Xuan Wu hated when people underestimated him, and Yun Fei was doing just that by making the challenge more in his favour. The ease which was visible through all of Yun Fei's actions didn't sit right with him.

'He will realise the price of underestimating me after this battle.'

It is natural that some of the best moves are executed in the fiery crucible of mortal combat. But that is not a limit, many athletes and warriors have described their actions as if witnessing them rather than doing them.

The speed of thought and the elimination of choice as the pressure to 'do' elevates the mind to new heights. This is the reason why pulling through individual crunch moments is a much greater feat than excelling under the spur of the moment.

It is the hallmark of a true master, performing your best through a conscious chain of thought and an artificially primed mindset.

Xuan Wu had perfected this art. Even though, With his usual easygoing attitude, he seemed free of such concerns.

All of Xuan Wu's Qi roiled. Under the eyes of the spectators, the previous scene seemed to repeat itself, but this time without the interference of the fog.

Beneath the bandages covering the gauntlets runes lit up invisible to the spectators. But everyone could witness as the gauntlets started to increase in size.

The loose bandages around them tightened and broke off in some places, revealing the gold and crimson aged metal below them.

Dark veins crept up his elbows after threading through his forearms. All the excess fat seemed to have vanished and he had grown almost imperceptibly thinner.

'Is this some kind of technique?'

Yun Fei thought as he waited for Xuan Wu to complete his preparations. Afterall, it wasn't against the terms of the challenge. Yun Fei could only start his own preparations as he stared Xuan Wu down.

Xuan Wu's deep exhale was like the growl of a beast. His eyes reddened along with it and his expression changed into one of madness. He was clearly using all the time to get into his strongest state possible.

Yun Fei was cautious but not afraid. Along with the caution, he also felt the thrill. His strength had increased greatly from before, the toughness of his body had increased greatly too.

Eating the snake's blood and flesh has been a great boon, the Qi had once again permeated his entire body. His bones and muscles seemed to have been refined even further by the chaotic flow of Qi which had been re-established.

Confident in his own strength, he took a step backwards in the circlular space that he had.

Xuan Wu was finally ready. With a deep growl, he dashed towards Yun Fei. Just as his momentum reached it's max, he leaped.

Yun Fei's Qi was concentrated in legs and his palm. Using his self discovered barbaric technique, he stepped forwards with as much force as he could without incurring any serious injuries.

Suddenly, a change took place in the guantlets of Xuan Wu who was in mid air, just before Yun Fei. As soon as he extended his right fist, his left guantlet shrank. In contrast, his right fist grew another size larger, looking even more menacing.

'He still had more techniques? It doesn't matter.'

Using the force propelling him from the ground, Yun Fei extended his right palm bursting with Qi to confront Xuan Wu's giant fist.

As the audience watched with bated breath, Their hands finally collided.

"TWANG!!!!!!"

A deep metallic sound reverberated across the amphitheatre. Along with the sound was, a shock wave. It pushed all the dust on the platform into the sky.

Yun Fei felt the massive force of the collision. The blood vessels at the back of his hand burst open in a spray of blood as both of his feet creaked under the force pushing him into the ground.

Suddenly, Yun Fei felt like he had found a piece to a puzzle. It was like when someone suddenly realised the correct way to do something.

Under this realisation, his Qi that was bursting madly out of his palm to contend against the collision, devolved into an orderly flow.

It moved in circles, faster and faster, creating a whirlpool which fed on Xuan Wu's Qi and grew even larger.

Xuan Wu felt a strange feeling, it was as if his Qi and the force was dissolving like an earthen bull falling into the ocean.

All of this happened in an instant. Before Xuan Wu even had the opportunity to comprehend the reason for this phenomenon, it was already over.

Yun Fei was doing everything instinctually. As the whirlpool grew larger, he was truly able to feel the control he had on the situation.

With complete concentration and instinct, he used some more of his Qi to detatch the complete whirlpool which was created from the combined efforts of Yun Fei and Xuan Wu.

Landing on the ground in front of Yun Fei, Xuan Wu's legs buckled under him as he fell to the floor.

Looking towards Yun Fei standing in front of him, he had an expression filled with complete incredulity.

Suddenly, a deep rumble resounded across the arena. People looked towards the source of the sound. It was a large stone obelisk used to display the match ups. It was currently shaking.

The rumble was like the ending gong to the fight. A lot of the people stood up and started cheering. This was truly a one of a kind battle, the people watching it were satisfied.

The victor was already clear. Xuan Wu wasn't one to go against his words. The exhausted Xuan Wu picked himself up and went down the stage. From the moment he had lost till the moment he left the stage, the expression of incredulity still remained on his face.

Yun Fei had won but his face showed no joy. He was trying hard to retain what he had just experienced. It was all an instinctual reaction. To emulate it consciously, he might have to try harder.

