As soon as the battle started Feng Zhiming slowly started walking towards Aaron, from fifty meters to forty five to forty and slowly decreasing.

There was a tranquil, almost leisurely quality to his movements, as if he were taking a stroll through a forest rather than engaging in a fight.

Aaron was taken aback by the unexpected behavior. He had expected a swift and powerful attack.

“You cannot attack me before I do, remember the rules of the battle.” Feng Zhiming reminded Aaron.

The closer he got the more the audience grew surprised at his unusual tactics.

"If I were in his shoes, I'd immediately launch my strongest attack," Orion commented.

Daiyu kept silent, having been barred from speaking.

Grand Elder Claris observed the scene and offered his opinion. "Demonic cultivators often have eccentric techniques."

“Indeed, the demonic path is very unpredictable, you should know that best. Claris” Elder Pyari spoke as she walked over to the three.

Unlike madam Hua and Grand Elder Claris none of her disciples or allies had survived. But she expected as such. After all, the majority of the Dual Divine Demon Sect’s disciples strength came from techniques and Qi manipulation.

If all of them had been suppressed to Qi condensation it made sense they would die.

Lyra observed Anissa, who was intently watching the battle.

"What's his angle here? Is he just prolonging his death?" Lyra wondered aloud.

Anissa took a moment before responding, her voice firm and certain.

"Victory."

The one word response was far from helpful to Lyra. She was about to ask again but Ellia grabbed her shoulder.

“He’s about to reach him.” Ellia reminded her to focus on the duel before them.

Lyra unwillingly turned her gaze back to Feng Zhiming, she would have to watch this battle to conclusion to get her answer.

“Don’t blink.” Feng Zhiming spoke as he slowly raised his hand, it was merely one centimeter away from Aaron’s chest.

Aarons hands trembled, his instincts were screaming at him to kill Feng Zhiming where he stood. Alas he could not violate the rules of his Goddess.

Feng Zhiming pushed his palm and simultaneously a needle lined with poison appeared right before Aaron.

Aaron had expected something like this and quickly deflected Feng Zhiming’s palm, the needle of poison was redirected to his side.

Simultaneously, with a swift motion, Feng Zhiming opened his mouth, launching another poison needle in Aaron's direction.

Aaron had preemptively dodged that as well, aware that another attack was inevitably coming. However, it had been a little close for comfort, the sight of another poisoned needle in Feng Zhiming's mouth caught him off guard.

Feng Zhiming had been speaking all this time so a needle lined with poison in his mouth was the last thing he’d expect

“As soon as I’m clear of the poison I’ll kill him.” Aaron thought as he took a step back to avoid the poison.

His eyes were fixed firmly on Feng Zhiming, along with his spiritual sense, Aaron was determined to not miss a single detail.

"Wrong move," Feng Zhiming chuckled as Aaron backed away.

Aaron initially confused promptly understood Feng Zhiming's words when he felt a prickling sensation in his foot.

"Impossible. I didn't even see him draw his weapon." he muttered, feeling the effects of the poisoned weapon.

Feng Zhiming explained, "That's because I hid my fan underground prior to appearing before you."

“It should have been within the detection of my spiritual sense!” Aaron exclaimed. He couldn’t believe that he had missed such a thing.

In response, Feng Zhiming retorted "That's a trade secret."

He had utilized his Art of Demonic Suppression and augmented his spiritual weapon with it, in addition Feng Zhiming had wrapped the fan in a very particular scarf, a scarf with the spiritual inscription of silence. The very same scarf he had stolen from the old man back in Wildland city.

Normally a Heavenly Eye cultivator or someone with an especially refined divine sense would have seen it regardless.

However Aaron was currently at the Ethereal Core realm and spiritual sense was not enough to see through Feng Zhiming’s concealment measures.

If Aaron had evaded that attack despite all Feng Zhiming's safeguards, then he truly deserved the win in that scenario.

The weapon instantly burrowed out of the ground and arrived in Feng Zhiming’s hand.

Feng Zhiming took the fan and attempted to stab Aaron through his core.

At this point all three of the paralyzing toxins had been utilized, he had no other poisons in his collection. After all, Feng Zhiming was not truly a user of poison.

Stolen story; please report.

However mistakes and miscalculations were not exclusive to Aaron. As soon as Feng Zhiming’s fan connected to Aaron, it shattered.

Feng Zhiming had failed to consider Aaron's true cultivation level and power, which surpassed even the greatest Ethereal Core cultivator. The Heavenly Eye cultivator, strengthened by the power of divinity, proved to be far stronger than anticipated.

Earlier he had been pricked by the attack because it had been because he had not expected something behind him.

Now that he knew that there was a weapon before him there was no way it would penetrate his body.

Feng Zhiming exhaled slowly and clicked his tongue. “That fan was extremely difficult to acquire, I had to rob someone very powerful.”

The audience collectively thought, "STOP OBSESSING OVER THE FAN AND DO SOMETHING!" They were silently urging him to act.

At this moment the elders were all cheering for Feng Zhiming, if Aaron survived their deaths were guaranteed.

Feng Zhiming instantly retreated to the fifty meter mark.

He was smart for doing so because Aaron quickly swung his blade. If he had remained standing before him and trying another attack he would have been dead right now.

As for the paralyzing toxin, it was intended to incapacitate Spiritual Awakeners for several days. However, due to the empowering presence of divinity, its effects had begun to weaken.

