8: Chapter 8: Facing a Powerful Enemy Again, the Hidden Force Reveals Its Might

After the first round, sixteen winners were decided. After a short rest, the second round drawing began immediately.

The atmosphere around the arena was heavier than in the first round. Those who could advance to this round were, at the very least, outstanding individuals among the sixth stage, and there were even several experts at the seventh stage. The qualification for the Cang Gong Pavilion seemed within reach, yet separated by a more cruel screening process.

Lin Yan followed the other winners to draw a number tag again. He unfolded the wooden tag in his hand — "Yi Four". His gaze swept to the match-up list just posted; the other name corresponding to Yi Four caught his eye: Xiao Li.

Seeing this name, a slight commotion arose among the crowd below.

"Xiao Li? Is that the Xiao Li who practices the 'Wind-Breaking Spear Technique'?"

"Doesn't he spend the whole year outside managing the family business? Why is he back?"

"Dou Zhi Qi seventh stage, his spear technique is fast and fierce; he's considered a tough nut to crack even among the seventh stage!"

"Lin Yan is in trouble now, his luck is really bad..."

Xiao Li, a direct descendant of the Xiao Family, was slightly older, about eighteen or nineteen years old. He often trained outside, had rich combat experience, his cultivation was firmly at the seventh stage, and he was known for his sharp spear Dou Technique. In everyone's eyes, this was definitely a hard bone to chew, far from comparable to Xiao Ke in the first round.

Lin Yan's expression remained unchanged, but his heart felt slightly heavy. Seventh stage, and a spear master known for fierce attacks; this posed a higher requirement for him to hide his strength. He needed a "bitter battle," a "difficult" victory, to continue rationalizing his performance. The hidden force of the Eight Extremities Collapse might have to be exposed a little in advance.

Not far away, Xiao Ning saw the match-up list, and a cold, satisfied sneer curled the corner of his mouth. The opponent he drew was another seventh-stage fighter, but he was confident in his victory. He walked near Lin Yan, his voice not high, but loud enough for those around to hear: "Xiao Li's Wind-Breaking Spear is specifically designed to break brute force. Lin Yan, your good luck has come to an end. That's fine, it saves me from having to do it in the second round, lest people say I am bullying you." After saying this, he turned and left with a sneer.

Xiao Yan also walked over at this time, his brows slightly furrowed, and said in a low voice: "Xiao Li's spear technique is very fast, focusing on a single point to break a surface. Your strength advantage might not be easy to utilize. He is experienced; be careful of his feints and the returning spear." After a pause, he handed Lin Yan a small jade bottle, "Inside are two energy recovery pills. The quality is average, but they might be useful at a critical moment."

Lin Yan did not refuse, accepted the jade bottle, and said sincerely: "Many thanks." He could feel that Xiao Yan's concern came from the heart; this future Flame Emperor was already showing his loyal and righteous side.

"You be careful too." Xiao Yan nodded; his opponent was also a seventh-stage fighter, not to be underestimated.

The short preparation time passed quickly. The second round of the competition began.

The first few battles became increasingly intense, Dou Technique brilliance flashed, shouts continued, and the outcome was often decided in a split second. Xiao Ning appeared again, still strong. Relying on his eighth-stage peak cultivation and skilled fist technique, he defeated the seventh-stage opponent within thirty moves. Although the process was not as easy as the first round, it showed his advantage. When he stepped off the stage, he gave Lin Yan another look full of pressure.

Finally, the steward announced loudly: "Second round, fourth match, Yi Four, Lin Yan, versus Yi Four, Xiao Li!"

Lin Yan took a deep breath, cleared his mind, and stepped onto the arena steadily. His opponent, Xiao Li, was already waiting on the field. This was a lean young man with a cold face, holding a white wax wood spear, the tip of which was flashing with cold light. He stood there, possessing a steady demeanor polished by experience, his eyes sharp as an eagle, firmly locking onto Lin Yan.

"I've heard about your strength." Xiao Li spoke, his voice low, "But the arena is not the marketplace, and a spear is not a fist. Be careful."

"Please enlighten me, Brother Xiao Li." Lin Yan cupped his hands, his expression solemn. He could feel the faint murderous aura coming from the other side; that was the aura only possessed by those who had truly seen blood and experienced combat, completely different from those greenhouse flowers in the family.

"The competition begins!"

Before the words faded, Xiao Li moved! His figure lunged like a hunting leopard, the spear in his hand turned into a blurry white shadow, tearing through the air with a sharp wind-breaking sound, stabbing straight at Lin Yan's throat! No frills, just fast, accurate, and ruthless!

