Just as Ling Feng was about to make a move, a bolt of purple lightning suddenly descended from the sky, striking the ground just a few feet in front of him. It landed precisely on the attacking Zhao Wuji.
Zhao Wuji's pupils contracted sharply. He hastily activated his protective true qi and retreated rapidly. However, he was still paralyzed by the purple lightning.
"Who dares to launch a sneak attack!?" Zhao Wuji roared in anger, glaring upward with fury burning in his eyes.
"A sneak attack? Zhao Wuji, you're overestimating yourself!"
A clear voice echoed through the air as a figure dressed in purple descended. It was none other than Li Bufan!
After months of absence, Li Bufan's entire aura had transformed. His sharpness was now subdued, and his energy felt as deep as an abyss. He exuded a sense of returning to simplicity.
There were faint purple arcs of electricity flickering on his fist, indicating that the purple lightning earlier had come from him.
"Brother Li!" Ling Feng raised an eyebrow. He knew that Li Bufan hadn't joined Captain Gu and the others for training, but he hadn't expected that in just two months, his strength would have reached such a terrifying level.
It seemed that Li Bufan had indeed made significant progress in his mastery of the Wind and Thunder Transformation technique.
Li Bufan glanced at Ling Feng without saying a word. He stood with his hands behind his back and coldly eyed Zhao Wuji. "He's a friend of mine, Li Bufan," he declared.
"Li—Bu—fan! It's you!"
Zhao Wuji clenched his fists tightly, his eyes practically shooting fire. Before joining Tianwei Academy, he and Li Bufan had been considered equally talented geniuses in the imperial capital. However, due to some circumstances, Li Bufan had missed the academy's entrance assessment and hadn't been selected as one of the ten hidden talents.
Over the past six months, Zhao Wuji had undergone rigorous training in the Heisha Region, so his strength had improved by leaps and bounds daily.
In his mind, Li Bufan should have long been left far behind.
The two locked eyes, and the atmosphere between them became so intense that everyone around them held their breath, not daring to make a sound.
"Wow, 'Little Sword God,' Li Bufan, and 'Immovable Yama,[1]' Zhao Wuji, meeting again after half a year... I didn't expect both of their auras to become so terrifying!"
"Damn, who was the one who said Li Bufan had been left behind by Zhao Wuji? That's total nonsense. Controlling lightning with a wave of his hand... Li Bufan's power is absolutely insane now!"
"What the fuck, these guys are on another level!"
The surrounding students whispered among themselves as the murderous intent between Li Bufan and Zhao Wuji seemed to freeze the air.
"Hmph, Li Bufan, it seems you haven't wasted your time. Your strength has improved a bit." Zhao Wuji flicked his sleeves and looked past Li Bufan, coldly fixing his gaze on Ling Feng. "So, you're going to stand up for him?"
"Better not humiliate yourself, Zhao Wuji," Li Bufan replied calmly with his hands behind his back. "If you can't even get past me, what makes you think you can last three moves against him?"
"What did you say?" Zhao Wuji's eyes widened in disbelief, and then he burst into laughter. "Him? Hahaha! A kid with only around forty meridians? Hahahaha...
"Hmph! Li Bufan, let me teach you a lesson first! Then you'll see how terrifying my strength has become over the past six months!"
The laughter abruptly ceased. Zhao Wuji activated his true qi and shouted, "Tyrant Fist!"
The void trembled as Zhao Wuji's domineering fist force surged forward, aimed directly at Li Bufan's face.
It had to be said, Zhao Wuji did possess some skill. His fist aura surged like a violent wind, strong enough to blow away weaker martial artists.
His Tyrant Fist, was likely at least an advanced mystical-tier martial skill, and might have even reached the level of an earth-tier martial skill.
A streak of purple lightning flashed and transformed into a sword light that shot out and collided with Zhao Wuji.
Ling Feng narrowed his eyes. Li Bufan's sword will had clearly undergone a significant transformation, compressing thunder energy into sword qi. Ling Feng knew he couldn't achieve such a feat yet.
What did this guy go through in the past two months? His strength is terrifying.
The sword light and fist aura clashed. Zhao Wuji spat out blood and staggered back more than ten steps, while Li Bufan stood motionless, rooted to the spot.
In a single move, the outcome was decided!
Zhao Wuji stared at Li Bufan in disbelief. Half of his body was paralyzed and trembled violently. The disruption of his vitality caused him to cough up another mouthful of blood.
"Is this the terrifying power you boasted about?" Li Bufan's expression remained indifferent as he spoke. "It seems I overestimated you. He could kill you with just half a move."
The surrounding students gasped in shock.
The once-proud Zhao Wuji couldn't even withstand a single move from Li Bufan. And the boy beside Li Bufan was apparently even more terrifying.
Oh my god! Where did all these monsters come from?
Zhao Wuji's face turned pale with a mix of shame and anger. He wanted to find a hole to crawl into. Just moments ago, he had been boasting, only to suffer such a humiliating defeat.
In the past six months, he had improved his strength by more than tenfold, yet he couldn't even handle one move from Li Bufan.
He clenched his teeth as he glanced at Mu Qianxue and Ye Weiyang beside him. Neither of them seemed surprised by Li Bufan's display of power.
Clearly, they didn't think Li Bufan was exceptionally strong, yet his strength was enough to instantly defeat him.
Only then did Zhao Wuji realize how ignorant and shallow he had been. He had always believed he was on par with Mu Qianxue and Ye Weiyang, but that had only been his own delusion.
Clenching his fists tightly, Zhao Wuji, overwhelmed with anger, spat out another mouthful of blood. He cast a deep, hateful look at Mu Qianxue, and then gritted his teeth and said, "Li Bufan, I admit I'm no match for you, but saying that boy can defeat me in half a move is ridiculous!"
He glared coldly at Ling Feng and sneered, "Kid, do you only hide behind others? If you have the guts, come out and fight me one-on-one!"
Ling Feng shook his head. Some people just don't learn until they hit rock bottom.
Ignoring the fool, Ling Feng slowly approached Mu Qianxue and gently asked, "Miss Mu, how have you been?"
Mu Qianxue, with her ethereal and peerless beauty, smiled faintly and replied, "Big Brother Ling, I've been well."
Zhao Wuji was stunned. The usually cold and indifferent Mu Qianxue actually smiled at Ling Feng? His entire worldview was collapsing.
Why!? How is this possible!?
Seemingly recognizing Ling Feng, the small black cat in Mu Qianxue's arms, Ye Yi, joyfully leaped onto Ling Feng's shoulder and licked his cheek affectionately.
"Haha." Ling Feng gently patted the little black cat's head. He had once helped treat its injuries, and now it still remembered him with such affection.