The entire arena became silent after the cracking sound echoed across the battle stage.
Crack.
The sound itself was not loud.
Yet at that moment, it felt as though it exploded directly inside everyone's minds.
Because the thing that cracked—
Was Lin Tao's Earth Iron Shield.
A defensive weapon famous throughout the outer sect.
A shield that had blocked countless attacks from late-stage Qi Conjunction cultivators.
And now—
A visible crack had appeared on its surface.
Lin Tao's eyes widened instantly.
Shock appeared on his usually calm face for the very first time.
Meanwhile, Fang Lin stood directly before him with his fist pressed against the shield.
A faint grey glow quietly flowed beneath Fang Lin's skin.
Fang Lin had activated the first stage of Nine Nether Phantom Body - The Lesser Mastery of the Nether Skin.
The atmosphere around his body had completely changed.
His physical aura now felt heavy and dangerous.
Even the surrounding air seemed to tremble faintly around him.
Murong Yue immediately stood up from her seat.
Murong Yue shouted, "What kind of strength is that?!"
Beside her, Luo Chen's expression became serious.
Luo Chen slowly said, "That's not a normal body cultivation…"
Even Han Zhi's eyes narrowed sharply.
Han Zhi quietly said, "His body technique became stronger again."
Meanwhile, Zhao Feng silently stared at Fang Lin's arm.
The explosive force from earlier had not come from Qi alone.
It came from pure physical power - the bloodline power.
And that was exactly what made it terrifying.
On the faction side, Xu Ren's expression had already darkened.
Xu Ren coldly said, "How did he break Lin Tao's shield defense?"
Yue Fang quietly observed the stage without speaking.
Meanwhile, Shen Ku's cold eyes slowly narrowed slightly.
Only Chen Hao remained calm externally.
But internally—
His heart had already become serious.
Extremely serious.
Fang Lin's growth speed was becoming abnormal. Far beyond his earlier expectations.
----
On the high platform above the arena, even several elders exchanged glances silently.
One faction elder frowned deeply.
"That body cultivation technique…"
Another elder slowly said, "It is not ordinary."
Meanwhile, Elder Feng quietly looked toward Fang Lin with deeper interest appearing in his eyes.
Even the Sect Master, hidden high above the arena and invisible to everyone, silently watched Fang Lin carefully.
Then—
The battle exploded once more.
Boom!
Lin Tao roared suddenly as powerful yellow Qi erupted around his body again.
His Earth Barrier expanded heavily outward while his shield slammed forward violently.
Lin Tao angrily shouted, "Do not underestimate me!"
Boom!
The stage trembled violently.
However—
Fang Lin did not retreat.
Instead—
He stepped forward directly.
The crowd immediately gasped loudly.
Normally, no one fought Lin Tao head-on physically.
That was his greatest strength.
Yet Fang Lin moved forward without any hesitation.
Boom!
Another punch slammed directly into the shield.
Crack!
The crack spread further instantly.
Lin Tao's expression finally changed completely.
Because this time—
The force behind Fang Lin's attack had become even heavier.
Fang Lin himself also felt surprised internally.
The Nine Nether Phantom Body after reaching Lesser Mastery was terrifying.
Every movement carried explosive physical force.
Every strike felt far heavier than before.
And combined with Flowing Wind Steps—
His speed and power became monstrous together.
Lin Tao suddenly pushed his Earth Barrier outward violently.
A thick layer of yellow Qi surrounded his body completely like heavy armor.
Then he charged forward.
Boom!
The massive shield crashed downward again.
But Fang Lin disappeared instantly.
Flowing Wind Steps activated fully.
His figure blurred across the battlefield like wind itself.
Then—
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Fang Lin's fists began raining down continuously against Lin Tao's defenses from every direction.
The crowd became completely stunned.
Fast.
Too fast.
Fang Lin's attacks no longer resembled ordinary martial exchanges.
It looked like a storm.
An endless storm of explosive strikes.
Every attack carried terrifying physical force.
Every strike shook Lin Tao's shield violently.
Crack.
Crack.
More cracks slowly began appearing.
Murong Yue's eyes widened brightly.
Murong Yue excitedly shouted, "Hit him harder!"
Luo Chen burst into loud laughter.
Luo Chen shouted, "That's it!"
Even Bai Qing smiled faintly now.
Meanwhile, among the audience seats—
Xuo Mu had already stood up completely.
Xuo Mu excitedly shouted, "Brother Fang is amazing!"
Beside him, Xue Ji's usually calm eyes also carried visible excitement.
Xue Ji softly said, "He became much stronger in a very short period of time…"
More and more disciples throughout the arena began reacting loudly.
"This is insane…"
"He's overpowering Lin Tao physically!"
"How can a middle-stage cultivator possess that kind of strength?!"
Some disciples from the alliance side even began cheering openly now.
"Fang Lin! Fang Lin! Fang Lin!"
"Break it!"
"Destroy that shield!"
The atmosphere inside the arena became increasingly heated.
Meanwhile, Lin Tao himself gradually became more shocked with every passing second.
His shield arm was trembling now.
His Earth Barrier was becoming unstable.
