Melee

At this critical moment.

"Enough."

Liu Hongyan's cool voice rang out. At the same time, an irresistible invisible force abruptly intervened, separating the two.

Both retreated two steps, their breathing slightly disordered. Shen Lian's chest rose and fell faintly, yet his gaze remained blazing as he stared at Li Yuan.

Li Yuan lowered his hand, his expression calm. His arm felt slightly numb, while the blood and qi within him churned unsteadily.

Liu Hongyan stepped forward, her gaze sweeping over them both. "This match is a draw."

A draw?

Everyone was astonished.

But recalling that perilous moment just now, had Instructor Liu not intervened, the outcome would likely have been mutual ruin. Calling it a draw was reasonable enough.

"Li Yuan." Liu Hongyan changed the subject and looked at him, a trace of scrutiny in her phoenix eyes. "Who taught you the martial arts you used just now?"

Li Yuan's expression remained unchanged. He gave a slight bow. "Reporting to Instructor, no one taught me. I just figured them out through random experimentation."

That was half true and half false. After all, these were combat skills from his previous life as a soldier. Liu Hongyan narrowed her phoenix eyes, clearly unconvinced, but she did not press further and merely said coolly.

"To bring a wild path to such proficiency is a skill in itself. But now that you have entered the academy, you must systematically study from the beginning and build a solid foundation. Do not rely solely on tricks."

"This student will remember." Li Yuan answered respectfully.

Before long, the other two pairs also determined their winners.

Chu Yunhe against Zhou Mo held no suspense.

Though Zhou Mo analyzed with all his might, the disparity in strength was too great. Chu Yunhe made quick work of him, finding an opening within five moves and tapping a finger into Zhou Mo's shoulder hollow. Half of Zhou Mo's body went numb and weak, and he dejectedly conceded defeat.

Yu Ling'er versus Jin Duoduo was somewhat comical.

Jin Duoduo knew his own limits. Knowing his abilities fell short, he did not continue trying to clear a path with money. After a few moves, he was knocked to the ground and hurriedly clutched his head as he conceded.

At this point, five people remained in the arena: Chu Yunhe, Yu Ling'er, Li Yuan, Shen Lian, and Cheng Zhao, who had received a bye.

Liu Hongyan's gaze swept over the five, her red lips curving into a meaningful smile. "The rules for the third round have changed."

Everyone's hearts tightened.

"All five of you will engage in a melee. There are no restrictions. You may join forces or launch sneak attacks. So long as you do not use weapons or deliberately cripple anyone, it is permitted."

"Whoever remains standing in the arena at the end wins and takes all five credits. Do you understand?"

A melee?

The five wore varying expressions as they instinctively sized up those around them.

"Begin!"

At Liu Hongyan's command, the five in the arena did not immediately begin fighting. Instead, they fell into a standoff, watching one another warily.

Chu Yunhe seemed to find it rather boring. He casually stepped forward, fixing his gaze on Shen Lian, who stood closest to him, and smiled. "Border army Sha Qi? Interesting. Let me test your mettle first."

With that, his figure flashed, and he struck out with a palm. The wind from his palm carried a faint whistling cry.

Shen Lian let out a low roar. Neither dodging nor evading, he twisted at the waist and threw a punch. His fist wind was fierce and forceful as he met the attack head-on, and the two instantly clashed.

Fists and palms collided with dull bangs, force scattering in every direction.

Chu Yunhe's movements were graceful, his palm techniques exquisite. Shen Lian, meanwhile, struck with tremendous force and vicious moves. For a time, they were evenly matched.

Yet anyone with a discerning eye could see that Chu Yunhe was relaxed and clearly had not used his full strength, while Shen Lian was already giving it everything he had.

Almost at the same time Chu Yunhe made his move, Yu Ling'er moved as well. She did not choose Li Yuan. With a sharp cry, her nimble figure pounced toward Cheng Zhao.

When Cheng Zhao saw Yu Ling'er attacking, his expression turned grave, and he immediately took up a stance to meet her in full readiness.

Cheng Zhao's fists and kicks were steady, his foundation solid. But Yu Ling'er's movement technique was more agile, and her inner breath had already entered Qi Guiding. After several exchanges, she gradually gained the upper hand.

Li Yuan, the only one remaining, did not relax his vigilance. His gaze calmly swept across the entire arena.

