75: Concealing one's talents

In the shadows at the edge of the plaza, Meng Lang's face was ashen as he watched Yao Delong once again shock the entire audience during the Divine Sense test;

listening to the Peak Master of Heavenly Sword Peak's exclamation of “Pure Yang Sword Intent, triggering a Phenomenon”;

a bone-chilling cold mixed with deeper fear seized his heart.

If Yao Delong didn't die, he would never know peace!

He acted immediately, his figure scurrying like a startled mouse while everyone's attention was focused on the Physique Testing Area.

He silently squeezed out of the crowd and sprinted toward Tuyao Peak.

Inside an Ancillary Courtyard of Tuyao Peak.

“What?! Nine feet nine inches on the Pure Yang Tremor Mirror?! Breaking the formation with Divine Sense in less than one-third of an Incense stick's time?!

Was the Heaven-and-Earth Phenomenon at Luoxia Peak triggered by him?!”

Meng Bi listened to Meng Lang's incoherent description, abruptly stood up, his usual arrogance and calculation instantly replaced by shock.

The jade cup in his hand shattered with a “snap”!

He paced back and forth, his steps revealing unprecedented anxiety:

“Impossible! How could that trash from Luoxia Peak... how could he have become so strong?!”

Yao Delong's results from the first two rounds were like two heavy hammers, thoroughly smashing his previous judgment and contempt.

“Brother Bi, what do we do now?”

“If this brat draws so much attention, he's definitely going to catch the eye of the Sect Head and all the Peak Revered Masters! Trying to touch him now...”

Meng Lang's voice was filled with a crying tone and despair.

“Shut up!” Meng Bi stopped abruptly, a Fierce Glare flashing in his eyes,

“What are you panicking about! No matter how much of a Genius he is, he's still only at Foundation Establishment!

As long as he hasn't truly stepped into Golden Core and isn't constantly protected by those Old Monsters, we still have a chance!”

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his turbulent emotions, and his gaze became incredibly sinister and vicious,

“We can't wait any longer! After you, that piece of trash, were exposed last time, he must already know the Meng Family is targeting him. We must find an opportunity to eliminate him quickly!”

He immediately took out a strangely shaped Blood-Colored Jade Talisman from his Storage Pouch and crushed it without hesitation!

“I have spared no expense to send an emergency message! Father will surely arrange for the most elite 'Blood Vulture' Death Soldiers to come immediately!”

Meng Bi's voice carried a hint of madness and determination,

“No matter the cost, we must completely erase him before the Sect's high-level officials pay enough attention to him and bestow powerful Protective Treasures upon him!”

After completing all this, Meng Bi finally breathed a slight sigh of relief, but his expression remained dark as water.

At the center of the plaza, in front of the Mountain-Suppressing Stele Forest.

After the first two rounds of elimination, only five hundred or so outstanding individuals remained, solemnly facing the nine pitch-black Stone Steles, each About a zhang high.

The Stone Steles were ancient and heavy, their profound Runes resembling sleeping Dragons, emitting a weighty sense of suppressing everything.

The test begins!

Dull thuds and the humming of Runes sounded.

Disciples of Pill Cloud Peak and Zhuàn Zhèn Peak mainly cultivated Divine Soul and Spiritual Power; physique was not their strength.

Most of them gathered their strength, striking with fists and palms, and it was difficult enough for the stele Runes to light up four or five tenths of their full brightness.

Meanwhile, the Disciples of Spirit Forging Peak and Thunder Marsh Peak were like Humanoid Vicious Beasts!

Their Vital Blood surged, and their fists whistled! Large sections of Runes on the steles lit up, constantly flashing with sixty to seventy percent brightness!

Furthermore, several burly, Muscular Disciples let out earth-shattering roars, smashing down a punch that caused the Stone Stele to rumble, and the Runes actually lit up over ninety percent!

This drew bursts of cheers!

Lin Shishi, dressed in white, arrived gracefully.

Her figure was slender and appeared delicate, but when she Focused her mind and calmed her Qi,

the moment her fair Jade Fist clenched and struck out, a power like a massive wave suddenly erupted!

Boom!

The punch landed on the stele!

Buzz—!

The Stone Stele violently trembled! The cold Rune Light instantly covered over seventy percent of the stele's surface! The light was stable and dazzling!

“Good!” Peak Revered Master Liu Yue of Spirit Water Peak nodded slightly.

Xiao Huohuo took a deep breath, strode forward, and whispered to Yao Delong:

“Senior Brother Yao, watch me!”

Intense Fighting Spirit burned in his eyes; Yao Delong's results in the first two events had been too dazzling.

