'broke through' from the Peak of the Fifth Rank to the beginner Sixth Rank of the Consolidated Realm!
***
Enjoy!
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