Chapter 195: Greatly Defeating Qin Yonglin! One Year to Consummate Killing Method! Monster Qin

Chapter 195: Great Defeat of Qin Yonglin! One Year, Kill Art Perfected! Monster Qin Feng! Ultimate Enlightenment Stele!

For a moment, all eyes turned toward the sound.

There, on the other side of the tavern, near the bar, a tall, square-jawed youth slowly rose to his feet.

He wore the simplest gray training robes, and on his back was a weapon wrapped in thick cloth, thicker and heavier than an ordinary staff.

His features were unremarkable, but his eyes blazed with an astonishing light, as if two unquenchable flames burned within them.

The moment he stood, a pure and overwhelming aura radiated naturally from him.

"It's Senior Qin Yonglin!"

"Staff Fanatic Qin Yonglin!"

Among the crowd, someone immediately recognized him, letting out a low gasp.

It was the martial arts fanatic senior who had previously, in the Imperial Arena, used his superior staff technique [Heavenly Yuan Staff] to directly defeat Qin Feng's ultimate move [Qian Yuan]—Qin Yonglin!

The tension, already taut as a drawn bowstring, did not diminish when Qin Yonglin rose; instead, it grew sharper.

Ning Jing withdrew his battle intent aimed at Qin Feng, turned sideways toward Qin Yonglin, and made a crisp "after you" gesture: "Since Senior Qin Yonglin wants to fight first, I naturally have no objection. Perfect timing—I'd like to observe closely and see just how far Qin Feng has come."

His demeanor was open and magnanimous, with no trace of displeasure.

For true martial arts seekers like them, witnessing a top-tier duel was as valuable as fighting themselves.

"Haha, thanks for the favor, Junior Ning Jing!"

Qin Yonglin strode with large steps toward Qin Feng's table. With each step, the alloy floor beneath him seemed to tremble slightly.

He made no effort to hide his surging battle intent, his eyes burning as he fixed them on Qin Feng, laughing loudly: "Fighting Junior Qin Feng again—I've been thinking about it for a whole year!

Just the thought makes my blood boil, and this staff in my hands is itching for action!"

His bold, straightforward words instantly drew a wave of good-natured laughter from the crowd in Iron Fist Tavern.

"Haha, Qin Beast has become a hot commodity!"

"Right! Who wouldn't want to fight a monster like him? I tell you, I dream of it! But I'm not strong enough—I'd just be asking for a beating!"

The atmosphere in the tavern ignited instantly. Everyone set down their drinks, chattering excitedly, their eyes darting between Qin Feng and Qin Yonglin.

"Can't blame them—Qin Feng's record is just too insane,"

a seasoned senior student remarked with a sigh, counting on his fingers as if reciting a list: "Just look: entrance exam—his physical aptitude test directly burst the testing pod;

Then the Canaan Freshman Cup, earning the title 'Qin Beast';

Forty years to open the apertures, thirty years to merge them—and 'Supreme Apertures' at that!"

He took a sip of wine to wet his throat and continued: "And that's not all! Just a month after advancing to Level 6, he'd already reached 'Minor Mastery' in the Level 4 kill art [Heavy Spear], and even traded blows with Staff Fanatic Senior Qin Yonglin in the arena!

Tell me—if you saw such a prodigy, wouldn't your hands itch, wouldn't you be dying to fight him and see his skill firsthand?"

His words immediately drew a chorus of agreement.

"Exactly! Just hearing about those feats gets my blood pumping!"

"Speaking of which, with Qin Feng's freakish growth rate, do you think he might one day leave his name on the Canaan Tower?"

a young student asked, full of hope.

The question brought the lively chatter to a brief pause.

"Well... that's hard to say."

A steady Level 7 martial artist pondered for a moment before speaking slowly, "To leave a name on the Canaan Tower isn't something you can achieve with talent and cultivation speed alone.

As far as I know, the basic requirement for leaving a name is to push a Level 6 kill art into the 'Mastery Realm'!

Every single one of them has gone through tens of millions of life-or-death battles, knows over ninety percent of common kill arts inside out, and can even spot their flaws at a glance!

