Cultivation: From Poor Peasant to Celestial Lord

Chapter 90: Chapter 81: Rematch with Zhang Shan, Overwhelming Strength

Zhang Shan’s pupils contracted. He never imagined that his ultimate, trump-card move would be neutralized so nonchalantly.

Before he could even react, Chu Bai’s counterattack had already arrived.

Another Spirit Water Needle shot toward him, forcing Zhang Shan to halt his follow-up Magic Technique.

’I can’t let him create distance and kite me!’

Zhang Shan was a veteran of countless battles and made a decision in an instant. His figure blurred. Instead of retreating, he advanced, doing the exact opposite of what was expected and charging straight for Chu Bai.

’His next Spirit Water Needle will definitely be aimed at a predicted position behind me! As long as I get close, most of his long-range attacks will be useless!’

It was indeed a brilliant tactic.

As the distance between them closed to within thirty feet, a wooden spike had already formed in Zhang Shan’s palm, and the corner of his mouth even curled into a victorious smile.

”Junior Brother, you lose this time... huh?!”

At that very moment, Zhang Shan suddenly felt an unprecedented, deathly chill envelop his entire body. He snapped his head up just in time to meet Chu Bai’s eyes, which had, at some unknown point, turned a brilliant gold.

There was no emotion in those eyes, only an extremely pure sharpness.

[Golden Eye Shattering Illusion]!

WHOOSH!

He couldn’t even see its trajectory; all he saw was a dazzling golden light shooting out from Chu Bai’s eyes.

It was too fast!

So fast his thoughts couldn’t keep up!

Zhang Shan felt a chill at his temple as a few strands of hair drifted down. Immediately after, over a hundred feet behind him, a finger-sized hole silently appeared, piercing straight through the thick stone wall of the Martial Arts Arena.

Time seemed to freeze in that moment.

Zhang Shan stood frozen on the spot, the wooden spike in his palm slowly dissipating. Cold sweat slid down his forehead and dripped onto the ground.

’If that last attack had been off by a single inch... my head would now be a smashed watermelon.’

The entire arena was deathly silent.

A moment later, the golden light in Chu Bai’s eyes faded, and they returned to their normal clarity. He took half a step back, cupped his hands in a salute toward the petrified Zhang Shan, and smiled.

”Senior Brother Zhang, thank you for going easy on me.”

Zhang Shan finally snapped out of his daze and lowered his hands, saying bitterly, ”I lost.”

He had lost, utterly and completely convinced.

It wasn’t just because of the gap in their strength, but more so because of Chu Bai’s level of control.

Last time, it was he who had lost control and almost injured someone. But this time, it was Chu Bai who had perfectly controlled the outcome, calculating the exact trajectory of his attack along Zhang Shan’s charging path. He decided the victor without causing any real harm or ill will.

ROAR!!!

Below the stage, thunderous applause and cheers instantly erupted.

Watching the calm and composed young man on the stage, all the first-year freshmen straightened their backs with pride.

This was their freshmen leader!

He could crush even a second-year senior in a direct confrontation. Who in this year’s class could possibly stand in his way?

”Good! And what a ’going easy on me’!”

Instructor Lei strode forward, his usually stern face now holding a hint of a smile.

He first patted the still-dazed Zhang Shan, signaling for him not to worry about it, then turned to Chu Bai, his gaze full of admiration.

”Chu Bai, in that battle just now, what percentage of your strength did you use?”

Instructor Lei’s sudden question, though not loud, instantly silenced the surrounding students who had been cheering. They all pricked up their ears.

Chu Bai pondered for a moment.

He glanced inward with Introspection at his Dantian. ’That last Golden Eye Shattering Illusion really did, just as the Jade Scroll from the Dharma Transmission Pavilion said, instantly drain thirty percent of my Magical Power. Adding in the earlier probing and defense, if we’re only talking about Spiritual Power...’

”Instructor, I should still have about thirty to forty percent of my strength remaining,” Chu Bai answered honestly.

This wasn’t him being deliberately modest. After all, Zhang Shan was one of the best among the second-years; his combat experience and the way he linked his Magic Techniques were both quite seasoned. If not for the attribute suppression from his Metal Qi enhancement, he never would have won this fight so decisively.

”Thirty to forty percent left, you say...”

Upon hearing this, Instructor Lei was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing. ”Good kid! To be able to face Zhang Shan’s full-power assault and still have thirty percent of your strength left... such reserves are simply unheard of among past freshmen classes!”

He nodded to himself. ’Chu Bai’s so-called ”thirty percent” probably refers only to his remaining Magical Power. But if it were truly a life-or-death battle, with this kid’s temperament and methods, that ”thirty percent” could probably be squeezed to produce another seventy or eighty percent of combat power.’

