Elder Simon Spring smiled and said, "Let our Blue Robe Sect's Sean Shen go up."
Sean Shen hadn’t expected to be chosen, but he cared about his reputation—there was no way he’d lose here. As for Evan Yang, he felt indifferent; he was only here for the elemental treasure, not to fight over a place to stay.
Master Owen Qian laughed and said, "So it’s your Blue Robe Sect’s Sean Shen, the owner of the Gentleman Sword, coming out."
"Same to you," Elder Simon Spring replied with a smile.
"Since both sides have picked their representatives, let’s head to our sect’s martial arena for a fair duel. Whoever wins gets the right to use this building," the mediator announced.
Master Owen Qian smiled and said, "Lead the way."
Elder Simon Spring also said, "Follow along."
Evan Yang, Sean Shen, and the others naturally followed Elder Simon Spring out. The other sects saw that both sides had sent their strongest, so of course they paid close attention. After all, this was a rare chance to study them. Once the battle started, it would definitely be fierce, and by the end, both sects’ top experts would be thoroughly analyzed—next time, in the real competition, they wouldn’t be so lucky.
On another peak of Northspirit Star, a middle-aged man in a cloak laughed, "They’re even fighting over a residence."
"Isn’t this great, Sect Master? Their two sects fighting each other only benefits our plan," said a short man beside him.
"Yes, this time all ten sects have sent vice-sect-master-level leaders, and they're all elites. For this plan, we must seal them all in—no one can leave. Otherwise, Northspirit won't be able to hold its place among the sects," said the middle-aged man.
"Sect Master, when do we start?" asked the short man.
"Wait until the major sects start fighting and build up grudges. Then, with a few tricks, they'll naturally turn on each other. That's when we'll move in and take them all at once," the middle-aged man laughed.
"Alright, I'll keep stirring things up behind the scenes," said the short man.
"Go on," the middle-aged man said with a smile.
The short man nodded and left. The middle-aged man took out a sphere that emitted a faint water-blue glow. With a flash, he and the sphere vanished from sight.
The Northspirit Sect Master—just now, the middle-aged man—sat alone in the empty meeting hall on Northspirit Star, where elders usually gathered for discussions. But now, not a single elder was present; all had been kidnapped by a demon, the Devil Realm Emissary. For their sake, he could only sigh helplessly, "If it’s just studying cultivation arts, hopefully no one will be harmed. Once the elders are returned, I’ll send them away."
"Master Nolan Northspirit, are you saying all ten sects have arrived?" asked a figure whose whole body was pitch-black and radiated faint demonic qi.
"Devil Realm Emissary, I've already made the arrangements," said the middle-aged man, though he felt helpless inside. For the sake of himself and his sect, he had no choice but to rely on the Devil Realm.
"Excellent. Once you bring them all here, I'll thoroughly study their cultivation arts. That way, when the Devil Realm invades the Immortal Realm later, these ancient sects won't be able to resist at all," said the Devil Realm Emissary.
"Devil Realm Emissary, I’m afraid just ten sects isn’t enough. The Immortal Realm still has many other ancient sects," said the middle-aged man.
"Don’t worry. The hidden sects elsewhere will be handled by other emissaries. Just focus on your current task. And don’t use this sphere to enter here casually—I don’t want anyone to know I’m hiding on Northspirit Star in the Immortal Realm," said the Devil Realm Emissary.
"Alright," the middle-aged man nodded.
"Go do your work. Once this is done, I’ll give you the antidote—and return your elders," said the Devil Realm Emissary.
"Alright, I’ll go now," said the middle-aged man, leaving with heavy steps.
He left using the sphere. After he was gone, the Devil Realm Emissary laughed, "Soon, I’ll finish this task. The great Devil Realm—soon the Immortal Realm will be ours too."
The Northspirit Sect Master—just now, the middle-aged man—was now sitting alone in the empty meeting hall on Northspirit Star, where elders usually gathered for discussions. But there was no one here; all the elders had been kidnapped by a demon, the Devil Realm Emissary. For their sake, he could only sigh helplessly, "If it’s just studying cultivation arts, it shouldn’t harm anyone. Once the elders are returned, I’ll let them leave."
At that moment, memories of years ago echoed in his mind. Back then, Northspirit Star was one of the more influential ancient sects, with dozens of elders at Emperor Realm strength. But one day, during a meeting, they were all poisoned at once. Then a self-proclaimed Devil Realm Emissary appeared, whose goal was simple: force Northspirit to help capture the other ten sects’ people for research.
"Everything will be fine," Master Nolan Northspirit muttered.
Meanwhile, the ten sects on the other side were heating up, getting ready for the real competition by watching the show.
"Sect Master Spring, I wonder if your Blue Robe Sect’s elites are really that strong," Master Owen Qian laughed.
"We’ll know once we compete," Elder Simon Spring replied with a smile.
"Alright, Northspirit Sect will send someone as referee. We’ll just watch," Master Owen Qian said.
"No problem," Elder Simon Spring said.
Then, under the mediator’s instructions, everyone dispersed and sat on the prepared stone chairs, forming a circle of ten sects. Sean Shen and Eric “Jade Moon” Jing stood in the center, waiting for the referee to announce the rules.
