My Clones Can Cultivate

Chapter 107

Li Feng’s face was calm and composed as he called another candidate from the Shi Clan onto the stage.

This time, he was planning on taking down as many of them as he could; based on the first victory he had managed to secure against Guan Xiu despite the overwhelming power gap between them, he was more than certain that if he struck fast and precisely enough, he would be able to win again.

He had deliberately decided to challenge the weakest, or at least the one who seemed to be the weakest in the Shi camp, first.

He would use him to learn and master the battle techniques and fighting style of the Shi Clan; that way, when he faced Shi Lan next, the one walking away victorious would be him, since he had already promised that he would win no matter what.

And just as he expected, the geniuses of the other great clans were far too arrogant to let their names be shamed, which meant they could not turn down a challenge. As expected, Shi Yuan smiled and nodded. "Of course, I accept your challenge," he said as he stood up.

Shi Lan’s gaze remained as impassive as it had always been; calmly, he spoke, "You mustn’t lose." Shi Yuan only gave him an amused glance before smiling and continuing to walk. Soon, he was standing on the stage opposite Li Feng, whose gaze radiated no anger.

Yet Shi Yuan could clearly sense it: there was no doubt about it, Li Feng was furious. He must simply be too angry to let it show; instead, he poured all of that anger into his actions. "As efficient as always, I see..." Shi Yuan smiled warmly and nodded at Li Feng.

"Young Master Feng, you aren’t going to try and disable me like you did Guan Xiu, are you?" he asked, his tone making it obvious that it was nothing more than a sarcastic remark.

After all, one could say Guan Xiu was among the weakest of the Guan Clan geniuses; compared to someone like Shi Yuan, she wasn’t even in the same league.

He was more than certain Li Feng knew that as well, so there was no way he would foolishly think he could defeat him the same way he had defeated Guan Xiu... that would be the pinnacle of stupidity if that was truly what he believed.

Li Feng didn’t answer Shi Yuan. Instead, he calmly tied the black cloth back over his eyes before taking his battle stance. He then nodded toward the referee, signaling that he was ready.

Seeing that both participants were prepared, the referee quickly did his job: "Li Feng, the true genius of the Li Clan, will be facing Shi Yuan, the red-haired genius of the Shi Clan." Shi Yuan gave the referee a glance that seemed to say, "Really? That’s how you’re going to introduce me?"

The referee only coughed awkwardly before announcing, "Let the match begin!" The cheers erupted instantly before gradually dying down as everyone eagerly waited for the battle between Li Feng and Shi Yuan.

In everyone’s mind, there was only one question: could Li Feng pull through and defeat yet another opponent whose cultivation far surpassed his own, or would he finally fall to Shi Yuan? Just like in his previous match, Li Feng began by walking toward Shi Yuan one step at a time.

Shi Yuan’s gaze flashed with amusement as he took a single step and became a blur. Li Feng had long sensed the danger before it arrived; he used his sheathed sword to block the strike aimed at his neck the very next second.

At the same time, his leg kicked out and blocked the second attack aimed at his side. In one fluid motion, he had managed to defend against the two attacks Shi Yuan unleashed with incredible speed and precision.

Everyone watching sucked in a cold breath as they stared at the two locked in that stance. Shi Yuan’s gaze flickered with even deeper amusement as he suddenly vanished again, striking toward Li Feng’s abdomen with astonishing speed, but just like before, Li Feng reacted in time.

His hands moved with an unbelievable speed... far faster than anyone still in the Qi Gathering Realm should have been capable of. And yes, Li Feng wouldn’t have been moving this fast if he were relying only on his secondary instinct; instead, he was moving from the deepest part of himself.

He was using Wind Walker and Natural Response together, while occasionally weaving in the other three techniques whenever the opportunity presented itself.

With all five working together, he wasn’t merely keeping up with Shi Yuan... he was matching him, blow for blow, kick for kick, strike for strike. Of course, there was still the overwhelming strength gap between them, but Li Feng solved that mainly by using his killing intent sense.

Not every single attack carried the same amount of force; no, they all differed, and he could easily sense those differences. With that, he made sure to either deflect or completely evade the attacks that would cause him harm, no matter how small.

As for the ones he could handle, he relied on his refined control over his qi and muscle movements, granting himself enhanced strength to meet them head-on. The rapid exchange between the two lasted for more than ten minutes before they finally separated, landing several meters apart.

The crowd didn’t cheer; they were far too stunned by what they were witnessing to even blink. Li Feng was doing it again... he was fighting on equal footing with someone he had absolutely no business facing according to all common sense.

