56: Chapter 56 S-Rank Wind Feather Sacred Eagle

Lin Ye couldn't be bothered to fight him in the virtual simulation match of the City Tournament, but instead deliberately saved him for the higher-stakes and more realistic Nantan Prefecture State Competition.

His goal was to crush all of his pride, trump cards, and sense of superiority right in front of all the top geniuses across Quanzhou, making him lose everything and suffer total humiliation!

Lin Ye saw through it all with crystal clarity: only by completely disrupting his state of mind, letting anger and wishful thinking cloud his judgment, and making him firmly believe that the power of thunder absolutely restrained malevolent Qi while feeling invincible in combat, could he cause him to become completely conceited, arrogant, and lose his composure.

Once he completely lost his reason, on the stage of the real showdown at the State Competition six days later, he would inevitably act wildly arrogant, make reckless moves, and repeatedly cross the line.

Once he touched the tournament's red lines in the strictly regulated State Competition, disgraced himself with rule violations, and completely spun out of control, Lin Ye would be able to legitimately and openly suppress him completely, settling all past grievances between them without leaving behind any hidden troubles or gossip!

Trading an inconsequential points victory in the City Tournament for the total destruction of his opponent's mindset and the self-severing of his future path, in exchange for an upright and decisive crushing victory at the State Competition.

This deal was an absolute guaranteed profit with no risk of loss.

On the arena stage, the referee briefly dazed out, quickly snapped back to his senses, raised his arm high, and proclaimed in a loud voice:

"Lin Ye forfeits! In this match, Ye Feng wins and gains one point!"

The loud pronouncement echoed through the entire government hall, and the scene instantly plunged into a dead silence where a pin drop could be heard.

Hundreds of teachers and students in the audience, along with numerous leaders and distinguished guests, were all struck dumb with astonishment, their eyes wide open and their minds blank, utterly unable to believe the result before them.

Who could have foreseen it? That super dark horse Lin Ye, who had defied the odds all the way, successively crushed S-Rank geniuses like Su Mingzhe and Lu Kai, and possessed an unbreakable combat power, actually surrendered without a fight when facing Ye Feng on the stage of their destined duel!

A few seconds after the ruling was finalized, the dead-silent arena instantly exploded into an uproar. Overwhelming discussions surged up, and everyone's perceptions were completely subverted by this absurd battle outcome.

"How could he forfeit? Lin Ye can easily crush even S-Rank geniuses, so why would he fear Ye Feng?"

"Could the rumor that thunder divinely restrains malevolent Qi be true? Lin Ye's malevolent Qi subordinates are perfectly countered and have no chance of winning at all, which is why he directly abstained?"

"Does that mean Ye Feng's Thunderstorm Berserk Rhino is truly Lin Ye's only nemesis?"

Everyone in the audience had preconceived notions, firmly believing that Lin Ye was wary of the power of thunder and voluntarily surrendered because he knew he couldn't win. No one perceived the deep calculation behind this match, and no one knew about the private conversation between the two just moments ago.

No one saw clearly that this seemingly battle-avoiding abstention was, from beginning to end, a death trap designed to break the heart meticulously laid out by Lin Ye with his own hands.

At this moment, Ye Feng's mind and soul had long been completely swallowed by monstrous unwillingness, humiliation, and anger.

He stared fixedly at Lin Ye's calm and composed back as the latter walked down the arena stage, biting his teeth so tightly that fine blood seeped from between them, while a nearly demented, paranoid murderous intent churned deep within his eyes.

He had won the match and secured the points, but he had lost completely and utterly, without a shred of dignity left.

This easy-to-get victory did not bring him a shred of glory; instead, it was like the loudest slap in the face, fiercely tearing apart all his pride and constantly reminding him—from beginning to end, he was merely a chess piece casually manipulated in Lin Ye's hands, used to pave the way ahead.

The clamor of the City Tournament arena lingered for a long time, and the result of Lin Ye forfeiting and avoiding battle against Ye Feng became the core topic of heated discussion among the audience.

Everyone was convinced that thunder divine power naturally restrained malevolent Qi, assuming that Lin Ye harbored fear deep down toward Ye Feng's trump card, which was why he willingly handed over the victory. No one saw through the fact that this seemingly battle-avoiding defeat was an exquisite layout designed to mentally break the opponent.

The Top Ten Round-Robin Points Match would not stall because of a single match's disturbance. After a brief rest, the draw for the new round of battles commenced immediately, and the remaining schedule unfolded sequentially. Every points competition concerned the final quota for the State Competition, and no one dared to truly relax.

Ye Feng stood in the corner of the arena, the thunder spiritual energy around him churning restlessly, and the paranoia and anger in the depths of his eyes had not faded in the slightest.

