Chapter 609: Ignoring (Part 1)

Although he wasn't sure if he had truly seen a ghost, he knew that Master Zhang's judgment was flawless, and he was utterly impressed.

Previously, he had proudly claimed to be the top genius in Myriad Kingdom City, believing no one could surpass him. But upon seeing the young man before him, he realized how far he lagged behind a true genius.

Returning to Master Zhang, he respectfully clasped his fists and asked, "Master Zhang, what should we do next?"

"Eat!"

Young Master Ruohuan was stunned.

He had been told to throw soup and provoke, expecting a clever strategy, but the solution was merely to eat?

"The competition is about to begin. You'll only have strength if you eat, otherwise, how can you win?" Zhang Xuan retorted, rolling his eyes.

There were only thirty minutes of rest, and it was almost over. If he didn't eat quickly, the competition would start very soon.

"Alright!"

Knowing there was no other choice, he gritted his teeth, sat down, and ate heartily, doing exactly as he was told.

The dinner prepared by the Alliance Leader's Residence was indeed lavish. Soon, they were full, and at that moment, the competition was about to begin.

"Memorize this content. When the competition begins, just read it out loud!"

As he was wondering how to deal with Qin Lei, he saw Master Zhang hand him a piece of white paper covered in dense handwriting, apparently written while Zhang Xuan was eating.

Curious, he looked down at the paper. His eyes widened instantly. "Master Zhang, are you really saying... this?"

"Yes!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

Young Master Ruohuan's vision went dark; he was on the verge of tears.

"Master, it's as if you want him to kill me!"

If he were to say that, Qin Lei would probably rather withdraw from the Master Teacher Tournament than not strangle him.

"Stop wasting time. Memorize it quickly. Once you're on stage, you cannot change a single word, otherwise, I can't guarantee your victory!"

While he was feeling depressed, he saw Master Zhang across from him frown.

Tears welled up in Young Master Ruohuan's eyes.

He regretted seeking his advice; it felt like he had boarded a pirate ship. Now, it was too late; there was nothing else to do.

"Alright!"

Gritting his teeth, he memorized the content on the paper. No sooner had he committed it to memory than a gong sounded, and Master Hong's majestic voice resonated again: "The competition continues! Master Teachers entering the arena, please step forward!"

The crowd responded in unison.

Reaching the circular platform, Young Master Ruohuan took a deep breath and strode towards Arena A.

He had the air of someone bravely heading to his execution.

It was too late to think of any other solutions now. He could only steel himself and follow Master Zhang's instructions. If he died, so be it!

"Hmph!"

Qin Lei also arrived at the arena, still seething with rage over Young Master Ruohuan's earlier provocation; he felt as though he could explode.

"The competition begins! Now, each of you will discuss the content to be assessed!"

Master Hong looked around, seeing the participants on stage.

"The Baiyang Sect ranked high in the last tournament, so I will choose!"

With a cold snort, Qin Lei looked at the young man before him. "I choose... understanding of cultivation!"

"Ah?"

Hearing that it was exactly as he had guessed—that Qin Lei had indeed chosen this—Young Master Ruohuan was startled.

"What? Are you afraid?" Qin Lei's gaze sharpened.

"What's there to be afraid of? Let's compete! Tell me the rules!" Young Master Ruohuan quickly replied.

"Good, you're sensible!"

Qin Lei had expected a refusal but was relieved by Young Master Ruohuan's quick acceptance. "It's simple: we both perform martial arts techniques, and then point out flaws in each other's execution. The one who identifies more flaws wins."

"Understood!" Young Master Ruohuan nodded.

"It's just as you guessed!"

Witnessing this, Hall Master Kang and the others looked at Zhao Feiwu.

Although this girl was not a Master Teacher, her accurate prediction of the competition's content was astonishing.

"Indeed. Now, let's see if Master Zhang's notes will be useful!"

Zhao Feiwu smiled faintly.

She could only deduce the content of the competition. As for victory, it depended entirely on what Master Zhang had told Young Master Ruohuan to memorize.

"Right!" The others nodded.

While they were talking, the two individuals on stage had each finished demonstrating their martial arts techniques.

After watching Qin Lei's moves, Young Master Ruohuan was completely bewildered.

He had never seen or even heard of the opponent's boxing technique... How could he possibly point out its flaws?

"According to the rules, I'll go first!"

Seeing his opponent's bewildered expression, Qin Lei sneered, "If I'm not mistaken, the boxing technique Young Master Ruohuan just performed is a mid-tier spirit-level martial art, the Seven Absolutes Fist. It's a powerful move, but unfortunately, your cultivation is lacking... there are four flaws!"

"First, your True Qi has just reached the peak of the Mortal Transcendence Fourth Layer, and its power isn't pure enough. The moves you executed, while appearing proficient, are actually superficial..."

"Second, the Seven Absolutes Fist emphasizes absolute heart, absolute emotion, absolute intent, absolute grace, absolute detachment, absolute thought, and absolute obsession. You, however, fail completely. Your moves don't align with emotion, and your emotion doesn't align with intent. Even if you perform them, they are nothing more than empty gestures!"

"Third..."

"Fourth..."

Soon, Qin Lei detailed Young Master Ruohuan's performance, with every point hitting a critical weakness. Hearing so many flaws could easily erode one's confidence.

