Seeing Li Lu make the first move, Qin Xiao didn't dare to be careless and quickly dodged; after all, getting a cut would hurt.
However, Qin Xiao had little combat experience. Although Li Lu was young, he often sparred with other Disciples in his Family, so his combat experience was much richer than Qin Xiao's.
Seeing Qin Xiao try to dodge, Li Lu quickly changed his thrust to a slash, pointing his sword directly at Qin Xiao's arm.
Both reacted similarly, but Qin Xiao still lost due to lack of experience; he couldn't dodge in time, and his arm was directly cut, tearing his clothes again.
After hitting, Li Lu didn't stop but sped up his attacks. Qin Xiao frantically dodged, but more and more rips appeared in his clothes.
The burning pain made Qin Xiao want to curse, but his wild swings couldn't hit Li Lu; each time, they just grazed past him.
Li Lu grew more flustered as he fought. Although he almost always hit and didn't hold back, not a single drop of blood appeared on the other party.
"Could it be some Hard Body Skill from the Secular World?"
After realizing he couldn't injure Qin Xiao, Li Lu stopped and began to ponder whether such a Hard Body Skill existed in the Secular World.
But even if it did, he was a Cultivator in the Body Refining Stage now. No matter how strong a Hard Body Skill from the Secular World was, it couldn't achieve this.
"Damn it, I'm losing because I can't fight! Looks like I need to quickly catch up on combat experience."
Looking at his tattered clothes, Qin Xiao was truly helpless at this moment. Three years as a Mortal had made him give up on himself, so he hadn't learned any formal combat.
"Never mind. Even if there is such a Hard Body Skill, the vital point is either the groin or the eyes. I observed that he always protects his groin, so the vital point must be there."
After a brief thought, Li Lu attacked again.
Seeing the opponent attack again, Qin Xiao quickly dodged. Although he lacked combat experience before, after taking so many sword strikes, he had learned some lessons and understood Li Lu's attacks better. This time, he dodged it.
"It's as I expected."
Successfully dodging the sword strike according to his prediction, Qin Xiao roughly knew how to deal with Li Lu.
This was actually a feint by Li Lu; he was looking for an opportunity to strike Qin Xiao's groin with one sword.
After fighting back and forth for a while, Li Lu finally found an opportunity: he feigned an upward slash but actually lunged at the groin.
Qin Xiao indeed fell for it, holding his High Grade Spiritual Artifact directly in front of his chest. Li Lu suddenly changed his move, aiming a sword strike at Qin Xiao's groin.
Qin Xiao didn't have time to counter and quickly retreated, barely dodging the sword strike.
"You little brat, are you playing dirty with me?"
Qin Xiao was truly enraged now. Although this sword strike wouldn't make him infertile, the pain there was incomparable to the pain on his body.
"Indeed, your vital point is in your groin."
Seeing Qin Xiao get angry, Li Lu thought he had found Qin Xiao's vital point and was about to secretly rejoice.
But before he could celebrate, Qin Xiao's angry sword strike had already arrived. This time, Qin Xiao held nothing back, a full-speed sword strike that Li Lu couldn't dodge even if he wanted to.
It turned out that every time Qin Xiao's body was marked, it would be quickly repaired. After all, having absorbed so much spirit liquid, his strength was constantly improving through continuous repair. This was actually part of Body Refining: breaking first, then establishing anew.
Li Lu didn't expect Qin Xiao to suddenly erupt with such speed. It was too late to dodge, so he could only block with his sword in front of him, intending to take the blow head-on.
But he forgot that his sword was merely a Mortal sword, while Qin Xiao's sword was a High Grade Spiritual Artifact. With a crisp sound of a breaking sword, Qin Xiao's sword directly severed his sword and plunged squarely into his abdomen, straight to his Dantian.
"Ah~~~, Cousin, save me."
Li Lu felt his Dantian shatter and the Spiritual Qi in his body rapidly leaking, crying out for help in pain.
"Young man, if you hadn't used a dirty trick, I would have only taught you a lesson at most. But you absolutely shouldn't have resorted to such a vicious move. Crippling your Dantian is letting you off easy."
