Chapter 143: Chapter 141: Admitting Defeat

"To defeat you, all I need is one move!"

Qin Li, clad in his cyan robe, stood unruffled in the center of the arena. He spoke calmly, his composure perfect.

From the side, two figures shot out like meteors, catching Xiahou Feng’s body in an instant. As they landed, their eyes, fixed on Qin Li, were filled with killing intent.

Across the massive training grounds, thousands of people stared with wide eyes and open mouths, their expressions full of disbelief. A dead silence fell.

But in the next moment, everyone erupted into a frenzy of cheers!

The roar was like a mountain collapsing, a tsunami crashing ashore.

Chen Yihan and the Advanced Academy’s old headmaster, Elder Yi, who had been sitting, now shot to their feet involuntarily. They stared in shock at the young man standing with his hands clasped behind his back. The powerful hearts of these two Celestial Level Martial Artists were pounding in their chests, their minds... reeling in shock!

Even the Crown Prince, Zhao Xinghe, stood up in disbelief and shouted, "Excellent!" But his voice was completely drowned out by the wave of cheers.

After shouting, he realized his blunder and sheepishly sat back down. A glance to his left and right confirmed that no one had noticed his loss of composure.

Everyone was screaming wildly. These genius students, normally so arrogant and aloof, as if nothing in the world could shake them, were now excited beyond measure. Tears streamed down their faces as they yelled, many of them not even knowing what they were shouting.

The roar seemed to soar into the heavens!

For a moment, it felt as if the entire Imperial Capital, Cyan Dragon City, trembled.

Many people looked quizzically in the direction of the Advanced Academy, wondering what on earth was happening.

Xiahou Feng’s face was ashen. He opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood. When he opened his eyes, they were completely bloodshot. At this moment, his mind was filled with countless questions!

’Why? He’s clearly only at the Earth Level, so how could he break through my Celestial Level defense?’

’Why? How was he so fast that I couldn’t even react in time?’

’Why? How could his power be so immense? That one kick felt like it was going to shatter all my internal organs.’

’Why, why, why!’

"Young Master, let us kill him!" Twelve clansmen, all at the Celestial Level, had gathered around Xiahou Feng. With a single command, they would charge forward and tear the man who dared to harm their Young Master limb from limb.

Xiahou Feng felt his insides churn again. He spat out another mouthful of blood, this time mixed with dark clots. It was clear he had suffered severe internal injuries.

Xiahou Feng raised an arm and waved weakly. After spitting out the second mouthful of blood, he felt slightly better. He took the Healing Sacred Medicine offered by a guard and swallowed it in one gulp.

A warm current flowed down his throat and filled his entire body, immediately easing his severe injuries. He finally managed to let out a long breath and said, "Don’t."

"Young Master!" Two young men, also at the Celestial Level, had extremely grim expressions. Their eyes were bloodshot as they roared, "We can’t let that brat go!"

Just then, Chen Yihan, Elder Yi, and several other old men Qin Li had never seen before walked over from the edge of the training grounds to stand by his side.

Their intention was perfectly clear: they would protect this young man at all costs.

What was he? A national treasure! In the hearts of Chen Yihan and the others, this young Marquis was even more precious than a national treasure.

The people from the Mysterious Land all had immense backers, wore dazzling halos of prestige, and possessed astounding, Unparalleled Martial Arts. Despite their youth, their strength was so great it made one tremble. Who would dare provoke such people? Even if they were arrogant to a fault and looked down on everyone, no one dared to challenge them.

But deep down, whether it was Chen Yihan, Elder Yi, or the Celestial Level Martial Artists now gathering around Qin Li, how could any of them be happy about it?

The more powerful and talented a Martial Artist, the more sacred and inviolable their dignity!

But when your opponent’s fist is bigger than yours, what can you do when they violate your dignity and trample on your bottom line?

If not for this young Marquis bursting onto the scene, imagine the devastating blow to the morale of the genius students of the Advanced Academy once this group of arrogant visitors from the Mysterious Land departed.

Some might be spurred to strive harder because of it, but many more would surely fall into despair.

That was why this young Marquis had to be protected, even at the cost of their own lives! Because only someone like him was the true hope for the future of the entire nation!

Only he was worthy of being called a true legend!

Xiahou Feng mustered a bit of strength, his hunched body straightening slightly. But what followed was a bone-deep chill that swept over his entire being.

He fought to control his anger, his humiliation, and the overwhelming sense of powerlessness.

To crush this young man in a single blow, he had unleashed the full power of his third-stage Celestial Level cultivation! He could even swear that it was the most complete and unrestrained display of his abilities in his entire life.

