Chapter 101: Defeating Sun He

Chapter 101: Defeating Sun He

He did not know that Qin Feng's physical body had long since reached "Golden Standard Human Level II."

Under the same vitality index, Qin Feng's explosive power, speed, and reaction far exceeded ordinary people.

A vitality index of 16.5, in actual performance, was already in no way inferior to his own 18.1 as an ordinary martial artist!

In fact, in terms of endurance and recovery, Qin Feng even surpassed him!

Sun He refused to believe it. He let out a furious roar and pushed his staff technique to its absolute limit.

One strike!

Two strikes!

Ten strikes!

A hundred strikes!

On the arena, staff shadows flew, sparks scattering everywhere.

Sun He poured out all his strength like a raging storm, relentless and unending.

But Qin Feng's "Thousand Troops Guard" stood like a reef amidst surging waves—no matter the wind or rain, he remained unmoved.

The battle lasted five minutes.

Ten minutes.

Fifteen minutes.

Sun He's offensive began to show visible signs of weakening.

Sweat beaded on his forehead, his breathing grew heavy, and the speed and power of his short staff swings steadily declined.

Prolonged explosive exertion had drained his stamina enormously.

In contrast, Qin Feng still stood in place, his breathing long and steady, his aura calm, as if the fierce assault had left no mark on him.

As one waned and the other waxed, the balance of attack and defense had quietly shifted.

A deep sense of helplessness surged in Sun He's heart.

He knew that if this continued, he would surely lose.

The only outcome would be to have his stamina completely drained, then be effortlessly defeated.

He could not accept such an end!

Just then, he spotted a "flaw" in Qin Feng's defensive circle.

After one parry, Qin Feng's spear momentum faltered for a split second, leaving an opening on the left larger than any before.

This was a chance!

A chance that might be a trap!

The thought flashed through Sun He's mind in an instant.

But he had no choice left.

Bet it all!

A glint of resolve shone in his eyes. He squeezed out every ounce of remaining strength, channeling it into the short staff in his right hand!

His figure shot forward like an arrow from a bow, forcibly breaking through the spear's blockade, charging straight at that fatal opening!

"Strike Heaven Staff!"

He roared, the short staff in his hand blazing with blinding light, carrying an unstoppable momentum straight for Qin Feng's head!

This was his deadliest killing move!

Yet, just as he stepped into that "opening," just as he unleashed his strike—when his old strength was spent and new strength had yet to arise—

Qin Feng moved.

All of this was within his calculations.

With the "Wandering Dragon Step" activated beneath his feet, Qin Feng drifted backward several meters like a phantom, perfectly evading the edge of "Strike Heaven Staff" and creating an ideal counterattack distance.

Then, his retreating form abruptly halted. With a twist of his waist and abdomen, he thrust his long spear upward from an almost impossible angle!

A back-thrust spear!

"Flowing Light Chasing Shadow!"

A streak of silver light, nearly imperceptible to the naked eye, flashed through the air. Launched later, it arrived first, aimed at Sun He's chest—wide open from his all-out attack!

At that moment, time seemed to slow.

Every spectator clearly saw this decisive scene.

Sun He's "Strike Heaven Staff," with its world-shattering momentum, stopped just a hair's breadth from Qin Feng's cheek.

The fierce staff wind even stirred the strands of hair on Qin Feng's forehead.

But in the end, it fell short by that tiny margin.

Meanwhile, Qin Feng's spear tip—that soul-seizing streak of light—pierced through Sun He's chest armor without hindrance, with deadly precision.

"Pfft!"

A soft sound.

The resolve on Sun He's face froze.

He looked down at the gaping hole in his chest, his eyes filled with disbelief.

Then, his entire body dissolved into countless shattered specks of light, vanishing from the arena.

[Qin Feng, wins!]

The cold system announcement echoed through the entire spectator channel.

In an instant, the tens of thousands in the chat room fell into dead silence.

It was as if an invisible hand had pressed everyone's pause button.

Every student watching—whether new or old—stared blankly at the tall, spear-wielding figure on the arena, and at the look of utter disbelief on Sun He's face before he dissolved into light.

This silence lasted a full ten seconds.

Then, like a deep-sea bomb dropped into a calm lake, the entire spectator channel exploded!

The first to erupt were those fans who had believed in Qin Feng with fervent faith from start to finish.

"He won! He won! I knew it! God Qin is amazing!! (Voice crack)"

"Hahaha! You said God Qin couldn't last three minutes! What now?"

"What does it mean to be the freshman king? (Tactical lean back) This is the true worth of the freshman king!"

"Offense and defense in one, tactics unmatched! So cool! From today, I'm the number one member of Qin Feng's fan club!"

