At the forest behind the new district.

Whoosh!

A cold glint appeared, and was followed by a powerful spear strike!

It was still a simple straight stab, yet it carried waves of whistling sound from the wind as though it was trying to stab through the air itself!

For three days, Ye Lingchen focused solely on the basic movements of the spear techniques. The Phoenix Spear was famed to be the most elegant of spear techniques. Filled with feints, it was as though hundreds of birds were dancing about with a myriad of changes, making it impossible to defend against. However, Ye Lingchen continued to practice the most mundane of moves.

If it were anyone else, they would probably practice the other moves within that spear technique to learn of the varying transformation of spear skills. Nevertheless, Ye Lingchen's understanding of Phoenix Spear was already at 100%. Therefore, he could accurately find the best practice method for this spear technique.

This type of spear technique could not be rushed. The more the transformations, the heavier the requirements on the foundational techniques!

After a stab, Ye Lingchen did not retrieve the spear, but instead stood still while maintaining the stabbing posture with his hands extended, remaining completely still.

Apart from the falling leaves, the scene looked as though it was a still picture from afar.

That stillness went on for two hours!

The spear had seemingly become one with Ye Lingchen's body, not moving in the slightest.

At that moment, the spear trembled all of a sudden and rose to the sky like a rising dragon, stirring up all the falling leaves. Following that, it stabbed forward with lightning like speed!

Along the way, over a dozen leaves were stuck at the spear's tip and pinned to a tree!

However, upon closer inspection, the spearhead did not pierce any of those leaves. The force was balanced just right to press the leaves against the tree using the spear!

What terrifying control of strength!

If any expert spear users knew that it was the results from three days of practice, they would probably get a heart attack!

Ye Lingchen retrieved the spear and stood still. Chen Qi approached from the distance and laughed, "How's the progress with the spear technique?"

Ye Lingchen replied calmly, "Somewhat okay."

"That's fine. The practice of weapons can't be rushed. Take it slow," Chen Qi comforted without realizing Ye Lingchen's statement was just him being humble. "Regardless of it being the battlefield or the tournament, a weapon's usage is a must. The difficulty in practicing it is naturally more than that of your hands and legs."

Ye Lingchen nodded. "I understand."

Hands and legs were part of the body and the user had an innate autonomy over them after all, giving them a big advantage over practicing their usage. Meanwhile, weapons were an extension of the body with the first step of being one with the weapon. Otherwise, it would turn out to be a burden and harm oneself, much less the enemy.

Furthermore, having a weapon was definitely different from not having one. With the same strength, the side with the weapon would have better offensive strength. In the battlefield, there would be a big gap between an empty handed fighter compared to one wielding a saber.

In ancient tradition, there was the rule where one had to practice the body for three years before beginning weapon training.

When the body was sufficiently trained, one would then only have the foundations to train in weapons.

"Let's go. The Hong Kong representatives are here," Chen Qi stated.

"Alright." Ye Lingchen slung the spear diagonally behind his back and followed Chen Qi off.

Chen Qi reminded, "Also, you need to be careful once you arrive at Buff Island. The Stick Nation's team should be led by Sung-Yoon Lee."

"He's leading the team?" Ye Lingchen looked at Chen Qi in surprise. "It's led by a King Stage martial artist?"

"Hehe, on a place like the Buff Island, a King Stage is nothing." Chen Qi chuckled softly, then added, "However, you don't have to worry too much as well. No matter how crazy he gets, he would not dare to do anything out in the open. Furthermore, our Chinese team is also led by a King Stage. I'm just warning you to keep your guards up. There's no need to be afraid."

Ye Lingchen pursed his lips. "Tch, I'm not afraid."

"Kiddo…" Chen Qi shook his head with a pained smile. "This time you've really stirred up some major news. The entire martial artists circle is going wild. I suggest you keep things down low for now."

"I'll be courteous if he doesn't offend me." Ye Lingchen bared his teeth. "If the Stick Nation picks on me, I won't let them off scot free."

"Hahaha, don't place yourself in a precarious situation. The Warrior's Department will take care of the other matters," Chen Qi guffawed confidently. "I hope you can keep your forward momentum. Only then you'll be able to make it further."

Going through the Martial Arts Pavilion, they arrived at an empty field before them. With one glance, Ye Lingchen spotted a burly man in the middle of the field. He had a stern face and was wearing a green vest, standing straight like a javelin.

Beside him was a helicopter.

"This treatment is a little over the top," Ye Lingchen said in astonishment. He had never expected them to utilize a helicopter for sending them off.

Chen Qi looked at the burly man and came to a stop. "You go over on your own."

Ye Lingchen nodded, then slowly approached the burly man on his own. At the same time, he used his Aura Divination skill out of curiosity.

With that, Ye Lingchen immediately stopped in his tracks and felt a stinging sensation in his eyes.

"T-t-this…"

His pupils shrunk as he was terrified by the burly man's aura.

The burly man's strength was comparable to Xiang Guocheng. However, the redness in his aura had almost materialized into physical form. That red was so strong that just looking at it made Ye Lingchen feel a strong scent of blood hitting him right in the face.

Within the Martial Arts Pavilion, many people had a red hue in their aura. However, none of them were comparable to this burly man. The difference was between heaven and earth!

Ye Lingchen concluded that the red aura was formed from killing. To put it simply, it was the killing aura!

How many people did he kill to accumulate such a strong killing aura?

Ye Lingchen took a deep breath. At that moment, the person he walked toward was no longer a burly man, but a demonic killer.

His walking speed slowed down unconsciously. As he neared, the burly man remained unmoving. Under those shades, Ye Lingchen could not see the man's expression as he stood there like a statue.

As Ye Lingchen was three meters away from the burly man, his expression finally changed. He smiled. However, within that smile was a bone chilling intent that brought out a sense of dread within Ye Lingchen's heart.

Tap!

The burly man moved. With one step, he covered over a meter's distance and appeared directly before Ye Lingchen. After that, he raised his hand and grabbed Ye Lingchen!

His movements were simple, yet it carried the might of a toppling mountain, making him breathless. Fear and terror took over Ye Lingchen's heart and gave him the illusion of being cornered.

'This guy...is trying to kill me!'

That was the first thought in Ye Lingchen's mind. The terror in his heart was condensed to the extreme and was unable to keep the sense of insecurity within his heart in check. His spear swept out like an agile snake, sweeping into the air from below as he struck out at the burly man's eyes!

On the tip of the spear, his spiritual energy fluctuated.

The burly man remained silent and retrieved his hand that was stretched out at Ye Lingchen. Meanwhile, he raised the other hand to intercept the attack.

Bang!

The spear was blocked by the burly man's wrist while his other hand was already grabbing at Ye Lingchen!