My Clones Can Cultivate

Chapter 110

"This is impossible!" That was what Shi Yuan’s mind screamed at him as he sensed all the qi he had spread outward being absorbed; and the moment his senses locked onto what was absorbing it, his heart nearly stopped cold in his chest.

Li Feng’s sword arched through the air at terrifying speed, his qi being amplified by the very qi Shi Yuan had released. His own qi was being used against him. Shi Yuan immediately strengthened his qi barrier as he forcefully pulled himself away from the incoming strike; it was close, far too close.

Even then, the barrier was sliced right through once more. A large Gale Slash tore across Shi Yuan’s face, leaving a vertical crimson gash stretching upward. The pain burned; the agony was unbearable.

Yet even greater than the pain was the overwhelming shock. Shi Yuan hurriedly retreated as fast as he could, creating distance between himself and Li Feng; his heart pounded violently inside his chest. "What is happening? How can he take my qi from me and use it against me? How is that even possible?"

He couldn’t help but stare at Li Feng as though he were looking at an actual monster. Just... how was he doing that? Of course, Shi Yuan had only heard of the legendary State of Flow; he knew almost nothing about the true abilities that came with entering such a state.

Its abilities were mysterious and varied, and very few people truly understood them. Yet Shi Yuan was experiencing those abilities firsthand. One could say he was lucky... lucky enough to witness and battle someone who had entered the legendary State of Flow... but at the same time, he was incredibly unlucky, because the very person standing before him was someone who had entered the State of Flow.

All the leaders seated on the high platform had already reached the same conclusion: it was meaningless for Shi Yuan to continue fighting. He was going to lose. But Shi Yuan refused to accept that reality.

No, he couldn’t lose. If this wasn’t enough, then he would simply have to try even harder. He would not lose, no matter what. Taking another battle stance, he abandoned all thoughts of defending; this time, he would go completely on the offensive.

Li Feng remained calm and composed. His sword rested loosely within his grip as fresh blood dripped from the crimson wounds he had carved across Shi Yuan’s body. Within his black-and-white perception, he noticed the red aura surrounding Shi Yuan growing significantly brighter.

"He is burning through his energy reserves," Li Feng concluded in a single instant. "It doesn’t matter. Whether he burns through his qi or not, at the end of the day, he won’t be able to defeat me. Especially not... the current me."

Li Feng slowly walked forward once more, one calm step after another. Shi Yuan’s heart thumped loudly... once, then a second time. As Li Feng took another step, Shi Yuan’s expression became increasingly tense; then, fear slowly crept into his eyes. He was scared; he was truly scared.

"Damn it... if this continues, I’m going to lose."

Unable to endure the pressure any longer, Shi Yuan finally moved; his qi erupted to its absolute peak. Then he attacked. His figure tore through the air at incredible speed as a Flame Punch ripped through space toward Li Feng’s head.

Li Feng merely sidestepped it with almost effortless ease; a kick immediately swung toward Shi Yuan’s head. He managed to block it, yet the impact behind that kick was just as terrifying as before.

His internal organs twisted violently from the immense force behind the blow. Shi Yuan spun in midair, desperately trying to regain his balance, but while he was still airborne and just about to land, a figure suddenly flashed before him: Li Feng.

His sword was already descending toward Shi Yuan’s head. Shi Yuan’s eyes dimmed slightly... there was no dodging this; he had seen the attack far too late. Instinctively, he shut his eyes.

At the very last moment, Li Feng changed the thrust into a slash. The blade swept downward; skin split apart, fresh crimson blood trickled down Shi Yuan’s face, and pain exploded through him.

He groaned. Trying to retreat, he staggered backward, but Li Feng had already had enough. Using Flash Step, he appeared before Shi Yuan so quickly that Shi Yuan barely had time to register what had happened. Another wave of searing pain erupted; fresh crimson blood splattered into the air.

Li Feng’s expression remained calm, cold, and composed, yet beneath that calm exterior, he was raging. He hated the hypocrisy of the two great clans; they had shamelessly ganged up against weaker opponents.

He would make every one of them regret that decision. Just as he had done to Guan Xiu, he would do the same to Shi Yuan. Li Feng’s movements became even faster... faster and faster.

His black sword danced through the air over and over again with terrifying speed and flawless precision; its edge was sharpened by qi, its force amplified by the surrounding world qi. Every strike not only sliced open Shi Yuan’s flesh but also sent waves of destructive qi crashing into his body, violently rupturing his insides.

During the first few exchanges, Shi Yuan relied on sheer grit and determination to endure, but as the battle dragged on, the injuries continued piling up.

The pain became increasingly unbearable; eventually, his body began slowing down. The agony made every movement sluggish, which in turn caused him to suffer even more attacks, which in turn caused even greater pain. A vicious cycle.