The rules were simple: a single match decides the winner. Whoever wins, their sect gets the building. If someone falls or admits defeat during the match, it counts as a loss.
As the battle was about to erupt, Evan Yang was curious—such a lively scene, but he hadn’t seen any prominent Northspirit Sect figures. This puzzled him.
"What are you looking at?" Elder Simon Spring asked, seeing Evan Yang glancing around and thinking he might be up to something sneaky.
"Spring Sect Master, is Northspirit really strong?" Evan Yang asked.
"Of course. They’re the leaders of the ten sects. They don’t participate in the sect ranking, but they can represent all ten sects," Elder Simon Spring replied.
"If they’re really that strong, why haven’t we seen their sect master or any elders—or at least someone who can speak up?" Evan Yang wondered. He knew Elder Simon Spring had ulterior motives toward him, but there were things he still wanted to know.
Elder Simon Spring found it odd too. Normally, whether it was a competition or a reception, the sect master and elders would at least show up in numbers. He muttered, "Maybe they’re all busy."
As Evan Yang and Elder Simon Spring chatted, the battle in the arena had already begun.
Sean Shen drew the Gentleman Sword, while Eric “Jade Moon” Jing didn’t move at all.
"You’re not moving? Or are you going to fight me bare-handed?" Sean Shen asked with a smile.
"This is enough," Eric “Jade Moon” Jing replied confidently.
"Oh? Is that so? Then I won’t hold back," Sean Shen said, sending the Gentleman Sword flying. Eric “Jade Moon” Jing raised his hand to block, bare-handed.
Everyone who knew the Gentleman Sword understood that touching it meant being immobilized. So Eric “Jade Moon” Jing’s move puzzled the crowd—though his sect members secretly smiled, as if this technique was prepared just for the Gentleman Sword.
"Your Gentleman Sword is impressive—it can immobilize me. But are you sure you’ve actually trapped me?" Eric “Jade Moon” Jing smiled.
"Ha! You think this is ordinary immobilization? Look, can you still move now?" Sean Shen laughed.
"Move? Maybe this one can’t move, but the one behind you can," Eric “Jade Moon” Jing replied with a strange smile.
Sean Shen sensed danger behind him and was shocked. The crowd saw another Eric “Jade Moon” Jing appear behind Sean, while the one immobilized by the Gentleman Sword turned into a puddle of water.
The crowd was astonished, but Master Owen Qian remained full of confidence.
Sean Shen wasn’t completely unprepared. Seeing the situation, he quickly tried to control the Gentleman Sword.
People murmured as they watched. Evan Yang was also curious—just now, Eric “Jade Moon” Jing had clearly been immobilized, so how did he turn into a puddle of water? From others, Evan learned that Eric’s cultivation art was water-based and could create illusions, like mirages using water.
What’s reflected isn’t always a real person—it could be, or it could be an illusion. Eric “Jade Moon” Jing’s technique is a mix of real and fake, true and false.
Evan Yang was deeply impressed and thought to himself, "If I could learn this amazing technique, my water arts would reach a whole new level."
Eric “Jade Moon” Jing had no idea someone was already eyeing him. But Evan Yang wasn’t foolish—he wouldn’t ask for the technique directly, and instead just observed.
Sean Shen found it tough against Eric “Jade Moon” Jing. Sometimes the immobilized figure was a fake, and the real one could attack at any moment, so Sean was never sure, always waiting for another Eric “Jade Moon” Jing to appear nearby.
Time passed bit by bit. The scene was intense: Sean Shen even used fire attributes, while Eric “Jade Moon” Jing relied on water-based illusions to deceive Sean and drag out the battle.
Not only that—Eric “Jade Moon” Jing’s water attribute countered Sean Shen’s fire attribute.
Sean Shen was frustrated—every opponent turned out to be an illusion, and he couldn’t immobilize any of them. Finally, he shouted, controlling the Gentleman Sword in midair, which created a barrier, just as he had done against Evan Yang before.
Previously, Evan Yang escaped the barrier using earth attributes, but Sean didn’t believe Eric “Jade Moon” Jing had earth skills too. Sure enough, when the barrier appeared, multiple illusions formed inside and gradually disappeared, leaving one person.
It was Eric “Jade Moon” Jing. He hadn’t expected the Gentleman Sword to have this ability, and now he was trapped inside. He eyed the barrier suspiciously, "Brother Shen, is this the Gentleman Sword’s greatest secret?"
"Sort of," Sean Shen replied, smiling after trapping Eric “Jade Moon” Jing.
Seeing things weren’t going well, Master Owen Qian grew anxious, but Elder Simon Spring smiled, "Let’s see how he gets out of this."
Everyone around exchanged glances. Earlier, neither could gain the upper hand, but now, with this Gentleman Sword move, Eric “Jade Moon” Jing was trapped inside.
Eric “Jade Moon” Jing didn’t know what would happen next. He thought it was just ordinary confinement and laughed, "If you have the ability to keep me trapped like this, as long as I don’t fall, it doesn’t count as losing."
Everyone agreed—if Eric “Jade Moon” Jing didn’t fall, it wasn’t a loss, and the barrier simply remained in place.