My Clones Can Cultivate

Liyu raised an eyebrow as he watched the large guy's body begin to emit a strange grayish glow.

The glow spread through every part of his body, moving from his head to his feet, covering his chest, arms, legs, and every other visible part until his entire body, including his head, was completely covered by the metallic glow.

His skin seemed to melt. Or maybe not. Liyu couldn't really tell. What he could see was that the skin around Haoran's body seemed to change before becoming normal once more. Well, not exactly normal.

The big guy had changed entirely. Gone was the calm young man who had been standing there with an amused smile on his face. Instead, what stood in his place was a figure emitting a soft gray light around his entire body.

No. That was wrong. It seemed that the slightly dark shade of gray was his true body now rather than something merely covering it. Liyu's eyebrow remained raised as he wondered what kind of combat art allowed Guan Haoran to transform his body like this.

He continued pondering while looking at the big guy. Then Haoran moved.

Liyu immediately raised his guard as he waited for the large guy to launch an attack. But the attack never came. Instead of rushing toward him, Haoran merely stared at him before crossing his arms right across his chest.

His metallic eyes remained locked onto Liyu as he spoke. His voice sounded deeper than before and carried a strange hint of power within it. "Now then… come at me with everything you have."

His voice was calm and unwavering. Liyu raised an eyebrow at the guy's words. He took a few seconds to process what Haoran had just said before he was finally able to understand it.

Wait. Was this guy really saying that he was simply going to stand there and allow Liyu to attack him with the strongest attack he had? To confirm what he had heard, Liyu asked, "You are going to stay there and tank my attack?

Is that what you mean?" He asked while looking at Haoran with an uncertain gaze. Was Haoran simply trying to look cool right now? He didn't seem like a fool.

At least, from the little interaction they had shared, Liyu didn't think the guy was one. But after hearing those words, he might very well be. Haoran nodded. "Trust me, pal. I'm trying to give you the advantage here."

He paused for a moment before continuing. "If you throw everything you have at me, you will be able to see for yourself whether you can still win this battle or whether admitting defeat is what you are going to choose."

Liyu listened to everything the big guy said. His face remained calm and composed. Then, after a while, a grin appeared on his face. "As you wish, then." He slowly rolled his shoulders.

"Since this is what you want, let me indulge you." Liyu said before taking a step forward. A second step followed. And by the time his third step reached the ground...

He vanished.

Guan Haoran's gaze immediately sharpened as he sensed the fluctuation in the spirit flow around him. He could tell where Liyu was going to appear. However, he didn't move. He wasn't going to. Haoran wanted to see how hard Liyu could strike.

How much force did his attacks carry? How powerful was the person who had managed to defeat Shi Mo and force everyone to recognize him as the Honored One?

He wanted to gauge Liyu's strength for himself before deciding how he was going to finish this match. The next second, Haoran heard Liyu's voice. "First Form…" Liyu appeared directly in front of him.

"First Slap." Liyu's palm connected cleanly with Haoran's face. The slap carried an overwhelming and brutal intensity. PAH! A loud sound echoed outward with terrifying force. The wind itself shifted as the sound reverberated throughout the entire Ray Arena.

All eyes immediately turned toward the scene below. And the moment they saw what happened next... They were shocked.

Guan Haoran was still standing exactly where he had been.

His arms remained crossed over his chest, and his posture was calm and relaxed. He looked as composed as ever. His head hadn't even been jolted sideways by the force of Liyu's slap.

Heck, his head hadn't moved even an inch under the force of Liyu's attack. Liyu's palm was still pressed against Haoran's face, yet a slight sense of disappointment began to stir within the large man's chest.

Haoran slowly turned his head and locked his metallic gaze onto Liyu. Liyu was staring back at him with a shocked expression. He could clearly see that his attack hadn't left even the slightest scratch on Haoran's face. Actually, Guan Haoran hadn't even felt it.

Turning his head fully to face Liyu, who stood to his right, Haoran spoke calmly. "Tell me… is this all you've got?" He paused for a moment before continuing. "If this is all…" His gaze narrowed slightly.

"Then I would be highly disappointed." Liyu slowly pulled his hand away from Haoran's cheek before giving a small, reckless shrug. "Who knows?" A wicked smile appeared on his face. "Since that didn't work, let me try another one, then." Haoran didn't respond.

However, there didn't seem to be any reason for him to. The fact that he still hadn't uncrossed his arms from his chest already revealed exactly what he was thinking. He was waiting for Liyu to give it everything he had. And he would take it all.

