As Rocky charged again, I darted toward the planter. Reaching it just steps ahead of the stone guardian, I plunged my hands into the soil and channeled my qi deep into the earth. The response was immediate and powerful. Seedlings that had lain dormant in the rich soil awakened to my call, tiny sprouts erupting from the earth and growing at an accelerated pace.

"What is Brother Ke doing?" I heard Liu Chen ask from his observation point.

Rocky seemed to sense my intention, he slammed his fists together, then suddenly thrust his palms toward the ground. "Earth Dragon Emergence!"

The training yard shuddered violently. The stone floor bulged upward, taking the rough shape of a serpentine dragon. With a sound like mountains collapsing, the earth construct lunged toward me, jaws open wide.

I barely had time to redirect my qi, commanding the emerging seedlings to form a hasty barrier. The earth dragon collided with my plant shield, the impact sending shockwaves through the yard. My barrier held, but just barely, the young plants straining against the tremendous force.

"I didn't know stone guardians could create earth constructs," I gasped, pouring more qi into the seedlings to reinforce them.

"They typically can't," Azure replied. "This is far beyond standard stone guardian abilities. Elder Song must be grooming Rocky for something significant."

Taking advantage of the momentary standoff between my plant barrier and his earth dragon, I redirected a portion of my qi to accelerate the growth of more seedlings from the planter.

Vines exploded from the planter in all directions, thicker and stronger than the wisteria had been. These were young oaks, but infused with my qi and accelerated through the Primordial Woods Arts, they grew as I directed, not into trees, but into whip-like tendrils with the strength of their oak heritage.

The vines shot out, wrapping around Rocky from multiple angles. Unlike my previous attempts, these held firm as the stone guardian struggled. More importantly, they continued to grow, thickening and multiplying as they fed on both my qi and the nutrient-rich soil.

"Impressive adaptation," Azure commented. "Using the enriched soil as a catalyst."

Rocky struggled against his bonds, but they only tightened in response. I maintained my focus, directing the growth pattern to maximize strength while preserving flexibility. The spiritual oak responded beautifully, creating a living cage around the stone guardian.

"Brother Ke strong," Rocky acknowledged, his stone features somehow managing to convey respect despite their immobility. "Different than last time."

"I'm learning," I replied, maintaining my concentration on the binding vines. "But so are you."

Rocky's amber glow intensified suddenly, and I felt a surge of earth-attribute qi emanating from his form. The stone beneath him softened once more, but instead of attacking me, it began to rise, lifting Rocky upward on a pillar of stone. The maneuver was clever, by changing his position, he was forcing my vines to extend beyond their effective range.

I countered by redirecting the growth, sending the vines climbing up the stone pillar to maintain their hold. It became a strange contest of wills, Rocky continuing to manipulate the stone to create distance, me adapting the vines to bridge that gap.

My qi reserves were dwindling rapidly now. Maintaining this level of plant manipulation against a Qi Condensation Stage 9 opponent without rune enhancement was taking its toll. Sweat beaded on my forehead as I poured more qi into the connection.

Rocky seemed to sense my fatigue. "Brother Ke tired. Rocky break free." He flexed his stone arms, causing several vines to creak ominously.

He was right. I couldn't maintain this much longer, and when my control faltered, he would break free easily. I needed to end this now, one way or another.

With a final surge of qi, I commanded the vines to constrict sharply, pulling Rocky off his stone pillar. The guardian crashed to the ground with enough force to create a small crater in the reinforced floor. Before he could recover, I directed the remaining vines to create a complex binding pattern I'd once seen used in a formation diagram, a spiritual lock of sorts.

The vines wove themselves into the pattern, glowing faintly as they drew the last of the qi I was willing to expend. When the pattern completed, Rocky found himself completely immobilized, not through brute force, but through the spiritual binding properties of the formation-inspired arrangement.

Rocky tested the bonds, his stone body straining against the constraints. For a moment, I thought he might break free anyway, but then he relaxed, his amber glow fading.

"Rocky could break," he stated matter-of-factly. "But damage yard. Hurt plants. Not good."

I recognized the concession for what it was, a graceful way to end our spar. I didn’t doubt his words, if Rocky had used his full strength, he probably could have shattered the binding, but at the cost of significant destruction to the training area. His restraint spoke volumes about how much he'd matured under Elder Song's guidance.

"Let’s stop here," I said, releasing my control over the vines. They immediately began to retract, unwinding from Rocky's massive form and returning to their natural state. "That was an excellent match."

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Liu Chen came running over, his eyes wide with excitement. "That was amazing! I've never seen plant manipulation like that before! And Rocky, you were incredible with those earth techniques!"

Rocky made a grinding sound that I'd come to recognize as his version of a pleased chuckle. "Elder Song say Rocky learn fast."

I nodded in agreement, trying not to show how exhausted I actually felt. My qi reserves were dangerously low, and various parts of my body throbbed from the hits I'd taken. Without the Woodweave Seal to accelerate healing, these injuries would take a day or two to fade naturally.

"She's right," I said. "Your progress is remarkable."

Liu Chen beamed up at his stone friend, then turned to me with concern in his eyes. "You're hurt, Brother Ke. We should get you some healing herbs."

I waved off his concern. "Just a few cuts and brusies. Nothing serious." I rotated my shoulder experimentally, wincing slightly at the stiffness. "Though I'll definitely feel this tomorrow."

