Chapter 032：vulnerable

Half an hour later, the first round of elimination matches came to an end. There were thirty-two people remaining. Most of those eliminated were those with the strength of five or six ranks in cultivation. Of course, there were also a few unlucky ones who reached the seventh rank in the martial realm and were defeated jointly by others and thus withdrew from the arena. 

There were still some people who did not even move their bodies throughout the entire first round of the battle. They were Lin Qian, Lin Qian's elder brother Lin Hong, Lin Wu, Lin Yu and Lin Feng. 

"Ha ha, this guy is really lucky. Lin Qian actually helped him pass the audition." 

"Well, what's the matter? Lin Qian was just trying to make things worse for him in the second round." 

The crowd was discussing Lin Feng among themselves, obviously very unhappy that he had advanced without a fight. 

The second round of the battle was divided into four groups, with eight people in each group. They fought in turns. Each person had to fight against the other seven people in the same group once. The two players with the highest number of victories in the same group advanced to the next round. 

First, a lottery draw will be conducted to form groups. Then, the two elders will announce the results. Lin Qian was assigned to the first group. 

"Lin Feng, Lin Yan, Lin Tao, Lin Yue, Lin Ran, Lin Li, Lin Cai Zhuo, Lin Yu, Group Four." 

When the third elder on the platform heard the announcement of the fourth group list from the second elder, he smiled and said, "The strength of the fourth group is the weakest among all the groups. With Yu'er's cultivation level, there should be no problem." 

"Lin Yu is already a dominant force in the fourth group." Lin said with a grandiose manner. 

"Ha ha, nonsense! If Lin Qian came along, Lin Yu would have to admit defeat voluntarily." The third elder clearly found Lin Daoba's words very convincing and chuckled loudly. 

"Only I wonder how high Lin Feng can rank in the fourth group?" The third elder spoke in a not-too-low voice, and as he spoke, he deliberately glanced at Lin Hai. 

The huge battle platform is divided into four sections, each for a different group's battle, so that the battles can be carried out simultaneously. 

"Group One: Lin Qian vs. Lin Han; Group Two: Lin Hong vs. Lin Lei; Group Three: Lin Wu vs. Lin Xiao; Group Four: Lin Feng vs. Lin Yan." 

When the crowd heard about the first battle, they couldn't help but look excited. It was a decisive battle, and judging from the situation, it seemed that Elder Second had deliberately arranged it. 

The Lin Qian and Lin Hong brothers are self-evident. Lin Wu, among the younger generation of the Lin family, is also a standout. As for Lin Feng, although his strength is relatively weak, his reputation is no less than that of the previous few people. Therefore, in the first battle of the fourth group, Lin Yu was not even arranged to participate; instead, Lin Feng was chosen. 

The eight people stepped onto the four battle platforms. The two battles that everyone was most interested in were those between Lin Qian and Lin Feng. They wanted to see how strong Lin Qian was now, and also wanted to see how far Lin Feng's family's "waste" had progressed. 

"I give up." Lin Han from the first group said quite straightforwardly. This made many people look disappointed. However, everyone could understand Lin Han. Who would want to provoke Lin Qian? 

"Group One, Lin Qiansheng." The Second Elder announced. 

Without Lin Qian's battle, the crowd's attention immediately shifted to the battle area of the fourth group. 

Lin Feng vs. Lin Yan. 

"I don't want to insult my sword. Surrender then." Lin Yan, with his seventh-level cultivation in the realm of Qi-War, and being a sword-war spirit, had few rivals among those at the seventh level of Qi-War cultivation. Looking at Lin Feng, his gaze carried an air of arrogance. "I don't want to insult my sword. Surrender then." Lin Yan, with his seventh-level cultivation in the realm of Qi-War, and being a sword-war spirit, had few rivals among those 

"Group Four, Lin Yansheng." 

The second elder directly announced the result. 

"Huh?" Lin Feng's gaze slightly narrowed. Was Lin Yansheng conceding defeat? He opened his mouth to admit defeat? 

However, Lin Yan seemed to take this for granted and walked off the stage without any hesitation. 

"Why are you still here?" The Second Elder asked when he saw that Lin Feng didn't move at all. 

"Have I conceded defeat?" Lin Feng asked. 

The second elder frowned and thought to himself that this fellow was truly lacking in good sense. Letting him lose outright would spare him the humiliation. Not only did he not show gratitude but even dared to question him. 

"Whether you admit defeat or not makes no difference. Just go ahead and finish it. Don't disrupt the annual meeting." 

"Since I haven't conceded defeat, who has the right to declare Lin Yansheng as the winner?" Lin Feng seemed not to have heard the words of the Second Elder and continued to ask. "I'm not giving up yet!" 

"I'm the Second Elder here, in charge of presiding over the annual meeting." 

"Ha ha, it seems that no one takes my position as the clan leader seriously anymore." Lin Hai's calm voice rang out, with anger hidden within the calmness: "Second Elder, you openly violated the rules of the annual meeting in front of everyone and declared the winner before the battle even began. Who gave you the right to do that?" 

"Chief, the outcome of this battle is already known without having to fight. I did this to protect your face and the dignity of our clan. Why should you care?" 

