Not only were the Sacred Sword Palace people unable to see through "Mu Gaoqi," but even his own fellow disciples of the Danqian Palace suddenly found this Mu Gaoqi completely incomprehensible.
Outsiders might not know Mu Gaoqi well enough, but the disciples who lived under the same roof as him — would they really not know Mu Gaoqi?
Was this still that cautious, somewhat timid Mu Gaoqi?
Facing Wang Jianyu's interrogation and threats, he had not only shown no trace of fear but responded with composure, even deflecting the confrontation with effortless ease.
Was this still that Mu Gaoqi as gentle as a rabbit?
If it were merely a change in temperament, that would be one thing.
The problem was — when had Mu Gaoqi's strength become so unfathomable?
Counting up, Mu Gaoqi had already fought two battles.
In his first battle, against Feng Pao, a seventh-level Yuan Realm expert from a fifth-rank sect, the fight had been fierce and intense. At first glance, Mu Gaoqi's strength hadn't seemed that much greater than Feng Pao's.
But those paying close attention would notice that throughout the entire fight, Mu Gaoqi had used nothing but a withered branch — he never once employed any of his own signature techniques.
As for this second battle, it should by all rights have been an exhausting struggle.
Yet from beginning to end, no one had seen him use any special move either.
At the start, when Wang Jing's Whale King qi torrent had come crushing down, everyone assumed Mu Gaoqi had deployed some powerful defensive talisman. That explanation was barely acceptable.
But a single snap of his fingers that shattered every manifestation — could that be explained by a defensive talisman? Obviously not!
Yet how profound a martial technique could such a simple gesture as snapping one's fingers possibly conceal? The arena was packed with martial arts powerhouses, and not a single one could see through it.
Then there was the way Mu Gaoqi tore through those space-binding currents of qi — they had crumpled like paper, utterly devoid of any restraining force.
That simple, brutal motion likewise revealed no indication of any extraordinary technique.
And the final kick that sent Wang Jing flying was no different from a street brawl — there was no technical sophistication to speak of whatsoever.
From start to finish, what special technique had Mu Gaoqi actually used? Not a single person had caught it!
The whole thing looked utterly absurd!
Rather than saying Mu Gaoqi had defeated Wang Jing, it was more as though Wang Jing had been in on the performance, playing along with Mu Gaoqi in some elaborate act.
Yes, everything looked so fake that people couldn't help but want to go check whether Wang Jing's injuries were just for show.
But the crisp, crackling sounds of snapping bones and tearing tendons could not be faked; the blood he vomited could not be faked; and Wang Jianyu's fury over Wang Jing's destroyed dantian could not be faked either.
So if that was the case, and Wang Jing truly had not been putting on an act with Mu Gaoqi — then who would willingly risk the destruction of their own dantian just to play along with a mortal enemy in some bitter ruse?
If all of this was real, then Mu Gaoqi was truly terrifying.
Before he stepped into the ring, everyone had thought this match was an unwise move on the part of the Dan Qian Palace — sending a dao genius to fight a martial arts genius from the Sacred Sword Palace. They had all considered it a moth flying into the flame.
Now, it seemed everyone had underestimated Mu Gaoqi.
Winning in the third round meant he had already locked in a spot on the Ten Thousand Phenomena Hidden Dragon Ranking.
"Junior Brother Mu, congratulations." Shen Qinghong walked over with an easy smile and extended his hand.
Jiang Chen could see that Shen Qinghong was being sincere. He nodded and reached out, slapping the offered palm. "Thank you, Senior Brother Shen."
Jun Mobai came over as well, laughing. "Junior Brother Gaoqi, you've been hiding your light under a bushel. That kick was truly satisfying — it put a smile on everyone's face."
Ling Bi'er and Nie Chong had each defeated their respective opponents and advanced to the third round as well.
However, it was clear that Ling Bi'er had barely scraped through after a grueling battle.
Nie Chong watched Mu Gaoqi walk back down, his feelings a tangled mess. He had openly mocked Mu Gaoqi before, saying that the way he had struggled through the second round meant he was barely fit — that they might as well have sent Rong Zifeng instead…
Now, having witnessed the man's performance, Nie Chong's face burned with shame. He suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to find a crack in the ground and crawl into it.
Yes.
He had watched the second half of that fight, and to put it bluntly, if he, Nie Chong, had faced Wang Jing and failed to suppress him from the start — allowing Wang Jing to unleash his ultimate trump card — the outcome would have been nothing more than a coin flip, even for him.
To defeat an opponent as effortlessly as Mu Gaoqi had, kicking him away mid-conversation with a laugh? That was simply impossible for him.
"Junior Brother Mu, I misjudged you before. I owe you an apology." Despite being a man who wore his edge for all to see, Nie Chong had noticed how respectfully even Shen Qinghong treated Mu Gaoqi. He knew he had no grounds to put on airs, so he offered his apology and saved himself a bit of face.
Jiang Chen couldn't have cared less. He had no relationship with Nie Chong, and the man's earlier words had never bothered him in the slightest. He simply smiled and gave a slight nod. "No worries."
Ling Bi'er stood a few steps back, looking somewhat fatigued after her hard-fought battle.
Fortunately, with the third round complete, the day was nearly over. The remaining matches would continue tomorrow.
"Junior Brother, congratulations on advancing." Ling Bi'er gave Jiang Chen a small nod.
Jiang Chen offered a faint smile. "It looks like Senior Sister gained quite a bit from this fight. Have you perhaps caught a glimpse of inspiration for breaking through to the Sacred realm?"
Ling Bi'er looked genuinely stunned. "You could tell?"
Jiang Chen's spiritual sense was extraordinarily powerful — of course he had noticed the subtle change in her. In truth, Ling Bi'er's natural talent was no worse than Shen Qinghong's, and perhaps even surpassed his.
It was just that over the past few years, her father's situation had driven her to pour herself too deeply into the dao of alchemy, which had inevitably affected her martial cultivation.