Sorry! This Battle, I Won.

The roar of the crowd shook the heavens, making everyone's eardrums buzz.

But the old man in the Taoist robe remained calm, smiling, "No need for such formalities! I'm not here to inspect you as the Dean, but as a Teacher to guide your Martial Arts cultivation. So, please relax later and don't be too constrained."

"Yes! Dean!"

The disciples replied, their nervousness easing slightly.

Seeing this, the old man nodded with a smile, "Alright! Enough with the pleasantries. I'll guide you according to the old rules this time."

"The top ten in Martial Arts for each batch will have their strength suppressed to the Early Ninth Rank, and you'll first fight amongst yourselves."

"I'll focus on guiding them based on their situations, and the other disciples should listen carefully during this time."

"As for after the top ten have finished, the other disciples will pair up, choose their opponents, and I'll offer some general guidance on your shortcomings."

"Alright, let's begin the first match! Little Wang, you choose the opponent."

"Yes!"

As soon as the old man finished speaking, a tall, muscular man nearly two meters tall standing beside him immediately responded. His sharp gaze swept over the disciples.

After a moment, it finally landed on a handsome young man holding a greatsword, standing tall and straight:

"Wang Kai, in the last mid-year exam, your overall score was first in your cohort. You'll be the first to fight this time, setting an example for your fellow disciples and your juniors."

"As for your opponent, choose one yourself!"

"Yes! Teacher!"

The handsome young man, Wang Kai, received the order. He then scanned the class before looking at Lin Yi and smiling, "Lin Yi, our Martial Arts realms are similar, and we spar the most usually. How about we fight this time?"

"I couldn't ask for more!"

Lin Yi's eyes lit up at the words, and he strode forward.

Seeing this, the other disciples retreated to the sides, forming a large circle in the center, surrounding Wang Kai and Lin Yi, allowing them to fight freely.

"Go, Senior Brother Wang Kai!"

"Go, Senior Brother Wang Kai! You're the strongest!"

"Go, Senior Brother Lin Yi!"

"Senior Brother Lin Yi, I believe in you, defeat Wang Kai! Bring honor to us Poor Family Disciples!"

In the arena, before the fight even began, the atmosphere became heated as supporters of both Lin Yi and Wang Kai cheered them on.

However, overall, Wang Kai's supporters far outnumbered Lin Yi's.

After all, Wang Kai was not only handsome and powerful, having already reached Peak Seventh Rank and mastered Fifth-Rank Martial Arts, but his family background was also extraordinary.

His Wang Family was one of the top influential families in Guangling Prefecture City, with their influence spread throughout Guangling and even considerable sway in other prefectures.

Furthermore, although Wang Kai was the esteemed eldest son of the Lin family, he didn't possess the arrogance of ordinary noble scions. He treated everyone with equality and courtesy, which naturally attracted more disciples to support him.

As for Lin Yi, while he was also good, he paled in comparison to Wang Kai.

Thus, with the fervent support of the disciples.

In the arena, Lin Yi and Wang Kai stood facing each other, about ten meters apart, one holding a saber and the other a greatsword.

After more than ten breaths, Wang Kai seemed to find an opening and struck first.

"Boom!"

A violent explosion of air sounded. Wang Kai, wielding his greatsword, raised it high like a giant axe and brought it down fiercely towards Lin Yi.

Fifth-Rank Martial Art Great Mountain Splitting Sword Technique, First Style - Mountain Splitting Slash!

"Well done!"

Lin Yi's eyes flashed with sharpness. His right hand moved, drawing a circle in the air with his saber, like a bright moon, directly meeting the heavy sword's powerful strike.

Sixth-Rank Martial Art Bright Moon Saber Art, Second Style - Moon Embrace!

"Clang!"

A loud metallic clash echoed in the air. Their saber and sword met, and a powerful wave of energy surged around them.

