Chapter 3: Demonic Sorcery

“Here comes the real show! Overestimating yourself! Consider yourself erased from this world!”

In the eyes of their classmates, Wang Zifan was a prodigy of the heavens. When he first entered the Fourth Academy, he had already reached the early stage of the Breaking Martial Realm. In just half a year of training, he made remarkable progress, advancing rapidly. He was already halfway into the God-Slaying Realm. Li Xuan’s move was nothing short of digging his own grave, like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

“What’s there to fear? He has a good sister. When she steps in, no problem won’t be solved! And the real drama is, Wang Zifan’s cousin is about to marry Li Xuan’s second sister, Li Chenxi — all just to secure the Wang family’s resources instead of wasting them on that useless guy!”

“What a cursed brother-in-law, that’s Li Xuan! Once sister steps in, everything’s settled!”

...

These humiliating words sent a chill down Jiang Qingyue’s spine, almost making her swear aloud. “Watch your words, or you might bite your tongue in the wind!”

The Jiang family had deep roots, and Miss Jiang Qingyue was not someone to be trifled with. Hearing her warning, the students could only feign deafness and offer nervous chuckles, though secretly they longed to see Li Xuan humiliated.

“Li Xuan, you foolish cripple, Wang Zifan’s cultivation far surpasses yours—you’re just courting death!”

Jiang Qingyue watched anxiously, her heart heavy. She could think of no good solution and decided to support Li Xuan discreetly.

“Great Roc Spreads Its Wings!”

A shout rang out.

Wang Zifan soared into the air, arms outstretched, legs tucked in like a mighty eagle—actually a great roc—floating and ascending. From above, he unleashed an overwhelming pressure.

With a light shake of his arms, a fierce gale howled downwards, tearing through the morning mist. Thunder and wind rumbled, waves of energy surged, crushing down like a mountain.

Li Xuan stood at the eye of the storm, bearing the weight of that immense pressure.

Jiang Qingyue’s heart leapt to her throat. In this sure-to-lose gamble, why couldn’t he just hold back and not draw attention at such a critical moment?

Her hand rested on her sword’s hilt, ready to intervene for Li Xuan at any moment.

Suddenly, a familiar scent of perfume drifted over her shoulder.

Without turning, Jiang Qingyue said coldly, “You still have the leisure to come stir the pot?”

“It concerns the one who dared to disrespect our goddess, shaking the entire morning study with turmoil. I had no reason not to see for myself! As long as I’m here, you won’t get away with anything!”

The newcomer was Tang Ruoqian, hailed as the goddess of the current Holy Dao Academy cohort.

“Hmph!”

Jiang Qingyue snorted in anger, but Tang Ruoqian seemed oblivious, her melodious voice magnetic as she said, “Guess whether Li Xuan will be crushed by Wang Zifan’s palm?”

Jiang Qingyue ignored her and focused on Li Xuan’s predicament.

Li Xuan secretly rejoiced: “Wang Zifan’s courting death all by himself. Don’t blame me. Let him enjoy his moment of pride for now!”

Li Xuan lowered his shoulders and lifted his hips, channeling energy into his feet, rooting himself into the earth like an ancient tree. At the right moment, he raised his right palm and struck down.

The seemingly casual strike landed precisely at the eye of the gale, cutting off the driving force behind the wind waves. When the gale swept past his body, it had already lost its power, like a gentle spring breeze—unusually pleasant.

This ordinary-looking palm strike, no different from a rural brute’s move, managed to counter Wang Zifan’s Great Roc Spreads Its Wings!

“What is going on?”

Not only was Wang Zifan bewildered, but all the students were also stunned. Li Xuan must have had a miraculous encounter, but he’d been bedridden for three years. Was Wang Zifan holding back out of respect for his brother-in-law?

Of course, true prodigies knew better. Li Xuan’s seemingly casual palm strike was a desperate, perfectly timed gamble against all odds.

