Runes • Rifles • Reincarnation
124. A Crushing Victory

Bare fist collided with flaming fist. Sparks flew. The crowd roared.

Ling Shi and Biyu had already exchanged dozens of strikes, neither backing down, even as their bodies sported bruises and bleeding cuts.

But for Biyu, those injuries vanished in seconds. Her physique, enhanced by her qi, could heal even broken bones in moments—let alone surface wounds.

Realizing brute strength alone wouldn’t be enough, Ling Shi finally drew on her own techniques.

A bright layer of qi enveloped her fist, swelling it to nearly twice its normal size.

Someone in the crowd called out the technique’s name.

“That's the Mountain Splitting Fist! It doubles the power of physical strikes and pierces defensive techniques with raw force!”

But Biyu wasn’t caught off guard. She knew that technique just as well.

Pushing her movement technique to its limit, she danced out of reach. The punch tore through the air beside her, the generated wind slapping her skin and whipping her hair back.

If it had landed, even with her healing, it would have done serious damage.

“Too slow!” Biyu taunted as she flipped backward, dodging the next strike with ease.

It wasn’t her first taunt of the match—she’d been tossing them out since the fight began.

Which Jin Shu found… odd.

In all their spars, Biyu had never once taunted an opponent. She usually fell into silent focus, totally locked into the fight. This snide version of her? That felt more like something Li Xue would do.

Tian Li must have noticed his confusion, because she leaned over and offered an explanation without him even asking.

“The Vice-Sect Master and Elder Lu have always had a tense relationship,” she said. “Because of that, Biyu and Ling Shi never got along either. Though honestly, I doubt they’d be friends regardless. Not with Ling Shi’s personality.”

“Her personality?”

“Well… not so much her personality as her hobby,” Tian Li said, her lip curling. “You saw a bit of it when we ran into her earlier. She likes to ‘collect’ beautiful and strong men and women. All under the excuse of her cultivation technique.”

She grit her teeth so hard that Jin Shu could hear them creaking.

“She’s got her eyes on me. That’s why she doesn’t let anyone near me—she sees me as her property.”

Jin Shu blinked. He could guess what she meant, but still asked.

“Isn’t that just… dual cultivation? Why would she need women?”

“Her technique is special,” Tian Li said with a grimace. “It’s not just dual cultivation—it’s a body tempering technique too. It strengthens her physical form by absorbing yin and yang energy. But she can’t use her own yin energy—she has to take it from others.”

“I see… So she wants you for your yin energy? Not because she’s in love or something?”

“Pftt! Love?” Tian Li scoffed. “No. To her, I’m just a trophy.”

“…Hmm.”

A trophy… Jin Shu frowned. That’s not what I’m doing, is it? I hope it doesn’t seem that way.

You aren’t, Gold said. But you shouldn’t ask us. Better to ask them.

Jin Shu nodded. “I’m not like her… right?”

I didn’t mean now—

Oh. Oops.

Tian Li gave him a look. Not quite like he was insane… but definitely like she thought he was dumb. Maybe a little crazy.

“You? Like her? Ha! No. Just the fact that you’re asking shows that, unlike her, you care.”

Jin Shu was about to respond when the crowd's cheers surged. It seemed Biyu’s battle had reached its peak.

“Wow! Ling Shi’s Halberd Kick is only a Core Realm technique, but with her physical strength, it hits like a Spirit Realm attack!”

“But Fan Biyu’s not falling behind! Her techniques might be Core Realm too, but they’re easily on par with Spirit Realm cultivators!”

“Oh! Ling Shi’s summoning her spirit!”

In the arena, Ling Shi disengaged and began forming seals—standard for summoning a beast spirit, the hand signs necessary to tame and channel the creature’s natural instincts.

A hazy image flickered into existence behind her as she dodged Biyu’s advances. When it finally solidified, a collective gasp rippled through the crowd.

“That’s a female naked ape spirit!”

“One of the top ten ranked ape spirits—it has a low innate intelligence and it can even mimic a cultivator's fighting techniques!”