Then, Lin Yi's figure remained motionless, standing firm on the ground like an old pine tree.

Wang Kai, who had attacked Lin Yi with fierce momentum and heavy force, was pushed back three steps by the recoil, a hint of surprise on his face.

"Nice! Senior Brother Lin Yi is amazing!"

"Haha! Senior Brother Lin Yi, you're too powerful!"

Upon seeing this, Lin Yi's supporters erupted in cheers, each one exclaiming.

"Not bad! This young fellow named Lin Yi has improved significantly!"

On the other side, Vice Principal Li You smiled slightly.

"I remember when I came to the martial arts academy to give pointers over a month ago, this young fellow's martial arts skills were decent, but still a bit lacking compared to that kid from the Wang family, right?"

"Now, in just over a month, he's completely closed that gap, no less skilled than that Wang family kid. He even caught the other party off guard and made them suffer a small loss. Not bad! Not bad!"

"The Dean speaks the truth!"

Master Wang replied with a smile:

"Lin Yi is indeed quite talented and works very hard. It's just a shame his physical aptitude is a bit lacking."

"Physical aptitude is lacking?"

Upon hearing this, Li You's eyebrows shot up, and he then nodded:

"That is indeed a bit of a shame."

Putting Li You's thoughts aside, in the arena, Wang Kai, seeing that he had been repelled, was stunned for a moment before he smiled:

"Lin Yi, impressive! I didn't expect your martial arts skills to be on par with mine after such a short time without sparring."

"But I was a bit careless with that last move. I'm going to get serious now, so be careful!"

"Don't worry, go all out!"

Lin Yi smiled, a burning fighting spirit rising in his eyes.

He was at a critical juncture in breaking through to the perfection stage of the Bright Moon Saber Art, and he happened to be lacking an opponent to help him break through.

Unlike Bronze Automatons in martial arts training rooms, who, despite their strength, had such poor martial arts skills that they couldn't provide him with a satisfying fight.

Wang Kai was different. His martial arts skill level was similar to his own, and his cultivation was suppressed to the same level as his. He was clearly an excellent opponent!

"Alright! Lin Yi, take another move from me!"

Wang Kai nodded, swung his greatsword, and unleashed another fierce and unstoppable terrifying sword move towards Lin Yi.

This sword strike was faster! And fiercer than the previous one!

Seeing this, Lin Yi didn't dare to be careless and swung his saber to block again.

Instantly...

"Clang, clang, clang..."

A continuous sound of metal clashing echoed throughout the training grounds.

With saber rising and sword falling, their bodies moving with their techniques, they unleashed a series of moves that would make ordinary Seventh-Rank martial artists gasp in awe. They fought fiercely, kicking up sand and stones, drawing cheers from the entire crowd. Even the disciples and weaker teachers of the martial arts academy watched with great enjoyment.

"Amazing! Senior Brother Wang Kai and Senior Brother Lin Yi are truly incredible! Is this the strength of the top disciples in martial arts skills at the academy? It's terrifying!"

"Yeah! Wang Kai and Lin Yi's martial arts skill levels are just a step away from the perfection stage of Sixth-Rank Martial Arts. Even some weaker Sixth-Rank martial artists are only at this level, or even slightly inferior. The gap between them and us is just too vast."

"Truly strong!"

The disciples of the martial arts academy marveled.

However, on the training grounds, Dean Li, the elder in the daoist robe, frowned more with each passing moment.

After they had exchanged over a hundred blows, Dean Li finally spoke:

"You two youngsters, your techniques are flawed!"

"Young man from the Wang family, your cultivation technique, the Great Mountain Splitting Sword Technique, emphasizes power and is a fierce martial art."

"But as the saying goes, what is too rigid is easily broken. You focus too much on the power of your moves and neglect the smooth, flowing changes between sword strikes, thus falling into the inferior position."

"If you continue like this, even if you are lucky enough to cultivate this martial art to the great success stage, you will never achieve perfection in this lifetime!"

