Chapter Forty-One: The Clan Comparison Begins

  The annual family competition began as usual, and each of the major families did not suspend the competition due to the theft of the spiritual medicine. This was a rule set by the ancestors, and no one could easily change it.

  The training ground of the Ye family's mansion was now packed with people, all members of the Ye family had gathered here, forming a circle around a two-meter-high, twenty-meter-wide competition platform.

  Ten meters below the competition platform, there was a row of chairs where the main people of the Ye family were seated. Among them were two elderly men who had been in seclusion at the Family Elder's Institute for many years. Both were old men, apparently seventy or eighty years old, with white hair and ruddy complexion, completely without the usual signs of aging.

  Two elderly men from the Ye family sat in their chairs, gazing forward with sparkling eyes that naturally emitted an aura of majesty. As two nine-segment peak experts, there seemed to be an invisible atmosphere within a few meters around them, making several people nearby feel a heavy pressure.

  Next to the two elders sat Ye Xun, Ye Xiao Tian, and Ye Feng, while a little further away were several masters of the collateral branches of the Ye family, such as Ye Ling, Ye Huan, and Ye Gui. Behind them stood the younger generation of direct and collateral descendants, each standing behind their respective seniors.

  The training ground was extremely vast. Even though most of the Ye family members were gathered here, they only occupied one-third of the space.

  The disciples were whispering among themselves, guessing who would win the championship this time. Some thought it was Ye Sheng, while others favored Ye Yan.

  "All of you young disciples of the Ye family, today is the annual year-end clan competition. Originally, I had discussed with the family elders that the disciple who wins first place would be rewarded with a low-grade supreme spirit medicine. However, due to the events that have occurred over the past few days, which I'm sure you are all aware of, the family is temporarily unable to produce a low-grade supreme spirit medicine. Therefore, we can only substitute it with five low-grade high-quality spirit medicines." Ye Xun stood up, his gaze sweeping across everyone, his voice filled with the majesty of a family head.

  "It's really like that, it seems no one can get the low-grade supreme spiritual medicine this time, what a pity. However, the five low-grade top-quality spiritual medicines are not bad either, enough to let a sixth-stage master directly advance to seventh-stage."

  "High-grade spiritual medicine is also a luxury for us, usually the low-grade inferior spiritual medicine provided by our family is all we get, and to obtain even a single low-grade mid-tier spiritual medicine requires making contributions to the family."

  "What a high-quality spiritual medicine! Unfortunately, it's destined to be out of our reach. With our current strength, we can't even get into the top three, and can only be at the bottom."

  The family disciples were in an uproar, but Ye Xun waved his hand and the entire scene fell silent. He spoke again: "Except for the first prize, which remains unchanged, the other rewards have been slightly adjusted. This time, those who can enter the top ten will receive a low-grade medium-quality spiritual medicine. I hope you all cultivate well and become strong in the future, making the Ye family even greater!"

  "Now the clan competition is about to officially begin, all young disciples can freely go on stage and challenge each other. Each person has two chances to challenge, if they lose the first time, they have a second chance to challenge again. If one side admits defeat, the other side should immediately stop, to avoid injury." As Ye Xun's voice fell, the entire venue erupted.

  In the past, only those who ranked in the top ten were rewarded with three low-grade inferior spiritual herbs. This time, however, it was a single low-grade medium spiritual herb, which was almost equivalent to ten low-grade inferior spiritual herbs. Those ordinary disciples usually received very few supplies from their families, and low-grade medium spiritual herbs were extremely precious to them, something they could hardly get one or two of in a year. Today, just by entering the top ten, they would be rewarded with a low-grade medium spiritual herb, so the young disciples were all rubbing their fists and palms in excitement.

  A commoner disciple jumped onto the stage, followed by another commoner disciple who walked out of the crowd and easily leaped onto the two-meter-high competition platform with a single tap of his foot. The two stood facing each other three meters apart, exchanged bows, and then launched an attack.

  The two men touched and fired, fighting together. Both used the same boxing method, which was the most popular eight-armed boxing of the Ye family. When cultivated to the highest level, the boxing method unfolded extremely fast, creating an illusion of eight arms, making it difficult for opponents to distinguish between reality and fantasy, using virtual and real techniques to defeat the enemy.

  Obviously, the two people on the stage did not cultivate the Eight-Armed Fist to that level. The two of them were only at the fifth rank and had barely cultivated the Eight-Armed Fist to the point where they could glimpse the entrance. When they launched their double fists, they could transform into three arms.

  Bang!

  Two people clashed, with a clear distinction between the strong and the weak. One person was slightly weaker and retreated three steps in a row, before they could even steady themselves, the other person took advantage of the situation and launched a kick in mid-air, sending them crashing down from the competition platform with a loud thud.

  The winning disciple's face flashed with a hint of pride, and he slightly cupped his fists towards the crowd below. At this moment, another person stepped onto the stage, and the winning disciple immediately changed color, because the one challenging him was someone who had just entered the sixth rank, and in Lin City, he could be considered a master, not someone that a fifth-ranker like him could match.

  Indeed, after exchanging only a few moves, the sixth-dan disciple directly punched him flying out of the competition platform. The power and power collided, and the fifth-dan disciple was unstoppable.

