The air itself seemed to hiss.

The punch was once again aimed directly at Su Mo’s face.

If it landed, his handsome face would probably be charred black on the spot.

Seeing the incoming attack, Su Mo didn’t dare be careless.

His spiritual energy surged through his meridians as he activated a technique he had obtained from one of the system check-ins. A C-Rank Technique.

"Rock Fist."

A layer of earthy yellow spiritual energy wrapped around his arm. His fist seemed to gain a heavy, solid feeling, as if it had truly transformed into stone.

The next moment, the two fists collided.

Boom!

A shockwave spread outward from the point of impact.

The stone beneath their feet cracked as spiritual energy scattered in every direction.

This time, however, the result was completely different from before.

Neither side was sent flying.

Both were pushed backward several steps at the same time.

Shen Kai’s eyebrows rose slightly.

Su Mo’s eyes lit up.

The difference was immediately obvious.

Although Shen Kai still held the advantage, the gap wasn’t as overwhelming as before.

More importantly, Su Mo had actually managed to withstand the attack.

A smile gradually spread across his face.

His blood began to boil.

This feeling was completely different from fighting monsters, villains, or opponents he could overwhelm with strange abilities.

This was a straightforward exchange of techniques and experience.

For the first time in a long while, he felt the excitement of a real fight.

"Again!"

Before anyone could react, Su Mo rushed forward.

Body Flicker Technique activated.

His figure blurred and instantly closed the distance between them.

Shen Kai’s eyes narrowed.

So fast.

The movement technique truly was excellent.

Unfortunately, movement technique alone wasn’t enough to win a battle.

The moment Su Mo appeared in front of him, Shen Kai twisted his body slightly and launched another punch.

This time, however, Su Mo didn’t foolishly choose to meet it head-on.

Remembering the lesson from moments ago, he shifted his stance and narrowly avoided the incoming attack.

The fist brushed past his cheek.

The fierce wind generated by the punch made his skin sting.

Yet before Shen Kai could retract his arm, Su Mo’s own fist was already moving.

Rock Fist.

The heavy punch slammed toward Shen Kai’s ribs.

Shen Kai snorted and blocked with his forearm.

Bang!

The impact forced him back half a step.

A look of surprise flashed across his eyes.

The brat was learning very fast.

On the sidelines, Song Meilin was equally surprised.

"He’s already adapting?"

Yang Qingxi nodded.

"That’s one of his strengths."

Although Su Mo lacked experience, his learning ability was frightening.

As long as he personally experienced something once, he could usually improve very quickly. Of course, expect for his gaming skills.

Shen Xing’s eyes shone even brighter.

"As expected."

Song Meilin glanced at her.

"What now?"

Shen Xing spoke seriously.

"He used the first exchange to gather information. Now he’s beginning to apply it."

Yang Qingxi silently looked away.

She had already given up correcting Shen Xing.

At least the conclusion wasn’t completely wrong this time.

Meanwhile, the battle continued.

Shen Kai no longer looked as relaxed as before.

Although Su Mo was still rough around the edges, his adaptability was visible even to the naked eye.

Every exchange seemed to teach him something.

Every clash improved his understanding.

What was originally supposed to be a lesson for an arrogant junior was gradually becoming something else.

A training session.

One where the student was improving at a speed that made even Shen Kai feel slightly uncomfortable.

The old man clicked his tongue.

"What an annoying talent."

Su Mo heard the mutter and grinned.

"I’ll take that as a compliment, Great Elder."

The next moment, he disappeared again using Body Flicker.

This time, however, the excitement in his eyes had become even brighter.

For once, he had stopped thinking about conspiracies, hidden enemies, protagonists, and assassination attempts.

Right now, he only wanted one thing.

To fight and to learn.

And to see just how far he could push himself against a true veteran of the Golden Core Stage.

***

Su Mo and Shen Kai’s fight naturally attracted the attention of many elders within the White Moon Sect.

The fluctuations produced by two Golden Core cultivators exchanging blows were impossible to hide. One after another, powerful spiritual senses swept across the sect, trying to determine what had happened.

Some elders immediately became alarmed.

After yesterday’s large-scale Pishacha invasion and last night’s assassination attempt, everyone’s nerves had become tense. The moment they sensed such violent aura fluctuations, their first thought was naturally that another enemy had appeared.

Fortunately, before unnecessary panic could spread, Shen Kai sent a spiritual message to the elders.

’It was only a spar. Not an invasion.’

The elders immediately relaxed.

However, relief was quickly replaced by curiosity.

Who exactly was fighting the Great Elder?

Everyone in the White Moon Sect understood Shen Kai’s strength.

At the peak of the Golden Core Stage, he was second only to the Sect Master. In ordinary circumstances, there were very few people in the entire sect capable of exchanging blows with him on equal footing.

The more they thought about it, the more curious they became.

Even so, none of them rashly entered Shen Kai’s residence.

The Great Elder had already clarified the situation. If they still barged into his courtyard to satisfy their curiosity, they would only be asking for trouble.

Unlike the other elders, however, Wu Haruto did not need to concern himself with such matters.

The moment he sensed the clash of auras, he directly extended his spiritual sense toward Shen Kai’s residence.

The scene quickly appeared within his perception.

Two figures were exchanging fists across the training ground. Neither had drawn a weapon, nor were they using any large-scale techniques.

It really did look like a spar.

Wu Haruto observed silently for several moments.

The more he watched, the more surprised he became.

"Interesting."

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"Shen Kai isn’t holding back much, yet the opponent is still managing to keep up."