I'll write a manual called the Sunflower Manual, and the entire martial arts world will turn in

Hmm.

Li Shengnan sighed helplessly and urgently instructed Xie An, "You just need to spar briefly, then immediately admit defeat. Don't give Wei Dian a chance to hurt you. Understand?"

Zhan Ping also leaned over and solemnly reminded her, "Sheng Nan is right. Although it's embarrassing, it's the best way to avoid getting injured in the end."

"Thank you for reminding me, senior brothers and sisters. I know what I'm doing."

Xie An cupped his hands in greeting, and then slowly walked to the center of the training ground under the watchful eyes of everyone.

Wei Xiang was worried about Xie An at this moment and said, unusually, "Junior Brother Wei Dian, Xie An has only just broken through to the Blood Rush Realm and his foundation is unstable. Go easy on him and stop when you've made your move. Don't hurt him."

Even Zhan Ping, a master at the peak of the Blood Crush Realm, was sent flying and coughed up blood by Wei Dian's palm strike. Wei Xiang was genuinely worried that Xie An would also be injured. After all, he really liked Xie An as his disciple.

Shen Lie, standing to the side, was speechless: "Senior Brother, your protectiveness is too obvious."

Wei Xiang chuckled softly, "Although Xie An's martial arts progress is not as good as Wei Dian's, he is kind and honest, and I really like him. If Xie An's Dao heart is clouded because of today's defeat, then it would be a great loss."

Chen Lutang took a sip of tea. "A smooth path in martial arts is not necessarily a good thing. There must be some setbacks to be beneficial. Wei Dian is the best whetstone. If Xie An's Dao heart is clouded because of today's defeat, his martial arts path will not go far sooner or later. If you overprotect someone, they will only be a flower in a greenhouse and will not become a towering tree. With your teacher here, I will not let a good seedling be damaged."

Wei Xiang nodded: "Master's teachings are correct."

……

"Junior Brother Xie An, please!"

Wei Dian put his left hand behind his back and extended his right hand, making a gesture of invitation.

He displayed the demeanor of an elder brother instructing a younger brother. In reality, a barely perceptible glint of cold light flashed in his eyes.

Xie An stood still calmly. "Senior Brother Wei Dian, you don't need to use your hands."

"I am a direct disciple of my master. It's just a matter of exchanging a few moves with my junior brother, which can be done with one hand. If I use both hands, people will say that I am bullying the younger one." Wei Dian was full of confidence and beckoned to Xie An with his finger.

Xie An said, "Elders should go first, so Senior Brother should make the first move."

"Then I'll have to offend you." Wei Dian's eyes narrowed, and he charged towards Xie An like a tiger, while simultaneously striking out with his right hand in a shrug, aiming straight for Xie An's chest, attempting to force his way in.

This palm strike was fast and heavy, carrying the unique "pressing" force of Bajiquan, like a giant god pressing down on a struggling ferocious beast.

If an ordinary martial artist at the Blood Rush Realm were to take the attack head-on, at best their blood and qi would surge, and at worst their ribs would crack.

Xie An did not dodge, but calmly extended his right hand, also using the "Horse-Probing Palm" move, striking first despite being behind, and steadily blocked Wei Dian's palm force.

"Bang!"

The two palms collided, producing a dull, loud thud.

Xie An didn't move an inch, but the blue bricks beneath his feet cracked with a "crack".

The entire audience erupted in uproar.

"He caught it! Xie An actually caught Wei Dian's scout's paw head-on!"

"This is something neither Zhan Ping nor Li Shengnan could do. Xie An has only just broken through; how could he possibly..."

Wei Dian's pupils contracted, and his heart sank.

wrong.

He used half his strength in that palm strike, and even opponents of the same level wouldn't dare to take it head-on.

Xie An not only accepted it, but he accepted it without it moving an inch.

The force of the rebound felt like hitting an iron wall, making his hands go numb.

Wei Dian twisted his right arm, changing his palm into an elbow, and suddenly unleashed the "Dragon Subduing Stance" of Bajiquan. His elbow tip was like a spear, aiming straight for Xie An's face. This change of move was extremely fast, almost touching the surface of Xie An's fist, making it impossible to defend against.