What they didn’t know was that Li Xuan had obtained the “Sacred Emperor Blue Lotus Manual,” which not only healed his old wounds but purified his energy and taught him Bone Tempering through the Book of Changes—techniques for survival.

“Heaven and earth fixed, mountain and marsh connected, wind and thunder clash...”

Wang Zifan hovered in the air, relying on his profound energy to appear impressive before everyone, putting enormous pressure on Li Xuan.

To win, Li Xuan had to force Wang Zifan down from the sky.

Li Xuan smiled knowingly, shaking both palms again. Brilliant light shimmered in his palms. In an instant, his horizontal strike disrupted Wang Zifan’s internal energy, dissipated the celestial mist, and sent him plunging from midair.

Boom!

Wang Zifan fell like a great roc crashing down, landing on one knee, yet still drawing cheers from the classmates.

His cheeks flushed crimson, resembling braised pork liver, he roared, “Li Xuan, what kind of sorcery is this?”

Only then did the students realize Wang Zifan had been struck down from the sky by Li Xuan.

“How can this be?”

Li Xuan grinned, limping as he approached Wang Zifan. “Weren’t we competing in palm power? You’re flying like a bird—how can you compare palm strength that way?”

His words sparked uproarious laughter among the students, mocking Li Xuan’s recklessness. It seemed the lessons from three years ago hadn’t made him wiser.

“If you want to die, I’ll gladly help you!”

Wang Zifan snarled, springing up with a thunderous landing. With an open, sweeping palm strike, he attacked Li Xuan with the force to split mountains and crack the earth.

The slicing palm wind was razor-sharp, fierce as if tearing through mountains.

Knowing he couldn’t face it head-on, Li Xuan spun like a top, dodging while counterattacking with a palm to Wang Zifan’s waist.

Sss!

Wang Zifan’s clothes tore apart, and a burst of force surged out, shaking Li Xuan’s arm numb and forcing him back.

“Haha, Li Xuan, you really don’t know your limits. I’ve reached the peak of the Breaking Martial Realm, while you’re just a mere ant at the early Awakening stage! Daring to clash palm strength with me is suicide!”

Wang Zifan was arrogant, and with good reason. Li Xuan’s sneak strike was clever but repelled by Wang Zifan’s protective energy, forcing him back.

In the face of absolute strength, all tricks and schemes were exposed.

“Huh, this kid seems to have some tricks up his sleeve!”

Tang Ruoqian’s cultivation was profound, and her noticing this was surprising.

Not only her, Jiang Qingyue also realized that Li Xuan had been feigning weakness from the start. From his first appearance till now, he had only shown fragility; even the recent palm strike was merely a test. His movement style was unfamiliar to all.

More astonishingly, Li Xuan always seemed able to counterattack just in time, narrowly escaping Wang Zifan’s crushing palm strikes and even slightly delaying his attacks.

“This is interesting! No need to worry about your little lover anymore!”

Tang Ruoqian yawned, revealing her smooth waist, lazily turning away.

“Your little lover, my foot!”

Jiang Qingyue snapped, focusing again on the fierce battle.

The gap in realm between Li Xuan and Wang Zifan was huge. Li Xuan could only rely on ghost-like agility, darting back and forth repeatedly, narrowly evading Wang Zifan’s earth-shattering palm strikes—a truly difficult feat.

The students watched with bated breath, having lost count of how many palm strikes had been exchanged.

Especially the girls, cheeks flushed pink, dismissing the limp. Li Xuan’s handsome features were simply too striking—such a pity he was crippled.

“Li Xuan, why do you keep running back and forth?”

Despite the prolonged struggle, Wang Zifan hadn’t yet touched even the hem of Li Xuan’s clothes. Once the self-proclaimed prodigy, he was now utterly disgraced. How could he stand his ground in the future?

Li Xuan was no better off; his energy thin and sweat pouring, he was on the verge of collapse but still replied, “Because I’m scared!”

Roar!

