A year ago, he was just the Rookie King, having mastered his killing technique.
A year later, he was already standing at the peak of a Third-level Martial Artist—a level all third-year students dreamed of—and possessed two killing techniques at the Control realm!
This year’s "Qiming General Star" would likely have no suspense.
A determined glint flashed in Sun He’s eyes.
He faced Qin Feng and gave him a deep, solemn bow.
"Qin Feng, I, Sun He, have a difficult favor to ask. I implore you to agree!"
Seeing this, Qin Feng immediately stepped forward to help him up.
"Senior Brother Sun He, what are you doing? Just say what’s on your mind."
He was puzzled, completely baffled by Sun He’s actions.
Sun He straightened up, his face a mixture of bitterness and earnestness.
"I hope... you will proactively challenge Feng Ruyun to a duel."
"Feng Ruyun?"
Qin Feng grew even more confused. "Why?"
He couldn’t understand why Sun He would make such a strange request.
Sun He sighed and began to explain.
"Feng Ruyun is my best friend. During the veteran students’ tournament, someone fought dirty and severely injured me. I almost died in the ring. It was him who, in the very next match, recklessly stood up for me and beat that student from Golden Dragon Martial High School to death, avenging me."
A trace of gratitude showed in his eyes.
"He’s a great guy in every way, except he’s far too proud. His goal has always been this year’s ’Qiming General Star.’ He’s prepared for it for three whole years."
"But..."
Sun He’s tone became incredibly heavy. "I know that because of you, he doesn’t stand a chance this year. If he keeps competing, he’ll only end up as your stepping stone. There’s no other outcome."
"This isn’t just a matter of losing honor. More importantly, the special recruitment application deadline for the Empire’s top Starry Sky Martial Arts Universities is just three days away! If he competes in the school league, the deadline will have long passed by the time it’s over."
"However, if he gives up the competition now and applies for graduation, with his strength as a Third-level Martial Artist with a Double Perfection Killing Technique, he’s more than qualified to fight for one of those special recruitment spots!"
"I don’t want him to waste another precious year for a ’Qiming General Star’ title he’s destined not to get! For us Martial Artists, one year is enough to change so many things!"
"I’ve tried to persuade him, but he won’t listen."
Sun He’s face was filled with helplessness. "He thinks I’m looking down on him, that I’m taking your side. So... I can only ask you to be the bad guy."
"Only you, by taking action yourself in front of everyone, can make him clearly see the insurmountable gap between you two. Only that will knock some sense into that proud head of his!"
"This... I, Sun He, will owe you one for this!"
After hearing all this, Qin Feng fell silent.
He looked at Sun He’s sincere and earnest gaze, and a newfound respect grew in his heart for this open-minded and loyal senior.
Qin Feng thought for a moment, then finally nodded.
"Alright, I’ll do it."
He agreed for two reasons.
First, Sun He’s character was worthy of his help.
Second, he did want to fight Feng Ruyun again.
He wanted to test how much his strength had improved over the past year. After all, he had suffered a miserable eight-second defeat against Feng Ruyun last year.
"Thank you!"
Seeing him agree, Sun He was overcome with excitement and bowed deeply to him once more.
...
Qin Feng said no more. He opened his terminal, found Feng Ruyun’s profile picture in the private network’s list, and sent a duel request.
[Duel Request: Qin Feng requests a private domain duel.]
On the other side, Feng Ruyun, who was drenched in sweat in the third-years’ exclusive Gravity Room, received the message.
He froze for a moment, then burst into uncontrollable laughter.
"HAHAHAHAHA!"
Feng Ruyun’s laughter was filled with contempt and a hint of anger at being challenged.
He immediately thought of Sun He’s earlier advice, which had struck him as utterly absurd.
He also recalled the recent posts on the school forums that hyped up Qin Feng to godlike proportions, as if the "Qiming General Star" title was already in his pocket.
"Good... just great."
A cold glint flashed in Feng Ruyun’s eyes. ’Does everyone think I, Feng Ruyun, am a pushover?’
He was displeased, and an idea sprang to mind.
’I have to win, and I have to win spectacularly!’
He would use a crushing victory to show Sun He, to show everyone, just how ridiculous their judgment was!
He immediately found two other equally famous names in his friends list.
[Feng Ruyun to Li Dao Yi: Dao Yi, you free? In an hour. Last year’s Rookie King got cocky and challenged me.]
[Feng Ruyun to Zhao Wuji: Wuji, come to my room.]
After doing all that, he posted a public message directly to the Qiming First High School public channel.
[Feng Ruyun: In one hour, in private duel room 334455, I will be accepting the challenge from the second-year, Qin Feng. All are welcome to spectate.]
The message was like a detonated nuclear bomb.
The entire Qiming First High School forum instantly exploded!
The storm that had just died down for three days swept through the entire campus once again, this time with even more violent and furious momentum!