"Rocky sorry," the stone guardian rumbled, looking genuinely remorseful. "Not mean hurt Brother Ke."

"Don't apologize for fighting well," I smiled at him. "That's exactly what I wanted."

We moved to a small seating area at the edge of the training yard. Liu Chen brought tea while excitedly recounting his favorite moments from our spar. I listened with half an ear, my mind already analyzing the battle, identifying weaknesses in my approach and moments where I'd nearly fallen back on rune-enhanced abilities out of habit.

"Your manipulation of the oak seedlings was particularly effective," Azure commented privately. "The combination of formation principles with plant manipulation shows promise."

"It felt more natural than I expected," I replied mentally. "Almost as if I've been practicing plant manipulation all along, even though much of my experience has come through rune usage."

"Consider it a fortunate side effect," Azure suggested. "The conceptual understanding transfers even if the power source is different."

After finishing the tea and reassuring Liu Chen several more times that I wasn't seriously injured, I rose to leave. Liu Chen had lessons to attend, and I had more preparations to make.

"I should go," I said. "Thank you both for the spar. It was exactly what I needed."

Liu Chen looked disappointed. "You'll come back soon, right?"

"Of course," I promised, ruffling his hair. "And next time, maybe we can work on some basic techniques for you."

His face lit up at that prospect. "Really? Elder Song is teaching me the foundation stances, but I'd love to learn from you too!"

"Just the basics," I cautioned. "But yes, I'd be happy to show you a few things."

Rocky walked us to the entrance of the compound, his massive form moving with deliberate care to avoid damaging the pathway. At the gate, he surprised me by extending his hand, a very human gesture.

"Fight good," he said simply. "Rocky learn from Brother Ke."

I took his stone hand, my own disappearing in his massive grip. "I learned from you too, Rocky."

The walk back to my quarters gave me time to reflect on the spar and its implications. My body ached, each step a reminder of how different combat was without my full arsenal of techniques.

"I need a movement technique," I said to Azure as we entered the outer disciple area. "Something to replace Blink Step when I can't use runes."

"A wise consideration," Azure agreed. "Several traditional qi-based movement techniques might suit your needs. The Cloud Step Method or perhaps the Windweave Technique would complement your existing abilities."

I nodded, already making mental notes. "And I need to expand my applications of the Primordial Woods Arts. Even though I already knew I’d been relying on runes, today just showed how heavy my reliance on it is.”

"Your formation-inspired binding at the end was particularly interesting," Azure noted. "The integration of formation principles with plant manipulation could be developed further."

I felt a small surge of excitement at the memory. "I wasn't entirely sure it would work," I admitted. "Formation experts typically use inscribed arrays, talismans, or spirit stones as anchors. Using qi-infused plants as formation components isn't the traditional approach."

"Which is precisely what makes it intriguing," Azure replied. "Most formation masters would consider living plants too unstable to maintain proper geometric alignment. Yet you managed it."

I nodded. It was definitely something to explore further.

When I reached my small quarters, I lit the simple oil lamp with a touch of qi and sat heavily on my meditation mat, feeling every bruise and strain from the day's exertions.

"Master,” Azure said. “Today's experience, difficult as it was, may prove more valuable than a dozen victories while using your full capabilities."

He was right, of course. Limitations revealed weaknesses, and weaknesses identified became opportunities for growth. The difference between my performance with and without runes had been stark, uncomfortably so, but now I knew exactly what needed improvement.

Sometimes, taking a step back reveals the path forward.

As I continued to reflect on the battle, I realized something important about the relative strength of my opponents. Rocky had improved tremendously, there was no denying that. His combat prowess now placed him firmly in the early to mid-range of Qi Condensation Stage 9. Impressive for someone who had been at Stage 6 not long ago.

"If I had used my full capabilities, all my runes, both sun energies, I could have defeated Rocky relatively easily," I mused to Azure. "But someone like Liu Chang is another matter entirely."

"You're thinking about the beast wave mission," Azure noted.

I nodded, remembering how Liu Chang had handled himself against Ke Jun. "Liu Chang stands at the absolute peak of Qi Condensation Stage 9, just a hairsbreadth away from breaking through to the Elemental Realm. Even with all my runes and techniques, the battle would be close for sure, but I'm not certain I could defeat him in a direct confrontation."

"Unless you used the baby star," Azure pointed out.

"True," I admitted. "But that would be a last resort, used only in a life-or-death battle. The energy drain would leave me vulnerable afterward, and the destructive potential..." I trailed off, remembering the devastating power of that single attack I could channel from the baby star. "It's not something to use casually."

Without my runes, I was at a significant disadvantage against ninth-stage cultivators like Rocky. With my full arsenal, I could likely handle most opponents at that level, but exceptional talents like Liu Chang and likely Wu Kangming remained beyond my reach without resorting to the baby star's power.

"All the more reason to develop my qi techniques," I said. "I can't always rely on runes or sun energy, especially in situations where I need to conceal my true capabilities."

“Master, I think it’s time we pay another visit to the Sect Archives,” Azure responded.

"Later today," I decided, "we look for scrolls on qi-based movement techniques. And then we practice until my feet bleed if necessary."

"So dramatic," Azure commented with a hint of amusement. "But I approve of the dedication."

I smiled despite my exhaustion. The tournament loomed ahead, and for the first time in weeks, I felt like I was truly preparing, not just training.

Limitations had shown me my weaknesses. Now it was time to turn those weaknesses into strength.