My Clones Can Cultivate

Chapter 190

The sound of Liyu’s roar was enough to make the air around almost the entire audience stand on end as a dark-red aura erupted violently from his body, spreading outward like an ominous tide of destruction.

Despite the fact that Liyu was so far away from them, the spectators could still feel the terrifying pressure rolling off his body, making the hairs on the backs of their hands and necks stand upright while an instinctive chill crawled down their spines.

It was not merely killing intent; it was something far more primal, something that made the body instinctively understand that a terrifying beast had just awakened. Before the crowd could even begin to understand what was happening, Liyu’s figure flashed forward at top speed, shooting straight toward Haoran.

No one understood what had happened to Liyu, nor did anyone know what kind of transformation had occurred within that battered body. Judging from everything that had happened before, everyone expected the same result: Liyu would be sent flying once more.

After all, it had already been made painfully clear that he was no match for Haoran... he had exhausted his strength, his temporary boosts had faded, his body had been broken countless times, and Haoran had only become stronger.

Yet when the two fists finally collided, what followed was something that no one expected, no one could have planned for, and almost no one could even comprehend.

BOOM! The force behind Liyu’s attack exploded outward as he poured everything he had into that single punch... every ounce of physical strength, every ounce of rage, every ounce of bloodlust, every bit of power that remained within his body, and above all else, the terrifying hundredfold amplification brought about by Berserker.

When his fist slammed into Haoran’s white fist, the two forces collided violently, remaining locked in a stalemate for just one second as the entire battlefield seemed to freeze, and then everything changed.

The terrifying and destructive force contained within Liyu’s punch suddenly slammed into Haoran’s hand with overwhelming brutality.

BOOM! Haoran’s hand ceased to exist.

No, it wasn’t merely destroyed; the overwhelming force continued forward, completely engulfing it and wiping it out as though it had never existed in the first place.

A massive red glow erupted from the point of impact, instantly swallowing Haoran’s figure as the red light of destruction generated from Liyu’s all-out strike surged outward like an unstoppable wave, crashing directly into the barrier surrounding the battle stage. CRACK! The barrier shattered into countless fragments.

The ref’s eyes widened, horror flashing through his usually calm gaze because he had been unable to react fast enough.

If even the mere aftershock of that attack were allowed to slam into the crowd, the consequences would be unimaginable since most of the spectators were mundane people who wouldn’t be able to withstand even a fraction of that terrifying destructive force and would be wiped out almost instantly.

The ref’s pupils contracted as he desperately tried to deploy another barrier within the tiny fraction of a second that remained, but someone else was faster. With nothing more than a simple snap of Elder Ting’s finger, golden light suddenly appeared.

BOOM! A massive golden barrier materialized around the battlefield, forming a gigantic dome of energy that completely surrounded the stage. The destructive red light crashed into the golden dome, yet despite the terrifying force contained within it, the golden barrier merely rippled, its energy dissipating harmlessly against its surface without leaving even the slightest scratch.

Only then did the crowd realize just how terrifying the previous attack had been.

The red light continued to rage for several seconds before finally beginning to fade, and when it disappeared completely, what everyone saw caused them to blink repeatedly, with some even rubbing their eyes in disbelief because they couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

Standing in the middle of the stage was Liyu, his head lowered, his breathing ragged and heavy, and his chest rising and fell violently as dark-red energy continued to swirl faintly around his battered body.

Opposite him, Haoran was lying on the ground, his body covered in wounds that seemed to litter almost every inch of him... some deep enough to reveal flesh beneath, while blood continuously dripped from his injuries and stained the marble beneath him... with his eyes rolled backward and his body lying completely motionless, having barely managed to escape total erasure.

The crowd fell into an eerie silence, no one speaking or daring to, while even the cultivators among them stared at the scene with shock written across their faces. That attack... what kind of attack was that, and what kind of power had Liyu suddenly unleashed?

Meanwhile, Liyu slowly raised his head, his crimson eyes glowing with a feral frenzy. Then he smelled it... blood. The thick metallic scent of blood wafted into his nostrils, his pupils contracted, and a strange hunger surged through his mind. A prey. That was the only thought that remained: a prey that needed to be torn apart.