They are true, living martial arts grandmasters!"

"Whoa... Level 6 kill art 'Mastery Realm'? That's way too far off."

The crowd collectively gasped.

Amid the murmurs, Qin Yonglin had already reached Qin Feng's table.

His towering frame exuded an intense pressure.

"Junior Qin Feng,"

he asked, his voice carrying an undeniable certainty, "Shall we fight in the Imperial Arena's private domain, or have a real battle?"

"Real battle."

Qin Feng's answer came without a moment's hesitation.

Private domain battles could simulate various scenarios, but they ultimately lacked the most critical element—the psychic-energy convergence mode.

Through real combat, he could most directly observe, feel, and analyze Qin Yonglin's energy circulation patterns.

Qin Feng needed battle after battle to fill his database of opponents, until he had faced over ninety percent of common kill arts!

The path to mastery was never built in isolation.

It required a vast accumulation of real combat experience against different strong opponents!

"Good! Refreshing! Let's go to the arena!"

Hearing Qin Feng's choice, the flames in Qin Yonglin's eyes burned even brighter. He clapped his hands excitedly and laughed heartily.

With that, the two said no more and turned to walk out of the tavern.

"Hurry, hurry! Follow them! A show's about to start!"

"Top-tier duel! Can't miss it!"

The martial artists in Iron Fist Tavern couldn't sit still. They surged up in a wave, excitedly trailing behind the two.

Long Yu, Nissan, and Ning Jing exchanged smiles and followed without hesitation.

...

The dedicated arena area in the Fearless District was vast.

Here stood thousands of giant arenas forged from high-strength alloy, each shrouded in a pale blue energy shield, capable of withstanding full-force clashes between Level 7 martial artists.

As Qin Feng and Qin Yonglin walked side by side toward one of the largest central arenas, a massive crowd had already formed behind them.

The commotion quickly drew the attention of other martial artists training or passing through the Fearless District.

"What's going on? Why is everyone flooding toward the central arena?"

"You haven't heard? They say the prodigy Qin Feng is going to fight Staff Fanatic Qin Yonglin in an arena match!"

"What?! Qin Feng? That monster? Didn't he just advance to Level 6 less than a year ago? And he dares to fight Senior Qin Yonglin in a real arena battle?"

"Senior Qin Yonglin is an old-timer who's already reached the 18,000-point 'First Great Limit'! Not locking attributes in the Imperial Arena's friend room for a real fight? Isn't that bullying?"

"Who knows? I heard it's a real battle! Let's go see! That guy Qin Feng reached Minor Mastery in a Level 4 kill art in just one month. Now almost a year has passed—who knows if he's grinded it to Perfection! This is a duel between two 'Perfection' realm geniuses!"

"Let's go, let's go! Watching more fights benefits us too! Next time we run into an enemy using the same kill art on a mission, we'll have more experience to deal with it!"

"Exactly!"

Word of mouth spread from one to ten, from ten to a hundred.

Like the wind, the news raced across the entire Dreadnought District.

More and more people came from all directions, eager to witness this dragon-and-tiger struggle with their own eyes.

Soon, when Qin Feng and Qin Yonglin stepped onto the icy alloy arena one after the other, the platform was already surrounded by at least four or five hundred warriors of the Dreadnought Legion, packed in layers upon layers.

In the crowd, a seventh-year senior with a steady aura and a vitality index clearly exceeding twenty thousand points volunteered and leaped onto the referee's stand.

"I'll be the referee!"

He shouted, "Both of you are burning with battle intent, and it's easy to let real fire break out. A referee is necessary."

On the arena, Qin Feng and Qin Yonglin faced each other from a hundred meters apart.

Qin Yonglin untied the long staff wrapped in thick cloth from his back, revealing its true form.

It was a heavy staff, dark gold in color, with nine dragon patterns of different forms carved into its shaft.

Meanwhile, Qin Feng slowly retrieved from his subspace storage unit the blue-black long spear that had accompanied him for eleven months—【Raging Waves】.

The air between them seemed to freeze at that moment.