"Incredible!"

"To identify four flaws with just a glance—he truly deserves to contend for the championship. Terrifying!"

"Yes, I also watched Young Master Ruohuan's moves, and I couldn't spot a single problem..."

Qin Lei's words caused a stir among the audience.

They were all Master Teachers with discerning eyes. Young Master Ruohuan's moves just now were flawless and smooth, clearly indicating years of dedication...

Yet, Qin Lei could casually point out four flaws. His perceptive ability was so strong that it was no weaker than that of some half-step 5-star Master Teachers.

"It seems it will be very difficult for Young Master Ruohuan to win this round!"

"Indeed. At least I couldn't tell what martial art Qin Lei just performed!"

"I didn't understand it either..."

The crowd whispered among themselves, all looking towards the arena, eager to see how Young Master Ruohuan would respond.

Even Qin Lei sneered and looked over.

The martial art he had just performed came from ancient ruins and had been lost for who knew how many years. Even Master Hong might not recognize it, let alone the person before him.

Therefore, he was absolutely confident he would win this round.

"Speak. It's your turn now. If you can't say anything, concede!"

Seeing Young Master Ruohuan's conflicted expression, his face flushed with suppressed emotion, and still no words, Qin Lei scoffed.

"This..."

As if making a crucial decision, Young Master Ruohuan gritted his teeth. "If I'm not mistaken, you... have a problem with your brain!"

"What?"

The crowd fell silent.

Shouldn't he be analyzing the martial art? Why is he resorting to insults?

"What did you say?"

As expected, upon hearing this, Qin Lei almost couldn't control himself and nearly exploded on the spot.

"Your soul isn't fully nourished, yet you forcibly tried to break through to the Spirit Unification realm, allowing True Qi to wander through your Sea of Consciousness. Your soul is already damaged, and your brain has suffered injury. Is this not true?"

Young Master Ruohuan stated.

"This..."

Qin Lei frowned.

After his teacher, the Sect Master of Bai Kai, was killed, Qin Lei became somewhat anxious and attempted to break through to the Spirit Unification realm.

To enter the Spirit Unification realm, True Qi must enter the Sea of Consciousness and impact the Spirit Unification acupoint. Only by breaking through this acupoint can one successfully advance. His strength was insufficient, and his forceful attempt indeed caused some damage to his soul, leading to headaches every night.

However, he had never mentioned this to anyone, not even the elders of his own sect. How did his opponent know?

"Not only that, but your entire body also harbors hidden cultivation issues. To make a splash in this tournament, you deliberately cultivated an unknown martial art... If I'm not mistaken, to master it, you need resonance in at least thirty-two acupoints throughout your body!"

"Resonance in thirty-two acupoints is achievable by many martial arts, but this particular technique connects the Baihui and Yongquan acupoints. One absorbs the clear Qi from the sky, and the other absorbs the turbid essence from the earth. Their fusion creates a cage, forcibly trapping your soul within your body!"

"In other words, without a special fortuitous encounter, it's almost impossible for you to break through to the Spirit Unification realm! If you don't believe me, you can try activating your Bounding Sea acupoint with True Qi. If it feels sore and numb, it means your soul has begun to weaken. You can also try your Diligent Truth acupoint. If it feels itchy, it means your physical body has become rigid, no different from a cage..."

"Others cultivate to improve, but you've merely shackled yourself, making further progress impossible... What else could it be but a problem with your brain?"

Having started, Young Master Ruohuan no longer hesitated. Gritting his teeth, he recited everything Master Zhang had told him to memorize in one breath.

He figured if he was going to die, so be it. If he hadn't spoken, he wouldn't have understood the opponent's martial art anyway and would surely have lost the match.

After delivering the long speech, he expected Qin Lei to charge at him, beat him half to death, or at least curse him out. Instead, Qin Lei stood motionless, as if he had encountered something unbelievable, his face pale with shock.

"Could it be... I was right?"

His heart skipped a beat.

When he first saw this content, he thought it was pure rumor and couldn't be true. He'd expected his opponent to kill him if he dared to utter it. But to his surprise... Qin Lei reacted like this. Could Master Zhang have truly seen all of Qin Lei's problems and flaws just from a single hand gesture?

"Of course, if you still don't believe me... you can try to break through to the Spirit Unification realm again. You'll feel even more powerless; your True Qi won't even be able to enter your Sea of Consciousness and will be suppressed by a special force."

His eyes lit up, and Young Master Ruohuan's confidence soared. Ignoring Qin Lei's expression, he continued, "As a peak four-star Master Teacher, you blindly cultivated a martial art without understanding its essence, yet you have the nerve to compare your comprehension of cultivation with mine... Who gave you such audacity?"

Qin Lei's body swayed.

He had just tried the symptoms his opponent described, and they were all present. Could it be... he had truly cultivated incorrectly and gone astray?

As a Master Teacher, if his own cultivation was a mess, how could he guide others? In essence, he had already lost without even needing to compete.

"Alright, I've said enough. However... since you've only just made these mistakes, they can still be resolved. If you wait too long, it will be too late to recover..."

Young Master Ruohuan waved his hand. "Tell you what, I am a magnanimous person. If you concede defeat, I will teach you the solution."