Xie An tilted his head slightly, his elbow brushing past Wei Dian's ear. At the same time, he raised his left hand and casually slapped away Wei Dian's follow-up left fist.

"Bang bang bang!"

A series of rapid sounds of combat erupted in the center of the training ground.

Wei Dian's right fist rained down like a storm. The first five moves of Bajiquan, such as Hammering, Dragon Subduing, Tiger Crouching, Horse Probing Palm, and Mountain Splitting Palm, changed in turn in his hands. Each move was powerful and heavy, causing the blue bricks on the ground to shatter one after another, and dust to fly up.

Xie An stood still, parrying with one hand, without moving an inch.

His right hand was like an iron shield, blocking left and right, parrying and pressing down, deflecting all of Wei Dian's attacks. Each collision produced a dull thud, making the eardrums of the surrounding disciples hurt.

Wei Dian fought with increasing frantic intensity, veins bulging on his forehead, his face flushed red. Each punch he landed on Xie An's arm felt like hitting raw iron, making his own joints ache. Xie An, however, remained expressionless, his breathing perfectly steady.

The entire room fell silent.

Everyone stared wide-eyed, unable to believe what they were seeing: a newcomer who had just broken through to the Blood Reaching Realm was actually standing still and blocking the full-force attack of a Blood Reaching Realm master with one hand.

"This...how is this possible?" Pang Tong exclaimed in shock.

Mai Qiuyan covered her mouth. Liu Jiang clenched his fists.

Lin Chong stared wide-eyed, his jaw nearly dropping to the ground.

Chen Lutang paused slightly in his tea-serving hand, his brow furrowed for a moment, then relaxed, looking thoughtfully at Xie An.

……

"Senior Brother Wei Dian," Xie An spoke, his voice calm, "why don't we use our hands?"

Wei Dian's face turned bright red, whether from anger or shame, it was hard to tell.

"Since you've spoken up, junior brother, then I'll have to offend you."

He gritted his teeth, threw both fists at once, and showed no mercy.

"Bang bang bang bang!"

His fists flew like meteors, each punch faster and heavier than the last. His attacks grew increasingly fierce, shattering the blue bricks beneath his feet and raising clouds of dust half a person's height.

But Xie An remained standing in the same spot, without taking a single step back.

His right hand remained firmly in front of him, deflecting all of Wei Dian's attacks. His posture didn't resemble a martial arts contest, but rather a sparring match: a master instructing his disciple.

Wei Dian's heart began to sink.

He felt that Xie An before him was like a bottomless ancient well; no matter how many stones he threw in, he would not hear an echo. He even began to suspect that Xie An was hiding his true strength.

No.

impossible.

He had just broken through to the Blood Rush Realm.

Wei Dian gritted his teeth and suddenly changed his move. His palms suddenly turned pitch black, and a chilling aura spread out.

Wei Dian unleashed both palms simultaneously, bringing a chilling gust of wind, striking Xie An's chest.

He used all his strength in this palm strike, and also added the chilling properties of the Dragon King Gang's Yin Sha Palm.

Xie An did not dodge, but suddenly raised his right hand to meet the attack head-on.

"boom!"

A loud bang, and sand and stones flew everywhere.

A section of blue bricks in the center of the training ground exploded, sending dust flying and swirling.

Once the dust settled and everyone could see the scene clearly, they all gasped in shock.

Xie An remained standing in the same spot, without taking a single step back.

His clothes were torn in several places by the strong wind, but he had no injuries whatsoever.

Wei Dian took three steps back, his face flushed red, his hands trembling slightly, and for the first time, fear appeared in his eyes as he looked at Xie An.

Even his own peak strike couldn't shake the opponent in the slightest, which truly filled Wei Dian with fear.

call!

Wei Dian took a deep breath, suppressing the fear in his heart.

He looked around and saw that everyone was looking at him. His junior brothers, who had once looked up to him, now had a more complex look in their eyes.

He cannot lose.

We absolutely cannot lose!

With the dual identities of being Chen Lutang's personal disciple and the leader of the Dragon King Gang, if he were to lose to Xie An in public today... once the news gets out, how will he ever be able to hold his head high in the martial arts world again?

He regretted it a little...

Xie An just said that he only needed to practice alone.

It was because I had the intention to bully the other person that I forcibly dragged them onto the stage.