Invisible battle intent collided and clashed in the air, stirring up ripples unseen by the naked eye.

Below the arena, everyone held their breath, their eyes burning as they stared at the two on the platform.

A pinnacle duel, the focus of countless gazes, was about to begin.

On the arena, the energy shield hummed softly, fully activating, sealing off the entire combat space from the outside world.

The seventh-level referee raised his hand high, then brought it down sharply.

"Begin!"

Before the words faded, the battle had already erupted!

No probing, no circling.

The moment the referee declared the start, Qin Feng moved.

His right foot stomped backward, and the hard alloy surface of the arena was dented into a visible shallow pit by his force!

Attack stance!

With that stomp as the origin, a surging power rose from his foot, climbing up his spine like an angry dragon, instantly coursing through his entire body.

His form turned into an arrow loosed from the string, and the 【Raging Waves】 spear in his hand, with no flashy movements, became a stark black line, thrusting straight at Qin Yonglin's chest.

The entire motion was fluid and seamless, as if practiced ten thousand times.

On the icy-cold spear tip, mental energy and psionic power converged with unprecedented efficiency, forming an invisible, high-speed rotating vortex of energy.

【Heavy Thrust】!

From the very first move, a fourth-level killing technique!

"A perfected-level killing method?!"

Qin Yonglin's eyes, burning with flames, suddenly contracted.

He clearly felt the perfect, unimpeded, and utterly smooth artistic conception contained within that thrust.

But instead of any fear, an even more fervent, volcanic battle intent exploded from his chest!

"Hahaha! I knew it! You've truly perfected it! Well met!!!"

Amid the earth-shaking laughter, Qin Yonglin advanced instead of retreating.

His footwork was equally profound, his body swaying slightly, and the 【Nine Yuan Staff】 in his hand had already escaped visual capture, turning into a dark-gold afterimage that arrived later but struck first, landing precisely on the tip of the 【Raging Waves】 spear!

Boom!!!

A thunderous roar, far more muffled and terrifying than any previous clash of metal, erupted on the arena!

Centered on the collision point of spear tip and staff end, a white, visible ring-shaped shockwave burst outward, slamming violently into the pale-blue energy shield, stirring up a fierce ripple.

Yet the result of this exchange was the exact opposite of what had happened a year ago in the Imperial Arena.

At the center of the impact, Qin Feng, holding the long spear, stood as steady as a mountain, unmoving.

His wrist holding the spear merely gave a slight flick, and the spear shaft undulated like a dragon or snake, completely dissipating the terrifying recoil force.

But Qin Yonglin opposite him seemed to have been struck head-on by a star beast charging at full speed. His tall frame shuddered violently, and his feet stumbled backward with "thud! thud! thud!" for dozens of steps, each leaving a deep footprint on the alloy arena, before he barely managed to steady himself.

He looked up, feeling the numbness in his arms, and for the first time, amidst his fervent battle intent, a profound shock was added to his eyes.

Vitality index: eighteen thousand points!

In one year, Qin Feng had reached the first great threshold of vitality index 18,000! Crossing it would make him a seventh-level Mountain-Sea warrior!

"Good! Such immense strength!"

Far from being discouraged, Qin Yonglin licked his lips excitedly.

The audience below the arena fell into a dead silence for an instant, then erupted into thunderous exclamations!

"My god! In a direct clash, Senior Qin Yonglin was pushed back?"

"This... what kind of monstrous strength is this?! Qin Feng's vitality index has also reached 18,000?"

"How can his improvement be so fast?"

After the brief shock, an experienced senior quickly provided the answer.

"It's his physical constitution! Don't you remember that when Qin Feng enrolled, the testing pod exploded?!"

"Exactly! And the 'Ultimate Acupoint'! That thing not only speeds up cultivation but also enhances physical attributes across the board! These two freakish talents stacked together have created this monster before us!"

...

On the arena, the battle did not pause for a moment.

Having gained the upper hand with one strike, Qin Feng pressed his advantage relentlessly.

He moved with the "Attack Stance," his form shifting and flickering, and the 【Raging Waves】 spear turned into a thousand phantom shadows, enveloping Qin Yonglin from all directions.