He didn't believe Yao Delong could Take first place in this round as well!

“Haaah—!” Crimson Vital Blood erupted violently around Xiao Huohuo; his entire body was like a burning Meteorite!

Crimson Vital Blood gathered on his right fist, carrying a savage Aura that seemed capable of destroying everything, as he smashed it fiercely onto the pitch-black Stone Stele!

Boom!!

It was as if a Giant Rock had exploded! The entire Stone Stele vibrated wildly!

The Rune Light, crimson like Magma, surged upward like a breached Flood.

Fifty percent! Seventy percent! Ninety percent!

The light finally stabilized firmly at ninety percent! The entire Stone Stele seemed to have been ignited, emitting a Scorching Heat!

“Haha! Ninety percent!”

Xiao Huohuo withdrew his fist, laughing heartily, his chest heaving, his face flushed with excitement.

He forcefully waved his fist, looked at Yao Delong, his eyes carrying an undisguised challenge:

“Senior Brother Yao, it's your turn! Don't let me surpass you!”

On the High Platform, Ji Yanshuang finally showed a delighted smile, crossing her arms,

glancing sideways at Liu Yue next to her, her pride evident:

“Hmph, this brat didn't waste This old lady's efforts after all!”

Liu Yue merely smiled faintly, but her gaze was fixed on Yao Delong, who was about to step forward.

Swish!

Spiritual Power, Pure Yang Shaking the World! Divine Sense, A Single Thought Forming a Net! For this third round, physique, would he continue to shock everyone and break all Constraints?

Or would he... finally show a Weakness?

His stunning performance in the first two rounds had already attracted intense attention from the crowd, and even led to the Peak Master of Heavenly Sword Peak and the Peak Revered Master of Chiyan Peak publicly fighting over him.

This was definitely not what he wanted! An Alarm Bell went off in Yao Delong's heart.

The dispute between the Peak Revered Masters of Heavenly Sword and Chiyan seemed glorious, but it had actually pushed him into the Eye of the Storm!

He clearly felt countless gazes focused on him,

some filled with awe, some with envy, but deeper down, there must also be Scrutiny and jealousy.

Especially since he still didn't understand the source of the inexplicable hostility from the Peak Revered Master of Spirit Plant Peak, he needed to be even more cautious.

“The overly rigid break easily; fullness invites loss! Revered Master is in Secluded Cultivation again... For now, it's best to hold back.”

Thoughts raced through Yao Delong's mind.

He walked up to a Stone Stele and slowly raised his right fist.

Beneath his skin, the circulating Lapis Lazuli Golden Radiance was forcibly suppressed and restrained, revealing only the Vital Blood Power slightly exceeding that of an ordinary Foundation Establishment Perfection cultivator.

Then—

Whoosh!

A punch was thrown!

This punch was Plain and Unadorned, lacking earth-shattering momentum, slow in speed, and the power seemed... quite “ordinary”!

The punch landed on the stele.

Bang!

A sound came that was far less massive than Xiao Huohuo's!

Buzz... The pitch-black Stone Stele trembled slightly! The profound Runes on the stele lit up one by one, neither fast nor slow, steadily climbing.

Fifty percent... Sixty percent... Seventy percent... Finally, the Rune Light covered approximately eighty percent of the stele's surface, then stabilized, refusing to climb higher.

The bright light was sufficient to prove his physique far surpassed his peers, and it would be considered excellent in any Assessment;

But at this moment, contrasted with the shocking performance of the first two rounds... it seemed somewhat... Unremarkable?

“Eighty... eighty percent?”

“Only eighty percent?”

“That's one tenth less than Senior Brother Xiao?”

“This... seems like a big difference compared to the first two rounds...”

“I knew it! How could one person be Heaven-Defying in everything? Physique is his Weakness after all!”

After a brief silence, uncontrollable murmurs arose in the plaza, containing surprise, confusion, and even a faint sense of relief.

It was as if Yao Delong had finally fallen back to earth from the clouds, returning to the realm of “normal people.”

Xiao Huohuo saw the Rune Light stop at eighty percent, first stunned, then an uncontrollable Ecstasy instantly bloomed on his face!

“Senior Brother Yao!” He rushed forward in a single stride, vigorously patted Yao Delong's shoulder, his voice filled with the excitement of “finally being able to hold his head high,”

“Hahaha! I knew it! How could one person be Heaven-Defying in everything! You have to leave a path for your Brothers to live, right!

It's finally my turn, your Junior Brother, to Win back a round!

It looks like your physique still needs a lot more training!”