Chapter 283: All With a Single Thrust

This fighting style consumed a considerable amount of Spiritual Power, but its effects were terrifying.

As long as one’s Spiritual Strength was lower than Xu Wuyi’s, it was nearly impossible to defend against.

"My turn," Li Hao said in a low voice. His figure vanished from the rest area.

Li Hao appeared on the stage.

His Life Energy Level had already reached 30.4, second only to a few freshmen like Xu Wuyi, Qin Rui, and Zhao Qingwei.

More importantly, he had improved immensely over the past six months. Not only had his Saber Technique become more refined, but his comprehension of the True Intention of "Speed" had also deepened.

"Xu Wuyi." Li Hao looked at the figure opposite him and slowly drew his dual sabers. "I know I can’t win, but I want to see just how big the gap is between us."

Xu Wuyi watched him calmly and nodded. "Then watch closely."

Li Hao was slightly taken aback. He could sense a hint of sincerity in Xu Wuyi’s tone.

"Begin!"

Li Hao moved.

He was at least thirty percent faster than a year ago. His body became a blurry blue flash as his dual sabers slashed at Xu Wuyi from a bizarre angle.

This was the killing move he had practiced for half a year—Double Shadow Killing!

In the midst of Extreme Speed, he created two saber shadows that were nearly impossible to tell apart, attacking two of his opponent’s vital points simultaneously.

However, just as the glint of his sabers was about to touch Xu Wuyi’s body—

HUMMM!

That formless Spirit Shock descended once again!

This time, Li Hao was prepared. He channeled his True Intention of "Speed" to its fullest, trying to use his Extreme Speed to break free from the spiritual lock’s influence.

But it was useless.

The Spirit Shock wasn’t a simple lock-on, but a form of indiscriminate suppression.

It was like being trapped in a swamp; no matter how one struggled, their speed would slow down.

Li Hao felt the air around him turn incredibly viscous, and his once-fluid Body Technique became noticeably sluggish.

Even more terrifying, a Spiritual Will as heavy as a mountain crashed into his spiritual world, causing his thoughts to lag by half a beat.

The two saber shadows instantly dissipated.

And Xu Wuyi’s spear was already thrusting forward, shadowing his every move.

It was another simple Spear Thrust, the point of Spiritual Cold Radiance on its tip blindingly bright.

Li Hao gritted his teeth, crossing his dual sabers to block. He furiously circulated his Qi and Blood, attempting to withstand the spear.

CLANG—!

The spear tip struck the intersection of the two sabers.

The next second, Li Hao’s expression changed drastically.

He felt an extremely condensed Spiritual Power travel up his sabers and into his body, viciously striking his consciousness.

The sensation was like someone driving a red-hot iron awl into his brain.

Excruciating pain!

Indescribable, excruciating pain!

Li Hao let out a muffled groan. The dual sabers nearly flew from his grasp as he staggered backward, his vision turning black.

By the time he managed to steady himself, Xu Wuyi’s spear tip was already stopped before his throat.

"East Courtyard, Xu Wuyi wins!"

"First round, East Courtyard wins!"

The electronic voice echoed throughout the stadium.

Li Hao stood there dumbfounded, only coming to his senses after several seconds.

He looked down at his hands, then up at Xu Wuyi, a bitter smile on his face.

"Are these the methods of a Martial Master?" he asked in a low voice.

He had also advanced not long ago, but in combat, he still relied mainly on the methods of a Martial Artist. Xu Wuyi, on the other hand, seemed to be fighting on a completely different level.

Xu Wuyi retracted his spear and nodded. "At the Martial Master Stage, ’Refining Spirit’ is the core. The stronger your Spiritual Power, the greater your control over the battle."

Li Hao took a deep breath and gave Xu Wuyi a long, meaningful look. "I’ve learned a great deal."

He vanished in a flash of white light.

In the audience, a tide of discussion surged.

"Three spears! A three-man sweep!"

"Even Li Hao couldn’t last a single move against him!"

