Chapter 32: A Savage Beating

"Hey, had enough of lying there? You still owe me two moves. You're not going to welch, are you?" Ye Yuan clapped his hands, looking helpless.

"Cough, cough, cough." Fei Qingping couldn't catch his breath for a long time.

That palm strike had hit him square in the chest, leaving him gasping.

If he hadn't activated his Yuan force shield at the last moment, he would have capsized in a ditch.

The reason the Fourth Layer of Yuan Qi was much stronger than the Third Layer was not only because the Yuan force was denser, but also because after reaching the Fourth Layer, one could raise a Yuan force shield, greatly increasing defense.

An attack from the Third Layer of Yuan Qi, after being offset by the Yuan force shield, would deal much less damage.

"You... you little bastard!" Fei Qingping clutched his chest and struggled to stand.

As soon as he steadied himself, Ye Yuan's palm arrived again.

"Bang!"

Fei Qingping was sent flying once more, rolling far across the ground.

"You really deserve a beating! Go on, curse me again if you dare!" Ye Yuan's smile faded, and he spoke coldly.

"Cough, curse... curse you if I want? You little bas...!"

"Bang!"

Before he could finish cursing, Ye Yuan's palm struck Fei Qingping's chest again.

"I admire your courage. Come on, keep cursing." Ye Yuan's words grew colder.

"Cough... Three moves are over. Die! You little bas..."

"Bang!"

Another palm!

But this one hit him square in the face. Although the Yuan force shield weakened it, Fei Qingping's face was still slightly swollen.

"You..."

"Bang!"

"Bang, bang, bang!"

...

Ye Yuan struck Fei Qingping's face again and again.

Fei Qingping stood up time and again, only to be sent flying each time. As soon as he got up, a palm would come whistling in, leaving him no time to curse.

They say you shouldn't hit a man's face, but Ye Yuan deliberately aimed at Fei Qingping's face.

After a dozen or so strikes, Fei Qingping's face had swollen into a pig's head. Even his parents probably wouldn't recognize him.

Fei Qingping roared inwardly. He tried his best to stand up and counterattack each time, but before he could react, Ye Yuan was already in front of him.

Only then did he realize that Ye Yuan, whom he had always looked down on, truly had the strength to threaten him.

...

Everyone watched dumbfounded, mechanically observing Ye Yuan strike again and again.

With each blow, their hearts thumped uncontrollably, as if that palm were slapping their own faces.

They reached up to touch their cheeks, only to find them strangely hot.

Wan Yuan remained silent, his face dark enough to drip water.

Ye Yuan wasn't slapping Fei Qingping's face; he was slapping Wan Yuan's face.

With so many people here, who didn't know Fei Qingping was his man?

He had cursed Fei Qingping countless times in his heart, but it did nothing to change the situation in the arena.

Wan Yuan didn't have Hu Yan Yong's insight. He still stubbornly believed that Ye Yuan had only gained the upper hand because of the three-move advantage, catching Fei Qingping off guard.

Remembering how Fei Qingping had boasted about giving Ye Yuan three moves, it now seemed like a joke.

It had been over ten moves, and Fei Qingping still hadn't fought back.

"Fei Qingping, are you a pig? Use the Small Capture Hand!" Wan Yuan knew he couldn't sit idly by any longer, so he shouted loudly.

"Shua, shua, shua."

At Wan Yuan's shout, the eyes of hundreds in the audience turned toward him.

Ye Yuan also seemed distracted by the shout, glancing over, and paused his savage beating of Fei Qingping.

"Shut up! This is a life-and-death duel. Who allowed you to shout?" Hu Yan Yong turned and stared coldly at Wan Yuan. A powerful aura from the Liquid Realm pressed down, nearly stopping Wan Yuan's breath.

"Teacher Hu Yan, does this count as breaking the academy's rules?" Ye Yuan said calmly.

Hu Yan Yong also had a headache. Although Wan Yuan was only a Earth-level student, his potential was considerable, and with his father Wan Donghai's connections, he couldn't be too harsh.

But Wan Yuan had indeed broken the rules. A life-and-death duel was not to be disturbed by anyone. Wan Yuan's interference had clearly disrupted Ye Yuan's rhythm.

Now that Ye Yuan was pressing the issue, Hu Yan Yong didn't know how to handle it in front of everyone.

"Of course it does!" Though troublesome, Hu Yan Yong couldn't lie in front of so many people.

At this moment, many in the audience looked at Wan Yuan with contempt. Anyone could see he had deliberately interrupted Ye Yuan's rhythm.

"Then... according to the academy's rules, what punishment does he deserve? I had the advantage, but with his shout, I'm afraid I'll end up being beaten by Fei Qingping. I don't want to become a pig's head. Teacher Hu Yan, you must do justice for me, the weak one!" Ye Yuan said innocently.

"This..." Hu Yan Yong was choked up, cursing inwardly.

Others might not see it, but how could he? Even with the interruption, that pig's head couldn't touch a single thread of Ye Yuan's clothes. It was irrelevant.

But Ye Yuan was playing the weakling now, winning everyone's sympathy, making it even harder for Hu Yan Yong to step down. Punishing Wan Yuan or not was a dilemma.

Sure enough, as soon as Ye Yuan finished, boos erupted from the stands. Everyone understood the implication.

Ye Yuan was originally two minor realms below Fei Qingping, at a complete disadvantage.

Fei Qingping had lost the initiative by showing off, barely balancing the tilted scales.

If Ye Yuan had been killed by Fei Qingping from the start, no one would have sympathized. But now that Ye Yuan saw hope of victory, only to have it rudely interrupted by Wan Yuan, everyone couldn't help but sympathize.

Even though many of them had bets with Ye Yuan.

And everyone knew that despite Ye Yuan's fierce strikes, they were only superficial wounds to Fei Qingping, not affecting his bones or tendons.

The Overlapping Wave Heart Palm was powerful, but one wave couldn't make up for the realm gap.

If Fei Qingping were at the Third Layer of Yuan Qi, he would have been dead ten times over by now.

If Fei Qingping were at the Fourth Layer, Ye Yuan might have had a slim chance to kill him.

But the Fifth Layer...

No one believed Ye Yuan could actually kill Fei Qingping.

And that was indeed the case...

Just as Hu Yan Yong was torn, Fei Qingping finally took the chance to stagger to his feet.

But... he was already dizzy and couldn't tell which way was up.

Fei Qingping vaguely saw a figure and pointed at him, roaring, "Ye Yuan, I... I'll... kill you!"

"Hahahaha..."

Hundreds of people burst into laughter at Fei Qingping's ridiculous appearance.

The laughter hurt Fei Qingping's eardrums.

Fei Qingping didn't understand why everyone was laughing at him, but when he saw who he was pointing at, cold sweat broke out.

The figure before him gradually became clear. The person he was pointing at was none other than the livid Hu Yan Yong.

"Wan Yuan disrupted a life-and-death duel. According to academy rules, after this duel, you will receive a hundred lashes! Now, get out of the arena!" Hu Yan Yong had never felt so humiliated in all his years as an instructor.