“Wait, I have something to say!”
Hearing this, the two disciples from Cloud Heaven Palace were stunned for a moment. This guy really was thick-skinned.
After being knocked off the stage, everyone else had left dejectedly, but this fellow was actually shouting insults from below the platform without any sense of decorum.
However, at this moment, the two disciples from Cloud Heaven Palace were also curious to hear what else he had to say.
They saw the young man in blue clothes put on a serious expression, looking extremely grave as he spoke to Ruo Ximeng.
“Acting cute is shameful!”
Unfortunately, at this moment, Ruo Ximeng had no intention of paying him any mind, her gaze still fierce as she glared at the people around her.
Right now, quite a few cultivators on the stage had already noticed this adorable little mascot.
Everyone tacitly agreed not to eliminate Ruo Ximeng just yet. After all, this kind of whimpering creature could be dealt with in a single punch at the end.
On the stage where Ruo Ximeng stood, the cultivators were all quite powerful, and their battles were already drawing to a close at the fastest pace.
In less than the time it takes to burn an incense stick, only five cultivators remained on the stage.
Four of them had already eliminated quite a few opponents, while Ruo Ximeng hadn’t made a single move since stepping onto the platform.
At this moment, a plain-looking, rather ugly youth in grey clothes approached Ruo Ximeng with an unfriendly expression.
Yuan Chou’s attacks were extremely ruthless; just now, he had already crippled several prodigies.
He hadn’t attacked Ruo Ximeng earlier, not out of pity, but simply because there were stronger opponents present and he had no time to bother with Ruo Ximeng.
Now, seeing that Ruo Ximeng still hadn’t left the stage and dared to remain, it was clear she didn’t take Yuan Chou seriously at all.
“Ha!”
Suddenly, Yuan Chou let out a furious shout, then threw a fierce punch. The roar from this blow was like a tiger shaking the mountains and forests, the very air vibrating with a resonant hum.
It was clear that Yuan Chou wasn’t holding back at all with this punch—he fully intended to cripple Ruo Ximeng.
Lu Xuanshen, the Hall Master, looked on coldly. This brat from the Azure Demon Sect was courting death. Did he not know that Ruo Ximeng and he had met once before, and that her attainments in the art of appraisal were quite profound?
Yet now, Yuan Chou attacked so viciously, not giving old Lu any face at all.
Off in the distance, Su Chen’s expression didn’t change, but he was already preparing to intervene in secret, planning to help Ruo Ximeng cripple this guy with a single palm strike.
Who would have thought, before Su Chen or Lu Xuanshen could make a move, Ruo Ximeng puffed out her cheeks fiercely, took a step forward, and struck out with her palm.
“Penetrating Force!”
With Ruo Ximeng’s crisp shout, a vast and mighty energy blasted through the air, slamming directly into Yuan Chou.
In an instant, Yuan Chou was hit as if by a heavy blow. His clothes exploded apart, and his long hair stood on end as if struck by lightning.
He flew out from the stage like a kite with a broken string.
“What?”
“Damn! What just happened?”
“No way, is this even possible?”
At that moment, countless cultivators watching from the sidelines were all dumbfounded, staring in shock.
Su Chen coughed awkwardly, unable to comprehend the subtlety of what had just happened.
Lu Xuanshen, who had already leaped halfway into the air, was even more embarrassed.
He had been ready to step in and save the day, and had even thought up a follow-up explanation, but who would have guessed that Ruo Ximeng was so formidable?
“Yuan Chou was careless!”
Now, some cultivators had noticed the issue.
“Yeah, he didn’t dodge just now!”
“This girl is pretty clever. Yuan Chou had already fought bitter battles against many prodigies and was already spent. She just took advantage of a huge opportunity.”
This explanation was quickly accepted by the crowd.
Yuan Chou had gone all out against the other prodigies earlier, holding nothing back.
Now, with almost all his spiritual power depleted, Ruo Ximeng picked up a bargain and won by luck.
“Hall Master Lu, her result shouldn’t count, right?”
The elder from Azure Demon Sect spoke up angrily. Yuan Chou was one of the five prodigies representing Azure Demon Sect this time. Though not the strongest, he was far from weak.
With Yuan Chou’s strength, he should have advanced easily and shone in the matches to come.
But now, because of a moment’s carelessness, Yuan Chou had let this little rogue cultivator girl seize a golden opportunity.
“Hmm?”
After the Azure Demon Sect elder spoke, Lu Xuanshen only cast him a cold glance, his eyes telling him to figure it out himself.
Lu Xuanshen’s meaning was clear enough: This is Cloud Heaven Palace’s sacred ground—who are you to make a fuss here?
Amidst the envious gazes of many cultivators, the ‘fierce’ Ruo Ximeng advanced by luck.
With this platform’s outcome decided, the remaining four stages were still in the midst of chaotic battles.
After Ruo Ximeng’s match ended, Su Chen looked with great interest toward the direction where Jun Yao stood.
At this moment, Jun Yao’s eyes were half-closed, and waves of suffocating demonic energy surged around her, giving her an unmistakably dangerous aura.
The jade token at her waist clearly marked her as an inner sect true disciple of the Primordial Demon Palace.
Within the Primordial Demon Palace, inner disciples were divided into ordinary disciples and inner sect true disciples.
There were no more than five disciples with a purple-gold identity token like hers among all the disciples of the Primordial Demon Palace.
All the cultivators present knew full well that Jun Yao was someone not to be trifled with.
At this moment, Jun Yao slowly opened her half-closed eyes.
“Hiss—”
“What a terrifying look! As expected of a top talent from the Primordial Demon Palace!”
“Is she searching for someone to attack? Could she be planning to go all out?”
The few cultivators closest to Jun Yao hurriedly backed away.
But right now, Jun Yao was actually—super nervous inside!
She had closed her eyes earlier not to look cool, but because she was simply too nervous.
Now, she looked eagerly at the other cultivators around her. If anyone attacked her, she could only admit defeat right away.
She was still troubled by Elder Pang’s decision a few days ago to promote her from an ordinary inner disciple to a true inner disciple. A wry smile crept onto her face.
“Ah! What a twisted smile. People of the demonic path are truly terrifying!”
Seeing Jun Yao’s expression, the few cultivators who had just backed away retreated even further, lest she suddenly go berserk and inflict irreparable harm!
‘So scary, why hasn’t anyone attacked me yet? Do I have to admit defeat on my own?’
Jun Yao glanced around and found that only five people were left on the stage.
At this moment, she let out a sigh of relief. Although she hadn’t advanced, at least she lost at the very end—it wasn’t too embarrassing.
However, just as Jun Yao relaxed, a badly injured young man in blue hesitated for a moment before jumping off the stage and admitting defeat.
With the other three on the stage, he stood no chance in his current state!
As for Jun Yao, who had conserved her strength by waiting on the side, he had no confidence at all—how could a true inner disciple of the Primordial Demon Palace be weak?
Admitting defeat now would at least preserve some dignity.
(This novel’s design was flawed from the start. If you can’t handle using your imagination to fill in the gaps, I suggest you read my older books. They’re almost 200,000 words long and absolutely reach the peak of coolness—Do I Still Have a Chance After Proposing to the World-Destroying Empress at the Start?)