Nine Dragons Saint Ancestor

"This vile beast, he truly deserves death!"

Xu Huang cursed inwardly, on one hand wanting to silence Yun Xiao once and for all, and on the other, not wishing to step onto the stage to stop Peng Muxin's actions, allowing him to strike down the youth thoroughly atop the fighting platform.

Whoosh!

But while Xu Huang was in turmoil, some had no such concerns. For instance, at that moment, the sound of cutting wind arose beside him, and he was startled to see a figure appear on the Qi Seeking Platform No.1 at an extremely fast speed.

"Xia... Xia Special Envoy?!"

An unexpected figure appeared on the platform, causing Peng Muxin, who had been about to launch a second strike, to be taken aback. Upon turning his head and clearly seeing the person's features, his body trembled violently. It was none other than Xia Yong, the Special Envoy from the headquarters, whom even Branch Chairman Xu Huang had to treat with respect.

The implicit command Xu Huang had given Peng Muxin after the failure was to kill Yun Xiao's true body, albeit not explicitly stated, but it had been carried out all along.

Yet now, with Xia Yong's sudden arrival on the platform, a trace of unease surged in Peng Muxin's heart, as if something was slipping from his control.

"Douling Commerce's Yuyang City Branch Seeking Origin Realm Cultivator, Peng Muxin, dared to disguise his High Rank power, attempting to sabotage our Spirit Fighting Conference, he deserves death!"

Upon swooping onto the stage, Xia Yong merely cast a cold glance at the somewhat uneasy Peng Muxin. The words spoken also made everyone around the platform heave a sigh of relief.

The triennial Spirit Fighting Conference held in each city is always a grand event attracting many cultivators to watch. If such an event harbored endless sordid secrets, it would surely disappoint many.

Although some more astute individuals knew the Conference over the years was never completely clean, those were always insignificant matters. Peng Muxin, a Seeking Origin Realm Cultivator, daring to blend into the battles of the Qi Seeking Realm division, had evidently disrupted the fundamental balance of the Spirit Fighting Conference.

Now it appeared that Douling Commerce would not allow such an incident to happen. Observing Special Envoy Xia Yong's demeanor, it seemed he was also unaware beforehand, and the words he spoke were more righteous and honorable than the hushing-up attitude of Xu Huang just moments before.

"Special Envoy, I..."

Hearing the final words "deserves death" from Xia Yong's mouth, Peng Muxin couldn't help but be terrified to the core. Yet upon seeing the other's resolute expression, he hesitatingly turned his head to another direction.

"Chairman, you cannot just stand by and watch me die, last night..."

"How dare you!"

When Peng Muxin turned his head in his direction, Xu Huang knew trouble was brewing, so before the former could finish speaking, he already let out a furious shout that made all the nearby cultivators' ears ring.

At this moment, Xu Huang somewhat regretted not taking to the stage himself; then he could have directly killed Peng Muxin, preventing the exposure of his plots.

Now, all Xu Huang could do was use his loud voice to halt Peng Muxin from further speaking; however, such a tactic could not be used again. If that man was determined to drag both down, then he, the Branch Chairman of Yuyang City's Douling Commerce, might not be able to remain as such.

As the Branch Chairman, he had conspired with members within the organization, using a powerful Seeking Origin Realm warrior in disguise to enter the Qi Seeking Realm division of the Spirit Fighting Conference—it could truly be considered guarding one's own thievery.

Xu Huang had reason to believe that even with some background in Douling Commerce headquarters, under such circumstances, the high-ranking individuals would likely not come to his aid but instead kick him while he's down.

Thump!

However, in the next moment, as Xu Huang's mind was in turmoil, a soft sound suddenly came from the platform. Subsequently, everyone saw an extra palm on Peng Muxin's forehead.

That palm naturally belonged to Special Envoy Xia Yong, whose strike was silent and unnoticed, so much so that even Peng Muxin, who was the closest, had no time to react.

Not until the sound was heard and everyone turned to look did they realize that Peng Muxin's forehead had been indented inward so deeply that the brain matter inside was clearly shattered; he could no longer possibly be alive.

"Ignorant fool, even before death, you dare to make false accusations. Do you really think that within Douling Commerce, everyone is as shameless as you?"

Xia Yong slowly withdrew his right palm, paying no heed to the slowly collapsing corpse of Peng Muxin on the ground. His statement sounded angry, yet also seemed to be explaining something about the latter's final loud cry before death.

Seeing this scene, Xu Huang on the high platform couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief and also understood the reason behind Xia Yong's timely action – he feared that Peng Muxin would tarnish the reputation of Douling Commerce.

With just a Peng Muxin, all the blame can be pushed onto him. After all, even within the Yuyang City Division of the Douling Commerce, he wasn't even able to secure a position as an Elder.

