Chapter 207: Still Holding Back

Chapter 206

At the seats of the leaders, all the leaders and even their elders shot to their feet in absolute shock, disbelief written plainly across their faces as they stared at the scene unfolding on the stage below as if they had just witnessed something that should never have been possible. Then, almost in unison, their voices rang out, filled with disbelief and pure shock:

"How is this...?"

"What the hell...?"

"How...?"

How could a first-stage Qi Gathering cultivator possess a Qi mutation? There was no doubt about it now. That green lightning was undoubtedly a Qi mutation, and not just an ordinary Qi mutation at that, but a unique mutation.

Yet that was precisely what made absolutely no sense. Once again, in a single day, the leaders felt as if everything they had deduced and everything they knew about the cultivation world had been thrown directly into the deepest pit of hell, and the one responsible for shattering universal logic once again... was none other than him: the Honored One, Liyu.

"What the hell is happening here?"

Elder Ting’s voice finally broke through the stunned silence, his eyes twitching as he stared at the scene unfolding right on the stage below. There was no doubt about what he was seeing... that was undoubtedly a Qi mutation, and that was precisely why it made absolutely no sense whatsoever.

How could a first-stage Qi Gathering cultivator possess mutated Qi? One had to understand that, under normal circumstances, Qi mutation was something that only those at the mid-stage or even peak-stage Foundation Realm could trigger, because after all, Qi mutation was one of the crucial requirements for stepping into a higher cultivation level... the Core Stage.

Without undergoing a Qi mutation, stepping into the Core Stage became utterly and totally impossible, which was the greatest obstacle faced by cultivators who had reached the Foundation Realm.

Triggering a Qi mutation was incredibly difficult... so difficult, in fact, that many cultivators might never be able to accomplish it in their entire lives, meaning they would remain trapped at the Foundation Realm forever, unable to advance any further, unable to step into the Core Stage, and unable to become anything greater than what they already were.

That was precisely why Elder Ting and most of the people present had been so stupefied when they first witnessed Shi Yuan triggering his Fire Qi Mutation, followed by Yuexin possessing two Qi mutations.

The two of them had already proven that they were talents unlike any other, since triggering a Qi mutation at the Qi Refining Realm was already an astonishing feat, with Shi Yuan having done it at the later stages of Qi Refining and Yuexin having done it even earlier.

Their achievements alone were enough for them to be recognized as extraordinary prodigies, already considered the very top among geniuses and talents that countless people could only look up to.

And yet... if Shi Yuan and Yuexin could be called the top of the prodigies simply because they had triggered Qi mutations while still at the Qi Refining Realm... then what the hell were they supposed to call Liyu?

He was only at the first stage of Qi Gathering... first stage... and yet he had already triggered a Qi mutation. How the hell was something like that even supposed to be possible?

Elder Ting’s eyes narrowed as he stared at Liyu, for a moment actually having the urge to descend onto the stage himself because he wanted to examine every inch of Liyu’s body:

every strand of Qi, every trace of energy, every possible abnormality, and perhaps even wanting to experiment on him to know exactly what this young man was and what kind of monster was standing before them.

And Elder Ting wasn’t the only one thinking that way, as almost everyone present was struggling to understand how someone like Liyu could possibly exist, because from the moment Liyu had stepped into this tournament until now... everything he had done made absolutely no sense whatsoever.

Every single time they thought they had finally figured him out, he would reveal something else that completely shattered their understanding:

first, his terrifying physical strength; then his abnormal battle prowess; then his ridiculous healing ability; then his strange eyes; then his countless skills; and now... a Qi mutation at the first stage of Qi Gathering.

It was insane, absolutely insane. All these powerful and mighty figures had witnessed countless geniuses throughout their lives, having seen monsters, prodigies, and people who possessed talents that ordinary cultivators could only dream of.

Yet even they were frightened by what they were witnessing now... not because Liyu had demonstrated some overwhelmingly destructive attack, not because he had defeated someone, but because none of them could explain how he had accomplished this.

And that was far more terrifying. A powerful technique could be explained; a powerful treasure could be explained; an extraordinary physique could be explained. But this? A first-stage Qi Gathering cultivator possessing mutated Qi?

There was no explanation that made sense.

"This is insane..." one of the elders muttered, his expression complicated, while another remained completely silent, unable to take his eyes away from Liyu as the entire group had been shaken to their core.

Yet among all of them, Elder Ting and Li San were the first two to regain their bearings, exchanging a brief glance before quickly composing themselves and slowly sitting back down.

But even after doing so, their gazes remained firmly locked onto the battle stage with expressions that were still complicated, neither of them able to completely hide the emotions churning within their eyes.

Elder Ting slowly exhaled: "And here I was thinking that the kid had already shown everything he had to show," a bitter, almost helpless smile appearing on his face before his eyes narrowed, "Then he goes and displays something like this. Doesn’t this kid have a limit to how far he can go?"

There was genuine disbelief in his voice, because he had thought Liyu had already reached the point where his surprises should have run out, but apparently he had been wrong... very wrong.

Elder Ting stared at the young man standing beneath the green lightning, his expression becoming increasingly solemn as, for the first time, a thought he had previously considered almost ridiculous began taking root in his mind: Just how far could this kid actually go?