After speaking, Qin Xiao withdrew his sword and returned to his original position.
"Qin Xiao, how dare you! You're courting death."
Li Cheng quickly stepped forward to check Li Lu's injuries, not forgetting to curse.
After a thorough examination, Li Cheng's expression became even uglier. Li Lu's Dantian was crippled beyond repair; from now on, he could only be a cripple.
"Qin Xiao, you crippled my cousin's Dantian. I will surely avenge this grudge. Now, I am not a Disciple of Immortal Sword Peak, but Li Lu's cousin, seeking vengeance from you."
Although Li Cheng regretted his cousin being crippled, he had also found a perfect excuse. Even if he killed Qin Xiao, he wouldn't fear, and he could also help Yao Kaidong, ensuring he wouldn't lack resources at Immortal Sword Peak in the future.
After speaking, Li Cheng slowly walked towards Qin Xiao. With each step, the Spiritual Qi on his body intensified. By the time he reached ten steps in front of Qin Xiao, his cultivation had been fully revealed: Early Stage Golden Core.
"Li Cheng, this kid is indeed smart. He can be taken as a confidant."
Watching Li Cheng's actions, Yao Kaidong was very satisfied. Now, there was no need to find an excuse.
"Disciple, what cultivation stage is this?"
Although Qin Xiao could sense that the opponent was very strong, he had no idea what cultivation stage he was in, so he asked Yun Man.
"Master, this is Early Stage Golden Core cultivation, far incomparable to the Qi Refinement Stage from just now. Master, step back. For this battle, your Disciple will go in your stead."
Yun Man replied with a helpless expression, then stood in front of Qin Xiao.
"Junior Apprentice Sister Yun, what is the meaning of this? This is a private grudge between me and Qin Xiao. As long as Qin Xiao dies, you can transfer to my Immortal Sword Peak. Then we will be Senior Brother and Junior Sister. There is no benefit for you to stand up for him now, and besides, as you can see, I am already at the Early Stage Golden Core. Even if you wanted to help, you couldn't, could you?"
Li Cheng didn't expect Yun Man to stand up for Qin Xiao and quickly spoke to remind her.
In Li Cheng's estimation, Qin Xiao was sure to die today, and Yun Man would inevitably join Immortal Sword Peak. Then they would be fellow Disciples. He really didn't want to offend Yun Man, after all, with Yun Man's talent, she would certainly surpass him in the future.
"Qin Xiao is my Master. My helping my Master is also a private grudge. Stop talking nonsense. Do you think you're the only one at the Golden Core Stage?"
After Yun Man finished speaking, the spiritual power on her body also began to erupt wildly, stopping only when it reached Early Stage Golden Core.
The reason she took a little longer to come out was precisely because she was breaking through to the Golden Core Stage. Under the continuous seven days of spirit liquid and the countless Spirit Stones, she, who was already close to breaking through to the peak of Foundation Establishment Stage, reached the peak of Foundation Establishment Stage that very night. Subsequent seven days of Cultivation directly allowed her to successfully break through to the Golden Core Stage.
"What? This is impossible! You've only been initiated for seven days. How could you already be at the Golden Core Stage? This is simply impossible."
Li Cheng didn't expect Yun Man to also be at the Golden Core Stage, which he simply couldn't accept.
"Possible or not, one battle will tell. Make your move."
Yun Man had just broken through and was eager to test her skills. Moreover, as a member of the Yun Family of Zhongzhou, she naturally didn't lack Cultivation Techniques or combat experience. She was confident that she was unrivaled among her peers within the Tian Yuan Sect.
"Even if you truly are at the Golden Core Stage, judging by your aura, you've only just broken through. I, however, have been at the Early Stage Golden Core for half a year. Junior Apprentice Sister Yun, do you truly intend to stand up for him?"
Li Cheng had no retreat at this point, so he gave one last reminder. If it truly came to it, he would just have to offend her.
"Less talk, make your move."
Yun Man said with some impatience, "If you want to fight, then fight. Stop dawdling."
Seeing that persuasion was hopeless, Li Cheng could only make his move.
"Since that's the case, then I apologize."
