Chapter 5002 Paper Tiger

“An ant dares to bare its fangs against me?” sneered the Ye clan disciple as he swung his sword horizontally.

BOOM!

Lin Hu’s hatchet clashed with his sword and then exploded. The impact sent Lin Hu flying backward.

“What?!”

Yu Ying and the others’ expressions completely changed. They knew the difference between them and these heavenly geniuses was immense. The Ye clan disciple’s weapon was on a completely different level from Lin Hu’s, like steel against a paper saber. With his weapon destroyed in the first clash, how could Lin Hu continue the fight?

However, to their surprise, Lin Hu seemed to have expected this. As soon as his foot touched the ground, he sprang back up, charging at the Ye clan disciple fearlessly. 

“Drawing stars into the body!” Lin Hu shouted.

Five stars appeared on Lin Hu’s fist, transforming it into an astral form. Despite losing his weapon, Lin Hu didn’t falter; he seemed ready to face death in this clash.

With an ashen face, the Ye clan disciple hastily swung his sword to block.

Yu Ying and the others closed their eyes, not daring to look. Could a body of flesh and blood really block a sword?

BOOM!

Startled cries followed. When they opened their eyes, they saw Lin Hu standing there, his fists still glowing with starlight. On the other hand, the Ye clan disciple was flying backward, blood spraying from his mouth. His sword had been sent flying.

“What?” They gasped in unison.

Everyone was shocked by this. An elite disciple of the Ye clan, a nine star Heavenly Doyen, had been defeated by a mercenary? And he had done it barehanded!

The Ye clan disciple tumbled into the distance, spitting out several mouthfuls of blood and looking incredibly wretched.

“Stars—” Lin Hu wanted to launch another attack, his astral energy flowing around him.

“Stop, stop! If you attack again, he’ll die!” Long Chen hastily called for the battle to end. He hadn’t expected this Ye clan disciple to be so weak—a paper tiger, frightening in appearance but lacking any substance. What an idiot.

In comparison, Lin Hu had an extremely solid foundation with the Starry River of the Sky Art. He had learned how to sense stars and find his corresponding stars. However, until now, he had only used it for cultivation, as Long Chen still hadn’t taught them how to draw stars into their bodies.

Long Chen was worried about causing too much of a ruckus. If the Long clan found out, they might prevent the mercenaries from leaving the Long clan’s territory. Long Chen understood that convincing the mercenaries to depart their homeland would be challenging, especially if the Long clan persuaded them to stay.

Nevertheless, the mercenaries had already fulfilled the conditions necessary to draw stars into their bodies. The moment Long Chen taught Lin Hu the technique, he mastered it. That fist just now was a manifestation of this technique.

Long Chen had also provided Lin Hu with a straightforward method to harness his newfound power. Based on Long Chen’s calculation, three of his attacks would have sufficed to defeat the Ye clan disciple.

From the Ye clan disciple’s arrogant expression, Long Chen realized that he wouldn’t use his full power. He wanted to act like a cat toying with a mouse, humiliating Lin Hu to the end.

However, the Ye clan disciple was too worthless. Facing Lin Hu’s full-power attack, he only used seventy percent of his power in the first exchange, resulting in him being injured.

His face was ashen because he was holding the urge to cough up blood. He forcibly swallowed it down, determined not to show any weakness. In his mind, if he spat out blood in the first exchange, how would he face people in the future?

Because of this, he couldn’t fully unleash his power, and Lin Hu’s next attack heavily injured him.

Lin Hu had memorized the three attacks that Long Chen had taught him. Long Chen’s guidance was clear: maintain his rhythm and he would secure victory regardless of the opponent's techniques. Thus, Lin Hu prepared to unleash his third attack without even assessing his opponent's condition. Had he done so, the Ye clan disciple would have surely died.

In truth, the potential death of this idiot had nothing to do with Long Chen. However, as the head umpire, Long Chen couldn’t just let this idiot die in front of him.

After Long Chen intervened, Lin Hu finally glanced at the staggering disciple. But then, his mind went blank. He couldn’t believe he had just defeated an elite disciple.

“I didn’t lose! I can still… pfft!”

That disciple roared, only to cough up blood once again. No longer having any further energy to stand, he collapsed.

Long Chen waved his scepter, sending Lin Hu and the Ye clan idiot out. However, an eerie silence followed. Was it over?

“Youngsters shouldn’t be arrogant. There is a saying: palaces hide rats, while open fields conceal qilins. Someone raised in an ivory tower isn’t necessarily superior, just as one born in a ditch isn’t necessarily inferior. When everyone stands on the equal ground of the martial stage, the real expert will reveal themself. The storm weeds out the weak grass, and the fire reveals true gold. Are you still unconvinced?” Long Chen looked at the Ye clan disciple.

“I am unconvinced!” roared one disciple defiantly.

“Hmm, you don’t understand what I’m saying? Alright, I’ll give you a chance!”

Long Chen waved his scepter, and two golden streaks of light whisked two individuals back onto the martial stage.

“Let the competition continue!” Long Chen’s voice echoed with authority.

Long Chen exchanged a meaningful glance with Lin Hu, silently conveying the message: beat your opponent to death… beat him until he is convinced.

Lin Hu understood the unspoken command. Like a starving wolf finally set loose, he lunged forward with ferocity. Having suffered quite a bit from these geniuses, Lin Hu finally had a chance to give them a beating.

The Ye clan disciple swiftly raised his sword to defend himself. However, Lin Hu’s astral arm shattered the defense, sending the sword flying. After that, the sickening sound of bones breaking accompanied the Ye clan disciple’s piercing scream.

With a few punches from Lin Hu, the Ye clan disciple quickly crumpled, his face twisted in agony as he begged for mercy. “I… I admit defeat…”

Long Chen acted like he didn’t hear anything, casually taking out a knife to pick at his fingernails. The screams did little to disturb his me-time.

“Hey, why are you sitting there?! Get down!” An angry shout rang out from below Long Chen, so he looked down to find a group of referees in robes glaring up at him.

“What’s with that look? Do you not see this?” asked Long Chen while waving the scepter around.

“You?!”

The referees were unaware that Long Chen was the head umpire. Seeing the golden scepter in his hand, they were bewildered and started questioning the Long clan’s intentions. Why would the Long clan send a disciple to act as the head umpire? Did they try to screw everyone around?

“Stop!”

One of those referees rushed onto the stage, launching a kick at Lin Hu, who was still pummeling the Ye clan disciple.

Long Chen’s figure suddenly appeared on the martial stage, and he swiftly brought down the golden scepter onto the referee’s leg.

“Who told you to stick out your dog leg?”

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