Liyu began walking forward, one step, then another, then another, each step slow and deliberate as he moved toward the completely collapsed body of Haoran. His claws lengthened, becoming small, sharp, deadly daggers, and he wanted to rip Haoran’s body to shreds, slice him apart, and then dice him into pieces.

Liyu’s tongue passed across his lips as he salivated, his mind completely consumed by bloodlust... the more he killed, the happier he felt, and the more he tore apart, the better it felt. There was no hesitation, no mercy, no rational thought, only the primitive desire to destroy the thing before him.

And Haoran was right there, barely alive, barely breathing, just waiting to be finished.

Liyu continued forward, one inch at a time, getting closer, closer, closer... just when he was about to reach Haoran and end his life, Liyu suddenly paused. The reason was simple: a familiar sound suddenly appeared inside his mind.

Ding! Restoration Pill has been consumed. All stats and host health have been restored to normal. Condition no longer met. Berserker has been canceled.

Liyu’s body froze, his clawed hand immediately going to his head as he grabbed it, shaking violently as though he could somehow force the voice out of his mind.

For several seconds he remained like that, his crimson eyes flickering as the overwhelming bloodlust began to recede and the murderous instinct gradually weakened.

After the Restoration Pill had been consumed, Liyu’s body finally began to change: the terrifying transformation slowly disappeared, his elongated claws shortened, his crimson eyes gradually returned to their normal state, the bulging red veins beneath his skin faded, the muscles that had been forcibly transformed began returning to normal, and the dark-red aura surrounding his body dissipated. Soon, Liyu was back to being Liyu.

His body suddenly lost its strength. Thud. He collapsed onto the ground, his breathing heavy and ragged as he lay there for a long while, struggling to regain his bearing.

Eventually, he managed to calm himself, and just as he had expected, all the wounds and injuries he had accumulated throughout the battle were gone... every broken bone, every damaged organ, every injury, everything had been restored, and he was back at his peak.

But that wasn’t the only good news, because Liyu immediately focused inward and saw his Qi cluster. Four hundred Qi beads had been lost... those were the very four hundred Qi beads he had been forced to sacrifice in order for his plan to be set into motion.

He had already accepted that loss, believing those four hundred Qi beads were the price he needed to pay. But now, something astonishing happened: the Restoration Pill didn’t merely restore his physical health, it restored his Qi cluster as well.

The damaged and missing Qi beads were reconstructed, and one after another, the lost four hundred Qi beads appeared within his Qi cluster as though they had never disappeared, complete, perfect, whole.

Liyu sensed the restored Qi cluster and slowly smiled... a quiet smile filled with relief, a smile that carried the satisfaction of someone whose gamble had finally paid off.

"Sys..." His voice was low, his smile widening slightly. "It works."

Everything... everything had been part of Liyu’s plan. Triggering Berserker Mode and using the Behemoth Punch that he had managed to copy through his Origin Eyes... although his own copy was still lacking compared to the original since he hadn’t been able to analyze it properly in the heat of battle, nor had he tried to understand it deeply enough... was still enough to make the copied technique terrifying.

Copy or not, the power it possessed was nothing small. When that was combined with his Momentum, his Berserker state, his Hybrid Form, and every other ability and advantage he had activated, Liyu had used everything he possessed to deliver that final punch with his full might.

Surely, that would be too much. And sure enough, it was. Haoran seemed to have arrived at a crossroads between life and death, in fact seeming to have already stepped one foot into death’s door.

But Liyu’s plan had never stopped there, because he knew for certain that he would try to kill the guy after all since the Berserker state wanted one thing more than anything else: to kill, to destroy, to bring down destruction upon his enemies.

So Liyu had already told the system to feed him the one Restoration Pill he had with him. The Restoration Pill had been among the certain rewards he had received from leveling up, and after reaching Level 2, he hadn’t used it.

That decision had probably been one of the best things he had done so far, because that Restoration Pill had ended up becoming the final piece of his entire plan.

And with the Restoration Pill restoring everything, Liyu was back to his absolute peak. There was no lingering injury, no crippling fatigue, no damaged organs, no shattered bones, nothing. He had returned to his peak condition. He had won.

"Sys... we did it."

The system remained silent for a moment, and when it finally spoke, its voice sounded genuinely glad, almost happy. "Well done, host. You have finally started to use your brain now. I am so glad."

