Chapter 216: Chapter 206: Internal Competition (4)
Xiao Jin knew He Liancheng had gone easy on him. He sighed to himself, then cupped his fists and said, "Senior Brother He is highly skilled. I admit defeat."
He Liancheng showed no sign of pride. He returned the salute and said, "I was merely lucky."
Afterward, both Xiao Jin and He Liancheng had their own matches against Huang Guanglie of the Southern Suppression Sect.
Huang Guanglie cultivated a Wood Attribute Skill. His match against Xiao Jin went to the time limit without a victor, resulting in a draw.
He Liancheng, however, claimed another victory. He defeated Huang Guanglie to emerge as the winner in the competition for first place.
Zhong Yuntian breathed a sigh of relief, his expression softening.
Interestingly, in the subsequent contest for second place, the three disciples found themselves in a three-way tie, with each having won one match and lost one match.
Such a situation wasn’t rare. While skill was the deciding factor in a duel, performance on the day was just as crucial. Furthermore, some techniques naturally countered others.
In the contest for third place, Lv Zhenglong of the Xingyun Sect defeated the disciples from both the Li Yang Sect and the Southern Suppression Sect. The fourth-place victory, meanwhile, went to the Southern Suppression Sect.
After the four rounds of competition, the three sects had the same number of wins. However, since the Li Yang Sect had won first place, their overall record put them at the top, followed by the Xingyun Sect and the Southern Suppression Sect.
When it was time for the fifth-ranked competitor to appear, Zhao Lin stood up from his seat and strode into the training ground, immediately drawing the attention of the other sects’ disciples.
"Initial stage of the Blood Realm? Am I seeing things?" a disciple from the Li Yang Sect asked in surprise.
"You’re not mistaken. He’s at the initial stage of the Blood Realm," another disciple replied.
"What is the Xingyun Sect thinking, putting an initial-stage Blood Realm disciple fifth? Have they run out of people?"
"Heh, you just don’t understand. It’s a classic strategy: pit your weakest against their strongest. They must feel they have no chance of winning the fifth match, so they’re giving up this round and saving their stronger disciples to win back points later."
"You think so? Maybe this disciple is actually capable."
"Impossible! How strong can someone at the initial stage of the Blood Realm be? If he were at the First Layer of the Blood Realm, maybe..."
The disciples of the Li Yang Sect and Southern Suppression Sect were all discussing this animatedly. Only the Xingyun Sect disciples remained silent, smiling faces showing they were ready to enjoy the show.
The Southern Suppression Sect’s elder, Zhu Hong, let out a sound of surprise. "Brother Yang," he asked, "this disciple of yours looks unfamiliar. I don’t believe I’ve seen him before."
Yang Lin nodded slightly. "That’s right. Zhao Lin just entered the inner court last year."
Zhong Yuntian chuckled, his words laced with hidden meaning. "Junior Brother Yang, is this star pupil of yours truly ranked fifth in the inner court?"
Yang Lin’s brows furrowed, and he was about to lash out, but he quickly calmed himself down.
Zhao Lin was only at the initial stage of the Blood Realm and was an unfamiliar face. It was only natural for others to have their doubts. It wasn’t worth getting into a verbal squabble.
He simply said calmly, "Just watch, Brother Zhong. Isn’t it about to start? We’ll see in a moment if he has the strength of a fifth-ranked disciple."
The first match was Zhao Lin versus Chao Duan.
"Xingyun Sect, Zhao Lin."
Zhao Lin stepped forward and cupped his fists. He could sense a heavy and ancient aura within his opponent’s powerful Qi and Blood. Just as Xiang Shaofeng had said, this person cultivated an Earth and Wood dual-attribute skill.
"Li Yang Sect, Chao Duan."
Chao Duan had a calm and steady temperament. He didn’t look down on Zhao Lin for his lower realm, but he was still puzzled. ’Why would the Xingyun Sect send up a disciple who’s only at the initial stage of the Blood Realm?’
"One, two, three!"
The moment Liu Shengnian’s voice fell, Chao Duan shot forward and threw a punch, an earthy yellow energy instantly enveloping his fist.
Five sharp, menacing spikes sprouted from his knuckles.
"Thorny Sand Fist!"
