Chapter 388: Exchange of Blows

“Master Lin, I will go all out.”

Lei Qianting rolled up his sleeves, revealing two strong arms. His voice rang out with a metallic resonance. “If you find yourself overwhelmed, please surrender quickly. Don’t try to hold on forcefully, otherwise, I may not be able to hold back.”

The spectators nearby couldn’t help but show strange expressions on their faces.

From the tone of Lei Qianting’s words, it seemed as though he already considered Lin Xiao defeated before the fight had even begun.

However, with Lei Qianting’s level of cultivation and strength, he indeed had the right to say such words.

Peak Dark Force—within the ancient martial arts world of Xia Country, this was the pinnacle. There were only a handful of people with such cultivation.

And Lin Xiao was still young. Though they hadn’t fought before, Lei Qianting did not believe Lin Xiao’s cultivation surpassed his.

“Alright.”

Lin Xiao’s gaze remained calm. Though underestimated by Lei Qianting, he showed neither joy nor anger, only replying with a single word.

“If Master Lin has no objections, shall we begin now?”

Lei Qianting finished rolling up his sleeves. His arms hung by his sides as each of his five fingers flexed in turn. With a shake of his body, a crackling sound erupted from head to toe, his training attire fluttering though there was no wind.

That single shake activated the entirety of Lei Qianting’s qi and blood. His muscles, bones, and spirit were all raised to peak condition.

Even a lion goes all out to catch a rabbit.

Lei Qianting wasn’t lying. Though he believed Lin Xiao to be beneath him in cultivation, he had still resolved to use full force.

Too many times had he seen people fall by underestimating their opponents. He would not repeat such mistakes.

In Lin Xiao’s perception, the threat posed by Lei Qianting skyrocketed in an instant. An overwhelming, heavy aura surged toward him like a mountain bearing down!

A familiar yet distant feeling suddenly arose within Lin Xiao’s heart.

That feeling of long-lost passion.

There was no doubt—Lei Qianting’s current strength was enough to stir Lin Xiao’s fighting spirit.

The blood in Lin Xiao’s body boiled once more.

Lin Xiao took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, assuming a stance.

Thunderbolt Fist!

With every move and form, the sound of thunder erupted from within.

As Lin Xiao infused Chen-style techniques into Thunderbolt Fist, the martial art from the torn manual became increasingly fierce.

In the past, Thunderbolt Fist would only produce thunder-like sounds during combat—and they were faint and indistinct. Now, simply by assuming a stance, the thunder rumbled—clear and resounding!

“Hmm?”

Hearing the thunderous sound from Lin Xiao’s body, Lei Qianting’s eyes flashed, instantly turning sharp.

As a peak Dark Force master, how could he not perceive the power within that thunderous resonance?

He had to admit—Lin Xiao had given him yet another surprise.

A momentum no less than his own radiated from Lin Xiao’s body. His short hair stood up as if electrified, each strand stiff like needles. His previously calm eyes suddenly shone with piercing light. “Master Lei, please.”

Lei Qianting narrowed his eyes slightly, scanning Lin Xiao from head to toe. He then took a deep breath. That breath formed a round bead in his throat, which he swallowed down with a gulp.

As the breath entered his belly, Lei Qianting’s body expanded abruptly. From an ordinary middle-aged man, he transformed into a towering figure nearly eight feet tall, with bulging muscles and veins twisting like small snakes across his body.

“Careful!”

With his transformation, Lei Qianting’s voice changed—low and thunderous.

As the word “careful” left his mouth, he shot toward Lin Xiao.

Boom!

A thunderous sound rang out in the ears of everyone present. The bluestone beneath Lei Qianting’s feet shattered into fragments, revealing a deep footprint. His body shot forward like lightning. He appeared before Lin Xiao in the blink of an eye. His fist, infused with Dark Force, descended upon Lin Xiao’s head with the weight of Mount Tai.

With one punch, wind and thunder roared.

It was an unbelievably fierce strike.

Before the fist could even touch Lin Xiao, the wind pressure it carried had already rushed forth, lifting Lin Xiao’s clothes and seeming as though it might blow his entire body away!

In the face of Lei Qianting’s overwhelming strike, Lin Xiao appeared utterly insignificant.

The surrounding spectators were stunned by the sheer dominance of Lei Qianting’s punch, left speechless with mouths agape.

“So this is the power of a peak Dark Force master?”

Yang Yuanji stared fixedly at Lei Qianting’s imposing, mountainous figure, his heart sinking with bitter thoughts.

He had recently taken his first step into Dark Force, his cultivation advancing after a bout at the Chen Martial Hall. He had taken some pride in this progress.

But compared to Lei Qianting now, the gap was immeasurable—he probably couldn’t even withstand a single punch.

He wasn’t the only one who felt this way. Standing beside him, Zhou Chenguang was also tense, cold sweat soaking his back.

He imagined himself in Lin Xiao’s place. And realized he had no means to withstand this punch.

Take it? He couldn’t.

Dodge it? He couldn’t.

Which meant—if he faced this punch, he would be dead for sure!

Zhou Chenguang clenched his fists, veins bulging on the back of his hands. “Master Lin, what will you do?”

Though they all knew Lin Xiao’s cultivation was profound—and that he had taken on the Golden Claw Sect alone—they had never seen the true strength of that sect firsthand.

To them, Lei Qianting now appeared unfathomably powerful—terrifying.

On the other side, Chen Lingxin held her hands over her chest, nerves stretched to the limit.

Of everyone present, she was without doubt the most nervous.

She bit down hard on her cherry lips with pearly white teeth, nearly drawing blood. Only by doing so could she stop herself from crying out.

Compared to the nervous tension gripping the spectators, Lin Xiao faced the incoming punch like ice meeting fire—utterly calm, completely unmoved.

Just when everyone thought he would dodge or evade, Lin Xiao remained still. No dodging, no backing down.

Because the word retreat did not exist in Lin Xiao’s dictionary.

If you want to fight, then fight.

If you want to clash head-on, then let’s clash head-on.

Lin Xiao’s expression was like iron. His left hand curled into a fist, Dark Force surging violently into it. His entire arm turned bluish-black, like forged steel. Then, meeting Lei Qianting’s descending fist—he struck upward.

His fist tore through the air, releasing a deafening explosion like thunder.

Facing Lei Qianting’s unstoppable strike, Lin Xiao—having suppressed his cultivation to peak Dark Force—also held nothing back.

His purpose in this match was to temper himself against ancient martial artists. He, too, used his strongest technique—Thunderbolt Fist.

This strike of Thunderbolt Fist was unleashed with full force, merged with the Chen-style techniques. Its power was incomparable to before. If Lei Qianting’s punch was Mount Tai collapsing, then Lin Xiao’s was a volcanic eruption.

Lin Xiao’s steel-like fist collided directly with Lei Qianting’s punch.

Two equally ferocious forces clashed violently. The shockwave from their impact spread in all directions, forming visible ripples in the air and blasting the dust around them outward.

The stone tiles beneath Lin Xiao’s feet couldn’t withstand the impact. They shattered. His feet sank deep into the ground. The shoes on his feet were torn to shreds. The shockwave shredded his left sleeve into tatters.