A burst of joy filled my heart, and I couldn''t help thinking, "This Crane guy''s pretty reasonable."


    Usually, I wouldn''t even have the right to negotiate.


    Plus, Crane''s power was beyond anything I could imagine - he was on the same level as the Star!


    Getting to spar with someone in my realm like Crane was a once-in-a-lifetime chance, and it could even boost my mindset fast and help push me into the Martial Saint Realm!


    "Alright!" I agreed right away.


    Crane got up and said, "Meet me here tomorrow at this time."


    "Sure." I bowed a little, then left with the man with the mustache.


    Once we got out of the grotto-heaven, the man with the mustache couldn''t wait to say, "Mason Raymond, the Master''s life is in your hands now, so you better make the most of this chance!"


    I rolled my eyes and said, "I wouldn''t waste this opportunity even if you hadn''t said anything."


    I paused for a moment and muttered, "But it''s still pretty weird. Why does Crane want to go up against the Divine Dragon Power..."


    The man with the mustache snorted, "You didn''t know that the Divine Dragon Power is like an ancient subject meeting the emperor for demonic beasts."


    "Usually, regr demonic beasts would be lucky not to drop to their knees when they see the Divine Dragon Power."


    I asked in shock, "Is it really that intense?"


    "You won''t believe it until you test it on someone," the man with the mustache muttered.


    While we talked, someone came over from nearby.


    He was supposed to take me to where I''d be staying.


    The three of us got close to the ce, and I patted the guy''s shoulder and asked, "Hey, is Crane''s true form actually a crane?"


    The man pulled away from me with a disgusted look and said with pure contempt, "You better not touch me. Just because Crane let you live doesn''t mean we''ll be nice to you."


    I rubbed my chin, thought for a second, then fired up the Divine Dragon Power.


    The moment the Divine Dragon Power mark showed up, the man''s face went white with terror, and his whole body started shaking like crazy.


    Even though he tried to fight it, his knees started bending, ready to drop.


    I quickly pulled back the Divine Dragon Power and said awkwardly, "Sorry about that, didn''t mean to!"


    The guy didn''t care about my apology - his eyes were full of fear as he looked at me. Then he turned and bolted.


    "So the Divine Dragon Power really hits demonic beasts that hard..." I mumbled.


    "When ites to Crane, it''s amazing how he can handle the Divine Dragon Power so calmly..." I thought.


    It made me think of Leticia.


    Leticia was one of the most dignified guys I''d ever met.


    But even he almost dropped to his knees when faced with Divine Dragon Power.


    Only Crane just frowned a bit and was even able to attack me.


    "Man, I''d guess Crane''s lived for at least a thousand years with that kind of power," the man with the mustache said, stroking his facial hair.


    I gasped in surprise, "He''s really that old?"


    "What did you expect? Demonic beasts have a much harder time cultivating than us, but once they nail it, their strength blows humans away," the man with the mustache muttered.


    I stayed quiet, but my respect for Crane grew even deeper.


    ...


    The next day,


    Just like we nned, I showed up at the grotto-heaven.


    Crane looked like he''d been waiting for me for a while. His long white hair and almost perfect build made him look like some gorgeous guy who''d walked out of a painting.


    I tried to read Crane''s energy and found out he''d already held himself back to the Half-step Martial Sage realm.


    "Let''s get started," Crane said with no expression.


    Not wasting another second, I fired up the Divine Dragon Power and let my aura explode!


    The second Divine Dragon Power appeared, Crane''s eyebrows scrunched up slightly, and a thinyer of sweat formed on his forehead really fast.


    That was enough to show how much pressure the Divine Dragon Power put on him!


    "The Divine Dragon Power seems to stress you out pretty bad," I said.


    "This isn''t a fair match. How about I dial back my strength by one level?"


    "Don''t bother," Crane said coldly.


    Before he finished talking, Crane''s figure suddenly blurred, and his crazy speed left afterimages, giving me no time to react!


    "Boom!"


    Crane''s palm mmed into my chest!


    A gentle but overwhelming force exploded in my chest!


    Even though I had a chaotic body, under this strange force, I still gotunched hundreds of meters away, breaking several ribs!


    I crawled out of the rubble, rubbing my chest and whispered, "So damn strong..."


    This was probably the toughest opponent I''d faced so far!


    Most importantly, we were at the same level!


    "You better use your real power," said Crane, breathing a little hard, sweat still dripping down his forehead.


    I flexed my arm and said coldly, "Alright, here Ie!"


    As I spoke, waves of golden light burst from my body, instantly pushing my physical strength to the max!


    "Watch out!"


    With a loud yell, I charged at Crane, firing up the Absolute Beginning Sacred Fist!