Chapter 26: Crushing Victory

When the crowd finally snapped out of their shock, their faces were filled with disbelief.

"How is this possible!"

"Isn't Luo Shan supposed to be a peerless genius capable of triggering heavenly phenomena? How was he slapped away by Qin Xingchen? Is this what you call a peerless genius? He is clearly nothing but a piece of trash who can't even withstand a single blow!"

...

Below the stage, the expressions of Yu Tianba, Luo Changgu, and Yu Shanshan were not only shocked but incredibly unsightly.

Yu Xiong was already dumbfounded, while Yu Yumeng offered a faint smile. It seemed she had underestimated her fiancé after all.

"He couldn't even take a single slap from someone else. What kind of bullshit peerless genius is this?"

"Exactly. Is this really the person who triggered heavenly phenomena?"

"This much strength is all it takes to trigger a phenomenon? If that’s the case, I feel like I could do it too!"

"Damn it, I was actually admiring him earlier. It’s so embarrassing now, what the hell!"

"It’s truly shameful. I’m almost too embarrassed to even talk about it!"

"However, we all underestimated Qin Xingchen. Who would have thought he was the true number one genius of the Wangyue Sect!"

...

Unable to accept the reality, the crowd began to mock Luo Shan. With just one slap, Qin Xingchen had essentially declared Luo Shan’s defeat.

As for the representatives of the major factions, they couldn't help but shake their heads in disappointment after witnessing Luo Shan’s performance. Some even cursed themselves silently for being fools. They had traveled thousands of miles to recruit a "peerless genius" who could trigger heavenly phenomena, only to end up with such a piece of garbage? At this moment, they found the situation utterly embarrassing and shameful.

On the life-and-death stage, Luo Shan struggled to his feet. Facing the mockery and pointing fingers from the crowd, his expression turned grim. Compared to being defeated by Qin Xingchen, the ridicule of the onlookers stung him far more.

With a face full of resentment, he glared at Qin Xingchen and said, "Qin Xingchen, don't think you’ve won. Hmph, the duel has only just begun. Watch closely—I will show you my true strength!"

Having said that, he reached out with his right hand, retrieved a medicinal pill from a spatial ring, and swallowed it instantly.

Boom!

The aura within him surged violently, and his cultivation level climbed instantly.

Eighth Level of the Blood-Condensation Realm!

"What! How did Luo Shan's cultivation jump from the sixth level to the eighth level of the Blood-Condensation Realm in an instant?"

"Hmph, didn't you see him secretly swallow a pill? Looking at that skyrocketing aura, he must have taken some kind of pill to boost his cultivation!"

"You're right. That is a Blood-Burst Pill, a second-grade medicinal pill. It can instantly boost one's cultivation, but once the effect wears off, the user will surely suffer a backlash and be severely injured. At best, they’ll be bedridden for months; at worst, their cultivation will plummet, and their dantian will be permanently damaged. It’s a forbidden pill."

"So that's it! It seems Luo Shan is truly desperate to defeat Qin Xingchen!"

"He has no choice, does he? If he doesn't go all out, he’ll lose his life. After all, this is a life-and-death duel!"

"Still, now that his cultivation has reached the eighth level, Qin Xingchen might be in trouble."

...

On the stage, Qin Xingchen looked at Luo Shan, whose cultivation had spiked to the eighth level, and sneered, "Forcing your cultivation up with a Blood-Burst Pill at the cost of damaging your dantian—Luo Shan, is this your true strength, or just your final death throes?"

Luo Shan’s eyes were bloodshot as he roared, "Qin Xingchen, I want you dead!"

As soon as he finished speaking, his body blurred. He charged at Qin Xingchen again, throwing a palm strike.

"Take this! Cloud-Splitting Palm!"

The Cloud-Splitting Palm was a low-tier Earth-grade martial art with immense power. With Luo Shan’s current eighth-level cultivation, the power of this strike was comparable to a blow from a tenth-level Blood-Condensation expert.

However, as his full-force strike aimed for Qin Xingchen’s forehead, Qin Xingchen extended his left hand and caught his fist instantly.

"What..." Luo Shan’s face turned pale.

After gripping Luo Shan’s fist tightly, Qin Xingchen clenched his right fist and threw a punch. The blow carried a terrifying, massive force, slamming directly into the bridge of Luo Shan’s nose.

"Ah..."

As Luo Shan let out a shrill scream, his entire body was sent flying backward, slamming heavily into the ground once again. His nose was crushed, his face covered in blood, and he looked utterly pathetic and gruesome.