Lin Yan's pupils shrank, his feet retreated rapidly, and he turned sideways at the same time. The spear tip grazed his collar, the cold wind scratching his skin painfully. Before he could stand steady, Xiao Li flicked his wrist, and the spear swept across his waist and abdomen like a snake's tail! The change of moves was fast, and the connection was smooth, far exceeding Xiao Ke.

Lin Yan let out a low shout, holding nothing back. The power of his Dou Zhi Qi seventh stage peak fully erupted (under the cover of the breath-concealing talisman, it still appeared to be a violent eruption of the fifth stage peak to outsiders), his feet stomped the ground, his waist twisted violently, and his right fist, wrapped in strong wind, smashed into the sweeping spear shaft without dodging!

"Clang!"

The fist and spear clashed, making a crisp sound like metal colliding! Lin Yan's fist felt a slight pain, but the powerful force also caused the spear shaft to vibrate outwards. Xiao Li only felt a surging giant force coming from the spear body, his arm slightly numb, and he was secretly shocked: "What strong force! It really lives up to its reputation!"

But he was experienced; he used the momentum to spin, the spear drew an arc, the tip touched the ground, and his whole person flew into the air, his legs twisting toward Lin Yan's neck like scissors! It was actually a combination of spear technique and leg attacks!

Lin Yan lowered his head and bowed, narrowly avoiding it, while his left palm slapped at Xiao Li's lower body. Xiao Li twisted his body in the air, the spear retracted, the tail of the spear acting like a staff, fiercely stabbing at Lin Yan's back!

The two fought for more than ten rounds in an instant. Xiao Li's spear technique was sharp, the moves were ruthless, and he was experienced, bringing the advantage of "one inch long, one inch strong" into full play. The spear shadows almost enveloped Lin Yan. Lin Yan relied on the agility and resilience enhanced by the Living Spirit Flame, combined with solid basic boxing and kicking and seventh-stage Dou Qi, moving around in the spear shadows, sometimes hitting the spear shaft with heavy punches to dissolve the offensive. Although he looked slightly embarrassed, he defended tightly and had not been truly hit.

The audience below was dazzled. Xiao Li's spear technique made them admire, and the tenacity, reaction, and the unyielding resilience shown by Lin Yan also made them look at him with new eyes.

"This Lin Yan... to think he can fight Xiao Li like this?"

"Is his body made of iron? He has taken the spear shaft head-on several times!"

"So much power, he can shake Xiao Li's spear every time, otherwise he would have lost long ago."

"But if it goes on like this, his Dou Qi consumption is too high, I'm afraid he won't last long..."

Sure enough, as time passed, Lin Yan's breathing began to become heavy, and sweat appeared on his forehead. To outsiders, he only had "fifth stage peak" Dou Qi, and fighting the seventh-stage Xiao Li at such high intensity, the consumption was naturally extremely fast. He had to start relying more on physical instinct and combat intuition to dodge, and his offensive gradually decreased.

Xiao Li also noticed this, a flash of light in his eyes: "It's about time!" He had been attacking for a long time without success, and he was also a bit impatient, deciding to use his killing move.

He suddenly retreated a step, opened up some distance, held the spear with both hands, the Dou Qi in his body surged, and was poured into the spear body. The white wax wood spear hummed, and at the tip of the spear, pale cyan wind-attribute Dou Qi gathered, forming a small spiral air vortex, making a faint hissing sound.

"Wind-Breaking Thrust!"

Xiao Li roared, his body followed the spear, and the whole person seemed to merge with the spear, turning into a cyan stream of light, stabbing straight at Lin Yan's chest with a speed several times faster than before! This spear condensed the essence of his seventh-stage Dou Qi, the penetrating power was extremely strong, and it even blocked most of the angles for Lin Yan to dodge left and right!

"It's coming!" Lin Yan's eyes sharpened. He knew that the time to decide the outcome had arrived. Simply dodging or blocking, with his "displayed" Dou Qi level, he couldn't take this spear at all. He had to "take a risk"!

He stomped his feet violently, not only did he not retreat, but he took half a step forward, his body slightly tilted, his right fist collected at his waist, the Dou Qi in his body circulated at an unprecedented speed, and the force path of the Eight Extremities Collapse was instantly connected. This time, it was not just the first layer of open force, the second layer of hidden force also began to quietly condense and compress in the meridians of his fist.

He did not choose to shake the sharpest part of the spear tip. At the moment when the cyan spear light was about to reach his body, his body twisted at an extremely subtle angle, letting the spear tip graze the clothing on his left rib, the cold sharp qi tore the fabric, leaving a white mark on his skin.

At the same time, his right fist, which had been accumulating power for a long time, was like an arrow shot from a fully drawn bow. It was not aimed at the spear shaft, but followed the trajectory of the spear shaft sliding, and with faster speed, it went straight to the wrist holding the spear, which was wide open due to Xiao Li's full-force thrust!

