Chapter 377: Another Level 20 Cultivation Method? (Thanks to 'Mikkiii')

Chapter 377: Another Level 20 Technique? (Thanks to 'Mikkiii' for the grandmaster donation)

As the competition commenced, Ma Xuan’s first order of business was to coordinate his team, specifically the construction crew.

After all, as the defensive side, the higher the building’s completion rate after one hour, the higher their score.

The structure mandated for this competition was a bunker, and the materials had been staged beside the site before the start.

"Bu Ziran, Ji Susu... you two are responsible for the construction."

Ma Xuan deliberated before deciding to leave only two people to build.

His original plan had been to leave three, while he led the other two to intercept the opposing six.

In his view, his team’s strength far surpassed the opponents, allowing them to fight outnumbered while maximizing their construction output.

But the warning from Su Yanyang lingered, prompting him to play it safe and assign only Bu Ziran and Ji Susu to the task.

Bu Ziran was a tall youth; had Zhang Yu been there, he would have recognized him as the guy who ignored him when he first joined the group, the one who flaunted his lung-type Dharma remains in the competition chat.

Ji Susu was a tall woman who rarely spoke in the group, leaving Zhang Yu with little knowledge of her.

Ma Xuan then added, "Ji Yuanshu, you are responsible for perimeter support."

With a flicker, Ji Yuanshu vanished into a gust of wind.

As Ma Xuan issued his orders, Shi Huaiyu’s team of six charged forward like lightning.

Seeing his opponents hurtling toward them, Ma Xuan immediately unleashed the power of the Lesser Triad.

The earth roared, and a tsunami of mud and sand surged to engulf Shi Huaiyu and the others.

Shi Huaiyu countered with her own Lesser Triad, but Ma Xuan could feel that his junior’s mastery was clearly inferior to his own; if they continued to clash, he would surely dominate the exchange.

Yet, the next moment, Ma Xuan’s gaze tightened as Zhang Yu’s figure broke through the dust, plummeting toward their heads.

As the captain who once recruited him, Ma Xuan felt he understood Zhang Yu well.

His formidable physique, high damage resistance, and the leverage-based mechanics of the Nine Heavens Sky Void Art meant any fight would be a grueling, drawn-out affair that would severely wear down their Dharma remains.

This made Zhang Yu the kind of opponent most people dreaded.

Ma Xuan instantly grasped the enemy's strategy.

"Throwing Zhang Yu alone to disrupt our formation?"

"You all seem to... overestimate him."

Meanwhile, suspended in mid-air, Zhang Yu crossed his arms, stepping on the void like a falling meteor, shattering waves of air as he descended at supersonic speeds.

Zhang Yu stared coldly at Ma Xuan and the others, his lips moving as if speaking.

Of course, in the chaos of supersonic combat, verbal communication was impossible.

But his words were transmitted via message, appearing directly on everyone’s ocular implants.

This was the standard method for high-speed combat, a mandatory skill for every student in the Security Department.

Zhang Yu: "Not keeping me will be the biggest regret of your day."

While studying the provocation techniques sent by Shi Huaiyu, Zhang Yu had learned a great deal.

Simple insults rarely worked in serious, high-stakes combat; opponents wouldn't be baited so easily.

One had to weave the situation into the words, naturally igniting the opponent's anger, frustration, or fighting spirit.

The most classic, versatile, and effective method was to act arrogant.

When you pull off arrogance with enough style and substance, you naturally provoke the opponent, often making them feel it isn't even a provocation, but a challenge they must meet with full force—the highest realm of taunting.

As Zhang Yu spoke, their gazes collided in the atmosphere, as if two invisible forces of will were crushing each other.

Ma Xuan remained unmoved, steadfastly controlling the sea of sand as it swept toward Shi Huaiyu’s team.

His voice echoed through the ocular implants of his teammates.

"He is provoking us; do not be swayed."

"Cong Na, go repel him."

"The rest of you, stick to the plan; do not give him a chance to use his leverage."

Cong Na looked up at the descending Zhang Yu and grinned. "Leaving the team will be the biggest regret of your day."

The next moment, she crouched, her thigh muscles swelling with explosive power.

Boom!

The ground beneath her shattered into a crater, and Cong Na vanished, tearing through the air as she charged straight at Zhang Yu.

She thought coldly, "Mid-air, with no leverage, you are a sitting duck."

"I know you want to land and use your physique and leverage techniques to disrupt our formation."

"But I won't give you that chance."

Her right palm surged with condensed Qi, her muscles roaring as she struck out with the force of a tidal wave.

Cong Na intended to exploit his lack of footing to blast him away in one go.

"This is the best way to deal with Zhang Yu: use superior force to suppress him and drive him from the battlefield before he can entangle us."

Facing her strike, Zhang Yu replied calmly, "You want to knock me away?"

"That is exactly what I was thinking." Zhang Yu struck back.