The scene fell silent once more. Some had expected that after consuming the Blood-Burst Pill, Qin Xingchen would be the one in trouble. They never expected that Qin Xingchen would defeat Luo Shan so easily again.

"You... how could you be this strong?"

Luo Shan lifted his head with great difficulty, looking at Qin Xingchen with terror. He finally understood why everyone he had sent to sabotage Qin Xingchen had met such miserable ends. It turned out Qin Xingchen was so powerful—a strength he had failed to perceive from the very beginning.

Qin Xingchen used his "Thunder-Flash Steps," and with a flicker, he appeared before Luo Shan. He stepped onto Luo Shan’s chest, looking down at him with cold eyes. "To think a 'peerless genius' who can trigger heavenly phenomena looks like this. You really are trash. Besides, Luo Shan, when you offended me, you should have anticipated this result!"

Luo Shan panicked. "Qin Xingchen, you... you can't kill me! My father is watching from below. If you dare to kill me, he won't let you go!"

"Oh, really?" Qin Xingchen replied with disdain.

Below the stage, Luo Changgu glared at Qin Xingchen and shouted, "Qin Xingchen, mercy is a virtue. You have already defeated Luo Shan; I hope you let him go and do not go too far!"

Qin Xingchen looked at Luo Changgu and scoffed, "Fourth Elder, when you said that to me, did you forget that this is a life-and-death duel?"

"You..." Luo Changgu gritted his teeth in anger.

Qin Xingchen continued, "Since it is a life-and-death duel, your son Luo Shan’s life is in my hands. If I want him to live, he lives; conversely, if I want him dead, he dies!"

Luo Changgu roared, "Qin Xingchen! You and Luo Shan are sect brothers. How can you be so heartless as to kill him?"

Qin Xingchen sneered, "Fourth Elder, just a moment ago, you were urging your son to kill me. What, is it only acceptable for your son to kill me, but not for me to kill your son?"

Luo Changgu frowned, "You haven't been killed by him yet, have you? Can't you just let him go?"

Qin Xingchen laughed, "How laughable. Fourth Elder, if I were the one crushed under your son’s feet right now, would you have let him spare my life?"

Luo Changgu said, "Stop the nonsense. Let my son go, or you will regret it!"

Upon hearing this, Qin Xingchen immediately stomped down, snapping Luo Shan’s left arm.

"Ah!" Luo Shan lay on the ground, screaming in agony.

"Qin Xingchen, how dare you hurt my son, you..."

"Ah!"

Just as Luo Changgu was angrily threatening him, Qin Xingchen stomped down again, breaking Luo Shan’s right arm. Now, with both arms broken, Luo Shan was in so much pain he was on the verge of fainting.

Following this, Qin Xingchen planted a foot on Luo Shan’s abdomen—right over his dantian.

"Ah..."

Luo Shan screamed again and again. His dantian was thoroughly shattered. With his dantian destroyed, his cultivation was lost entirely. From this moment on, he was reduced to a cripple, forever cut off from the path of martial arts.

Seeing Luo Shan in such agony, Luo Changgu was beside himself with rage. "Qin Xingchen, how dare you..."

He didn't dare to continue threatening Qin Xingchen, fearing that the next stomp would land on Luo Shan’s head.

Qin Xingchen had no intention of letting Luo Shan go. After all, the original occupant of this body had been killed by Luo Shan, and he had promised to take revenge. Furthermore, over the past few days, Luo Shan had repeatedly sent people to cause trouble for him, even dispatching Lu Wenfeng to kill him. If he hadn't possessed sufficient strength, he would have been dead long ago. Therefore, regardless of anything else, Luo Shan had to die today!

"Boy, enough is enough!"

At that moment, a voice rang out. A young man dressed in a cloud-ink colored robe appeared on the life-and-death stage. The young man glanced at the screaming Luo Shan on the ground before turning his gaze to Qin Xingchen. "Boy, my name is Li Hongda, an outer disciple of the Tiancang Sect. If you let go of Luo Shan, I can promise not to strike you!"

The crowd was startled. This young man was indeed a disciple of the Tiancang Sect. From his cloud-ink robe, many recognized his status—that was the attire of an inner disciple of the Tiancang Sect. The Tiancang Sect was one of the two most powerful factions in the Tianhe Dynasty, second only to the Imperial Capital itself.

Qin Xingchen sneered, "You tell me to let him go, and I should? Who the hell do you think you are?"

"You..."

Li Hongda said angrily, "Do you know the consequences if you kill Luo Shan? Do you know who his sister is? His sister is a core disciple of our Tiancang Sect! If you kill him, you will be hunted down by her for the rest of your life! I suggest you think carefully before you decide!"