Liyu grinned. Cocky brat, he thought. He blew lightly on his hands before rubbing his palms together. His gaze sharpened. Then, using Primal Step, he appeared directly in front of Guan Haoran once more. "Second Form…" Liyu raised both hands. "Multi Slap."

The moment he uttered those words, his hands moved. His palms began striking Guan Haoran faster and faster, each slap carrying insane speed and brutal force.

PAH! PAH! PAH! The sounds echoed throughout the entire arena over and over again. The wind whistled violently as Liyu's palms struck Guan Haoran's face again and again. Each slap sounded like a miniature thunderclap.

Liyu didn't hold back. His arms moved so quickly that they became nothing more than blurry afterimages. His palms rained down upon Haoran's face with overwhelming speed and brutality. PAH! PAH! PAH! PAH! The barrage continued. Seconds passed.

Then more seconds. And before anyone could properly understand what was happening, nearly an entire minute had gone by. Finally, Liyu stopped. He lowered his hands and stared at Guan Haoran.

The large man was still standing in the exact same position. His arms remained crossed over his chest. His gaze was sharp and calm. His metallic body didn't possess even the slightest scratch. Nothing.

There wasn't a single mark on him. His body looked exactly the same as it had before Liyu unleashed the Multi Slap. For a moment, Liyu was genuinely startled.

This guy had to be a monster in his own right to take all those attacks without experiencing even the slightest change in his expression. Heck, Haoran looked as though he was enjoying it.

Guan Haoran slowly turned toward him. His expression remained the same as before. Calm. Composed. However, the disappointment within his eyes could no longer be hidden. "Tell me that you're still holding back."

His gaze narrowed slightly. "If this is all you can do, then I would be more than disappointed." He paused. "Really." Guan Haoran had hoped that Liyu would be strong enough to stimulate him for a while.

He had hoped that Liyu would be capable of warming him up before his true battle. The battle he was looking forward to the most. The battle against the Shi Devil. Shi Tian.

If Liyu knew that Guan Haoran only wanted to use him as a warm-up before facing Shi Tian, he would probably have immediately changed his plan. He had initially decided not to beat the big guy too badly.

But after learning that Haoran merely wanted to use him as a warm-up... Liyu would make sure the guy didn't leave this stage without standing at death's door.

"If this is the kind of strength and attacks that took down those before me…" Haoran's gaze became sharper. "Then I hate to say this, but they are weak." He paused before looking directly into Liyu's eyes. "Just like you."

Haoran had only said those words for one reason. He wanted to rile Liyu up. He wanted to force him to become more serious. Because Guan Haoran was certain of something. The person he had found interesting couldn't possibly be this weak. He absolutely couldn't be.

However, his attempt at provoking Liyu failed. The young man still looked calm and composed. "I see." Liyu rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I can have a few more tries, right?"

He asked while looking at Guan Haoran. Haoran gave a small nod. "Make me feel something with your next attack." Liyu nodded. "Okay, then." He looked down at his palm. "Since the First Form failed…"

His gaze shifted toward Haoran. "And the same happened with the Second Form…" A small grin appeared on his face. "I should use the Third Form, then." Maybe it would finally trigger something, Liyu thought.

Then he moved. He appeared directly in front of Haoran once more. This time, instead of raising his hand toward Haoran's face, Liyu placed his palm directly against the large man's chest. His gaze sharpened. "Third Form…"

A powerful surge of strength gathered within his palm. "Heart-Quaking Slap." BAM! A loud shockwave resonated outward. The force of the attack spread through the entire stage, causing the air around them to tremble.

Liyu was certain that this attack would finally bring the large guy to his knees. However, when he looked up...

The smile on his face froze. Guan Haoran was still standing there. He hadn't taken even a single step backward.

His arms were still crossed over his chest. The large man merely looked down at Liyu. The disappointment within his eyes continued to grow as his expression became more and more certain.

"Come on…" Haoran spoke with a disappointed sigh. "That doesn't even begin to make me feel anything."

It was now Liyu's turn to have the corner of his mouth start twitching as he realized something. This guy over here is a freak. At the Guan camp, Guan Xueyi's gaze shone slightly as she looked at the scene before her, a small smile appearing on her face.

It seems that Brother Hao is going all out from the very start, Xueyi thought. With Iron Skin activated from the beginning of the battle, she doubted that Liyu would be able to deal any meaningful damage to him.