This punch was silent, but as fast as lightning. On the fist, there was a faint, strange, restrained vibrating fluctuation.

Xiao Li thrust his full-force spear into empty air, and just as he felt something was wrong, he felt his wrist shake violently! A tricky and soft force, like a poisonous snake, drilled into the meridians of his wrist, not only instantly disintegrating the strength of his grip on the spear, but also attacking upwards along the arm, making his entire right arm instantly numb and powerless!

"Hidden Force?!" Xiao Li gasped in shock. He had been training for many years and had seen some special Dou Techniques, instantly recognizing this strange force that had invaded his body.

"Let go!" Lin Yan shouted in a low voice, and the fist force spat out slightly a second time.

"Clang!" The white wax wood spear left his hand and fell to the ground.

Xiao Li staggered back, covering his right wrist that had instantly lost feeling with his left hand, his face pale, cold sweat dripping from his forehead. He stared at Lin Yan, his eyes full of disbelief. He had lost, lost to the opponent's hidden, higher-level force-exerting technique! That hidden force was at least a Yellow-rank high-level, or perhaps even a characteristic possessed by a Xuan-rank Dou Technique!

Below the stage, there was dead silence. Everyone was stunned by this sudden reversal.

How could Xiao Li, who had the upper hand just a moment ago, lose his weapon and show signs of defeat in an instant?

"That is... Hidden Force? Did Lin Yan just use Hidden Force?!"

"He actually mastered Hidden Force techniques! No wonder his strength is so great!"

"What kind of Dou Technique is this? Is it in the family's Cang Gong Pavilion?"

"He actually hid such a trump card!"

The steward was also stunned for a moment before announcing loudly: "Lin Yan, wins!"

Lin Yan slowly retracted his fist and let out a long breath of turbid air, his face also appearing somewhat pale (partly disguised, partly due to significant true qi consumption). He walked forward and cupped his hands to the still-in-disbelief Xiao Li: "Brother Xiao Li, you let me win. It was just luck."

Xiao Li shook his head with a bitter smile, bent down to pick up the spear, and looked at Lin Yan deeply: "What a Hidden Force! I don't lose unjustly. You are very good." He paused, and said in a low voice, "However, the consumption is not small, right? In the next match, if you meet Xiao Ning, be careful, his strength is stronger than it appears." After speaking, he turned and stepped off the stage decisively.

Lin Yan's heart tightened, and he nodded. He also felt that forcing the second layer of Hidden Force of the Eight Extremities Collapse during rapid movement just now had consumed far more Dou Qi and mental energy than expected. If it weren't for the continuous nourishment and recovery of the Living Spirit Flame, his state would be even worse now.

He walked off the arena, and was greeted by various complex gazes — shock, admiration, wariness, curiosity. Xiao Yan walked over quickly and handed him the bottle of energy recovery pills: "Hurry and take one to regulate your breath."

Lin Yan did not stand on ceremony, poured one out and swallowed it, the gentle medicinal power melted, replenishing his consumption. He looked at Xiao Yan and said in a low voice: "Xiao Ning..."

"I know." Xiao Yan's expression was heavy, "You heard it too, Xiao Li said he is stronger than he looks. I just asked around, he might have already stepped into the ninth stage with half a foot, and, the Great Elder seems to have privately passed him a powerful Dou Technique."

Lin Yan's eyes sank slightly. Eighth stage peak, maybe even touching the threshold of the ninth stage, plus an unknown powerful Dou Technique... This was definitely a formidable enemy. He had exposed his Hidden Force trump card, the opponent would definitely be on guard.

"The third round match-up will be out soon." Xiao Yan looked towards the direction of the steward who had just posted the new match-up list.

Lin Yan adjusted his breath for a moment and also looked over. He saw on the match-up list, for the third round, the four-to-two competition, one of the matches clearly read:

Lin Yan VS Xiao Ning

What was bound to come, eventually came.

On the other side of the arena, Xiao Ning also saw the match-up list. He slowly raised his head, looked at Lin Yan, and a cold and fighting-spirit-filled smile spread across the corners of his mouth. He didn't speak, just raised his hand, and made a throat-slitting gesture towards Lin Yan.

The atmosphere of the whole arena was instantly ignited by this silent provocation, and everyone's eyes were focused on the two people who were about to duel.

On the viewing platform, the Great Elder picked up his teacup, took a sip, and a flash of imperceptible cold light flickered in his turbid old eyes. Beside him, a trusted aide leaned over slightly and whispered a few words. The Great Elder put down the teacup, tapped his fingertips rhythmically on the table, his gaze fell on Lin Yan who was adjusting his breath below the stage, and then slowly shifted to Xiao Yan who was whispering to Xiao Xun Er not far away, a deep calculation flashing in the depths of his eyes.