Golden light burst forth, racing toward the Crane in an instant!


    The Crane fought against the crushing weight of my Divine Dragon Power and lifted its hand to sh with me!


    The moment we collided, the Crane stumbled back three steps!


    But my situation wasn''t much better - pain shot through my fist like lightning!


    "What a ridiculously strong body!" I couldn''t stop myself from shouting!


    This had to be the toughest opponent I''d ever faced!


    Shock flickered across the Crane''s face too.


    It stared at me coldly and said, "If you reached Martial Saint level, I might not stand a chance against you."


    I smirked and said, "Among fighters at the same level, you''re also the strongest I''ve ever met!"


    With that, I charged at the Crane again!


    This time, pale white light glowed around the Crane''s body!


    Its power jumped up several notches instantly!


    We crashed together, both going full throttle and trading blow after blow!


    Explosions echoed through the grotto-heaven constantly, drawing crowds of listeners!


    Our battle dragged on for three solid hours.


    After three hours, sweat beaded heavier on the Crane''s forehead, like it was starting to buckle under the strain.


    We''d both taken hits, but my injuries looked way worse!


    This shook me to my core!


    At the same level, I couldn''t get the upper hand - the Crane was actually keeping me down the whole time!


    And the Crane was fighting while dealing with my Divine Dragon Power pressure!


    "So damn strong..." I wiped blood from the corner of my mouth, wariness creeping into my expression.


    Right then, the Crane waved its hand and said, "Let''s take a break."


    I blinked, then nodded and said, "Sure."


    So I found a spot to sit and waited for the Crane.


    That day, we fought three rounds, only stopping when night fell.


    My injuries looked brutal - I could barely walk.


    The man with the mustache had no choice but to carry me back.


    "Did it really drop its power to Half-step Martial Saint..." Lying in bed, I felt frustrated, defeat eating at me.


    The man with the mustache next to me rolled his eyes and said, "Come on, don''t sulk. Any normal person would''ve been killed instantly."


    Even with his reassurance, my mind wouldn''t settle down.


    Since I started fighting, I''d never lost to someone at my level! The Crane showing up had flipped everything I believed upside down.


    The next day, I went to the grotto-heaven like usual and sparred with the Crane.


    That day, I was still at a slight disadvantage.


    Same thing on the third day, and the fourth.


    After a full ten days.


    The Crane and I had hit a deadlock - basically a tie.


    During a break mid-fight, Iughed bitterly, "It''s been so many days, and I haven''t gotten anywhere..."


    The Crane nced at me and said coldly, "You''ve improved way more than I expected. You''re the strongest human I''ve ever encountered."


    I frowned and said, "Really? But it''s been ten days, and I''ve only managed to match you...."


    "Don''t forget, while you''re getting stronger, my fear of the Divine Dragon Power is fading too," the Crane reminded me.


    It hit me suddenly!


    Right! The Crane''s pressure from my Divine Dragon Power seemed to be slowly lifting as well!


    "I get it now!" I shouted happily.


    I stood up and bowed slightly to the Crane, cupping my hands and saying, "Thank you!"


    The crane stayed quiet, just casually passing me a jug of good wine.


    After ten days together, our rtionship seemed to be getting tighter.


    In our downtime, we''d chat casually.


    Through talking, we found out our attitudes and personalities were pretty simr.


    Crane had been stubborn since childhood, never backing down against powerful demonic beasts, eventually fighting through and earning Martial Saint status.


    For Crane, the only thing left that could make it submit was the Divine Dragon Power, which was why it had me train with it.


    "I don''t buy into bloodline suppression. Born in this world, we stand alone and proud," Crane said quietly.


    I found myself respecting Crane more and more.


    When Crane heard my story, it was moved too.


    Especially when it learned about my conflict with the Capital City Martial Arts Association, and my fights with those fancy young nobles.


    "Alright, time to keep going." Crane drained its wine and stood up.


    "Yeah!" I nodded.


    Over the next few days...


    The Crane and I basically stayed even.


    Crane had gone from sweating buckets at first to now almost ignoring my Divine Dragon Power pressure.


    But while the Crane and I were both training, the martial arts world of Pyro shifted again.


    ——


    Iris Darren rebuilt the Immortal ying Sect, and with his white bone army, he''d be nearly unstoppable!


    Not only that, Iris Darren had massacred martial artists of this era multiple times, killing countless people.


    He''d capture martial artists'' divine sense, swallow it, and use it for cultivation.


    This threw the whole martial arts world into panic, while Garcia Coleman, acting as the "leader," ignored everything.


    Star frowned, "Master Coleman, don''t you think Iris Darren is going too far?"


    Garcia Coleman set down his wine, looked at Star, and said, "Too far? How is it too far?"


    Star said angrily, "He treats human lives like dirt, using martial artists'' divine sense for cultivation - isn''t that too much?!"


    "So many innocent people have died by his hand, shouldn''t we do something about it?"


    Garcia Coleman sneered, "Uncle Star, are you getting soft? A bunch of ants - if they die, they die. What''s it to us?"


    Star''s face went pale, but he didn''t know how to let out his anger.


    "If you won''t stop him, I will!" Star said through gritted teeth.


    But Garcia Coleman stopped Star and said coldly, "You''re not going anywhere either! Since my dad wants you following me, you have to obey my orders!"


    Star shook slightly, seemingly wrestling with his thoughts.


    Finally, the furious Star punched and shattered a stone pir in the Great Hall before storming out.


    Garcia Coleman snorted and kept drinking.


    He wasn''t worried Star would betray him because Star''s loyalty to Jensen Coleman was beyond imagination.


    ——


    In a sh, I''d been in this city for twenty days.


    During these twenty days, my strength shot up fast, and even my realm improved dramatically.


    "We can wrap this up now."


    On the twenty-third day, Crane said softly.


    I sped my hands and said, "Alright, I''ll follow your lead."


    "Thanks for training with me all this time," Crane said.


    I waved my hands repeatedly, saying, "I should be thanking you. No wonder you became City Lord here."


    Twenty-three days had made me respect Cranepletely.


    Not only did Crane have big dreams, but it also had a rare pure heart.


    That kind of character was hard to find among human martial artists.