In the moment of his anger, Bai Jian forgot to control his strength and launched himself at Bai Zihan with full force.
Only at the last second did he realize what he was doing.
(Oh no!)
Bai Jian tried to suppress his strength, but it was already too late.
His fist, containing the Qi of the Golden Core Realm, was heading straight for Bai Zihan, who stood there without moving an inch.
Everyone watching held their breath, expecting Bai Zihan to be sent flying, perhaps even crippled on the spot.
But then—
THUD!
A single hand rose, fingers closing around Bai Jian’s fist in an effortless grip.
Bai Zihan, whom everyone had believed to be weak, had just completely stopped Bai Jian’s full-powered punch.
Silence fell over the garden.
The Bai Clan members stared in stunned disbelief.
Even Chu Ziyan, who had refrained from interfering due to her suspicions, felt her heart jolt.
(What…?)
She knew Bai Zihan’s strength better than most.
He was weak.
His cultivation was shallow compared to theirs, and his body was even frailer—he had never been one to train physically.
And yet… he had just stopped Bai Jian’s full-force punch, despite Bai Jian being in the Golden Core Stage.
It was one thing to barely withstand or survive the blow, but Bai Zihan hadn’t even taken a single step back—despite being only at the Core Formation Stage.
There was a two-major-realm difference between them.
Even a Core Condensation Realm cultivator might not have been able to stop Bai Jian’s punch.
Bai Jian, the second strongest of their generation, stood frozen, his arm trembling.
His mind couldn’t process what had just happened.
(He… caught it?)
Just a second ago, Bai Jian had feared that he might accidentally cripple or kill Bai Zihan.
Now, he had completely forgotten about that, overwhelmed by shock—his attack had been effortlessly stopped by Bai Zihan, of all people.
(No… That’s impossible!)
Before Bai Jian could fully register his shock, Bai Zihan’s grip tightened around his fist.
“Is that all?”
Bai Zihan asked.
While his expression remained unchanged, internally, he was both excited and pleased with how powerful his body had become.
In that moment, he felt that all the pain he had endured was worth it.
Of course, he didn’t show the satisfaction on his face as he still needed to deal with Bai Jian.
Bai Jian’s pupils shrank as the reality of the situation sank in—Bai Zihan, whom he thought he could easily handle, had effortlessly blocked his attack.
In the next instant—
BANG!
A powerful kick struck Bai Jian directly in the stomach.
“ARGH—!”
Bai Jian’s body lurched backward violently, his feet leaving the ground as he was sent flying.
He crashed onto the stone pavement, coughing as pain exploded through his abdomen.
Normally, he could have reacted in time and dodged such an attack, but he was too mentally shaken by the sheer absurdity of the situation.
Of course, while Bai Zihan’s kick was painful, it hadn’t dealt any serious injuries—after all, Bai Jian was still a Golden Core cultivator while Bai Zihan didn’t use any Qi.
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
Bai Jian, the mighty genius of the Bai Clan, had just been kicked to the ground like an insect.
And the one who did it—
Was Bai Zihan.
The supposed waste!
“You should think twice before trying this kind of shit again.”
Bai Zihan said arrogantly, dusting off his robes.
His blood-red eyes swept across the gathered clan members, his tone filled with lazy contempt.
“What? Still watching?”
He asked sharply.
It had been quite a while since he had ordered them to leave, yet they were still here, testing his patience.
Not wanting to anger Bai Zihan further, the other Bai Clan members quickly obeyed and began to disperse.
However, what had happened at that moment was etched into their memories—they couldn’t forget the sight of Bai Zihan stopping Bai Jian’s punch.
Many speculated whether Bai Zihan had relied on his own strength or used some mysterious artifact.
Most believed the latter, as that was the only explanation that made sense.
Of course, if they were as powerful as Chu Ziyan, they would have known that Bai Zihan had used no artifact—it was purely his own power.
Bai Jian slowly stood up, now the only other Bai Clan member left apart from Bai Zihan.
He stared at Bai Zihan with a mix of contempt and confusion.
But one thing was clear—he no longer had the courage to attack again.
It would be humiliating to attack twice only to fail again.
More than that, the confidence he had gathered to overcome his trauma and stand up to Bai Zihan had been crushed.
That familiar fear, which had tormented him years ago, was creeping back into his heart.
“What? Want to go again?”
Bai Zihan asked unreservedly, his tone laced with anger.
He didn’t care about Bai Jian—whether now or in the past.
He was already irritated that Bai Jian had dared to defy him, and he had mercifully spared him.
Of course, in reality, this was merely Bai Zihan’s arrogance speaking.
To others, it could be said that this was simply his karma—his past cruelty coming back to bite him, although it didn’t quite work well.
It was like the devil proclaiming himself to be a saint.
But regardless of perspective, one fact remained—Bai Jian could do nothing now.
To save himself from further embarrassment, especially in front of Chu Ziyan, he merely glared at Bai Zihan one last time before leaving.
Bai Zihan watched Bai Jian’s retreating figure, and only then did he finally turn his gaze to Chu Ziyan—who was still staring at him.
Her intense gaze made him shiver slightly.
“What?”
Bai Zihan asked.
“You… When did you become this strong?”
Chu Ziyan asked, her voice laced with suspicion.
“Huh? Can’t I train? Do you think that only a genius like yourself can grow stronger?”
Bai Zihan scoffed.
He didn’t think there was any need to explain his strength.
After all, while his improvement was significant, it wasn’t at a level that would make people too suspicious.
Most would simply assume that his parents had spent valuable resources to strengthen his body using medicinal pills.