Chapter 271: Mirror Deception
Chen Yan scrutinized the cloaked opponent standing in front of him with a confident posture.
"You are..."
She silently took off her mask, revealing a face that Chen Yan wasn’t unfamiliar with. His fellow disciple, Qing Hua, had been on his radar as a potential candidate who could assist Han Xuhan today.
He just hadn’t imagined that she would be this bold.
Even after he had shown off his superior cultivation base, intending to deter all of Han Xuhan’s associates from siding with him, she still dared to show up and take such a dangerous role!
But as far as he knew, her cultivation base had barely reached the ninth layer of the Mystic Path. Her Martial Cultivation was not low, perhaps around the same phase as his, without any qualitative difference in terms of physique.
So what gave this woman the confidence to face him?
This same question echoed through countless minds around the dueling arena, including Elder Shen. Of course, his speculations were leagues ahead of the lot.
His Body of Truth retreated alongside Arena Official Yu, indirectly signalling their consent to the third round of the duel to be held between Qing Hua and Chen Yan.
Hidden beside Han Xuhan, his Shadow of Falsehood deduced the most optimal way for Qing Hua to defeat Chen Yan.
Thinking from this perspective, Han Xuhan’s main goal in the second round of the duel had been to force Chen Yan into revealing his means of protection against poison. Not only had he succeeded in doing that, but he had also forced Chen Yan to discard those means.
Chen Yan had even been tricked into swearing Dao heart oaths that he would not use any defensive techniques, treasures, or tools against poison in the third round.
But there was a reason Chen Yan had agreed to it.
Obviously, in the third round, his opponent was going to use poison to weaken Chen Yan and defeat him comprehensively, leaving no room for the judges to take Chen Yan’s side.
Going by Han Xuhan’s past battle records, the poison he was most likely to use was some potent mixture of the pill fog floating through the air all around them every day. Other types of poison were not so easy to handle, let alone using them to attack an enemy.
There was a significant drawback of airborne poisons. Even at their most concentrated dose, they couldn’t take down their victim instantly, especially if the victim had a decent physique refined through martial arts.
However, while swearing the oath, Chen Yan had been under the impression that he’d be facing Han Xuhan again in the third round, and he’d not be barred from using Mystic Arts.
So, taking Han Xuhan down before the poison could affect him would not really be difficult.
But now, he was going to face Qing Hua, a senior disciple who was much more formidable as an opponent compared to Han Xuhan.
Relying on her considerable experience with Mystic Arts and with a bit of luck, she could probably withstand the onslaught of his Mystic Arts until the poison started affecting him.
From this perspective, the chances of the contestants now stood at fifty-fifty.
The first half of the battle would be in Chen Yan’s control as he bombards Qing Hua with all the spells and martial arts in his arsenal, while she could only try to survive.
The second half of the battle would be in Qing Hua’s hands as she begins her counterattack on a weakened, poisoned Chen Yan.
In summary, one side had to perform beyond their expected capabilities to overpower the other side.
At the center of the arena, after Arena Official Yu announced the start of the third round, Qing Hua took off the expensive cloak and threw it aside, fully exposing her identity to the audience in the gallery.
Most of the senior disciples in the front rows knew her, and knowing she was also a disciple of the Salted Fish Mountain Peak, they all nodded as ’a realization dawned on them’.
’So this is the mysterious senior disciple who wants to revive the legalist path! She was the one pulling strings behind the curtain, using Han Xuhan as her agent!’
But then, they recalled the outrageous announcement made by her before the first round of the duel. The echoes of those boasts were still fresh in their minds.
"Turns out the one scheming against me was a pathetically weak brat who has just broken through to the Soul Reformation realm! How humiliating!
"This duel doesn’t even require my intervention! I’m afraid of killing you by accident, puny ant! This duel can be handled by my junior brother, Han Xuhan!"
Looking back, how did she have the guts to lie so shamelessly?
She herself was at the Physique Transformation realm!
While this thought left them all baffled, certain people with sharper senses were suddenly alarmed.
The robe Qing Hua just discarded... Was it on fire?
No, but from one of its pockets, faint tendrils of smoke were spreading with the passing wind, moving towards Chen Yan. Unless one’s vision had been refined to the peak of the Physique Transformation realm, they’d not really be able to see this phenomenon!
The pill fog! The setup to take Chen Yan down has begun!