"As for that young fellow named Lin Yi, your Bright Moon Saber Art is practiced well, but you focus too much on defense."

"Although this saber art is inherently better at defense, its core profound meaning is not just in defense, but in creating a killing intent during defense that can strike down the enemy with a single blow!"

"When you comprehend this point, your Bright Moon Saber Art will be able to reach perfection."

"Fierce? Changes between fierce moves?"

"Defense? Creating killing intent amidst defense?"

Hearing Vice Principal Li's words, Lin Yi and Wang Kai's expressions changed simultaneously, as if a bolt of lightning had flashed through their minds.

The next moment.

"Boom!"

The air exploded. Wang Kai's greatsword moved, like a divine mountain being split by an axe, and he furiously slashed at Lin Yi.

This was the first move of the Fifth-Rank Martial Art Great Mountain Splitting Sword Technique—One Sword Splits the Mountain.

However, compared to the previous strike, although this sword strike appeared identical on the surface, equally fierce and unstoppable, the underlying technique had already changed, as if imbued with a hint of watery "gentleness."

And the effect of this transformation was...

"Clang!"

Their blades met, and Wang Kai's sword strike was easily blocked by Lin Yi, just like before.

However, unlike before, Wang Kai didn't retreat to gather strength after this strike. Instead, his stance shifted, and he unleashed another sword strike.

"Clang!"

The blades clashed again. Lin Yi's expression changed; this sudden strike caught him off guard, making him flustered. He managed to twist his body with all his might, barely blocking it.

Yet, just as Lin Yi managed to block this strike with great effort, Wang Kai's attack didn't stop. The greatsword in his hand continued to slash out, like a continuous stream of water.

Seeing this, everyone present, except Dean Li, was astonished:

"He broke through! Wang Kai broke through!"

"My god! Senior Brother Wang Kai is amazing!"

"A Fifth-Rank Martial Art! This is a Fifth-Rank Martial Art at the Great Accomplishment stage! It's comparable to a Sixth-Rank Martial Art at the Perfected stage. With this breakthrough, Wang Kai is truly the undisputed number one among the disciples of the Guangling Martial Academy's 286th cohort. No one can contend with him!"

"Lin Yi is definitely going to lose this time!"

"That's right! Lin Yi is finished!"

The disciples exclaimed one after another, some looking at Wang Kai with eyes full of admiration and awe.

Even Wang Kai, who was usually quite steady, was affected by the fervent atmosphere. Coupled with the joy of his martial art breakthrough and defeating his old rival, he couldn't help but laugh loudly:

"Haha! Lin Yi, give up! I won this battle! It's rare to beat you, haha! This feels amazing!"

Wang Kai laughed, and the greatsword in his hand continued to slash out like a flowing stream, forcing Lin Yi to struggle to defend himself, seemingly on the verge of being unable to hold on.

Seeing this, Wang Kai became even more excited, as if victory was within his grasp.

But, at this very moment—

Lin Yi's blade light suddenly changed.

"Swish!"

On the battlefield, Lin Yi shifted his long saber, and streaks of blade light transformed into a bright, rising moon. Although it seemed the same as before, its defensive power had greatly increased.

Under this powerful defense, Lin Yi easily blocked Wang Kai's strike.

"What!"

Wang Kai's pupils constricted, and he cried out in shock, momentarily stunned.

"Now!"

A sharp glint flashed in Lin Yi's eyes, and the long saber in his hand changed.

In the blink of an eye, the once brilliant and pure moon transformed into a terrifying blade light that pierced through Wang Kai's greatsword and whistled past his temple.

"Whoosh!"

A lock of black hair fell from beside Wang Kai's ear, floating in the air before slowly drifting towards the ground.

At this moment, the noisy training ground fell into complete silence. Only a faint voice gently sounded:

"Sorry! Wang Kai, I won this battle."