Terrifying spatial winds erupted upon impact, a clear testament to the Void Blade’s ferocious attempt at devouring the Penta-Edge Grimoire Halberd.


    Yet the beauty about spatial techniques was that it was almost always silent in nature, as any sound below a certain threshold would have been lost in the deepness of space itself. If not for the tremendous amount of spatial winds generated from the collision, others might even suspect that the duo had deliberately reduced the power behind their strikes at the very last minute!


    As for the Penta-Edge Grimoire Halberd, it actually managed to remain intact despite clashing directly against Geng Guoye’s Void Blade. Realising this inevitably brought a faint smile to Zhao Yunxiao’s face.


    As expected of Lou Yuan’s blueprint... this halberd is strong!


    “


    Even if Geng Guoye had suppressed his cultivation level to the Essence Gathering realm, it still did not make sense for Zhao Yunxiao to be able to suppress Geng Guoye in such a manner!


    After Zhao Yunxiao’s halberd strike threw Geng Guoye off his stance, Zhao Yunxiao Three immediately followed up from behind with a dagger strike of his own.


    With his right hand, he swung his sword back down towards the oncoming halberd. With his left, he directly punched out towards the approaching dagger.


    Judging from his clenched fist, he was definitely not trying to stop the dagger by pinching it by the blade.


    Geng Guoye’s sword slammed against the Penta-Edge Grimoire Halberd with such power that it even caused the latter to bend slightly. While it immediately bounced back to its original shape, it still could not avoid the fate of being sent flying – along with Zhao Yunxiao who was holding on like his life depended on it.


    Brother Geng, that does not seem very courteous of you,” Chen Pingxi remarked while most others were still reeling from the shock of the sudden turnaround. “Didn’t you promise to suppress your cultivation level to the Essence Gathering realm?”


    My apologies, I might have overreacted a little indeed,” Geng Guoye admitted reluctantly while awkwardly straightening his robes. “However, I had not expected Junior Martial Brother Zhao to resort to such petty tricks. That caught me by surprise, which was perhaps why I failed to control myself for a moment there.”


    ...Petty tri-?” Zhao Yunxiao was speaking halfway when he stoppedto spit out a mouthful of blood.


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    This level of power definitely did not belong in the Essence Gathering realm. Geng Guoye had gone against his word and released the seal on his cultivation level!


    Thankfully, it would appear that Geng Guoye did not go all out after doing so. Otherwise, Zhao Yunxiao would no longer be standing right now.


    Even so...


    May I know what Brother Geng means by petty tricks?” Chen Pingxi asked what was on his mind.


    “


    That weapon? What’s strange about it?”


    “


    “If that’s true, then deliberately hiding the existence of an array inscription despite this being a friendly spar can be considered trickery indeed,” Qie Xing quickly added in support.


    Exactly,” Geng Guoye continued. “If not for that, how would I have been surprised enough to accidentally act as I did? Now, I cannot help but question the reason behind deliberately concealing and then activating this array during the spar. Would you like to explain yourself, Junior Martial Brother Zhao?”


    What was he supposed to do otherwise? Volunteer all his secrets to everyone with whom he interacted?


    Yet despite how unfair he felt the accusation was, he was not exactly in a position where he could argue against Geng Guoye. After all, as an inner disciple, the latter was technically his superior.


    Going against him in such a public setting might bring temporary satisfaction, but it would also be tantamount to setting himself up for trouble in the future.


    While it was frustrating, it would still be in his best interest to take a step back here. Not just that, but he also made a mental note to steer clear of Geng Guoye in the future.


    “Senior Martial Brother Geng is right. I should hav-”


    “What a joke!” Chen Pingxi quickly cut him off, startling everyone present.


    Up until now, Chen Pingxi had maintained a graceful decorum, carrying herself in a manner that truly lived up to the ‘Fairy’ part of her alias, Tidal Fairy.


    But at this very moment, all signs of that were nowhere to be seen, replaced with a fierce light that was burning within her eyes. Her tone was firm and solemn, truly exuding a level of prestige befitting the prime disciple that she was.


    “


    How is that the same?” Geng Guoye’s expression turned ugly as well, extremely unhappy to be confronted in such a public manner. “My Void Blade is no secret, while those strange characters on his weapon are suspicious to say the least. Who knows? There might even be a chance that their origins did not belong to the orthodox path!”


    Since he had already gone against his promise of suppressing his cultivation level, Geng Guoye wanted to use any means necessary to justify his actions. That was why he had to paint Zhao Yunxiao as the bad person here, even if it meant throwing random accusations at him.


    Only by doing so would he be able to distract everyone into excusing his actions, preventing his reputation from taking a hit. Not just that, but painting Zhao Yunxiao as the bad person would also achieve the original intention of putting him down.


    At the same time, Geng Guoye made sure to phrase things in a speculative manner, all so that there would be no need for him to take responsibility for his words later.


    However, he never expected that those words would instantly backfire on him.


    “Insolence!” Chen Pingxi’s Peak Origin Core realm aura erupted in an instant, creating an immense spiritual pressure on everyone at the Clear Thoughts Pavilion. “Those are archaic runes that can be found in my Origin Lake Sect as well. Are you insinuating that my Origin Lake Sect is not of the orthodox path?!”


    Indeed, while others might not be familiar with the archaic characters on the Penta-Edge Grimoire Halberd, she clearly remembered seeing them at the Origin Lake.


    To be able to utilise those archaic characters in the creation of array inscriptions, Elder He Luoxuan’s understanding of these archaic characters must have already reached a sublime level.


    Just a moment ago, her heart had still been pounding in excitement while thinking about the endless possibilities that could result from that. Who knew that while she was still contemplating how to bring the matter up with Zhao Yunxiao, these same characters would be labelled as potentially unorthodox right in front of her face?


    Such a drastic turn of events shocked everyone present.


    Chen Pingxi was doing nothing to hide her rage, and her unrestrained aura was taking a significant toll on the audience.


    Those at the Foundation Building realm felt their legs go soft, unable to stand without holding onto something else for support.


    Those at the Essence Gathering realm had to focus on regulating their dantian, consciously suppressing the essence energy in their dantian from going wild.


    Among them, Lu Zhiying had to quickly hold onto Huang An for support, or she would have buckled to her knees. Even then, she could not help but grin in excitement, relishing in the moment as she personally experienced such immense spiritual pressure for the very first time in her life.


    So, this is the strength of a cultivator at the Peak Origin Core realm!