As萧In's laughter faded, the jade-colored flame armor instantly enveloped his body, and within a mere blink, his figure vanished beneath the armor. Thanks to his prior preparation, the formation of the flame armor was astonishingly swift—so fast that when Li Qing's sharp claw made sudden contact, the armor had already fully solidified. The sudden emergence of the flame armor caused Li Qing's pupils to slightly constrict. The intense heat radiating from the armor brought a subtle burning sensation to his body, prompting him to feel deeply impressed—this man's jade-colored flame truly was peculiar. "I'm going to find out whether this armor can truly withstand any attack." "The attack was imminent, and by the time he wished to withdraw, it was already too late. Thus, Li Qing's eyes grew cold, and instead of retreating, he launched a more determined assault. His internal qi surged violently, radiating a brilliant, pale golden glow across his body, effectively shielding the intense heat. With the surge of his internal qi, the force of his claw strikes intensified instantly. Then, finally, his sharp claws struck resolutely against the flaming armor. The impact echoed with a crisp, metallic clashing sound, clear and resonant throughout the arena. As the sound rang out, a distinct and deep indentation appeared on the surface of the sturdy armor. Meanwhile, beneath the flaming armor, Xiao Yan was struck hard and stepped back, though the armor had absorbed most of the force, some residual pressure still passed through, causing him to stagger. "Clang! Clang!" Xiao Yan stepped back, yet Liu Qing moved like a ghost, instantly closing the distance. Golden light shimmered on his twin claws, leaving a series of shimmering afterimages in the air. The sharp, golden claws continuously struck the flaming armor, producing a relentless, chilling "clang-clang" sound that echoed throughout the arena. With Li Qing's relentless assault, the once-impenetrable flame armor began to bear more and more dents, until it was nearly riddled with wounds. Xiao Yan himself was pushed back by a strong force, retreating several steps—this despite the flame armor effectively absorbing and dispersing the majority of the impact. It was hard to imagine what would have happened if Xiao Yan hadn't prepared a reserve strategy. Should Li Qing's sharp, stone-shattering claw have struck him directly, the result would surely have been immediate and severe, leaving him incapacitated on the spot. Within just a few dozen steps, the fragmented silhouettes of Liu Qing’s movements had nearly unleashed a hundred powerful strikes, each one landing with unyielding force upon the flaming armor. Facing such relentless blows, the thick, sturdy flaming armor was nearing its breaking point, its color growing noticeably paler. On the elevated platform, Liu Fei clutched tightly at Yao Sheng’s arm, her voice sharp and excited with excitement: “He’s going to lose!” Meanwhile, Yao Sheng, intently observing the scene, slightly furrowed his brows. Though his strength surpassed that of Liu Fei and thus his perception was sharper, he knew firsthand—the flaming armor possessed an astonishing defensive resilience. “Xiao Yan’s combat awareness is truly impressive. He managed to coalesce the flaming armor in that instant. It must have been well-prepared.” "Yan Hao sucked in his breath, marveling, "Well, fortunately, this guy still has his reserves—otherwise, without the flame armor's defense, Li Qing's sudden, overwhelming assault would have seriously injured him." "Yet it seems the flame armor can't fully withstand Li Qing's attack either. From the look of it, the armor itself is beginning to crack..." Han Yue furrowed her brows, and anyone could see that the flame armor on Xiao Yan was likely to hold out for only a short while. The ripple was extremely subtle, as though masked by something, so that even Yan Hao and the others failed to notice it. They all opened their mouths, expressing their curiosity. Lin Xiu'ya narrowed his eyes, and then, after a moment, suddenly sensed something. His gaze snapped to Xiao Yan, who was steadily retreating under Li Qing's relentless attacks. He slightly moved his lips, then murmured in astonishment, "Xiao Yan might be preparing to counterattack." "A counterattack?" Yan Hao and the others were momentarily taken aback. They stared at Xiao Yan, who under Li Qing's onslaught had been steadily crumbling, showing no signs of resistance at all. In their eyes, if Li Qing's attack continued for just a little longer, and Xiao Yan's flame armor finally collapsed, the battle would surely be decided. Lin Xiu'ya smiled lightly, yet did not point it out, merely said with a calm tone, "I didn't expect Xiao Yan to be quite cunning—indeed, he's a tough opponent. Even in the presence of Liu Qing, he remained utterly composed." The others exchanged glances, each one shaking their heads in resignation. As they were about to ask again, a sudden wave of murmurs erupted from the plaza. Everyone quickly turned their attention to the field, and were no less surprised. On the field, under the relentless, storm-like onslaught from Liu Qing, the solid, unyielding green flame armor finally reached its end. When Liu Qing once again drove his sharp claw hard into a groove, the entire armor trembled violently. Amidst countless expressions of regret, cracks rapidly spread across its surface. Then, with a crisp, resonant crack, the armor—having absorbed nearly a hundred of Liu Qing’s attacks—burst apart and dissolved into nothingness. Liu Qing's expression remained as still as water. The shattering of the final protective layer on Xiao Yan's body only caused his brow to lift slightly before the pale golden qi once again enveloped his hands and claws, delivering a sharp, piercing gust of wind straight toward the latter's chest. For Xiao Yan's actions, even Liu Qing was somewhat astonished, though as the astonishment grew, his heart gradually tightened, unconsciously. After all, "the unusual is the sign of something extraordinary"—Xiao Yan, far from being a simple-minded person, could hardly have adopted such a strategy of attempting to crack a stone with an egg. As Liu Qing's thoughts raced with questions, a faint shade of cyan-purple suddenly flashed before his eyes, instantly causing his entire body to bristle with gooseflesh and a strong sense of impending danger surging within him. The cyan-purple hue reappeared instantly, and this time, Liu Qing finally identified its origin—his eyes narrowed sharply, for it was emanating from the dark sleeve of Xiao Yan, directly facing him. Liu Qing's fierce offensive was almost completely halted in mid-air, disregarding the discomfort his qi caused in his chest. Amidst a series of stunned gazes from the spectators, his face suddenly changed dramatically, and with a sudden burst of strength, he planted his feet and swiftly retreated. "Too late!" gazing at Li Qing, who now seemed to have sensed his intention, Xiao Yan couldn't help but smile, his white teeth still bearing traces of blood. With a gentle flick of his fingers, he spoke softly, "Go!" As the words fell, a surge of vibrant purple and jade light erupted instantly from the folds of Xiao Yan's robe. The temperature on the plaza rose sharply. It was only then that the crowd realized why Li Qing had hesitated and retreated at the last moment—Xiao Yan had already laid the trap, waiting for him to step into it. Though the purple-jade light flashed with astonishing speed, it remained clearly visible to the elders on the judges' bench. Even Su Qian, the senior elder, could not help but slightly pale at the immense destructive power radiating from it. The light darted swiftly and materialized before Li Qing's eyes, which had narrowed in alarm. "Explosion!" Simple syllables, slowly poured from Xiao Yan's lips, suddenly echoed with a thunderous roar of explosion.