I stood across from Rocky in Liu Chen's private training yard, taking a moment to truly assess my opponent. The stone guardian towered over me, his fifteen-foot frame casting a long shadow across the reinforced ground. Though his face was immobile stone, I could sense a subtle eagerness in his stance, the slight forward lean of his massive shoulders, the way his boulder-like fists opened and closed with anticipation.

"You've grown stronger," I observed, rolling my shoulders to loosen them. "I can feel it."

"Elder Song teach Rocky much,” the stone elemental’s grinding voice rumbled. “Rocky practice every day."

I nodded, impressed by his dedication. My inner assessment was more detailed than my casual comment suggested. The stone guardian's aura had deepened significantly since our last spar, the telltale pressure of the ninth stage of Qi Condensation radiating from his stone body. Just as I'd predicted, Elder Song had clearly prioritized his advancement. It made perfect sense, a stone guardian under the tutelage of an earth element specialist would naturally progress rapidly.

What intrigued me more was how Rocky had appeared so suddenly to protect Liu Chen when I first arrived. One moment I was alone with the boy, and the next, fifteen feet of animated stone was trying to pulverize me.

"Rocky must have been in Liu Chen's inner world," I sent mentally to Azure. "Similar to how Yggy can enter and exit mine."

"Yes," Azure replied. "Their soul bond appears to be evolving in interesting ways. Notice how Rocky's speech has improved as well? I suspect Liu Chen's human consciousness is enhancing Rocky's development beyond what's typical for stone guardians."

I was pulled from my analysis by Liu Chen's excited voice. The boy had positioned himself at what he clearly considered a safe distance.

"Ready?" he called out, eyes bright with anticipation. When both Rocky and I nodded, he threw his hand down dramatically. "Begin!"

The moment the word left Liu Chen's mouth, he scrambled backward several more steps, putting additional distance between himself and the impending clash. Smart kid.

I barely had time to register his movement before Rocky was in motion. For something composed entirely of stone, the guardian moved with surprising speed. His massive right fist came hurtling toward me with enough force to shatter bone.

I sidestepped narrowly, feeling the wind from his attack brush my cheek. The ground where I'd been standing cracked under the impact of Rocky's fist, spider-web fractures spreading outward.

During the evasion, my body instinctively prepared to activate Blink Step. The familiar sensation of red sun energy gathering in my left thigh made me grit my teeth as I forcibly suppressed the urge. No runes, that was the point of this exercise. I needed to know exactly what I was capable of with qi techniques alone.

The momentary distraction nearly cost me as Rocky's second attack came faster than the first, a sweeping backhand that I was forced to duck under rather than dodge completely. The massive stone arm passed just inches above my head, disturbing my hair with its passage.

"His coordination has improved dramatically," Azure noted. "That follow-up was perfectly timed."

I didn't waste breath responding, already moving to create distance. Rocky pressed forward relentlessly, each step causing the reinforced training ground to tremble slightly.

The gap I'd tried to create vanished instantly as Rocky extended his arm in a way I'd never seen before, his stone limb literally elongating as if the rock was clay being stretched.

Surprise slowed my reaction.

The stone fist caught me in the shoulder, sending me tumbling backward.

I managed to roll with the impact, converting the backward momentum into a controlled flip that brought me back to my feet. Still, pain flared through my right shoulder, a reminder that Rocky wasn't holding back.

"That's new," I muttered, rotating my shoulder to ensure nothing was broken.

Rocky's grinding laugh echoed across the training yard. "Elder Song teach stretch. Rocky surprise Brother Ke?"

"Definitely surprised," I admitted, unable to keep a hint of respect from my voice. "Let's see what else you've learned."

I initiated my own attack, darting forward with a burst of qi-enhanced speed. My movements felt sluggish compared to what I could achieve with Blink Step, but I pushed that frustration aside, focusing instead on the opponent before me.

Drawing on the Primordial Woods Arts, I reached out with my qi, seeking connection with any nearby plants. The training yard had relatively little vegetation, just a few ornamental trees and shrubs along the perimeter, but I could feel them responding to my call. Still, they were too distant to be immediately useful. I'd need to rely on direct combat for now.

I channeled qi into my palm, executing Phantom Strike directly at Rocky's midsection. The technique released a concentrated burst of spiritual energy designed to cause internal damage even through physical defenses. My palm connected solidly with Rocky's stone abdomen, the impact sending ripples of force through his form.

Under normal circumstances, enhanced by Titan's Crest, this strike would have at least staggered him, possibly even created cracks in his stone body. Without that enhancement, however, the effect was disappointingly minimal. Rocky barely swayed, his stone body absorbing most of the impact.

