After returning to the Divine Wood Academy, Cheng Lu wilted like a frostbitten eggplant. He retreated to his room and merely gave Li Nian’er a listless greeting when he saw her.

Watching his Third Junior Brother, Qin Chuan simply shook his head with a smile. Cheng Lu has always been proud. This time, it seems Ye Qingchen dealt a severe blow to his pride.

After greeting Qin Chuan, Ye Qingchen immediately followed Zhu Liang to begin another round of training.

The place Zhu Liang took Ye Qingchen to train was nothing special, just a deserted clearing in the mountains behind the Central Celestial Academy. Zhu Liang explained that he would be teaching combat techniques, so a blessed land abundant with Spiritual Energy was unnecessary.

Zhu Liang and Ye Qingchen stood facing each other. "Little Junior Brother," Zhu Liang began, "you’ve trained with your three seniors for over a month now. The energy within you has undergone a qualitative transformation, and your control over nature’s spiritual energy has reached a state of perfection. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"However, you need to understand one thing: the quality of your own energy is only one indicator of combat power. What truly determines your strength are your combat techniques."

Although Ye Qingchen did not fully comprehend Zhu Liang’s meaning, he still nodded and asked, "So, Second Senior Brother, how will we be training for these seven days?"

Zhu Liang thought for a moment, then replied, "Little Junior Brother, you are currently at the Sixth Layer of the Martial King Realm. Attack me once with your full strength so I can see what you’re capable of. Don’t worry; I’ll suppress my power to the Sixth Layer of the Martial King Realm as well."

Ye Qingchen nodded. Zhu Liang himself is a high-level Martial Emperor Realm Martial Artist and was hailed by Elder Yang as the strongest of his level. Although I have some strength, I’m definitely not Zhu Liang’s match. Even with him suppressing his Realm, I don’t believe I stand a chance. And even though Attribute Energy is considered a qualitative transformation, the Wood Attribute Energy inside my body is still far from enough to support me in a real fight. Zhu Liang is asking me to attack so he can identify my weaknesses and correct them, so I don’t need to hold back.

With this in mind, Ye Qingchen drew his Double Pupil Sword. He then used Willow Soul’s Brilliance to augment the blade while his Soul Power continuously communed with the surrounding nature’s spiritual energy.

After completing his preparations, he looked at Zhu Liang, who stood with his hands clasped behind his back. "Second Senior Brother," he said, "I’m going to attack now."

Zhu Liang nodded but remained standing with his hands behind his back, showing no signs of defending.

Ye Qingchen did not think Zhu Liang was underestimating him. Rather, under the observation of his Dual Pupil Martial Soul, Zhu Liang gave off an invulnerable aura. It feels like no matter which angle I attack from, he could easily defend against it. This feeling is incredibly clear and slightly unnerving.

Ye Qingchen shook his head, casting the negative thoughts aside. He then activated Fire Spirit Charm Shadow, vanishing instantly.

Seeing Ye Qingchen disappear, Zhu Liang showed a hint of surprise, but that was all. He turned slightly, taking just two small steps before standing still again. Yet, those two steps were just enough to dodge Ye Qingchen’s sudden attack from the shadows.

Undiscouraged by the missed strike, Ye Qingchen continued to use Fire Spirit Charm Shadow, constantly increasing his speed. But no matter how fast he became, Zhu Liang could easily dodge every one of his attacks. From start to finish, Zhu Liang’s hands never left his back.

Panting, Ye Qingchen stared at his Second Senior Brother. It was hard to believe someone with such a large frame could be so unbelievably agile in a fight. Through his Dual Pupil Martial Soul, Ye Qingchen noticed that Zhu Liang seemed to predict his every move, always evading his line of attack before he even struck.

This feeling... it’s just like when I fought that mysterious Saint Heir! I used all my strength, but I couldn’t even touch the corner of his robes!

Zhu Liang smiled and signaled for Ye Qingchen to stop. "Little Junior Brother," he said, "your attacks are sharp, but your killing intent is too heavy. You expose your movements before you even strike."

Ye Qingchen looked at Zhu Liang in surprise, not understanding what he meant. In the next moment, Zhu Liang appeared right in front of him, his finger tapping gently on Ye Qingchen’s forehead.

Ye Qingchen watched in horror. Zhu Liang’s movement speed had not been particularly fast—in fact, it was even a bit slower than his own Fire Spirit Charm Shadow. Yet, he still failed to react in time as Zhu Liang closed the distance. If Zhu Liang had intended to kill him, he would already be a corpse. What’s most terrifying is that I had my Dual Pupil Martial Soul active the entire time, but I still didn’t detect any sign that he was about to strike.

Zhu Liang lowered his finger and smiled. "Now do you understand a bit better, Little Junior Brother? Either stay perfectly still, or strike like a thunderbolt. Hundreds of useless swings can’t compare to a single, practical strike that seals the throat."

Having said his piece, Zhu Liang fell silent. He turned, found a place to sit, and watched Ye Qingchen from a distance.

Ye Qingchen mulled over Zhu Liang’s words, and a glimmer of understanding began to dawn in his heart. Previously, when I fought, I always relied on speed or distractions to launch surprise attacks. But as my Realm increases, I can’t be sure if I’ll still have an advantage in speed. Even if I do, achieving a true surprise attack will become nearly impossible. Martial Artists at the Martial Emperor Realm can communicate with the nature’s spiritual energy around them, an affinity that only grows stronger with their Realm. By observing carefully, they can detect the subtlest changes in their surroundings through this connection. So, no matter how fast you are, if an opponent can sense even the faintest trace of your intent through nature’s spiritual energy before you move, they can react ahead of time. That must be what Zhu Liang has perfected to the extreme, which is why he could always predict my attack positions and dodge beforehand.

Ye Qingchen then recalled his battle with the prodigy from the Divine Sword Sect. That was the first time he had used the Shadow-extinction Sword Technique. He had managed to achieve the element of surprise, but his opponent still dodged in advance because their Martial Soul had sensed his Sword Intent.

Though the situations are slightly different, the underlying principle is largely the same. But any move is bound to cause fluctuations in the surrounding nature’s spiritual energy. The two concepts seem to contradict each other, forming what feels like an unsolvable puzzle!

Utterly stumped, Ye Qingchen could not help but frown deeply.