With a hint of reluctance, Feng Zhiming spoke. "I truly wanted to avoid taking such extreme measures, but it seems I must put everything I have into this battle."

"Should the Holy Knight reach him, Feng Zhiming will be finished," Grand Elder Claris commented, keenly observing the shifting dynamics of the battle.

“If the handsome child doesn’t have any attacks capable of harming the golden haired bastard, that's the end of this battle.” Elder Pyari added as she began to leave.

But as soon as she took a step back a voice sounded in her head and relieved her of any thoughts of escape.

"I believe I instructed spectators to remain stationary." Kura's voice reverberated with authority.

Reluctantly, Elder Pyari halted her movement, acknowledging her limited ability to resist under her injured condition.

As her gaze returned to the combat unfolding before her, the tide had taken another unexpected turn.

From his storage ring, Feng Zhiming unleashed a total of fifty third-order demon beast cores.

The process of supercharging the cores was notably prolonged due to his depleted cultivation. However, as soon as he completed the process, he launched the cores at Aaron.

BOOM!

BOOM!

The resulting explosions were enormous, creating a brief moment of blinding smoke and dust, obstructing the view of the ongoing fight.

Kura had shielded the contestants otherwise they would have all likely died from the backlash of the explosions.

The elders were all injured and the rest of them were at Qi condensation, any chances of surviving those explosions were gone.

Once the smoke subsided, the spectators refocused their attention on the battle, only to find themselves utterly stunned by the outcome they witnessed.

Aaron continued walking as he had before, completely ignoring the explosions, to him the force of these attacks weren’t even enough to consider an issue.

In stark contrast, Feng Zhiming appeared as if he had borne the brunt of the assault. His right hand was reduced to ash, and his legs were severely charred. His facial features were marred by gruesome injuries.

If he had not circulated the art of demonic resurgence he would have most certainly been a dead man.

Aaron sneered at the wounded Feng Zhiming, his tone dripping with condescension.

"All who are tainted must meet the same fate." he proclaimed.

Meanwhile, Daiyu observed the battle with a hopeful expression. In her visions, visions granted by her future sight, she had witnessed Aaron succumbing to the paralyzing toxin and impaled by the spiritual weapon.

There was some force that exceeded the grasp of her future sight, a force powerful enough to bend it to its will.

She did not know it yet but that force was the Divinity Aaron prayed for, the visions failed to calculate its power.

“You’re a tenacious bastard, despite being a disposable pawn.” Feng Zhiming managed to reply to Aaron.

All the spectators were rendered speechless by the turn of events, with the notable exception of Anissa. She maintained her unwavering confidence in Feng Zhiming.

Feng Zhiming looked at the holy knight with a scowl.

“You’re really going to make me waste my only trump card.” He said while his bloodied face slowly repaired itself.

Having exhausted his entire arsenal, including his regular attacks and the shattered spiritual weapon, Feng Zhiming acknowledged that the third-order beast cores had been ineffective. With no offensive options left.

He took a deep breath and telepathically communicated with Kura, "Ensure the spectators safety."

Confused, Kura raised an eyebrow, as Feng Zhiming hadn't warned her about shielding the spectators from earlier blasts. She wondered why he was emphasizing it now. What strategy was Feng Zhiming contemplating?

Feng Zhiming raised his one remaining arm and wrapped it around his neck.

He began to tighten his grip around his neck, augmenting his vocal cords with Qi.

Aaron continued to walk slowly towards him, fighting off the poison. Every step he took foreshadowed Feng Zhiming's demise.

The spectators, including Kura, were taken aback by what followed. This unexpected turn of events had exceeded even Kura's anticipation.

Feng Zhiming opened his mouth to speak and the sound that emerged was truly terrifying.

In a gruesome display of desperation, Feng Zhiming, using his only remaining arm, adjusted his vocal cords, a self-mutilating process that even the most hardened demonic cultivators couldn't help but gape at.

"Ve-"

Just as he attempted to utter the next syllable, blood spattered from his mouth, initially red but quickly transforming to an unnerving black. This gruesome transformation was a macabre prelude to the madness that was about to unfold.

"Veridatas!" Feng Zhiming managed to vocalize through the stream of blood gushing from his mouth, his voice taking on a deep guttural roar.

This sound was both sensed and yet not. It was visible and yet invisible. It was nothing short of an entity that invoked terror, malice, and nausea, all while possessing an intensity that transcended the bounds of the very world they inhabited.

It was nothing else if not absolute.

Kura's experience in communicating with Veridatas had always been conducted through a refined and delicate ritual, an approach deemed necessary for safety.

Feng Zhiming, however, had transgressed the established norms of their world. His act could only be described as a blatant violation of natural laws.

Feng Zhiming, while in the astral realm, had experienced a moment of intense pain that forced him to utter a certain name.

This painful moment, instead of being forgotten, had been committed to memory by him. He had meticulously memorized the exact orientation of his vocal cords at that precise instant.

Despite Kura's constant attempts to shield the spectators, the sound was so intense that their eardrums shattered, and blood streamed from their orifices.

Aaron instantly collapsed, coughing up blood, his body rocked by violent convulsions. The protective Divinity surrounding him trembled ceaselessly, and the trees nearby started to wilt from the shockwaves.

Contrary to the expectations of all present, it was actually Feng Zhiming who appeared to be in the worst condition of them all. He had collapsed to the ground, his physical condition was rapidly deteriorating before everyone's eyes.

All signs of life within him had slowly begun to withdraw.