Before long, Yu Ling'er found an opening in Cheng Zhao's defense and planted a palm on his shoulder. Her supple inner breath burst forth, and Cheng Zhao gave a muffled groan, staggering back several steps before dropping onto the ground on his backside, his face ashen.

Yu Ling'er did not pursue. She withdrew her palm and stood still, breathing faintly as her gaze shifted toward Li Yuan. A trace of slyness flashed in her eyes.

"Classmate Li Yuan, let me test your skills now."

Yu Ling'er spoke with a grin, but her feet did not stop moving. Her figure flashed, and she had already darted toward him, striking a palm at Li Yuan's chest.

Li Yuan had long been prepared. Seeing her attack, he did not meet it head-on. His footwork shifted, and he slid half a step sideways and back, narrowly evading the edge of her palm. At the same time, he cupped his hands and said, "Please instruct me."

Before his words had faded, he switched from defense to offense. A hand chop slashed diagonally toward Yu Ling'er's wrist, the move tricky and swift.

Yu Ling'er gave a surprised "Eh?" and withdrew her palm, changing her strike into a brush that deflected Li Yuan's hand chop. Her other hand formed sword fingers and jabbed toward his ribs.

This time, Li Yuan changed his approach. Against the nimble Yu Ling'er, he adopted a steady, methodical defensive stance. His footwork was dense, his defense rigorous.

Only occasionally, through the gaps as Yu Ling'er transitioned between moves, would he send out one or two strange attacks from tricky angles, forcing Yu Ling'er to defend and disrupting the rhythm of her assault.

This style seemed conservative, yet it left Yu Ling'er feeling like there was nowhere to sink her teeth.

What alarmed her even more was that as the battle continued, she vaguely sensed an extremely faint current flowing through Li Yuan's fists and kicks.

"You've entered Qi Guiding too?"

Yu Ling'er was greatly surprised, and the assault from her hands could not help but slow. She had not expected Li Yuan to have been concealing his strength all along.

The instant her attention wandered, her formerly agile and seamless offense suddenly developed an unnatural sluggishness.

Li Yuan was exceptionally sharp. He instantly seized that fleeting opportunity.

He pushed off with his foot, his body shooting forward like an arrow. His left hand feinted, drawing Yu Ling'er into blocking, while his right fist came from an unbelievable angle, slipping through the gap between Yu Ling'er's arms and stopping one inch before her throat.

Then it halted abruptly.

The wind from his fist made the hairs on Yu Ling'er's neck stand on end.

Her pretty doll-like face turned pale, and she froze in place. The other party's grasp of timing was terrifying.

She bit her lip, decisively stepped back, and cupped her hands. "I concede."

"Thanks for yielding."

Li Yuan withdrew his fist and gave a slight nod.

Waves also stirred in his heart. During the fierce exchange just now, he had tried to draw upon the current within his body. After several attempts, it had actually responded.

Could this be Qi Guiding?

At this moment, the battle between Chu Yunhe and Shen Lian was still continuing, but Shen Lian had already accumulated several bruises, and even a trace of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

He had clearly suffered quite a bit under Chu Yunhe's hands.

Chu Yunhe's breathing, however, remained steady, his demeanor composed.

Li Yuan's thoughts raced. At present, Chu Yunhe had the greatest combat strength. If he waited for Chu Yunhe to easily finish Shen Lian before facing him alone, his chances of victory would be slim.

With that thought, he hesitated no longer. He exerted force through his feet, his body darting out like a hunting leopard as he charged straight into the battle, his fist carrying a faint current as it blasted toward Chu Yunhe.

At the same time, he shouted in a low voice, "Shen Lian, let's take him down together first."

Shen Lian was startled upon hearing this. Then a fierce light flashed in his eyes, and he instantly understood Li Yuan's intention.

Though proud by nature, he was no fool. Facing Chu Yunhe alone, he was already struggling. His defeat was only a matter of time.

Joining forces with Li Yuan was his only chance.

"Good!"

Shen Lian roared low, suppressing his churning blood and qi. Ignoring his injuries, he once again lunged forward, his fist wind howling as he and Li Yuan formed a pincer attack against Chu Yunhe.

Chu Yunhe raised a brow, unconcerned. He shifted his steps to evade Li Yuan's punch, then swung a palm back at his arm, the palm wind sharp and fierce.

Meanwhile, Shen Lian's fist had already blasted toward his face.

The lazy, casual look in Chu Yunhe's eyes suddenly lit up, and a tyrannical aura rose from his body.