Soon, before Shi Yuan could create enough distance between himself and the monster called Li Feng, Li Feng’s kick connected. Shi Yuan was knocked off balance, falling face-first toward the ground; but before he could even crash, another kick... this one empowered by the surrounding world qi... slammed into him with overwhelming force.

Shi Yuan was blasted high into the air; his body spun helplessly as unbearable pain ravaged every inch of him. Still reeling from the endless barrage, he suddenly sensed overwhelming danger.

Looking downward, he saw Li Feng standing below, exhaling calmly, almost as though he had only just begun fighting. His stance, his gaze, everything about him screamed one thing: the real danger was only beginning.

Every instinct within Shi Yuan screamed at him that he would not survive what was about to come.

Without hesitation, he gathered every remaining ounce of qi within his body... not to form a qi barrier, for those were useless now... instead, he used every bit of qi to harden every part of his body to its absolute limit: his muscles, his bones, his organs, every single part of himself.

And the very moment he completed that desperate last-ditch defense, the attack arrived.

Li Feng appeared in midair as he muttered under his breath, "Gale Slash Barrage." The attacks rained down upon Shi Yuan... fast, sharp, utterly relentless, and completely merciless.

His body held on for only a few seconds before wave after wave of unbearable pain crashed into him. The tortured screams Shi Yuan had been desperately holding back all this while to preserve his image were finally thrown out the window; the pain slamming into him every second was simply too overwhelming for him to endure in silence.

His body trembled violently as crimson blood sprayed everywhere, his agonizing cries echoing throughout the arena. Everyone gasped as they stared at Li Feng’s brutality.

Despite his calm demeanor, what he was doing was anything but calm; it was almost as if Shi Yuan had stolen his wife or something of the sort. The referee instinctively wanted to step in, but then he saw his superior: Elder Ting simply shook his head.

The referee paused; he could see it as well. Despite how it appeared to the public that Li Feng was trying to kill Shi Yuan, the truth was the exact opposite. Not a single one of Li Feng’s attacks targeted a fatal point; he wasn’t trying to kill him, he was deliberately inflicting pain, deliberately torturing him.

It was obvious to anyone with enough experience to see through the attacks. Li Feng had taken revenge for the humiliation his two comrades had suffered at the hands of the two great clans, and his vengeance was nothing short of terrifying.

Clan Lord Guan forced himself to suppress a chuckle as he looked toward Shi Gubing, whose expression had become incredibly ugly, almost as though he had swallowed a live toad. "And here I thought Guan Xiu’s defeat was terrifying," Guan Ju said with a sigh. "Yet that kid has gone and made one of the Shi Clan’s geniuses cry like a child."

He deliberately wore a sympathetic expression as he looked toward Shi Gubing. "I’m sorry, my good friend. It pains both of us to see one of your top geniuses so completely humiliated by someone of a lower realm. But seeing as that kid has achieved something even you have never dreamed of accomplishing, I suppose we really shouldn’t be too surprised by the outcome."

Although Guan Ju’s tone sounded sincere, Shi Gubing knew perfectly well the bastard was merely taking revenge for all the taunts he himself had made earlier. Shi Gubing said nothing; he was simply furious.

Li Feng humiliating Shi Yuan was no different from dragging the Shi Clan’s reputation through the dirt. The audience themselves wore expressions of complete disbelief as they stared at the shocking scene before them.

Soon, Li Feng landed calmly upon the stage. Moments later, Shi Yuan’s battered body crashed heavily onto the ground. Li Feng looked at him for a few moments before slowly shaking his head; the rage within him still burned fiercely, but if he continued any further, he might actually kill him.

So he calmly sheathed his sword. It was obvious to everyone present that the battle had already ended.

The referee stepped onto the stage and loudly declared, "Li Feng wins! The true genius of the Li Clan has once again shown us why he bears that title! He has defeated two opponents a full realm above himself!

And not only that, he has achieved a feat unprecedented throughout history... he has entered the legendary State of Flow while still in the Qi Gathering Realm! Truly astonishing!" After recovering from their initial shock at Li Feng’s brutality, the crowd erupted into thunderous cheers.

The result had long since become obvious; Shi Yuan could no longer stand. He couldn’t even walk. Meanwhile, apart from the wounds Li Feng had received during the early stages of the battle, he looked perfectly capable of beating another opponent into the ground.

The cheers continued echoing throughout the arena. Well, everyone cheered except for the supporters of the Shi Clan. As Shi Yuan was carried away, his gaze trembled with deep fear... not because of Li Feng.

Although he had indeed developed fear toward him, compared to a certain someone, his fear of Li Feng was insignificant. His gaze slowly shifted toward the Shi Clan’s seats; it finally settled upon a certain young man whose eyes remained closed, his expression as impassive as ever.

