Who is the most renowned martial artist in the Quanwu Hall? The Martial Venerable! He embodies the very heart... the wild spirit of the entire Shengwu Hall. Simultaneously, he is the greatest guarantor of Shengwu Hall’s formidable power.
Among the younger martial artists of Shengwu Hall, who holds the greatest fame? The Martial Maniac! Ninety-nine out of every hundred martial artists would call out that name.
Qin Fen had been in Shengwu Hall for quite some time now. He frequently heard that moniker spoken by different people. Almost every time someone mentioned the three words 'Martial Maniac,' their faces would light up with an ineffable glimmer of admiration.
Many people knew the Martial Maniac's name, yet not everyone had actually seen his true appearance.
The Martial Maniac, positioned between Caesar and Yang Lie on the fighting stage, wore a plain, light-gray martial arts uniform. His fingers were long and slender, his skin luminous and brimming with vitality. Even in a place like Shengwu Hall where most people possessed excellent physiques, his build gave the impression of being distinctly superior—harmonious and balanced, radiating a sense of perfect form.
The Martial Maniac’s features were also strikingly handsome. His facial structure was upright, his smooth skin taut.
His healthy, wheat-colored complexion conveyed a feeling of contained strength.
His eyes were slightly narrowed, his somewhat full lips parted just a fraction. The aura he exuded was one of vibrant energy, yet it was underscored by a hint of untamed wildness. A pair of unique, crimson eyes, like rubies, propelled his ferocity to a new zenith.
The martial artists in the audience stared blankly at Nash, the Martial Maniac, situated between Caesar and Yang Lie. This martial artist, with his golden hair, red eyes, and prominent nose, had effortlessly caught both devastating attacks with his left and right hands, seemingly without sustaining even the slightest injury.
The onlookers were acutely aware of the sheer destructive power wielded by Caesar and Yang Lie. Both were considered near-invincible powerhouses among the Ten-Star Martial Artists, capable of engaging Eleven-Star practitioners and producing unexpectedly decisive outcomes.
In recent days, as Qin Fen rose fiercely in prominence, every member of the team by his side had drawn significant attention.
The instant momentum of Yang Lie and Caesar’s clash was so immense that many martial artists who had never truly seen Nash, the Martial Maniac, mentally placed the two combatants on the same level of strength as him.
The striking force of either of these two martial artists was astonishing individually. A combined assault from both? Even a Twelve-Star Martial Artist would first choose to evade their sharp edge before counter-attacking.
Yet, the Martial Maniac, Nash, had absorbed both strikes as if nothing had happened! Moreover, he was audibly taunting them, calling the clash unsatisfying and urging the other young martial artists to join in.
More stunned than the spectators was Caesar, who stood at the epicenter of the battle, his eyes wide open. His New Nine Yang Divine Art had rapidly fused and developed the untapped potential and foundation of his past accumulations. His strength had exploded after days of grueling practice, only to be casually negated by this Martial Maniac, long rumored but never before encountered.
This level of shock was far beyond what the viewing crowd could comprehend.
In that instant, the pupils of Morad, Brooks, and Solomon constricted to pinpricks.
While the others were unsure of Yang Lie's exact strength without direct engagement, Caesar’s capabilities were crystal clear. In a one-on-one fight, none of the three dared to claim they could certainly defeat Caesar; their perceived chances of victory were a mere fifty-fifty. Who would win could only be known after a genuine exchange.
Yang Lie’s boxing momentum was in no way inferior to Caesar’s. It was presumed he wasn't far behind. Faced with this powerhouse duo, Yang Lie, who seemed less impactful than Caesar and the others during this exchange, was perhaps even more astonished. After cultivating in conditions akin to hell these past few days, he had hoped to finally assert himself and become the undeniable third pillar of Qin Fen’s squad. Instead, he found that Caesar was his equal, and this legendary Martial Maniac was strong beyond all imagination.
Qin Fen nodded lightly. The Martial Maniac truly lived up to his formidable reputation.
Yang Lie’s and Caesar’s internal energies were starkly different: one was utterly rigid and purely Yang, the other profoundly cold and Yin. The speed at which these energies invaded the meridians manifested either as a scorching heat or an icy chill that raised goosebumps and caused violent shivering.
Even martial artists several levels higher would frown upon receiving the internal energy from either of their strikes. To absorb both attacks simultaneously?
