The Grand Sovereign, however, appeared as though he had fallen into a meditative trance. Faced with the organizer's blatantly cheating methods, the Grand Sovereign seemed to turn a blind eye entirely.
This scene planted seeds of doubt in many minds.
Was this still the Eternal Sacred Land—the Sacred Land whose word was law? Was this still the power that held the balance of the Eternal Divine Kingdom? How could the Grand Sovereign, who had always been decisive and unyielding, make no response whatsoever to such an obvious act of suppression? This was nothing like the Sacred Land's usual style.
Once the draw results were announced, the other matchups instantly became dull and flavorless. Everyone's attention converged entirely on this single contest.
Over on the Eternal Sacred Land's side, every last person was seething with suppressed fury. This draw was far too brazen—was the organizer slapping the Sacred Land right across the face?
Was the Imperial Family trying to issue a show of force against the Sacred Land?
Yan Qingsang's emotions were equally turbulent. On one hand, he desperately hoped Jiang Chen would pull off a miracle and crush Xiahou Zong's arrogance. On the other, his wariness of Xiahou Zong ran bone-deep, and somewhere in his heart he believed that creating such a miracle would be monumentally difficult.
"Brother, Xiahou Zong is nothing like any of your other opponents. You absolutely cannot go into this fight with any unrealistic mindset. He's not Shen Fan, not Gan Ning—not like any adversary you've faced. To put it bluntly, every opponent you've encountered so far, combined, might still not be Xiahou Zong's match. You need to approach this as an underdog, constantly on guard, with the bearing of a desperate soldier who—"
Yan Qingsang tried to offer Jiang Chen his counsel.
Jiang Chen, for his part, wore an expression of perfect calm. He patted Yan Qingsang on the shoulder. "Brother Yan, my heart is utterly tranquil right now. No advice could reach me even if I wanted it to. In this fight, I will listen only to my own heart and trust only in who I am. If you have faith in me, then put your mind at ease and simply watch. If you have anger that needs venting, this fight will give you all the release you could want."
"You—" Yan Qingsang froze.
Jiang Chen's gaze drifted from his face to the other geniuses of the Eternal Sacred Land.
At that moment, most of the Sacred Land's prodigies shared a spirit of common cause against a common enemy. None of them had spoken aloud, but their eyes said everything.
Only Young Master Sui Chen wore a smile of seemingly feigned concern. "Brother Shao Yuan, though we haven't had much interaction, you really should take care of yourself in this fight. If things aren't going your way, there's no shame in conceding. Xiahou Zong is a monster—to yield to him is nothing disgraceful."
The other geniuses were visibly taken aback by Young Master Sui Chen's stance.
Wu You, who had previously lost to Jiang Chen, furrowed his brow slightly. "Sui Chen, what exactly do you mean by that? Losing heart before the fight even begins—is that how a fellow disciple should behave?"
Young Master Sui Chen sighed softly. "I'm saying this with the best of intentions. Brother Shao Yuan is, at the end of the day, a pill-crafting genius of our Sacred Land. What's the point of fighting Xiahou Zong to the death in a sword debate? Besides, in our entire Divine Kingdom, who is truly qualified to fight Xiahou Zong to the death? Wouldn't it be better to simply concede gracefully?"
Wu You replied coolly, "Sui Chen, perhaps you yourself chose to concede, and now you want every one of our Sacred Land's members to follow your example—losing heart before the battle even starts?"
Young Master Sui Chen's tone turned displeased. "Wu You, what's that supposed to mean? Are you mocking me? Do you really think that if you faced Xiahou Zong, you'd have the courage to fight?"
Wu You was equally unhappy. "Even if I lack the courage to fight, even if I chose to be a coward myself, I would never go around telling others to do the same. Everyone has their own choice to make."
At that, Jiang Chen let out an unhurried laugh. "Enough. We're all on the same side—there's no need to quarrel. Xiahou Zong has coasted on his reputation for far too many years. It's time someone tore off that mask."
With that, Jiang Chen said nothing more and strode toward the arena.
This fight could be called the most critical battle Jiang Chen had faced since arriving in the Eternal Divine Kingdom—and indeed, since setting foot on the Myriad Abyss Island.
Win, and Jiang Chen didn't know what the result might be.
But if he lost, the consequences would be dire—unspeakably dire.
Of course, Jiang Chen did not believe he would lose.
This time, Jiang Chen employed no movement technique whatsoever. Instead, he walked up to the platform at a slow, deliberate pace, treating each step with meticulous care, as though he were counting the stairs one by one.
From the outside, his gait looked no different from a man marching toward the execution ground.
Even those who still harbored some hope for Jiang Chen quietly shook their heads at his manner of ascending the platform. Such a feeble entrance spoke volumes.
Was he losing heart before the fight? Was he stalling for time?
Jiang Chen, meanwhile, had entered a state of utter self-forgetfulness. Step by step, he felt as though he were walking into an entirely new world, each stride drawing him deeper into it.
Finally, all the steps were behind him.
There stood Xiahou Zong, hands clasped behind his back, tall and straight as a jade tree in the wind. His bearing radiated an air of lofty superiority—untouchable, unreachable.