[HOLY SHIT! HOLY SHIT! HOLY SHIT! Is this for real?! Senior Brother Feng is having a public duel with Senior Brother Qin Feng?!]
[The battle of the century! This is basically an advance preview of this year’s "Qiming General Star" finals!]
[What’s Senior Brother Feng doing? A public execution? That’s too brutal!]
[Qin Feng must have been the one who challenged him! He wants to prove himself early! The man’s got guts!]
Countless students—whether they were eating, resting, or cultivating—dropped everything the moment they saw the message and frantically flooded into the announced spectator room.
The first-years wanted to witness the power of the senior with their own eyes.
The second-years wanted to see just how far that former nightmare of theirs had grown.
And the third-year powerhouses wanted to use this battle to measure the gap between themselves and the absolute top-tier Combat Power.
Even many of the school’s instructors, including Gu Yue and Wu Shangfeng, were drawn in by this sudden, peak-level duel and entered the spectator channel.
In an instant, the storm had gathered.
All eyes in Qiming First High School were focused on that small duel room, about to open.
A highly anticipated battle was about to begin!
Qiming First High School, private network, duel room 334455.
When the figures of Qin Feng and Feng Ruyun appeared simultaneously on the Ancient Roman Colosseum-style arena, an arena filled with the air of Iron Blood and glory, the number of spectators in the room had already soared to an unprecedented, terrifying figure—forty-seven thousand!
Almost every Qiming First High School student currently online, no matter where they were or what they were doing, had immersed their consciousness into this highly anticipated showdown.
The bullet chat area in the spectator channel, normally used for conversation, was now completely submerged by an endless, cascading waterfall of text. The messages were refreshing so fast that they were impossible to distinguish with the naked eye.
The entire channel was clearly divided into several distinct "public opinion zones."
First-Year Student Discussion Area.
This section was filled with curiosity, awe, and a hint of confusion.
"Here we go, here we go! It’s finally starting! This is my first time seeing Senior Brother Feng Ruyun in action!"
"Senior Brother Feng Ruyun is one of the recognized strongest at Qiming First High School! I heard his vitality index broke 30.0 a long time ago. He’s a true Third-level Martial Artist! So strong!"
"The guy opposite him... is that the legendary Senior Brother Qin Feng? He... doesn’t look that special, does he?"
"Don’t talk crap, person above me! I heard from the second-year seniors that this Senior Brother Qin Feng was last year’s Rookie King. He’s a total monster! The story of when he first enrolled is practically a legendary novel!"
"For real? So between him and Senior Brother Feng Ruyun, who’s stronger?"
"Is that even a question? It’s obviously Senior Brother Feng Ruyun! He’s the face of the third-years! Even if Senior Brother Qin Feng is a legend, he’s only been cultivating for less than two years. How could he possibly beat Senior Brother Feng?"
"Exactly! I bet on Senior Brother Feng to win! He’ll finish the fight in under three minutes!"
For these first-years, who had been enrolled for less than four months, the name "Feng Ruyun" represented the very pinnacle of the school pyramid that they could only look up to.
"Qin Feng," on the other hand, was more like a distant "god" who lived on in legends and the stories of older students, especially since he had been out of the public eye for a whole year.
They were more willing to believe in the tangible powerhouse they had seen with their own eyes.
Compared to the fearless ignorance of the first-years, the second-year students were far more conflicted.
Their emotions were a mix of anticipation, nervousness, and excitement, but above all, a deep reverence for the "nightmare" that had loomed over their entire first year.
"He’s here! He’s really back! That man is actually challenging the pinnacle of the third year!"
"My legs are still trembling a little. A year ago, I personally saw him in the cafeteria teach Tie Lin a lesson with one strike of his staff, making him submit completely! I’ll never forget that scene for the rest of my life!"
"It wasn’t just Tie Lin. Every single person in our year was shocked by him at some point. I remember my combat score was 120, and his was 500."
"And there was a rumor that he only got 500 because the maximum score was 500."
"What level do you guys think he’s reached this past year? Can he really beat Senior Brother Feng Ruyun?"
"I don’t know... it’s hard to say... If it were anyone else, I’d say it’s impossible. But this is Qin Feng... That man exists to shatter common sense and defy the impossible!"
"Exactly! I’ll always believe in God Qin! He’ll definitely perform a miracle! I bet he’ll win!"
"Holy shit! You’re that hardcore, dude above? The opponent is Feng Ruyun! A beast with a Double Perfection Killing Technique! I want Senior Brother Qin Feng to win too, but my rational side tells me it’s too difficult. I bet... Senior Brother Qin Feng can last more than five minutes!"
They were the witnesses to Qin Feng’s rise, and also the generation most crushed by how he had left them all in the dust.
They understood better than anyone how Qin Feng defied logic, and because of that, they anticipated more than anyone that this seemingly impossible challenge might have a subversive outcome.