Chapter 109: Convinced by Force

"Li Pin!"

When Zhang Shan and Zhao Si saw Lian Ying cough up blood from Li Pin's attacks, they roared. Driven by their deep brotherly bond and the long-standing arrogance of Astral Cultivators toward martial artists, they charged at Li Pin once more.

As they made their move, their qi and blood surged to their limits, as if they had transformed into enraged, ferocious beasts.

One of them shouted, "Get down!"

Li Pin laughed heartily. "Hahaha! That depends on whether you have the strength to make me!"

Li Pin's skin was slightly flushed because he had erupted his Blood Core. He turned around again, and with a force equal to his previous strike, he unleashed another Aura Force blast.

His attack surged toward them as it shattered the air!

Vermillion Bird, Bifang! Aura Force!

Li Pin's every movement was infused with Aura Force! Each strike carried the weight of a mountain, creating an almost suffocating pressure!

Bang!

Shockwaves erupted!

Despite Zhang Shan and Zhao Si's best efforts, Li Pin's relentless Aura Force strikes shattered their offense once more. They were jolted, and they couldn't help but stumble back four steps.

Seemingly realizing something, Lian Ying tried to speak, "Zhang Shan—"

However, before he could finish, Li Pin's thunderous voice echoed once more, "Not enough! This is far from satisfying!"

Li Pin's gaze was like a thunderbolt, striking fear into Lian Ying.

Li Pin roared, "Your brothers are fighting with all their might for you! And you're just standing by, unmoved? Are you waiting for a feast!?"

Lian Ying was taken aback.

Despite understanding that Li Pin was provoking him to rile him up, Lian Ying was too enraged to care. All he wanted was to vent his frustration and exact revenge.

Owing his breakthrough in Overt Force to Li Pin? That could wait until after he'd had his chance to release his pent-up fury!

With this thought, Lian Ying took a determined step forward and launched his attack once more. However, even though he was an Astral Cultivator, this fight had persisted for a while now, leaving him injured. While the adrenaline masked the pain for now, his strength was already compromised.

Moreover, he had previously managed to execute a perfect strike with Overt Force, coordinating his will, qi, and strength. However, replicating that exact strike was proving difficult. As a result, his involvement didn't lead to any substantial changes in the battle.

Meanwhile, Li Pin....

"Put some effort into it! Are you a proper Astral Cultivator or not? Put some muscle into it!"

Li Pin's ferocity only grew as the battle went on. It was as though his Vitality, Qi, and Spirit had entered a special state, allowing him to unleash Aura Force again and again with ease. The bloodthirsty aura around him surged skyward, creating an overwhelming pressure that swept across the stage.

The three main Astral Cultivators found it hard to breathe under this mad aura. Even the surrounding students, unaccustomed to such intense combat, struggled to catch their breath.

Looking at Li Pin, a trace of fear appeared in their eyes.

***

Zhou Xiuyuan's jaw dropped. "This..."

He had been worried that Li Pin might struggle during his first lesson, so he had planned to help maintain order in the classroom. However, witnessing this scene before him left him in disbelief, his head buzzing with confusion.

He almost thought his eyes were playing tricks on him.

Lian Ying, Zhang Shan, and Zhao Si... They were all Astral Cultivators!

Yet, despite them teaming up, Li Pin completely overpowered them! He was a mere martial artist, yet they could barely fight back!

Li Pin... How can he be so strong!?

A student nearby couldn't help but mutter, "Mr. Li... Is he really just a martial artist? Could he be an Astral Cultivator like us?"

Meanwhile, a few students who were acquainted with Lian Ying speculated, "Could this be part of their strategy? They might be trying to make Li Pin believe he has a chance against Astral Cultivators.

"They could be waiting until his fighting spirit peaks, making him think he can truly defeat an Astral Cultivator, only to reveal their true strength as Astral Cultivators to crush him mentally and show him the immense gap between martial artists and Astral Cultivators."

However, their speculation received no response from the other students.

Strategy? They're being humiliated out there! They're already coughing up blood, and they're still talking about strategy?

Could it be that Lian Ying and the others' ultimate strategy was to get beaten up so badly that they collapsed and could extort money from Li Pin later?

At this moment, another student chimed in, "Lian Ying is already coughing up blood and looks injured. Is he still not going to surrender?"

"Surrender? Surrendering would mean admitting that we, the Astral Cultivators, are inferior to a martial artist. Where would that leave our pride?"

Another student added, "We mustn't surrender. The only way this can end is if Li Pin decides to stop."

The others nodded in agreement.

The Astral Hall was not a school. At school, students had to listen to their teachers. At the Astral Hall, on the other hand, the instructors were the ones who had to cater to the students. Otherwise, if the students voted against them, that instructor would never be able to teach at the Astral Hall again.

Moreover, no matter how strong a martial artist could be, the Martial Saint level was their limit. On the contrary, any Astral Cultivator who had passed their novice phase could easily overpower any Martial Saint.

If Li Pin didn't want to offend these future Astral Cultivators who would dominate Jiang Province in the coming years, he would have to be sensible and understanding.

Unfortunately for them, they had overthought this. Li Pin showed no intention of halting his clash with the three Astral Cultivators. The immense and concentrated force from the four of them continued to collide and erupt, sending out shockwaves that were truly terrifying to behold.

