The Legend of Min Hong

Chapter 43: The Final Three

"Min Hong, that was brilliant!" as Min Hong walked back to his seat, Min Qing excitedly exclaimed while stuck up her tiny thumb out in a thumbs up.

"You little brat, you've hidden it well and there I was, the other day, worrying that your cultivation had regressed." Min Rou said, with a smile on her face. Nevertheless, she didn't scold him for keeping his cultivation base a secret. She was simply too astonished at her son's current strength.

Furthermore, Min Hong's stellar performance today caused Min Rou's face to dazzle with happiness and pride. The excitement in her heart currently was even greater than when Min Hong's meridians appeared.

"Hehe" Min Hong awkwardly scratched his head as he chuckled. When he realised that Min Rou was not going to pursue this matter any further, he secretly sighed in relief.

After Min Hong's duel concluded, the tournament continued. The top ten contestants were all fairly famous members of the castle and were the more talented ones amongst the Min Family next generation.

In fact, most of them were at least in the 8 Star Qi Sea or King stage and above. Therefore, their duels were naturally quite exciting to watch, thus from time to time, the crowd would burst into cheers.

Five rounds went by in a flash. As predicted, Min Jiao, Min Kong and Min Gui who had just defeated Min Yan were able to easily secure their victory, thanks to their overwhelming strength.

Besides them, Min Hong and one other outstanding youth in the Min Family castle made it through to the final five.

As the final five were announced, Min Yan looked over at the spot where her father, Min Lei was sitting and when she saw his ugly expression, she blanched in fear, as she walked back to the stands glaring at Min Hong in hate.

The atmosphere in the training grounds heated up. Everyone knew that the battles that were about to begin were the true highlights of the entire tournament.

After drawing lots, one lucky individual who managed to draw an empty lot would be automatically promoted into the final three. The empty slot was drawn by Min Gui and he returned to the stands, leaving the four on the stands to continue the tournament.

This time Min Hong's opponent was the other Min Family castle member that was in the top five, his name was Min Ting. He was reportedly in the 8 Star Qi Sea stage, though this didn't pose much problems to Min Hong who had just defeated the Dan Formation Min Bai.

The two of them swiftly proceeded to their battle after drawing the lots and the end result was hardly surprising. Min Hong's Willow Leaf Palm made short work of the youth as he forcibly pushed the latter out of the training platform.

Despite the latter using his full strength to resist, he was still defeated. Thus, Min Hong advanced into the final three with Min Gui. Since nothing special happened in their fight, the spectator turned their attention towards the upcoming duel.

The next matchup piqued everyone's interest, even Min Hong was paying extra attention, on the account that it was Min Kong against Min Jiao.

The two of them were considered the most elite amongst the younger generation of the Min Family since Min Bai was defeated by Min Hong. In fact, the spectators had predicted that either one of them will win this tournament, as they were both in the 2 Star Dan Formation stage.

However, the two of them were now to clash unexpectedly before the final round, this exchange would without doubt be exciting indeed

"Min Jiao!" Min Bolin hesitantly announced after he saw that both of them had drawn the same lot.

Upon hearing Min Bolin's call, Min Jiao acknowledged in her lovable voice. With a twist of her tiny waist, she floated gently atop the training platform like a butterfly. Her slender and valiant look drew the attention of several youngster. She was only fifteen after all.

As Min Jiao ascended onto the training platform, Min Kong also elegantly leaped onto the platform. Dressed in white, he appeared very handsome and refined. At this sight, several spectators in the crowd nodded their heads in approval.

"Min Jiao, please kindly hold back a little, unh?" Min Kong gave a courtesy bow to Min Jiao as he spoke.

"If I hold back, the one who tastes defeat would most likely be me." Min Jiao grinned. A rare look of concentration appeared on her pretty little face, she knew that based on Min Kong's strength, she would most likely be forced to reveal all her trump cards.

Min Kong smiled as battle intent burned fiercely in his eyes. Min Jiao could be tagged the most outstanding member amongst the younger generation of the Min Family. If he could defeat her today, he will be able to claim the number one position.

"Let the duel begin!" standing below the platform, Min Bolin shouted as he signaled for the match to begin.

The instant Min Bolin finished his announcement, a faint glow emerged from the body of the contestants on the training platform. Endless Qi rumbled within their body.

"2 Star Dan Formation stage"

As they gazed at the rather dense Qi emerging from their bodies, many people in the crowd gasped in surprise. Even though the duo has yet to comprehend any natural law, they were still utterly amazed upon witnessing this sight.

To be able to reach the Dan Formation stage at such tender age. This clearly showed the latent talent they possessed. If they were given proper training, they will definitely have a very bright future ahead.