But... he had lost!

Lost so pathetically, so effortlessly!

His opponent’s words—"To defeat you, all I need is one move!"—were like a sharp knife, stabbing viciously into Xiahou Feng’s seemingly proud but actually fragile heart.

This pain was countless times greater than any physical injury.

"Don’t kill him." Xiahou Feng shrugged off the support of the two guards and slowly walked toward Qin Li.

In the stands, the tide of cheers immediately quieted. The crowd grew tense again. After all, the dozen or so people following behind the young man all wore menacing expressions. Even from a distance, one could feel the powerful aura they emanated, as well as their... heaven-storming rage!

Fortunately, many Celestial Level experts had also gathered on Qin Li’s side. From time to time, students in the stands would cry out in surprise as they recognized their own clan’s ancestors, who hadn’t been seen in public for years, among the old men gathering around Qin Li.

It seemed this battle was no longer just about the students’ pride or the princess’s freedom, nor was it merely about the honor of the Cyan Dragon Kingdom.

It had escalated into a confrontation over the power imbalance between the mortal world and the Mysterious Land!

The Mysterious Land, the Hidden Clans—they were scattered across every corner of the Celestial Essence Continent. Almost everyone who reached a certain level of power had heard rumors about them. But very few knew where the entrances to any Mysterious Land were located. Those who had accidentally stumbled into one often had only one thing to say about it—every single person there was terrifyingly powerful!

But even the weak have their dignity, to say nothing of these Mortal Martial Artists who had reached the Celestial Level.

In the eyes of these Celestial Level Martial Artists who had rushed to the scene, this young man had reclaimed the dignity of all Mortal Martial Artists. This battle was tantamount to a silent roar directed at those from the Mysterious Land!

’You may be strong, but we are by no means weak!’

Xiahou Feng looked at the tense faces of the Mortal Martial Artists and a faint smile appeared on his lips. It held a trace of mockery, and perhaps... self-deprecation as well.

’Just before this battle, I wouldn’t have given these Mortal Martial Artists a second glance. I reached the third stage of the Celestial Level at only twenty years old. But these Mortal Martial Artists? Aren’t they all old geezers of seventy, eighty, or even over a hundred years old? The rare "young" Celestial Level genius one might encounter is still an old man in his fifties. And even that is considered remarkable!’

Therefore, Xiahou Feng had always looked down on Mortal Martial Artists. He believed he had the right to do so.

’Because in comparison, *I* am the true genius!’

He slowly walked up to Qin Li, the corners of his mouth twitching violently. ’Thinking it is one thing, but admitting defeat to this person’s face is another entirely.’

"Are you here to fulfill your promise?"

As if on cue, Qin Li rubbed salt in Xiahou Feng’s wounds.

Xiahou Feng’s pale face instantly flushed red. A cold, sharp light shot from his eyes. At this signal, the Xiahou Clan guards who had followed him all unleashed their astonishing auras!

Without a word, Chen Yihan and Elder Yi erupted with the aura of ninth-stage Celestial Level experts!

The pressure was so immense it almost solidified, crashing down on everyone with the force of the Great Sea.

The atmosphere instantly grew heavy. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Xiahou Feng’s chest heaved violently a few times. Then, he gave a slight wave of his hand, and the resentful crowd behind him reluctantly retracted their auras.

Chen Yihan and the others on his side also breathed a sigh of relief and withdrew their auras. After all, these visitors had an immense background. It was best to leave some room for maneuver and avoid offending them to the point of no return if possible.

But if the other side pushed things too far, they would fight them to the death!

’They were all Celestial Level Martial Artists. When it came to fear... who was truly afraid?’

"I lost!"

Xiahou Feng did not say those two words easily. He had originally thought that admitting defeat in public would be a monumental humiliation, something worse than death.

But after uttering those two words, he found that he wasn’t as devastated as he’d imagined, although the sense of humiliation was still immense.

With that, Xiahou Feng turned to the stands and said slowly, "You are the true geniuses. I was wrong. I am the fool!"

No sounds of ridicule came from the stands. Instead, it was very quiet.

Which of the students of the Imperial Advanced Academy wasn’t proud to the bone? In terms of strength, they truly couldn’t hope to match Xiahou Feng. Because of this, his apology brought them no satisfaction. Instead, it left them with a profound sense of frustration.

This frustration, however, transformed into a powerful motivation! At that moment, almost every single one of them secretly swore to train with all their might.

’One day, when we encounter someone like Xiahou Feng again, we will stand tall and declare proudly, "I am a genius!"’