Elder Ting couldn’t help but look at Li Feng before repeating what he had said several minutes earlier: "Clan Lord Li, your son is always welcome to join the Rising Waves Sect. With his talent, he truly has the chance to pass the examination and become a core disciple. Sincerely."

Li San merely smiled but didn’t comment, nor did he allow his thoughts to show outwardly. Shi Yuan’s gaze wasn’t that of someone who was angry or felt disgraced to be matched by someone obviously weaker than himself; instead, he looked thrilled as he stared at Li Feng with genuine interest.

"I must say, Young Master Feng... I really am surprised by your skills. Here I was thinking you wouldn’t be able to put up much of a fight simply because your cultivation is at a lower stage. You have completely shattered my expectations." He smiled warmly.

"So let me return the favor... by shattering your bones." He covered his mouth lightly, his smile never leaving his face. "Sorry, that came out wrong. Still, I really hope you won’t bore me now that I’ve finally decided to get serious. The warm-up is over."

Li Feng didn’t answer; he simply assumed another battle stance. He inhaled before slowly exhaling. The qi around him seemed to spike ever so slightly as he rushed forward once again. Shi Yuan smiled as he clenched his fist, waves of refined qi spiraling around his hand.

"Let’s see how you handle... Qi Blast." With that, he started punching the air. It looked meaningless... almost harmless... but it was anything but. Li Feng sensed every single one of them; the hairs on his body stood on end as every instinct screamed danger.

After all, refined qi was naturally far more powerful, and the blasts rushing toward him were even more outrageous than normal. Yet he calmed himself. He settled his mind into complete tranquility.

He imagined every qi blast rushing toward him as nothing more than the rocky arrows he had trained against countless times before. Silent Ear activated. His hearing reached a staggering level, allowing him to hear the faint sounds of qi slicing through the air.

Normally, such things couldn’t be heard, but Silent Ear allowed him to perceive what should have been completely silent. Then came the next form: Breathing Heart.

His heartbeat became perfectly steady as his breathing regulated itself, allowing the flow of qi throughout his body to move in an even more natural and vibrant manner. But that still wasn’t enough; he activated Wind Walker, and alongside it came Killing Intent Sense.

His senses soared to an astonishing level, surpassing even most Qi Refining experts. Finally, the fifth form activated in all of its glory: Natural Response. It operated at its absolute peak. With all five techniques working together, despite seeing nothing with his covered eyes, Li Feng could perceive everything happening around him.

For a brief moment, he felt as though the entire world had fallen within his perception. But that wasn’t his focus; he narrowed that perception. And then... he saw them. The countless qi blasts rushing straight toward him.

What happened next completely shocked everyone: the audience, the cultivators, the ordinary spectators, even the leaders seated above. Like the wind, Li Feng moved. Like flowing water, every one of his steps was fluid and seamless as he weaved through every incoming attack.

Not a single qi blast touched him. One explosion after another echoed behind him as the barrage slammed into the battle stage after missing their target. Boom! Boom!! Boom!!!

Even Shi Yuan couldn’t help but be completely taken aback by what he was seeing. "How...? How is he even doing that... and moving that fast?" He didn’t have the luxury of time to wonder or figure out what kind of art was allowing Li Feng to move so unnaturally.

That was because Li Feng was already right before him. His sword sliced upward in a deadly arc aimed straight for Shi Yuan’s face. Shi Yuan sidestepped the slash and immediately threw a qi-charged punch toward Li Feng’s head.

Using Ripple Step, Li Feng narrowly managed to evade the attack; at the same time, his grip on his sword loosened before he thrust it toward Shi Yuan’s rear, a position where he shouldn’t have been able to block. But just then, Li Feng felt a strange force seize his sword and halt it in place.

Shi Yuan struck immediately, but Li Feng had expected this to happen sooner or later. After all, he had already seen Shi Lan use it to defeat Li Xie: The Qi Barrier. He could clearly sense it surrounding Shi Yuan’s body like a constantly shifting mass of energy.

Unlike Shi Lan’s barrier, which was softer and far more refined, Shi Yuan’s was fiercer, spread much wider, and seemed capable of appearing at will. All of those thoughts flashed through Li Feng’s mind in an instant.

The moment his feet touched the ground, his figure flashed away. At almost the exact same time, Shi Yuan’s refined qi punch from his second hand tore toward where Li Feng’s head had been moments earlier. Shi Yuan’s gaze changed... he had been fooled.

Li Feng was already in midair, performing a spinning kick that looked far too familiar for Shi Yuan not to recognize: Gale Whip. Shi Yuan reacted with the utmost speed. His qi barrier instantly condensed behind him just as Li Feng’s Gale Whip slammed into it with cataclysmic force.

