"Wan Lei, if you have the guts, fight me with a real sword and armor. What kind of skill is it to hide outside and use these things to attack me? We're both disciples of Yin Yang Sect, if you have the guts, compete using Yin Yang Sect's Daoist arts! Come over!"

Qu Qingyan was in a terrible state, overwhelmed by the all-encompassing attacks. She had no understanding of formations and couldn't break Wan Lei's grand formation, so she could only be passively beaten.

"When you engage in a life-or-death battle with an enemy, do you also impose so many rules and restrictions on them?" Wan Lei sneered.

If it were a direct confrontation, he was confident he could fight Qu Qingyan and that she would be the one to lose in the end. But he didn't do that. For the sake of their fellow disciples, he decided to give this foolish senior sister a vivid lesson in combat. He wanted her to know that fighting wasn't simply about comparing the strength of techniques. Any external force, any method, as long as it could defeat the enemy, was one's own capability.

Elder Wan Juxin watched the battle in the arena, his brow furrowed. He looked towards the Sect Master, wanting to say something, but seeing the Sect Master's relaxed expression, he suddenly understood.

"Sect Master, this time, you don't want Qingyan to teach Wan Lei a lesson, but rather you want Wan Lei to teach Qingyan a lesson, right?"

"Yes, Qingyan, this child, has high talent and strong combat power, and she's also proficient in formation warfare. However, she comes from a prestigious family and has had little experience fighting others since childhood. After joining the sect, she never went out to complete missions and thinks highly of herself. But the cultivation world isn't that simple. She's already been blinded by those flashy and empty titles, believing herself invincible. It's good for Wan Lei to teach her a lesson and make her wake up."

"Indeed, she and Wan Lei are completely different people. Wan Lei struggled and fought his way up from the bottom, emerging from heaps of corpses. He may not have cultivated many divine abilities, but his combat experience and methods are incredibly rich. He reached the pinnacle of the younger generation in the Central Region all by himself. If he had no resources, he'd go snatch them. If he had no divine abilities, he'd go fight for them. If his status wasn't acknowledged, he'd fight for it. Everything was achieved through his own efforts. Qingyan can't compare to him."

"Exactly. In the past few thousand years, the sect disciples have become more and more lazy. In the Central Region, you often see disciples from Kai Tian Sword Sect venturing out for trials and battles, but rarely do you see disciples from our Yin Yang Sect. Everyone knows that Kai Tian Sword Sect has the strongest combat power and is the number one sect in the Central Region. But their strength has a reason behind it. The sect has been too comfortable these years; it's like a stagnant pool with leisurely fish. In such a situation, you need to throw in a big fish, a fish that is very strong and can eat them, so they will move, strive desperately, and become stronger and stronger."

"Wan Lei is the big fish you were looking for."

"It's a pity. With his current cultivation and status, he's already quite accomplished in the Central Region, and he's already set in his ways. The sect can no longer give him anything. Instead, the sect needs him to gain fame and inspire disciples. The sect owes him too much."

"Yes, I believe that even if Wan Lei hadn't come to Yin Yang Sect, with his opportunities and qualifications, even as a rogue cultivator, he would achieve great things. We are benefiting from him."

"This is something we should only discuss between ourselves; don't let outsiders know. By the way, for sect resources, give Wan Lei what he's due and don't be stingy. The title of a 'Glorious Inherited Disciple' is nothing, as it's not something substantial. This kid is very cunning and deceitful, and greedy for money. If you don't give him benefits, he won't remember the sect's kindness."

"Sect Master, you are wise."

On the other side of the battlefield, Wan Lei sat cross-legged on the formation, his expression calm, quietly watching Qu Qingyan howl within the formation. Qu Qingyan was very strong, but even the strongest people have limits. Faced with unending, indiscriminate attacks, she couldn't last long. Wan Lei, on the other hand, appeared relaxed and at ease. His only task was to stabilize the formation and prevent Qu Qingyan from breaking through, which was incredibly simple.

Qu Qingyan had used every means possible, unleashing all her divine abilities and techniques, but she couldn't overcome Wan Lei's grand formation. Back then, Wan Lei's formations could easily seal a Mahayana stage thunder beast, let alone a mere Nascent Soul stage cultivator like her.

Soon, Qu Qingyan's cries of agony within the formation grew weaker. Wan Lei, through the formation, constantly monitored her condition, ensuring she wouldn't die but also wouldn't have an easy time. Seeing that Qu Qingyan was indeed close to her limit, Wan Lei withdrew his attacks. He held no grudge against her, so there was no need to pursue her to the death.

Qu Qingyan lay on the ground, her body covered in burn and lightning marks, looking utterly miserable. Wan Lei flashed before her, looking down at her from above.

"Wan Lei... you... you bastard, if you have the guts... cough cough..."

"Still can't recognize reality? Useless, I only look at the result. The result of this match is that I have completely defeated you." Little Wan Lei's class has begun; children who can't fight well are usually spoiled; a good beating will fix them.

"You... cheated... you didn't win... with your own abilities!"

"How is it not my own ability? Wasn't the thundercloud condensed by myself? Wasn't the formation laid out by myself? Every one of my skills was cultivated by myself. How is this not my capability?" Wan Lei's tone was very arrogant, and Qu Qingyan wanted to retort but had no words.

"I truly don't know how someone as naive as you... no, naive isn't the right word, how a fool like you managed to live until now? Perhaps you grew up in a large family, born with a silver spoon in your mouth, with everyone protecting you, and no need for you to fight for yourself. If you wanted a divine ability, someone would deliver it to you. If you wanted anything, you just had to ask. But I'm different. Everything I have, I fought for myself. Your upbringing has created your current foolishness, making you believe that in a battle of techniques, it's one move from you and one from me, and whoever has higher cultivation wins. But when you engage in a life-or-death battle with someone? The enemy will ambush you, set traps, and use everything they can to kill you. And you, instead of dying by the enemy's hand, will die from your own foolishness. I heard you are also very skilled in formation tactics? After seeing your performance today, I can be sure that all of that is just talk on paper."

"You..."

Qu Qingyan wanted to retort, but Wan Lei grabbed her head and shoved a large mouthful of mud into her mouth.

"On the battlefield, when you lead an army and engage the enemy, do you go and negotiate with them, saying you'll make one move and they'll make one move? Warfare is a path of deception. Utilizing the timing and terrain, using everything you can mobilize to defeat the enemy, that is the true way. You haven't led an army yet, so you can only bring ruin upon yourself. But if one day, you lead an army of hundreds of thousands, then all those people will die because of your foolishness."