The Final

When they saw Zhang Yunhao, quite a few people below the stage began to laugh at him. With the Clan Leader and the others present, no one dared shout anything out of line, but in their hearts, they all sneered at Zhang Yunhao for overestimating himself. They were certain he would be knocked off the stage in no time.

Zhang Yunyi was even more certain. "Three moves. At most, he'll last three moves before he loses. He's a good-for-nothing who doesn't know his place."

"Whoever hits the ground loses..."

On the arena, the referee announced the rules, then called, "Begin!"

The blue-clad youth beckoned disdainfully. "Come on!"

Zhang Yunhao wasted no words. He pushed off with both legs at once, shooting forward like a real leopard. A gust of wind whipped around him as he unleashed a ferocious Leopard Fist, its roar like wind and thunder as it slammed toward the blue-clad youth's chest.

The blue-clad youth hadn't expected Zhang Yunhao to charge with such terrifying force. Startled, he hurriedly crossed his arms in front of himself to block.

With a heavy boom, the blue-clad youth flew off the arena like a kite with its strings cut. He stumbled backward until he crashed into the spectators in the front row and finally stopped. His arms, which had blocked Zhang Yunhao's punch, were red and purple, and still trembling!

"How is that possible?"

Everyone was stunned. They'd all guessed the fight would end quickly, but no one had expected Zhang Yunhao to win, let alone knock the blue-clad youth off the stage with a single punch. Zhang Yunyi looked as if he'd seen a ghost!

"You were too kind."

Zhang Yunhao paid no heed to the reactions around him. He clasped his hands in salute, stepped down from the arena, and returned to his seat. He looked composed on the outside, but inside, he was feeling pretty pleased with himself!

The blue-clad youth's face turned white, then green. Soon, he fled in shame, clearly unable to bear staying there any longer.

The other contestants also stared at Zhang Yunhao in surprise. They could tell that although the blue-clad youth had been careless, Zhang Yunhao's skills were genuinely impressive.

Zhang Yuntang seemed to realize something. He walked over to Zhang Yunhao and said viciously, "Zhang Yunhao, you've got quite a scheme. You pretended to be a good-for-nothing just to hide your strength, and now you've come out to fight me for a spot?"

Zhang Yunhao offered no explanation. He only said, "That spot is mine."

Zhang Yuntang snorted. "Keep dreaming. Don't think hiding a little strength makes you special. You don't have the resources or the best techniques, so what makes you think you can fight me? You'll soon learn what despair feels like!"

Zhang Yunhao smiled and replied with absolute confidence, "A dog can eat its fill, but it'll never be a match for a tiger!"

"You... Zhang Yunhao, if you don't want to live, I'll grant your wish. I'll beat you to death on the arena and join the Heaven Fist Sect standing on your corpse!"

Zhang Yuntang ground his teeth in fury, the Killing Intent in his heart surging more fiercely than ever. Before, killing Zhang Yunhao would have been no different from crushing an ant; he hadn't felt much Killing Intent at all. But now, seeing Zhang Yunhao "plot" so carefully to compete with him for the spot, his Killing Intent boiled over.

Meanwhile, Liang Dong, the Frost Fist from the Heaven Fist Sect, nodded in praise. "The disciples your Zhang Clan has brought up are quite impressive. That young man's Five Forms Fist had both form and spirit. Very well done."

"Not at all, not at all."

The Clan Leader and Great Elder smiled and played along, though their expressions were a little awkward. After all, everyone knew what the situation was.

The Great Elder secretly clenched his fists. He and his son had reached the same conclusion: this brat had been "plotting" all along. If only they'd killed him back then.

But with everyone watching, the Great Elder couldn't do anything just now. Besides, there was no need for him to do anything—he had already done everything that needed doing!

And the Great Elder had confidence in his son. He had gone to all that trouble to make sure he wouldn't lose his spot. After all, there were no guarantees in a fight!

For Zhang Yunhao to have kept it hidden for so long, someone must have been in league with him. Once this is over, I'll find them all and kill every last one!

A vicious glint flashed in the Great Elder's eyes. For his son's future, he had staked everything—even agreeing to the Clan Leader's harsh demands. Otherwise, why would the Clan Leader have kept turning a blind eye?

At the same time, the Great Elder had even used up his most important favor. He had paid so much; anyone who dared stand in his way would die!

Silver Constable Lei Nu, seated nearby, nodded at Zhang Yunhao's performance. Smiling, he said to Nangong Ru behind him, "Xiao Ru, that young man you had your eye on has both skill and brains."

"He's talented, but he still doesn't understand how cruel this world is. Today, I'll make him see it clearly, then repay the favor I owe him."

Lei Nu nodded. "Don't worry. That boy saved you, so I won't let anything happen to him. I'll also make sure he has an even brighter future!"

The matches continued. Soon, four spots had been decided, and Zhang Yunhao took the arena once more. This time, his opponent didn't underestimate him, but under Zhang Yunhao's fierce assault, he lasted only a little over ten seconds before going down.

Last time, people could still say his opponent had been careless. But this time, Zhang Yunhao had shown the full extent of his strength, making it clear that he was truly qualified to compete for a spot in the Heaven Fist Sect!

Everyone felt conflicted. People like Zhang Yunyi were naturally grinding their teeth, feeling like clowns who had made fools of themselves. But quite a few others had begun silently cheering Zhang Yunhao on.

The Great Elder was so overbearing, claiming a spot for his son in advance. Most of the Zhang Clan dared not speak up, though they were furious. Now that Zhang Yunhao had appeared out of nowhere to compete with Zhang Yuntang for the spot, people naturally took his side, hoping he would slap the Great Elder in the face and make his schemes fall through!

If they weren't afraid of the Great Elder's revenge, someone would surely have already shouted encouragement to Zhang Yunhao!

At last, Zhang Yunhao faced Zhang Yuntang!

"Brat, I'll show you what despair feels like! Take a look at the advanced martial art my father got for me—the Surging Waves Fist! Raging Waves!"

Zhang Yuntang's face was full of Killing Aura. Without another word, he threw a punch like a raging sea, sending it crashing toward Zhang Yunhao.

"Leopard Fist!"

Zhang Yunhao didn't dodge. He gathered his true qi into his fist and met Zhang Yuntang's attack head-on. He wanted to find out just how far behind his opponent he was in raw power.

A heavy boom rang out. A circular wave of air appeared where their fists collided. Zhang Yuntang didn't budge, but Zhang Yunhao took a step back. The muscles in his right hand vibrated rapidly, dispersing his opponent's force.

Though he was at a disadvantage, Zhang Yunhao's eyes lit up with delight. Just one step! That meant his strength was now almost on par with Zhang Yuntang's!

Of course, in terms of the amount of true qi alone, Zhang Yunhao still lagged quite a bit behind Zhang Yuntang. But his true qi was higher in quality. After all, it had been cultivated through an immortal-grade martial art. An equal amount of his true qi was at least two or three times stronger than someone else's, perhaps even more.

That was how this miracle had happened.

Yes, it was a miracle. Zhang Yuntang had broken through a full two years before Zhang Yunhao, and as the Great Elder's son, he surely hadn't lacked pills. His power was formidable. Zhang Yunhao, meanwhile, had only broken through seven days ago, yet he was already almost on par with him. If that wasn't a miracle, what was?