Liyu’s gaze twitched. "Hey, Sys. This is a happy moment. Don’t ruin it."

The system scoffed and then went silent once more, although Liyu could still faintly sense the emotion coming from it.. the system was proud of him. Liyu couldn’t help but smirk.

At that moment, the ref finally stepped onto the stage, his eyes immediately locking onto Liyu while his gaze trembled. How did this kid use that attack?

That final attack Liyu had unleashed was more than capable of killing anyone below the Core Stage, yet someone who was only at the very first stage of Qi Gathering had managed to use it. The ref’s body twitched, and for a moment, excitement flashed through his eyes.

He had once been excited about the possibility of watching Liyu grow, wanting to see just how powerful this kid would become after stepping into the Core Stage. But now? He was no longer excited. No, he was terrified.

He didn’t even want to imagine what kind of power this freak would possess once he actually stepped into the Core Stage, because that was simply too frightening to contemplate.

"Announce the result, sir," Liyu said with a small smile.

The ref continued staring at him as if he was desperately trying to understand what didn’t make sense about this kid. The problem was simple: everything about him didn’t make sense.

Everything. The ref shook his head, beginning to develop a headache just thinking about it, but deciding he would consider it later since for now he needed to finish his duty. With that thought, the ref turned his attention toward Haoran’s body, and his expression immediately changed.

The kid’s condition was more than dire; his life was in danger. The ref quickly sent Haoran’s body toward the nearby infirmary and passed a message to Elder Ting, informing him that the large kid needed to be saved immediately.

After taking care of that, the ref once again turned his gaze toward Liyu and stared. His eyes twitched, then twitched again, and again, and again, soon having his entire body seem to be twitching.

After a while, however, he could only sigh and shake his head as he walked over to Liyu’s side, looked him up and down from head to toe, and spoke in a low and serious voice: "I need to see you after the tournament ends."

Liyu rubbed the back of his head and nodded. "Okay, sir."

The ref shook his head, his head genuinely aching now. How was it supposed to make any sense that this kid had been beaten half to death, had suffered injuries that should have left him crippled, and yet was now completely healed after what seemed like an instant?

It made absolutely no sense. He shook his head once more, planning to question Liyu thoroughly after the tournament ended, but for now having one final duty to perform.

The ref straightened himself, and his voice rang out across the entire arena, loud and clear while still carrying that strange, subdued tone of his. "The semifinal match has ended!" His voice reverberated throughout the arena.

"Liyu versus Guan Haoran! The Honored One versus the Iron Behemoth!" There was a brief pause, and then... "The winner is... Liyu!"

Silence.

The entire crowd remained stunned, and for several seconds, no one moved or spoke as it was as if the entire arena had fallen into a trance. Then... BOOOOOOM! Cheers erupted.

The sound was deafening, bursting forth from the countless spectators and reverberating throughout the entire arena, drowning out almost every other sound.

"Honored One!"

"Honored One!"

"HONORED ONE!"

The chants echoed over and over again, endlessly, while the entire arena seemed to tremble beneath the roar of the crowd.

Liyu stood quietly in the middle of the stage, his lips slowly curling into a small smile. Well... there was only one more battle left, and after that battle, this exhausting tournament would finally come to an end.

Meanwhile, what Liyu didn’t plan for... but what had ended up saving him in a way he could never have anticipated... was the fact that he was deeply connected with his clones.

Right at this very moment, his clones were also teetering on the edge of defeat, their battles having pushed them to their limits, their bodies exhausted, their Qi almost completely depleted, and barely hanging on.

But just then, as if the world itself had decided to aid them, the moment Liyu was completely restored, his clones also shared in that restoration. Their injuries vanished, their exhaustion disappeared, and the Qi within their bodies, which had been teetering on the edge of running completely dry, suddenly surged.

Their depleted reserves rapidly filled, their Qi becoming abundant once more and filling them to the brim as though they had suddenly been given an entirely new lease on life.

Of course, Liyu had absolutely no idea that this had happened. He didn’t know that his restoration had also indirectly restored his clones, nor did he know that at the exact moment he had returned to his peak condition, they had also been pulled back from the edge of defeat.

But if he were to find out later, his shameless reply would undoubtedly be...

"Yes..." A confident smile would probably appear on his face. "It was all part of my plan."