Chapter 265 – Sparring and Transformation

“Swish—”

The door of the training room opened, and two figures appeared in Lu Yuan’s view.

One of them gave a slight bow to Lu Yuan before quickly turning and leaving. He was just the guide, the Golden Bear.

As for the other one…

He was the Grandmaster Xu Weiguo of the “Tiger Taming Style,” whom Lu Yuan had been waiting for.

The newcomer’s appearance was nearly identical to the photograph.

He looked to be in his forties, with a rosy complexion, short black hair, and a sturdy build.

Lu Yuan was slightly surprised.

He had previously thought that the photo was of a young Xu Weiguo, but it turned out that he actually looked like this.

According to the information, Xu Weiguo was already eighty-seven, even older than Lu Yueping. Yet, he looked younger than Lu Xinghua.

Lu Yuan had learned that once pure martial artists step into the Grandmaster Realm, their bodies undergo a process akin to cleansing and refinement.

It’s normal for their bodily functions to improve significantly, for their lifespan to extend, and for their appearance to become youthful.

But he hadn’t expected it to be this extreme. A Grandmaster close to ninety looked like a man in his forties.

“Grandmaster Xu.”

The Golden Bear, having left, closed the door, leaving only Lu Yuan and the sturdy middle-aged man in the training room.

Lu Yuan smiled and greeted Xu Weiguo.

Although the information indicated that Xu Weiguo’s strength was only average within the Grandmaster Realm, necessary respect was still required.

“Lord Lu.”

Xu Weiguo responded with a respectful bow. There was a hint of deference in his demeanor.

Young, talented, with the background of a twin-winged bear… Numerous thoughts about Lu Yuan’s identity flashed through Xu Weiguo’s mind.

No matter which one, it was worth his full effort to establish a good relationship.

“Grandmaster Xu, you should know why I’ve invited you here today.”

Lu Yuan said to Xu Weiguo.

Xu Weiguo nodded, “Whatever aspect of the Grandmaster Realm you wish to understand, I will do my utmost to assist you.”

“Thank you, Grandmaster Xu.”

Lu Yuan had previously heard that pure martial artist Grandmasters are mostly egotistical and extremely proud. Interacting with them, one could only look up to them—they wouldn’t even allow you to meet their gaze on equal terms.

However, today it seemed to be okay, not as exaggerated as the rumors suggested.

But then again… maybe this was why Xu Weiguo was considered the weakest among the Grandmasters?

Regardless, he was still a bona fide Grandmaster.

“Let’s start by testing your boxing power first,” Lu Yuan suggested after some thought.

He could always study this aspect later in the [imaginary enemy] Consciousness Space at his own leisure, but since Xu was here, he might as well test it now.

“Alright,” Xu Weiguo agreed readily, his eyes scanning the surroundings.

Lu Yuan guessed he was looking for a force measurement device, so he said, “No need to trouble yourself. Just throw a few punches at me.”

“Be careful then, Lord,” Xu Weiguo nodded, without further comment, then relaxed his body and slowly threw a punch towards Lu Yuan.

As Xu Weiguo punched, Lu Yuan keenly sensed his heartbeat speed up, the blood flow in his veins accelerated instantaneously by more than ten times.

It was like a small, almost still river…

suddenly turning into a roaring, stormy torrent.

This extreme transformation from tranquility to intense activity even surprised Lu Yuan.

Ordinary people would have died from ruptured heart vessels long ago… Indeed, Xu Weiguo was a pure martial artist Grandmaster, having achieved extraordinary control over his bodily functions.

Xu Weiguo’s punch wasn’t fast.

Upon impact, it created a clear white air wave in the air.

Lu Yuan remained calm, reaching out to grab Xu Weiguo’s punch lightly.

“Bang!”

Xu Weiguo’s fist landed solidly in Lu Yuan’s palm.

Lu Yuan’s body didn’t move an inch.

He looked at Xu Weiguo expressionlessly.

The force behind Xu Weiguo’s punch was only about sixty or seventy tons; such boxing power didn’t even make Lu Yuan sway.

