A Grudge Match

After forcing the thin examinee to retreat, Lin Ye hid behind a broken wall. Seeing the cold-eyed swordsman walk away without heading in his direction, he felt a slight sense of relief, realizing his strategy had worked.

By demonstrating traits that made him enough of a nuisance, he made the top predators feel it "wasn't worth it," thus avoiding being targeted as a primary objective.

As for what others thought of him, he didn't care much.

Therefore, for the remainder of the time, Lin Ye continued to play the role of the Ruin Ghost.

He never took the initiative to attack the examinees who appeared strong, and when encountering others who wanted to hunt him, he primarily focused on startling them away or maneuvering around them. Only when it was truly unavoidable did he use thunderous methods to resolve the situation quickly before immediately relocating.

Just like that, he moved through the district like an elusive shadow.

As the number of examinees gradually dwindled, the sounds of combat in the district grew sparse.

When the system notification sounded, Lin Ye finally emerged from the ruins and arrived at the center of the district, where four figures were already standing.

There was a tall, sturdy boy with a shallow scar on his face and a fierce look in his eyes; the cold-eyed young swordsman he had observed earlier; a lithe girl; and the thin examinee who had just tried to hunt him.

Seeing Lin Ye appear, the scarred boy gave him a look of disdain and snorted, though he said nothing. The cold-eyed boy with the long blade also remained silent, standing with his arms crossed over his sword. Conversely, the lithe girl looked at Lin Ye with interest, seemingly quite intrigued by him.

As for the thin examinee who had just hunted him, seeing that the fifth person was none other than Lin Ye—who had "humiliatingly" scared him off earlier—his gaze toward Lin Ye was instantly filled with killing intent, and he even made a throat-slitting gesture of provocation.

Facing the other's provocation, Lin Ye acted as if he hadn't seen it.

After all, his goal had been achieved: he had secured a spot to advance using his own methods. Although the means didn't look particularly honorable, advancing was a good thing, and he simply viewed the thin examinee's provocation as a sign of the man's desperation.

Of course, if he happened to run into him later, he wouldn't mind finishing him off, because in the brief moment they had clashed, he had sensed that the opponent's blood-energy value wasn't much higher than his own.

That was enough.

A moment later, the prompt reappeared.

[The fourth round of the melee has ended. Advancing to the fifth round.]

[Congratulations to all examinees for entering the top 1000 in the province.]

Light enveloped him, and the teleportation vanished.

When his vision cleared, Lin Ye found himself standing on an arena about thirty meters in diameter. More eye-catching were the tiers of circular spectator stands rising around the arena, as if he were currently in a stadium. Light and shadow flickered in the stands, which were filled with blurry virtual figures. Although their faces were unclear, he could feel those "gazes" fixed upon the arena, and he could even catch faint, system-processed murmurs of discussion in his ears.

"So, in the higher rounds after entering the top 1000, there are spectators now..."

Lin Ye immediately understood that the rounds following the top 1000 were receiving higher-level attention, perhaps to make the selection process more open and transparent.

Immediately, he composed his mind and focused his attention on the opposite side.

His opponent's figure was gradually solidifying, and the person seemed to be looking around, sizing up the environment. However, when Lin Ye looked at the man, his gaze narrowed slightly.

At the same time, a flash of surprise couldn't help but rise in his heart, because the opponent was none other than the thin examinee with the short daggers whom he had startled away with his Lost Track Steps during the fourth round.

Interesting.

Is this a case of enemies crossing paths on a narrow road?

A curve formed at the corner of Lin Ye's mouth.

When the man turned his head toward the arena, he also recognized Lin Ye, his expression shifting from astonishment to ecstasy, then to a sinister grin.

"Hahaha, heaven really has eyes."

The dagger-wielding examinee couldn't help but chuckle, his voice clearly projected through the arena's speakers, filled with undisguised malice and excitement. "The rat who spent the fourth round hiding and running away has finally been cornered in the arena. Let's see how you run this time."

As soon as these words were spoken, a slight commotion and buzz of discussion broke out in the spectator stands.

Clearly, thanks to the dagger-wielding examinee's words, the audience understood that there was some history between the two from the previous round.

"Interesting, looks like enemies have crossed paths."

"It seems there was a conflict between the two in the previous round; that makes it very interesting."

"Judging by what the boy on the left said, he must have suffered a loss at the hands of the boy on the right in the previous round."

"Haha, running into a grudge match right from the start—that's not something you see often."

The surrounding spectators excitedly gossiped, full of anticipation for the upcoming battle between the two.

Facing the opponent's provocation and the audience's discussion, Lin Ye turned a deaf ear, calmly adjusting his breathing. He quietly activated his Spirit-Nurturing Stance to adjust his state.

Looking around, the arena environment was completely different from the ruins of the melee.

The space here was limited and wide open, which placed certain restrictions on the use of Lost Track Steps.

But this also meant that it would be harder for his opponent to escape.

"Both sides, prepare!"

The referee's electronic voice rang out abruptly.

"Countdown starting. Will both examinees please prepare."

3

2

1

Begin!

The moment the countdown ended, the lean examinee moved. Having clearly learned his lesson from the previous melee, he no longer attempted a sneak attack, instead pushing his speed to the limit as he rapidly closed the distance to Lin Ye.

At the same time, the twin daggers in his hands flipped, carving out dazzling, icy arcs of light, leaving Lin Ye no time to employ his strange movement techniques to dodge.

"Such a fast charge; that boy is in trouble."

"That speed is indeed impressive. It seems he has practiced an explosive movement martial art."

"He's getting serious. Dodge quickly!"

Watching the lean youth dash forward, some in the spectator stands whispered in alarm.

Facing this swift and vicious offensive, Lin Ye made a move that caught everyone by surprise. Instead of using his movement technique to dodge as everyone expected, he stepped forward with his left foot and clenched his fingers into a fist. A heavy, profound aura suddenly rose from his seemingly unimposing frame.

"Oh no, he wants to take it head-on?!"

"Taking it head-on is hardly a wise move."

"Can Rolling Stone Fist really withstand an entry-level martial art?"

Compared to the spectators' impressions, the lean examinee wielding the short daggers felt something entirely different. Unlike the oppressive pressure of an entry-level martial art, Lin Ye's fist felt strangely "sluggish" to him. Although the punch speed wasn't fast, it carried a peculiar sense of viscosity; the air in front of the fist seemed to thicken, and his own swift thrusts visibly faltered the moment they touched this invisible force field.

Clang!

In an instant, a sound like metal striking metal exploded through the air.

The spectators looked on to find Lin Ye's gloved fist braced against the lean youth's daggers, meeting attack with attack and sealing off the opponent's assault.

"How is this possible?"

"Is Rolling Stone Fist really this strong?"

"No way."

Many in the spectator stands cried out in shock, unable to understand how Lin Ye's Rolling Stone Fist could block the opponent's attack, though there were those among the audience with a keen eye who caught a glimpse of the truth.

"The fist technique is steady and heavy; he has already grasped the essence of Rolling Stone Fist."

"This fist technique... it doesn't look like an ordinary Rolling Stone Fist?"

On the arena stage, the battle continued.