This convergence of supreme Yang rigidity and extreme Yin cold was not simply additive in effect.
Sometimes, one plus one genuinely does not equal two.
For instance, the simultaneous eruption of these two completely opposing internal energies meant that if the blocker so much as flinched, defeat would be instantaneous.
"Unsatisfying, too unsatisfying!"
The Martial Maniac braced his palms against the earth-shattering assault, his gaze never leaving Morad and the others watching below the stage: "What are you all waiting for? Come up together!"
The martial artists in the stands stirred into a minor uproar. The Martial Maniac was serious!
This group of youths, who had previously demolished numerous senior martial artists with overwhelming force since entering Shengwu Hall, had just encountered a true, hard barrier for the very first time.
"Together?"
The Little Dragon King, Yang Lie, had his eyes slightly bulging. In an instant, his star-like pupils became visibly threaded with crimson blood vessels. A terrifying malevolence burned within his gaze. He settled into a horse stance, slightly retracting his cannon-like body and leaning back into a lunge stance. His center of gravity shifted dramatically onto one leg, tilting his body so severely it resembled the famous leaning Tower of Pisa, rooted diagonally onto the stage.
The moment the weight transfer in the lunge was complete, Yang Lie’s "Dragon Cannon Arm" gave a sharp shake! Utilizing the recoil force transmitted through his shoulder, waist, calf, and the ground!
In a blink, the power acted like a single line piercing through his entire body, forming a massive pivot axis. He violently flicked and swung the leg that had momentarily lost its balance, transforming that limb into a whipping dragon’s tail aimed directly at the Martial Maniac’s head.
This was the most classic maneuver in Dragon Fist: the Dragon Tail Whip!
In swordsmanship, it is sometimes called the "Reversal Strike," bearing some resemblance to the saber-drag used in ancient battle formations.
Many people knew the Dragon Tail Whip, but few could truly execute it with the proper essence. The body’s inclination mimicked a divine dragon rolling over; if a dragon turned over in the sky, the world would surely be turned upside down.
Yang Lie’s previous move, Qin Fen’s signature Cannon technique, still carried the spiritual imprint of Qin Fen's punches and kicks. But in this instant, there was absolutely no trace of Qin Fen’s style—this was a genuine, soaring true dragon!
Qin Fen followed the path of Divine Dao martial arts. Though both employed the Dragon Fist, their execution diverged significantly, which was why Qin Fen appended the term 'Martial Emperor' to his style.
Having regained his own martial path and no longer simply imitating Qin Fen, Yang Lie pushed off with his toe. The bones along his back, starting from the coccyx, began to writhe. Suddenly, his entire connected spine undulated like a great dragon. A series of bone crackles erupted incessantly, like firecrackers during the Spring Festival.
The Martial Maniac had not expected that Yang Lie’s Dragon Tail Whip, after shifting his martial path, would embody even greater essence. Yang Lie’s ‘Dragon Tail Whip’ lashed toward Nash’s temple, its force intensely powerful and frighteningly icy. Before the leg even connected, the resulting gale stimulated the muscles around the Martial Maniac’s temple into a rapid, involuntary twitch.
"Well met!"
The Martial Maniac’s feet slipped, and his body slid like an eel past Yang Lie, moving directly in front of him. He chose not to meet this attack head-on but instead slid forward, instantly closing the distance to Yang Lie’s side.
He could have blocked this attack, but directly countering the ‘Dragon Tail Whip’ would fail to showcase his true capability, nor would it compel the arrogant young martial artists in the stands to willingly join the brawl.
A fight is, after all, a battle of methodologies.
As the body drew near, Yang Lie’s heart clenched! The Dragon Tail Whip relied on sheer weight and momentum, favoring long-range strikes. Its only weakness was the inability to counter at close range. If he was closed upon, the consequences would be severe.
Without a second thought, Yang Lie, whose supporting leg controlled his entire balance, suddenly exerted force to rapidly propel his body backward, seeking distance to avoid defeat!
Yang Lie's speed was astonishing. The composite material beneath his feet slightly depressed under the recoil force, only to snap back like rubber the instant he launched himself away.
As fast as Yang Lie retreated, the Martial Maniac was faster. Despite using only two legs, he moved with rapid, crisscrossing steps along the ground, perpetually sticking close to Yang Lie’s back. The less powerful martial artists watching even had the illusion that the Martial Maniac had suddenly grown eight legs, like a spider.
