Cloud-Soothing Hand

Lin Jie saw this and a bitter smile appeared on his face, filled with helplessness.

Judging by the results of the strength and archery trials, the position of Flag Sergeant was already out of his reach in this competition. He was already forty-eight years old and would be retiring in two years; failing to secure a Flag Sergeant position for his children and grandchildren left him feeling deeply regretful.

The rules of the martial arts trial were one-on-one duels in the ring. No weapons were allowed, only fists and feet. The match would end when one side conceded or was knocked out of the ring. Lethal force was strictly prohibited; violators would be dealt with according to military law for intentional homicide of a comrade, resulting in immediate decapitation.

How could they possibly be allowed to kill each other during the competition?

The participants and the order of the matches were not fixed this time; instead, they were determined by drawing lots, making it completely random.

By a strange coincidence, the first person Lin Xuan drew was his own great-uncle, Lin Jie.

"Third match, Lin Jie versus Lin Xuan." The martial officer's shout echoed across the ring.

"What? They both have the surname Lin; aren't they from the same family?" The crowd below began to whisper.

On the stage, Lin Xuan and Lin Jie stared at each other.

Lin Jie did not speak, simply preparing himself for the duel.

"Should I knock you down, or will you go down yourself?" Lin Xuan looked at Lin Jie, who was not only refusing to surrender but also daring to strike a pose, and felt helpless.

Can't you recognize your own worth? My strength trial score is double yours; where do you get the courage to fight me?

Lin Jie shook his head: "For the sake of my descendants, to secure a Flag Sergeant position, I want to try."

Lin Xuan shook his head: "Enough, don't talk about your descendants. If you truly cared for them, why haven't you gone to the battlefield to kill the enemy yourself? My family had three men conscripted; I imagine yours did as well. If you really cared for them, why didn't you go north to fight the Qiangqu and earn military merit?"

Lin Jie lunged forward in a flash, shouting angrily: "Enough talk!"

Lin Xuan raised his hands, executing the Grand Ancestor Long Fist. The force was upright and balanced, but because of his overwhelming strength, the very first exchange made Lin Jie feel the sting of the blow.

His arm ached from the impact, yet he gritted his teeth and held on.

Lin Xuan did not want to waste time on him. Taking advantage of the moment Lin Jie winced after their fists collided, he grabbed Lin Jie's clothes and threw him straight out of the ring.

The direction he threw him happened to be exactly where Lin Lu was standing.

As Lin Jie was tossed off the stage, Lin Lu rushed to catch him, only to be knocked to the ground. He landed face-up, his vision spinning.

Lin Xuan clapped his hands, and upon hearing "Lin Xuan wins," he walked off the stage with composure.

In the subsequent battles, he used the Grand Ancestor Long Fist again to defeat his opponents.

He did not expend much energy, because after winning the second match, the following opponents simply surrendered as soon as they stepped onto the stage.

They simply couldn't fight him; the gap in strength was despairingly large.

While off the stage, Lin Xuan quietly observed Zhang Quan, wanting to see the techniques he used in combat to prepare in advance.

However, the reality disappointed him; Zhang Quan's opponents also surrendered one after another. No one wanted to fight him—after all, if Lin Xuan, whose strength was slightly inferior, was already so troublesome, they would stand even less of a chance against Zhang Quan.

Seeing the small-flag soldiers surrendering one by one, the martial officer in leather armor couldn't help but grit his teeth: "A bunch of cowards! It's just a sparring match, no one is going to die, yet they don't even have the courage to fight!"

Soon, only Lin Xuan and Zhang Quan remained in the group competing for the Flag Sergeant position.

Everyone was looking forward to this duel; they wanted to see which of these two geniuses would come out on top!

The two stepped onto the stage and stood facing each other.

Lin Xuan's heart rate accelerated slightly; he steadied his breath and assumed his starting stance.

As the martial officer raised his hand and swept his red command flag overhead, the final match began.

Zhang Quan initiated the attack, launching an offensive toward Lin Xuan's face. Seeing this, Lin Xuan blocked with his hands, but the next punch was already coming.

His arm throbbed with pain; after all, both were geniuses with over five hundred catties of strength—it would be a miracle if a close-quarters hit didn't hurt.

As Lin Xuan blocked again, he lifted his knee to attack Zhang Quan's lower body, but Zhang Quan reacted quickly, lifting his own knee to meet the strike and neutralizing the move.

In just a short while, the two had exchanged several blows. Zhang Quan could not defeat Lin Xuan in a short time, nor could he knock him out of the ring.

However, Lin Xuan was at a slight disadvantage due to his weaker strength. He wasn't being suppressed, but he certainly held no advantage.

What should I do? The Grand Ancestor Long Fist has been passed down for hundreds of years, but it's a bit outdated for real combat. It's impossible to defeat him with this set of techniques; instead, I'm being completely countered. After all, everyone in the army knows this basic fist technique, and studying its counters is child's play.

From Lin Xuan's perspective, Zhang Quan was actually a beat slower.

Since the Grand Ancestor Long Fist is slightly inferior, I will learn your technique and see how you counter it! Lin Xuan's brain raced. After all, he possessed Sharp Eyes to observe the opponent's movements in detail, Martial Prodigy to master techniques faster, and Eidetic Memory to remember the posture of his strikes.

A moment later, Lin Xuan threw a punch mimicking Zhang Quan's style. The opponent hurriedly parried, but at this point, he didn't notice anything amiss. It wasn't until Lin Xuan threw another punch, identical to the move he had used earlier, that Zhang Quan realized with horror that the opponent was actually learning his own technique—the Cloud-Soothing Hand!

It was just that the technique still appeared slightly raw.

However, during the confrontation, he discovered something incredible: the moves Lin Xuan learned from him were becoming increasingly proficient, and he had even mastered the method of exerting force to be exactly the same as his own, which made him gasp.

It wasn't just him who noticed; the Thousand-Household Commander Su of the Garrison, along with the various Hundred-Household Commanders and Flag Sergeants, saw it too.

Upon seeing this, Thousand-Household Commander Su could no longer sit still. He stood up directly from his seat and moved closer to the two, making it easier for him to watch carefully.

After watching half the match, he couldn't help but exclaim: "Good, very good! Learning the opponent's fist technique in the middle of a fight—it's unheard of! Could his martial talent really be this strong?"

Zhang Quan had no choice. If this stalemate continued, he couldn't win. Beads of sweat covered his forehead, and his breathing began to grow heavy.

Looking at his opponent, however, he didn't seem very tired. His breathing and footwork were all normal, showing no signs of exhaustion.

This gave him a massive headache. If he continued to fight, he might run out of stamina, and if he used the Cloud-Soothing Hand, he might not defeat Lin Xuan before the latter learned his family's secret technique.

What do I do? I'm caught in a dilemma! His brain worked rapidly, but he still couldn't find a good solution.

The opponent's moves were not stiff, and his strength was not exhausted; he looked as if he were on the verge of reaching the Breath-Connecting Realm.

In the end, he gritted his teeth and chose to use the final moves of the Cloud-Soothing Hand, intending to end the fight quickly with a surprise attack and take Lin Xuan down immediately!