However, if Peng Muxin had disclosed that this incident was related to the Chairman of Yuyang City Division, then the Douling Commerce would no longer be able to stay out of the incident, as the identity and the representation of the two were fundamentally different.

Therefore, Xia Yong took immediate action to kill Peng Muxin on the spot, to avoid dragging out more unnecessary trouble. In this way, even if someone suspected Peng Muxin's actions, without any evidence, no one would dare to trouble Douling Commerce again.

Xia Yong might very well know that Xu Huang was the one directing all this from behind the scenes, but as a Special Envoy from the headquarters, his first consideration was the reputation of Douling Commerce. As for a cultivator at the Origin Seeking Realm Early Stage, he could only become a sacrificial piece.

"Yun Xiao, you have won this battle of Spirit Fighting!"

After slapping Peng Muxin to death, Xia Yong, as if he had just done a trivial matter, slowly turned his head, stared at the youth in rough clothes a few dozen feet away, and spoke with an underlying implication.

No matter how covetous Xia Yong was towards Yun Xiao's three Meridian Spirits, he could not show it at this moment. Instead, he had to display a magnanimous demeanor, to change the spectators' perception of Douling Commerce.

Because Xia Yong knew that despite dealing with Peng Muxin promptly and firmly, he couldn't possibly shut the mouths of the world, and Douling Commerce's reputation would inevitably be damaged.

In such a situation, Xia Yong could only try to make amends. After speaking, he took another deep look at the youth in rough clothes and then slowly left the platform, returning to the high platform in the north.

"Let's hope such an incident will not repeat, or your end, Xu Huang, will be the same as Peng Muxin's!"

Just as Xu Huang was secretly rejoicing, a cold voice suddenly entered his ear, sending a shiver down his spine, realizing that his secretive schemes had indeed not escaped the eyes of this Special Envoy.

"Special Envoy, rest assured, after this incident, I will investigate the Yuyang City Division thoroughly to ensure no more harmful elements like Peng Muxin will emerge!"

Of course, at this moment, Xu Huang would not provide any basis for reproach, yet upon his declaration, the expressions of the many Elders of Yuyang City Division beside him became somewhat strange.

These Elders of the Yuyang City Division of the Douling Commerce were keen and seasoned, and entirely aware of what had just happened. If someone mentioned removing a harmful element, the first to be ousted would likely be you, the Division Chairman.

A farce like no other came to an end with Xia Yong's assertive intervention, causing many to feel slightly regretful; however, the next moment, excitement rose again.

For with Yun Xiao's victory in this battle, the other matches had also concluded, which meant the finalists for both the Spirit Vein Realm and the Qi Seeking Realm had been determined.

But the prizes of the Spirit Fighting Conference were even more substantial the higher the ranking, especially the grand prize for the champion of the Qi Seeking Realm group, which was highly coveted.

Among the five cultivators who had reached the final step, putting aside Yun Xiao, they were all strong at the Peak of Qi Seeking Realm, and there was even one at the Half-step Origin Seeking Realm.

Half-step Origin Seeking Realm, which strictly speaking was still considered the Peak of Qi Seeking Realm, couldn't be said to have broken the rules like Peng Muxin, and the Meridian Spirits possessed by such strong cultivators must also be extraordinary.

However, when the eyes of the four Qi Seeking Realm finalists turned towards a certain youth in rough clothes, their expressions turned ugly. Compared to them, even the strong cultivator at the Half-step Origin Seeking Realm, perhaps that youth would be the biggest dark horse of this Spirit Fighting Conference.

No joke, even Meridian Spirits controlled by an Origin Seeking Realm Early Stage cultivator were no match for that fiery red little bird, so if it came down to a solo fight, the ultimate champion would likely be none other than Yun Xiao.

Presumably, after the recent event, Douling Commerce wouldn't engage in any more tricks. Thus, with no one capable of suppressing Yun Xiao, should they now aim for the second place instead?

"Congratulations to all for making it into the top five of this Spirit Fighting Conference. Next, I will announce the rules for the final round!"

As the advancing cultivators felt discouraged, Xu Huang, on the high platform in the north, finally stood up. The first statement he made was thought-provoking for everyone.

As each group still had five contenders left, if it continued as before, with two Meridian Spirits battling against each other, not only would there be an extra person, but it would also not be possible to be the last round. Surely Xu Huang's statement implied some new rules.

"The rules for the final round of this Spirit Fighting Conference are somewhat different from the past. They are as follows: a melee battle!"

A gleam of sharpness flashed in Xu Huang's eyes as he announced this, and he subtly glanced at the Special Envoy beside him to gauge his reaction. Seeing no objection from him, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.