"What did you say?"
Blake Lin's expression changed sharply at Evan's words: "I'm a member of the Upper-Grade Lin Clan. How could I possibly kneel to you!"
"What qualifications do you have!"
Anger burned in his heart; the long sword of condensed qi in his hand formed again, ready to strike.
But suddenly, a surge of indescribable pressure welled up inside him.
That pressure seemed to appear out of nowhere, filling him with a sense of crisis.
"Merge."
Evan Lin's voice was indifferent; he uttered a single word and stood there, making no other move.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A series of thunderous explosions echoed in Blake Lin's ears.
He wanted to move, but found his body completely immobilized, as if something had locked him down.
"What did you do to me!"
Blake Lin's eyes widened in disbelief; he'd never experienced anything like this before.
His qi was still boiling inside him, but his body was completely frozen in place.
It was like being trapped in a quagmire—his strength had nowhere to go, while the pressure on his body kept rising.
"It's just kneeling for a moment. I'm not trying to take your life, or cripple your cultivation."
Evan Lin shook his head: "In this world, so many people dream of kneeling to me face-to-face, but none ever get the chance. You should feel honored."
Evan Lin's voice rolled like thunder, yet his tone stayed calm and peaceful, without a hint of forcefulness.
"Who are you to speak to me like this!"
Blake Lin's voice was hoarse as he glared angrily at Evan Lin; his gaze flickered, and his qi surged out in a terrifying wave.
A massive wave of qi surged in front of him, condensing into a thick barrier, but no matter how fiercely his qi roared or how strong Blake Lin's will was, he still couldn't move his body.
On top of that, Blake Lin realized that the sky above and below seemed to be closing in, squeezing toward the center.
The overwhelming pressure forced him to prop himself up with qi, just to keep from collapsing to the ground.
What Blake Lin couldn't stand most was discovering that his waist was starting to buckle under the pressure.
He was bending over!
He, Blake Lin of the mighty Upper-Grade Lin Clan, had never bowed or knelt to anyone!
Let alone bending to Master Lin from Seacrest, right in front of him!
"Stop it! Stop it right now!"
Blake Lin roared, his qi crashing in wave after wave, each fiercer than the last. The boiling energy seemed ready to ignite, even raising the temperature of the air around him.
The barrier formed by his qi turned into a white mist, and the gathered energy was far greater than anything he'd used in battle before.
The terrifying fluctuations in Blake Lin's aura grew stronger and stronger.
In the distance, the Ju family steward was already standing protectively in front of Grandpa Ju, his face full of shock.
The Ju family juniors and many of the onlookers watching the spectacle were so frightened their legs turned to jelly, collapsing to the ground.
"What a terrifying aura. So this is the true strength of Blake Lin."
Even Night Spring and the others felt chills deep in their hearts.
From a distance, they watched Blake Lin suspended in midair; his surging qi had already become tangible. If not for the ice canopy overhead, everyone here would have been injured by the force he was radiating.
Even with the ice canopy as a barrier, the leaking waves of qi were still so frightening that people couldn't help but admire Blake Lin's power—and glance at Master Lin from Seacrest, who stood before him unfazed.
"Terrifying."
Martin Wu swallowed hard. He and his companions felt a bit better, thanks to the tiny fire dragons beside them, which blocked most of the overwhelming qi.
Even so, Gloria Rong and the others couldn't help but feel their hearts pounding in fear.