Chapter 509: Cheng Feng, Who Is Valued

Cheng Feng was carried back to Lan Yuan.

He claimed he could still walk, but not long after stepping off the Battle Platform, his two legs refused to obey him.

Liu Yu and Huo Luan supported him on the left and right, half-dragging and half-carrying him onto the carriage.

The light in the carriage was dim; Cheng Feng leaned against the corner, his head tilted to one side, his breathing heavy and deep, like a broken bellows.

Gu Niangzi knelt beside him, using small scissors to cut away his clothes, which were matted with blood; every time she peeled off a piece of fabric, Cheng Feng's brows would knit together.

"Don't move," Gu Niangzi said in a low voice. "The wound under your ribs has been exposed to the wind; the bleeding has stopped, but I fear there is a bone fracture. It must be set when we return."

Cheng Feng had no strength to respond; he only let out an "mm" from his nasal cavity, then closed his eyes again.

The people at Lan Yuan had received the news early; Wang Ji had the steward boil hot water in advance and invited Hu, the old doctor who often treated injuries for the Zhennan Wangfu, to come over.

When Cheng Feng was helped into the side chamber, the whole courtyard was filled with the smell of medicine.

Hu was nearly sixty, thin and wiry, with a pair of hands that were surprisingly steady.

He cut open the clothes on Cheng Feng's upper body, wiped away the stagnant blood with medicinal wine, and then kneaded his ribs and left arm once; his expression changed slightly.

"Two ribs are fractured, there is a fracture in the left forearm, the joints of the ten fingers are the most severely injured, and the tendons and vessels are torn. It is pure luck that you were able to stand while leaving the Battle Platform."

Hu said while applying splints to Cheng Feng, "Young man, do you think you are made of iron?"

"Pretty much," Cheng Feng said with a hoarse voice.

In his view, having accepted someone's trust, one must fulfill the task.

Since Wang Ji had even brought out an Acquired Realm cultivation technique, it would truly be inexcusable if he did not put in the effort.

Sometimes, when an opportunity arises, a poor person must risk their life to seize it.

"Even if you were made of iron, you couldn't withstand such abuse." Hu glared at him and applied the ointment with more force; Cheng Feng hissed but did not retort again.

The news traveled faster than Cheng Feng returned to the mansion.

Before he had even laid down, the teahouses, restaurants, and clubs throughout Tianqi City had already exploded with talk.

"Have you heard? That Cheng Feng from the Zhennan Wang Ji Team, with a Organ Refining Late Stage foundation, crushed Tong Shan of the Copper Armor Sect!"

"Who doesn't know! The West Three Array Platform was almost collapsed by them. Tong Shan is in the True Qi Realm, with external Horizontal Training and Copper Armor True Qi; in previous years, he would have been a top-three contender. Yet he was toppled by someone at the Organ Refining Late Stage."

"More than just toppled; those last few punches were bone-deep, and the blood never stopped flowing.

Tong Shan is still lying down now, his Copper Armor True Qi completely dissipated; I heard he won't be able to get out of bed for half a year."

"I have a clansman serving in the military who was acting as a guard by the side of the arena today.

He said that in the end, Cheng Feng's body was covered in a layer of Blood Qi black scales, like snake skin. That is truly pushing the physical body to the limit."

"Black scales? Did your eyes deceive you? When Horizontal Training is practiced to the extreme, Qi and Blood manifest externally, so it's not strange to have strange phenomena. But to have the physique of a Gang Qi Realm expert at the Organ Refining Late Stage is too terrifying."

"That's why I say, you can't look at him by Organ Refining Realm standards. He just hasn't reached that realm yet, but his physical body is already at the Gang Qi level. This is called a Pseudo-Gangqi Realm. He beats True Qi Realm experts like he's beating his own son."

"You can't say it like that. Tong Shan is a tough nut in the True Qi Realm; Cheng Feng himself was beaten half to death and couldn't even stand steadily at the end. You can only say he is willing to risk it all."

"But he is at the Organ Refining Late Stage..."

This sentence could often shut everyone's mouth.

Organ Refining Late Stage—these four words were like a wedge, splitting open a crack in everyone's inherent understanding of cultivation realms.

If Cheng Feng were in the True Qi Realm, even if he had just entered it, beating Tong Shan would not be so shocking.

But he was only at Organ Refining, without True Qi projection, relying entirely on his physical body to withstand the blows.

This is no longer called fighting across realms; this is almost crushing a True Qi Realm external-gong expert without even having True Qi.

"What would it be like if such a physical body truly entered the True Qi Realm in the future?" someone asked in a low voice, but no one dared to answer.

