"You want to fight me?" Qin Ran was dumbfounded. In all his years, this was the first time someone had asked to fight him, making him feel like a martial arts master, which made him very uncomfortable.
"Just some friendly sparring..." Su Changqing said with a laugh, "When you were crossing the tribulation, I watched from the sidelines and noticed you have no weaknesses in your cultivation base, physique, techniques and supernatural abilities. I'm very curious to exchange some pointers."
"Hahaha..." Hearing this, Qin Ran laughed and shook his head.
"What's so funny?" Su Changqing didn't see what was so amusing.
"I'm afraid I'll disappoint Brother Su again." Qin Ran said.
"What do you mean?"
"I... am not good at fighting." Qin Ran admitted frankly.
"Not good at fighting?" Bai Ruoxi looked at him in disbelief. "Someone like you who could temper your body and pills through the tribulation, and even alter techniques under the tribulation, claims to not be good at fighting?!"
"Mm..." Qin Ran pondered for a moment, then asked, "Just because a strong and sturdy man has powerful fists and kicks, does that mean he is skilled at fighting?"
"Of course. With his strong physique and mighty limbs, wouldn't he be amazing in a brawl?" Bai Ruoxi replied."Then... does that mean someone with Li Shiyin's petite build would certainly lose in a fight?" Qin Ran followed up.
"If having a sturdy physique meant being good at fights, then there would be no need for actual combat in the future. We could simply compare our physiques and cultivation bases to determine the victor. Wouldn't that lead to a more harmonious cultivator society?" Bai Ruoxi retorted.
"There are always uncertainties in battles that cannot be fully predicted by cultivation base alone!"
"Alright! I'm not here to debate..." Qin Ran shook his head. "No matter what you say, the fact is I really don't know how to fight. I won't exchange blows with others."
"As you can see, I'm an alchemist. At most, a sturdy alchemist... Just as there can be scholarly men of letters in the mortal realm with strong bodies."
Su Changqing looked thoughtful as he smiled at Qin Ran, "If you are not adept at combat, it would be impolite of me to insist. Please accept my apologies for the offense."
"No harm done." Qin Ran replied. "Tempering my body through the tribulation is just another way to cross it. It seems to have given you the wrong impression about me. If anything, I should be the one apologizing."
His tone suddenly shifted, "However, if you really wish to spar, I do happen to have a suitable recommendation."
"Oh?" Su Changqing was intrigued, "Who would that be?"
Qin Ran then called down towards the bottom of the lake pit, "Shiyin!"
"Yes?" Li Shiyin responded.
"Come up here."
Li Shiyin then pulled Long Qiqi up with her from the bottom of the lake pit.
"My foolish disciple here... has quite the talent for combat." Qin Ran remarked. "If the two of you are interested, you may restrict your cultivation bases and cross hands with her."
"Her?" Bai Ruoxi sized up Li Shiyin with a glance. At just the post-foundation establishment stage, having just embarked on the path of cultivation, she looked down on Li Shiyin somewhat.
Su Changqing also examined Li Shiyin. His gaze carried a sense of haughtiness common amongst those from an upper echelon sect as he scrutinized her. To him, this seemingly simple-minded girl did seem to have an air of sharpness about her, perhaps hinting at some talent.
He shook his head with a laugh, "Brother Qin, aren't you just asking us to discipline your disciple on your behalf?"
"Not at all. In our pursuit of the Dao, we must have a sincere heart. I kid you not, my disciple is rather skilled at combat, and you did come seeking a fight. Why not give it a try? If you've lost interest, we can just share some tea and have a chat!" Qin Ran denied the accusation.
He called Long Qiqi over, "Qiqi, go boil some water and brew a pot of tea for our guests."
"Yes, Master." Long Qiqi obediently responded. After walking a few steps towards the kitchen, she suddenly turned back and said, "But I don't know how to brew tea..."
"Just boiling the water will suffice." Qin Ran told her.
Only then did Long Qiqi take her leave.
Seeing this exchange, Su Changqing pondered for a bit before suggesting to Bai Ruoxi, "Junior Sister, why don't you entertain this young lady for a round?"
"Are you serious?" Bai Ruoxi asked.
Su Changqing gave her an affirming look and smile.
"Oh, alright then." Bai Ruoxi rose to her feet. "What are the rules for this bout?" she asked Li Shiyin.
"Master?" Li Shiyin deferred to Qin Ran.
Qin Ran pointed to the lake pit below, "With this lake pit as the boundary, you lose if you yield or get pushed out of bounds. Brother Su and I will judge defeat."
"That's it?" Bai Ruoxi asked.
"That's it."
"In that case, I won't bully you too much..." Bai Ruoxi took off her protective outer robe artifact and put it into her cosmic bag. She took out a sword-shaped low-grade artifact in exchange. With a twist of her body, she flew to float above the lake pit.
Li Shiyin looked to Qin Ran for confirmation. Seeing his nod, she put away her ragged sword into her cosmic bag and drew her Cherished Star Sword. With a sweep of her figure, she leapt down into the lake pit...
She still hadn't cultivated any movement techniques, thus unable to fly without riding her sword.
"Will you be using your lifebound weapon or not? Can you fly or will you stay grounded?" Bai Ruoxi asked mockingly.
Li Shiyin gave no reply. She stood at the very center of the lake pit, circulating her inner qi to elicit a purple glow from the Cherished Star Sword that extended seven to eight meters long. Having swiftly discerned the flight pattern of Bai Ruoxi's white feather sword qi, she timed her strike perfectly and slashed down!
"Clang!"
The purple and white sword qi collided with a clear ringing sound. The purple qi pressed on, splitting the white qi and sending it careening away.
The white feather sword qi spun violently as it crashed into the pit wall, boring straight through the rock without resistance for several meters in the blink of an eye.
"Not bad!" Bai Ruoxi let out a faint laugh, acknowledging Li Shiyin's ability.
Her sword qi was cast away from her sword. Li Shiyin wielded sword qi from her blade, thus at an advantage positionally. But Bai Ruoxi's sword qi was no ordinary qi that just any cultivator could block.
It was at this point that Bai Ruoxi finally unfurled herself, revealing flickers of white wings on her back, exuding an ethereal aura. Holding her sword, she flew swiftly towards Li Shiyin.
"The technique my Junior Sister practices is called Divine Feather Sword Art, a method that leads straight to the Heavenly Immortal realm." Su Changqing explained to Qin Ran. "In some regards, it surpasses that of your disciple's current cultivation method. So even at the same cultivation level, she has quite an edge."
The... Heavenly Immortal realm?!
This rendered Qin Ran speechless. Poverty... had limited his imagination!
To think there were those who started off cultivating techniques meant for the Heavenly Immortal realm from the very beginning. Those born with silver spoons in their mouths were considered junior brothers at best. At minimum, one would have to be born suckling a luminous pearl, gripping crystallized blood essence in their tiny hands...
Down in the pit, the two maidens clashed with their longs swords as the fight swiftly grew intense. Li Shiyin did not disappoint her natural talent. Even against a reserved Bai Ruoxi, she managed to hold her own in the exchange.
One could see purple and white sword qi crisscrossing wildly, colorful skirts dancing gracefully. Echoing cries of maidens and the ringing song of steel battered the air.
It was a scene that combined vivid painting and melody.
At one point, Qin Ran watched a flurry of white feathers take flight. With a gentle puff, he blew the feathers towards the pit wall where they met the rock in a fiery blast, hollowing out a sizeable crater.
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