Qin Yonglin, too, fully entered his combat state, unleashing the essence of the 《Nine Yuan Staff》 to its utmost. The staff shadows flew wildly, guarding his body like an unbreakable tortoise shell.

Clang, clang, clang—

Spear tip and staff light clashed madly in the confined space, the crisp and dense sounds merging into a continuous torrent, like a sudden downpour.

Sometimes they leaped into the air, twisting and turning mid-flight, leaving trails of afterimages;

sometimes they dropped to the ground for close-quarters combat, the alloy arena groaning under the strain of their footsteps and scattered force.

In the blink of an eye, they had exchanged hundreds of rounds!

Qin Feng's focus was sharper than ever.

In his eyes, every movement of Qin Yonglin was infinitely slowed.

He cared not for victory or defeat, but like a greedy sponge, he frantically absorbed everything from his opponent.

Every exertion of force by Qin Yonglin, every change in his staff technique, every trajectory of the "Mental-Psionic Convergence Module" in operation—all were clearly captured, recorded, and analyzed by him.

His understanding of the 《Nine Yuan Staff》, this top-tier staff art, was deepening at a terrifying speed.

Yet, in the eyes of the spectators below the arena, this scene painted an entirely different picture.

To them, this had ceased to be a clash of equals, becoming instead a display of absolute and utter suppression!

Qin Feng’s figure flickered like a phantom, his offensive striking like a tidal wave, relentless and unending.

Meanwhile, the veteran powerhouse, Qin Yonglin, was forced entirely into a passive defense, barely managing to hold his ground with virtually no chance to strike back!

"This... Qin Feng’s rate of growth is simply terrifying, isn't it?"

"It’s only been a single year! A year ago, he was still being dominated in the arena by Senior Qin Yonglin, and now he’s actually the one dictating the terms?"

"It’s more than just dictating terms; look at Senior Qin Yonglin’s face, he’s clearly beginning to strain!"

Amidst the crowd, a freshman remarked with eyes full of worship, "A supreme essence aperture combined with an explosive physical talent, this is just too invincible. The growth speed of his life force index must truly be dozens of times our own."

An older student beside him heard this, but shook his head and let out a soft sigh, "You only see his current glory. But have you ever considered that choosing the 'supreme essence aperture' means enduring centuries of dull and monotonous aperture consolidation?

Watching the people around you break into the sixth rank one by one, practicing powerful fourth-rank killing techniques, and touching upon the mysteries of spiritual power, while you can only cultivate like an ascetic monk, opening up apertures day after day... could you endure that kind of loneliness and pressure?"

The freshman choked on his words, falling into a sudden silence.

Indeed, behind the glory lay a sacrifice and perseverance unimaginable to ordinary men.

...

At another corner of the spectating crowd.

Upon Ning Jing’s perennially frozen, ice-sculpted face, the corner of his mouth was twitching uncontrollably.

Beside him, Nissan nudged him with a thick elbow, laughing heartily, "Hey, Ning Jing! Did you see that? Get ready, didn't you clamor about wanting to challenge Qin Feng? Once this match ends, you can gloriously take the stage!"

Long Yu also revealed a rare, mischievous smile, teasing from the side, "Indeed, Ning Jing. We are all waiting to see you go up and thoroughly 'discipline' Junior Qin Feng."

"..."

The muscles in Ning Jing’s cheek twitched twice more, finally dissolving into a sigh of helpless amusement, "Alright, alright, stop mocking me, you two.

This guy... is an absolute freak! It’s one thing for his life force index to progress so quickly, but for him to have already mastered his killing techniques to perfection is just absurd!"

...

The battle raged on.

From the commencement of the duel until now, less than fifteen seconds had actually elapsed.

Yet within these brief fifteen seconds, Qin Feng and Qin Yonglin had already engaged in a frenzied exchange of over a thousand bouts!

The speed and power of both men had exploded to their absolute limits!

Right at this moment, in an attempt to break free from the suppression, Qin Yonglin forced Qin Feng back with a sweeping strike, creating a microscopic flaw in the transition of his staff technique that lasted less than a hundredth of a second.

