Chapter 16

As Shen Jianfeng stomped his right foot on the ground, the crack spread rapidly and soon reached Shen Lang. Then, an invisible force erupted from the crack and fiercely struck towards Shen Lang's chest!

In the blink of an eye, Shen Lang sidestepped to the left, dodging the fierce force amidst the crowd's exclamations of surprise.

Then, everyone saw the force pass by him, exploding in mid-air with a loud bang, dissipating into thin air.

The entire venue fell silent, and after a while, people began to whisper among themselves...

"This doesn't make sense. Shen Jianfeng's 'Earth-Cracking Hammer' is fierce and powerful, and its speed is incredibly fast. How could Shen Lang have dodged it so easily?"

"It's not normal. I suspect that Shen Lang dodging this move was just a coincidence!"

"The 'Earth-Cracking Hammer' is an earth-based technique that uses spiritual energy to summon earth qi to attack the enemy, and it can lock onto the target. Even a Qi Martial Realm expert would have to use their strongest attack to counter it. He actually dodged at the last moment when the force locked onto him and was about to explode... This is insane. If he had been a second or two late, he would have had to take the full brunt of the attack. Without armor or a Qi Martial Realm expert's spiritual energy armor, he would have been severely injured..."

Below, Ye Qinghan was stunned, her small hand covering her red lips, unable to move for a long time.

On the platform, Shen Jianfeng was slightly taken aback, then roared and charged over, his fists raining down on Shen Lang like a storm. For a moment, the platform was filled with surging energy, sand and stones flying, capturing everyone's attention.

Creating such a commotion and actually drawing the attention of the academy's higher-ups, Shen Jianfeng was determined not to miss this opportunity to show off.

Regardless of whether Shen Lang was a true waste or a fake one, he was going to put on a good performance and show off.

Not only could he cripple Shen Lang, but he could also let everyone know how powerful he was. There was nothing more satisfying than this...

Soon, everyone in the Tayan Academy would start talking about him, Shen Jianfeng, and his reputation would rival, or even surpass, Chu Qingcheng's!

So, with his full strength, each move he made was fierce and invincible, quickly causing many people below to exclaim in surprise.

He used the academy's combat techniques and skills, which everyone was very familiar with, so they could see and remember the power of each punch and kick.

From the strength he displayed, even if he challenged Chu Qingcheng, he might have a chance to win!

However, after the initial shock, people noticed something was wrong...

Shen Jianfeng's attacks were incredibly fierce and expansive, and the energy in his fists was so powerful that even a Qi Martial Realm Third Heaven warrior of the same level would be wary. But these violent attacks didn't even touch the hem of Shen Lang's clothes!

Shen Lang's lips curled slightly, maintaining his previous expression, moving gracefully on the field.

Every time people thought he would be hit by Shen Jianfeng's punch, they saw Shen Jianfeng's fist pass by his body!

It was exactly the same as when Shen Jianfeng used the 'Earth-Cracking Hammer' at the beginning!

Once or twice could be a coincidence, but if it continued like this, with Shen Jianfeng, a Qi Martial Realm Third Heaven expert, not touching his opponent at all, it was terrifying...

The people below finally began to understand something.

"Huh!"

At this moment, a small voice of surprise came from the pavilion where Sima Yan, who had offered to be the referee, was.

However, everyone was captivated by the intense battle on the platform and didn't notice the unusual situation.

Inside the pavilion, three old men stood side by side by the window, their eyes full of shock.

"Shen Jianfeng is a Qi Martial Realm Third Heaven expert. If we old men faced him, we could easily dodge and make his every punch and kick miss. However, Shen Lang doesn't seem to have any spiritual energy leaking out, and his cultivation should not have reached the Qi Martial Realm. How is this possible..." the old man on the right, with a ruddy complexion, said.

The middle, thin old man narrowed his eyes and said, "Look at his steps. It seems to be a movement technique. Although the steps are small, they flow like water, each step seemingly following a certain rule... I, Sima Yan, have lived for over seventy years, and this is the first time I've seen such a profound movement technique. This... this..."

"Indeed, his movement technique not only dodges Shen Jianfeng's attacks with perfect timing but also seems to subtly control Shen Jianfeng, making his attack rhythm follow him... I think Shen Jianfeng has already noticed this, but it's too late to stop. This young man has easily taken control of the situation! If Shen Jianfeng doesn't use his ultimate move, he won't have a chance to turn the tide..."

"Very strange. This child was considered a waste, and he underwent the baptism of blood and fire in the Phoenix Mountains... We old men know a bit about this, but his cultivation has not progressed significantly due to the lack of a martial soul and a Heavenly Pulse Sacred Body. How could this be... Old Liu, send someone to investigate Shen Lang's recent activities, who he has met, etc., the more detailed, the better." Sima Yan frowned, as if he had thought of something, and suddenly said.

"Alright." The middle, thin old man responded.

At this moment, the battle on the platform had reached a fever pitch.

"Shen Lang, if you have the guts, face me head-on! Running around, are you still a man? Take this punch!" Shen Jianfeng, sensing the danger, roared and threw a fierce punch.

