Chapter 167 — The Iron Buddha
CHAPTER 167
The Iron Buddha
“Put the sword away,” Xiahou Lie said.
Shi Feng stopped at the centre of the platform and looked at the body cultivator opposite him. Xiahou Lie wore a sleeveless dark robe, and his bare arms were thick enough to make most weapon sellers nervous.
Late Foundation Establishment qi moved through them steadily.
“Why?” Shi Feng asked.
“If it breaks, you might blame me,” Xiahou Lie said.
Shi Feng looked at his plain refined artifact sword. Its quality was ordinary. There was no reason to test its edge against a man who clearly preferred being struck with heavier things.
He placed the sword beside the platform entrance.
Xiahou Lie's grin grew.
“Good!” Xiahou Lie said. “That's how a proper body cultivator fights!”
“I didn't say I was one,” Shi Feng replied.
“Your hands did,” Xiahou Lie said.
Shi Feng glanced at them. There were no visible golden traces and no reason for the man to understand what lay beneath his skin.
Xiahou Lie simply recognised strength.
That was harmless enough.
Lu Yong checked that both stood inside the marks, then raised one hand.
“Begin,” Lu Yong said.
Xiahou Lie came forward like a charging beast. His feet struck the stone heavily, and his fist carried a thick layer of qi straight toward Shi Feng's chest.
Shi Feng raised his palm.
The impact cracked across the arena.
Dust lifted around their feet. Xiahou Lie's grin vanished for one breath as he felt his whole arm stop against the smaller hand.
Then the grin returned, wider than before.
“Again!” Xiahou Lie shouted.
His second fist came from the side. Shi Feng turned his wrist, pushed the first arm aside, and caught the next strike on his forearm.
Xiahou Lie drove forward with his shoulder.
Shi Feng let himself slide half a step rather than breaking the opponent's balance immediately. He wanted to feel how the body art carried force through the man's stance.
It was direct and practical. Strong legs supported a hard torso, and the qi reinforced the joints before the impact reached them.
Against an ordinary cultivator at the same realm, Xiahou Lie's method would be troublesome.
Against Shi Feng, it was something to examine.
He wasn't approaching the limit of his body.
Duan Yichen watched from the waiting area with his arms folded.
“They're smiling,” Duan Yichen said.
Sima Lan stood beside a pillar, her injured shoulder wrapped beneath clean cloth. She looked tired enough to dislike everyone who still had energy.
“Men find strange things enjoyable,” Sima Lan replied.
“You just fought four matches,” Duan Yichen said.
“I didn't smile when someone hit me,” Sima Lan answered.
On the platform, Xiahou Lie shouted in delight as Shi Feng's fist struck his chest.
The blow pushed him back two steps. His protection held, but the force passed through it deeply enough to make him cough.
He looked down at the spot, then up at Shi Feng.
“That's better!” Xiahou Lie said.
Shi Feng lowered his hand.
“You asked,” Shi Feng replied.
The crowd couldn't decide whether it was watching a serious quarter-final or two madmen discussing bruises.
“That was a direct blow!”
“Xiahou Lie didn't block it!”
“He's testing the other man's body!”
“Then why does Shi Feng look less worried?”
Xiahou Lie heard the last question and glanced at his opponent's unmarked robe. His own sleeves were missing by choice. Shi Feng hadn't lost even a thread.
Interesting.
The body cultivator planted his feet and gathered more qi.
“Iron Buddha Art,” Xiahou Lie said. “Don't stop halfway.”
A bronze sheen spread across his arms and shoulders. It wasn't the gold inside Shi Feng's bones. It was condensed qi reinforcing a practised body technique.
Shi Feng understood the difference at once. His own golden bones remained hidden beneath unchanged skin. He could study this ordinary body art without explaining what supported his strength.
The knowledgeable people watching recognised Xiahou Lie's method too. Several body-cultivation manuals described similar reinforcement. The sect delegates judged its density and control rather than treating the bronze light as some unexplained miracle.
He struck again.
This time, Shi Feng didn't catch the fist.
He stepped inside its reach and struck Xiahou Lie's upper arm from below. The attack shifted the elbow and opened the chest. A second blow landed before the body cultivator could close his guard.
Xiahou Lie slid backward, his heels digging two pale lines into the platform.
The bronze light held.
Shi Feng stopped advancing and watched the qi settle. The technique distributed force well, but it needed the shoulders and hips aligned. Break that alignment, and the reinforced body couldn't use all its strength.
He thought, There. The body isn't one solid piece of metal. He still has joints.
Xiahou Lie rubbed his chest and laughed.
“You found it quickly,” Xiahou Lie said.
“You kept pointing at it,” Shi Feng replied.
“I don't usually need to worry about the opening,” Xiahou Lie said.
“Now you do,” Shi Feng answered.
The body cultivator's expression became serious at last. He lowered his stance and brought both arms close. The bronze light deepened around his elbows.
He wasn't afraid. He was excited by the first opponent who made him change the way he stood.
Shi Feng liked that better than another candidate inventing an unfair rule after losing.
Lu Yong watched from the edge without intervening. Both men remained clear-headed, and neither was trying to attack after a surrender.
Still, the official moved closer. A heavy exchange between body cultivators could cause injuries faster than either fighter admitted.
Xiahou Lie noticed the movement and grinned again.
“Don't stop us too early, Senior Lu,” Xiahou Lie said.
“Then surrender before you need carrying,” Lu Yong replied.
Shi Feng almost laughed.
Xiahou Lie lifted both fists.
“One proper exchange,” Xiahou Lie said. “No running around my feet.”
“Your feet are large enough already,” Shi Feng replied.
The body cultivator burst forward with a shout. Bronze light covered his fists, and the stone shook beneath his stride.
Shi Feng raised one hand and chose exactly how much strength to show.