This very flaw was captured with absolute precision by Qin Feng!

"Streaming Light, Chasing Shadows—"

At this exact instant, for the very first time, he grafted the 'Spiritual Power-Psionic Convergence Module' of a fourth-rank killing technique onto this spear technique that he had long mastered!

Buzz!

Qin Feng’s figure seemed to vanish from the material world in an instant.

In its place appeared a brilliant, blinding streak of streaming light that could not be tracked by the naked eye!

This streaming light defied the constraints of distance, flashing past in a heartbeat!

"Not good!"

Alarm bells rang wildly in Qin Yonglin’s mind; he instinctively sought to pull his staff back to defend, but his speed was ultimately a fraction of a second too slow.

Puchi.

The faint, distinct sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh rang out. As the light receded, Qin Feng’s silhouette reappeared on Qin Yonglin’s left.

The tip of the Raging Tide long spear in his hand had already pierced through the scapula of Qin Yonglin’s left shoulder.

Blood trickled slowly down the blue-black tip of the spear.

The entire arena fell into a deathly silence.

Qin Yonglin stared blankly at the long spear embedded in his shoulder, then looked at the calm expression on Qin Feng’s face, before letting out a smile of resignation.

"I lose."

He spoke cleanly and decisively, gracefully acknowledging his defeat.

Qin Feng slowly withdrew the long spear, psionic energy surging around the wound to instantly halt the bleeding.

He looked at Qin Yonglin, an apologetic smile gracing his features, "The fighting spirit took over, and I couldn't entirely hold back in time. My apologies."

"Hahaha, I understand! It's a battle, how could there not be a bit of fire!"

Qin Yonglin laughed heartily without a care in the world, as though he were not the one injured, "Thoroughly satisfying! This fight was more exhilarating than every match I've had in the past ten years combined!"

In truth, both of them knew that they had held back.

Particularly with Qin Feng’s final strike; the moment it struck Qin Yonglin’s scapula, he had already vented that tempestuous, spiral force—which was powerful enough to pierce the armor of a starship—entirely into the empty air.

Otherwise, given the terrifying strength erupted from his current life force index of eighteen thousand points, let alone piercing the scapula, the shockwave alone would have been enough to blast Qin Yonglin’s entire left arm and half his torso into a mist of blood.

This battle was decided.

Upon the arena, Qin Yonglin slowly straightened his body.

He looked down at the wound that pierced completely through his left shoulder.

Under the astonished gazes of the crowd, the muscular tissue surrounding the wound began to writhe, proliferate, and heal at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Within a span of barely a dozen seconds, that spear wound, which had originally been deep enough to expose bone, was reduced to a shallow, pink scar.

For a sixth-rank martial artist with a life force index as high as eighteen thousand, so long as it was not a fatal wound imbued with anomalous energy, a flesh wound of this degree would naturally heal with immense speed.

"Do you see this, Junior Qin Feng?"

Qin Yonglin moved his left shoulder, which was now completely restored, a relaxed smile appearing on his face as he seized this opportunity to impart higher-level martial knowledge to Qin Feng.

"In battles of our level, as long as a vital spot isn't struck, recovery is swift. However, when you face opponents who practice fifth-rank killing techniques in the future, you must be careful."

His expression grew slightly more solemn, "The core of a fifth-rank killing technique lies in 'one mind, ten tasks.' This multi-threaded energy convergence mode not only unleashes greater destructive power, but more terrifyingly, it leaves a stubborn, destructive residual force within your wound. This residual force will act like maggots in a bone, violently suppressing the recovery effects of your own life force, and will even continuously destroy your bodily tissues."

"As for sixth-rank killing techniques..."

A look of deep dread flashed through Qin Yonglin’s eyes, "They are even more terrifying. The residual force generated by 'one mind, a hundred tasks' can linger in your body for decades, or even centuries, inflicting continuous torment that leaves you wishing for death yet unable to die. Therefore, the higher the tier of combat, the less one can afford to lose."

