The series of upheavals on the arena stage had clearly given the restless Undying Heavenly Sect a prickling sensation of unease.
At this moment, outside the arena area, Saint Dharma King Mu, Saint Dharma King Ke, and Dharma King Bei were all mingling in the crowd, watching the battle unfold.
Clearly, they too wanted to use this fight to observe whether Pill King Zhen was truly Jiang Chen.
Based on Pill King Zhen's combat style so far, he was completely different from the rumored Jiang Chen.
In Jiang Chen's previous battles, he rarely revealed his true cards. And when he did, more often than not he simply annihilated his opponents outright.
The only thing people truly recognized about him was the Ice Fire Demon Lotus.
Because this technique was too heaven-defying and far too unique. Many people had witnessed it with their own eyes, so the Ice Fire Demon Lotus was the most direct impression the major sects held of Jiang Chen.
Beyond that, if anyone tried to name any other special abilities Jiang Chen possessed, they truly couldn't come up with anything.
"Brother Mu, this Pill King Zhen seems far more troublesome than we imagined. I'm starting to have doubts now—is he really Jiang Chen?"
Saint Dharma King Ke was feeling uncertain as well.
Saint Dharma King Mu's face was dark: "Although this brat hides himself deeply, my instincts still tell me there's something off about him. We absolutely cannot judge this kid by conventional standards. Perhaps we think his combat methods and various techniques are all superior to that Jiang Chen brat's. But don't forget—it's been nearly two years since the Danqian Palace was destroyed. With this kid's rate of growth..."
Saint Dharma King Ke fell silent. He too felt that Saint Dharma King Mu's reasoning was quite sound.
It was Dharma King Bei who, staring at the arena stage and watching that large man, furrowed his brow and said: "Your Excellencies, the two Saint Dharma Kings—don't you find it strange that this man challenging Pill King Zhen has a very peculiar background?"
"Strange? What's strange about him?"
"This man's martial techniques and divine abilities clearly carry the bearing of a grand tradition—he's absolutely not some disciple raised by a minor sect. I suspect... could he be a disciple of the Nine Yang Celestial Sect?"
At these words, both Saint Dharma Kings' expressions turned extremely ugly. The Nine Yang Celestial Sect?
The Nine Yang Celestial Sect was the one power they least wanted to hear about.
Setting aside how the two sects had recently been fighting fiercely in the Myriad Phenomena Region, there was also the matter of Great Emperor Flying Feather's inheritance dispute—the two great sects had been engaged in open and covert struggles over it for over a thousand years.
Now, if a disciple of the Nine Yang Celestial Sect was up there and happened to defeat Pill King Zhen, it would mean the Nine Yang Celestial Sect had gotten there first.
In that case, no matter how perfect the Undying Heavenly Sect's arrangements were, even if Pill King Zhen really was Jiang Chen, it would all be meaningless.
Because the Nine Yang Celestial Sect was also searching for Jiang Chen, equally determined to pry open the mystery of Great Emperor Flying Feather's inheritance from him.
"The Nine Yang Celestial Sect!" A cold gleam shot from Saint Dharma King Mu's eyes, and he fell into brooding silence.
Saint Dharma King Ke, however, smiled bitterly: "Could it be that we actually need to pray for that little thief Jiang Chen? Pray that he wins?"
They were truly caught in an agonizing contradiction.
On one hand, they feared that man might be a genius of the Nine Yang Celestial Sect, snatching victory before they could make their move.
On the other hand, they didn't want Pill King Zhen to be too powerful either. After all, the Undying Heavenly Sect had arranged many contingencies for what came next.
If even this man was defeated by Pill King Zhen, then the arrangements the Undying Heavenly Sect had made might very well become impossible to execute.
Because among the three geniuses they had arranged, not a single one could claim to surpass the man currently on the arena in terms of absolute strength.
Thus, both Saint Dharma Kings had simultaneously fallen into a state of anxious turmoil.
On the arena stage, the battle had already reached a white-hot intensity.
One was empowered by a Great Emperor-level pressure and offensive force. The other was bolstered by a Great Emperor-level supreme defense.
For a time, the two were truly matched tip to tip, locked in fierce opposition, fighting to a standstill that neither could break.
It was evident that after Xiao Paohui had been empowered with the Great Emperor's might, his offensive power had increased dramatically. And his strategy was crude and simple—he intended to use the Great Emperor's might and offensive force to directly crush his opponent.
Because what Xiao Paohui excelled at most was this kind of close-range, overwhelming assault.
The Great Emperor's might and offensive force, though merely granted by the power of runes, were still extraordinarily formidable. The speed at which Xiao Paohui swung his arms had reached an absolute extreme.
Every fist that struck out came with a howling rush of wind, like the roar of tigers and the cry of dragons. The tremendous force shook the very arena stage until it seemed to tremble.
This level of devastating offensive power meant that within several hundred meters of the arena, no one could draw near.
"Pill King Zhen, I acknowledge that you are worthy of being my opponent. But this will be the final glorious moment of your life!"
Xiao Paohui howled toward the heavens, his entire body's power surging continuously as his oppressive aura climbed ever higher. Behind him, the phantom outlines of divine figures began to coalesce, making him appear supremely sacred.
"This set of 'Fist of the Heavenly Emperor's Judgment' will send you to your death. You should consider it an honor." Xiao Paohui's voice brimmed with dominance, his entire bearing radiating supreme authority.
He stood like an abyss-moored mountain, exuding the aura of a sovereign presiding over his realm.
"Heavenly Emperor? Fist of Judgment?" Jiang Chen frowned upon hearing this, then suddenly let out a cold laugh. "Heavenly Emperor? And you presume to call yourself the Heavenly Emperor?"
Hearing these words spring from the other man's mouth, Jiang Chen was struck by an overwhelming wave of disgust and revulsion.
As the son of the Heavenly Emperor, Jiang Chen had never heard that his father had created a technique called the 'Fist of Judgment.' This was almost certainly a name some lower-level martial artist had coined to borrow prestige through association.
Such a name—the moment you heard it, you knew it was a fox borrowing the tiger's majesty!
Xiao Paohui could have cracked his skull a thousand times over and never guessed that the opponent standing across from him was none other than the reincarnation of the Heavenly Emperor's son.