  Ye Yan stood behind Ye Xiao Tian, her mind not on the competition stage at all. This kind of fight was completely uninteresting to her. Her gaze had been fixed on the entrance of the training arena because Ye Chen had said he would come watch her compete today.

  Apart from Ye Yan's unexpected move, Ye Sheng didn't put his mind on the competition stage either. His gaze slightly slanted and glanced at Ye Yan, with a hint of disdain at the corner of his mouth. In previous clan comparisons, Ye Yan had always been the first to win, which made him accumulate too much resentment in his heart. Now that he has entered the eighth rank realm, how could he let go of this opportunity?

  "Ye Yan, in the past I have lost to you many times, but today I will definitely defeat you without giving you any chance to fight back! Even if you want to admit defeat, I won't give you the opportunity!" A cold glint flashed through Ye Sheng's eyes. He hated Ye Yan not only because he had been defeated by him many times before, but also because Ye Yan was very close to his father Ye Xiao Tian and Ye Wen Tian, who were always the thorns in his father Ye Xun's side.

  On the competitive stage, a disciple who wins two consecutive games can step down and take a short rest. As long as they don't lose, they still have two chances to challenge again. Among dozens of young disciples from the family, nearly half were eliminated quickly, with most being too weak and knowing they had no hope of entering the top ten, so after their first defeat, they didn't go back on stage again.

  At this time, the one standing on the stage was the strongest among Ye Jia's younger brothers, who was 23 or 24 years old and was considered a genius in the Ye family. This person named Ye Han had left a deep impression on Ye Yan. Five years ago, under the instruction of Ye Qing and Ye Sheng brothers, he almost broke Ye Chen's ribs. At that time, Ye Wen Tian was not at home, and later no one told him about it, so it was settled.

  Ye Han stood on the competition stage, clad in black, majestic and proud, but his eyes held a hint of arrogance. His gaze swept over the disciples from humble backgrounds, filled with deep disdain.

  "Who dares to challenge me?" Ye Han shouted loudly towards the competition stage below. His gaze swept through the crowd, and all the outer disciples who were scanned by his eyes lowered their heads, knowing that they didn't have the strength to go up and challenge him - wouldn't that be seeking humiliation?

  "But he's just a dog of Ye Sheng, acting wildly for now, let's see how long you can be so arrogant." Ye Han's disdainful gaze made some of the illegitimate disciples angry, and they sneered in their hearts.

  Her face was calm, with a hint of coldness hidden deep in her eyes. She slowly walked out from behind Ye Xiao Tian, her small boots lightly tapping on the ground, as if she were a fairy dancing. Her slender body glided through the air for a short distance before gently landing on the competition stage.

  "I've come to challenge you!" Ye Yan said calmly.

  Ye Han's expression changed slightly, Ye Yan stood there motionless, but he felt a surge of pressure. He smiled and said: "Younger sister Ye Yan, you are the second genius disciple of our Ye family, I've long wanted to try out with you to see who is stronger, me this illegitimate child or you this legitimate child."

  The leaves fell, and suddenly a burst of noise erupted from the scene.

  "Ye Han is too arrogant, he thinks he's someone, actually daring to compete with Ye Yan, it's really ridiculous."

  "Poor guy, I'm sure he won't last ten moves."

  "Can't you see? This must be Ye Sheng's doing. Otherwise, how could Ye Han be so arrogant?"

  "Could it be that Ye Sheng wants Ye Han to exhaust Ye Yan's physical strength, and then go challenge her? How despicable!"

  On the competitive stage, a cold smile flashed in Ye Yan's eyes. She was beautiful and had a curvaceous figure, but at this moment, the aura she emitted was like the biting wind of a cold winter month, giving people a chilling feeling. "Ye Han, you should be grateful that it's your first time participating in the family competition after so many years. Otherwise, what happened to you today would have occurred long ago."

  "Heh, it seems that you, Ye Yan's younger sister, still hold a grudge about what happened back then. Ye Chen is nothing but a useless person, not worth your efforts to defend him. Moreover, just a few months ago, he brought great disaster to our family and can be said to have become the family's sinner, a sinner that we all despise and cannot forgive. What do you mean by defending him like this?" Ye Han smiled slightly and said calmly.

  "Hehe..." Ye Yan smiled with a flirtatious expression, pursed her lips, and showed a disdainful face. "If he's trash, then you don't even have the qualifications to polish his shoes."

  Under the stage, Ye Sheng frowned and said impatiently: "If you want to argue, you can get off the stage and have a good fight. Do you need to occupy the competition stage and waste everyone's time?"

  "You'll find out soon enough if you're qualified or not!"

  As soon as Ye Sheng's words fell, Ye Han sprang up like a hunting leopard, his five fingers clenched into a fist, the joints cracking loudly, and he launched a powerful punch that brought up a strong gust of air, making a loud whooshing sound, directly threatening Ye Yan's skull.

  Her feet moved in a blur, her body swaying elegantly like an immortal fairy dancing, her slender jade hands waving, a set of palm prints bursting forth with a flurry of petals. Wherever her fingers passed, the air currents converged to form a series of palm prints, filling the empty space with a humming noise. With her as the center, the air currents within a radius of one meter around her went wild, as if a tornado had suddenly appeared out of thin air.