A dull pain spread across Shi Yuan’s back as he staggered forward several steps before regaining his footing. Li Feng also recovered his sword before exhaling slightly, allowing the heartbeat that had accelerated from the rapid exchange to calm once again. Shi Yuan touched his back, where the dull pain still lingered, before shaking his head.

"I sincerely... I’m impressed. But if I keep playing with you any longer, my clansmen are going to get really mad at me. So... It’s time I stop this peaceful charade." The warm smile on his face slowly twisted into something much darker.

With that, massive waves of qi gathered around his hand before he rushed forward. He was fast. Too fast. That was Li Feng’s first thought as Shi Yuan’s killing intent surged toward him, causing every hair on his body to stand on end.

Before he could even establish a proper footing, Shi Yuan unleashed a relentless barrage of qi-infused punches from every direction. They came fast. They came brutally. Li Feng immediately found himself fighting purely for survival.

Some of the blows landed. Not many. But every one that did was enough. Despite strengthening his body to the absolute limit with qi, each punch still hurt. And not by a small margin.

Shi Yuan’s attacks grew faster and faster, becoming increasingly ferocious as though his speed had no upper limit. Soon, blood began to drip from the corner of Li Feng’s mouth under the immense pressure. He was still moving with his terrifying speed, yet it was no longer enough.

As time passed, his internal injuries worsened under the endless barrage. Then he came to a sickening realization: he would lose. He even used Ripple Step and Flash Step repeatedly, attempting to create enough distance to catch his breath, but Shi Yuan refused to give him even a single moment of respite.

He continued attacking relentlessly. "If this keeps up... I will lose..." Li Feng thought. Then, his father’s voice echoed inside his mind... the very same words spoken during training: "Let your body move freely. Not by force... but by flow."

Even now, Li Feng couldn’t help but feel there was still something he hadn’t fully grasped. Was he really moving through flow? Could he dive even deeper? Was there still something missing? He wouldn’t know unless he tried.

So, he stopped trying to defend against the endless barrage. For a single second, he pushed everything to the back of his mind: the tournament, his current battle, his anger toward the two great clans. Everything. He cast it all aside.

His mind became as calm as the surface of a still lake. Yet that calm was immediately disturbed by waves of pain crashing into him. In the physical world, Li Feng’s body was sent rolling across the stage after being hammered by Shi Yuan’s punches.

The pain was real.... painful enough that he nearly lost his concentration.... but he forced even that pain away from the surface of his mind. He focused once more. He felt as though he was close. Very close.

Close to touching something. Shi Yuan waited for Li Feng to stand back up, but he didn’t. Seeing that, Shi Yuan raised an eyebrow before slowly walking toward him. When Li Feng still didn’t react, Shi Yuan shook his head with disappointment.

"So... That is as far as you can push me. I’m disappointed." He gathered wave after wave of refined qi into his hand. Even the surrounding air seemed to tremble beneath the overwhelming power. "Stand up now!" "Brother Feng, stand up!" "You can’t go down like this!"

Many from the crowd shouted desperately. They didn’t want to see Li Feng lose. At least, not like this. Shi Yuan hadn’t even been injured. Shi Yuan merely smirked before shaking his head. "Their prayers... and their shouts... They’re meaningless. I’ve already won this battle."

With that, he threw a devastating punch straight toward Li Feng’s head. But then, something strange happened. The punch clearly connected, yet there was no impact. Instead, the qi within the punch simply vanished.

At the same time, Li Feng himself seemed to disappear. Shi Yuan’s expression changed as he sensed danger, but it was already too late. Gale Whip! A powerful kick slammed into Shi Yuan’s cheek. This time, however, the force behind the attack seemed to have doubled.

Shi Yuan was blasted backward before eventually regaining his footing. Only then did he taste something. His eyes widened. Crimson blood slowly dripped from the corner of his mouth. He... had been wounded. "How...?" He looked forward. Li Feng stood there quietly, exhaling softly.

His entire aura had changed. Shi Yuan didn’t want to believe what he was sensing. "Is... is that refined qi? How did you just break through into the Qi Refining Realm...?" he muttered in utter shock.

Li Feng slowly exhaled before a faint smile curled across the corner of his lips. "I did it..." he thought. At the leaders’ seats, Li San’s eyes gleamed as a proud smile bloomed across his face.

His son... had done it. "This is utterly ridiculous... If I weren’t seeing it with my own eyes... which I certainly am... My son... has achieved the legendary State of Flow."

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Don’t Forget To Vote... Power Stones and Some Shinning Golden Tickets