Chapter 21: Golden Scales Unleashed, Bloodline Eruption, Summon the Terrorclaw!
After Ye Ling threw that punch, the warriors no longer saw him as just a child.
Joking aside, being able to land such a blow on their top warrior with a single punch—forget them, even a fourth-tier couldn't necessarily pull that off. And from the looks of it, he hadn't even used his inner spiritual power, only external force.
"What do you think? The strongest knight under twenty in our Bright Moon Branch," Nalan Shu said to the Hall Master of Kuangsha Hall with a faint smile.
"That's only for now. Who knows what'll happen later."
"Don't forget, no matter how talented the young geniuses of our cities may be, in the end, they are still limited. That girl Yuan Yuan came from the Holy Temple. No matter how gifted your knight is, he won't be her match," the Kuangsha Hall Master insisted, though his voice betrayed a hint of anxiety.
Nalan Shu only smiled at that and didn't say much more. He knew Ye Ling's talent all too well—seventy points of innate spiritual force wasn't any worse than those so-called prodigies!
"Not bad, little brother. Even I had to take some effort to beat that guy before. You took him down pretty fast!"
"You've gotten even stronger!"
Li Xin quickly grabbed Ye Ling as he returned, her beautiful eyes gleaming with laughter. She was clearly very pleased with his performance.
"Naturally. You should know who taught me," Ye Ling smiled. That line made Li Xin quite satisfied, but the next one wiped that smile off her face. "Sister Xin'er, you beat him once, and I beat you. That's two levels apart, right? Crushing him is easy."
Li Xin was stunned for a second, then gritted her teeth hard—like she wanted to bite Ye Ling himself. She should have known nothing good ever came out of his mouth.
Still, she didn't argue back. As was their usual tradition, she reached out to pinch the flesh on Ye Ling's waist.
So firm—she couldn't even squeeze it.
Li Xin couldn't help but look up at the sky. The joy of victory had vanished.
She couldn't pinch Ye Ling anymore.
The happiness was gone.
The competition continued.
Ye Ling soon faced two more matches, but he cleared them with ease. He hadn't even needed to use his Golden Dragon King bloodline, let alone his inner spiritual power.
Soon, it was the equivalent of the finals. Li Xin and Wang Yuanyuan had just battled, but unfortunately, Li Xin had narrowly lost.
"Little brother, good luck!" Li Xin called out to Ye Ling from the sidelines. Wang Yuanyuan was powerful. In her previous battle, she hadn't even gone all out. She belonged to another level—the level of a Grand Knight.
She was genuinely worried for Ye Ling, afraid he might lose—or worse, get injured in the fight against Wang Yuanyuan. That would be even more upsetting.
The Kuangsha Hall Master remained silent, simply smiling. No matter how terrifying Ye Ling's talent was, growth still took time. Wang Yuanyuan was a few years older. Beating him wouldn't be hard.
As for the rest—whether warrior or knight—everyone was watching this match with complete seriousness.
Because this battle was the most crucial of all.
It represented the Bright Moon Branch's consistent results.
It also represented the honor of the knights!
On the battlefield, Wang Yuanyuan looked at Ye Ling across from her. A faint smile flickered across her face, her breathing slightly unsteady. This was how she always reacted when facing an opponent she respected.
Yes, in Wang Yuanyuan's view, everything Ye Ling had shown so far was worthy of her full effort.
"Planning to end this in one go, or drag it out?" Wang Yuanyuan asked, looking at Ye Ling.
"Either's fine," Ye Ling replied with a nod.
"Then I'll make the first move," Wang Yuanyuan's eyes flashed with a trace of madness, and the next instant, she charged straight at Ye Ling. Her inner spiritual power surged, and the shield and armor in her hands began to emit a strange light.
They seemed to be demon-level weapons!
In a flash, she struck at Ye Ling.
Carrying the weight of a thousand pounds, it was far more forceful than the punch Ye Ling had delivered to that so-called top warrior earlier.
"A contest of strength, is it?"
"Sorry—if it were before, I might've drawn my Angelic Holy Sword and fought using my strengths, since power was never an angel's strong suit.
But now I won't—because I have a new strength: power itself."
Ye Ling spoke calmly, then said no more. His entire aura exploded forth, a terrifying radiance and pressure bursting from his body, causing immense strain on those nearby. Only fifth-tier experts like Nalan Shu and the City Lord of Kuangsha could withstand it.
In the next moment, he launched a punch toward Wang Yuanyuan.
"Barehanded?" Wang Yuanyuan looked at Ye Ling, a flicker of confusion in her eyes, unsure what he was trying to accomplish. But as she looked closer, she noticed something different—golden scales had begun to appear along Ye Ling's arms. They looked both unusual and terrifying.
Even with just a glance, Wang Yuanyuan could sense waves of violent energy emanating from them—something extremely strange.
Soon, the two clashed fists. In that instant, Wang Yuanyuan felt an overwhelming force shoot through her arm. The terrifying power reverberated into her body, her eyes widening in shock as she stared at the source of it.
She was forced back at least five steps before she barely managed to stabilize her stance.
As for Ye Ling, although he was also pushed back, it was only by three steps.
This clash had already made the outcome clear.
'Good thing I unlocked the second layer of the seal. Otherwise, with just the first layer's 250 points or so of external spiritual power, I wouldn't have had the upper hand. Wang Yuanyuan's external power might be in the same range, but with the long-term amplification from the Titan God bloodline, her strength can't be judged by normal standards,' Ye Ling thought.
This time, he had gained the advantage—but only this time.
Next time, it might not go that way.
After all, Wang Yuanyuan hadn't used her full strength yet.
"Such powerful strength... It looks like you, like me, possess a special bloodline. And it's terrifying—no weaker than the Titan God bloodline I've inherited," Wang Yuanyuan muttered.
She was preparing to unleash the deepest level of her bloodline power. That last exchange had fully ignited her fighting spirit.
She was ready to go all out to claim victory—no matter the cost.
That was the madness brought by the Titan God bloodline!
Then, waves of a unique aura surged into her hands. In the next moment, Wang Yuanyuan charged at Ye Ling again. Compared to before, her strength had at least doubled—possibly even surpassed all limits.
And it gave her a wild, beautiful intensity.
Utterly terrifying.
"That punch—any Grand Knight with over a thousand spiritual power would have to activate their spiritual energy to block it," Nalan Shu muttered, gasping at the sight.
The victor had already been decided!
The City Lord of Kuangsha also nodded in agreement at the move.
But he didn't smile much. He knew Ye Ling had always belonged to the Bright Moon Branch, while Wang Yuanyuan, strictly speaking, was an external support.
And for Ye Ling to push Wang Yuanyuan this far meant that, in some sense, the Bright Moon Branch had already far surpassed their Kuangsha Branch.
Of course—
Ye Ling would still lose!
But it was obvious that Ye Ling didn't think so.
Facing the fully awakened Titan God power in Wang Yuanyuan, Ye Ling did not hesitate. The golden scales on his arm began to shift again, transforming in form.
What appeared next was a giant golden claw!
(End of Chapter)
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