Chen Yan probably had no idea that he was already inhaling and absorbing poison, but he wasn’t foolish enough to just stand there after the duel had already begun. He was aware that his time was limited, but the initiative was entirely in his hands for now.
Just as he was about to mobilize his qi-
"I wouldn’t make a move right now if I were you," Qing Hua said, sneering arrogantly.
Chen Yan paid her provocation no heed. Did this stupid bitch think she could distract him like this?
Under the overzealous command of his mind, a stream of qi stormed through his enlarged meridians, forming a perfect cycle for an offensive Mystic Art spell.
"Aren’t you curious why I’d not fear facing a Soul Reformation realm cultivator?" Qing Hua muttered.
Abruptly, he sensed the birth of an even more immense wave of qi coming from Qing Hua’s direction. If the stream of qi in his control was like a great, turbulent river, then what he sensed from Qing Hua was no less than a rampaging, destructive flood!
That observation, coupled with her warning just now, made him pause for a moment.
What was she doing?
A Physique Transformation realm cultivator couldn’t possibly control such a massive volume of chaotic qi. Even he, with his superior spiritual senses and mental control, had no such capabilities!
Also... Why did the phenomenon feel a little familiar?
The raging storm of qi leaking out of Qing Hua’s meridians slowly formed a funnel-like flux, revolving around her faster and faster. Chen Yan belatedly realized where the sense of familiarity originated from.
"A Mystic Path breakthrough?! Right now?!"
And it wasn’t just any breakthrough; Qing Hua was already at the ninth layer of the Physique Transformation realm in the Mystic Path. So a breakthrough for her could only mean...
Ascension to the Soul Reformation realm!
"Screw you, you crazy bitch! You can’t fucking do this in the middle of a duel!"
One of the most important rules disciples and Elders alike had to abide by in any sect was to never interrupt a disciple who has shown signs of a breakthrough. The Elders were even duty-bound to ensure that such a disciple would have the ideal environment around them to facilitate the breakthrough.
And if such situations arise during an ongoing public duel, what could the opponent do?
Nothing! They could only stand and watch it happen.
What else could Chen Yan do but scream? He didn’t even dare to scream loudly lest it should disturb Qing Hua!
’So, the reason why she chose to duel a Soul Reformation realm opponent was because she herself was just a step away from that realm?
What insanity is this? What is the point of doing this?
Han Xuhan, Qing Hua, both of them are insane!’
Frozen in his spot, Chen Yan felt like his reason was about to shatter into pieces, turning him insane as well.
At this time, near the border walls of the dueling field, Elder Shen was also struck by a dilemma, but it differed from the impasse Chen Yan was stuck in.
On one hand, he could see Chen Yan’s body being slowly engulfed by a shroud of poisonous fog.
On the other hand, he could also see... that Qing Hua’s breakthrough was entirely fake!
Other than the inexplicably profound aura of an unstable cultivation base, the remaining phenomena were being generated by tools and minor Mystic Arts!
If it were real, he’d have surely suspended the duel under the guise of creating the ideal environment for Qing Hua’s breakthrough.
That way, Chen Yan could secretly take some medicine to neutralize the poisonous fog his body had already unsuspectingly absorbed, and restart the third round knowing what to expect!
Nobody would be able to accuse him of protecting Chen Yan!
But a fake breakthrough was nothing but a cheap trick in a duel, perfectly permissible to use, and nobody could just step in to warn the tricked opponent.
Hence, while Chen Yan was being suppressed by the apprehension of a real breakthrough, Elder Shen was being suppressed by the lowliness of a fake breakthrough.
This scheme... Why did it feel familiar?
Wait, wasn’t this design a perfect replica of his Myriad Deceptions Mystic Art?
It was as if he were watching his own technique in a mirror.
To Chen Yan, Qing Hua’s breakthrough embodied the essence of the Body of Truth!
To Elder Shen, Qing Hua’s breakthrough embodied the essence of the Shadow of Falsehood!
But how could Qing Hua, or more accurately, Han Xuhan, arrange this scheme that was clearly targeting him?
Even if they were familiar with the Myriad Deceptions Art by some freak coincidence, they could not possibly see through its essence, comprehend its techniques, and apply them in such a critical setting!
Sect Master Xuan Zi had to be behind this! It must be him!
Elder Shen’s heart trembled. Xuan Zi’s support for Han Xuhan was now out in the open. Nothing could be a more solid proof than this!
So... The most optimal course of action right now, would be to kill Chen Yan and gather all forces opposing Xuan Zi under one banner.
