186: The burly man wielding the axe was named Jiajia.

"Slower, even slower..."

"Don't be anxious, you can't rush it..."

"Don't use too much force, or you won't be able to take it..."

"The more you want to enter, the harder it becomes. Take a deep breath..."

In Xie Ning's courtyard, the Demon Cat Woman's voice, serious yet slightly lazy, drifted out as she repeatedly gave reminders.

After a long time, Xie Ning, sitting cross-legged on the ground, opened his eyes and sighed.

"Still no good, I can't enter the state."

The Demon Cat Woman said, "You're too anxious."

Xie Ning nodded.

He also realized he was in too much of a hurry, but in the days without Little Mantis, he indeed felt it difficult to adapt. Only by accelerating his Breakthrough and reaching the Silver Rank as soon as possible could Little Mantis potentially finish evolving and appear before him.

"Wait until your Master, Yan Ruyu, returns, then you can ask her for advice." The Demon Cat Woman also realized she wasn't cut out for teaching and decisively gave up.

Xie Ning didn't reply and continued to enter a state of Cultivation.

Unfortunately, the more anxious he was, the worse the results. Two hours passed without the slightest Breakthrough. On the contrary, the Soul Hunting Dread Cat's scabs fell off one after another during these two hours, revealing brand-new fur. Its appearance had recovered, and it ran around the courtyard with an excited expression.

After an unknown amount of time, Xie Ning opened his eyes, his face weary and his eyes filled with some irritability.

He clearly felt that the Silver Rank mental Realm was within reach, separated only by a thin membrane. Yet, this thin membrane was as immovable as a steel prison door.

No matter how Xie Ning mobilized his energy to Breakthrough, he was kept outside.

Just then, a coarse roar reached his ears. The sound seemed to come from quite far away, but its volume was undeniably loud.

"Which one is named Xie Ning? Get the hell out here!"

Hearing this, Xie Ning's face darkened with annoyance as he stood up. "I happen to have a lot of pent-up anger."

Having said that, he left the courtyard and hurried toward the source of the sound.

Following the sound to the Challenge Area, he found it already crowded with people, and even more were constantly flocking in from all directions.

On one of the large Challenge Stages, a burly man holding a battle-axe stood out exceptionally.

The burly man was three meters tall, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, with a full beard and a fierce gaze, looking like a bear standing upright. A giant greenish axe taller than a person had dark red lines flowing through it like veins.

He looked around for a moment and gave a sinister smile. "What kind of bullshit is this Xie Ning? He hasn't come up after all this time. Don't tell me he's scared out of his wits after hearing Lord Jia's name."

Hearing this, before Xie Ning could speak, the crowd below the stage became enraged.

"Damn! Who is this bastard?"

"Probably someone from another school who came here specifically to disgust us."

"He looks like a lunatic. What normal person looks like that?"

"Makes sense."

The man who looked like a violent bear also heard the crowd's comments. His eyes, as large as copper bells, glared as a wave of Killing Intent accompanied by his Aura spread out.

"Who else dares to make a noise? Come up on stage and fight me!"

The people discussing below felt their breath hitch, looking at each other in cold sweat.

While everyone was silent, Xie Ning rushed onto the stage, quickly kicking the burly man back half a step with both legs, while also dispersing the opponent's Aura.

Seeing Xie Ning appear, a cheer erupted from below the stage.

"Shorty, you're Xie Ning?" The burly man gave a contemptuous smile, revealing two sharp canine teeth that added a bit more ferocity.

Xie Ning looked up slightly, sized him up, and asked, "Where did this Bear Demon come from, running to Lingnan Academy to cause trouble?"

Just as he thought the other party would be enraged, he saw the man laugh loudly, his booming voice echoing far away, before saying a moment later:

"I insulted you, yet you actually praised me. I like those words, hahaha~"

Xie Ning: "..."

The crowd below: "..."

Is this guy an idiot?

Can 'Bear Demon' be used as a compliment?

"Xie Ning, I came here this time just to give you a beating. But since you praised me just now, don't worry, I'll be careful with my strikes." The burly man, who called himself Jiajia, swung his giant axe and spoke to Xie Ning.

Xie Ning didn't care about the other's identity or purpose and immediately replied, "Is that so? Well, I'm different. I don't plan on being careful!"

After saying that, Xie Ning thrust his long sword, aiming straight for the throat.

"Heh! Good timing!" Jiajia held the giant axe, lifted its tail, and quickly blocked the sword strike. He then swung back with the momentum, the giant axe carrying a bloody scent and a majestic Aura, aiming straight for Xie Ning's arm.