His counterattack was immediate and brutal. Both massive hands came together in a thunderous clap aimed at catching me between them. I barely managed to drop and roll forward between his legs, the sound of stone striking stone deafening as his palms met where my head had been moments before.

Coming up behind him, I launched another Phantom Strike at the back of his knee, hoping to compromise his stability. This time the technique had more effect, Rocky's leg buckled slightly, but he recovered almost instantly, spinning and catching me with a backhanded blow that sent me flying.

I crashed into one of the training yard's reinforced walls, the impact driving the air from my lungs. Pain bloomed across my back and ribs as I slid to the ground. Something warm trickled from the corner of my mouth. Blood.

Liu Chen leaned forward anxiously from his safe vantage point. "Brother Ke! Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I called back, rising to my feet. "Just getting warmed up."

Rocky wasn't giving me time to recover. He charged forward, each footstep leaving small craters in the reinforced stone floor. As he approached, he did something completely unexpected, his body began to glow with a dull amber light, and the ground beneath him rippled as if suddenly fluid.

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"Rock Flow!" he announced with what sounded like pride.

The "fluid" stone of the training ground suddenly shot upward in four sharp spikes, directly under my feet. I leapt sideways just in time to avoid being impaled, but one spike grazed my calf, tearing through fabric and skin.

I barely had time to catch my balance when Rocky slammed his fists together, creating a sound like thunder. "Stone Echo!" he rumbled. The sound waves visibly distorted the air as they rushed toward me, carrying fragments of stone dust within them.

I crossed my arms in front of my face, channeling qi to create a crude barrier. The sonic attack hit with surprising force, pushing me back several feet and leaving my ears ringing painfully. The stone dust scraped against my exposed skin, leaving dozens of tiny abrasions.

"A ranged attack," I muttered, shaking my head to clear the disorientation. "That's unexpected from a stone guardian."

Rocky didn't wait for me to recover. His right arm suddenly transformed, the stone reshaping itself from a fist into what looked like a crude hammer. "Earth Shaper," he announced, bringing the weapon down with tremendous force.

I dove to the side, feeling the ground shudder as the hammer struck where I'd been standing. The impact created a small crater, sending fragments of stone flying in all directions.

Rocky pivoted with surprising grace, his left arm now transforming into a broad shield. He charged forward, using the shield as a battering ram. I tried to sidestep, but misjudged his speed. The edge of the shield caught me squarely in the chest, sending me flying backward once again.

This time I slammed into a decorative boulder at the edge of the training yard. Pain exploded across my back, and for a moment, my vision darkened around the edges. I slumped to the ground, gasping for breath.

Rocky wasn't finished. He planted his feet firmly, then twisted his upper body in a complete 360-degree rotation, something that should have been impossible for a being made of stone. "Stone Grinder!" he called out.

As he spun, his arms extended outward, transforming into long, flail-like appendages that whipped through the air with devastating force. The attack covered nearly the entire center area of the training yard, leaving no obvious escape route.

"That's definitely new," I gasped, forcing myself to my feet despite the pain.

With no time to dodge and nowhere to run, I channeled qi into my legs and jumped, higher than I would have been able to without enhancement. The stone flails passed beneath me, their wind pressure tugging at my robes. For a moment, I thought I'd successfully evaded the attack.

Then Rocky looked up, his featureless face somehow conveying satisfaction. "Stone Pillar Rising!" he announced.

A column of stone erupted directly beneath me, catching me mid-jump. The impact knocked the wind from my lungs and sent me tumbling awkwardly through the air. I managed to twist my body enough to land in a roll rather than flat on my back, but the landing was still rough enough to add new bruises to my growing collection.

I landed awkwardly. This spar was quickly becoming more challenging than I'd anticipated. Without my runes, the gap between my actual cultivation level and Rocky's was painfully apparent.

"Time to change tactics," I murmured.

This close-quarters approach clearly wasn't working. I needed to create distance and leverage what advantages I did have. Primordial Woods Arts was my best option, but I needed to reach those plants around the perimeter.

I feinted to the left, then darted right, using a burst of qi to enhance my speed. Rocky anticipated the movement, his massive fist swinging to intercept me. Instead of dodging, I dropped flat to the ground, the stone fist passing harmlessly overhead. The moment it cleared, I pushed off with all my strength, propelling myself toward the edge of the training yard.

Rocky roared and slammed both fists into the ground. A wave of stone rippled outward from the impact point, rushing toward me like a tide of solid earth. I pushed more qi into my legs, barely clearing the edge of the wave as it passed beneath me.

