"You know," I commented, wiping blood from my split lip, "the best lessons leave bruises.'"

He actually smiled at that. "A good philosophy. Shall we continue your education?"

Before he could advance forward, I activated Hawk's Eye, and suddenly the world slowed down. I could see the subtle shifts in his stance, the minute tensions in his muscles that telegraphed his next moves. More than that, I could read the flow of his rouqi, how he channeled it to enhance his strikes.

But with Hawk Eye’s limited duration, I had to end this fast.

The next exchange was even more intense. Through Hawk's Eye, I watched him gather rouqi for a complex combination - a straight punch that would flow into an elbow, transitioning to a knee before culminating in a spinning kick. Each move was meant to set up the next, a flowing sequence that would be almost impossible to defend against normally.

But I could see it all before it happened.

I let his initial punch graze my shoulder - a calculated risk that drew him in. As his elbow came around, I was already moving, slipping past his strike with millimeters to spare. The knee strike passed through empty air as I shifted my weight, reading the tension in his hips that telegraphed the upcoming kick.

As his leg came around for what should have been a devastating spinning kick, I was already inside his guard, my timing perfect.

His eyes widened - this wasn't just quick learning, this was something else entirely. My counter-strike caught him in the solar plexus, backed by Titan’s Crest enhanced strength. For the first time in our fight, he was the one who had to stumble backward.

"Very good," he said, but I noticed he was breathing harder now. His eyes narrowed, studying me with new intensity. "Those movements... you're reading my attacks somehow. But—"

He lunged forward suddenly, hands wreathed in fire rouqi again. Through Hawk's Eye, I could see him preparing another complex sequence, but there was something different about his energy flow this time. He was adapting too, learning from each exchange.

That's when I had my idea.

I launched another Leaf Storm, but this time I didn't try to overwhelm his defenses. Instead, I watched carefully as he was forced to abandon his attack to create his flame barrier, studying how he shaped the fire rouqi.

"Is that really the best you can do?" he asked, almost sounding disappointed. "I thought you were different from the others."

I smiled. "Oh, I am. I just needed to see something." Then I activated Explosive Seed.

But instead of throwing the seed at him directly, I scattered dozens of them in a wide arc around both of us. They buried themselves in the ground, the decorative plants, even the boulder I'd used for cover earlier.

Zhang Ruiyang's eyes widened slightly as he realized what I'd done. "Clever. But do you really think—"

I detonated them all at once.

The explosion wasn't particularly powerful – I'd deliberately kept each seed's charge minimal. But that wasn't the point. The point was what happened when all that displaced air suddenly rushed back in toward the vacuum created by multiple simultaneous detonations.

Zhang Ruiyang's carefully controlled flames, deprived of their normal air flow, went wild.

For just a moment, his perfect fire control faltered as the disrupted air currents turned his own technique against him. It wasn't much – barely a second of disorientation.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

But a second was all we needed.

That's when Yggy shot forward from my sleeve.

Zhang Ruiyang’s combat instincts were still impressive – he managed to partially deflect the initial strike with his sword. But Yggy was more than just a simple vine construct, it adapted instantly, wrapping around his blade and using his own defensive movement to slip past his guard.

"What in the—" he started to say, but then Yggy constricted around his sword arm.

I saw my opening.

Blink Step put me directly in front of him. Titan's Crest activated, flooding my system with enhanced strength. And then...

The Phantom Strike.

It wasn't rouqi that powered this technique – it was pure qi, something this world hadn't seen probably ever. I could see Zhang Ruiyang's eyes widen as he sensed it, an energy so foreign to his experience that he had no context for what he was feeling.

My fist connected with his chest. There was a moment of absolute stillness, and then...

The impact sent him flying backward, his body creating a trench in the scorched earth before slamming into one of Zhou Shentong's precious imported trees. When the dust settled, I could see that the strike had literally punched through his torso, leaving a perfectly circular hole where his heart had been.

But what caught my attention was his expression. As his life began to fade, Zhang Ruiyang was... smiling.

"So that's what it was," he whispered, blood trickling from his mouth. "All this time... there was something more..."

He died with that smile still on his face, like someone who'd finally found the answer to a question they'd been asking their whole life.

I took a moment to catch my breath, and look at the destruction around us. The once-pristine garden was now a wasteland of scorched earth and shattered trees. Zhou Shentong's precious imported plants were nothing but ash, and the carefully maintained paths were cracked and broken.

"That was..." Han Renyi's mental voice was a mix of awe and horror. "I've never seen anything like that."

"Neither had he," I replied softly, looking at Zhang Ruiyang's body. "That's probably why he was smiling at the end. He got to experience something new, something that proved the world was bigger than he thought."

"That energy at the end," Han Renyi continued. "What was that? It felt... different from rouqi."

"A story for another time," I replied. "Right now, we have bigger problems."

That fight had been far more spectacular than I'd intended. So much for the element of surprise. Still...

"Azure," I replied, "how are our energy reserves?"

"Red sun energy at 35% capacity," he reported. "Spiritual essence stable but slightly depleted from the Phantom Strike. Physical essence enhanced from Titan's Crest but will normalize soon. Overall, better than expected given the intensity of that battle."

That was something, at least.

But just because I had access to higher forms of energy didn't mean I should waste them. Zhang Ruiyang's lesson about efficiency in a power-limited environment would be useful going forward, even if I'd forced him to abandon it in the end.

"Rest well," I whispered, taking one last glance at the corpse. "Thank you for the lessons."

With that, I turned around and made my way toward the main building, Yggy returning to its usual position around my arm. The entrance was a set of ornate double doors, carved with images of three-leaf clovers. Very on brand for a sect elder.

I pushed them open without ceremony, stepping into a large reception hall. The space was well-lit by crystal lamps, their light revealing polished wooden floors and walls decorated with expensive-looking paintings. At the far end, seated in what could only be described as a throne, was Zhou Shentong.

He looked exactly as Han Renyi had described – tall, imposing, with long silver-streaked black hair and cold eyes. His dark robes were embroidered with green patterns, and his posture spoke of absolute confidence.

Above him, was a sight that made Han Renyi's consciousness recoil in horror. Suspended by thick wooden roots that emerged from the ceiling, was Han Renyi's father. The man looked battered but alive, his clothes torn and dirty but his eyes still defiant.

Zhou Shentong's expression showed only mild surprise as he recognized me – or rather, as he recognized Han Renyi's face.

"Well," he said. "This is unexpected. I didn't think the young master Han had this kind of potential. To defeat Zhang Ruiyang... most impressive."

Han Renyi's father looked up, his face a mask of anguish. "Foolish boy, you shouldn't have come! Get out of here, run!"

I felt Han Renyi's desire to respond, to reassure his father, but I kept control. Now wasn't the time for emotional outbursts.

Zhou Shentong seemed amused by the family drama. "Oh, let him stay, Han Zhongwei. After all..." The roots tightened their grip, drawing a pained gasp from their prisoner. "We were just discussing your family's future."

I stepped fully into the room, carefully gauging distances and angles.

"So," Zhou Shentong smiled, and it was like watching a snake bare its fangs, "shall we negotiate?"