Chapter 96: Life or Death

Before their fists even connected, the spiritual qi surging from their bodies had already clashed in advance.

Despite there being nothing visible, to distant observers like Teng Sheng and the other middle-aged man, it seemed as if two celestial bodies, capable of obliterating worlds, had collided silently in another dimension. The radiant energy from this impact eclipsed the sun and moon, casting the world into darkness.

Even a seasoned martial artist at the Core Formation realm like Teng Sheng was visibly shaken by the cataclysmic display. His face was pale as a ghost.

The martial society official, arriving with an investigation order, felt his brain reverberate with a silent shockwave. Unexplainable dread crept through his mind as if he had encountered a terror beyond comprehension. He trembled uncontrollably, and he broke out in a cold sweat.

Fortunately, as a trained martial artist, his body was resilient. The average person might have been overwhelmed by horror, possibly falling ill.

This was the effect of the clash of top-tier martial artists' life force fields. The force of their confrontation had suppressed the life force fields of the middle-aged man and Teng Shan, causing their immune system to be forcibly shut down.

Li Pin had boosted his qi and blood to an astonishing level of forty-nine points through the use of the Blood-Seething Secret Art.

Despite not having resorted to the use of such techniques, Qiu Chufeng still remained a formidable opponent, standing at the pinnacle of human potential and having once manifested Spirit Force.

"So... this is what it means to be a Martial Saint?" Teng Sheng murmured in disbelief.

The middle-aged man was utterly awestruck, his voice trembling with reverence and choking with awe. "A battle of saints! This is truly a battle of saints!"

He felt an overwhelming urge to kneel and worship these divine figures.

This was no exaggeration. To ordinary people, those who had pushed the limits of human potential were no less than gods.

In ancient times, when technology and tools were primitive, those who had mastered the Aura Cultivation realm were considered unrivaled experts. They dominated the martial world, leading armies into battle and achieving legendary feats. It was no wonder they were often revered as earthly immortals.

As their minds reeled, and as this breathtaking spectacle caused their thoughts to freeze, Li Pin and Qiu Chufeng's ultimate attacks finally collided.

Boom!

A thunderous explosion shook the sky.

Despite being mere mortals, when they tapped into the depths of their potential and unleashed their most powerful strikes, the destructive force of their collision was utterly terrifying to behold.

As both fighters simultaneously shifted their weight, a violent force channeled through their bodies and slammed into the floor, causing the earth to tremble.

The solid concrete floor within several meters was torn apart as if in an earthquake. Waves of air swept out in all directions, spreading dust and debris. The flowers and plants in the green belt a meter away were torn apart, hurled into the air by an invisible force, and pulverized by the high-frequency shockwaves.

Being at the epicenter of this collision, the two immediately channeled the force that had surged into their bodies towards the ground. Despite their efforts, the violent energy continued to surge through their arm muscles, bones, and tendons, further penetrating their internal organs. It felt as if a truck had rolled over them, threatening to crush every part of their bodies.

"

Hahahaha!

"

Under the intense crushing force, Li Pin roared in defiance, pushing his qi and blood to their limits. In an instant, the Blood-Seething Secret Art ignited his body, generating a fiery force capable of incinerating everything in its path. This powerful energy shattered the incoming Aura Force that threatened to crush his bones and organs.

Li Pin's muscles and tendons were originally creaking under unbearable pain and showing large-scale tears and cracks. However, now, they emitted a crackling sound as newly infused qi and blood surged through them. The sound was like the roar of a tiger or the cry of a dragon!

He had withstood it!

With the Blood-Seething Secret Art amplifying his qi and blood to an equivalent of forty-nine points, Li Pin had withstood a full-force blow from a Martial Saint.

Yes, Qiu Chufeng was not utilizing his mental spirit, and he fell short of the pinnacle of Martial Saint power, Spirit Qi Unity, Spirit Force. He was also worn out because of the events that had transpired over the past half month, causing him to appear as though he had aged more than a decade. As a result, he was not at peak physical state.

𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Nevertheless, Li Pin, who was at the Aura Cultivation realm, still withstood a violent assault from a Martial Saint without having his flesh torn or his bones shattered. This was a testament to his immense strength!

On the other hand, Qiu Chufeng, who had met Li Pin's strike head-on, was left violently shaken by the Five Elements Unity strike that transcended the Aura Force. A terrifying force surged through his arm, akin to a dragon of destruction wreaking havoc.

The residual force shattered his ulna and radius bones and continued unabated into his body, shaking his internal organs and completely dispersing the energy he had painstakingly generated from his Blood Core Eruption and condensed to its peak.

Pfft!

Qiu Chufeng hacked out a mouthful of blood. The terrifying aura he emitted, resembling that of an ancient, ferocious beast, vanished as his qi and blood completely dispersed.

"The human... limits...."

Qiu Chufeng stared fixedly at Li Pin, his eyes filled with disbelief.

For a long time, people had regarded grandmasters at the perfected Internal Cultivation and Blood Renewal realm who had a qi and blood level of thirty-nine as the limit of human potential. However, the actual highest qi and blood level ever achieved by a human was forty-nine, a record set by Wang Liancheng.