Xu Weiguo didn’t seem surprised and quickly threw another punch.

This one also created an air wave and contained more power than the first, but it still felt weak to Lu Yuan.

Xu Weiguo immediately followed with a third punch.

Xu Weiguo increased the strength of each punch incrementally. Whether this was his usual cautious approach or a fear of unintentionally injuring Lu Yuan was unclear.

But it made Lu Yuan frown.

If Xu Weiguo continued to test his Grandmaster abilities punch by punch like this, it would be nightfall before they finished.

Although Xu Weiguo looked like a strong forty-something-year-old, his mentality was still closer to that of a ninety-year-old man…

Too slow!

Lu Yuan thought to himself, deciding to take the initiative and quickly force Xu Weiguo to reveal his true strength.

“If someone is about to die… they surely won’t hold back anymore, right?”

Lu Yuan’s eyes sparkled. After taking another of Xu Weiguo’s punches, he suddenly spread his five fingers wide into a crane claw and struck at Xu Weiguo with full force.

[Killer move—Spirit Crane Technique: Mistaken Plucking of Immortal Orchid!]

The moment he launched the attack, the air around his palm exploded in rapid succession, with five white streams of air bursting from his fingertips, creating long, streaming trails.

With his four basic attributes continuously elevated, Lu Yuan could now easily exert over a hundred tons of instant explosive power with one hand in his normal state, without altering his body shape.

This Mistaken Plucking of Immortal Orchid, when executed by him now, had completely lost its former elegance and grace.

All that remained was an overwhelming force of tearing and crushing, like a massive dark cloud descending on Xu Weiguo, intending to crush his head to pieces…

Xu Weiguo was startled, his muscles tensed instinctively, and the force in his hands increased significantly.

“Roar!”

“Boom!”

The sounds of a tiger’s roar and a crane’s cry seemed to simultaneously echo in the air. The collision of fist and claw exploded with a muffled sound, followed by a massive shockwave spreading in all directions.

Xu Weiguo took a step back, while Lu Yuan’s figure swayed slightly. He flexed his fingers and smiled, “Now that’s more like a Grandmaster.”

Xu Weiguo’s face instantly darkened.

He had been cautious due to the other’s identity, but his courtesy had been mistaken for weakness.

Since that was the case, there was no need to hold back anymore.

Xu Weiguo moved his body, his bones cracking in succession, and the sound of rushing blood coursing through his veins echoed like a river.

Xu Weiguo twisted his body and charged at Lu Yuan, launching a punch enveloped in a thick, pure white light that resonated with the sound of a tiger’s roar in the air.

Instead of being startled, Lu Yuan was thrilled. His muscles rolled under his skin, a dark golden martial deity strength burst forth, and he threw a punch back.

The dark golden fist collided with the pure white fist.

“Boom!”

The explosion of sound and force this time was several times greater than before.

The martial deity strength on Lu Yuan’s fist shattered completely, and he was pushed back two steps.

“What is this?”

A look of mild astonishment appeared on his face. “Grandmaster’s Qi1?”

Ever since Lu Yuan developed his martial deity strength, he had never lost in a direct clash of inner strength with anyone—it always resulted in an overwhelming victory.

He hadn’t expected his strength to be completely shattered in a punch against Xu Weiguo’s.

Recalling information about pure martial artist Grandmasters, he speculated this might be the legendary Grandmaster’s Qi that only they possessed.

“You have sharp eyes, Lord,” Xu Weiguo replied calmly, though his heart was in turmoil.

The quality of Grandmaster’s Qi is dozens of times that of ordinary martial artist inner strength—the difference is greater than that between stone and egg.

When Xu Weiguo’s fist touched the dark golden strength on Lu Yuan’s fist, he found its quality to be extraordinarily high.

Unlike other martial artists’ strength that shattered upon impact, Lu Yuan’s held strong for several seconds, even emitting a domineering force that penetrated Xu Weiguo’s Protective Shield, faintly stinging his fist.

“A monster,” Xu Weiguo mentally defined the youth in front of him, who appeared at most eighteen or nineteen years old.

