Was he practicing his moves on me?
A thought suddenly appeared in She Tongguang's mind.
Recalling carefully from the start of their engagement, Chu Fan's attacks grew stronger with each one, making She Tongguang's scalp tingle.
After much deliberation, he was very sure that this young man opposite him was using him as a whetstone, honing his understanding of formations by fighting him.
How could he allow this?
Did he still see himself as a Third-Class Grandmaster?
She Tongguang, whose inner self had suffered a powerful blow, found it difficult to accept this reality for a moment.
At the brink of life and death.
He was fighting with all his might, yet the opponent didn't take him seriously at all, instead using him to practice his moves.
He felt a surge of humiliation in his heart.
Following this, an even more unacceptable guess emerged for She Tongguang.
He connected the dots: the young man before him had been calm from beginning to end, completely disregarding both himself and Mu Nanzong, not out of bluster, but because he truly possessed overwhelming strength.
It was the backing of immense power that allowed him to be so composed, to not only be unafraid of his attacks but to even use him as a practice dummy.
When did the Dragon God Kingdom produce such a heaven-defying talent?
As he thought, She Tongguang suddenly recalled someone, a young genius who had recently gained fame.
He hadn't expected to encounter him here.
"I know, you are..."
*Bang...*
Realizing Chu Fan was Wuming, She Tongguang, before he could finish speaking, was struck by another formation attack.
This time, the attack's force far surpassed anything before. She Tongguang, already in a state of shock, couldn't react in time and was sent flying, creating a groove in the ground.
"Amazing!"
"This is the most unexpected fight I've ever witnessed!"
"This young man seems even more talented than Wu Hong!"
The onlookers outside the valley, seeing She Tongguang, a Third-Class Grandmaster, defeated by Chu Fan, were extremely surprised and astonished.
Inside the valley, She Tongguang scrambled to his feet from the ground.
He brushed dust off his sleeves with his hands, letting out a self-mocking chuckle and said, "I never imagined, you were him!"
"No wonder you're so arrogant!"
"I was short-sighted!"
Saying this, She Tongguang clasped his hands together and bowed towards Chu Fan.
Straightening up and taking a deep breath, he continued, "However, even if you are him, so what?"
"Just now, I was merely playing along with you!"
"Finishing you off too easily would only make outsiders think I was bullying you!"
"Next, you shall prepare to face my wrath!"
Having fully realized Chu Fan's extraordinary nature, She Tongguang knew that if he didn't unleash his full power today, he might truly be defeated by this seemingly unremarkable young man's divine sense.
"Oh really?"
"Do you really think you're the only one who's serious?"
"Just a Third-Class Grandmaster, heh..."
Chu Fan smiled and shook his head, his response as nonchalant as ever.
To the people outside the valley, this exchange sent ripples of shock through them.
After fighting for so long, were they both just playing around?
And now they were about to get serious?
Many sighed to the heavens, exclaiming, "Are we even going to live?"
Inside the valley, She Tongguang amassed his aura to a certain extent and then launched a sudden attack.
This time, Chu Fan did not dodge. Therefore, his attack did not miss.
However, the result was not much different from dodging, because Chu Fan stood firm in his spot, his feet not moving an inch, as if he had taken She Tongguang's blow head-on.
*Thump...*
She Tongguang, who had attacked proactively and was at close range, felt his heart pound violently.
Due to the distance, people outside the valley could not see Chu Fan's condition.
But She Tongguang clearly saw a layer of circulating energy on Chu Fan's body surface.
A Qi shield!
Late-stage Grandmaster!
At least a Sixth-Class Grandmaster!
At this moment, She Tongguang thoroughly realized the gap between himself and Chu Fan.
His scalp felt as if ten thousand needles were pricking it.
So it turned out, he was the clown, daring to provoke a powerful figure.
Without any hesitation, She Tongguang immediately retracted his hand and retreated, wanting to create distance between himself and Chu Fan.
At this moment, Chu Fan suddenly grinned.
"Reciprocity, have you heard of it?"
She Tongguang's hair stood on end. Before he could even erect a defense, Chu Fan's fist landed squarely on his chest.
The tearing pain caused She Tongguang to let out a scream of agony. His entire body flew like a cannonball towards the mountain wall more than ten yards away.
The tearing from the fist was only the first layer of damage.
The impact was another layer of damage.
She Tongguang spat out a mouthful of blood, and then his body fell to the ground, motionless.
Outside the valley, the previous moment had been filled with boisterous noise, but the next moment, it was as if everyone had vanished; not a single sound emerged.
The expressions on the faces of dozens of people were all the same.
Their mouths were slightly agape, their eyes stunned, and even their breathing seemed to have stopped.
"Let's go!"
Chu Fan turned to Cui Fu and shouted.
If She Tongguang wanted to die, he would naturally use him as a warning. Otherwise, if he tried to leave with these people, there would still be obstacles.
Cui Fu, who had expected this outcome, took a deep breath to suppress his excitement and quickly followed Chu Fan's steps towards the valley exit.
Outside the valley, before Chu Fan could approach, the people blocking the entrance quickly made way.
Chu Fan's expression was calm. Under everyone's gaze, he led Cui Fu and disappeared into the forest.
"Who... who exactly is he!"
"Elder She, a Third-Class Grandmaster, was no match for him in one punch!"
"To withstand Elder She's punch and severely injure him into unconsciousness with one blow, his strength must be at least a Fifth-Class Grandmaster!"
"If I'm not mistaken, he's even younger than Wu Hong!"
"Not even thirty years old, right?"
"Compared to him, what is Wu Hong?"
...
A clamor of amazed exclamations suddenly erupted. The expressions on everyone's faces were filled with disbelief.
If they hadn't witnessed the scene firsthand, it would have been truly difficult to believe.
The remaining members of the Mu Nan Sect, recovering their senses, rushed into the valley, helped Wu Hong and She Tongguang up, and then hastily retreated.
The Mu Nan Sect, which had arrived in a show of force, now left in disgrace.
Some unwilling individuals, clinging to hope, rushed into the forbidden grounds of the Fa Sect, wanting to see if there were any other gains to be had.
A portion of them followed the direction Chu Fan and Cui Fu had taken.
These were all rogue martial artists without powerful backing.
Having personally witnessed Chu Fan's might, they felt he would be a good patron and wanted to ask him if he needed followers, intending to pledge their allegiance to him from then on.
However, Chu Fan and Cui Fu, who had only left two or three minutes prior, seemed to have vanished into thin air. They pursued for a long distance but saw no sign of them.
Meanwhile, Chu Fan and Cui Fu were not hiding, but were instead charging at full speed towards the outside of the Ten Thousand Great Mountains.
Their rapid pace was not due to fear of pursuit, but because their objective had been achieved, and there was no need to waste any more time on the journey.
Although Cui Fu's strength had not fully recovered, he was, after all, a Grandmaster. With his speed fully unleashed, he was naturally no match for the Grandmasters and half-step Grandmasters behind them.