Chapter 28

And just as Zhan Yi was lost in thought, Park Jin-hyun spoke up: "Alright, since Mr. Zhan feels it's not enough, let's decide the winner then." With that, his body shot forward like a cannonball, aiming straight for Zhan Yi.

Zhan Yi, seeing Park Jin-hyun's attack, quickly dodged to the side. Although he was still unsure whether to use the Soul Furnace's power, he knew he couldn't afford to clash head-on with his opponent anymore. Even if he didn't get injured, if he accidentally got knocked off the stage, he would be declared the loser according to the tournament rules.

Park Jin-hyun, seeing Zhan Yi dodge, twisted his body and kicked straight at Zhan Yi's abdomen. Zhan Yi dodged again.

"Hehe, what's wrong, Mr. Zhan? Why aren't you taking my attacks anymore?" Park Jin-hyun taunted, smirking as he changed his stance.

"Who said I have to take your attacks? Only a fool would choose to win by brute force," Zhan Yi retorted, even though he was at a disadvantage.

"Hmph... You dare call me a fool? Don't blame me for being ruthless then." Park Jin-hyun snarled and attacked again.

Zhan Yi quickly dodged, inwardly cursing. "It's your own admission, not my problem." The two of them began circling each other on the stage, with Park Jin-hyun attacking and Zhan Yi dodging.

The audience below was stunned. This was far from what they had expected. Zhan Yi had shown such formidable strength and speed earlier, while Park Jin-hyun was considered the weakest of the top four contestants. But now, the situation seemed to be the opposite. Zhan Yi, who was expected to win easily, was being chased around the stage, while Park Jin-hyun, the weaker one, had suddenly become the dominant force.

Lu Hu and Dong Dabao, sitting in a corner of the stands, were even more worried. Lu Hu, in particular, had already suspected that Park Jin-hyun was hiding his true strength, but he hadn't expected it to be this deep. The speed and power Park Jin-hyun was displaying were several times greater than before. If this continued, Zhan Yi would lose the match, and might even get injured.

Lu Hu wanted to warn Zhan Yi, but he couldn't think of a good way to do so. Zhan Yi's speed and strength were far behind Park Jin-hyun's, and it would be extremely difficult to turn the tide.

Meanwhile, in the backstage monitoring room, Mai's heart was pounding. She bit her lip tightly, her almond-shaped eyes filled with worry. She didn't want Zhan Yi to lose. Although she had been at odds with him during the matchmaking banquet, she had already secretly fallen for him. His intelligence and charismatic demeanor were incredibly appealing to her.

As for Park Jin-hyun, although he seemed to have a higher combat strength now, she had no good feelings towards him. She found him too calculating and untrustworthy.

She wished Zhan Yi could suddenly burst with power and knock Park Jin-hyun down right away.

However, this time, Zhan Yi didn't quickly turn the tide as he had in the first match. Instead, he seemed to be struggling more and more. Park Jin-hyun's attacks were getting faster, and he didn't give Zhan Yi a moment to catch his breath.

This made Zhan Yi increasingly anxious. He had discovered a significant flaw in his body: his mind reacted quickly, but his body couldn't keep up. Moreover, due to the constant exertion, his speed and strength were gradually decreasing.

After much contemplation, he finally realized the problem. He had absorbed the soul energy of a thousand ghost demons, making his mental strength unimaginably powerful, but his physical body had not been enhanced to match his mental strength. This was what Lu Hu had meant when he said that the stronger one's mental strength, the faster the reaction and the better the control over energy. However, Zhan Yi's body lacked the necessary energy to attack, despite the powerful soul energy.

Suddenly, Park Jin-hyun's kick caught Zhan Yi's buttocks, causing him to stumble forward several steps and feel a sharp pain. Before he could recover, Park Jin-hyun stepped forward and aimed a punch at his face.

Zhan Yi realized he couldn't dodge in time. Just as the punch was about to hit his face, the mysterious vortex in his mind activated. Zhan Yi's body retreated, and he raised his fist to meet Park Jin-hyun's punch.

There was a light thud as the two of them separated upon contact. Zhan Yi staggered back six or seven steps before managing to stand, while Park Jin-hyun also took two steps back, looking surprised. He had thought his punch would definitely knock Zhan Yi down, but Zhan Yi's speed seemed to have suddenly increased.

