"You want to keep me here for good?"
The old Ma Patriarch's eyes were overflowing with murderous intent.
Just now, he'd hesitated only because of Master Lin from Seacrest's Moonshade identity.
But he never expected this.
This Master Lin from Seacrest had already made up his mind—he was going to keep him here!
Keep his life!
"Of course."
Evan Lin nodded, calm and unhurried.
His arrogant posture made everyone around him tremble inside.
"Old Ma is a Heavenly Phenomenon Realm expert, after all."
"This Master Lin from Seacrest joined Moonshade, and even smashed through House Rowe. Could it be that his strength is also at the Heavenly Phenomenon Realm?"
"If he's not Heavenly Phenomenon, he wouldn't have the guts to say something like that. But he's so young—could he really be a Heavenly Phenomenon? Is that even possible?"
The crowd was abuzz with discussion.
Everyone looked at Evan Lin with different expressions in their eyes.
A Heavenly Phenomenon Realm powerhouse under twenty—Master Lin from Seacrest?
Just hearing that sounded totally unbelievable.
Normally, people would already be mocking and sneering at Evan Lin by now.
But right now, nobody could put their feelings into words.
It was like, somehow, when Master Lin from Seacrest said it, you just couldn't help but believe him.
"Master Lin from Seacrest, you're still young and don't understand what the Heavenly Phenomenon Realm really means. Since you're with Moonshade, I don't want to make things ugly with you. If you know what's good for you, kneel and kowtow three times to me and Old Ma right now. As for what you said just now, I'll pretend it never happened."
Xavier Liu spoke up.
His situation was awkward, stuck between a rock and a hard place—he couldn't really go up against Moonshade head-on.
There were so many people in the Liu clan—if they really angered Moonshade, it would be a disaster.
"Nothing more to say."
Evan Lin shook his head, then looked at the other Ancient Martial clan patriarchs: "Once the Rowe Patriarch steps into Heavenly Phenomenon, does anyone else want to come out for a fight?"
"No need to waste time—if anyone from the Liu clan or House Ma wants to fight, just step up now. We'll settle it all at once."
When Evan finished speaking, the whole hall fell silent again.
"So you mean, you're planning to challenge all the clan patriarchs together with him?"
The Qin Patriarch's gaze was icy as he looked at Evan Lin, his voice slow: "I see you're young, and with Moonshade—your future is limitless."
"As Ancient Martial clans, we don't bully the few with the many, nor do we take advantage of others when they're down."
After a few people finished speaking, Old Patriarch Ma let out a cold laugh. "Dream on," he sneered.
He thought Evan Lin was planning to use his Moonshade identity to get the Qin Patriarch to step in.
If the Qin Patriarch—a Heavenly Phenomenon powerhouse—joined in, Rowe's odds would shoot way up.
"It's been twenty minutes already, and Rowe Patriarch hasn't shown a single sign of waking up."
Xavier Liu kept sensing the energy shifts around him, especially from Rowe Patriarch.
But Rowe Patriarch was like a monk deep in meditation.
He just stood there, eyes shut.
A moment ago, his aura kept rising and falling.
But now, that energy was fading fast.
Even Rowe Patriarch himself didn't feel like a peak first-grade Pointing-to-Mystery grandmaster anymore.
"He spent over ten years failing to break through to Heavenly Phenomenon, and now he's supposed to do it in half an hour? That's just wishful thinking."
Old Patriarch Ma snorted. "If you ask me, Rowe Patriarch probably gave up on breaking through ages ago. He's just standing there with his eyes shut, panicking inside, figuring out how to bail."
"Honestly, why not just..."
Old Patriarch Ma paused mid-sentence.
Everyone sensed it too, and in that moment, all eyes turned to Rowe Patriarch.
Suddenly, Rowe Patriarch's aura exploded, making everyone gasp.
"Is he breaking through?"
"Is he about to step into Heavenly Phenomenon?"
A bunch of people looked stunned, eyes full of shock and doubt.
But before anyone could say more...
Just as his aura hit its peak, it suddenly crashed like a receding tide.
Peak first-grade Pointing-to-Mystery Realm.
First-grade Pointing-to-Mystery Realm.
Peak second-grade Pointing-to-Mystery Realm.
Second-grade Pointing-to-Mystery Realm.
...
His aura kept fading.
His cultivation dropped lower and lower.
It was like a balloon that kept inflating, then suddenly popped.
Once the air was gone, it shrank in a flash.
"He's getting weaker and weaker."
"Wait, is Rowe Patriarch only at third—no, fourth-grade Vajra Realm now?"
People started whispering among themselves.
Ripples of force shimmered around him, inner qi swirling, but his aura was still tanking.
"Nice job, look what you did."
Xavier Liu relaxed when he saw this and started laughing. "Rowe Patriarch used to play it steady, trying to trade time for insight. His strength kept climbing all these years.
Now look—because of you and your 'half-hour Heavenly Phenomenon,' his inner qi's a mess, and his cultivation's totally screwed!
If you ask me, he's gone heart-devil. Forget Heavenly Phenomenon, he might never even touch Pointing-to-Mystery again!"
Xavier's words made everyone jump.
"Yeah, when I broke through to Heavenly Phenomenon, my power kept climbing. But Rowe Patriarch? He's just falling apart. Face it, Master Lin from Seacrest—you blew it."
Old Patriarch Ma's eyes turned icy, and he leaned forward, ready to take Rowe Patriarch's life in one strike.
"Did he fail?" Lily Liang trembled at their words.
"Guess it really can't be done. He's got freakish talent, but he's still way too young." Harvey Li sighed and shook his head.
"Interesting." Li Hanbin muttered, sitting there.
"This guy's way too full of himself. Does he think Heavenly Phenomenon is some cheap cabbage?" Jenna Jiang frowned, wondering how Evan Lin would handle the fallout.
Ethan Lu relaxed inside—he was honestly looking forward to Evan Lin making a fool of himself.
Cindy Hong crossed her arms, standing there, watching with pure curiosity.
Finally—
All of Rowe Patriarch's inner qi vanished, gone without a trace.
He felt just like an ordinary person.
"Five minutes left. Rowe Patriarch's just another face in the crowd now—no point waiting any longer. Let's finish this."
Old Patriarch Ma finished speaking and waved his hand. A wild gust, packed with endless force, blasted straight toward Rowe Patriarch.
It was lightning fast.
The force cut sharper than any blade.
In the blink of an eye, it was there.
It was about to slice Rowe Patriarch down right then and there!
Everyone was stunned.
Snap.
All eyes were on Evan Lin.
Standing there, Evan Lin casually snapped his fingers.
At the same time—
Rowe Patriarch, who'd kept his eyes shut all this time, suddenly opened them!