“Please, Grandmaster Xu, keep it up,” Lu Yuan said, then smiled and continued to attack Xu Weiguo.

Lu Yuan hadn’t transformed or used True Intent, refraining from employing any skills outside the standard martial artist panel.

Dragon sect, crane style, and Whale Body Ocean Encompassing Style martial arts moves were constantly switching in his hands.

For a while, the spacious martial arts room echoed with sounds of dragon roars, tiger roars, crane cries, and whale wails, accompanied by the impacts of punches and kicks, creating a lively and intense atmosphere.

Gradually, Lu Yuan began to feel a long-lost sense of enjoyment from it.

The skills from the pure martial artist system had been set aside for a long time.

The [martial artist] panel was gradually reaching its max level, exposing its limitations and revealing its subsequent lack of potential, a fact even Lu Yuan might not have noticed.

As a result, the [martial artist] had slowly declined from being his primary combat profession to merely a supporting role.

Against level S opponents, Lu Yuan could still play around with [martial artist] techniques. But with level SS and beyond, he was forced to activate [elephant deity: Emissary Stance (extraordinary)] or incorporate many abilities from [Death Messenger (extraordinary)].

Even when using [martial artist] skills, he primarily relied on super killer moves and three professional core skills.

Most of the other skills were seldom used.

However, during his sparring session with pure martial artist Grandmaster Xu Weiguo, Lu Yuan seemed to be gradually rediscovering his passion as a pure martial artist.

He freely and seamlessly combined various martial arts skills, sparking marvelous effects at every clash.

Because it was just a sparring session, unlike the usual life-and-death battles, Lu Yuan’s mindset was exceptionally pure.

Even if he fell behind or was forced back, it didn’t matter.

This allowed him to capture the beauty and brilliance unique to pure martial arts, which he had previously always overlooked.

“Oh, so there were still so many unexplored realms within the [martial artist] panel!”

He gradually immersed himself in the process of refining and practicing moves, with his mindset undergoing subtle changes.

This change prompted a remarkable transformation in his martial deity strength, a skill he hadn’t studied deeply in a while. Both its quality and quantity were rapidly improving, and the experience points on his panel were skyrocketing.

In reality, given Lu Yuan’s current physical attributes, he could have maxed out martial deity strength numerous times already.

But due to its lackluster Effect, he hadn’t devoted much energy to it, leaving much of its potential untapped.

Lu Yuan also sensed subtle changes in his mental power.

What used to be a nebulous fog began to thicken. After absorbing a large number of black beads in the Wailing Ruins, which carried a plethora of chaotic memories, the impurities left in his mind and will were also being swiftly expelled in the process.

Lu Yuan’s mental state felt like a dust-covered mirror being gradually polished to shine with repeated strokes.

The more Lu Yuan fought, the more invigorated he felt, increasing the power behind his punches and kicks.

In contrast, Xu Weiguo was growing increasingly alarmed!

Although he had maintained the upper hand so far, the young martial artist before him was like a spring-no matter how much pressure he applied, Lu Yuan would quickly bounce back, seemingly with infinite potential.

Xu Weiguo was using nearly seventy percent of his strength now, yet he still couldn’t completely suppress his opponent.

He was, after all, a pure martial artist Grandmaster, the ceiling of martial artists!

While Lu Yuan bore the insignia of a Twin-winged Bear on his chest, indicating his true capabilities were likely not weaker than Xu’s.

But Lu Yuan had been using purely martial artist techniques this whole time!

It was simply unbelievable!

Xu Weiguo’s eyes flickered. Gritting his teeth, he suddenly released an inexplicable aura from within his body.

“Roar!”

The sound of the tiger’s roar in the room instantly drowned out all other noises, shaking the entire area.

Footnote:

1. Qi(气): “Qi” (气) is a term used in Chinese martial arts and fantasy literature. It refers to an extremely powerful form of internal energy or aura that only martial artists of the highest caliber, known as grandmasters, can possess. This energy is so potent that it can shatter opponents’ defenses and is often depicted as a unique and formidable force exclusive to these martial arts masters.