Caesar, seeing the Martial Maniac press close, was about to move in to assist, but then noticed the Martial Maniac’s feet never left the ground. His body remained rock-steady, unwavering despite the high-speed pursuit, maintaining an unerring proximity to Yang Lie. Caesar immediately abandoned the thought of interference.
A high-speed retreat was impressive, but the pursuer maintained the exact distance of the retreator without needing similar evasive maneuvers. This specialized method of movement alone demonstrated the gulf in their martial understanding.
The retreating Yang Lie suddenly planted his feet hard, stopping abruptly. The Martial Maniac’s high-speed movement instantly locked in place, as if driven by iron spikes.
"You win."
Yang Lie spoke the words with profound dejection. His hellish, difficult training still revealed such a massive gap when compared to the Martial Maniac.
"Don't be discouraged; you did very well," the Martial Maniac’s eyes, brighter than rubies, held a gentle pleasure and appreciation. "When I was your age, I wasn't necessarily stronger than you are now. You have great potential, but it's not enough yet."
Observing the seemingly wild young martial artist up close, Yang Lie realized that the Martial Maniac did not look eighteen or nineteen.
By instinct as a martial artist, Yang Lie was certain the Martial Maniac before him was closer to twenty-two or twenty-three.
When two martial geniuses are close in age, a difference of just three or four years can create a chasm in strength!
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh… On the now quiet stage, three figures leaped up.
Brooks, Morad, and Solomon stepped onto the platform, immediately joining their two companions, standing in a line to face this sudden opponent.
The Martial Maniac's earlier maneuvers had made the situation clear: a one-on-one fight against him was beneath their qualifications! The disparity in their power levels was too vast!
The Martial Maniac narrowed his crimson-glowing eyes, surveying the five young opponents bristling with fighting spirit, nodding repeatedly: "Good, very good! It's a pity, why aren't you all in my generation?"
Qin Fen watched the Martial Maniac on the stage, sensing the loneliness in his words.
To be unmatched among one's peers—that phrase sounded exhilarating. But who could know that the pinnacle of any generation sometimes harbored a profound solitude?
Compared to the Martial Maniac, Qin Fen felt his own life was fortunate. At least, even if he was defeated by Hades, the Little Underworld King, there was still one other in his generation: Shangguan Legend!
Although Shangguan Legend’s age was not eighteen or nineteen, he still counted as belonging to the same generation of martial artists, unlike the Martial Maniac, who struggled to find worthy peers.
"Qin Fen." The Martial Maniac rested his hands lightly behind his back, his bearing as leisurely as strolling through a flower fair. He slightly lifted his chin towards Qin Fen: "Let me warm up my body with your friends first."
Warm up? The eyebrows of Caesar and the others, positioned in a five-pointed star formation, arched upward. Even granting that he was older, having trained in Shengwu Hall for years, he now faced the five most outstanding martial artists of the younger generation and claimed this was merely a warm-up?
Just as Caesar and the others raised their eyebrows, their internal emotions surging and their fighting spirit peaking, the Martial Maniac, Nash, struck!
Nash's movement lacked the earth-shattering momentum of Qin Fen’s footfalls. His legs moved as rapidly as before, and in the eyes of the assembled martial artists, he seemed to be using instantaneous teleportation repeatedly.
In a flash of lightning, four afterimages appeared over the forty-meter distance, and a third silhouette materialized near the first four!
Shifting Forms and Changing Shadows! The Martial Maniac’s first move was the Juexue-grade movement technique, notoriously difficult to master!
His body moved like a high-speed spider, erasing the forty meters beneath his feet in an instant. His arms suddenly flung wide! Eight hands appeared in the air simultaneously!
The spectators in the stands momentarily froze before realizing this wasn't eight physical hands, but a testament to his incredible speed! In the stretch and retraction of his arms, he employed fist, palm, finger, and claw techniques! Combining these with his unpredictably moving legs, he resembled a colossal centipede rearing up to strike its prey.
Bright Light Fist, Dragon Swirl Palm, Formless Tribulation Finger, Congealed Blood Divine Claw—the Martial Maniac’s Thousand Hands Tathagata Palm instantly fused several major Juexue techniques! The resulting gale simultaneously enveloped the five men!
