Four longswords stood at the cardinal points.
Evan Lin held no sword in his hand, yet sword-qi slashed across the space before him.
He wasn't gripping a blade, but his edge was sharper than ever.
Dust swirled beneath his feet, faint wisps of powder circling at his sides.
"Come at me together."
Evan Lin spoke in a calm, almost casual voice.
"Courting death!"
First Elder Rowe's face changed; Second Elder Rowe's expression turned icy cold.
Both elders were itching to charge in and tear Evan Lin apart right then and there.
But they didn't move.
Atop the Rowe Patriarch's head, clouds churned—he looked ready to erupt at any moment.
He said nothing, just stood there, still clutching that dead tree branch in his hand.
Behind them, Rowe clan juniors poured in like a rising tide.
"Run!"
Lily Liang couldn't help but cry out, her face drained of all color.
"Why aren't the Rowe Elders and Patriarch attacking?"
Lucy Sun, who had been dazed for ages, finally couldn't hold back and asked.
"Probably because we're here."
Master Daniel Ward took a deep breath: "An Ancient Martial Clan, forced to mobilize its entire force—even the closed-door Patriarch has been dragged out—and the challenger is just a kid not even twenty yet."
"The Rowe clan is confident they can kill him, but whether it's the Elders or the Patriarch, if they join forces to besiege a youth like this, word will get out. Even if the Ancient Martial Rowe clan wins, they'll lose in the end."
After Master Daniel Ward finished speaking, Chloe Cheng and the others all nodded in agreement.
It was already a situation of many against few, and on top of that, this was the Rowe clan's home turf.
From their perspective, if the Rowe clan heavyweights swarmed in now, they'd probably kill Master Lin from Seacrest in an instant.
But if word got out, no one would say how miserable Master Lin died, or how weak he was—they'd just say the Rowe clan fought unfairly, that they lacked confidence and had to gang up with their top experts against a junior.
That would be a huge loss of face, and might even make it hard for the Rowe clan to stay respected among Ancient Martial Clans.
"No matter how you look at it, this Master Lin from Seacrest is probably doomed."
Chloe Cheng let out a sigh.
"How many do you think he can hold off?"
Ray Zhao suddenly asked.
Everyone looked ahead; in the distance, the Rowe clan juniors had already lined up in a long queue.
One at a time, each gathered their qi and charged at Evan Lin like a cannonball.
Qi surged and momentum was fierce.
The attacker was a third-grade Vajra—a real powerhouse anywhere else.
One-on-one.
Wheel battle.
Even just grinding him down would be enough to wear him out.
"Probably not more than ten," Chloe Cheng hesitated.
"No matter how strong he is, fighting one person must take four or five moves, right? With so many people, he'd just get worn out!"
"Plus, Rowe clan disciples have trained in Rowe Clan Ancient Fist since childhood—that's real martial arts!" Tim Xu had just finished speaking when his voice suddenly froze.
Lucy Sun's eyes widened; Chloe Cheng was also suddenly shocked.