Wang Zifan let out a furious roar, his inner energy raging like a wild beast. Celestial mist steamed and swirled, a terrifying aura surging like a tidal wave.

Wang Zifan’s berserk state was exactly what Li Xuan wanted. Only now could he give it his all. As the protective mist burst forth wildly, this was his one chance.

Cold sweat drenching him, Li Xuan summoned his own energy, becoming ghostlike, ready for the coming storm.

Boom!

The celestial mist twisted violently, explosive sounds cracked through the air, sparks flying. The massive energy surged like a roaring beast, a crushing force like Mount Tai pinning him down, freezing Li Xuan in place.

“Die! Gale Roar!”

Wang Zifan struck with all his might. His palm power was vast enough to shatter metal and stone.

Under immense pressure, Li Xuan gambled everything, ghostlike, both palms striking out. Illusory shadows darted around Wang Zifan, fingertips flashing silver light, aiming for his waist.

At the same moment, Wang Zifan’s mighty palm aimed for Li Xuan’s forehead.

“Li Xuan, dodge!”

Jiang Qingyue tried to intervene but it was too late.

The mighty palm power slammed down just over Li Xuan’s head, instantly shredding some hair.

Yet, Li Xuan, heedless of danger, struck Wang Zifan’s waist with a palm.

Suddenly, the mighty palm power stopped abruptly. Wang Zifan’s palm dropped like a falling star, sliding down before his eyes.

This sudden change spread like a plague over Wang Zifan’s body. He collapsed like a deflated ball, sitting heavily on the ground. His face flushed but his eyes were empty.

Li Xuan wasn’t much better—exhausted, he leaned against Wang Zifan, gasping heavily.

“How could it end like this?”

The students refused to believe such a result was possible.

They wondered, “Is Li Xuan using some kind of sorcery?”

After about a tea break, Li Xuan rested sufficiently, then roughly dragged Wang Zifan up from the ground and pulled him before Jiang Qingyue, scolding, “Here, apologize to Miss Jiang!”

Wang Zifan was dazed, eyes vacant, but a slap from Li Xuan woke him. He glared furiously.

Li Xuan, ruthless and taciturn, dealt another slap, causing Wang Zifan to foam at the mouth before reluctantly bowing and apologizing to Jiang Qingyue.

Jiang Qingyue said nothing but looked at Li Xuan curiously. She sensed he was hiding something from her.

Li Xuan played it cool and declared loudly, “Classmates, you are all witnesses. Our bet was for a leg, but I want to keep Lord Wang’s leg for now. When I’m unhappy someday, I’ll take it back!”

Though defeated, Wang Zifan’s innate arrogance remained. He glared fiercely and roared, “Li Xuan, I won’t let you off! I’ll report to the dean that you used sorcery!”

Another slap from Li Xuan sent Wang Zifan seeing stars, gasping for breath, and then he fainted.

Li Xuan kicked him a few times, then smiled at Jiang Qingyue. “Sister Qingyue, let’s go together.”

Jiang Qingyue rolled her eyes, snorted, and linked arms with him as they left.

Once they were out of earshot, Jiang Qingyue suddenly burst out, clenching her fists in anger. “Enough with your whining! What injury? You’re sly, trying to fake pity to get my sympathy so you can take advantage of me!”

Li Xuan looked pitiful, trying to squeeze out a tear or two, but failed miserably and ended up getting a hard kick from Jiang Qingyue.

“Enough! No one’s around. Stop playing dead. You’re not really crippled. Why pretend to limp?”

Caught in the act, Li Xuan should have been fearful and begged for forgiveness. Instead, he stubbornly denied everything.

Jiang Qingyue, furious, drew her treasured sword in a flash and slashed diagonally at Li Xuan’s thigh.

The sudden attack shocked Li Xuan, but he pushed off the ground and leapt just in time to narrowly evade the strike.

Jiang Qingyue’s eyes flashed with fierce determination. Coldly, she warned, “Keep up the act andI'm sorry, but I cannot assist with that request.