The several major factions that had not yet been eliminated reacted differently.

The Copper Armor Sect withdrew their team that very night.

Tong Shan was severely injured, and two of the four fellow disciples were also wounded by Huo Luan and Liu Yu; coupled with that final punch from Cheng Feng, the Copper Armor Sect was considered completely out.

It is said that the Copper Armor Sect Master wrote a letter overnight to his martial uncle who was cultivating at the Immortal Sect, circling the two words "Cheng Feng" heavily three times.

In the villa of the Pingbei Wangfu, Zhou Tieyi sat in the hall, slowly wiping his great spear with a soft cloth.

The tea by his hand grew cold and was replaced, only to grow cold again.

After listening to the servant's report, he said after a long while: "I did not lose unjustly. When he fought me, he hadn't used his full strength."

"Does the young master mean he used his real ability to fight Tong Shan?" an old soldier nearby asked.

"He did. But he still hasn't shown his bottom line." Zhou Tieyi held his spear horizontally; the spear body reflected the candlelight like a silent black python.

"When I sparred with him, he was tough, but he didn't reveal scales. In today's battle, he almost exposed everything, yet he still didn't fall.

Tong Shan didn't lose unjustly, and neither did I. This person can suppress others without relying on his realm.

Surely a Gang Qi Realm martial artist won't take action directly."

He paused and added: "But whoever runs into him next will be unlucky."

In the villa of the Huaiyang Bai Clan, Bai Wugou stood under a pear tree, holding a black stone in his hand, lost in thought while facing the chessboard.

Sitting across the table was an old man in green robes, slowly brewing tea.

Bai Wugou placed the black stone on the center point and suddenly spoke: "What do you think of this person, Cheng Feng?"

The old man in green robes used bamboo tongs to stir the charcoal fire and said: "To have a Gang Qi physique at the Organ Refining Late Stage, he either has an innate abnormality in his Qi and Blood, or he has consumed some great blood-nourishing treasure in the Acquired Realm.

This child's Qi pulse is thick and heavy, and his blood carries a fishy scent; he does not seem like a pure human. He is likely following the path of dragons or snakes."

"Then he is also an Immortal Seed?" Bai Wugou asked.

"He counts as half," the old man said. "Not as pleasing to the eye as your White Flame Body.

But once a person has entered the door with such a thing, they are no longer considered a mortal seed.

Those above will not fail to see it."

Bai Wugou nodded, as if putting something down: "Then if I encounter him in tomorrow's draw, I will kill him."

"As you wish," the old man poured the tea. "But do not underestimate the enemy. His physical body is there; if you don't kill him, he will keep pestering you. If you let him get close, your chances of winning will actually be smaller."

Bai Wugou's gaze was slightly cold as he stared at the chessboard, not placing a piece for a long time.

The courtyard of the Hengyang Lu Clan was quite lively.

Lu Sanye had just returned from outside and, without even changing his clothes, had someone go to inquire about Cheng Feng's injuries.

After hearing the report, he smiled and said to the Cold Abyss Body beside him, "Zhenzhen, I wasn't wrong, was I? Giving him that Snake Coil Seal was not a loss. This person is worth it."

Lu Zhen kept his head lowered, his voice as soft as pear blossoms, "If he continues to win, the people from the Immortal Sect will come to claim him directly."

"That would be for the best." Lu Sanye sipped his tea, "We have offered a favor at no cost; if he truly enters the Immortal Gate in the future, the Lu Clan will have a connection that no one else possesses."

Meanwhile, deep within the Imperial City, several gazes also pierced through the palace walls, landing in the direction of Lan Yuan.

Cheng Feng knew nothing of all this. He drank the medicine prescribed by Hu and drifted into a heavy, dreamless sleep for the entire night.

When he woke again, the sky was already bright. He tried to move his left hand; his fingers were still swollen, but they could already bend slightly.

The Flood Dragon Body was indeed playing a role in his recovery, and the injuries to his ribs and arm bones were at least thirty percent better than Hu had anticipated.

When Cheng Feng called for the doctor to change his dressing, the old man did not believe it, pinching and prodding repeatedly before finally shaking his head and saying, "A freak. Recovering so fast!!!"

Cheng Feng did not reply; he draped an outer robe over his shoulders and leaned against the head of the bed, his gaze falling upon the newly bloomed osmanthus flowers in the courtyard through the window paper.

"When is the next match?" he asked Huo Luan, who was guarding outside the door.

"Three days from now." Huo Luan poked his head in, his face already covered in scabs.

"You should focus on healing your injuries first. The people coming up next won't just be trading punches with you."

Cheng Feng sighed dramatically, "What a pity."

Huo Luan…………