"That was truly a wonderful technique. He was able to redirect the explosion to the obelisk behind him." Scholar commented.

"No."

"No?"

"That was no technique, it was done purely by his own manipulation of Qi. I mean, it can be called a technique by definition but it was too crude to be something that can be practiced by others." Daosit Ren said as he looked towards the obelisk marked in the fight.

"Ehh, what do you mean?" Uncle said confusedly. Even school looked towards Daoist Ren for the explanation.

"You know that each technique was something that was created by someone right?

So the person who did it first didn't learn it from anywhere. He created it using inspiration or maybe just by chance.

Now, if that person wants to transmit this 'Knowledge.' that he has discovered or created, this person will have to somehow teach what he had discovered.

However, it is very hard for people to understand by just looking at it. This is the reason that the person will polish his knowledge and then create a manual, specifying steps for people to understand.

So people who have the manual can start from a beginner level and then reach closer to the creator.

Now, from what I have observed. What this guy did seemed to be very rough around the edges. It lacked the finish that is present in techniques that have been passed around."

Rapper Daoist nodded behind Ren, confirming his statements.

"What you mean is that, he did it all by himself without any technique?"

"That's right! Infact, we could probably do it if we tried. However, the only problem would be to do it fast enough so that it can prove to he helpful during combat. This kid seems to be really skilled in Qi manipulation."

Rapper Daoist nodded behind Ren again, confirming his statements.

"You bastard stop nodding around behind me. Why don't you say something by yourself for a change!!"

The one to replace Yun Fei on the stage was Su Libai. His opponent was someone who was just after Gong Sunling in the rankings.

Like the people from the first day. He didn't surrender, he also wanted to experience Su Libai's illusion firsthand.

The fight started like any other. With Su Libai using his illusions as his opponent tried to narrow down on his true position.

Suddenly, blood spurted into the air as Su Libai's opponent tried to catch his bearings. The slash on his body was so deep that even his innards were visible.

The fight was over. Su Libai looked towards his opponent whose blood flowed like water and said,

"I'm sorry, my hand slipped."

His tone was completely different from an apology. Everybody could understand what Su Libai meant from this gesture.

"Looks like Su Libai doesn't want to spend excess energy in small fights.

Since people didn't take him seriously, this is his response to discourage a similar behaviour to the first day." Yun Fei said to Devanshu.

'Hmm it should be pretty Qi intensive to use these illusions if he has to take these measures.

Well, it doesn't matter to me how good his illusions are. I can just see through them all.'

After Yun Rong finished his jobs for the day, he made sure to tutor both his sons in basic arithmetic and some other subjects he could manage.

The difference was easy for him to see. While Yun Zian looked like he was about to sleep any second, Yun Moxie did his best to learn and also thought about what had been taught to him after the classes.

At this point, even though he was three years younger. Yun Moxie had already surpassed his older brother in studies. Yun Rong had also finished teaching him all the basics he could. It wasn't hard for him and Yun Zhilan to realise that they had given birth to a genius.

As she looked at little Yun Moxie who took an active interest in academic matters. Yun Zhilan felt like his talent was being wasted because of the lack of guidance and proper education.

The family just couldn't afford the high end education that Yun Moxie deserved. Especially after the birth of another child. This time, it was a girl. The beautiful child was named as Yun Meili.

One night, as the children slept in one room while Yun Rong and Yun Zhilan slept in another with Yun Meili. Yun Zhilan finally brought up the issue that had been plaguing her to Yun Rong.

While Yun Zian had already fallen asleep after a hard day in the fields, trying to help his father. Yun Moxie lay awake, staring at the thatched ceiling of the hut as he listened to the hushed voices from his parents room.

"Dear, our Moxie is definitely a prodigy. Although we didn't push it in Zian's case because he never showed any interest or potential in studies,

But Moxie is a real genius, if he is able to receive the education that he deserves, he will surely be able to become very successful in his life. He might even be able to become a state scholar in a big city, raising the name of our family."

"I know. I know just how blessed we are to give birth to such a genius. But there is no way we can afford to send him to school, we also have Meili to provide for too.

If I could send him, I would. I also want to see my son rise to greater heights and achieve happiness."

"I understand you dear, I know just how much you love your family. I've thought a little about this issue and came to a solution.

How about I approach the village head Wen Fu and see if he can allow little Moxie to sit along when he tutors his children.

After he finishes teaching the other families kids. He still takes the time to take individual classes for his own children. I've been helping around at his house for years, when he realises little Moxie's potential, he will not refuse us."

"You're right. Although owing favours doesn't sit right with me, it would be very helpful if he agrees. The village head is a very honourable person, he should be a very good teacher for Moxie."

Yun Moxie who listened to his parents hushed voices couldn't have been more excited. He liked to learn, and now that he heard that he might have the chance to continue his education, he was expecting for the future.