His words served as both an explanation and a subtle acknowledgment to Qin Feng that he understood the boy had withdrawn his force in that final strike.

This was merely a sparring match, stopping where it mattered.

Qin Feng nodded, engraving these words deeply into his memory.

The two shared a smile, everything understood without words, and then walked down from the arena side by side.

Whoosh!

The moment they stepped off the stage, the long-suppressed, mountainous roar of cheers and applause from below erupted like a crashing wave!

"Spectacular!"

"Senior Qin Feng! Incredible!"

"Qin Yonglin, though defeated, is still honorable!"

Countless members of the war clans, in the most direct and fervent manner, paid the highest tribute to these two masters who had delivered a top-tier duel.

Qin Yonglin walked over to Qin Feng and heavily patted his shoulder, his eyes filled with complex and sincere emotion: "Junior Qin Feng, I never expected your progress to be so swift."

He paused, as if making an important decision, and finally, with an extremely earnest tone, said: "As a defeated opponent, I’ll shamelessly offer you one more piece of advice—you must heed it."

"What?"

Qin Feng was somewhat surprised.

"Don’t rush to graduate from Canaan."

"I know, given your cultivation speed, you might reach the graduation standard in just a few years."

Qin Yonglin explained, "But you must understand, the ‘Star Cup’ martial arts tournament is held every few years, with a very high frequency.

I suggest you spend a few more years honing yourself at school, participate in several more Star Cups, and build up your ‘opponent database’ to an immense scale before considering graduation."

Seeing Qin Feng’s thoughtful expression, Qin Yonglin continued: "Because once you graduate from Canaan Star Martial University and achieve a high enough ranking in the Star Cup, you will automatically earn an incredibly precious qualification—the right to participate in the ‘Cosmic Genius War’!"

"The Cosmic Genius War?"

Qin Feng murmured in surprise.

"That’s right."

Qin Yonglin’s eyes were filled with longing and awe: "That is the ultimate stage for all top geniuses! What you will face there are monsters just like you, or even more freakish!"

"In front of those true monsters, factors like talent, energy apertures, and combat techniques might not create too great a gap.

In the end, it comes down to who has richer battle experience, who has seen more combat techniques, and who can find the opponent’s most fatal flaw in an instant!

Only if your ‘opponent database’ accumulated at Canaan is vast enough will you be qualified to compete with those true prodigies!"

"If… you can stand out in the Cosmic Genius War,"

Qin Yonglin’s voice trembled slightly, "then you will directly enter the core training sequence! The achievements you can reach in the future will surpass all our imaginations!"

He took a deep breath, his gaze burning as he looked at Qin Feng, and said word by word: "I’m telling you this not as a pipe dream, but because I sincerely believe… Qin Feng, you have the potential to earn a spot in the Cosmic Genius War, and the chance to stand out!"

After speaking, he patted Qin Feng’s shoulder heavily again, a hearty smile spreading across his face: "Keep it up, Qin Feng!"

"Alright."

Qin Feng nodded firmly.

Qin Yonglin’s heartfelt advice unveiled for him the magnificent scenery higher and farther along the path of martial arts.

As the battle ended, the crowd of onlookers, filled with satisfaction and awe, gradually dispersed, buzzing with discussion.

This thrilling duel was destined to become a topic of conversation for them for a long time to come.

And the recording of this battle, spreading like a virus, once again ignited the private forum of Canaan Star Martial University.

[Breaking! Qin Feng Strikes Again! With a Life Force Index of 18,000, He Defeats the Stick Fanatic Qin Yonglin Head-On!]

[Official Certification! Hidden Dragon List Updated! Qin Feng Skyrockets to 81st Place!]

[Still the Unreasonable Qin Feng! Promoted to Level 6 Only a Year Ago, Directly Reaching the First Major Limit! Is This Humanly Possible?]

[In-Depth Analysis: How Did Qin Feng Master a Fourth-Level Combat Technique from Zero to Perfection in One Year? Scouring School History, Has Any Senior Ever Done This?]

A technical analysis post quickly attracted countless replies.