”Since you still have strength to spare, that’s perfect.”

Instructor Lei waved his hand, pointing at the group of eager freshmen behind him. ”For today’s practical combat class, I’m afraid Zhang Shan won’t be able to handle it all by himself. You shouldn’t stand around idly either. Join Zhang Shan as a sparring Teaching Assistant.”

”Sparring?” Chu Bai was taken aback.

”What? Think it’s too tiring?” Instructor Lei looked at him with a half-smile. ”Don’t worry, I won’t make you work for free. After class, I’ll award you ten Daoist Merits as payment.”

Ten Daoist Merits!

Chu Bai’s eyes lit up instantly.

’I can earn this much just by being a sparring partner for an afternoon?’

’My strength has increased, after all, so making money has become a lot easier.’

’It makes sense. A sparring partner also needs to give pointers. You can’t take on this job without a certain level of strength.’

Just like Zhang Shan, who relied on his one-year head start in experience to occasionally get sparring assignments from Instructor Lei.

”Thank you for the opportunity, Instructor! I will do my best!” Chu Bai immediately cupped his hands, unable to hide the joy on his face.

”Go on.”

...

For the next four hours, a rather interesting scene unfolded in the Martial Arts Arena.

The arena was divided in two.

The left side was the area Zhang Shan was responsible for, while the right side was Chu Bai’s ”teaching zone.”

It was called sparring, but it was actually a gauntlet. One by one, the freshmen took turns stepping up to receive a ”vicious beating” and guidance from the two.

”Your casting is too slow! I got close before you could even finish forming your Fire Bomb Technique. If this were a real battle, you’d be dead three times over!”

”That’s not how you use Earth Shield! You need to predict where your opponent’s attack will land, not just stand there foolishly like a target!”

Chu Bai moved between the freshmen, his demeanor relaxed and effortless.

He didn’t use any high-cost ultimate moves, relying solely on his Mastery-level Formless Cloud Hand and Spirit Water Needle, he easily had this group of his classmates wrapped around his little finger.

He was even intentionally controlling the pace.

After guiding each person, he would pause briefly, using the gap to circulate his Guiyuan Technique.

Relying on the insane recovery power of Nourishing and Exquisite, the small amount of Magical Power he had just used was replenished in an instant.

After one fight after another, while others were panting with exhaustion, he, on the contrary, became more and more energetic. Even the skill proficiency of his Formless Cloud Hand was slowly increasing through this repetitive, practical combat training.

On the other side, Zhang Shan’s situation was a bit more delicate.

Although he was facing a group of first-year newbies, Zhang Shan seemed rather distracted.

The shock from that beam of golden light grazing past his temple was simply too great.

Even though he knew Chu Bai had held back, the fear from being on the verge of life and death still lingered in his heart. This caused him to hesitate whenever he attacked, afraid that he would lose control and injure someone again, or that some reckless freshman would launch a sneak attack.

This timid and hesitant mindset made his fighting feel stifled, and fine beads of sweat even appeared on his forehead.

Instructor Lei stood on high ground, taking in both of their performances.

’This Zhang Shan... his mentality is ultimately lacking.’

He shook his head, his gaze shifting to the other side where Chu Bai was completely at ease. ’On the other hand, this Chu Bai... not only is he strong, but his mentality is frighteningly stable. Treating sparring as a form of training, making money while practicing his skills... tsk tsk, he’s a natural-born seed for Cultivation.’

The reason Instructor Lei had roped in Chu Bai was because he had noticed Zhang Shan wasn’t in the right state of mind today and was afraid he couldn’t handle it. Now, it seemed he had made the right move.

...

”Alright! That’s all for today’s practical combat class!”

As the sun set in the west, Instructor Lei’s loud shout brought everyone’s movements to a halt.

Although the freshmen were all bruised and swollen, their eyes shone with excitement. The chance to get one-on-one guidance from an expert of Chu Bai’s caliber was a priceless opportunity.

Chu Bai relaxed his stance and let out a long breath of turbid air, feeling the flow of Magical Power within his body become even smoother.

”Chu Bai, this is your nameplate.”

Instructor Lei walked over and handed the nameplate, onto which the Daoist Merits had been transferred, to Chu Bai. ”Ten Daoist Merits. Take it.”

”Thank you, Master Lei.” Chu Bai took the nameplate, feeling delighted.

’This afternoon, not only did I earn some meal money and grind my skill proficiency, but I also solidified my prestige among the freshmen.’

’It’s a total win.’