Even she, despite possessing deadly offensive combat abilities, had found it extremely difficult to leave even a few scratches on Haoran's Iron Skin.

She heaved a sigh of relief after seeing that Haoran had decided to go all out from the start. Then, she relaxed in her seat. The battle will end the moment Haoran decides to fight back.

Meanwhile, far away from Ray City… Far away from the Night Region… Deep within the Beast Forest… All three of Liyu's reflections were busy cultivating. Or rather, only two of them were cultivating.

The third one looked more like he was sleeping. King Rayden and Dead Eye Rayden sat in meditative poses, their expressions calm as they cultivated according to the instructions Liyu had given them beforehand.

A few minutes after they had successfully grasped the Foundation Breathing Sutra, they decided who would be responsible for cultivating. Two of them would cultivate while the third stood guard.

After all, they weren't inside some luxurious resort or anything like that. They were currently within the Beast Forest. A forest teeming with all kinds of dangers. The home of Spirit Beasts possessing different ranks and stages.

Which, in human terms, were equivalent to different cultivation realms and stages. It was a place where even veteran hunters didn't dare to wander carelessly. If they weren't careful, they could die before even realizing what had killed them.

Yeah… That was the kind of place the group was currently in. Although they were only in the outer region of the Beast Forest and hadn't ventured deep into its dangerous depths, where high-level threats were bound to be lurking, there was still no doubt that this place was far from safe.

Therefore, they needed someone reliable to stand guard. And out of the three of them, the least reliable without any argument was Lazy Rayden. The guy wanted nothing more than to lie down and doze off.

Putting their lives in his hands sounded completely crazy. So, they asked him to cultivate instead. The bastard fell asleep the very next second. Therefore, King Rayden decided to make him stand guard.

At the very least, he should be capable of warning them if danger approached. That much, he should be able to manage. At least, that was what they believed when they allowed him to stand guard.

They had been cultivating for several long minutes now, and the guy hadn't disturbed them even once. Neither had they been attacked by any Spirit Beast or encountered any other danger.

So, at the very least, it looked as though he was doing his job.

It was during this moment of thought that King Rayden suddenly felt his body being struck by a wave of Qi. It wasn't an attack. Instead, it was a signal. A signal informing him that danger was approaching. His eyes snapped open.

The same happened to Dead Eye Rayden, who was sitting beside him. The two reflections immediately turned toward the third Rayden. Lazy Rayden was lying atop a thick tree branch. One of his eyes was half-lidded while the other remained completely closed.

He looked as though he had fallen asleep. However, no… At the very least, he wasn't fully asleep. "We have some trouble, it seems," Lazy Rayden spoke. King Rayden raised an eyebrow before looking around. Several dead Spirit Beasts were scattered throughout the area.

They must have all been killed by the lazy clone. Which was quite efficient, it seemed. The beasts had all died from a single strike or something close to that. Really efficient.

However, that wasn't what King Rayden was looking for. Instead, he searched for the danger Lazy Rayden had mentioned. Yet, no matter how carefully he looked, he couldn't find anything. King Rayden turned his gaze back toward Lazy Rayden. "What danger?"

His gaze narrowed. "Where is it?" The lazy guy slowly sat up from his sleeping position before raising a hand and pointing behind himself. "They'll be here in…" He paused.

"Three…" "Two…" "One…" Immediately after the countdown ended— BOOM! A massive explosion echoed throughout the forest.

Violent waves of bestial Qi erupted outward, suffocating the very air around them. The ground trembled. Nearby trees shook violently as an overwhelming heat swept through the entire area.

Then… Something walked out from between the trees. The trees surrounding it had been burned black, as though they had been scorched in an instant. The figure that emerged was a beast. It possessed the enormous body of a hulking, massive gorilla.

Four large spikes protruded from its back, and every one of them burned with blazing crimson flames. Its body radiated immense heat. The temperature around them rose rapidly as the beast slowly approached the three reflections.

King Rayden's gaze sharpened. Dead Eye Rayden's hand moved toward his weapon. Meanwhile, Lazy Rayden remained seated atop the tree branch, his half-lidded eye staring down at the beast with little interest. The enormous gorilla stopped before them.

Its crimson eyes locked onto the three reflections. Then, it spoke. Its voice was deep, furious, and filled with overwhelming killing intent.

"Where is the Primal Tyrant?" The beast growled.