The single point won from the match not only failed to bring peace to his state of mind, but instead became a shackle that tortured him.

He knew better than anyone that this victory lacked any true substance; it was merely alms from an opponent who disdained to fight him. This humiliation made him all the more eager to reveal all his trump cards and crush Lin Ye in a true showdown.

Soon, the new battle roster was refreshed, and Lin Ye's opponent for this round was Wan Tianlu, an S-Rank genius and one of the favorites for the Top Five of this City Tournament.

Wan Tianlu firmly ranked among the top S-Rank geniuses across the entire city. His Divine Kingdom foundation was profound and solid, and he had deeply cultivated wind-type subordinates for years. His subordinate Wind-Feathered Sacred Eagles were renowned throughout the entire Cangnan City, representing the ultimate high-altitude aerial combat suppression unit. Their speed, penetration, and raid abilities were maxed out, and countless top contestants had fallen under his airspace suppression.

As he stepped onto the stage, Wan Tianlu wore a solemn expression without a shred of contempt.

Having witnessed firsthand Lin Ye's top-tier combat power in crushing Su Mingzhe and instantly killing Lu Kai, he knew deeply the terror of this F-rank dark horse and dared not view his opponent through conventional ratings in the slightest.

Urging his divine sense, his Divine Kingdom passage abruptly opened. Violent gales suddenly swept across the entire arena, sharp wind blades tore through the air, and hundreds of cyan streaks of light broke through the sky and circled, blocking out the sun and sky.

A full four hundred S-Rank Wind-Feathered Sacred Eagles spread their wings and appeared in the world. Their wings were covered in sharp wind blades, their feathers shimmered with cyan light, and their beaks were as sharp as fine steel. As they circled in the high altitude, the winds across the sky converged into a lethal airspace; anyone who stepped inside would instantly be sliced and torn to pieces by thousands of wind blades.

Wan Tianlu was full of confidence, his voice shaking the entire audience as he confidently predicted the battle situation: "Lin Ye, your malevolent Qi hounds and soul crow swarms are indeed unbeatable, but my Wind-Feathered Sacred Eagles are uniquely blessed by nature! Not only is their flying altitude far exceeding your Soul-Crying Crows, but their overall soul resistance is also far superior to the Wild Mammoth that was instantly controlled earlier! Ordinary crow-cry soul interference is completely ineffective against my Sacred Eagles! Today, let me see what other trump cards you have left!"

As for his other subordinates, Wan Tianlu didn't summon them out at all. Under the suppression of the Soul-Crying Crows, even if those subordinates were summoned, they would only be crushed.

The audience instantly focused their attention, and everyone thought Lin Ye would fall into a bitter battle, or even be forced to rely once again on Marrow-Eating Demon Hounds to forcibly contend for the airspace. But this time, Lin Ye directly deployed his full set of triple combat power, solely for a quick victory.

Facing the Wind-Feathered Sacred Eagle legion suspended high in the firmament, with wind blades filling the sky and extremely strong soul resistance, Lin Ye's expression remained calm as he formed seals with both hands simultaneously, opening three Divine Kingdom passages in sync!

Pitch-black malevolent Qi rolled and surged as over a thousand Marrow-Eating Demon Hounds stepped out onto the ground, arraying themselves on the arena floor. Their ferocious Qi lay dormant and gathered strength, quietly waiting for an opening in the aerial battle; countless black shadows swept across the vast sky, and a large group of eerie Shadow Foxes hid themselves amidst the violent winds and shadows, using their shadow stealth talent to obscure their forms and lock onto high-altitude targets;

Finally, a pitch-black crow swarm filled the sky, soaring overwhelmingly into the air. In the center of the swarm, a crow king—whose size far exceeded ordinary Soul-Crying Crows and whose eyes were crimson red—slowly manifested in the world.

This was the trump card Lin Ye had never exposed before—the Soul-Crying Crow leader.

The soul interference of ordinary Soul-Crying Crows was scattered and weak, truly incapable of shaking the S-Rank Wind-Feathered Sacred Eagles which possessed extremely strong soul resistance. However, the Crow King possessed a unique ability: integrating all the soul power of the entire crow army to condense a once-in-a-lifetime peak soul shock.

This strike would have no second chance. Exhausting the soul charge of all the crows, it was a fleeting and lethal opening; once it missed, this battle would fall into a protracted stalemate.

This was also the reason why Lin Ye summoned all three major subordinate groups simultaneously.

He knew the advantages of the Wind-Feathered Sacred Eagles: unbreakable at high altitudes, extremely strong resistance, and sufficient endurance. The longer it dragged on, the greater the attrition on his ground subordinates would be.

Only by seizing this single soul strike to instantly break their defense could he quickly clear the field and end the battle the moment the Sacred Eagles fell and their formation collapsed.