Chapter 120: No Match

Ye Liuyun, on the evening of the next day, took another bone‑marrow cleansing pill he had refined himself.

But this time the effect was much weaker. One reason was that the pill he refined was of low grade, and the other was that each dose of the bone‑marrow cleansing pill halves its potency.

Even so, the pill's transformative effect on his body was still considerable.

His bloodline awakened another five percent, reaching thirty‑five percent, and his Immortal Overlord Body advanced further.

Although his realm rose only modestly, to the mid‑stage of the Sixth Layer of True Essence, the refinement level of his True Essence—i. e., its quality—was already comparable to that of the Ninth Layer. Moreover, his Mysterious Origin Qi‑refining technique differs from others and contains Mysterious Qi.

Thus his current True Essence Quality should match the Ninth Layer Summit.

Ye Liuyun's strength at this moment had increased vastly compared to his previous battle with Huang Wenxuan.

The second dose of the bone‑marrow cleansing pill most noticeably enhanced his Soul and Illusion Pupil.

He found that after the further refinement, his Soul's form became more solid and vivid; he could even clearly see his Soul winking within the Sea of Consciousness.

What delighted him most was the sudden realization that his Soul could operate separately from his Divine Sense—he had reached the level of a third‑grade Soul Master, capable of multitasking. His Soul‑form could handle one task while he freely attended to another.

Previously he could divide his attention, but any task requiring concentrated Divine Sense—such as cultivation, pill‑refining, or studying and comprehending techniques—he could not manage.

Now he can perform two tasks simultaneously, with neither affecting the other, and they can even exchange information and share results.

With this multitasking ability, it's as if he has doubled his available time!

"Incredible! Truly incredible!" Ye Liuyun, exhilarated by this wondrous ability, took half a day to calm down.

As for the Illusion Pupil, its penetrating power doubled, allowing longer activation and making illusion techniques even more effortless.

Moreover, he could halve an opponent's speed, making them appear to move in slow motion.

With this new Illusion Pupil ability, he felt fully confident about the upcoming challenge.

From then on, he multitasked: half of his Divine Sense to study illusion arts, the other half to adapt to his new abilities, while integrating the findings into his own techniques.

The current Metal Puppet could no longer keep up with him and would soon be phased out.

The Metal Puppet's peak combat power is the Ninth Layer Summit of True Essence, so Ye Liuyun could only use it to practice his newly integrated techniques, daring not to unleash full force.

Nevertheless, Ye Liuyun would not give it away; after all, it was a keepsake from his aunt that had accompanied him for years, and he intended to treasure it.

Each time he saw the Metal Puppet, he thought of his aunt.

For now, he forced himself to set that thought aside and strive to improve his strength.

On the day of the challenge, in the morning, Ye Liuyun finally opened his door and stepped out to breathe fresh air.

Around his courtyard, several outer‑gate disciples had gathered, standing and watching.

Some disciples, eager for chaos, chattered noisily outside, waiting for him to emerge.

In recent days, Ye Liuyun had become the talk of everyone; now no one in the outer gate didn't know his name!

"Junior Brother Ye!"

Song Yi, Li Mengxi, and Qi Tianyue rushed over as soon as they saw him emerge.

Song Yi seized the chance to vent, scolding Ye Liuyun for being too impulsive.

"Let's go."

Ye Liuyun gave no response, merely uttered a calm line before heading toward the challenge arena.

His gaze radiated a domineering sharpness that made others dare not meet it.

Song Yi and the others felt a chill; at that moment, Ye Liuyun's aura, like a blade drawn, inspired awe and fear.

Whether Qi Tianyue, Song Yi, or Li Mengxi, they suddenly realized they had never truly seen through Ye Liuyun.

They recalled Ye Liuyun's past—both rumors and firsthand sightings—and found they had never witnessed his limits; no one knew how strong he truly was.

Whenever he meets a strong opponent, he surpasses them.

The three silently followed behind Ye Liuyun.

Soon, amid a crowd of outer‑gate disciples 'surrounding' him, Ye Liuyun arrived at the Zhan Tai in the Comprehensive Hall.

The outer gate is the most populous area of the academy, housing disciples of all ages.

Today, it gathered over a thousand people; virtually everyone from the outer gate was present.

Even some outer‑gate Stewards came to watch the excitement.

Ye Liuyun's Divine Sense swept the crowd swiftly, and Yuan Meng, Chu Li, and Xu Lang each appeared.

All three were strongmen at the Ninth Layer Summit of True Essence and half‑step Sea Transformation, their aura pressuring nearby outer‑gate disciples who stepped aside.

Especially Yuan Meng of the outer‑gate Third Division; wherever his gaze fell, no one dared meet his eyes.

Ye Liuyun had met Yuan Meng before and knew his background, so he focused his scrutiny on Chu Li and Xu Lang.

Xu Lang was lithe and agile, seeming adept at speed and force attacks. Chu Li, by contrast, exuded restrained killing intent, steady and seasoned, with a more balanced skill set.

"I will preside over today's challenge in its entirety!"

Steward Yue ascended the arena, his deep voice booming. The late‑stage Sea Transformation pressure released, and the once‑noisy venue fell silent instantly.

"First challenge: Long Yue versus Ye Liuyun."

Steward Yue's indifferent voice echoed throughout.

His words remained as simple as ever, yet the authority and momentum they carried were awe‑inspiring and unchallengeable.

After the announcement, he yielded the arena to the two challengers.

Long Yue sprang onto the arena, flames flickering about his body, looking impatient.

Ye Liuyun, unhurried, took a few light leaps onto the arena.

The outer‑gate disciples below instantly erupted with excitement, especially the newly admitted ones, whose emotions ran high.

The two on the stage were newcomers who had entered the academy together with them.

Long Yue had always ranked first in cultivation, while Ye Liuyun was renowned among the new disciples for his supreme strength.

Now their clash would reveal who truly was stronger.

Long Yue publicly rebuked Ye Liuyun, "You accepted my challenge yet also dared to challenge three others; clearly you don't consider me a rival."

Just as everyone thought Ye Liuyun would say a few words to explain, unexpectedly…

Ye Liuyun merely said lightly: 'Hmph. I never considered you an opponent. Go ahead! I'm still rushing to the next match!'

This left everyone astonished.

"This Ye Liuyun is too arrogant!"

At this moment, everyone's thoughts were the same.

Long Yue flew into a rage instantly. This was practically a public humiliation of him!

His eyes turned blood-red, red light spread across his body, burning with the flames of battle intent. He pushed the fiery aura of the Dragon Yang Fist to its maximum intensity.

In an instant, the scorching, violent high-temperature aura spread across the stage, making him appear like a fire god. His entire body's strength and battle intent also rose to the extreme.