Chapter 144 – Violent Useless vs. Delicate Cat (24)
This competition is held only once every five years, unknown to ordinary people but extremely important to these soul power families. It’s an essential event to evaluate the strength of each family’s new generation.
Both Yan Xiao and Yan Yang from the Yan family were required to participate. Yan Zhengqing had no expectations from Yan Yang, but it was mandatory for him to attend. However, Mu Jin was full of confidence, knowing that Yan Yang would make a strong showing in the competition.
On the day of the competition, there was quite a crowd. Yan Xiao, as the protagonist with notable strength, was attracting a lot of attention. After all, achieving soul power of the sixth level at his age was quite rare.
Yan Yang knew he had improved significantly, but because he had never been formally tested and had only sparred with Mu Jin, he wasn’t entirely sure of his current level.
Mu Jin, however, knew that Yan Yang had reached the seventh level in soul power, indicating great potential. He kept this information to himself, planning to let Yan Yang experience it firsthand in the competition, as a surprise.
Among the similarly aged participants, Yan Yang was undoubtedly one of the best, even surpassing Yan Xiao in terms of raw power.
The Mu family generally didn’t participate in such events, and even attending as spectators was rare. Mu Jin didn’t use his family name, watching as a regular soul power practitioner from the sidelines, avoiding attracting attention.
The competition started quickly. Since Yan Zhengqing had no expectations for Yan Yang, he didn’t bother with a recent test, assuming he was still at the first or second level in soul power.
Yan Yang, seeing Mu Jin in the audience, couldn’t help but feel a bit nervous, worried about not performing well in front of his lover. However, once he was on stage, he found that the battles he used to find challenging were now easy, often defeating his opponents with just one move.
Yan Yang’s battles were swift and relaxed, but because he was still in the lower-tier competitions, he didn’t attract much attention. People generally preferred to watch the more exciting battles among the geniuses.
It wasn’t until Yan Yang defeated a soul power practitioner at the fourth level, advancing to the next stage, that people began to take notice of the Yan family boy who had been ridiculed as worthless in the past.
Yan Zhengqing was surprised to see Yan Yang advancing to the fifth level. He had no idea when his strength had grown so much. Watching Yan Yang’s fights, he noticed that his technique seemed more refined and precise, even compared to Yan Xiao.
Others couldn’t understand why, but Yan Yang knew. It was because Mu Jin was incredibly powerful and battle-hardened. Having a good sparring partner and teacher had allowed him to grow rapidly.
Qi Xi also participated in this competition. He had previously angered Mu Jin and was severely injured. He later went to Yan Xiao to discuss it, but Yan Xiao not only refused to take his side but also reprimanded him for falsely accusing Yan Yang.
This left Qi Xi feeling deeply resentful, and their friendship ended. As a result, Qi Xi was determined to teach Yan Yang a lesson during the competition, instructing several Yan family members to hit him hard during the battles.
But he hadn’t expected Yan Yang to be so powerful that day, rendering the low-level soul power practitioners from the Yan family powerless against him.
Thinking of a special potion he had obtained by chance, Qi Xi hesitated at first. But seeing Yan Yang’s confident demeanor, he felt anger boil within him and drank the potion without hesitation, determined to show Yan Yang who was boss.
After consuming the potion, Qi Xi felt a surge of strength and his soul power quickly increased in level. He confidently stepped into the arena to face Yan Yang.
Although the Qi family had many talented people, Qi Xi was not usually eligible for these mid-level competitions due to his age. However, because of his unique status as a direct descendant of the Qi family, his father hoped to showcase his abilities early on to bring honor to the family and establish his position for the future.
The Qi family had gone to great lengths to obtain this potion, which was costly and typically used to aid in training. However, its effects were usually minimal and required significant resources, so it was mostly reserved for wealthier families.
After recovering from his injuries and with the boost from the potion, Qi Xi’s soul power had reached the fifth level. Now, with the special potion, he believed he would undoubtedly win.
Once in the arena, facing Yan Yang, Qi Xi sensed that Yan Yang’s soul power was above the seventh level. He was relieved he had taken the potion, or he wouldn’t have stood a chance.