Shi Yuan couldn’t help but feel as though those closed eyes were silently telling him, "You failed. You will die." His heart trembled violently. His mind flashed back to the time when he and the other three candidates had gathered to receive battle advice from the Shi Clan’s number one genius... the son of the Clan Lord, the Devil of the Shi Clan, Shi Tian. A prodigy among prodigies.

A monster among monsters. They had all been excited to finally meet him; after all, he was practically a legend within the clan, and very few people ever had the chance to even see him. So when they heard they would be personally instructed by him, they had all been overjoyed.

Yet the intense training they had expected never came; instead, Shi Tian merely spoke a few simple words. Yet those few words planted a fear within them unlike anything they had ever experienced.

"You all must win your matches. Whether your opponent is from the Guan Clan or the Li Clan, you are not allowed to lose. You are not allowed to disgrace the Shi Clan." He paused.

Then, he calmly delivered the final sentence: "Either you win, or you lose your life, because the moment you lose and bring shame upon this clan, consider yourself dead. I will personally kill you." Their hearts pounded in perfect synchronization.

At that moment, every one of them swore they would win, because everyone knew one thing: the Devil of the Shi Clan never made empty threats. If he said he would kill someone, then he would.

Back in the present, Shi Yuan’s eyes dimmed. He suddenly felt as though death was drawing near. "Am I really going to die? If so, then there was no point treating his injuries. He would simply end up dead anyway." He sighed inwardly.

He truly didn’t want to die, but he had no idea how he was supposed to survive Shi Tian’s wrath. After all, Shi Tian’s history of slaughter and merciless executions had long since become common knowledge.

Everyone knew he never joked around, and there was no forgiveness in his eyes. He would kill him, without question. "...I still don’t want to die."

That was Shi Yuan’s final thought. The exhaustion, the pain, the numbness, and the overwhelming fear all crashed down upon him at once; his consciousness faded into darkness.

Elder Ting turned toward Li San. "Clan Lord Li, I have another proposal." Li San raised an eyebrow. "Your son’s talent is beyond rare. Even if he doesn’t win this tournament, he will still be welcomed into the Rising Waves Sect. I can personally guarantee him a Core Disciple position.

He won’t even need to take the entrance examination." Li San smiled before replying, "I will consider your generous offer later. But there are still battles left to watch. I’ll make my decision after he loses." Li San... and everyone else... knew one thing for certain: Li Feng couldn’t maintain the State of Flow forever.

Once exhaustion overtook him, he would lose, leaving only Li Yuexin to fight for the Li Clan. Meanwhile, Li Feng voluntarily exited the State of Flow, allowing the immense pressure upon his body to fade.

His body, his mind, even his soul all felt weak for a brief moment before gradually recovering to their normal state. Li Feng sighed softly. "I can probably only use the State of Flow one more time. Any more than that, and I’ll collapse under the burden. Still, one final use would be enough. Enough to defeat one more opponent."

Removing the black blindfold covering his eyes, he looked toward the Guan Clan’s seating area. His gaze landed upon the large young man named Haoran; he observed him briefly before looking away. He’s strong.

Very strong. Yet... he didn’t give Li Feng the same overwhelming sense of danger.

His gaze slowly shifted toward the Shi Clan. It finally landed upon Shi Tian. Throughout every battle that had taken place, Shi Tian had never once opened his eyes; it was as though every match was nothing more than meaningless background noise.

’He’s arrogant, but he’s also the most dangerous person here," Li Feng thought as every instinct within him rang with warning.

Since he could only enter the State of Flow one more time, he had to use it against this person; only after defeating him could he entrust the remaining battles to Yuexin.

Steadying his racing heart despite the immense pressure radiating from Shi Tian, Li Feng calmly spoke: "I challenge you, Shi Tian. Come onto the stage." The moment those words left his mouth, the three Shi Clan candidates seated only a short distance away from Shi Tian all flinched simultaneously.

They looked at Li Feng as though he had completely lost his mind. *He’s dead...* Shi Meng thought. "He’s insane..." Shi Mo muttered as his heart began racing wildly. "He’s a fool. A complete fool. A very big fool...* Shi Lan thought as cold sweat trickled down his back.

Out of everyone here, why did he have to challenge the Devil? Seeing their reactions, Li Feng became even more convinced. *I was right. This guy is trouble.* And that only strengthened his resolve; he had to defeat Shi Tian, otherwise, Yuexin would never stand a chance.

"Come onto the stage," he repeated calmly. At the leaders’ platform, Shi Gubing slowly leaned back in his chair. A wicked smile spread across his face. *That brat has just made the biggest mistake of his life. Of all the people he could have challenged, he chose Tian.*

Even Shi Gubing himself, there were times when his own son made him feel nervous. Shi Tian was a devil, both literally and figuratively.

Li Feng, along with everyone present, was about to learn exactly why the entire Shi Clan feared the Devil. He was doomed.