“However it’s wild by nature. Most Spirit Realm cultivators struggle to control it. Will Senior Sister Ling Shi manage it?”

The beast behind Ling Shi towered three meters tall, its body hairless save for the thick fur covering its ape-like head. Its muscles bulged beneath tightly wrapped bindings across its chest, a ragged hide skirt around its waist. In one massive hand, it held a gnarled wooden club.

Jin Shu blinked. It kind of looks like Ling Shi… if she were huge, half naked, and uglier.

“You should be proud,” Ling Shi declared, raising her voice. “You’ve forced me to call out my spirit—but this fight ends now!”

The naked ape stomped forward, the ground quaking beneath its weight. In a few strides, it had crossed half the arena, club raised high for a crushing blow.

Biyu didn’t flinch. Calmly, she formed hand seals of her own—not for summoning, since she hadn’t reached the Spirit Realm yet, but for her Great Phoenix Technique. The same one she had used against Tian Li.

Flames erupted above her as a massive phoenix construct took shape, just as the naked ape’s club descended.

Everyone expected her to use the phoenix to block the attack—but instead, it flew past the ape, soaring toward Ling Shi.

“What?! What is Senior Sister Fan doing?!”

“If she gets hit by that club—even with the Life-Giving Jadeite Physique—she might not survive!”

“She can’t move while channeling the Great Phoenix Technique! But Ling Shi can still attack or dodge!”

The club loomed above Biyu’s head, while the phoenix dove toward Ling Shi, who smirked, confident in her victory as she began retreating.

Outside the qi barrier the judge watching the match looked anxious, her mouth parting to call the fight—

“St—!”

She didn’t finish the word.

At the last moment, Biyu stepped back—just barely dodging the blow. The massive club slammed into the ground inches in front of her.

But she didn’t escape unscathed.

Cough!

A mouthful of blood sprayed from her lips, staining the arena floor and the front of her robes a deep red.

“She avoided it!”

“But at what cost?”

“She moved while using the phoenix technique—her meridians must’ve snapped!”

“Then did she cripple herself just to dodge?!”

“But her phoenix is still active—if her meridians were destroyed, it would’ve dissolved!”

“Wait… then how—?”

“Her physique! She must’ve healed her meridians as they snapped!”

“Is that even possible?!”

“She just did it. So it must be.”

As the crowd buzzed in disbelief, the phoenix construct swooped down on Ling Shi. Still stunned by Biyu’s survival, she had backed into a corner between the qi barriers.

But she wasn’t going down without a fight.

Her fist swelled with qi activating her Mountain Splitting Fist, she struck the phoenix’s talons head-on.

Her spirit recovered from its shock as well, raising its club for a second swing.

Biyu clenched her teeth. She pushed her technique even further—offense only. No defense.

The ape’s club descended once more—just as the phoenix clamped its claws around Ling Shi’s body, crushing her in midair.

“Aaaah!” Ling Shi screamed.

“Stop! Fan Biyu wins!” the judge shouted.

At once, the phoenix released its grip. Ling Shi dropped to the ground, groaning—but with a smirk.

Behind her, the naked ape spirit ignored the order and kept attacking.

“I said stop!” the judge roared, lowering the barriers and racing toward Biyu. But she was too far—she wouldn’t make it in time.

Biyu looked up. The club was falling fast—too fast, too close to sidestep. Even if she dispelled her technique, she wouldn’t have time to get away.

Jin Shu shot to his feet. Two ripples formed as fast as possible while he prepared to intervene, heart pounding.

But he was a step too slow.

BOOM!

The club crashed into the arena with a force that shook the entire stadium. Spectators near the front were knocked from their seats, some coughing blood from the shockwave.

Dust exploded across the arena floor, obscuring everything.

Jin Shu’s heart dropped. He couldn’t see anything—only dust, silence, and the lingering echo of the crowd’s collective gasp.

He prayed she had somehow dodged. Somehow survived.

The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!