Noon.
The sun stood high above the Rising Sun Sect.
The arena was packed.
Only eight disciples remained.
The referee stepped forward.
"Quarterfinal match — Lin Kai versus Luo Han!"
The crowd erupted.
Luo Han walked onto the stage first.
His steps were steady, each one firm against the stone.
Peak Qi Refining Stage 8.
His aura didn't explode outward like others.
It pressed down slowly.
Like a mountain settling into place.
Lin Kai stepped up next.
Stage 7.
Black ring faint in his pupils.
The vortex within him rotated quietly.
Waiting.
The referee's hand fell.
"Begin!"
Luo Han did not rush.
He raised one palm slowly.
Golden Qi gathered around him, forming a faint outline of a massive mountain behind his back.
"Earth Guard Technique," someone whispered.
"He cultivates defensive arts."
Luo Han stepped forward.
The air grew heavy.
Lin Kai felt it instantly—
Dense.
Stable.
Hard to shake.
Luo Han thrust his palm out.
The air compressed violently.
Lin Kai sidestepped, but the pressure wave clipped his shoulder, sending him sliding back several meters.
Strong.
Very strong.
No wasted motion.
No reckless bursts.
Luo Han advanced again.
Each strike carried crushing weight.
Lin Kai dodged and countered with a palm strike to Luo Han's ribs—
But it felt like hitting stone.
Golden light flashed.
The attack barely penetrated.
The crowd murmured.
"He can't break his defense!"
Luo Han spoke calmly mid-battle.
"You rely on absorption."
He struck again.
Lin Kai barely blocked.
"Against overwhelming force…"
Another strike.
Stone tiles shattered.
"…there is nothing to absorb."
Lin Kai skidded backward, breathing heavier.
He was right.
Luo Han's Qi was tightly condensed.
There was almost no leakage.
No easy thread to steal.
The vortex inside him stirred impatiently.
Hungry.
Frustrated.
Luo Han gathered energy into both palms.
The mountain phantom behind him solidified further.
"Mountain Suppression!"
He slammed both hands downward.
The arena trembled.
An immense force pressed toward Lin Kai from above.
Air itself felt solid.
Lin Kai's knees bent under the pressure.
Cracks formed beneath his feet.
The crowd gasped.
"Is it over?!"
The vortex began spinning faster.
It sensed enormous Qi right above him.
Dense.
Abundant.
Tempting.
Devour it.
Take it all.
Lin Kai's breathing grew ragged.
If he released the Heaven Devouring Art fully—
He could tear apart that descending mountain.
But in front of everyone—
There would be no hiding it.
High above, the robed elder leaned forward slightly.
"Yes…"
"Show me."
The pressure increased.
Blood trickled from the corner of Lin Kai's mouth.
Luo Han's voice echoed above him.
"Yield."
For a moment—
Everything went silent inside Lin Kai.
Then—
He made a decision.
Instead of expanding outward—
He compressed inward.
The vortex shrank to a needle point.
Condensed.
Focused.
He extended one hand upward.
Not to swallow everything.
Just one spot.
A single flaw.
He had observed it earlier—
The center of Luo Han's technique.
Where all the Qi converged.
The core.
Lin Kai stepped forward against the crushing force.
His palm struck upward into that exact point.
The vortex pierced.
Not devouring wildly—
But drilling.
A thin spiral of Qi was ripped from the center of the "mountain."
Just enough.
The golden phantom flickered.
For half a second—
The suppression weakened.
That was enough.
Lin Kai exploded forward.
His fist drove straight into Luo Han's chest.
BOOM!
Shockwaves rippled across the arena.
Luo Han staggered backward three steps.
Golden light shattered.
Silence.
Both stood breathing heavily.
Luo Han looked down at his chest.
Then back at Lin Kai.
"…You found the core."
Lin Kai wiped blood from his lip.
"You compress too much."
A faint smile appeared on Luo Han's face.
"Interesting."
He straightened.
Then—
Raised his hand.
"I concede."
The arena erupted.
"What?!"
"He gave up?!"
The referee blinked before shouting—
"Winner — Lin Kai!"
The crowd exploded into chaos.
Stage 7 defeating Peak Stage 8.
Unheard of.
On the high platform—
Sect Master Liang's eyes gleamed with interest.
Elder Xu frowned slightly.
And in the shadows—
The robed figure's smile deepened.
"He's learning restraint."
"Even better."
Below the stage—
Mu Xue watched quietly.
Her expression unreadable.
Lin Kai stepped down from the arena.
The vortex hummed softly.
Satisfied.
Disciplined.
Stronger.
Stage 7 peak.
Semifinals awaited.
Only four remained.
Mu Xue.
Lin Kai.
And two others.
And the pressure…
Was only beginning.