[Yes, some have, brothers. In the 2.2 billion years since our Canaan Star Martial University was founded, there have been far more freakish prodigies than you imagine.

Not just mastering a technique in a year, I recall in the school records, someone pushed a fourth-level sword technique to the ‘Perfection Realm’ in just three months.]

[The one above is referring to that ‘Sword God’ Li Wuyi, right? He’s truly a myth and can’t be used for normal comparison.

But even so, Qin Feng’s speed is definitely among the top tier.]

…

Qin Feng, of course, knew nothing of the storm on the forum.

He never had the habit of intense online browsing or searching for his own achievements.

Given the time, he would rather refine his combat techniques one more time.

He returned to the side of Long Yu, Nissan, and Ning Jing.

Looking at Ning Jing’s complex expression, a familiar smile—the one he wore before battle—appeared on his face.

"Senior Ning Jing, now, is it our turn?"

"No fight! No fight!"

To his surprise, Ning Jing shook his head like a rattle-drum, waving his hands repeatedly. The eternal icy expression on his face showed, for the first time, a look of "respectfully declining."

"You bastard!"

Ning Jing said with a mix of laughter and exasperation, "Not seen for a year, and your life force directly soars to 18,000, with a perfected combat technique. I’ve just broken through to ‘Minor Mastery’—going up would be asking to be humiliated! No fight! Absolutely no fight!"

"Ha ha ha ha—"

His frank and almost endearing "admission of defeat" instantly triggered unrestrained, thunderous laughter from Long Yu and Nissan.

Even Qin Feng himself was amused by Ning Jing’s rare, flustered demeanor.

The tense battle atmosphere was completely dispelled by the cheerful laughter.

A fierce and exhilarating duel ended in a way that was both unexpected and yet perfectly fitting.

Soon after, Qin Feng, Long Yu, Nissan, and Ning Jing returned to the familiar corner booth of the "Iron Fist Tavern."

This time, the atmosphere in the tavern was entirely different from before.

Almost all eyes drifted toward their table, intentionally or not, filled with awe, curiosity, and admiration.

Especially the gazes directed at Qin Feng, which were incredibly complex.

This young monster, who had just proven his terrifying strength with a resounding victory, had become a figure of immense prestige.

The tavern server quickly brought four glasses of wine, each a different color and emitting a strange radiance.

The liquid flowed slowly in the glasses, as if containing the light of stars, and a rich, peculiar energy scent spread through the air.

These were top-tier brews made from extremely rare plants or minerals from the depths of the universe, imbued with special spiritual energy attributes, crafted through complex processes. Each glass was worth a fortune.

"Come! To celebrate Qin Beast… oh, I mean Qin Feng’s perfected combat technique. Cheers!"

Nissan raised his glass of red wine, which seemed to burn like flames, and laughed heartily.

"Cheers."

Long Yu and Ning Jing also raised their glasses.

Qin Feng picked up the blue wine before him, resembling a deep starry sky, and gently clinked glasses with the three.

Imitating the others, he brought the glass to his lips and took a small sip.

A cold, spicy liquid slid down his throat, and then a vast, chaotic spiritual energy exploded in his mental world, as if countless disordered stars were flashing and colliding in his mind, bringing a strange, tipsy dizziness.

Qin Feng’s brow furrowed slightly, and he immediately mobilized his rock-solid mental will to forcibly suppress the chaotic energy fluctuation.

"This stuff… has quite an impact on the spirit."

He set down his glass and remarked, "It's better to drink less."

For Qin Feng, who valued reason and self-control above life itself, anything that could affect his mental state was no different from poison.

"Haha, I knew you wouldn't be used to this."

Seeing this, Nissan drained his glass in one gulp, let out a satisfied breath, and laughed. "Don't worry, we hardly ever touch this stuff either. It's only today, for your welcome party, that the mood was right and we ordered a glass. After all, though it can affect the mind, drinking it occasionally can also stimulate the mental sea—it's a unique form of cultivation."

Ning Jing, who had been silent all along, rarely chimed in to agree: "Mm, the atmosphere is nice."

"Alright, enough about that."