"Don't stop me—I'm going to the forum to build a ten-thousand-floor support post for God Qin!"

Their words brimmed with vindicated joy and boundless adoration for their idol, instantly flooding the chat room into a sea of celebration.

Next came the far larger group of ordinary first-year students.

Their reaction was far from pure joy; it was more a kind of speechlessness and confusion, as if struck by an immense chasm.

"...Is he really a freshman in the same year as us?"

"Here I was, smug about making it into the top three thousand on the monthly exam, and he's already beaten the best senior from the sophomore class... This gap is hopeless."

"Every attack from Senior Sun He was terrifyingly powerful. If it were me, I couldn't even block one strike. But Qin Feng... he actually won. Is this really a freshman who entered school with me?"

"That last trap was too frightening."

"I heard Qin Feng ranked over sixty thousand in the high school entrance exam—barely scraping by."

"Stop talking. I'm going into seclusion."

"I thought getting into Qiyi High made me a child of destiny, but now I realize, in front of true monsters, we're no different from ordinary people."

These freshmen's words were filled with the frustration of being hit by a vast gap in reality.

Earlier, when Qin Feng won the Freshman King title, many students didn't think much of it.

After all, plenty of freshmen hadn't even signed up for the Qiming League, so naturally they hadn't watched it. Besides, the Freshman King, no matter how kingly, was still just a king among freshmen.

But now, Qin Feng had defeated an upperclassman!

And not just any upperclassman—Sun He, who had mastered a complete killing technique and was considered top-tier even among seniors!

Qin Feng's victory was like a mirror, reflecting the unbridgeable chasm between them and true top-tier geniuses, making them doubt their own "genius" status for the first time.

The most shocking reactions came from the sophomores and juniors.

After a brief silence, their chat area was flooded with comments full of shock and technical analysis.

"No way? I must be seeing things. Sun He... lost?"

"How did he lose? Can someone explain? Sun He's perfected 'Heaven and Earth Staff' was dominating the whole fight, then he got countered by a single spear thrust?"

"The guy above didn't get it, did he? The key isn't the final counter—it's the whole process! Sun He couldn't break through his defense! And his strength, his stamina—they're all off!"

"Exactly! Strength! I just pulled up the data replay. Sun He's peak force on a full-power strike was 19,800 kg, but when Qin Feng blocked with his spear shaft, the feedback force was also 19,500 kg! That's not the strength a 16.5 vitality index should have!"

"And stamina—that's the scariest part! Sun He attacked at high intensity for fifteen minutes, his stamina nearly bottomed out. Look at Qin Feng—his breathing barely changed! What is his body made of? A star beast?!"

"His tactics were too seasoned. From start to finish, he used 'Thousand Troops Guard' to drain Sun He's stamina, forcing him into mistakes. That last opening was baited perfectly—he calculated that Sun He, exhausted, would have to go all out."

"Monster... This isn't just a genius. This is a true monster. He's only a freshman, just three months into school... I can't imagine what he'll be like by junior year."

"Who was it that said if Sun He lost, they'd eat the entire B-level energy meal tray? Come out, I'm watching."

The seniors' shock came from their deep understanding of the power system.

Precisely because they understood, they could better appreciate the true value of Qin Feng's victory.

A martial artist with a merely accomplished killing technique, despite being behind in all hardware aspects, relied on unbelievable strength, stamina, and perfect tactics to defeat a stronger opponent whose body was tougher and whose killing technique had reached perfection.

In their eyes, Qin Feng's only advantage was the weapon type counter.

And that counter alone shouldn't have been enough to secure victory—yet in the end, Qin Feng won.

Ridiculous.

Absolutely ridiculous.

...

Inside the cafeteria.

In front of that pitch-black tray, Qin Feng and Sun He's figures both flickered almost simultaneously, their eyes regaining clarity.

Their minds withdrew from the sub-space network.

Sun He sat in his chair, a trace of bewilderment and disbelief lingering in his eyes from the end of the battle.

He stared blankly at his own hands, as if still savoring that feeling of helplessness on the arena.

He had lost.

Lost without any excuse.

He had imagined he might get injured due to carelessness, but he never thought he would be defeated so thoroughly—drained of stamina, lured by tactics, and left with no way back.

After a long while, he let out a long breath.

That breath seemed to carry away all the shock and unwillingness in his heart, leaving only a sense of release and heartfelt admiration.

He raised his head, looked at Qin Feng across from him, and a complex smile appeared on his face—bitter, yes, but more than that, genuine respect.

A month ago, this junior couldn't even last thirty seconds against him.

A month later, he could defeat him in a way that bordered on overwhelming.

This rate of growth could no longer be described as "genius."

(End of chapter)