"Please preserve my dignity. I sense that you are deliberately trying to make me look bad. Now, you can leave. The annual meeting will be chaired by Elder Six." 

"I don't agree," Lin Daoba said with a commanding tone. 

"I also don't agree. The actions taken by Second Elder were justified," the Elder Patriarch echoed. At the same time, Lin Haoran, Third Elder, and Seventh Elder all stood up. 

"Is this considered a threat?" Lin Hai dismissed these faces. His two brothers, along with four elders, including the top three among them, these people controlled the fate of the Lin family. 

"If I must do it this way?" Lin Hai sneered. 

"Chief, the Second Elder did nothing wrong. You have no right to deprive him of the qualification to preside over the annual gathering. If you insist on your own way and take personal vendettas, won't that hurt the hearts of all the people in the Lin family?" The Grand Elder said with a half-smile. 

Seeing this situation, everyone realized that today's annual meeting was indeed going to be different... The elders, including Grandpa and Third Uncle, were planning to have the patriarch step down. 

Lin Hai smiled and said in a very low voice, "I know what you want. But it seems that you still lack an excuse. Now I'll give you one." 

The people on the opposite side blinked their eyes for a moment, not understanding what Lin Hai meant. 

Seeing that Lin Hai turned around and faced everyone, he said loudly, "My son Lin Feng is having a match with Lin Yan. Lin Feng has not conceded defeat and they have never fought before. The Second Elder immediately declared Lin Yan the winner. I think the Second Elder is disregarding the family rules of the Lin family. He should be severely punished. However, several elders believed that I, as the clan leader, was seeking personal revenge. Therefore, in order to give everyone an explanation, I decided to let Lin Feng and Lin Yan fight. If Lin Feng loses, it will prove that I, as the clan leader, am narrow-minded and unworthy of being the leader of the Lin family anymore. I am willing to step down." 

As Lin Hai said this, the crowd was in a state of uproar. Lin Feng had only reached the level of the Fifth and Sixth Stages of the Inner Martial Realm three months ago. Now, his strongest state is the Seventh Stage. How could he be the match for Lin Yan? The clan chief did this not to give the elders such as Lin Yan an opportunity, but to show off his own strength! 

Sure enough, Lin Daoba and others' eyes lit up. They never expected Lin Hai to say such a thing. They were relieved that they didn't have to come up with any more excuses. 

"However, if Lin Feng wins, it would prove that the Second Elder has disregarded the rules of my Lin Clan. He should be beaten by my family head with a palm strike, and the position of the Elder should be stripped away from him." Lin Hai's tone gradually grew colder. Even the others seemed to feel a chill. Lin Hai, this is using his position as the clan head to bet against the other party. 

"I agree." Lin Daobaixi immediately spoke up, his face cold. Lin Fengsheng and Lin Yan? How could that be possible? 

"I also agree." The elder also spoke up. 

"Alright, Second Elder, how about you?" Lin Hai looked at the Second Elder. 

The Second Elder muttered to himself, "Even if Lin Feng wins, it has nothing to do with Lin Daoba and the First Elder. These two guys will naturally be happy to agree. But the Second Elder could only keep this thought to himself and nodded in response, saying, 'I have no objection.'" 

"Terrible." Lin Haoran cursed inwardly. Lin Feng could have incapacitated his son, Lin Heng, and at least had the strength of an eighth-level martial artist. Lin Yan would surely lose. He had intended to stop it, but Lin Daoba and the elders had agreed too quickly. He could only hold his thoughts to himself. 

"Lin Yan, come up and fight him head-on." The second elder spoke coldly, giving Lin Hai a glance. This was because you yourself surrendered the position of the clan leader. 

Lin Yan returned to the battlefield and looked at Lin Feng mockingly: "It's bad enough that you are a useless person yourself. But to bring your father down with you? Well, I Lin Yan can even decide who gets to be the clan leader. That's quite a stroke of luck, isn't it?" 

"Is it the case that your use of the sword is just as empty of meaning as your words?" 

"Stupid move." Lin Yan drew his long sword and charged at Lin Feng. 

"Glittering Sword Shadows." 

"Get out of here!" Lin Feng shouted in a low voice. With a single step, the sword energy emitted by Lin Yan instantly vanished. Then, two fists broke through the gap of the sword and landed on Lin Yan's chest, sending him flying away directly. 

The long sword had already fallen to the ground. Lin Yan, lying on the floor, showed a look of confusion. He lost? How could he lose? 

"Blade, swift, accurate, ruthless. But you don't have any of those qualities. Your swordplay is full of flaws. Using a sword is nothing but an insult to it. You're a complete loser." Lin Feng kicked the long sword beneath his feet away and returned the two words given to him by Lin Yan to him. 

Not only Lin Yan failed to do it, but also the Lin family members were stunned. How familiar this move was! Just like the time Lin Feng defeated Lin Yun three months ago, it was just one strike, an extremely effortless one. 

Looking at Lin Feng on the stage, he was confident and haughty. This loser teenager seemed to have undergone a complete transformation. Even Lin Yan, who was at the peak of the 7th stage of the Martial Spirit Realm, was no match for him. 

"How could this be? How could this happen?" The second elder's body trembled slightly, and he felt a chill all over. Lin Hai, who was seated on the main throne at the high platform, was slowly approaching him.