This punch was clearly different from the previous ones. The energy around his fist was completely condensed, with no spiritual energy dispersing, forming a transparent wolf head that roared towards Shen Lang.

Moreover, this wolf head did not move straight like the previous energy, but turned and continued to chase Shen Lang as he dodged.

"Wolf martial soul, Shen Jianfeng is using his martial soul!" someone in the crowd exclaimed.

"It looks like Shen Lang is bound to lose. He has been dodging, but now that the martial soul is out, he has no way to avoid it and can only choose to face it head-on."

"Face it head-on? Are you kidding? Does he have a martial soul? What can he use to face it head-on? A martial soul can lock onto the target!"

On the platform, the huge, fierce wolf head stirred up a strong wind, blowing Shen Lang's long hair. His dark eyes were like stars.

Just as the fist was less than a foot away from him, he slightly turned his body and kicked his right foot high, hitting the huge wolf head.

"Boom!"

The two energies collided, causing a loud explosion, and Shen Lang used the force to retreat into the air.

"Such fast legs!" The crowd's breathing became rapid.

"It's too late to run now!" Shen Jianfeng sneered, closing in and throwing another punch with a fierce wind.

The wolf head roared and bit towards Shen Lang again.

"What a lousy wolf martial soul, it's nothing special." Shen Lang mocked, taking a small step to the side, and before the wolf head could turn, he grabbed Shen Jianfeng's wrist.

"This is impossible!" Shen Jianfeng was shocked, never expecting to be caught by the wrist so easily. This made the wolf martial soul almost powerless, as if its neck had been grabbed.

"Whether it's possible or not doesn't matter anymore." Shen Lang chuckled, gently pulling Shen Jianfeng's wrist, causing him to lose balance and fall forward.

At this moment, Shen Lang turned and kicked his right foot out like a dragon's tail, "Bang!" a dull sound, kicking Shen Jianfeng in the buttocks, sending him flying and landing on the ground at the edge of the platform, motionless.

"..." The crowd watching below was stunned.

What kind of fighting style is this?

Shen Lang didn't seem to use any combat techniques or skills, just a pull, a push, and a kick, and he knocked down a Qi Martial Realm Third Heaven expert, Shen Jianfeng?

Are you kidding?

Shen Lang shook his head, somewhat bored, and said, "No challenge at all, it's really boring. I didn't kick you off the platform just now to give you another chance, to make you admit defeat. If you don't show your true strength, you won't have another chance."

"Too arrogant, he means he could have kicked Shen Jianfeng off the platform with just one kick?"

"I don't understand, what is Shen Lang's cultivation? How can he be so powerful?"

"Very strange, his speed is incredibly fast, but he didn't use any combat techniques, and he doesn't have a martial soul... I've never seen such a fighting style before!"

This was too shocking. In the past, when two students of similar cultivation levels sparred, it was normal for them to fight for half an hour or even an hour without a clear winner. No one expected that Shen Lang, who was considered a waste by everyone, would defeat the Qi Martial Realm Third Heaven expert, Shen Jianfeng, in just a few minutes...

And it seemed that Shen Jianfeng was completely helpless!

When did Shen Lang's strength become so powerful?

Was he hiding his strength all along?

These people had no idea that the current Shen Lang had fused with the memories of a powerful being from another life. Even without using combat techniques or any spiritual energy, his every move followed the natural laws, and in situations where the power difference was not too great, he could easily throw his opponent like a sack of potatoes, just like he did with Shen Jianfeng.

In the crowd, Xue Dang's eyes showed a hint of joy. She glanced at the pavilion where Sima Yan and others were, then returned her gaze and gently played with the bell on her other hand.

Ye Menghan, standing in the crowd, her chest heaving, began to breathe heavily.

"This guy has been hiding his strength all along! The speed of Shen Jianfeng, a Qi Martial Realm Third Heaven expert, is so much slower compared to him! My cultivation is below Shen Jianfeng's. If I were to fight him, I would be even more embarrassed..."

"Crack, crack, crack..." The sound on the platform made everyone's hearts skip a beat. They saw Shen Jianfeng, who was lying on the ground, crush two pieces of stone with his hands and slowly get up, his head hanging low.

"Shen Lang, I underestimated you..." Shen Jianfeng's deep voice was full of authority: "But if you think you can win me like this, you are greatly mistaken!"

As he spoke, he stomped his right foot on the ground, and cracks spread from his feet.

At the same time, the veins on Shen Jianfeng's fists bulged, and a layer of fine rock suddenly appeared, spreading from his fists to cover his entire body.

"Rock martial soul! Shen Jianfeng has a rock martial soul! Oh my God, this guy is a dual martial soul!"

"This is going to be interesting. I've never heard of Shen Jianfeng having a dual martial soul, but he was forced to reveal it by Shen Lang..."

Shen Jianfeng's lips curled into a cruel smile. "Your speed is fast, but your strength is too weak... Forcing out my rock martial soul, even if you fail, you can be proud of it!"

As he spoke, a divine light flashed around him, and the spiritual energy armor of the Qi Martial Realm appeared, covering his entire body.

Then, a low growl came from his throat, and he stomped his foot, his body shooting forward like an arrow, his rock-covered fist smashing towards Shen Lang's face with a piercing sound...

...