Zhao Lin’s Qi and Blood were of the Water Attribute, so Chao Duan used an Earth-attribute skill.
Earth counters Water. This was the advantage of a dual-attribute skill: the ability to choose the right type of energy for the opponent.
However, Chao Duan didn’t know that Zhao Lin’s fist technique was not Water Attribute, but the Celestial Frost Fist.
Although he had only practiced it for a year and lacked deep mastery, his Cold Ice True Qi amplified the blow, making it as powerful as if he had perfected the technique.
The force of the wind howled, and a biting chill condensed the late autumn air into a trail of white vapor.
BAM!
As the two fists collided, Zhao Lin felt a heavy, earthy aura assault him. The energy within him roiled, and he couldn’t stop it from receding back into his Qi Sea.
Chao Duan, however, stumbled back several steps, a bone-chilling cold spreading through his body. He almost shivered, a look of disbelief on his face.
"Ice Attribute?"
Zhao Lin gave his opponent no chance to recover. Pushing off his left foot, his body shot forward like an arrow released from a bow. He rushed diagonally to the left, then abruptly veered right mid-way.
Channeling the Cloud-Flipping Force, his body moved in a bizarre, zig-zagging diagonal line.
’What kind of Body Technique is that?’
The spectating disciples were dumbfounded, but Liu Feiyang, who was watching from the side, had his eyes light up.
Seeing Zhao Lin’s flickering form, Chao Duan couldn’t tell where the attack would come from. He decided to split his palms, making a feint with his left while thrusting forward with his right.
Zhao Lin twisted his body in mid-air and executed a flying kick with his left foot. It was a move that used offense as defense, forcing Chao Duan to leap aside.
They landed at the same time. Zhao Lin attacked first, unleashing three consecutive claw strikes that sent Chao Duan into a flustered defense.
Zhong Yuntian’s eyelid twitched as he watched. ’This is not the strength of someone in the initial stage of the Blood Realm,’ he thought, unable to resist asking, "Junior Brother Yang, how old is this prized disciple of yours?"
Yang Lin answered calmly, "Nineteen."
"Only nineteen!"
Zhong Yuntian and Zhu Hong both sucked in a sharp breath. Nineteen years old, in the Blood Realm, and already possessing such incredible combat strength.
If he were to break through another one or two layers, wouldn’t he be unstoppable?
Going by his age, Zhao Lin could participate in four more of these competitions. The Xingyun Sect had truly found a treasure.
The two of them couldn’t help but feel a great sense of envy.
The three elders were all martial arts experts. Just by watching the beginning, they could roughly guess the outcome. Aside from his slightly weaker energy, Zhao Lin held the advantage in every other aspect. The battle’s result was no longer in question.
And that was indeed the case. Chao Duan was suppressed to the point where he couldn’t use his full strength, leaving him exceptionally frustrated.
Seeing that defeat was inevitable if the fight continued, Chao Duan let out a great shout, charged forward, and leaped high into the air. He executed an "Eagle Strike," bringing both his palms down with immense force.
Unflustered, Zhao Lin turned and took a single step.
This step was profound. He moved from the original "Tun" position to the "Shi" position, instantly appearing at Chao Duan’s side.
He thrust out a claw, aiming straight for the vital point on his opponent’s waist.
Chao Duan’s face turned ashen. He was in mid-air, his body fully extended, with his center of gravity right at his waist. He had no way to dodge or maneuver.
Zhao Lin’s claw strike seemed ordinary, but it was actually cunning and vicious, leaving him no room to escape.
Several countermeasures flashed through Chao Duan’s mind, but he immediately discarded them all. He could only watch helplessly as the claw struck his body.
Zhao Lin held back the force of his claw, retracting it the moment it made contact. He then stepped back a few paces and said, "Thank you for the match."
Chao Duan lowered his head. "My skills were inferior. I was fairly beaten."
"He won? Just like that?"
The Li Yang Sect disciples exchanged stunned glances. They never imagined that their fifth-ranked disciple, Chao Duan, would be defeated in just a dozen exchanges, completely unable to fight back from start to finish.
Just moments ago, they had thought Zhao Lin was just a filler for the fifth spot. Now, they felt he might even be stronger than Yao Chong, who was ranked fourth.
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