It has been a while since Ziqing got here and the people from Mountguard were still nowhere to be found.

The spectators kept staring at the entrance in antic.i.p.ation. Of course, they weren’t excited to see the “geniuses” of Mountguard, only the Virtuous Crown.

“They’re putting up quite a show, want to be fas.h.i.+onably late or something.” A few lost their patience and complained.

“Hmph, I don’t think it’s like that. They probably escaped back to Mountguard, aware of their inferiority compared to Miss Zhou. The so-called battle is nothing but a delaying tactic.”

“A monk can hide but not his temple.” Ziqing sneered.

Some listeners shuddered. Everyone felt that by escaping back to their sect, these disciples only gave Central Sacred Ground more of an excuse to mobilize against Mountguard.

At that point, Central Sacred Ground would just say that they have broken a promise and send an army there with the perfect justification. The crown would pretty much be theirs by then.

That’s why everyone realized that Mountguard’s action didn’t matter. Both fighting and fleeing resulted in the same thing - defeat.

“Well, I think we can be sure that those disciples want to tuck their head in their sh.e.l.l like cowardly turtles then.” One person gloated after seeing how high the sun was in the sky.

“Who says we’re fleeing?” A calm voice came about.

“They’re here! Finally!” Someone immediately recognized School Master Chen Weizheng and shouted.

Everyone looked over and saw a total of nine people walking in. Among them was a disabled person in a wheelchair.

The spectators exchanged glances. This group looked quite weak. It seemed that the rumors about the decline of Mountguard weren’t exaggerated.

They couldn’t be blamed for looking down on Mountguard. They could see Weizheng’s power level clearly, only barely stepping into the True G.o.d realm.

A True G.o.d was nothing in the grand scheme of things. Many great powers had numerous True G.o.ds among the previous generation.

As for the seven young ones, they were just average at best and couldn’t be considered exceptional. This type of disciples could be found anywhere in the system.

They then s.h.i.+fted their sight over to Zhou Ziqing. She didn’t belong to the top tier of new disciples but was still considered excellent.

Though it was seven on one, Zi Qing was two full realms higher than them. This wasn’t something that could be made up with a numerical advantage.

As for Li Qiye, people only gave him a quick glance since they didn’t give a d.a.m.n about someone looking like that.

They became clear that Mountguard was really done for since Weizheng was their strongest expert. Central Sacred Ground was immensely more powerful.

“Mountguard is just a third-rate sect now.” One expert looked down on them.

Mountguard used to be an extremely prestigious sect. Even though it wasn’t in control of the system, people still listened to orders from it. Alas, this was no longer the case.

“Is that the Virtuous Crown?” Eyes focused on the crown on top of Jiahui’s head. They found it to be quite normal looking so skepticism arose.

“It is, looks exactly as described in the legends.” An ancestor took a careful look and confirmed.

These ancestors were very tempted right now but they didn’t dare to take the food from the lion’s jaws.

“Time to start this, you all deserve death for making me wait so long!” Zhou Ziqing arrogantly stared at the group before uttering.

The seven stood behind Li Qiye with great composure while waiting for his order. They seemed to be more mature than before.

The training in deep s.p.a.ce truly benefited them, allowing them to be unfl.u.s.tered before their enemy.

“I will have both your heads and the crown today!” Ziqing revealed a murderous expression. Alas, her eyes narrowed while looking at Li Qiye. She then reminded herself that she had her own masters waiting nearby.

She didn’t hide her greed while staring at the crown at all. Taking it out on these youth was also her chance to payback the humiliation suffered earlier to the hand of Li Qiye.

Most importantly, Eight Trigrams Kingdom wanted the crown. Failure stemming from mistakes was unacceptable.

This was going to determine her future. Success meant soaring into prosperity. She would surely be rewarded and become a concubine to the crown prince from Eight Trigrams. At that point, she could call for rains and winds on a whim.

That’s why she was so determined right now to get the crown. No one would be able to stop her.

“Go now, don’t return without her head for doing so is insulting me.” Li Qiye said without opening his eyes, not caring about the spectators present.

“Yes, Ancestor.” The group respectfully bowed.

“Ancestor? Since when does Mountguard have such a young ancestor?” Their address confused many people.

Nevertheless, they quickly dismissed it since this ancestor probably wasn’t that powerful. He would only be an Ascender at best, not a big deal. Only Eternals were relevant in the system.

“Hmph!” Zhou Ziqing snorted after hearing the comment, emboldened by the presence of mighty masters from her own sect.

“No one from Mountguard will leave this place alive! This is the fate of those who oppose our Central Sacred Ground!” She pompously declared.

These words were meant for Li Qiye. She wanted him to die along with Weizheng. Next, her sect would also destroy Mountguard.

The connection between Mountguard and the Virtuous Crown was deeply rooted in history. They needed to destroy Mountguard as well in order to establish a sage with the crown. No one would question their eligibility then.

Unfortunately, Li Qiye ignored her declaration of war.

“Get ready, don’t underestimate your enemy. Go all out.” Weizheng told the group.

He wasn’t as confident in the seven compared to Li Qiye. He didn’t think they could kill Zhou Ziqing just by working together.

The group acknowledged the command and walked in a line onto the stage.

“Since this is a battle to the death at Reincarnation Mountain, I hope I’m not out of line to recommend myself as the referee for both sides.” An old man stepped up and loudly declared.

He had a heavy sword on his back, br.i.m.m.i.n.g with sword energy. The guy was obviously a powerful Ascender.

“Pinnacle Sword Saint from Pinnacle Kingdom.” Some recognized him right away.

“I have no objection.” Ziqing agreed.

“We also have no objection.” Weizheng hesitated for a bit before agreeing. He had heard about this sword saint before but didn’t quite trust him. Alas, he didn’t have a better candidate here right now to be the referee.