Who knew that what they pulled up wasn't a newbie they could bully at will, but a monstrous beast!

I should have let him practice alone...

But now, it's too late to back down.

"Junior Brother Xie An's skills are indeed impressive." Wei Dian forced a smile. "Today, neither of us can gain the upper hand. How about we end this with a draw, which would be a fitting conclusion to the year-end competition?"

Xie An looked at him and said calmly, "I haven't made a move yet."

Wei Dian's expression changed, but he quickly regained his composure, straightened his back, and put his hands behind his back: "Then please make your move, Junior Brother. If you cannot break my defense within three moves, how about we call it a draw?"

Xie An nodded: "Okay."

After saying this, Xie An raised his right hand, his five fingers together, and his palm slightly concave.

An invisible aura rose from his body, and the surrounding air seemed to freeze.

Wei Dian's pupils contracted, instinctively sensing danger. But thinking of the golden silk armor he was wearing, he forced himself to calm down.

The next moment, Xie An suddenly struck out with his palm.

This palm strike wasn't fast; in fact, it could be described as very slow. It was like a bow being slowly drawn back, the string stretched to its limit, and then—

"Snapped!"

A sharp, explosive sound rang out from the air.

The palm strike was as sharp as a knife, slamming fiercely towards Wei Dian's chest.

Although Wei Dian raised his hand to block, he still groaned, his feet left the ground, and he somersaulted twice in the air. After landing, he took more than ten steps back, his soles carving two deep furrows in the blue bricks before he could barely regain his balance.

He looked down at his chest; a shallow palm print was left on the gold-threaded soft armor, but it didn't hurt. The armor had absorbed most of the force.

"Junior brother, you have impressive palm strikes." Wei Dian raised his head and forced a smile, "However, it's still not enough."

Xie An did not answer, but instead frowned.

Through the touch he had just received, Xie An vaguely sensed that something on Wei Dian's body had absorbed about 70-80% of his strength.

Is it a precious garment similar to a golden silk armor?

No wonder this person would offer to take all three of his moves head-on.

That's quite a scheme.

However, Xie An remained calm. His current base strength had reached an astonishing 8.2, and his base speed and spirit had also reached 7. Even without using his internal force, he should be able to forcefully break through the opponent's defenses.

No sooner said than done, Xie An had already struck out with his second palm.

This palm strike was 30-40% faster than the first, the wind whistling through it like a tiger pouncing on its prey. The fist transformed from a palm to a fist in mid-air, and the "Mountain-Splitting Palm" of Bajiquan suddenly erupted, its power like an axe, fiercely breaking through Wei Dian's defensive stance and striking his chest.

"Bang!"

Wei Dian was sent flying backward again, this time even further. After landing, he staggered back twenty steps before his back slammed into a wooden stake in the training ground, which snapped with a "crack" as thick as a bowl.

But Wei Dian did not collapse; he just looked pale and did not vomit blood.

"Junior brother, even a Blood Reaching Realm cultivator can't break through my defenses." Wei Dian wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, a hint of lingering fear on his face. "My attack just now consumed a lot of energy, so I'm finding it a bit difficult to withstand your attack this time. But overall, we're evenly matched, so let's end this in a draw."

call!

Xie An took a deep breath, thinking to himself that the other party's treasured garment was truly effective.

Even after using all the power of the Blood Rush Realm, they still failed to defeat their opponent.

Is this the end of the game?

First, he tried to show off with one hand, then switched to using both hands when that failed, and now he's even trying to salvage his reputation by wearing a golden silk soft armor and a precious garment, hoping to end the game in a draw.

That's too lenient on this scoundrel.

Are you suggesting we let this scoundrel continue to bully and oppress us?

Either you don't make a move, or once you do... there will be bloodshed.

Xie An slowly raised his right hand, his five fingers loosely clenched, and an invisible luster flowed through his palm.

In an instant, Xie An's aura changed. It was no longer the deep and lingering aura of the Blood Rush Realm, but a more restrained and dangerous one.

Like a lurking beast, ready to pounce and devour people at any moment.

"Since reaching the Bloodline Realm isn't enough..." Xie An's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached everyone present, "Then let's go up another level."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: I wrote 12,000 words today! Please keep reading, my godfathers! Whether it gets published in the third round depends on everyone.