As Li Pin discovered the limited variations in the trio's attacks, the battle quickly tilted in his favor. What started as a tough fight for the three quickly turned into a one-sided beatdown.

Bang!

The image of Xiangliu roared mightily through the air!

Zhang Shan and Zhao Si were both sent flying backward.

"Keep going!"

Li Pin's aura surged like a rainbow, his Vitality, Qi, and Spirit intensely focused, showing signs of evolving to a higher level.

Li Pin's voice echoed throughout the education building.

"No matter how powerful Astral Cultivators become, they must first grow and develop. If I wanted to kill you, you would already be dead! Your status as Astral Cultivators means nothing here! Don't use your short time since awakening as an excuse. I'm not necessarily much older than you! But right now, your performance is far too disappointing!"

Lian Ying fared somewhat better. Provoked by the challenge, he managed to grasp the essence of unifying will, qi, and strength, unleashing his Overt Force.

As for Zhang Shan and Zhao Si... their comprehension skills were too poor. Until now, they hadn't shown any signs of a breakthrough.

However, before Zhang Shan and Zhao Si could make any progress, some of the students watching from below couldn't hold back any longer.

"Enough! It's not the Astral Cultivators who are weak, but these three! Don't lump them together with all Astral Cultivators!"

A student stood up and spoke loudly. It was Chi Shuang, one of the top two students in this batch. With a qi and blood level of fifty-eight, he ranked among the top ten in the Astral Hall.

"You can't fake your own strength! No matter how good you are! There is always someone better!" Chi Shuang said. "Li Pin, the world is vast. Just because you've learned a couple of martial techniques doesn't make you invincible, especially when facing Astral Cultivators. You should learn to show respect. You've already won against those three, yet you're still pushing it!

Hmph!

This is too much!"

"If you have a problem with it, come up and fight me!" replied Li Pin mid-fight.

Chi Shuang's expression turned stern. "How dare you!"

In the next moment, without any display of technique, he propelled himself into the air purely through brute strength, landing on the sparring stage in an instant.

"I, Chi Shuang, will personally test your power myself!" Chi Shuang remarked.

"Alright! If anyone else has a problem, come up here and fight me!" returned Li Pin.

Seeing that Zhang Shan and Zhao Si weren't able to manifest their Force, Li Pin swept his gaze across the crowd. "Three isn't enough. I want to fight ten!"

Hearing that, even Xue Baiyi could no longer sit still. "Li Pin, you are too arrogant! Don't forget that you are only a martial artist!"

Li Pin's attitude showed complete disregard for Astral Cultivators. This was no longer a personal grudge but a matter of defending the honor of all Astral Cultivators.

Xue Baiyi shouted loudly, "Astral Cultivators of the Astral Hall!"

"Here!" many answered back.

Immediately, more than a dozen Astral Cultivators, displeased with Li Pin, stepped forward.

Xue Baiyi bellowed, "Li Pin, you still have time to apologize and admit your mistakes, otherwise—"

Li Pin didn't even wait for him to finish and answered in the most simple and clear way. "Come up!"

Hearing that, Xue Baiyi was incensed. Leaping into the air, he shouted angrily, "You're courting death!"

As Xue Baiyi made his move, Chi Shuang, who reached the stage first, shouted eagerly, "I'll go first!"

He leaped into the air with a commanding presence, like a white crane spreading its wings or an eagle soaring high, and poised to strike Li Pin with overwhelming power

This move was extremely elegant, graceful, and impressive.

However....

Martial combat was never the same as hitting a wooden stake. A wooden stake wouldn't resist. Chi Shuang's victory with his devastating attacks was a foregone conclusion.

Li Pin, on the other hand, obviously wasn't going to just sit back idly and wait for his doom.

Almost as soon as Chi Shuang abandoned his advantage on the ground and leaped into the air, Li Pin activated the Blood-Seething Secret Art. His qi and blood ignited like flames, surging into his legs.

Propelled by this explosive force, he soared into the air like a dragon soaring into the sky. As they neared each other, he launched a powerful kick, as straight and swift as a spear.

Seeing that, Chi Shuang was horrified. "Not good!"

Having been more focused on showing off than on combat, he hastily raised his arms to block as the Aura Force bore down on him.

Bang!

A violent shockwave erupted, shredding Chi Shuang's sleeves into tatters.

"

Ah!

"

With a piercing scream, Chi Shuang's arm bent at an unnatural angle from the kick, snapping. He was sent flying off the stage, even faster than he had initially charged up.

Such an injury would take at least three to five days to recover, even for an Astral Cultivator.

Meanwhile, Li Pin moved like a dragon, soaring through the sky. Charging toward the stage, he once again confronted Xue Baiyi.

Under the influence of the Blood-Seething Secret Art, the power of this strike exceeded human limits. It was comparable to the Core Force unleashed by a martial artist with qi and blood levels over fifty points.

The relentless, accumulating force of his strikes, coupled with his crushing Fist Intent, assaulted Xue Baiyi's mind, forcing him to defend even before he could mount an attack.

Rumble!

A thunderous roar shook the earth like lightning, exploding in front of Xue Baiyi. With a single strike, shockwaves erupted outward.

Xue Baiyi, who had charged onto the stage, met the same fate as Chi Shuang. He spewed blood and was hurled backward.

In an instant, Li Pin crushed the two Astral Cultivators with overwhelming force. The dozen or so other Astral Cultivators who had intended to join in stopped in their tracks.