"Place your bets! Ten to one for a Lin Yun victory...!" Below the arena, the Royal Family had announced Lin Yun’s odds. At ten to one, it was a very high payout.

However, almost no one bet on Lin Yun. No one believed he could defeat a Martial Artist at the Late Stage of the Qi Sea Realm. Only Chen Xin and his two companions placed their bets on him.

"Are those three idiots? Betting on an ant at the First Layer of the Opening Realm." Many people thought Chen Xin and his friends had lost their minds, betting on someone at the First Layer of the Opening Realm.

Once the betting was over, the fight began. The Martial Artist at the Seventh Layer of the Qi Sea Realm looked at Lin Yun and chuckled. "I suggest you surrender now. I don’t know how to hold back, and it would be a shame if I accidentally killed you."

It was blatant contempt. Facing Lin Yun, the man didn’t even bother to circulate his Elemental Power. It was clear he didn’t take Lin Yun seriously in the slightest.

Lin Yun said nothing. ’In situations like this,’ he thought, ’words are useless. It’s better to let my fists do the talking.’

A fluctuation of Elemental Power rippled out as the aura of the First Layer of the Opening Realm manifested around Lin Yun. Seeing this, the Martial Artist at the Seventh Layer of the Qi Sea Realm shook his head and said with a look of pity, "Sigh, you truly don’t know your own limits. Since you insist, I’ll just have to teach you a lesson with reality."

With that, the man took a step forward, looking completely relaxed and at ease. It was obvious he wasn’t using his full strength.

He threw a punch at Lin Yun. In response, Lin Yun’s expression remained unchanged. He didn’t even use a Martial Skill, simply meeting the man’s fist with one of his own. The moment their fists collided, the man’s relaxed expression instantly twisted in shock.

Lin Yun’s fist was as hard as steel. The instant they made contact, the man felt the bones in his hand crack from the impact. In the blink of an eye, his entire body was sent flying by Lin Yun’s single punch.

The victor was decided in a single punch. But to everyone’s astonishment, it was Lin Yun—the one everyone had dismissed as an ant—who had shattered his opponent’s hand with that one blow.

His right arm hung limply at his side. With the bones in his hand shattered, he obviously had no will to continue fighting. Besides, he knew that even if he persisted, he stood no chance of winning against Lin Yun.

He left the Martial Arts Arena with a dejected expression, the loser now ignored by all. The wealthy young masters in the crowd below now stared at Lin Yun in astonishment. ’First Layer of the Opening Realm... shattering the arm of a man at the Seventh Layer of the Qi Sea Realm with a single punch... what kind of Combat Power is that?’

Having won the first match with ease, Lin Yun stood calmly on the Martial Arts Arena. After a little over ten breaths, his second opponent walked onto the stage.

Lin Yun recognized him. He was one of the other three challengers, with a cultivation at the Eighth Layer of the Qi Sea Realm. It seemed the Royal Family wanted the four challengers to fight amongst themselves first.

"You’re not bad. Defeating someone at the Seventh Layer of the Qi Sea Realm while you’re only at the First Layer of the Opening Realm is impressive," the man said as he stepped onto the stage. He lacked the arrogance of the previous opponent, but his calm tone betrayed a powerful self-confidence. "However, you should know that I could have also defeated that last man in a single move."

"I know," Lin Yun replied calmly. "But that doesn’t mean anything."

With both fighters on the stage, the second battle was about to begin. The wealthy youths in the crowd started placing their bets again. The odds on Lin Yun were still ten to one, and once again, no one bet on him—except for Chen Xin and his friends.

After Lin Yun’s instant victory in the first fight, the Fifth Prince’s expression darkened. ’Brat, I refuse to believe you can survive ten rounds.’ He whispered something to a nearby servant, who then quickly departed.

Gazing at Lin Yun again, a cold, murderous intent flashed across the Fifth Prince’s face. ’Even if his Combat Power is truly heaven-defying,’ he thought with confidence, ’with my arrangements, I will have him killed on this Martial Arts Arena.’

The fight began. This Martial Artist, at the Eighth Layer of the Qi Sea Realm, did not underestimate his opponent as the last one had. He immediately erupted with his full power, unleashing the Elemental Power fluctuations of an Eighth Layer Qi Sea Realm expert.

"You’re cautious," Lin Yun remarked lightly, seeing that this man wasn’t underestimating him. "If you had been as careless as the last one, you would have been defeated in a single blow as well."

"I go all out in every fight," the man replied, drawing a large saber from his waist.

The saber was a silvery-white Earth Spirit Soldier. Seeing his opponent draw a Weapon, Lin Yun remained unmoved. ’This level of strength isn’t enough to make me draw the Bone Spear,’ he thought.

"Arrogant!" Seeing Lin Yun standing there impassively, not even bothering to draw a Weapon, the man roared in anger and charged.

"Mountain-Cracking Saber!" he yelled. He leaped high into the air, raised the long saber over his head, and brought it down violently upon Lin Yun.

The blow was incredibly powerful. Even a Martial Artist at the Ninth Layer of the Qi Sea Realm wouldn’t dare to meet it head-on. A direct hit would mean severe injury, if not death.

"Your Martial Skill is quite domineering, but its flaw is just as obvious," Lin Yun said softly. Just as he finished speaking, the great saber slammed into his body—only there was no spray of blood and gore as the crowd expected.

"An afterimage..." the man muttered in astonishment, instantly realizing what had happened.

It was an afterimage, a phantom left behind by his incredible speed.

"You have great power, but your speed is too slow. That weakness is your fatal flaw," Lin Yun’s voice came from behind the man, who had no idea when he had appeared there. "I believe that unless you overcome this weakness, you’ll never have any hope of entering the Yanhuang List."

After breaking through to the Opening Realm, Lin Yun had gained a preliminary grasp on the True Intent of Inch Step. Compared to before, his Inch Step was finally revealing the true power of an Earth Level Martial Skill.

Furthermore, the man fighting Lin Yun specialized in strength; his speed wasn’t even on par with someone at the Mid-Stage of the Qi Sea Realm.

Forming a blade with his hand, Lin Yun delivered a single, sharp strike to the man’s neck, knocking him unconscious on the Martial Arts Arena.

Even though they had signed a life-and-death contract, Lin Yun had no desire to kill. ’We have no grudge against each other. We’re all just here for the Yanhuang List. As long as I win, there’s no need to take a life.’

Two fights, two easy victories for Lin Yun. By now, no one dared to claim he had come here to die.

"First Layer of the Opening Realm... is he really that strong?"

"I’m at the First Layer of the Opening Realm too, and I feel like I couldn’t even survive a single move against him."

"You? Give me a break. He could crush you with a single finger."

The immense Combat Power Lin Yun had displayed forced everyone to see him in a new light, even piquing the curiosity of the Forbidden Army leader who oversaw the Yanhuang Battle Arena.

Directly in front of the Battle Arena stood a three-story building. This was the post of the Third Leader of the Forbidden Army, the man responsible for everything in the Yanhuang Battle Arena, including the selection of opponents.

"This kid is something else. I’m afraid we haven’t even seen his full strength yet," the Third Leader said with a soft chuckle, his eyes on Lin Yun.

He then turned to a soldier beside him. "There’s one challenger left, correct?"

"Correct. He is also at the Eighth Layer of the Qi Sea Realm."

"Very good. Send him in. If this kid can win three in a row, then we’ll send out one of our Forbidden Army’s own experts," the Third Leader commanded.

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