In mid-air, as Li Shaohu brushed past him, Li Lin immediately felt a surge of invisible Qi sweeping towards him. In that instant, Li Shaohu had already launched a palm strike towards Li Lin’s chest.

Caught off guard and in mid-air, Li Lin could only twist his body to dodge, but due to the suddenness, he was slower, and a gust of wind landed on his shoulder. Fortunately, Li Shaohu only acted covertly, not daring to exert too much force, merely hoping to embarrass Li Lin. The gust of wind was only enough to knock Li Lin to the ground.

"Damn it," Li Lin cursed, suddenly plummeting under the watchful eyes of the crowd.

The platform was only two meters high, so to the onlookers, Li Lin seemed to have made a mistake and fell from mid-air, about to land headfirst and tumble over.

At that moment, just as his head was about to hit the ground, Li Lin struck the stone with a palm, releasing a burst of visible pale yellow Qi, immediately causing a crack to spread across the stone.

Then, a rebounding force emerged, and with the pushback from his Qi, Li Lin’s rapidly descending body suddenly halted, and with a second palm strike, another crack appeared on the stone platform, propelling his body upwards before he spun 360 degrees in mid-air to regain his posture.

At this time, Li Lin spread his arms, his Qi vibrating around him, using the balance of his arms to dive down like an eagle, his piercing gaze fixed on Li Shaohu.

But this was only for a moment. Utilizing his arms and Qi to perfectly control his descent to the center of the platform, under the astonished gaze of the audience, no one expected Li Lin, while in mid-air, to also gather a pale yellow palm strike.

"Make way," the target of his palm strike was a young man from a smaller family with the strength of a first-level warrior.

The young man, surprised by Li Lin’s agility, reacted too late when he saw the attack coming. Unprepared, he met the palm strike with his own, only to be sent flying back, tumbling off the platform and onto the ground, as Li Lin elegantly landed in the coveted spot, dusting off his hands nonchalantly.

"The control over his Qi is exquisite; this young man is not simple," Elder Bai Mei praised, watching the scene unfold.

At the judges' seat, Li Dong smiled slightly, watching Li Lin’s performance closely. The other contestants were equally astonished.

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"Amazing."

"Awesome."

"So cool."

The onlookers, many of whom were martial artists and knew quality when they saw it, began to cheer loudly, and several young girls screamed in excitement.

Li Shaohu had not expected his attempt to embarrass Li Lin would instead highlight Li Lin’s skill, leaving him with an extremely ugly expression.

However, all this happened in an instant, and at that moment, numerous figures on the platform began to move.

"Start." Instantly, dozens of contestants began to act, as the Yunyang Sect official had said, they could freely engage upon reaching the platform. Without hesitation, knowing that only eight would remain, taking the initiative offered a better chance.

"Overestimating yourself with just the strength of a martial disciple, step down," Yang Miao commanded, weaving through the platform, her palm carrying flames as she struck at a young man with the strength of a ninth-level martial disciple.

The young man stood no chance against her, attempting to counter with a palm strike but was instantly blown off the platform, falling heavily to the ground below.

The difference between martial disciples and warriors was not minor, and although the young man had decent talent, talent did not equate to strength.

The platform became a scene of chaos, with contestants clashing against each other. Qi surged, and soon, several were knocked off the platform.

In this melee, an odd phenomenon occurred: no one dared to provoke Du Gu Binglan, Wang Guang, Li Shaohu, Li Lin, and Yang Miao. Their strengths were known from the talent verification, deterring any unwelcome challenges.

Yet, Yang Miao didn't hesitate to initiate confrontations. In a short time, she kicked another contestant, a first-level warrior from the Luo family, off the platform.

The platform was filled with the sounds of collisions, and amidst the chaos, several contestants were unsure how they ended up off the platform, cursing their luck in silence.

Li Lin, upon entering, repelled a first-level warrior. Knowing he was a tri-system third-level warrior, no one dared approach him. He stood aside, conserving his strength for the third round.

Another contestant fell off the platform, and among the onlookers, reactions varied from joy to curses, with bets placed on various participants.

The battle intensified, eventually dragging in Li Lin, Du Gu Binglan, Wang Guang, and others into the fray.

With the addition of Li Lin, Wang Guang, and others, weaker participants continually fell off the platform. Li Lin moved through the crowd, dodging without striking much, watching Wang Guang and Du Gu Binglan, who also didn’t engage much, avoiding unnecessary confrontations.

Soon, only ten remained on the chaotic platform, including Li Lin, Li Shaohu, Du Gu Binglan, Wang Guang, Yang Miao, two from the Luo family, Luo Fei and Luo Jin, Wang Qing from the Wang family, and two youths from smaller families, both warriors, one a first-level and the other a second-level.

"Two more need to go down," Wang Guang, who had been quietly observing, approached one of the second-level warriors.

"You're too weak, step down," Wang Guang said coldly, sending a palm strike that forced the young man to hastily retreat and ultimately fall.

But the young man hadn't anticipated Wang Guang's speed; a sharp whoosh followed by a palm strike sent him flying off the platform.