"What kind of move was that? Why did Li Hao’s speed suddenly drop?"

"Xu Wuyi condenses his Spiritual Power to the extreme and unleashes it at the moment of contact, directly attacking his opponent’s consciousness!"

"How are you supposed to defend against that? Unless your Spiritual Strength is higher than his, you can’t block it at all!"

"So this is how Martial Masters fight! Only opponents whose Spirit is on the same level are qualified to face him."

In the East Courtyard’s rest area, Shen Wei and Zhou Mingxuan looked at each other with wry smiles.

"Old Xu isn’t giving us a chance to get on stage at all," Shen Wei said, shaking his head.

"It’s for the best." Zhou Mingxuan was rather philosophical about it. "We’d just be handing them free points if we went up. Might as well let Old Xu finish it all by himself."

「The second round: East Courtyard versus North Courtyard.」

The North Courtyard’s lineup was: Zhang Qi (Energy Level 30.1), Luo Liang (Energy Level 30.3), and Zhao Qingwei (Energy Level 30.6).

After the list was announced, Luo Liang’s expression in the North Courtyard’s rest area was grim.

"Zhao Qingwei, what’s our plan?" Zhang Qi asked.

Zhao Qingwei was silent for a moment before saying slowly, "Xu Wuyi will probably still go first. We can’t change the outcome, but we can at least force him to show more of his hand."

She looked at Luo Liang. "Luo Liang, you’ll go second. Zhang Qi, you’re first. I’ll be last."

"Why?" Luo Liang frowned. "If I go first, I can at least wear him down a bit."

"It’s useless," Zhao Qingwei said, shaking her head. "You saw the last fight clearly. In a Martial Master Level battle, Spirit is what matters most."

"If you go first, he’ll still finish you with one spear. It’s better to let Zhang Qi go first. You can observe his technique and see if there’s any possible way to counter it."

Luo Liang fell silent.

He knew Zhao Qingwei was right, but the feeling of helplessness stung.

"Let’s stick with that arrangement." Zhao Qingwei said no more, closing her eyes to adjust her state.

On the stage, Xu Wuyi appeared once more.

His opponent was Zhang Qi from the North Courtyard, a staff-wielding Martial Artist who had just recently broken through to become a Martial Master.

Zhang Qi’s expression was grave as he stepped onto the stage, having clearly seen Xu Wuyi’s previous battles.

"Mr. Xu, please guide me!" Zhang Qi said in a deep voice, holding his long staff horizontally before him.

"Begin!"

Zhang Qi didn’t attack first. Instead, he brandished his long staff, creating an impenetrable defense.

He planned to establish a solid footing first, then look for an opportunity.

But Xu Wuyi still used just a simple Spear Thrust.

The long spear shot out, the Spiritual Cold Radiance on its tip flaring to life.

Zhang Qi was prepared. The moment the spear tip thrust toward him, he circulated his Qi and Blood at full power, trying to block with his staff.

At the same time, he focused his Spiritual Will to its absolute limit to resist the formless impact.

However—

When that Spirit Shock truly descended, Zhang Qi realized his mistake.

It wasn’t a simple impact, but an explosion of ’Intention’ condensed to the absolute extreme.

It was as if someone had taken the weight of an entire mountain, compressed it into a single needle, and stabbed it deep into his consciousness.

Zhang Qi felt a sharp pain in his brain. His vision went black, and the circulation of his Qi and Blood instantly fell into disarray.

A nearly imperceptible flaw appeared in his previously impenetrable staff defense.

And for Xu Wuyi, that tiny flaw was more than enough.

The long spear passed through the staff’s shadow and landed precisely on Zhang Qi’s chest.

"East Courtyard, Xu Wuyi wins!"

Zhang Qi didn’t even last three seconds.

A collective gasp echoed through the audience.

"A-Another one-spear takedown!"

"Zhang Qi is a Martial Master too! Even a Martial Master can’t block it?"

In the North Courtyard’s rest area, Luo Liang’s expression turned even uglier.