Xie Ning took a step back, and the axe swung in another circle. Over five steps, Xie Ning dodged left and right, but the axe swung more and more fiercely.

"Is this all the strength you have? That's too weak." Jiajia didn't stop his giant axe and continued his provocation.

Xie Ning remained silent and continued to retreat. Finally, Jiajia's step faltered as he stood in an axe mark he had carved out, and the continuous offensive of the axe was broken.

Xie Ning performed a dance of swords, and a dozen or so flaming sword glows whistled out, hitting Jiajia and turning him into a man on fire.

"Not hot, not hot! Come again!"

Jiajia opened his eyes in the fire and spoke nonchalantly, his hands never stopping.

"Where did this freak come from? He's actually not afraid of being burned by fire."

"Could he really be a Bear Demon? A Bear Demon from the Ten Thousand Demon Country?"

"I don't know. His Aura feels so fierce. I hope Xie Ning doesn't lose."

There was much discussion below the stage, while on the stage, there was constant dodging.

This person's Ancient Martial Arts strength was similar to Zhao Long's, both belonging to the Silver Rank. The difference was that Zhao Long's Moves were overbearing and sharp, while this man's style completely abandoned speed and agility, using sheer strength to overcome all.

At this moment, the giant axe smashed over, and Xie Ning, unable to dodge in time, met it with a sword strike.

Clang—

A massive sound of metal clashing rang out, and a wave of air spread out with it.

Xie Ning retreated five steps in a row, his hand holding the sword almost unable to keep a grip, and even the long sword vibrated violently. Conversely, Jiajia was not affected at all.

"Again!" Xie Ning's anger was also piqued. He summoned Bai Ya and used Elemental Sharing, as the man and wolf charged forward together.

A strike of Golden Fire and a breath of Poison Flame swept and blended together. The gray flames emitted a terrifying Aura, frightening Jiajia into quickly dodging, not daring to take it head-on.

These flames were far stronger than the ordinary flames ignited by the changhong sword.

Boom!

The flames landed on the ground, exploding into a giant crater. Jiajia was dumbfounded. "What kind of fire is this? It's so powerful!"

"Fire specifically for beating bastards! Again!" Xie Ning shouted angrily, the flames exploding and turning into a giant fire blade over ten meters wide. Then, Bai Ya's claw fell, and a vertical wolf claw strike lunged straight at Jiajia.

The fire blade and fire claw once again formed a gray cross slash.

Rumble!

The flames enveloped Jiajia, exploding into a mushroom cloud eight or nine meters high. The next second, the mushroom cloud was dispersed by a swing of the giant axe. Jiajia crawled out of the crater with his clothes in tatters, and before he could catch his breath, Xie Ning attacked again.

The two sides engaged in battle, sword light and axe shadows flashing, purple and golden flames intermingled. Jiajia had the advantage in strength, while Xie Ning won in agility, and with Bai Ya's assistance, they fought to a standstill.

The crowd below was dazzled and exceptionally excited, all guessing who would win.

After thirty rounds of combat, Jiajia knocked Xie Ning back two steps with his axe and took a long breath, saying, "I'm not fighting anymore, not fighting anymore. You passed the test. I didn't expect..."

Bang!

Before he could finish, he was sent flying several meters by Xie Ning's left punch wrapped in flames.

"You're not fighting? I haven't fought enough!"

The battle continued once more.

Xie Ning seemed to enter a very profound state. Without Bai Ya's assistance, he relied solely on himself and his sword, countering every Move. Jiajia was forced into passive defense and dodging, looking like a clumsy circus bear forced to perform, no longer possessing his initial majesty, with more and more wounds appearing on his body.

Finally, as the Aura on Xie Ning's body erupted, he turned back with a swift sword strike. A sharp sword glow flew out from the blade, shooting straight for Jiajia's head. At the critical moment, Jiajia's foot slipped, stepping on a pebble and falling, and the sword glow grazed the tip of his nose.

Psh!

The sword glow pierced through the protective shield and flew a hundred meters. Seeing it was about to hit a student outside the field, a deep blue precious sword appeared, blocking the strike.

"Th-Thank you, Teacher..." The student's pants were wet as he sat paralyzed on the ground, speaking stutteringly.

The woman didn't pay him any attention but instead looked at the high-spirited Xie Ning on the stage and murmured:

"Bronze Peak Ancient Martial Arts, so fast."