This High Martial World is Too Crazy!!!

"Thank you for the match."

At the martial arts hall’s entrance, Fang Can cupped his fist toward the Disciples who had gathered around their master.

With that, Fang Can pulled two hundred taels in silver notes from his pocket. "This is to compensate for the damages, plus Hall Master Jin’s living expenses for the next couple of days while he recovers. My apologies for the intrusion."

The moment he finished speaking, Fang Can turned and jogged away, leaving the Disciples staring blankly at their master, at a loss for words.

"He really just came for a sparring match, huh?" one of the Disciples couldn’t help but ask. Another picked up the silver notes. "And he’s surprisingly a pretty decent guy."

...

After a brief warm-down, Fang Can jogged to a secluded area deep in the mountains to reflect on the outcome of his fight.

Hall Master Jin was, without a doubt, the strongest opponent he had ever faced, aside from the four guards of the Tiger Slaughter Sect Leader. The openings during their exchange were pitifully few, but not entirely absent.

There were minute flaws within those techniques. Since Fang Can intended to fully master them, it was only natural that he should patch those holes.

But this battle also served as a wake-up call. His health bar was long, but the mana bar for his Heart Image was far too short.

If he encountered a Heart Image expert, he would be the one to lose if he couldn’t defeat them before his mana ran out.

To put it another way, if ten Martial Artists on par with Hall Master Jin had simultaneously attacked him with their Heart Images, his own would have been completely depleted in just over ten seconds.

What followed would be a one-sided slaughter with Fang Can as the victim.

If he hadn’t discovered this weakness in advance through this sparring match, he would have been in for a world of hurt had it been exposed during an actual siege.

’I need to manifest a Cultivation Technique like a Mental Fortress Art,’ Fang Can thought with a frown.

After all, a Heart Image only affects the mind, not the physical body. It couldn’t so much as lift a needle or destroy a single cell.

Therefore, if he could seal his mind completely, making it like an inanimate object and his consciousness as solid as a rock, then a Heart Image would naturally be unable to affect him.

When it came to a real fight, it would be as if everyone’s Heart Image was nullified, forcing them to rely on pure Combat Power.

Fang Can was momentarily conflicted. There were a few too many skill trees he needed to invest in.

Whether it was modifying the Great Sun Undying Demon Body and the Taming Tiger and Dragon Golden Body, or creating a Mental Fortress Art, it would all require a massive amount of time.

Of course, it was a hassle now, but if he managed to unlock all these skills, he would be virtually unrivaled within the Transcendent Body Realm.

’The path of the Martial Dao is long and arduous...’ Fang Can sighed, then froze, looking down at his arms.

The skin on his arms was now scarlet, suffused with blood. At the same time, his vision remained obscured by a persistent red mist.

"I think I forgot to turn off the Evil Tiger Devouring Body Art," Fang Can muttered to himself, looking up at the sky.

The noon sun beat down on him, and combined with his second talent, [Indomitable], it was continuously replenishing the energy consumed by the Evil Tiger Devouring Body Art.

’At this rate of consumption... I feel like I can sustain this for at least another hour,’ Fang Can thought with detachment.

And that wasn’t even factoring in how his second talent’s regeneration rate would continue to increase as his health bar dropped.

So... as long as his body could keep up with the consumption, he could probably maintain this powered-up state indefinitely.

"Phew..." With a soft exhale, Fang Can’s eyes returned to normal, and the flushed red of his muscles faded back to its usual fair tone. In its place, a slight pang of hunger emerged.

He stretched his limbs lightly.

He could clearly sense that this Cultivation Technique, which was described as being severely detrimental to one’s foundation, was no major issue for him while he had two buffs stacked.

He spat out a mouthful of stagnant, coppery blood, wiped the corner of his mouth, and nodded in satisfaction.

’Just a little blood loss. That’s a tiny price to pay.’ He could regenerate just by breathing. It seemed he could use this Cultivation Technique frequently from now on without any concern.

After resting for a while, Fang Can ambled back to the Lieyang Martial Arts Hall, taking the smaller paths.

Ye Yonglie had been waiting for some time. Seeing Fang Can’s return, he hurried over, beaming. "My Lord, congratulations on your victorious return."

"Prepare a meal for me. I’m starving," Fang Can ordered, clutching his stomach.

"Of course. I’ve already had the servants begin preparations. It will be ready shortly," Ye Yonglie said respectfully.

Watching Ye Yonglie busily preparing his welcome-home meal, Fang Can found he was gradually getting used to the man’s pious demeanor.

"Find me three more Heart Image Martial Artists for tomorrow. I want to keep fighting."

Leaving that instruction, Fang Can turned and headed for Ye Qingshi’s private chambers.

Inside the room, the young woman sat with her chin in her hand, her profile turned toward him.

Her flawless face was framed by long, ink-black hair as smooth as satin. A few strands brushed gently against her fair cheeks, adding a touch of delicate elegance.

Hearing someone enter, Ye Qingshi looked over at Fang Can, her eyes thick with resentment.

She had wanted to run away, but one stern look from her father was all it took for her to realize there was no escape.

The thought of how she had been at his mercy today made her clench her jaw. She looked at the young man and said, "Fang Can! I want to learn martial arts, too! I refuse to be ordered around like a piece of cargo anymore!"

"You can’t," Fang Can replied flatly. "Training is difficult."

"I can definitely persevere!"

"All your talent is in your looks. This so-called motivation is just a temporary high. You’ll be back to slacking off in a couple of days."

Fang Can glanced at her. ’A pretty face has no correlation with intelligence, willpower, or perception,’ he thought. ’It’s hard to find someone else as handsome and talented as me.’

"So just give up," Fang Can said calmly.

"Does having no talent really mean I can’t practice martial arts?" Ye Qingshi asked, her voice full of disappointment.

"Not necessarily, but your talent is just that bad. Unprecedentedly so," Fang Can said, shaking his head with a sigh.

Meeting Ye Qingshi’s confused gaze, Fang Can slowly explained:

"That was just a little test. I have no idea what your talent is actually like."

"But when I told you that your talent was bad, you actually believed it instead of believing in yourself."

"If you don’t even believe in yourself, who will you ever believe? With a mindset so easily tricked, you simply don’t have the aptitude for the Martial Dao."

"Training requires a single-minded will. Someone like you, who is so easily tricked into self-doubt, will never achieve anything great."

"You were tricking me!" Ye Qingshi’s eyes went wide.

"You fell for a simple trick like that, and you still claim your talent isn’t bad? Your willpower is nonexistent."

"No! I refuse to believe my talent is bad! Go on, try to trick me again! I definitely won’t fall for it this time," Ye Qingshi said, her eyes firm with determination.

"Do you think this is some kind of riddle game where you get a do-over? Are you serious?"

Fang Can was exasperated. "Just get over here and hug me already, you dummy!"