Just as I thought I'd escaped, Rocky's eyes flashed with amber light. "Earth Vein Tracking," he rumbled.

The stone wave I'd just evaded suddenly changed direction, curving impossibly to follow my trajectory. It was as if the earth itself was hunting me, flowing like water but hitting with the impact of solid rock.

I twisted mid-air, desperately trying to adjust my landing, but the wave caught my left foot just before I touched down. Pain shot through my ankle as the stone briefly encased it, then released.

I stumbled but managed to stay upright, testing my weight on the injured ankle. Not broken, but definitely sprained. The limitation would make this fight even more challenging.

"Earth Vein Tracking," Azure commented, sounding genuinely impressed. "That's typically an Elemental Realm technique, the ability to infuse qi into earth and maintain control over its movement path. Elder Song must have modified it specifically for Rocky's unique constitution."

Rocky placed his massive palm flat on the ground. "Stone Sense," he announced, closing his eyes.

Instantly, I felt a pulse of earth-attribute qi spread through the training yard like ripples in a pond. The stone beneath my feet vibrated subtly.

"He's reading your position through the earth," Azure warned. "Even if you hide visually, he'll know exactly where you are as long as you're in contact with the ground."

Great. I needed to either stay airborne or find a way to disrupt his technique. And with my injured ankle, jumping repeatedly wasn't a viable strategy.

With Rocky's Stone Sense tracking my every move, stealth wasn't an option. Instead, I opted for speed. Gritting my teeth against the pain in my ankle, I channeled qi into my legs and launched into a desperate sprint toward the bamboo.

Rocky sensed my movement immediately. "Stone Spears!" he called out, slamming his fist into the ground again.

Jagged spikes of stone erupted from the floor in my path, forcing me to weave between them. One grazed my arm, tearing my outer robe and drawing a thin line of blood. Another nearly impaled my foot as I leapt over it.

"He's herding you," Azure observed. "Trying to force you into a corner."

I could see the pattern now. The stone spears weren't random but strategically placed to limit my movement options. Rocky was demonstrating tactical thinking far beyond what I'd expected from a stone guardian.

With a final burst of qi-enhanced speed, I made it to the bamboo cluster, putting the thick stalks between myself and Rocky. The stone guardian was already lumbering toward me, each footstep leaving small craters in the training yard floor.

Extending my senses into the plants, I was surprised by how readily they responded. The connection felt stronger, more intuitive than I remembered. Previously, manipulating plants had required intense concentration, but now they seemed more eager to answer my call.

"Interesting," Azure commented. "Your experience using vine-based runes seems to have enhanced your natural affinity for plant manipulation. The practical knowledge transfers even without the rune activation."

That was unexpected but welcome news. I didn't have time to dwell on it as Rocky broke into a charge. Focusing my qi, I commanded the bamboo to respond.

The stalks bent and extended with unexpected speed, wrapping around Rocky's advancing form. The first few wrapped around his legs, causing him to stumble slightly. More shot forward, encircling his massive arms and torso. For a moment, it seemed to be working, his charge slowed as he fought against the entangling bamboo.

Then, with a roar that sent birds scattering from nearby trees, Rocky flexed his stone muscles. The bamboo stalks snapped like twigs, fragments flying in all directions. One sharp piece narrowly missed my eye, leaving a thin cut across my cheek instead.

"Well," I muttered, "that didn't work as planned."

"The bamboo was too brittle," Azure suggested. "You need something with more flexibility and tensile strength."

He was right.

My gaze fell on a wisteria vine climbing one of the courtyard walls. That would be more effective. As Rocky freed himself from the last of the shattered bamboo, I directed my qi toward the wisteria, feeling its life force respond to my call.

The vine detached from the wall, slithering across the ground like a serpent before shooting upward to wrap around Rocky's right ankle. More vines joined the first, growing and extending as I fed them qi. Unlike the bamboo, these held strong as Rocky struggled, their natural flexibility allowing them to adapt to his movements rather than breaking.

"Clever," Rocky commented, his stone features somehow conveying appreciation despite their immobility. "But not enough."

He stomped his entangled foot, sending a shockwave through the ground that uprooted the base of the vines. As they withered without their connection to the earth, Rocky broke free once more.

This was becoming frustrating. Each tactic I tried was countered, and without my runes, I was burning through qi at an alarming rate. At this pace, I'd exhaust myself long before making any significant impact on the stone guardian.

I needed to be smarter about this. Looking around, I noticed a large decorative planter containing a small tree, some kind of miniature oak that had been carefully maintained through spiritual cultivation techniques. More importantly, the soil in the planter was rich and dark, likely infused with spiritual nutrients to support the tree's growth.

Perfect.