Lin Mingqi was quite frank. Compared to the others in the clan, he was already twenty-six this year.
Reaching the Blood Exchange Second Transformation at twenty-six only made him average within the clan, far from what one would call a genius.
The reason for his late breakthrough was that he had focused more on his spear practice, which is why he only reached the Blood Exchange Realm at twenty-five.
"The rules are what they are. We can’t say anyone has an unfair advantage."
Lin Yan shook his head slightly. ’If we’re going by that logic, then the clan members who just recently broke through to the Blood Exchange Realm are doomed to be at the bottom of this year’s competition. And by the time the next one comes around, they’ll be two years over the limit.’
’Of course,’ he mused, ’it’s also possible that since this year’s competition was held early and caught everyone off guard, they might extend the time limit for the next one.’
"Alright. I won’t hold back when I attack!"
Lin Mingqi wasn’t just being courteous; he knew how formidable Lin Yan was.
After their polite exchange, Lin Mingqi gripped his long spear and infused it with Blood Gang. A dark red light flowed over the weapon’s shaft as two streams of Perfect Spear Intent erupted simultaneously.
One was hard, the other soft. The hard intent was like a collapsing mountain; the soft one, a surging river. The two intertwined, and before the spear tip even moved, the Spear Intent billowed outward like a monstrous tidal wave.
The crowd below held their breath. This was the true main event of the new talent competition.
And yet, Lin Yan still hadn’t drawn his sword!
Seeing that Lin Yan still hadn’t drawn his sword, just as when he’d faced Lin Minghuan, Lin Mingqi’s brow furrowed slightly. He said nothing more, simply raising his long spear to point its tip directly at Lin Yan.
"Lin Yan, watch out!"
As his voice fell, the two streams of Spear Intent at the tip of his spear erupted. They fused with his Spear Gang, transforming into two draconic lances that howled toward Lin Yan.
Though both used spears, Lin Mingqi’s technique was far superior to Lin Minghuan’s.
Lin Yan stood his ground, his gaze calm as he watched the approaching Spear Gang, sensing the two streams of Perfect Spear Intent it contained.
’One hard, one soft. The fusion is quite impressive,’ Lin Yan thought. ’For someone at the Blood Exchange Second Transformation, this is definitely top-tier.’
’But even without my Sword Intent, my Realm alone is higher than the Blood Exchange Second Transformation.’
’This time, I’ll use a full ten percent of my strength. It’s a show of respect for Uncle Qi’s disciple.’
For his last strike against Lin Minghuan, he had used less than ten percent of his power.
The Abyssal Sword left its sheath.
This time, the Sword Gang didn’t strike second to arrive first. It met the attack head-on.
A single beam of silvery-white Sword Gang erupted from the blade’s edge, so condensed it looked solid.
It, too, contained two streams of Perfect Level Sword Intent. The continuity of the Flowing Cloud Thirteen Techniques and the overwhelming power of the Rain-Covering Swordsmanship merged perfectly in this single strike, as fluid as moving clouds and flowing water, as devastating as a torrential downpour.
The moment the two draconic lances collided with the Sword Gang, there was no stalemate, no struggle.
Like snow under a blazing sun, the Spear Gang instantly dissolved.
The Sword Gang’s momentum didn’t falter. After cleaving through the Spear Gang, it slammed directly into the long spear Lin Mingqi had frantically raised to defend his chest.
BANG!
Lin Mingqi was sent flying backward. While still in mid-air, he coughed up a mouthful of blood that splattered across the bluestone flagstones of the Combat Platform—a ghastly sight. He lost his grip on his long spear, which spun several times in the air before landing on the ground with a CLANG.
The spear fell. The man fell.
THUD!
Lin Mingqi slammed heavily onto the edge of the Combat Platform, sliding several feet before coming to a stop, his face ashen.
The crowd below was deathly silent.
Everyone stared blankly at the scene, as if they hadn’t yet processed what had just happened.
This was Lin Mingqi they were talking about!
Lin Mingqi, the man who had comprehended two Perfect Spear Intents and was ranked number one in the new talent competition, couldn’t even withstand a single strike from Lin Yan.
And this strike had been a head-on clash, with no tricks or feints involved.
"This... how is this possible?"
Someone murmured, their voice faint and trembling.
The members of the Fourth Branch stood with their mouths agape, unable to utter a single word.
At this moment, even the members of the Third Branch forgot to cheer, hardly daring to believe their own eyes.
They had expected Lin Yan to win, but they never imagined it would be such a total victory—a victory so overwhelming they could barely believe it themselves.
Lin Yan sheathed his sword. Looking at Lin Mingqi’s pale face, the corner of his own mouth twitched.
’I should have held back more.’
His intention had been to use ten percent of his power to overwhelm Lin Mingqi’s Spear Gang in a direct clash, as a sign of respect.
But he had either overestimated Lin Mingqi’s strength or, more likely, underestimated the power of that ten percent.
’The gap between me and people like Lin Mingqi is just too vast. Fighting them is no different from an adult bullying a toddler.’
The elder from the Second Branch serving as the referee—a man at the Blood Exchange Fourth Transformation who had been all but invisible until now—sized up Lin Yan with a look of astonishment. Even he had felt a sense of pressure from that last strike.
"First place in the new talent competition: Lin Yan."
Though shocked, the referee hadn’t forgotten his duty. His voice, however, carried a trace of emotion he himself hadn’t noticed.
Only after the referee’s announcement did an uproar finally erupt from the crowd.
Whether they were from the main family or the side branches, all the young clan members now looked at Lin Yan with incredibly complex expressions.
The young members of the main family, though they would never say it aloud, had always looked down on those from the side branches. Even though a few had reached the Blood Exchange Realm, including rising stars like Lin Yan, they had always seen him as upper-middle tier at best.
They had never, ever imagined he would take first place.
In contrast to the complicated feelings of the main family members, those from the side branches now looked at Lin Yan with an expression akin to reverence.
They had all come from the side branches and knew how difficult it was to fight their way into the main family and secure a place. Take Lin Yu and the others who had broken through to the Blood Exchange Realm around the same time as Lin Yan. They had been celebrated figures back then, but after arriving at the main household, their luster had gradually faded.

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