But within that palm, a series of dragon roars erupted.

Roar!

Ten consecutive dragon roars shook the heavens, manifesting ten dragon-shaped Qi blasts.

It was Xiao Qingxuan’s Nine Dragon Heavenly Qi Palm.

Before they had thrown Zhang Yu into the fray, Xiao Qingxuan had struck him twenty times, all of which Zhang Yu had stored within his empty apertures using the Nine Heavens Sky Void Art.

This sudden burst of ten strikes instantly tore through Cong Na’s palm force, swallowing her figure whole.

"Stay quiet for a while, Cong Na."

Boom!

A thunderous explosion echoed in the air, and amidst the dispersing shockwaves, Cong Na was sent flying.

Having cleared her, Zhang Yu continued his descent, his cold gaze sweeping over the others as his violent intent pressed down upon them.

"Come at me together."

Zhang Yu struck out again, and more dragon-shaped Qi blasts whistled like meteors, bombarding their position.

Another ten strikes in an instant; Zhang Yu had now unleashed all twenty strikes Xiao Qingxuan had imbued him with.

This revealed a truth to everyone watching, both on and off the field, who understood the nature of the Nine Heavens Sky Void Art.

Twenty strikes... Zhang Yu’s Nine Heavens Sky Void Art had reached Level 20!

This was the second Level 20 technique Zhang Yu intended to reveal during the competition, besides the War Demon Meteor Life Art.

He thought to himself, "After all, the first day I learned the Nine Heavens Sky Void Art in my senior year, I displayed such shocking talent that I leveled it up on the spot to defeat Wang Yin."

It is only logical that he has now advanced this technique to the twentieth level by his sophomore year.

As the crowd below struggled against Xiao Qingxuan’s draconic aura, Zhang Yu finally descended to the earth with a thunderous thud.

With the violent impact of his feet against the ground, a visible ripple exploded outward, sending waves of air and debris surging in every direction.

Ma Xuan maintained his tripartite fusion, coordinating with Ji Yuanshu to assault Shi Huaiyu and the others, stalling the advance of their main force.

He calmly issued instructions, and a stream of messages flickered across the bone-remains of his teammates.

Ignore Zhang Yu; the borrowed power he wielded has already been exhausted.

Bu Ziran, Ji Susu, you two are to continue with the construction.

Ji Yuanshu, follow my markers and strike at Shi Huaiyu.

Cong Na, there is no need to rush over; coordinate with me to intercept the others instead.

Yang Yan, you alone shall suppress Zhang Yu; the rest of you must not strike recklessly, or he will turn your own strength against you.

A barrage of commands was issued in an instant, manifesting within the ocular remains of every member.

Yang Yan was a man of imposing stature, clad in heavy alloy armor.

Zhang Yu remembered him as the one who had ignored him upon joining the group, preferring to discuss bone-remains with Bu Ziran, and the most welcoming soul when Ji Yuanshu had first arrived.

With a single step that caused the ground to tremble, Yang Yan charged toward Zhang Yu’s landing spot like a juggernaut of steel.

Yet, the moment Ma Xuan issued his order, Zhang Yu erupted with a sky-filling expanse of Formless Cloud Aura, swallowing the crowd like a roiling sea of mist.

Amidst the churning clouds, Yang Yan watched the approaching figure and thought to himself, So, he comes for me first?

Simultaneously, beside every person present, a blurred silhouette emerged from the sea of clouds, lunging toward them with lethal intent.

Faced with such a threat, the instinctive reaction of everyone was identical.

Has Zhang Yu set his sights on me?

Without a second thought, Yang Yan threw a punch, the surging force instantly tearing the figure before him to shreds.

As Zhang Yu’s Formless Warrior was shattered, a sense of dread washed over Yang Yan, and he bellowed, Do not strike!

But his warning came too late; as a series of deafening roars erupted within the clouds, the others had already pulverized their respective assailants.

This meant that Zhang Yu had successfully borrowed the strength of a single strike from every person present.

In the next heartbeat, even more Formless Warriors manifested, descending upon the crowd to engage them in slaughter.

Yang Yan! Why did you have to hit so hard?!

Ji Susu! Stop at once!

Bu Ziran! Do not use that technique...

Surging aura rose and fell violently under the impact of colliding forces, transmitting waves of power in a state of dangerous overload.

Under the gaze of the Three-Eyed Divine Ability, the techniques of each opponent were studied and mimicked.

His four-fold consciousness calculated the rhythm of battle for everyone on the field.

Zhang Yu’s body, mana, intellect, martial arts, and Dao-seed were all pushed to their absolute limits, fully manifesting his aptitude for group combat as he single-handedly plunged the scene into utter chaos.

The group felt as though they were being besieged by the very powers of their own teammates.

Faced with such a predicament, they could not simply endure the attacks, yet every counter-strike only allowed Zhang Yu to siphon more techniques and power through his Nine Heavens Cloud Void Force.