Box 17.

  Bubai looked back and forth between the motionless duo he recognized to be the brawlers that got arrested a week ago after causing the squabble in the market.

  They really did look like they can no longer hold back their fists.

  But now… even though the bell has rung long ago, they were just standing there... playing stare-eyes.

  “Err… are they going to fight or just pose all day?”

  Beside him, Qian Feifu leisurely sipped his wine with an easygoing smirk. “Oh…? Who says the fight hasn’t started?”

  At his other side, Qian Bage grinned and chimed in.

  “Ouu, Lao Wu is right! Brother Bai, even though it looks like they’re just standing there like pretentious pricks, but in actuality…”

  “Their spiritual force is already clashing! We just can’t sense it from out here due to the interference-prevention barrier.”

  Qian Zhongta crossed his arms and nodded along.

  “For us foundation builders, this is the norm to test the depths of our opponent. And if done right, it can also wear down the opponent’s spiritual power as much as possible.”

  “Ou, that’s right! Two birds with one arrow!”

  Qian Fusha shot a glance towards his younger brothers.

  “Remember. If it’s real combat, doing this will only reveal yourself and provoke others.”

  “But in this arena, this is the best way to determine the gap between fellow foundation builders. If the gap is too wide, then… you should know what’s best for you.”

  “Got it. Got it. There’s no need to nag, Lao Er!” “Yeah, yeah!” “Ouu!”

  Though this tip didn’t really apply to him here, Bubai still knew the gist behind this.

  Spiritual sense—that was the signature of foundation builders.

  Though strong or weak can’t always be determined by the clash of spiritual sense alone, a stronger spiritual sense often meant an upper hand in all aspects.

  A larger spiritual power reserve for casting all sorts of technique.

  Higher specs on mental attributes like willpower, reaction speed, resistance to illusions, etc.

  But most important of all was the big advantage in situation awareness during combat.

  When two foundation builders both use their spiritual sense at the same place and time… what happens?

  Well, obviously… they collide, and once they do, it’ll be like radio signals interfering with one another.

  Then what happens? Naturally, the stronger signal wins! The weaker signal gets lost!

  This is known as spiritual sense suppression!

  If party A’s spiritual sense suppresses party B’s, then party B will only have their eyes to rely on.

  Hence, the suppressed party will most likely have a harder time perceiving sneak attacks and hidden moves like those high-speed wind spells.

  It was like fighting with a hand tied behind their back!

  The greater the strength gap, the worse the suppression.

  If one party’s spiritual sense gets completely suppressed, then... the outcome was already pretty obvious.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Of course, complete suppression between equals was rare.

  Spiritual power is limited and not just any cat or dog can afford to burn it recklessly on full-time suppression against an opponent at the same realm.

  That’s why to conserve spiritual power, spiritual sense is usually sent out in pulses like a radar.

  The clash of spiritual sense was therefore just like radio waves interfering with one another.

  Most of the time, these clashes goes unnoticed to the naked eye, obviously.

  And at the foundation realm level… there honestly wasn’t much to see or write home about.

  It wasn’t flashy. It wasn’t dramatic.

  Perhaps in novels or movies, some breeze or wind will be added for the dramatic effect.

  Then came everybody’s “favorite” stares and more dramatic stares just to drag out the runtime, just like what was happening downstairs.

  The classic xianxia “staring contest” trope...

  Verdict? Boring. There’s literally nothing to watch.

  Bubai was literally shouting inside: Seriously, enough with the stares already. Just get to it!

  As if the grandpa heavens heard his complaint…

  Like quick-drawing gunslingers in a shootout, the two combatants skipped a frame and took action at nearly the same time!

  From Tie Zhubi’s sleeve, a thick calligraphy brush flicked out like a sword unsheathed, slashing out a crescent of wind that whistled across the arena!

  On the other side, Yu Shusheng whipped out an almost identical brush and dotted the air.

  From the tip, water rippled outwards and soon, a watery whirlpool blossomed in front of him…

  Use soft nature to resolve hard, Water Gentleman Art: Whirlpool Barrier!

  The wind slash came, but the sharp wind did nothing more than cause gentle ripples across the swirling barrier’s surface!

  Seeing the elemental spell get absorbed, Yu Shusheng smiled like a painter finishing a masterpiece.

  His brush then painted across the watery canvas in front of him, sending out his own razor-thin water blade to counterattack the scholar rushing over!

  Wind versus water.

  The wind seemed faster and much more lethal, yet the water crescents shot out much more frequently to pelt the other like rain.

  At a glance, it was clear who had the upper hand in spellcasting speed!

  But a cultivator’s battle was never decided by spells alone.

  After a rapid exchange of slashes, the gap closed…

  Tie Zhubi then showed steel-hard resolve and smashed right through the water barrier!

  Then, the fight devolved into a chaotic back-and-forth.

  Palms blurred. Fists flew.

  Want to cast spells? That’s only if the fists agree!

  Both sides then traded slaps like gamblers disputing debts, each trying to disrupt the other’s rhythm.

  Their brushes slashed out here and there, causing many close shaves but barely any blood got drawn.

  It seems both sides were rather familiar with each other’s moves and neither could get the upper hand in a while...

  Bubai’s eyes darted back and forth, following the pair that circled around and around each other.

  A judgment of their combat power was already filling in the blanks of his foundation builder database.

  Fast. But not so fast that he can’t keep up. Just his strengthened physique alone was enough.

  As for their martial arts? Sharp and clean, much more so than his own three-legged kungfu.

  Still, it didn’t look like their moves packed actual power like those body builders.

  Instead, most moves seemed to focus on interrupting or redirecting the opponent’s attacks and spells.

  A brush swipe wasn’t meant to land—it was meant to force the other to respond.

  A step forward wasn’t to advance—it was to pressure the enemy into retreating. Pure interruption.

  This wasn’t surprising.

  Even when sparring with Xiao Lan, this was what he was drilled to do—a relentless, back-and-forth rhythm where neither side could afford to let the other breathe.

  It made sense though.

  In the foundation realm, endurance was rarely the issue.

  If they didn’t use any big techniques, their stamina and energy pool was decent enough to last hours of combat!

  Even if they did run low, foundation builders have plenty of ways to replenish their energy!

  That meant that if foundation builders really duked it out from afar, it’ll come down to a contest of burning money!

  But most were here for profit. Who wants to watch the other use up what will soon be his own?

  Plus, nobody wanted to give their opponent the time or space to prepare a killer move.

  Hence, both parties will do their best to suffocate their opponent’s momentum and cut off any chance for recovery.

  This was the mainstream approach to combat for low-level cultivators, typically coined as the interruption style—a method made all the more achievable by a foundation builder’s Qi externalization.

  Undoubtedly, the close combat of foundation builders have much more technicality and was quite a bit more flashy than Qi Refiners thanks to all the spells interspersed in between moves.

  But ultimately, it was pretty much the same boring routine.

  At least… from what he could see.

  A firm clap landed on Bubai’s shoulder, snapping his focus away like a book slammed shut.

  “...Ouu right, right! This isn’t something that can be decided in a breath or two. Brother Bai, how about we enjoy ourselves while we wait!”

  Bubai shot a wary glance at the shorty, then turned to find all the brothers sharing a frivolous grin he knew all too well.

  It was a look every gentlemen of culture understood.

  But something stood out.

  No ladies.

  Not a single one had brought female company.

  The only woman in the room was the crimson hottie kneading his shoulders!

  A bunch of men. One woman. What will happen next?