Xin Yi'an immediately began drawing lots for the crowd, and everyone watched with bated breath. This group, gathering three such headline-grabbing figures as Wei Zhao, Xue Jianming, and Leng Leng, along with Duanmu Yu and a host of other formidable lead disciples from the various sects, promised a showdown among peak Foundation Establishment disciples rich in spectacle. Naturally, no one was going to miss it.

And among this group, what the crowd looked forward to most was nothing less than the summit clash between Wei Zhao and Xue Jianming. Unfortunately, this round of lots failed to satisfy the crowd's wish—though the draw was not too great a disappointment either, for Xue Jianming's opponent this time was none other than Leng Leng, fresh from her breakthrough!

"Interesting, truly interesting! Two genius disciples of the Snow Sword Sect, with old grudges between them no less—this is a civil war within the Snow Sword Sect!" The crowd instantly wore expressions of gleeful anticipation.

They were the classic breed who loved a good show and never fretted over the scale of the drama, but for Leng Leng, the party concerned, this draw was not so amusing. As fellow disciples of the same sect, she knew Xue Jianming's strength well enough. Though they now nominally stood on the same tier, she had only just broken through to peak Foundation Establishment and plainly could not be mentioned in the same breath as Xue Jianming. This battle did not bode well.

"Leng Leng, you had best prepare yourself to concede. That thing's strength is not quite what you imagine," Wei Zhao suddenly drew Leng Leng aside and warned her in a low voice.

"What do you mean?" Leng Leng was startled at his words. She did indeed feel this fight did not look promising, but she possessed the heaven-sent gift of the Crushed Ice constitution, so facing a fellow peak Foundation Establishment cultivator like Xue Jianming, she should not be utterly without a chance of victory—at the very least she could put up a fight. Yet Wei Zhao's words clearly implied she was certain to lose?

"There is something I have never told you. Xue Jianming's current strength is not peak Foundation Establishment at all—it is early Golden Core," Wei Zhao said.

"Early Golden Core?" Leng Leng was struck dumb. Against a peak Foundation Establishment opponent she might indeed have a fighting chance, but early Golden Core—then there was truly no hope at all. She hastily lowered her voice in astonishment: "How could he be early Golden Core?"

Breaking through to Golden Core was immeasurably harder than breaking through to Foundation Establishment. Even with the spiritual energy conditions of the Central Transit Archipelago, one still required a pill such as the Golden Core Pill. But pills of the Golden Core Pill's caliber could only be obtained after passing a sect's specialized trial, and then only upon the unanimous deliberation and approval of the Council of Elders. Xue Jianming had plainly never passed any trial—so how did he come to possess a Golden Core Pill?

"Because he has already betrayed the Snow Sword Sect and secretly thrown in his lot with the Center. He took a pill the Center gave him, and that is how he restored his dantian and meridians—and at the same time his strength surged by a great margin, breaking straight through from peak Foundation Establishment to early Golden Core," Wei Zhao explained. To avoid loose talk, he had not spoken of these matters before, but now, facing Leng Leng, he had no choice but to say it.

"What?!" Leng Leng was utterly shocked. Xue Jianming had always insisted loudly that she was the sect traitor—and now it turned out he himself was the true traitor!

"Do not breathe a word of this for now. Pretend you know nothing. I will explain the rest later—I have my own arrangements," Wei Zhao instructed.

Leng Leng was dazed for quite a while before she finally digested this astonishing inside story. She drew a deep breath and nodded heavily: "I understand."

"Good. And you must be extremely careful. That thing, Xue Jianming, means you no good. In a moment he will surely seize the chance to strike you hard—he may even try to take your life outright. So you must not force yourself. The instant things look bad, concede at once. Do you hear me?" Wei Zhao said gravely.

He knew full well. Xue Jianming would stop at nothing to strike at him; all along he had schemed to have others deal lethal blows to Qiu Lingshan and the rest. Though he had never succeeded, the wretch had never once given up. Now that he had the chance to face Leng Leng directly, there was absolutely no chance he would let it go.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing," Leng Leng nodded.

"Hey, what are you two muttering and scheming about over there? Can we begin?" Xue Jianming shouted from afar. At long last he had gotten his chance to settle things with Leng Leng with his own hands. Heaven truly had eyes—he could hardly wait.

Leng Leng and Wei Zhao exchanged a glance, then stepped into the arena. Her expression calm, she said: "After you."

"Very good. Though we are both disciples of the Snow Sword Sect, we have actually never truly crossed hands," Xue Jianming sneered with a look of relish. That was only natural—no matter how much the sect's higher-ups valued Leng Leng, her power grade had simply been too low. Before she came out to the mundane world for training, she had been no more than early Foundation Establishment, while he, Xue Jianming, was peak Foundation Establishment. Their strengths had been on entirely different levels, so there had naturally been no point in sparring.

"So what?" Leng Leng glanced at him.

"Then let us take this opportunity for your senior brother to properly sample your Crushed Ice constitution. I hope you do not disappoint me too much," Xue Jianming said with a look of disdain. In the past, facing a peak Foundation Establishment Leng Leng, he might have been somewhat wary—but now things were completely different.

"Likewise." Leng Leng's expression remained calm as ever. To onlookers, that look of hers seemed to say she was gritting her teeth to defeat Xue Jianming—even Xue Jianming himself was fooled, laughing coldly to himself: in a moment I will let you taste what despair truly feels like!

After Xin Yi'an's announcement, the duel officially began. Yet to everyone's surprise, there was none of the explosive atmosphere the crowd had anticipated at the start. Neither Xue Jianming nor Leng Leng made the slightest move; without prior agreement, both had chosen to strike only after the opponent committed.

Xue Jianming, relying on his overwhelming advantage in strength, did not care whether he struck first or second. But unless absolutely necessary, he did not wish to expose his early Golden Core strength before the crowd, and so he chose this strategy—forcing Leng Leng to make the first move, then watching for his opportunity to counterattack.

"This one has become far more crafty," Wei Zhao remarked, raising an eyebrow at the sight.

Had it been the old Xue Jianming, he would certainly have pressed the attack and struck first to seize the initiative. But after having his cultivation crippled twice, this man had been reborn not only in strength but in temperament as well. He already held an absolute advantage in power, and now he had adopted a tactic that seemed conservative but was in truth deeply oppressive—placing himself all the more firmly in an unassailable position. (To be continued.)