And more importantly... just how monstrous would Liyu become if he continued growing at this rate? He would surely become something extraordinary by the time he reached the peak of the Mortal Stage, and with the Core Stage and even his current talent, stepping into the Soul Stage and eventually reaching the peak of that realm was not impossible either.

As long as nothing happened that could cause his death, Elder Ting was more than certain that, one day, that kid would stand at the very peak of the cultivation world and become a supreme existence that countless cultivators could only look up to, which was almost guaranteed. assuming he didn’t die first, of course.

"I know he is a freak..." Elder Ting rubbed his forehead as a severe headache slammed into him, his expression twisting slightly because if someone witnessed something that should not be possible, something that completely contradicted everything they knew about the world, then their head would surely ache from the stress and alarm, which was exactly what Elder Ting was feeling right now.

"I know he is a freak," he repeated the words, almost as if saying them aloud would help him accept what he was seeing, "Bu what he is doing right now would surely spook even the greatest freaks. It would scare them shitless."

How could a Qi Gathering cultivator trigger a Qi mutation? It had never happened before... not in history, not even in the ancient myths, never.

There had never been a recorded case of someone triggering a Qi mutation at such a low cultivation level. So just what the hell was this kid? What exactly was Liyu? Elder Ting couldn’t find an answer, and the more he tried to find one, the worse his headache became.

Li San’s thoughts were just as complicated, though unlike Elder Ting, he didn’t even bother trying to reason through it for too long, because every explanation he tried to construct in his mind only led to another contradiction.

It was all too much; it didn’t make sense, and it probably never would. Even when Li San had been young, despite possessing extraordinary talent, he had only managed to trigger his Qi mutation when he had reached the mid-stage of the Foundation Realm, which was already considered an incredible achievement.

His little sister, Liyu’s mother, had triggered hers at the peak of the Qi Refining Realm, shocking everyone back then and being hailed as one of the greatest geniuses ever produced... the peak of genius, which were the words that had once been used to describe her.

But right now... those words sounded completely ridiculous. If Liyu’s mother could be called the peak of genius simply because she had triggered her Qi mutation at the peak of Qi Refining... then what were they supposed to call Liyu, who had triggered his at the very first stage of Qi Gathering?

Not the peak, not the middle, not even the final stage, but the very beginning. It made absolutely no sense... none whatsoever.

Li San finally gave up trying to piece everything together and understand it on his own, completely giving up because there was simply no point, realizing some things were beyond reason, and Liyu seemed to be one of those things.

Meanwhile, Shi Gubing and Guan Ju were both staring at Liyu with their eyes wide open in shock, and although the target of their shock was the same person, their thoughts were completely different.

Guan Ju’s mind was almost going blank: *He is actually still holding back...* The thought sent another wave of disbelief through him, because after everything that had happened, Liyu had still not gone all out against Guan Haoran, and now he was revealing yet another terrifying card... a Qi mutation, powerful equipment, a strange transformation, and who knew what else he was still hiding?

To think that this kid had been holding back so much during his fight with Guan Haoran... it didn’t make sense, no, it made absolutely no sense at all. Just how many cards could this freak possibly have?

Meanwhile, Shi Gubing was practically on the verge of pulling his hair out as he stared at Liyu with an expression of disbelief. There was no doubt about it: Liyu was much more powerful now, far more powerful, and anyone could see that.

But how? How was he still capable of increasing his power over and over again as if he had absolutely no limit whatsoever? Every time they thought they had reached the end of his strength, he would reveal something even more absurd. How the hell was that fair?

Shi Gubing’s expression darkened, his gaze shifting toward his son with only one thought running through his mind: *Hurry up. Use everything in your power and finish that freak off. Don’t give him another chance to reveal something even more ridiculous.*

Back on the stage, Shi Tian had naturally heard his father’s words, yet his expression didn’t change in the slightest as his gaze remained fixed on Liyu... calm, cold, and emotionless... continuing to stare at the young man standing directly across from him.

The Liyu standing before him was completely different from the one he had sliced and diced apart moments ago, with a massive difference that Shi Tian noticed every single detail of.

"To think you are still hiding so many cards..." Shi Tian spoke in his low, emotionless voice without even the slightest trace of surprise in his tone, his gaze moving slowly across Liyu’s body as he continued analyzing him.

"You have a Qi mutation," his eyes were calm and emotionless as he continued, "And it is not a weak one either. A unique Qi mutation." His gaze then shifted toward Liyu’s combat suit: "And that tight skin suit... it is at least at the peak of the Earth Grade, or even at the Sky Grade." A Sky Grade armor... now that was something truly worthy of being called an ace.

His gaze shifted toward the sword in Liyu’s hand: "And that sword... that is also at least at the Sky Grade." Shi Tian’s expression remained completely unchanged:

"So many cards you have hidden all this while, Honored One," his eyes returning to Liyu’s, "And I can see from your gaze that you are confident that all of this will be enough."

For the first time, Shi Tian slightly shook his head... not out of fear, not out of hesitation, but almost as if he were correcting a foolish assumption:

"You are mistaken if that is what you are thinking," his voice remained cold and indifferent, "I have already put every variable into my plan," staring directly into Liyu’s eyes, "And even if you have more aces... you will still die."