The moment the spear tip and sword blade collided, the air in the arena exploded.
Ice-blue crystals and silver-white lightning intertwined, letting out a sharp screech.
A shockwave swept outward from the point of impact, kicking up dust from the ground and exploding in a gray-white ring of force at the edge of the stands.
Su Qingyue felt a violent jolt in the web of her hand holding the sword.
The force transmitted through the blade was staggeringly powerful, not at all like the strength a fellow ability user of the same rank should possess.
Her Ice Phoenix sword nearly flew out of her hand, and she used the momentum to drift backward, her toes tapping the ground three or four times before she finally managed to steady herself.
She looked up, a flash of alarm in her eyes.
Meanwhile, Lin Yuan remained motionless.
His spear was still held in an upward-thrusting posture, the residual lightning on the tip crackling and casting flickering shadows across half his face.
His breathing was steady, his stance firm, and his expression hadn't even changed.
To him, that previous strike hadn't even counted as a warm-up.
“Again.”
His voice was calm, devoid of any provocative intent, yet it caused Su Qingyue’s heart to sink.
In the stands, Qin Ruolan leaned forward slightly, her fingers unconsciously gripping the armrests of her chair.
“Tier 1, Level 6.”
Her voice was very soft, but Ye Lin, sitting beside her, heard it clearly.
“What?”
“That kid’s lightning ability is at Tier 1, Level 6.” Qin Ruolan’s pupils contracted slightly.
“And it’s not a fresh breakthrough—his ability fluctuations are extremely stable, his foundation more solid than most people’s.”
Ye Lin’s brow furrowed.
She naturally trusted Qin Ruolan’s judgment; the perception of a Tier 5 ice ability user ranked among the top three of everyone present. But the problem was—
“On the Awakening Day ten days ago, his record was F-rank, Unranked,” Ye Lin said with a trace of disbelief in her voice. “In ten days, he went from zero to Tier 1, Level 6?”
“Not just that.”
Gu Cheng’s voice cut in from the side.
The man who always looked like he hadn't slept was now holding his cigarette in his hand.
His eyes narrowed into thin slits as his gaze locked onto the black-haired youth in the arena, his tone unusually serious.
“Look at his bones.”
Lei Meng froze for a moment, then his eyes widened.
The National Martial Arts Academy was founded on physical arts, and their understanding of body structure far surpassed the other three schools.
Since Lei Meng could serve as a physical arts instructor, his eye for detail was naturally excellent.
Previously, all his attention had been on Su Qingyue; now, prompted by Gu Cheng, he truly looked closely at Lin Yuan.
Then his expression changed.
A martial artist’s bones and muscles were different from an ordinary person’s.
The higher the number of rounds of bone tempering, the more subtle the changes in bone density, structure, and even outward contour.
Ordinary people couldn't see these changes, but to a master specializing in physical arts like Lei Meng, it was as conspicuous as a lighthouse in the night.
He saw Lin Yuan’s fingers gripping the spear; every joint of his phalanges presented a near-perfect mechanical structure.
He saw the way Lin Yuan’s ulna and radius moved in tandem when he exerted force; that level of fluidity was not something achievable with only three or four rounds of bone tempering.
He saw that when Lin Yuan stepped forward, every bone in the chain of power—from toes to ankle to knee to hip—was precisely transmitting force with almost zero loss.
Lei Meng’s Adam's apple bobbed.
“Eight rounds.”
His voice was somewhat dry.
“At least eight rounds.”
As soon as those words were spoken, the expressions of everyone around him changed.
Qin Ruolan whipped her head around to look at him. “Are you sure?”
“I teach physical arts,” Lei Meng said solemnly.
“For anything below Tier 4, I can tell the number of bone tempering rounds with a single glance. That kid’s skeletal structure, the way he exerts force, his joint coordination efficiency—it’s all above seven rounds. Seven rounds is the bare minimum; it’s likely eight rounds.”
He paused, then added a sentence that left everyone silent.
“And his tempering isn't the artificial height stacked up by medicine. His bone patterns are naturally formed, his foundation is rock-solid—it was tempered through genuine combat.”
A strange silence fell over the main viewing stand.
The teachers from the four major academies stopped talking.
They were all people who had seen the world.
Five rounds of bone tempering wasn't rare in the four academies; which of the students recruited through special admissions wasn't a genius?
With enough resources poured in, six rounds wasn't an issue.
But above seven rounds, it was different.
Beyond seven rounds, it required more than just resources and talent; it required enduring the agony brought by bone tempering.
That kind of bone-deep, intense pain would cause anyone with slightly weak willpower to faint on the spot.
Anyone who could endure eight rounds was, without exception, someone with a mental fortitude so firm it bordered on the abnormal.
More importantly—this youth named Lin Yuan was still just an F-rank “waste” ten days ago.
No family resources, no guidance from famous masters, no external help whatsoever.
Ten days.
From F-rank to E-rank, from Unranked to Tier 1, Level 6, and from an ordinary person to eight rounds of bone tempering.
This could no longer be explained by the word “genius” alone.
Gu Cheng suddenly laughed, put the cigarette back in his mouth, and mumbled indistinctly.
“Interesting. It’s so damn interesting.”
The battle in the center of the arena continued.
Su Qingyue had stopped testing him.
She found that no matter how she attacked, the spear across from her would always appear in the most lethal position at the most appropriate time.
Her sword was fast, but Lin Yuan’s spear was faster. Her ice ability had a wide area of effect, but Lin Yuan’s lightning ability had stronger explosive power.
She changed her moves, but Lin Yuan changed even faster.
What shocked her even more was that Lin Yuan seemed to always be able to predict her movements.
Every time she prepared to exert force, Lin Yuan’s spear tip would point toward the joint she was about to use.
Every time she tried to pull back to release a wide-range ice skill, Lin Yuan’s lightning would seal off her path in advance.
Every time she tried to use his momentum against him, Lin Yuan’s power would suddenly change at the last moment, causing her attempt to fail.
This wasn't a gap in realm.
This was absolute crushing battle experience.
Su Qingyue bit her lip, her Ice Phoenix sword drawing an arc in front of her.
Unleashing her ice ability to its full potential, a thick layer of frost condensed on the ground wherever her blade passed, and countless ice spikes erupted from the surface, stabbing toward Lin Yuan from all directions.
This was the most ferocious move in the Su family’s ancestral swordplay— “Frosty Splendor Everywhere.”
Lin Yuan’s response was simple.
Spinning the spear around his waist, he rotated in place, the shaft sweeping a full circle trailing lightning.
“Thunder Walk Through Nine Heavens: First Form, Awakening of Insects.”
The spear’s momentum was like a clap of spring thunder.
The flying ice spikes were ground into powder within the lightning, and the frosted ground was torn apart by the wind of the spear, sending ice shards flying.
Su Qingyue only saw a silver-white arc expanding before her eyes and instinctively held her sword vertically to parry.
Clang—
A crisp sound.
A tiny crack appeared on the blade of the Ice Phoenix sword.
Su Qingyue retreated seven steps in a row, each step leaving a deep footprint on the ground.
Her breathing was finally ragged, fine beads of sweat formed on her forehead, and her sword-hand trembled slightly.
Meanwhile, Lin Yuan’s breathing remained steady.
Rate on N.U.