Zhan Yi's heart was racing. When the vortex in his mind activated, he felt his speed increase. The punch, though brief, had allowed a thread of soul energy to enter his body and be absorbed by the vortex.

This discovery reminded him of the time Xiao Jiao had tried to kill him. The vortex in his mind always activated automatically when his life was threatened, providing protection. The fact that it had absorbed Park Jin-hyun's soul energy in such a short time excited Zhan Yi.

He knew that the greatest power of the soul energy in his body was to absorb the opponent's soul energy. Once a certain amount was absorbed, the opponent's soul energy would weaken, and their memory would also be absorbed.

If this reasoning was correct, could he absorb some of Park Jin-hyun's soul energy with each punch, gradually weakening his opponent's mental strength and control over his body? If so, he could eventually win.

This realization made Zhan Yi feel as if he had seen the dawn in the endless darkness, and even the pain in his buttocks seemed to lessen.

Park Jin-hyun, seeing the faint smile on Zhan Yi's lips, felt uneasy. He then said mockingly, "Hehe, I didn't expect Mr. Zhan to be the best at pretending. You accused me of hiding my strength, but it seems you were the one hiding deeper."

Zhan Yi was rubbing his sore buttocks, which was bleeding. Hearing Park Jin-hyun's words, he felt even more disdain for him. He thought to himself, "You think I'm pretending? I'll show you a real act today."

With that, he forced a calm smile and said, "Hehe, don't flatter me. We're both pretending, but I'm the one who held back until the end. You showed your true strength too early, making you look like a coward."

"Hmph... Don't think I'm afraid of you just because you're hiding your strength. Today, I'll show you the consequences of angering me." Park Jin-hyun, angered by Zhan Yi's smugness, lunged forward, his hands transforming into eagle claws, aiming for Zhan Yi's temples.

Zhan Yi had planned to exchange a few more punches to absorb Park Jin-hyun's soul energy, but now his opponent was using claws. This made him frustrated because he knew that even if he didn't understand much, a punch against a claw would result in injury.

However, he had no other choice. He focused his mental strength, and the vortex in his mind activated again. He raised his fists to block Park Jin-hyun's claws.

"Ah..." The punch and claw collided, and Zhan Yi let out a cry of pain, quickly retreating. He saw that his fists were now marked with five bloody claw marks.

"Haha, Mr. Zhan's iron fists are quite solid, aren't they? You actually dared to block my claws," Park Jin-hyun laughed, looking down on Zhan Yi. He thought Zhan Yi was too arrogant.

"Go to hell, I'll block them again if you dare," Zhan Yi, in pain, retorted, unable to hold back his anger.

However, he knew his strategy was working. In the moment of the collision, he felt more soul energy being absorbed through his fists, more than the previous punch.

Park Jin-hyun, obediently, smiled and said, "Alright, I'll do it again. Mr. Zhan, let's see how long your fists can hold up." He lunged forward again, his claws aiming for Zhan Yi's eyes.

Zhan Yi, as expected, raised his fists to block. The two of them, excited, clashed again.

However, the audience below shook their heads, thinking, "This young man is too impulsive. Who fights like this? Knowing he'll be clawed, he still uses his fists to block. Isn't he a fool?"

Lu Hu was also anxious, repeatedly using secret communication to shout, "Boss, don't be impulsive. If you keep this up, you'll lose your fighting ability due to your injuries." But no matter how much he shouted, Zhan Yi continued to block with his fists.

In the backstage, Mai was on the verge of tears, watching Zhan Yi's injuries worsen as he continued to block Park Jin-hyun's attacks. She remembered what Zhan Yi had said when he drank the second cup of wine: "Once I win, I will come back to drink the third cup with you."

Could this fool be fighting so hard just for this simple promise? How foolish. Thinking of this, she felt a surge of emotion and couldn't help but worry and scold, "Big fool, why don't you dodge? Why hurt yourself?"

Zhan Yi, of course, didn't know that Mai was moved by his actions. If he did, he would have made himself suffer even more. However, as he clashed with Park Jin-hyun more and more, he absorbed more soul energy and noticed that Park Jin-hyun's speed was gradually decreasing.