Every single strike from Fang Lin felt unbelievably heavy.
And worse—
Fang Lin's attacks were becoming faster and heavier.
Boom!
Another punch exploded against the shield.
This time—
A massive crack spread directly across its center.
Lin Tao's pupils contracted violently.
Danger!
For the first time in many years—
He felt genuine danger.
Then suddenly—
Fang Lin stopped moving briefly.
The entire arena froze for a moment.
Lin Tao instinctively felt alarm bells exploding inside his mind.
Fang Lin slowly inhaled.
The faint grey glow beneath his skin suddenly intensified slightly.
Then—
He stepped forward.
BOOOOM!
The stage beneath his feet shattered instantly.
The next moment—
Fang Lin appeared directly before Lin Tao like a phantom.
Then his fist exploded forward.
The crowd could barely even see the movement clearly.
Boom!!!
The punch landed directly against the center of the shield once more.
CRAAACK!
The Earth Iron Shield shattered completely.
Fragments exploded throughout the arena instantly.
Lin Tao's eyes widened in disbelief.
Then—
Before he could even recover—
Fang Lin's next strike arrived immediately afterward.
Boom!
The Yellow Earth Barrier around Lin Tao's body exploded apart violently.
The protective Qi shattered completely.
The terrifying force blasted Lin Tao backward across the stage like a broken rag doll.
Blood sprayed from his mouth midair.
Then—
BOOM!
His body crashed heavily against the edge of the battle platform.
Silence.
Complete silence filled the entire arena.
Everyone stared blankly at the destroyed battlefield.
The shattered shield pieces.
The cracked stage.
The defeated Lin Tao.
And at the center—
Fang Lin stood calmly while the faint grey glow beneath his skin slowly faded away.
For several seconds—
Nobody spoke.
Then the entire arena erupted completely.
"FANG LIN WON!"
"He destroyed Lin Tao's shield!"
"What terrifying power!"
"Is he really only at the middle-stage Qi Conjunction?!"
The crowd exploded into chaos.
Meanwhile, Lin Tao slowly tried standing up while coughing blood repeatedly.
His face had completely lost its earlier calmness.
Shock still filled his eyes.
He lost.
And not only lost—
His strongest defense which was famed through out the outer sect, had been broken apart directly.
On the faction side, the atmosphere became extremely heavy.
Xu Ren's expression turned ugly.
Yue Fang's eyes narrowed quietly.
Even Shen Ku's gaze toward Fang Lin had changed completely now.
Meanwhile, Chen Hao silently stared at Fang Lin without speaking.
But inwardly—
Alarm had already risen fully inside him.
Dangerous.
Fang Lin was becoming genuinely dangerous.
Not only because of talent.
But because of growth speed.
At this rate—
The balance inside the outer sect itself could change.
High above the arena, several faction elders also exchanged dark expressions silently.
One elder coldly said, "That boy cannot continue growing freely."
Another elder slowly nodded.
Meanwhile, on the alliance side—
The atmosphere was completely opposite.
Many disciples openly cheered loudly now.
Even some alliance elders smiled faintly.
Elder Feng quietly looked toward Fang Lin while lightly stroking his beard.
Then Elder Feng softly laughed.
"Interesting…"
Very interesting.
--
Meanwhile, high above the arena on one of the distant observation platforms, Feng Jiu'er quietly watched the battlefield below.
The moment Fang Lin shattered Lin Tao's Earth Iron Shield completely, even her beautiful eyes widened slightly in shock.
For a brief moment—
She actually forgot maintaining her calm expression.
Feng Jiu'er softly muttered, "He actually broke it…"
Her gaze remained fixed on Fang Lin without moving away.
The faint grey glow beneath his skin earlier had immediately caught her attention. Even though most disciples failed noticing it clearly, Feng Jiu'er had seen it completely.
And because of that—
The shock within her heart became even greater.
That was not ordinary body cultivation.
Not at all.
Then, as Fang Lin stood at the center of the shattered battlefield while the entire arena erupted into cheers, a bright smile slowly appeared on Feng Jiu'er's face unconsciously.
A genuinely happy smile.
Even her eyes carried visible excitement now.
Feng Jiu'er quietly clenched her hands slightly before softly laughing.
Feng Jiu'er happily said, "That idiot…"
"He really did it."
The joy in her expression could no longer be hidden properly.
Nearby disciples from the inner sect immediately looked toward her in surprise.
Because normally—
Feng Jiu'er rarely showed emotions so openly.
But at that moment, she looked genuinely delighted while watching Fang Lin standing proudly at the center of the arena.
Then suddenly—
A teasing voice sounded from behind her.
Elder Feng slowly walked forward with a faint smile on his face.
Elder Feng calmly said, "You seem very happy."
Feng Jiu'er's expression immediately froze slightly.
Then she quickly turned her face away.
Feng Jiu'er hurriedly said, "I'm not happy."
Elder Feng looked toward her calmly before glancing toward Fang Lin below once again.
Then Elder Feng slowly smiled knowingly.
"Of course."
Feng Jiu'er immediately became slightly embarrassed.
However—
The smile in her eyes still remained while she quietly continued watching Fang Lin below.