“Why isn’t he answering? Just what is the heck going on?”

The disciples were heard complaining due to the Elder's silence.

Xi Shen who was in his Pavilion suddenly had a thoughtful look on his face when he saw that the elder was silent.

He too had not realized the extra participant and had overlooked the fact that after Zhang Xiang had left, it would have been sixteen people instead of seventeen.

The experts in the surroundings had on contemplating looks as well while they watch the events unfold below.

They along with Xi Shen had suspicions that someone had just secretly tampered with the Freshmen Disciple Competition by placing an extra participant in the competition.

And for the elder to be ignoring this matter, this person must be someone high up in the Celestial Academy.

But there was one extremely puzzling question, and it’s why would anyone do such a thing? And who is that person on the stage? Judging by his appearance he didn’t look any older than 13 or 14.

The prizes were decent but as Xi Shen said, it wasn’t that difficult for any of the six participants to get them from their clan. And the person capable of manipulating the Freshmen Disciples Competition rules by adding in a disciple midway in the competition and causing the elder to not voice a complaint must be someone capable of procuring those pills with ease for that youth on the stage.

As the disciples down below mutters grew increasingly loud, with shouts of calling off the competition because of cheating, the elder in charge of the competition wore an expressionless face as he yelled out, “The competition will proceed without interruptions!”

With his shout, the disciples' voices died down a bit as they were also coming to understand what was going on.

Looking at the elder’s face one would think that he was calm at the moment, but inside he was wailing tragically.

Glancing at the youth he had been forced to let enter the competition and thinking of his position in the academy, his body unnoticeably trembled in fear.

‘Why is someone like him here? Wasn’t he supposed to be in the Conclave Disciple Section being trained by the Academy Leader?’

As the elder thought that, he bemoan his current fate.

He then turned his gaze to the other participants with pity in his eyes, they didn’t know who they were fighting against!

On the stage, Yang Su who was standing stock still also heard the disciples and turned to look at the indifferent youth some distance away from him.

He thought back on the youth that had coldly told him to move out of his way at the start of the testing ceremony.

Yang Su didn’t find it strange back then, but thinking of it now he was the last participant at the back of the group, so this youth suddenly coming out of nowhere to tell him to move was indeed strange.

Yang Su figured it was then that he had appeared but hadn’t entered the competition until the second round.

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As for why no one saw him battle in that round, they were forgetting that one disciple had received the free past to move on to the next round, and it just so happened to be this youth.

After hearing the elder’s words, Xiasheng looked at the youth who wasn’t supposed to be there with a frown on his face.

Walking over to him, Xiasheng snared while saying, “Look, I don’t know what strings you pull to be on this stage but I suggest you just leave without a fuss. If you don’t then I'll make you leave.”

Xiasheng stopped a few meters from this youth completely dismissive of him. If someone had to pull strings to get him into the competition then he must be lacking in skill to compete in the first place.

Xiasheng had a bad taste in his mouth that the youth had just so easily given entry into the competition while he and everyone else had to fight battles up until now to reach here.

So it was safe to say he was quite discontent at the moment.

However, even after a few seconds, the youth remained silent while giving Xiasheng an indifferent look. Xiasheng could even see ridicule in the youth's eyes that he did not attempt to hide.

Having been met with such a reaction from the youth after his warning was ignored, Xiasheng’s eyes released a cold light before his figure suddenly vanished to appear in front of the youth. His fist was already being sent out towards the youth's face, and there was even a silver light around Xiasheng's fist showing that he was calling upon the strength of his physique.

However, before Xiasheng’s fist had even reached halfway to arrive at the youth's unguarded face, his side was suddenly impacted by a strong force that knocked the wind out of his lungs and sent his figure rolling across the stage for several meters.

After coming to a stop, Xiasheng tried to get up but he remained on his hands and knees clutching his left side while he dried heaved. However, while dry heaving Xiasheng suddenly vomited out a mouth full of blood.

The amount of blood that he vomited in one go was large in quantity and even pieces of his internal had come up along with the blood.

Upon seeing this the elder was quick to react as if he was expecting this outcome. He teleported next to Xiasheng within a flash then placed his palm on his back before sending his Internal Qi into his body to inspect the severity of his injury.

What the elder saw made his expression gloomy.

The left side of Xiasheng's rib cage was completely destroyed. Not one solid piece could be found.

And what was worst is that his heart along with some of his other internal organs had been pierced by several bone shards.

The elder wasted no time to act and he pulled out a white medicinal pill before stuffing it into Xiasheng's mouth and forcefully made him swallow it. He then help him quickly refine the pill and then sent its healing properties towards his organs.

However, he made sure to use his Qi to remove the bone fragments from his organs before starting the healing process.

After that, Xiasheng's condition got a bit better, but with one side of his rib cage completely shattered, as well as some minor damage to his spine, the elder was forced to point at two disciples in the crowd and have them quickly carry Xiasheng to the Inner Disciple's infirmary below the mountain.

All this while, the crowd was watching on in silence as everything play out.

Some people in the crowd had no idea what had just happened. One second they saw Xiasheng throwing a vicious punch towards the youth, but the next he was doubled over several meters away coughing up blood and pieces of his internal organs.

The experts on the other hand looked at the youth with raised eyebrows.

Even Xi Shen sat up and was looking at this youth with narrowed eyes.

"His simple kick actually caused so much damage to that disciple?”

That was right, that youth had shattered the entire left side of Xiasheng’s rib cage with a kick so fast the disciples down below couldn’t even perceive it. It just looked as if Xiasheng had been hit by an invisible force and was sent flying away.

The elder was now back floating a bit away from the edge of the stage and his expression was one of nervousness.

If he hadn’t reacted when he did, Xiasheng could have lost his life.

‘To kick a Meridian Opening Realm cultivator to death, what monstrous strength. And what’s even more his opponent had reconstructed all of his bones, so they were as strong as steel. But his kick completely shattered the left side of his opponent's rib cage. I heard that he was promoted straight to a Conclave Disciple without having to take the Disciple Selection Ceremony test due to his identity, but isn’t his strength a little too much? But to give his opponent credit he had underestimated him and didn’t know this youth his true strength. If he had he wouldn’t have approached him so carelessly.’

As the elder thought this, on the stage, Shiming was looking at the youth with a solemn expression.

He also could barely make out the youth’s attack, the only thing he saw was a leg shadow and nothing else.

However, Yang Su was looking at this youth curiously. He had seen the kick just now, and he could tell that it had gone straight for one of Xiasheng’s weaknesses when he made his move. And even though the youth was last to move, his attack had reached Xiasheng much quicker.

‘He’s different from the other disciples, he's much stronger.’

Under everyone’s gazes, the youth looked towards Shiming and Yang Su and said, “You both battle, the winner can challenge me for first place.”

After saying that he actually walked off to the side of the stage to the dumbfoundment of the disciple down below. He then sat down cross-legged with folded arms and shut eyes.

His unbridled arrogant actions completely floored everyone.