Grinding to Become the Master of the Universe

Chapter 358 - 170: Seizing First Place! Rookie King! The Shock of Opening 360 Apertures in 40 Years

When the list for the top sixty-four of the Freshman Cup was finalized, the atmosphere throughout Cannan Star Martial Arts University reached a new fever pitch.

From the round of sixty-four onward, every contestant who stepped into the ring was an elite among elites, a champion in their own right within their respective grades and social circles.

All of them had a life force index of 570 and possessed one or more Control Realm Methods.

Every match from then on was a clash of titans.

—except on the battle platform where Qin Feng was fighting.

The matches for the round of sixty-four began.

Qin Feng’s opponent was a prodigy who had been immersed in the Fourth Level Division for over thirty years. He had cultivated a Second-level Spear Technique, *Bedrock*, to the Realm of Perfection. He also had three First-level Killing Techniques that had reached the Control Realm, on top of more than a dozen Level 1 Perfection Spear Techniques.

His life force index was a high 570, his body a mass of knotted muscle, and his aura as imposing as a mountain. His very stance gave off an impression of indestructible solidity.

The moment the bell rang to start the match, the veteran student let out a furious roar, slammed the butt of his long spear on the ground, and assumed a standard defensive stance. It was as if he had merged with the platform beneath his feet.

He knew full well that against an opponent as unbelievably fast as Qin Feng, any flashy move was a death sentence. His only option was to meet endless variables with a single constant, using his strongest defense to wait for the perfect moment to counterattack.

And he got what he was waiting for.

He saw an afterimage.

And then, it was over.

Under the watchful eyes of tens of thousands of spectators in the arena, and the billions more watching via the Subspace broadcast, Qin Feng’s figure merely flickered before reappearing in front of the veteran student.

There was no earth-shattering finishing move, no dazzling burst of Spiritual Energy.

He just threw a simple punch.

The *Bedrock* Spear Technique’s defensive stance, in which the veteran student had placed so much hope, was as fragile as paper before that seemingly unremarkable fist.

"CRACK—"

The clean snap of breaking bone somehow cut through the roar of the crowd.

The veteran student who specialized in defense, along with the high-strength alloy long spear in his hand, was sent flying by an irresistible, immense force.

The long spear snapped in two in mid-air, while the man himself, like a stone launched from a catapult, traced a long parabola before disappearing beyond the edge of the platform.

Once again, it was a one-move, instant kill.

If his previous instant kills could be explained away by his opponents’ weakness, then this time, when a widely acknowledged tough customer who specialized in defense suffered the same fate, everyone fell silent.

Next up was the round of thirty-two.

This time, Qin Feng’s opponent was a Female Martial Artist, also with a life force index of 570, who was famous for her elusive and unpredictable Body Technique.

The moment she stepped onto the stage, she moved like a phantom, leaving a trail of afterimages that made it impossible to pinpoint her true location.

But to Qin Feng, this speed was still far too slow.

The match began.

The Female Martial Artist’s figure had just dissolved into phantoms as she began to circle and harass him, but Qin Feng, despite moving second, struck first.

His movements were even faster, simpler, and more direct than hers.

He took a single step, and the platform trembled.

To everyone’s astonishment, he pinpointed her true position with perfect accuracy and landed a gentle hand-chop on the back of her neck.

The motion was so gentle, it looked like a playful tap between friends.

But the eyes of the speed-focused Female Martial Artist rolled back in her head, and her body went limp, caught by the referee who appeared just in time to stop her from falling off the platform.

Another single move.

Clean and decisive.

Then came the round of sixteen, and then the quarterfinals.

Qin Feng’s advance through the ranks was so effortless that it became monotonous, even boring.

It didn’t matter how many Second-level Killing Techniques his opponents had, or whether they had forged their own path to the Control Realm—the result was always the same.

One by one, he eliminated opponents that ordinary students considered monsters.

Qin Feng relied on nothing more than the purest, most overwhelming strength and speed.

This absurd level of power pushed the discussions about him on the Subspace forums to a fever pitch.

A hot thread titled "[#ClashoftheCentury# ’Old Lai Zi’ Zhou Run vs. ’New Lai Zi’ Qin Beast—Who is the True King of the Fourth Level Division?]" had been pushed to the top of the front page, its reply count soaring past the ten million mark.

"I’m numb. I’m completely numb. After watching Qin Beast’s matches... all his opponents were badasses who’d trained a First-level Killing Technique to the Control Realm. And the result? One punch. It’s always one punch."

"Replying to the poster above: Qin Beast could definitely stomp anyone using an Upper-grade Acupoint Opening Technique, but he might not be able to beat Zhou Run. Even if he’s a once-in-a-millennium genius who cultivated the *Great Sun Acupoint Opening Method* for forty years, he’d open two hundred acupoints at most. That would put his life force index at just over 2,000, tops."

This reply echoed the thoughts of the vast majority and became the cornerstone of the argument for Zhou Run’s supporters.

"Exactly! I completely agree!"

"The logic is sound, but I still feel like that Qin Beast guy... is hiding something. He’s so calm and nonchalant, like this is all perfectly natural. That kind of confidence can’t be faked."

"That’s because all of Qin Beast’s fights so far have been against total lightweights."

"I’ll say it again: the numbers don’t lie. Senior Zhou Run has cultivated a Top-grade Acupoint Opening Technique for a hundred years, filling all Three Hundred and Sixty Acupoints. That’s a cold, hard fact. And Qin Beast? He’s only had forty years! Time is his critical weakness! It’s a gap that no amount of talent can bridge! Unless he can tell me he walked a path in forty years that takes others a hundred? Is that even possible? It’s not scientific, and it sure as hell isn’t the Martial Dao!"