Yang Bin understood Yang Lan's plan now. Yang Lan used two feints to push him to the edge of the platform, constricting the space available to him. At this location, if he tried to block, Yang Lan's attack would push him off the edge. If he tried to dodge, the Yang Lan's follow up attack would certainly land and knock him out. It was a brilliant plan.
When facing such a dangerous situation, Yang Bin calmed himself. Time seemed to slow down for Yang Bin, as many thoughts raced through his mind, trying to formulate a plan. My back is already at the edge of the platform. I may be able to dodge this attack, but I'm certain I won't be able to dodge his second attack. I can't block either, as his hits are too strong and would knock me off. What other options are left?
In his eyes, the dagger slowly began to descend. Finally, Yang Bin made up his mind.
Trade blow for blow! Yang Bin activated Extreme Piercing Finger and shot his right arm towards Yang Lan.
Noticing Yang Bin's actions, Yang Lan's grin faded. He gave up on avoiding my attack! He's planning on mutual destruction!
After witnessing the speed of Yang Bin's technique, he had become fearful and wasn't sure if his attack would reach first. Unfortunately, there was no time for him to think of a second plan, since the time left on the technique was running out. Gritting his teeth, he had no choice but to go all in on this final strike.
On the other hand, Yang Bin was nervous as well. My Extreme Piercing Finger can only produce five afterimages right now. This may not be fast enough. If my Extreme Piercing Fingers could produce six afterimages, I could guarantee the victory.
Silence descended onto the stage. Everyone was paying close attention to the outcome of Yang Bin's daring move. Even the fighters on other platforms paused momentarily.
Come on. Come on! Yang Bin urged in his mind.
The first five afterimages appeared in order. Earnestly hoping for the sixth afterimage, Yang Bin put all his concentration on his hand. Alas, the sixth afterimage did not appear. Although Extreme Piercing Finer was only an elementary technique, it required the cultivator to reach the later ranks of the Qi Condensing stage to really bring out its power. The current Yang Bin was simply too far from that.
However, something did change about his technique.
Right after his finger lightly touched Yang Lan's armor, Yang Lan's dagger landed.
Boom! Instantly, Yang Bin was blasted away. His armor cracked and splintered, as he skidded meters away and fell on his back. The attack pushed him far off the platform and near the edge of the stage.
Cough, cough! Even though he wore the wooden armor, the air was knocked out of Yang Bin. His head hit the ground, making him feel dizzy. Dazed, he slowly sat up.
Heavily panting on the platform, Yang Lan canceled his technique. His bloodshot eyes began to return to normal, as he dropped his daggers in exhaustion. On his face, a tired smile began to appear. I did it. I won. I beat him. He thought, as he looked to the judges who had yet to declare the winner.
Normally, one of the judges would immediately announce the winner after the battle had concluded, but currently, they weren't announcing it. The two judges on the side seemed unsure and looked to Yang Yugang to decide the result, but Yang Yugang was deeply contemplating as well.
Far away from the stage, Yang Bin's family looked at Yang Bin with worry.
Gasping, Yang Mengyao's hands flew to her mouth. Her concern was so great that she found it difficult to breathe. She made a resolve to forfeit her match if Yang Bin lost here.
Meanwhile, Li Jing and Yang Gang were calmer. The former was sitting upright and gazing deeply at Yang Bin. The latter was standing with arms being his back, wearing his usual stoic face.
Slightly furrowing his brows, Yang Gang replayed the scene of the final clash several times in his mind. A second later, his lips curved upwards slightly. "Well done, son." He murmured.
Being so far away, Yang Bin wasn't able to hear Yang Gang's words. He was looking at Yang Lan's tired yet triumphant grin. A feeling of despair was creeping up to him. He forcefully shook off that feeling and sighed. I guess I wasn't prepared enough. I should have trained harder. Shakily, he stood up.
At this moment, Yang Yugang had come to a decision. He spoke with a deep voice, "The winner…"
There was a pause. Everyone looked on expectantly.
"is Yang Bin." He finished.
Me? Yang Bin blinked dumbly. He wasn't sure if he heard that right. He was one that was knocked out of the platform, and Yang Lan was the one still inside it. How could he be the winner?
Yang Lan thought the same. His whole body turned stiff, as he asked slowly, "Pardon me, but could you repeat that?"
Yang Yugang glanced at Yang Lan. "I said the winner is Yang Bin. Do you need me to repeat it again?"
Yang Lan froze. Then he started to tremble. "How!? How is he the winner!?" He shouted defiantly. "Can't you see that Yang Bin is knocked out of the platform? Doesn't the rules state that a contestant is disqualified once they are out of the platform?"
Eyeing him coolly, Yang Yugang gave a curt reply. "Look at your armor first."
Yang Lan looked down as instructed and his expression contorted. There was a hole that was as wide as a finger on his armor. It had completely pierced through, revealing the shirt Yang Lan was wearing. Some of the sharper individuals could see a slightly cracked transparent film above the shirt.
"Do you understand? Before your attack landed on Yang Bin, he had already put a hole on your armor." Yang Yugang eyed him coldly. Clearly, Yang Lan outburst had infuriated him. How dare a puny Body Tempering cultivator disrespect a mighty Heavenly Qi cultivator like himself?
"That's not possible!" Yang Lan sputtered. "I'm wielding two daggers, and Yang Bin only used his hands. How could his attack reach me first?"
"It's not possible? Take a good look at your dagger." Yang Yugang challenged.
Looking down at his daggers, Yang Lan's face changed and his heart sunk. "My daggers- Why- How are they like this?" The blade of the dagger used to be 20 centimeters long, but now it has shrunk to less than one fifth its original size.
"Your Fury technique is really powerful. It increases all aspects by a rank, allowing you to stand on equal grounds against those a rank above you. But it also has its drawbacks. Aside from the weakness after the technique ends, it also decreases your senses." Yang Yugang explained.
"Yang Bin took advantage of this. After you used that technique, Yang Bin had been cutting down your weapon with each clash. If you take a look around the platform, you could see multiple wooden chips. They were all broken off from your dagger." He gestured.
"In that final attack, your dagger was already less than four centimeters. On the other hand, Yang Bin was still hiding his skills. The qi covering Yang Bin finger lengthened dramatically, stretching over seven centimeters."
"Not only that, the place that Yang Bin stuck was precisely the location of your heart. Had it not been for the final protective film of your armor, you would have been dead before your attack landed on Yang Bin. Despite the destructive power of your attack, it wasn't as lethal as Yang Bin's attack. Are you convinced now?" Yang Yugang asked.
Yang Lan slowly nodded his head and collapsed onto the floor. He understood now. He never had a chance from the start. From the moment the battle began, he had been dancing in Yang Bin's palms.
He laughed self-deprecatingly. "You had this all planned out didn't you, Yang Bin? You predicted all my moves from the start and had a plan for everything I did. I see. Well done. Well done." Staggering, he stood and lifelessly walked out off the stage.
Yang Bin was speechless. Yang Yugang's speech had portrayed him as a genius and Yang Lan seemed to completely believe it. Although in reality, it was mostly luck. His dad gave him the strategies; he only carried them out. He didn't realize that Yang Lan's technique would dull his senses, allowing him to freely break down Yang Lan's weapon. As for striking the heart, Yang Bin had just randomly struck out with his right arm. It was not intentional, like how Yang Yugang had described it.
Nevertheless, Yang Bin was elated. He was just staring at the chasm of despair, but in an instant, he had been lifted to heaven. Excited, he ran off the stage and to his parents. "Dad, Mom! I won! I won!"