And now, Li Pin was giving Qiu Chufeng a feeling far surpassing the so-called Aura Cultivation limit! It was more like the true limit of the human body, the pinnacle qi and blood level that a martial artist could achieve.

He got this feeling from a young man of twenty-two! A twenty-two-year-old young man had pushed his physique to the extreme, achieving strength that hit the cusp of what a martial artist could achieve!

Li Pin has such potent, ferocious, dominating, and robust qi and blood. Despite that, not only could he still integrate and control it, but he could also convert it into an overwhelmingly powerful strike that shattered Qiu Chufeng's lifetime pinnacle technique, Vermilion Phoenix Rise.

Qiu Chufeng was astounded.

How could such a prodigy exist?!

Feeling every bone inside him ache slightly, Li Pin nodded lightly. "Not bad."

To him, what he was experiencing wasn't merely pain. Rather, it was his body being refined. His bones, tendons, muscles, and internal organs were undergoing extreme tempering.

Break to rebuild, and rise from the ashes![1]

Only by repeatedly pushing himself to his limits could he know which direction to improve in. Only then could his highly trained muscles, bones, and organs break through their limits and become more powerful.

In this process of becoming stronger, Li Pin could feel the meaning of existence, the elevation of life.

That kind of strengthening, that kind of elevation... The spiritual and physical stimulation it brought was so beautiful words couldn't convey it.

Li Pin's gaze returned to Qiu Chufeng. "Very good! But you can do better!"

He asserted, "A Martial Saint's greatest strength lies in the Spirit Qi Unity, where boundless mental spirit merges with finite qi and blood to deliver a strike that harmonizes both! Your last strike, though it reached the pinnacle of the Aura Cultivation realm, still lacked the essence of true Spirit Force. Therefore..."

The residual qi and blood within Li Pin ignited once more, roaring and surging. Facing this Martial Saint, his qi and blood weren't the only thing burning, so was his mental spirit.

An indescribable emotion brewed and coalesced within his spiritual world, seemingly on the verge of fully forming with just the right trigger.

Therefore, he looked at Qiu Chufeng! He was eagerly hoping that this contemporary Martial Saint could bring him a greater surprise!

"Come on! Ignite your qi and blood! Detonate your mental spirit, and show me the true power of a Martial Saint! Use the power of Spirit Force to kill me! Put an end to all the resentment, anger, and frustration you've felt over the past half month!"

Li Pin's violent and intense qi and blood surged, erupting before it could fully permeate his limbs and bones. It was rushing skyward as it fervently poured into his raised left arm.

He clenched his fist, his qi and blood boiling over.

Behind him, it seemed as if a terrifying, ferocious beast was stretching its body, soaring into the clouds, roaring at the sky, and releasing boundless ferocity that filled the heavens.

Eight Enormities True Fire Force! Tengshe! Taowu!

"Or else, I'll kill you!"

Boom!

The sound thundered like a bolt of lightning, striking Qiu Chufeng's heart fiercely, leaving him trembling with fear and shock!

Spirit Force!? Is Spirit Force that easy to unleash!?

Without the preparatory rituals of bathing and burning incense, without building up an invincible momentum, without the aid of stimulating drugs or astral equipment, how could anyone casually unleash such power?

Li Pin... his injuries were clearly no less severe than Qiu Chufeng's! Yet he still wished to push forward; he still had it in him to fight fiercely!

What kind of monster is he?! How did the Solar Vermillion Sect end up provoking such a terrifying genius!?

By now, the murderous intent he had felt upon leaving the martial society had completely vanished, replaced by a deep sense of regret and remorse. He regretted provoking such a formidable opponent. He also regretted not bringing Qiu Chuyun and other experts to overwhelm Li Pin together!

"Stop... stop...." managed Qiu Chufeng.

As soon as Qiu Chufeng spoke, his pupils dilated. Suddenly, he coughed up a bloody froth mixed with pieces of his internal organs, a result of his attempt at speaking.

Despite the severity of his injuries, which would have been fatal to an ordinary person, he forced himself to continue, "Stop... if you want Spirit Force, I'll give it to you! Three days later, at the Solar Vermillion Sect, I will adjust my state to its peak. We will have a clean and honorable duel. Then I will let you witness what the true Spirit Qi Unity is...."

Since Li Pin wanted to use him as a stepping stone to break through his limits, Qiu Chufeng decided to give him that opportunity. But three days? No, he didn't need to wait that long!

As soon as he made it back to the sect, he would mobilize all the experts above Core Force in the Solar Vermillion Sect and attack Li Pin together, taking advantage of his serious injuries. He would use numbers to surround and overwhelm him before beating him to death!

"Peak state! Let me show you how a martial artist can instantly reach their peak state!" roared Li Pin.

His figure lunged forward abruptly as a terrifying aura of ferocity surrounded him, almost tangible, burning like blood on the surface of his body.

With this lunge, he resembled a prehistoric beast bursting forth from a primeval forest, shaking the mountains and unleashing an unstoppable force as he aimed a devastating blow at Qiu Chufeng's head.

"Life! Or death!"

1. This phrase means to build something new and better, the old one must first be destroyed. ☜