In Martial Universe, Signed in at the Start with Yao Lao's Ring

Lin Dong moved swiftly.

As soon as he agreed, he immediately carried the demonic beast back home.

It all happened in the blink of an eye. Before long, Lin Dong returned to where Lin Yan was.

However, this time, he didn't come alone. When he arrived home and mentioned that he was going to spar with Lin Yan, both Lin Xiao and Qing Tan became quite interested. So, when Lin Dong headed back out, the two of them followed along.

"Uncle Xiao, Qing Tan."

Seeing them arrive, Lin Yan didn't rush into the spar. Instead, he greeted them with a nod.

"Haha, don't mind us. You two go ahead with your sparring—I'm just here to watch."

Lin Xiao chuckled as he spoke.

"Brother Lin Yan, you got this!"

Qing Tan clenched her small fists and cheered enthusiastically from the sidelines.

Lin Yan simply nodded in response.

Without further conversation, he shifted his focus to Lin Dong.

"Alright, let's begin, Lin Dong."

Lin Dong had been eager for this moment.

Hearing Lin Yan's words, he immediately agreed.

"Then, be careful, Brother Lin Yan!"

He took a stance, his gaze serious as he studied Lin Yan, searching for any weaknesses.

However, Lin Yan remained completely relaxed. He didn't attack—he simply stood there, calmly waiting for Lin Dong to make his move.

This confused Qing Tan.

She had only recently started cultivating and had little experience with sparring, so she didn't quite understand what was happening.

"Father, what are Brother Lin Dong and Brother Lin Yan doing?"

"Why aren't they fighting?"

Qing Tan looked to Lin Xiao with a puzzled expression.

"Haha, they're not avoiding the fight."

"They're analyzing each other, looking for openings."

"A true battle between experts isn't about rushing in blindly. Gaining an advantage by spotting an opponent's weakness and landing a decisive strike is often the key to victory."

Lin Xiao chuckled as he explained.

Then, he analyzed their movements.

"Lin Dong is being extremely serious, carefully searching for any flaws in Lin Yan's stance."

"But Lin Yan… Should I say he's confident?"

Lin Xiao stroked his chin in thought.

Unlike Lin Dong, who was focused and tense, Lin Yan stood there completely at ease. His relaxed demeanor made it easy to spot several apparent weaknesses in his stance.

If Lin Xiao didn't already know about Lin Yan's strength, he might have mistaken him for a novice.

"So, is he doing this on purpose…?"

"What an interesting guy. I wonder how strong he truly is when he decides to show his real skills."

The more Lin Xiao thought about it, the more curious he became. His eyes remained fixed on the two young men, eagerly waiting for the fight to begin.

Meanwhile…

Lin Dong finally made his move.

Initially, he had planned to study Lin Yan and wait for an opening.

But to his surprise, Lin Yan seemed to be full of openings.

In the end, Lin Dong saw no reason to keep analyzing—if his opponent had so many weaknesses, then attacking directly was the best approach.

With a swift step forward, his figure flashed, instantly closing the distance between them.

Then, without any hesitation, he threw a punch straight toward Lin Yan's body.

"Hmm, not bad speed."

Lin Yan remained as calm as ever, effortlessly dodging Lin Dong's attack.

Seeing this, Lin Dong couldn't help but furrow his brows.

It felt strange—Lin Yan appeared to be full of openings, yet none of his attacks landed.

Was it just a coincidence?

With that doubt in mind, Lin Dong once again targeted what seemed like a weak spot in Lin Yan's stance.

Yet, when he launched his attack, Lin Yan once again dodged it with ease.

Determined, Lin Dong threw another punch.

This time, however, it wasn't just an ordinary strike—it was Penetrating Fist, a Level 2 martial art that he had fully mastered.

Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa!

Because Lin Dong had completely grasped the technique, the crisp sound of impact echoed through the air as he executed it.

Standing to the side, Lin Xiao had been counting the strikes and quickly realized something.

"A ten-hit Penetrating Fist?"

"Not bad."

However…

"Your attacks are too predictable."

Lin Yan chuckled as he offered his praise. Then, with a simple shift of his body, he effortlessly evaded the strike once more.

Beads of sweat began forming on Lin Dong's forehead.

There was nothing more frustrating in battle than being unable to land a hit.

And at this moment, he was experiencing that exact frustration.

"Father, why can't Brother Lin Dong land a single hit on Brother Lin Yan?"

"It doesn't seem like Brother Lin Yan is that much faster than him, but he still dodges everything so effortlessly."

Qing Tan, puzzled by what she was witnessing, turned to Lin Xiao and asked.

Lin Xiao, however, was already watching with admiration, his gaze filled with appreciation as he observed Lin Yan.

After all, he had once been an expert himself, so his combat experience far exceeded that of Lin Dong and Qing Tan.

To them, the fight was difficult to interpret.

But to Lin Xiao, everything was crystal clear.

As he had suspected earlier, Lin Yan had been deliberately creating false openings.

Lin Dong thought he was attacking weak points, but in reality, he had walked right into Lin Yan's trap.

Before Lin Dong even launched his attacks, Lin Yan already knew where he was going to strike.

Dodging was simply effortless.

Unable to hold back, Lin Xiao finally let out a sigh of admiration.

"Lin Yan… is truly remarkable!"

"Judging by this exchange, his combat experience is leagues ahead of Dong'er's. It seems Dong'er is about to lose."

He explained the reasoning to Qing Tan, whose mouth hung open in shock.

"So Brother Lin Yan is that strong?" she muttered in disbelief.

The two of them continued watching from the sidelines.

And just as Lin Xiao had predicted, the outcome became clear.

No matter how strong Lin Dong's techniques were, he simply couldn't land a hit on Lin Yan.

At first, Lin Yan only dodged, but as the fight progressed, he began intercepting Lin Dong's attacks mid-move.

More than once, Lin Dong was forced to abandon a technique halfway through because Lin Yan had disrupted it before he could complete it.

By that point, Lin Dong fully understood—there was a vast gap in their strength.

Rather than stubbornly continuing, he chose to acknowledge his shortcomings.

Besides, Brother Lin Yan had already given him enough face by holding back during the fight. It wouldn't be right to drag things out unnecessarily.

"Brother Lin Yan, I concede."

Lin Dong admitted defeat on the spot, cupping his fists respectfully toward Lin Yan.

He accepted his loss wholeheartedly.

As he looked at Lin Yan again, his eyes were filled with admiration.