The sound of his fists was like thunder, the palm wind like a shriek, and the finger and claw winds were more like the mournful cries of pigs and dogs being slaughtered. On the stage, one man’s attack unleashed a cacophony of shrill sounds!
The five rising young elites were immediately plunged into the first true crisis they had faced since joining Shengwu Hall.
The moment the Martial Maniac attacked, the Little Dragon King, Yang Lie, who had just been put at a disadvantage, surged his morale back to its peak. He snapped his eyes upward.
Bang!
The stage beneath Yang Lie’s feet cracked with a thunderous sound. He swung both arms, unleashing two palm strikes that flickered in and out of visibility with incredible speed, making it impossible to discern which was the true killing blow.
The Martial Maniac’s eyes held a slight smile. From one of his phantom arms, a punch shot out!
This punch was simple and upright, seemingly devoid of artifice, yet it resembled a crimson sun ascending, illuminating the shadowed earth and exposing the hidden intent of Yang Lie’s veiled Hidden Dragon Palm.
The Bright Light Fist! True to its name, when its essence was unleashed, it shattered all hidden follow-up maneuvers!
Faced with the ‘Bright Light Fist,’ the ‘Hidden Dragon Palm,’ once revealed, was like a peerless fierce beast encountering an immovable object! Bang!
As the fist and palm collided, Yang Lie’s arm was instantly suffused with a reddish glow, and his joints snapped with repetitive pa-pa sounds, like someone eating roasted beans.
Once revealed, the power of the Hidden Dragon Palm sharply diminished. Unable to fully deploy its strength in the hasty defense, Yang Lie’s legs pushed off the ground, using the massive impact force to rapidly retreat. Numerous capillaries in his arm fractured in that moment, and his bones felt on the verge of dislocation. He was defeated!
The Martial Maniac did not pursue. With a flick of his wrist, he channeled the force into the palm Yang Lie was retracting from his punch. Yang Lie’s body was launched like an arrow from a bow, flying rapidly away from the stage, retreating toward the edge. This retreat sent him tumbling off the platform below.
In the blink of an eye, Yang Lie fell from the stage, utterly vanquished.
The instant Yang Lie was defeated, Morad’s venomous, serpent-like spear lunged out from the side! This thrust was the Vermilion Bird Spear Technique’s ‘Three Head Nods of the Vermilion Bird.’
Three dazzling plumes of vermilion spear light immediately appeared in the air, accompanied by the whistle of the spear shaft slicing through the atmosphere.
Morad’s thrust was not a true assassination attempt; he intended to use the spear tip to ward off the Martial Maniac while using the spear shaft, capable of shattering steel plates, for a sweeping horizontal strike aimed at cleaving him in two.
The true killing move in the Vermilion Bird Spear Technique was the ‘Vermilion Bird Spreading its Wings!’
"A good follow-up! But the spear techniques of a Divine Beast must not be underestimated." The Martial Maniac had clearly reached the realm of Martial Dao Subtlety; every single hair on his body could sense the flow of air currents—his body was covered in eyes.
If this strike had connected, even with protective hardening, he would have felt a long-absent sting of pain! Combined with the self-rotation of the caltrops around the spearhead, skin-splitting injuries were certainly possible.
As the spear lunged, the Martial Maniac’s free left hand turned an ominous crimson, as if fresh blood were about to drip from his skin.
The Congealed Blood Divine Claw! This claw looked as tender as an infant’s skin, but if it truly grasped something, forget a mere flesh and blood body—even the mechanized armor of a Jungle Ranger would be torn through, leaving a gaping hole. It possessed terrifying, brute force.
Excluding legendary techniques like the Nirvana Claw or the Indra Claw, few grasping skills in the world could rival it.
The martial artists in the audience gasped collectively once more. This truly was the martial artist Shengwu Hall most expected to ascend to Divine Beast status; the techniques taught to him weren't just one or two sets, but five Juexue sets displayed in a single burst! An absolute sale of supreme techniques!
The Martial Maniac slightly lowered his shoulders, waist, and legs, his wrist sweeping upward in a small arc before suddenly hooking!
Crack! Snap!
Before the sound of five fingers gripping the spear shaft could fully register, the Martial Maniac’s wrist violently twitched, and his five fingers ground against the shaft, forcibly accelerating the already high rotation speed of the spear!
