Chapter 626: The True Clash Of Prodigies

The moment that fist landed, every voice in the Myriad Immortals Alliance fell silent.

The peasant woman herself seemed entirely unbothered. She withdrew her fist calmly. "Let's go back," she said.

The Five Elders Council's martial representative followed behind her, a flicker of awe and fear in his eyes. Slowly, the two of them disappeared from the observation mirror.

Only when Xu Jing, the Myriad Immortals Alliance's Spirit Transformation representative, finally stirred from unconsciousness, dazed and blinking, did the watching crowd shake free of its collective stupor.

"Damn! That woman is on another level!"

"That punch... it felt like the Great Dao itself was about to be ground to dust!"

"Did any of you actually see how she moved?"

The spectators, Li Fan among them, replayed the captured footage again and again. Even slowed to its absolute limit, the peasant woman's movements refused to resolve into clarity. There was a blur, a sudden flash of a fist silhouette, and then Xu Jing was already down, completely knocked unconscious by the force of the blow.

“The peasant woman's three punches shall collapse heaven and shatter earth.”

Even the commentator seemed stunned. Only after a long pause did a single line of text appear slowly across the mirror's surface.

"Peasant woman's three punches? Does that mean there are still two more punches in that technique?"

"This first punch alone was enough to suppress a prodigy like Xu Jing. If all three were unleashed, who could possibly withstand them?"

"Shuo Feng certainly couldn't. What about Di Liu Wu?"

"Wu-06 is too fast. The peasant woman might not even be able to land a hit on him."

"I'm not so sure about that..."

Amidst the buzzing discussions, the contests of the first day drew to a close. The final result, a draw, seemed to set a promising tone for the Amity Conference.

But as the days passed and every remaining contest—Dao, artifact, array, alchemy, talisman—ended in a draw as well, the atmosphere grew peculiar.

The draws on the first day could be written off as coincidence. The second, perhaps. But draws for every single contest across six consecutive days... that carried implications that were difficult to ignore.

It seemed the Myriad Immortals Alliance and the Five Elders Council had quietly reached some kind of agreement, jointly sending every cultivator in the land a single signal: peace.

From every angle, the two sides appeared evenly matched. Reigniting hostilities seemed unlikely to produce a clear victor and would more probably result in mutual devastation. So what was the point of fighting?

Cultivators across the land arrived at the same conclusion. This so-called Amity Conference was nothing but a large-scale performance. The outcome had been predetermined from the start, every match following a script.

Still, spending a hundred contribution points to study the combat styles and techniques of these prodigies whenever they wanted was not a poor investment for most cultivators. And if this performance was meant to establish peace as the dominant theme for the foreseeable future, then at least it had settled many an anxious heart.

Even long after the Amity Conference concluded, discussions showed no signs of dying down.

"Looking at the prodigies who participated, they're not all that. Strong, yes, but not beyond imagining. I'm at the Nascent Soul realm right now. Once I break through, I might actually be able to fight them."

"Exactly. Take that nine-year-old Spirit Transformation cultivator, Di Liu Wu. He's young and faster than average, sure, but if you think it through, there are probably ways to counter him."

"I had the same thought. So it wasn't just me?"

"We should all redouble our cultivation efforts. Maybe next time an opportunity like this comes around, we can step onto that stage ourselves..."

Just as cultivators across the land were beginning to believe in their own potential again, Li Fan received a message from Immortal Eminence Hong Xi.

"The real contest between the two sides is about to begin. Want to come watch?"

Li Fan's interest sharpened. "The real contest? What do you mean, Sir?"

Hong Xi replied in a lazy tone. "This Amity Conference has two parts, one public, one private.

“The public matches are the scripted performances. Neither side can show truly despair-inducing or terrifying strength in those. The great war just ended, and this is precisely the time to replenish our ranks with fresh blood. It wouldn't do to crush their motivation to cultivate.

"So neither side went all out.

"But in private, a true winner still needs to be determined. Both sides need to probe each other's depths.

"The entire process is confidential. Each province gets two slots for remote viewing. Zi Yun is observing in person, which leaves one spot open," Hong Xi explained.

Li Fan agreed at once. He also felt a sense of relief. He too had felt the performances of those prodigies were somewhat lacking. While their techniques and moves were indeed impressive, none had unleashed any truly awe-inspiring divine abilities.

At the same realm, forget comparing to Li Fan, they probably couldn't even claim a guaranteed victory against Zhong Shentong and his multicolored divine light. Now it turned out there was indeed more to it.

Li Fan made his way to the Administration Hall, where Hong Xi was already waiting.

Hong Xi tapped the table lightly and the scenery shifted in an instant. They were no longer in Congyun Immortal City but standing on a mountain peak rising above a sea of clouds.

Li Fan was startled, but Hong Xi showed no sign of ill intent, so he held still and watched.

"The contest is about to begin. There's no commentary. How much you take from this depends entirely on your own ability," Hong Xi said.

He waved his hand. The sea of clouds in the distance churned apart, revealing a massive square seal. The pattern carved into its face bore a faint resemblance to the landscape of the Congyun Sea.

A beam of light shot upward from the seal and spread across the sky's canopy.

In the next instant, two figures appeared. They were not mere images—even the aura and pressure rolling off them felt real, pressing down like a mountain dropped onto one's shoulders. Li Fan nearly buckled under the weight of it, struggling to breathe.

The power of his grotto-heaven circulated within him, but not at full strength, just enough to ease the burden.

Li Fan fixed his gaze on the two figures standing tall above the sea of clouds.

One of them looked strikingly similar to the nine-year-old Spirit Transformation prodigy from the earlier matches. His clothing and weapons were identical.

But he appeared even younger, five or six years old at most.

"Please enlighten me!" His voice was childlike, almost absurdly endearing.

Yet when he moved, Li Fan's expression shifted entirely.

The child simply reached out and grasped at the empty air before him. In that instant, a myriad of silver lights descended from the heavens.

They washed the world in silver, transforming the surrounding space into what felt like a domain entirely under his command. To Li Fan's senses, the area ahead had become a separate, self-contained world.

Even my Insect Binding divine ability would likely be severely weakened inside that space.

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