Atop the high platform, under the watchful eyes of all, Zhou Yuanjue and Hong Miao stood facing each other.

"Brother Zhou, please enlighten me."

A faint smile appeared on Hong Miao’s face.

"Make your move."

Zhou Yuanjue lowered his gaze, and a ring of red light slowly spread out from his body.

HISS!!

The next moment, Zhou Yuanjue saw the pores on Hong Miao’s body suddenly open. A massive amount of water vapor billowed out from them, shrouding the surrounding area and obstructing Zhou Yuanjue’s vision.

SWISH!!

Zhou Yuanjue gave a light wave of his arm. The red light around him instantly expanded, causing the surrounding temperature to skyrocket. It formed a violent wave of heat that rushed outward, intended to disperse the water vapor shrouding his opponent.

However, even under the intense heat wave, the vapor merely warped slightly. It showed no signs of dispersing and continued to linger around Hong Miao.

’Vapor that can’t be dispersed?’

Zhou Yuanjue raised an eyebrow.

Just then, Hong Miao made his move.

WHOOSH!!

His body shot toward Zhou Yuanjue. But surprisingly, despite the airflow generated by his rapid movement, the water vapor around him wasn’t blown away. Instead, it clung tightly to him, as if defying the laws of physics.

’An interesting ability...’

Then, Zhou Yuanjue saw Hong Miao slash at him with a palm strike.

It was incredibly fast, slicing through the air.

The water vapor swirling around Hong Miao obstructed the view, making his attack trajectory difficult to follow.

This was hardly enough to trouble Zhou Yuanjue, however. The instant his opponent struck, he had already predicted the attack’s direction, distance, and even potential feints.

Yet, just as he prepared to meet the slash head-on to test his opponent’s strength, he keenly noticed the vapor swirling around Hong Miao churn in a strange way.

This immediately put him on guard. Instead of blocking, he shifted his body to the side and took a large step back.

RIP!!

A tear instantly appeared on his Martial Arts Uniform. His opponent’s palm was at least three meters away, yet it had still managed to cut him.

He could clearly sense it: the instant his opponent slashed, the surrounding vapor had formed a Water Blade at his fingertips, one as thin as a cicada’s wing. This Water Blade was several times sharper than an ordinary weapon.

’He can manipulate the surrounding vapor to this extent? Forming a blade from mist? Water Control?’

It was a known principle that while a human magnetic field could influence the Natural Magnetic Field, affecting physical reality required indirect means like manipulating temperature or airflow. An ability like Hong Miao’s—directly controlling water vapor with his personal magnetic field—was practically the stuff of legends, the so-called "Object Manipulation Skill"!

The power of Water Control was the signature Talent of the Xuan Clan!!

Besides manipulating natural water, the greatest ability of the Xuan Clan was controlling the moisture within their own bodies.

An ordinary person’s body is composed of sixty to seventy percent water, but a Xuan Clan Spirit Guardian could reach the terrifying level of over ninety percent!

Their organs and digestive tracts had exceptional water-storage capabilities. In battle, they could release this moisture through their pores, their breath, and other methods.

Furthermore, the water stored within their bodies was constantly influenced by their Talent Magnetic Field, causing the bonds between the water molecules to grow incredibly tight. For a certain period and within a certain range after being released, they could use their Talent Magnetic Field to manipulate this water in all sorts of unbelievable ways.

This internally stored water was what they called "Profound Water."

Profound Water was their strongest ability!

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!!

Controlling the Profound Water around him, Hong Miao launched a relentless barrage of attacks at Zhou Yuanjue.

Palms, fists, fingers, elbows...

Blades, swords, thorns, hooks...

The vapor around Hong Miao constantly shifted into different forms under his control, attacking Zhou Yuanjue from bizarre angles and at ferocious speeds.

Moreover, he deliberately concealed the maximum range of his Profound Water manipulation, making his strikes all the more unpredictable.

Zhou Yuanjue tried to disperse the water vapor with his magnetic field, but he discovered its magnetic structure was highly unusual. Because it incorporated a physical substance—tiny water molecules—its sharpness had become far more terrifying than a typical Magnetic Field Ability. It was difficult to dissipate using his own magnetic field or any ordinary magnetic influence.

It was resistant to impact, maintained its form even under high heat, and the subtle magnetic field binding the water molecules was even harder to destroy.

Crisscrossing slash marks appeared on the platform floor. The blades of Profound Water that Hong Miao controlled were like the sharpest battle cleavers, capable of slicing clean through the armor of a tank!

This bizarre and unique method of turning water into blades was known as the "Water Cutting Skill."

However, as terrifying as the Water Cutting Skill was, and despite the dense vapor obscuring its trajectories, it was still impossible for it to truly land a blow on a battle-hardened Martial Artist like Zhou Yuanjue now that he was on his guard.

In just five seconds, the solid platform was already riddled with cuts. By now, Zhou Yuanjue had mostly grasped Hong Miao’s attack patterns.

’Now!’

Zhou Yuanjue’s eyes snapped open. In that instant, he seized upon a flaw in Hong Miao’s assault.

SCREECH!!

The red light around him erupted, faintly taking the shape of a giant, soaring bird. His body shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow. A Cunning Hand strike drove straight through Hong Miao’s impenetrable assault, carrying immense power and heat as it aimed directly for his chest.

If it landed, even a Saint Awakening master would have their chest torn open and their heart ripped out!

However, to Zhou Yuanjue’s surprise, Hong Miao showed no intention of dodging the attack.

A smile appeared on Hong Miao’s face, faintly visible through the vapor.

SWISH! SWISH!!

Hong Miao made no move to defend himself. Instead, he sent two slashes from his Water Cutting Skill hurtling toward his own chest, seemingly intent on trading his life for his opponent’s.

’This guy? Has he got a death wish?’

Zhou Yuanjue’s eyes narrowed. His body contracted slightly, twisting in a physically impossible way to dodge the slashes. As a consequence, the power behind his Cunning Hand strike also weakened.

However, even with its power diminished and unable to pierce through his opponent’s torso, a strike to the heart was still enough to gravely wound any Saint Awakening practitioner.

THUD!!

His Cunning Hand stabbed heavily into his opponent’s chest, but the sensation he felt upon impact was completely wrong.

There was no sensation of his Power penetrating the target. It felt as if all his Power had been stopped by a strange, fluid layer and was instantly neutralized, unable to press even a millimeter deeper.

The sensation couldn’t help but remind him of something he’d seen back in college. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

A Non-Newtonian Fluid.

This was a special Technique of the Xuan Clan.

By manipulating the water and fat within the subcutaneous layer and mixing them in a specific ratio, they could form a layer under the skin. This layer was similar to a Non-Newtonian Fluid, but with far greater durability, capable of resisting extremely powerful external force!

This Secret Technique was known as "Jade and Glaze Liquid."

Profound Water and Jade Body, impervious to all weapons!

Offense and defense in one. The Profound Water of the Xuan Clan was a nearly perfect and formidable ability.