Chapter 10：The Woes Of A Sparring Partner

Huo Lin'er stared at Ji Mo intently. Having been at Tianyuan Academy for quite some time, she knew each and every one of the disciples. A person like Ji Mo was particularly attention-grabbing, not because he was a high-achiever, but because he was really weak.

Huo Lin'er was also somewhat aware of Ji Mo's backstory. Most of the time, he did not practice cultivation wholeheartedly. Last time, he even caused a ruckus at her lecture, thus her impression of him was not that positive.

However, when she noticed how serious he was towards martial arts right now, she was rather surprised. Since when had this fellow become so focused and diligent?

"Essence-Unifying Slab Splitter!" At the same time, Ji Mo's eyes lit up with glee as he stared at a martial arts manual. "By focusing the entire body's energy on the palm, a mighty force will be created! It can penetrate rocks and split slabs of stone! A continuous surge of force, hmm…Not bad. This suits me better. I'll take this."

"This is an advanced-level technique. If you want to cultivate it, you must register first," Huo Lin'er piped up while being in awe of Ji Mo's choice. As one of the four major Sanshou in the Mortal Realm, the Essence-Unifying Slab Splitter was a fine martial arts technique. 

"Register? What a pain! Wait for me then. I'll go register," Ji Mo replied.

"Sigh, forget it. I'll explain it to them on behalf of you, but you did promise to become my sparring partner and I must master this divine power. My enemy is coming soon and I mustn't lose to that woman," Huo Lin'er muttered to herself while hatred was apparent in her bright eyes.

"Is she your rival in love?" Ji Mo asked.

"Rival in love? It's no longer that simple. She's…Huh? Why are you asking me this? Is this something a person like you should care about?!" Huo Lin'er's eyes widened immediately and she glared at him.

"Didn't you say that yourself?" Ji Mo replied.

"Enough nonsense. Follow me," she ordered and dragged him out of the archive.

…

A spacious piece of land lay beyond the mountain behind Tianyuan Academy.

This was the Tianyuan Academy arena. Unless there was a match going on, people seldom came here.

Meanwhile, Ji Mo was wearing a thick armored suit that was crafted by special minerals and complex formation runes were carved onto its surface. Weighing more than fifty kilograms, a regular person could not move if he wore it.

"Listen, this is an armored battlesuit crafted by my master and it's able to absorb Dharma spells. Now that you're wearing the armored suit, if you get hit by my frontal attacks, the suit will automatically absorb my Dharma spells. You can evade too since I'm only using it to practice my spells. The better you evade me, the greater my mastery at controlling Dharma spells is," Huo Lin'er explained as she pointed at Ji Mo's armor.

At the moment, she had changed into another outfit. She wore a training outfit that wrapped itself around her skin tightly, exposing her voluptuous figure. Her curvaceous glutes and long legs were accentuated by the fabric that hugged her body snugly.

Ji Mo gaped at her from top to toe.

'She isn't wearing any underwear!' He realized something.

Normally, cultivators preferred to change into an outfit that was clean and neat before practicing to ensure the agility of their movements. Most female cultivators did not like wearing underwear when they practiced as it hindered their movements, but Huo Lin'er's boldness shocked Ji Mo and for one fleeting moment, he found it unacceptable.

"Of course, although the armor will absorb my Dharma spells, it still hurts when they hit you." Huo Lin'er laughed slyly as if she failed to notice him staring at her.

Ji Mo composed himself and loosened his limbs. The armored suit was heavy indeed. Had he not switched to cultivating the Celestial Devil Tempering Art and become stronger than before, he would have had a hard time moving about in this suit.

"I must say, I don't mind you using me as your sparring partner, Senior Sister Huo. But to be honest, there's no free lunch in this world. Aren't you going to give me something in return for helping you out?" Ji Mo asked. He knew Huo Lin'er was a Qi Plundering Boundary expert and had many types of goodies in her possession.

Instead of bargaining, Huo Lin'er answered him directly, "Spar with me for an hour, and I'll give you a third-grade spiritual medicine!" 

'Third-grade spiritual medicine!' Ji Mo exclaimed in his heart.

No doubt, Huo Lin'er was a Qi Plundering Boundary expert. Look at how wealthy she was! She could offer third-grade spiritual medicine and give one out every hour. Third-grade spiritual medicine was incomparable to the second-grade Purple Spirit Fruits. If the former were available in Ji Mo's clan, all of the disciples would have fought over for them.

Evidently, Qi Plundering Boundary experts were a special breed with profound knowledge, so Ji Mo felt rather excited. Apparently, being Huo Lin'er's sparring partner was not a bad idea.

"Alright, since you're so generous, Senior Sister Huo, I shall accompany you throughout the night." Ji Mo chuckled.

"Who wants to accompany you throughout the night!?" she snapped.

"Huh? Can't you speak normally?" Ji Mo was taken aback.

In fact, third-grade spiritual medicine was worthless in Huo Lin'er's eyes. The things Qi Plundering Boundary experts faced were on a totally different level compared to those people at the Acupuncture Point Unblocking Phase faced. To the Qi Plundering Boundary experts, second- and third-grade spiritual medicine was the same as one or two bucks and was negligible. 

Naturally, Huo Lin'er only decided to reward Ji Mo after discovering that he had reached the fourth tier of body tempering. She thought that he had the potential to improve his capability. If he had not undergone anything special and he had asked for a reward, Huo Lin'er might have given him a tight slap.

'A reward? Go screw yourself!'

"Enough nonsense. Are you ready?" Huo Lin'er cried out.

Ji Mo stood with a wide stance. "Bring it on!"

Buzz!

As soon as she finished speaking, a ball of fire formed on Huo Lin'er's palm. The ball of fire was fiery red and transformed into a Flaming Sword Qi that circled around her slender fingers. Each shockwave was dangerous and could cut through stone.

"Take that!"

As Huo Lin'er let out a cry, streams of shockwave appeared and were sent towards Ji Mo. The streams were endless and the shockwaves were fired out steadily, showing no signs of ceasing. Each wave was stronger than the previous and every one of them was ghastly and threatening.

Bang, bang, bang, bang!

Before Ji Mo could evade the attacks, he was hit by about ten strikes of Flaming Sword Qi. Although the vibrations of the Dharma spells from the shockwaves were absorbed by the armor, a quake caused by the powerful surge of energy sent him flying and he landed abruptly on the ground.

If not for the armored suit, a normal cultivator at the Acupuncture Point Unblocking Phase would have been battered and overpowered by the Flaming Sword Qi. There would have been no chance of retaliation. This was the difference between a Qi Plundering Boundary expert and an Acupuncture Point Unblocking Phase cultivator. Just like the difference between an Immortal and a Mortal, there was simply no opportunity of surpassing the former.

"Don't be so useless. Stand up!" Huo Lin'er's hair fluttered in the air as she moved around nimbly. Her entire figure was veiled by streams of Flaming Sword Qi as if a flaming goddess had descended to the Mortal Realm. 

Flaming Sword Qi shot out in the arena. Pursued by the shockwaves, dressed in his armored suit, Ji Mo ran around aimlessly. He desperately wanted to hide, but Huo Lin'er was simply too fast with her attacks and did not give him any room for evading. For one moment, Ji Mo could do nothing but endure the pain.

Despite gaining so much strength after cultivating the Celestial Devil Tempering Art, he was still an amateur compared to a Qi Plundering Boundary cultivator!

Sanshou is a form of Chinese combat that combines traditional Kung Fu with modern fighting styles like kickboxing.