I Start with a Mysterious Island

Chapter 581: Chapter 371: Soaring Flames, Elemental Body

He shattered the incoming Fireball with his weapon and used his Spiritual Energy to block the fiery blast for an instant, then immediately withdrew it.

Lin Li watched in awe at such masterful control over Spiritual Energy. ’So this is a Tier Three Cultivator! Truly more than just a notch above a Tier Two Cultivator...’

CLANG.

As the enemy’s blade slashed down, Lin Li quickly raised his Spiritual Artifact Dagger to parry.

Seeing his target block the strike, Liu Yuancheng immediately unleashed a tempestuous new barrage of attacks.

Lin Li met Liu Yuancheng’s relentless assault with all his might.

CLANG, CLANG, CLANG...

The Spiritual Artifact Dagger, shrouded in a faint golden Spiritual Light, clashed rapidly with the Spiritual Long Saber, each impact throwing off a shower of brilliant sparks.

Amidst the fierce clash of offense and defense, the intensity of the Spiritual Energy Wave emanating from Lin Li could be felt rapidly strengthening.

He couldn’t have held out for long if he had kept concealing his true strength, facing a Tier Three Cultivator’s assault with only the power of the Second Order Initial Stage.

Second Order Initial Stage, Second Order Middle Stage, Second Order High Rank, Second Order Peak... Three minutes into Liu Yuancheng’s ferocious assault, the Spiritual Energy Wave from Lin Li’s body finally stabilized at the Second Order Peak. He was now using his full strength to deal with his foe.

’Second Order Peak? So the man who wants to slaughter us all is actually a Second Order Peak Cultivator!!!’

Perceiving the Second Order Peak Spiritual Energy Wave radiating from Lin Li, Fang Jingtang and the three minor leaders stared wide-eyed, shocked beyond belief.

If they had known from the start that the hooded man possessed such strength, they wouldn’t have dared to surround him and try to take him down, not even if they had a hundred times the courage.

While the members of the Red Blood Gang were shocked that Lin Li was a Second Order Peak Cultivator, Liu Yuancheng—who had already suspected his target was concealing his true strength—was not nearly as surprised.

What truly surprised and puzzled him was Lin Li’s strength and speed.

As a Tier Three Cultivator, Liu Yuancheng had spent many years at the Second Order Peak himself. He knew perfectly well the level of strength and speed a Cultivator at that stage should possess.

’Logically, I’m already using seventy percent of my power. Even a Second Order Peak Cultivator shouldn’t be able to handle my assault. And yet, he’s showing no signs of being overwhelmed.’

’The force of his counters and the speed of his dodges are on par with my own. This makes no sense.’

’Disregarding Spiritual Energy, the physical speed and strength of a Second Order Peak Cultivator should be, at most, about thirty percent of a Tier Three Cultivator’s.’

CLANG, CLANG, CLANG...

The battle raged on, another series of evenly matched blows.

After another hundred moves, they exchanged a flurry of punches, forcing them both to retreat several steps. Lin Li was pushed back slightly farther, taking two extra steps.

"You..." Liu Yuancheng was utterly astonished. After such a fierce exchange, any ordinary Second Order Peak Cultivator would have been defeated by now. Yet here they were, at a stalemate.

He opened his mouth to speak, but the words wouldn’t come; he didn’t know what to say.

After a few seconds of contemplation, he directly asked Lin Li the question that was plaguing his mind, "Why aren’t you running?"

At first, Lin Li, who had never fought a Tier Three Cultivator before, had felt considerable pressure.

But after trading a few blows, he realized he could hold his own against his opponent, and the pressure vanished instantly.

Hearing his enemy ask why he wasn’t running, he broke his silence, his voice calm. "It’s rare to encounter a Tier Three Cultivator. I wanted to see for myself what the gap between us really is."

"..." Liu Yuancheng was rendered speechless by Lin Li’s answer. He had never imagined that not only was his opponent unafraid, but he was actually using him as a sparring partner.

Watching from a distance, Fang Jingtang and the three minor leaders felt their worldview shattering as they saw that Liu Yuancheng, despite his ferocious assault, still couldn’t defeat their detestable foe.

’A Tier Three Cultivator! That’s a Tier Three Cultivator! And after all those ferocious attacks, he still couldn’t take down that bastard, who’s only at the Second Order Peak!’

"So, a Tier Three Cultivator isn’t all that special after all," Lin Li muttered to himself with a faint smile.

"Not all that special?" Hearing Lin Li’s soft mutter, the silent Liu Yuancheng’s entire aura changed abruptly.

’This is...’ An immense pressure washed over Lin Li, and his relaxed mood instantly grew tense. Judging by the shift in Liu Yuancheng’s aura, he knew his enemy was finally about to get serious.

In truth, being so evenly matched hadn’t made Lin Li arrogant enough to believe that he, a Second Order Peak Cultivator, could actually defeat a powerful Tier Three opponent.

He had already deduced that his Tier Three opponent was certainly not using his full strength.

After all, his opponent hadn’t once used the ability of Flying in the Sky, which Cultivators gain upon breaking through to Tier Three.

In fact, Lin Li had deliberately muttered that line about a Tier Three Cultivator not being "all that special" in a casual tone.

He wanted to provoke his opponent into using his full strength as soon as possible. That way, he could finally gauge the true gap between himself, at the Second Order Peak, and a Tier Three Cultivator.

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