As for Yan Yang, he didn’t feel particularly emotional about Qi Xi. Although the latter often caused him trouble, he knew his little cat had already given Qi Xi a serious lesson before. Since Qi Xi was a friend of his elder brother, Yan Yang intended to go easy on him.
However, Qi Xi’s aggressive moves forced Yan Yang to take the fight seriously, leaving him with no choice but to fight back with equal ferocity.
Yan Yang frowned as he parried the attacks. He distinctly remembered that Qi Xi wasn’t this strong, and he couldn’t understand why the guy had suddenly become so challenging in this competition.
Even so, Yan Yang wasn’t particularly afraid. After all, he had been trained by Mu Jin, and dealing with Qi Xi was still well within his capabilities. He just hadn’t expected that during their exchange of punches and speed, Qi Xi would suddenly manifest a weapon using soul power.
The crowd was shocked. Only those with soul power at level seven and above—typically at the eighth or ninth level—could manifest and externalize their soul power into a tangible weapon.
Yan Yang was also capable of externalizing soul power, but not of manifesting it. When he saw Qi Xi’s soul power manifest as a weapon, he became even more vigilant, proceeding with greater caution.
In reality, Qi Xi’s level wasn’t that high. His ability to manifest a weapon was due to the secret potion he consumed. He thought an extra weapon would give him an edge, but he hadn’t anticipated Yan Yang’s unconventional techniques, avoiding direct confrontation.
They had fought in school multiple times, and Qi Xi knew that Yan Yang’s moves were never this agile. He had no idea what kind of training Yan Yang had undergone recently, but it made him question his own confidence.
After being thrown to the ground again, Qi Xi’s embarrassment turned to anger. The families that had previously been impressed by his ability to manifest soul power now looked at him with suspicion, noticing that his demonstrated skills didn’t align with his actual strength.
Qi Xi’s eyes turned red with rage, and he began to recklessly release soul power outward. This broad and rapid sweeping attack covered a large area, forcing Yan Yang to dodge repeatedly, knowing that Qi Xi was on the verge of losing control. Yan Yang chose not to retaliate, waiting for Qi Xi to exhaust himself.
Qi Xi was frustrated, seeing Yan Yang evading his attacks so effortlessly. He felt like he was trying to catch an annoying flea, no matter how hard he attacked, Yan Yang seemed to escape.
Panting heavily, Qi Xi glanced around and noticed Mu Jin watching from the stands, observing the battle with interest. Qi Xi recalled Mu Jin’s confession and the subsequent intimacy between him and Yan Yang, and his anger shifted to Mu Jin.
Despite his father’s warning not to provoke Mu Jin, Qi Xi had lost all sense of reason. If Yan Yang made him look so foolish on stage, he thought he’d make Yan Yang pay by targeting Mu Jin.
Qi Xi concentrated his soul power, aiming it suddenly at Mu Jin. The attack was so sudden that even Yan Yang couldn’t react in time. However, Mu Jin’s keen senses allowed him to teleport out of harm’s way, avoiding the attack unscathed. The spot where Mu Jin had been standing was now reduced to splintered wood and clouds of dust.
By the time Yan Yang noticed, it was too late to stop Qi Xi. When he saw the destroyed platform and no sign of his little cat, he immediately lost his composure.
Yan Yang, believing his lover had been killed with no trace left behind, lost all sense of reason. He let out an angry roar, and his soul power surged wildly, indicating he was about to break through to a higher level.
The ground beneath him trembled slightly, and everyone could sense something was wrong with Yan Yang. They then saw him shout, and a powerful wave of soul power erupted from him, causing those with lower soul power to drop to their knees.
Qi Xi, who was closest to him, was hit hardest and collapsed to the ground, petrified.
When the breakthrough ended, Yan Yang turned to face Qi Xi, his eyes blazing with rage as he took slow, deliberate steps towards him.
Qi Xi, terrified, sat on the ground, his teeth chattering in fear. He could feel Yan Yang’s overwhelming strength, but more importantly, he sensed that Yan Yang might actually kill him.
The boy’s expression was frighteningly dark. With a swift movement, he was standing in front of Qi Xi, who began to back away, regretting his earlier actions.