Long Yu, the most composed of them, steered the conversation back on track. He looked at Qin Feng warmly and asked, "Qin Feng, you've already signed up for the 'Starry Cup,' haven't you?"

"Mm, I just registered."

Qin Feng nodded.

"Good."

A hint of a smile appeared on Long Yu's face. "We've all signed up too."

"..."

Nissan's expression turned serious as he set down his glass and said in a low voice, "This isn't like our school's internal Freshman Cup. This is the largest-scale martial arts grand event held in our 'Home Star Sector'! The organizer is—the Ultimate Warrior Legion!"

"Officially hosted by the Ultimate Warrior Legion?"

Qin Feng's heart stirred.

"Yes."

Long Yu took over the conversation and explained in detail for Qin Feng, "So its value and authority are beyond doubt. Every year, students from billions of star systems and countless Star Martial Arts Universities participate. The competition is far fiercer than you can imagine."

"Moreover, it's held very frequently. Basically, as soon as one edition ends and the final rankings are decided, the qualifiers for the next edition begin immediately."

The "Home Star Sector" had billions of star systems, each with its top hundred martial arts universities and its strongest ones, and the number of martial artists above the sixth level in each university was countless. A simple calculation would reveal just how authoritative the Starry Cup was.

Qin Feng listened quietly, committing these key pieces of information to memory. He didn't ask about the brutality of the competition, as that was only to be expected. He only cared about the most central issue.

"And the rewards?"

Qin Feng asked directly.

"Rewards?"

Long Yu was slightly taken aback by the question. He hadn't really studied the reward list in detail. With his 'Minor Achievement' level of killing arts, though it was decent within Jianan, he knew that on the grand stage of the entire star sector, he would most likely be a supporting role this time. Making it to the main tournament, witnessing the brilliance of various prodigies, and accumulating some combat experience would already be considered achieving his goal.

But Qin Feng was different.

Long Yu looked at the calm-faced junior before him, his thoughts racing. With his killing arts perfected, his life force reaching the first limit, and that absurdly unreasonable physical foundation... Qin Feng this time truly had a chance to aim for a fairly high ranking. A guaranteed spot in the top hundred thousand should be stable.

With that in mind, Long Yu organized the scattered information he had heard from his mentors and some seniors.

"The rewards are straightforward and generous."

Long Yu said slowly. "The most basic, of course, is a massive amount of Empire Contribution Points. But for true top-tier geniuses, that's not very appealing. The core rewards of the 'Starry Cup' are only two."

He raised one finger.

"First, the ranking. As Senior Qin Yonglin said, a high enough ranking is your ticket to the 'Universal Genius Tournament' in the future."

Then, he raised a second finger, his expression becoming extremely solemn.

"Second, the opportunity to comprehend the 'Ultimate Enlightenment Stele.'"

"Ultimate Enlightenment Stele?!"

The moment he heard those three words, Qin Feng's heart inexplicably leaped! The name seemed to carry a strange magic, stirring a ripple in his usually calm mental sea.

"Yes, the Ultimate Enlightenment Stele."

Long Yu nodded, a mix of longing and confusion on his face. "However, I don't know exactly what the 'Ultimate Enlightenment Stele' is or what it does. It seems to be one of the highest secrets within the Ultimate Warrior Legion. Any related information is strictly sealed and not allowed to circulate privately. You won't find a single word about it on private forums."

Nissan added from the side, "That's right! This thing is extremely mysterious. Only the leading mentors know the specifics. For us participating students, we only get to see the relevant introduction when the official rulebook is issued before the competition begins."

Ning Jing also set down his glass and mused, "But though the details are unclear, judging from its name, the word 'enlightenment' most likely has a direct connection to a martial artist's comprehension, mental power, and the cultivation and breakthrough of killing arts."

"Exactly."

Long Yu agreed. "It should be some kind of strategic treasure that can help us understand the essence of martial arts."

Qin Feng slowly nodded, engraving the three words "Ultimate Enlightenment Stele" deeply into his mind. A strong intuition told him that this thing would be crucial to his future martial path.

(End of this chapter)