This acceleration surpassed the speed Morad could control. The Martial Maniac retracted his shoulder and violently rotated his waist, using his arm to pull. In an instant, he wrenched the spear away from Morad and swung it horizontally across his right side! Clang!
Brooks’ battle saber cleaved against the spear shaft, sending up a series of sparks. A streak of red light shot upward from below, rocketing directly toward his throat!
Before the spear could make contact, the chilling, skin-piercing pressure of the spear point had already arrived! Brooks brought both palms down to press the saber against the spear tip. At this moment, he sought only defense, not offense; if he could occupy all of the Martial Maniac's attention, Caesar’s attack would succeed. This book is reprinted from 16 Literature Network αр．1．m
Bang!
Caesar, rapidly advancing, suddenly sealed the air before his chest with both palms. The air in front of him exploded violently! His forward momentum shuddered! The Cleaving Air Palm! The Martial Maniac’s palm pressure could injure opponents remotely! Just like the White Tiger’s devastating strike that severely wounded Qin Fen that day, he could inflict harm without making physical contact!
Perhaps its power fell short of the White Tiger’s blow, but this single Cleaving Air strike carried a fatal shock value!
In the instant Caesar’s mind reeled, the Martial Maniac’s spinning spear scraped against Brooks’ saber again, sending up sparks. The tip of the rapidly thrusting spear suddenly rotated, impaling Brooks’ saber-wielding hand, and then whipped upward!
Clang! Another metallic friction sound echoed. Brooks’ saber flew out of his grasp and soared into the air, but the hand pierced by the spear tip remained miraculously free of blood.
Precision! Even amidst the fight, the Martial Maniac had precisely calculated Brooks’ speed and angle, parrying the spear while ensuring Brooks sustained no injury.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three dull thuds. Caesar, Brooks, and Morad were slammed backward, thrown high into the air, spitting out several mouthfuls of blood before crashing heavily onto the ground.
In a flash of lightning, four of the five young masters had been defeated.
The Martial Maniac casually planted the spear into the stage, smiling as he looked at Solomon: "Are you still going to fight?"
"No."
Solomon shook his head decisively, his toes lightly tapping the ground as his body drifted down off the stage.
Not a single martial artist in the audience was not completely dumbfounded. This result was utterly unanticipated. The five fiercely rumored youths had been comprehensively defeated by the Martial Maniac in the blink of an eye, without even a chance to counterattack.
Fifteen-Star "Stellar Level"! The Marrow Replacement Nirvana Grand Inception was complete! Qin Fen nodded lightly. This Martial Maniac's strength indeed matched his initial estimate upon seeing him. To achieve such power at such a young age explained why he was considered the most likely candidate to become a Divine Beast.
Caesar, more shocked than anyone, looked up at the Martial Maniac on the stage. Being able to unleash the Cleaving Air Palm pressure required the foundational condition of a Fifteen-Star Stellar Martial Artist. It was truly unimaginable! The Martial Maniac had completed the Marrow Replacement Nirvana Grand Inception—a feat countless individuals never achieve in their lifetime—and he had done so at such a tender age.
Tap-tap-tap... Ashura lightly applauded, clicking his tongue, "Little madman, judging by your current state, it won't be long before you reach the peak of the Stellar rank, the level of a Sixteen-Star Martial Artist, right?"
Having secured the victory, the Martial Maniac, standing tall and proud on the stage, felt a subtle shift in his expression. He maintained a faint smile, bowing politely toward Ashura as he spoke, "It is all due to Sister Dan Yun's excellent guidance."
Advancing to Sixteen-Star? A fresh wave of commotion erupted among the martial artists in the audience. This Martial Maniac joined the Holy Martial Hall when he was just over eighteen, and now, at less than twenty-three years of age, he was aiming for the rank of a Sixteen-Star Martial Artist! Terrifying! Truly terrifying! Progression in the Martial Way becomes increasingly arduous the further one advances. The Martial Maniac had once achieved the feat of advancing eight star levels in a single year, but once he broke past the Ten-Star threshold, the path of martial arts grew exponentially harder. The speed of his power increase, on the surface, appeared to have slowed down. Yet, compared to other practitioners, it was still nothing short of meteoric.
The Martial Maniac straightened his posture, his eyes, bright as rubies, fixed on Qin Fen: "Kid. I'm done warming up."
For more novels, visit storyread.net.