Chapter 69 - Drill Punch

"More specifically, it's happening in about two weeks, starting with the county-level competition in Beiliu County. Because each martial arts sect can only send ten disciples to compete, they would need to hold its own competition to decide who to pick. However, we don't need to waste time doing that since the five slots have already been reserved for the core disciples."

Senior Brother Hykal glanced at everyone before his gaze settled on Cassius. "This county-level exchange competition will gather dozens of martial arts sects from all over Beiliu County. Some with only a few members, while there will be others bigger than our sect.

"We need to keep a close eye on three in particular: Golden Fist Sect, Black Crane Sect, and Singing Water Sect. All of them are top third-tier Covert Martial Arts sects, comparable to our Wind Elephant Sect. They have formidable techniques and numerous talented experts," Hykal said as he walked to the window, drawing back the curtain to let the sunlight in.

"Do not lose just because you underestimated your opponents, thinking they're inferior to you. You are representing the Wind Elephant Sect."

"Understood," the core disciples responded in unison.

Half an hour later, the four of them left the three-story building where Senior Brother Hykal lived. The morning sun shone across their faces.

Cassius walked on the far left, sneaking glances at Senior Brother Moses and Senior Brother Lance who were up ahead. They seemed to be excitedly betting on the number of opponents they would defeat in the county competition. If Lance lost, he would have to call his junior brother Moses "Senior Brother." If Moses lost, he would have to call Lance "Third Senior Brother" every time they met.

The stakes seemed lopsided, but the fact of the matter was, Moses never called Lance "Third Senior Brother" and always called him things like "sissy" instead. This annoyed Lance to no end and sometimes, he secretly gritted his teeth in frustration, therefore Lance thought the bet was quite fair.

This is the perfect opportunity to make Moses acknowledge the dignity of the Third Senior Brother!

Lance chuckled to himself.

Meanwhile, Moses shot Cassius a sly smile. He was determined to have the last laugh this time!

Cassius shook his head and glanced to the right.

Twenty-seven-year-old Second Senior Sister Jadice was silent and loved seclusion. Perhaps because of her long years in seclusion, her skin was very fair. She wore a blue combat attire that highlighted her well-proportioned and graceful figure, particularly her long legs.

Her looks were above average, with deep and formidable facial features that gave the impression that she was a cool, older sister from the royal palace. Her black short hair was neatly trimmed, grazing just below her ears.

Noticing Cassius looking at her, Jadice glanced back. Her lake-blue eyes seemed to inquire, "Is there something you need?"

Cassius quickly shook his head and looked away, sighing. He wasn't good at socializing with the opposite sex. A few fights here and there brought him closer to Third and Fourth Senior Brothers, but there would always be some kind of barrier with Second Senior Sister.

Although, to be honest, he wouldn’t be able to beat Second Senior Sister in a fight.

Cassius was quite satisfied with his current relationship with the Wind Elephant Sect's core disciples. There was no insufferable scheming or hypocrisy here, and everyone was friendly.

𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

The current atmosphere allowed him to direct all his attention to martial arts and experience the sense of fulfillment that came from making incremental progress. He didn't have to waste precious time on pointless infighting and forming cliques.

Let's have breakfast first, then go to the training room.

Cassius's figure gradually disappeared down the cobblestone path.

Ten days later, in the afternoon although it was nearing dusk.

In the twilight, the sky transformed into a canvas dotted with red and yellow, and turned into a mysterious palace filled with various splendid and enigmatic colors. Red sunlight streamed in through the training room, showing a shirtless young man punching, his fist cutting through the air with piercing sounds.

Cassius was breathing heavily as sweat ran down his bronzed body, soaking his tight training pants. The weather had been getting hotter lately.

Whoosh!

A fist the size of a small sandbag suddenly stopped midair.

"Alright, time's up. Let's stop here for today and continue tomorrow," Lisa said, looking at Li Wei as she stood up.

"Teacher, you go eat first. I want to keep practicing a bit more; I feel like I'm on a roll today and I don't want to lose momentum," Cassius said, turning around.

"Alright, I'll leave the key on the table. Remember to lock the door when you leave," Lisa dropped a brass key on the table before she walked out. Hearing the door creak shut, Cassius exhaled heavily. He glanced at the top right corner and slowly stretched his hands. Then he resumed his stance and continued practicing his punches.

[Azure Wind Flow: First Stage 99.9% (Total Two Stages)]

As he delved deeper into the Azure Wind Flow, Cassius felt that he had a natural aptitude for it. The proof lay in how he managed to achieve such results in just seven to eight months. With only 0.1% left, he wanted to complete it in one go so he was prepared to miss dinner tonight.

It was late at night, past eleven. The only spot of light in the training room was the area near the window where it was bathed in bright moonlight. Under the moonlight, Cassius stood with his fists in front of his chest.

[Azure Wind Flow: First Stage 100.0% (Total Two Stages)]

The text flickered gently, and the numbers gradually blurred and changed.

[Azure Wind Flow: Second Stage 0.1% (Total Two Stages)]

He opened his eyes and looked down at his calloused hands. It felt like there was a layer of liquid seeping in from every inch of his palms. A stream of air that rapidly moved in all directions enveloped Cassius's hands like flowing sand.

"What a marvelous feeling..." Cassius didn't even have to think as he controlled the appearance and disappearance of this stream of air. It was almost like he was moving instinctively.

Let's test its power.

He glanced up and strode over to the wooden dummy in the distant corner.

Without hesitation, he struck his palm outward. The moment his palm touched the wood, a layer of wind about a centimeter thick rapidly moved, creating friction in all directions, and instantly enveloping his hand in a mass of wood chips. When he released his hand, the wooden dummy had a palm print about five or six centimeters deep.

That wasn't my full strength. Let's try it with full power.

Cassius took a deep breath and clenched his palm into a fist. The muscles in his entire arm swelled. As his fist sliced through the air, it released a burst of energy, and smashed into the wooden dummy.

"Drill punch?!"

Wood chips flying everywhere, Cassius pulled back his fist. At the center of the wooden post which was half the width of a man, there was a black hole which had almost penetrated through to the other side. This was what a full burst of power could do. His fist had drove through the tough wood like a drill.

This power is much greater than I imagined.