On his seat, Min Tian had a content smile on his face as he witnessed this interesting sight. The more stellar the younger generation was, the happier he felt.

"Min Jia, watch out!" as the Qi on his body flickered, Min Kong's expression turned deathly serious as he abruptly dashed forward. A devastating force could be felt from both his palms which he swung in a horizontal arc towards Min Jiao.

Faced with the biting cold wind from Min Kong's palm, Min Jiao gently took three steps backwards. Her long and elegant fingers came together and curled slightly in the shape of a hawk's beak. She struck heavily on the back of Min Kong's palm, causing them to fall downwards, as she avoided the attack.

"Eight Vengeful Palms!" Just as his palms were deflected, Min Kong let out a growl. The force behind his palm turned ferocious as he continuously rained blows at Min Jiao's head. The sound of his hands breaking through the air was truly impressive.

As she was being assaulted by these aggressive and continuous palm technique, Min Jiao lightly frowned. She aligned two fingers together, and like a sword, she deftly bypassed Min Kong's palms and stabbed towards his chest, causing the latter to have no choice but to halt his attacks and defend.

On the training platform, two figures intertwined as they fought ferociously whilst constantly exchanging blows with their palms and fingers. With their Qi covering their body parts used for attacking and defending, their duel was intensified, captivating the spectator's attention.

"Hong, who do you think will win?" Min Qing nervously asked as she involuntarily held her fists tightly at the intense duel. Min Jiao was her best friend after all.

"Hard to determine" Min Hong hesitated before he finally shook his head. Min Kong had clearly achieved 'One with World' level in the Eight Vengeful Palms as the essence he drew from the world made his palms extremely aggressive and forceful, packing a huge punch in the process.

However, Min Jiao did not lose to the former. In fact, the technique she was using was the Royal Grade martial technique, Spirit Sword Finger.

Even though that type of did not look to overwhelming or formidable, if properly mastered, one's fingers would become a sword. Therefore, with her Qi wrapping around those fingers making it even sharper, even Min Kong did not dare to take a hit from her.

As such, it was very difficult to ascertain who would become the eventual victor. Either ways, in Min Hong's heart, he hoped that Min Jiao would emerge victorious

While they spoke, the duel on the platform gradually intensified to its climax. Palms, fingers and fists collided, causing a series of Qi shockwave to continuously ripple out.

This exchange lasted for about eight minutes as the Qi on their bodies burned and glowed brightly. Evidently, they had pushed the Qi within their bodies to its maximum capacity.

Just as the intensity of their Qi reached its peak, the two of them took a step back in unison. Soon after, both of their palms suddenly reached out and collided together under the watchful gazes of the crowd.

Bang! An explosion rang out on the platform as both of them were jolted apart by the impact.

Both of their feet tried to desperately claw to the platform, but in the end, they both fell at the same time

After witnessing both of them fall off together, a commotion erupted in the training grounds. No one was expecting this outcome

"Haha, not bad, not bad at all" on his seat, Min Tian could not help but bubble his head up and down in satisfaction after he witnessed Min Kong going toe to toe with Min Jiao in their spectacular duel. Min Lei, who was sitting just behind him let out a bright smile as he turned to smugly look at Min Rou.

"This duel shall be declared a draw. Since there are only four contestants left, if there are no objections, Min Jiao and Min Kong will both take first place, whereas Min Hong and Min Gui would be ranked second and third respectively. Of course, if anyone wishes to challenge the current placements, please step forward now"

Min Tian rose and announced with a beaming smile. At this juncture, the rankings for the Min Family Coming of Age Ceremony had largely been decided and further duels should likely make no difference. Even Min Tian didn't believe Min Hong could change anything, after all these champions were in the 2 Star Dan Formation stage.

After hearing Min Tian's announcement, Min Kong's smile brightened. Turning his gaze towards Min Hong and Min Rou, the corners of his mouth lifted into a wide sneer.

Min Hong frowned as he turned to look at Min Rou and Min Qing, only to see that the former had a pained expression while the latter gripped her tiny fists tightly with a look of worry.

They knew that Min Kong's request would be declined by Min Tian, and if the matter escalates, Min Tian would be said to be partial and biased, and not only Min Hong but Min Rou and Min Qing would be the cause of a family feud.

Soon after, he took a step forward and prepared to announce his intention for a challenge request, as the old saying goes; it's better to strike whilst the iron is hot.

However, right before Min Kong could announce his request, Min Hong, who had been observing the former, suddenly stood up with a dark expression on his face. His voice reverberated across the training grounds.

"Big brother Min Kong, Min Hong is untalented. Could you please give me some pointers?"