"Oh? Is that so? I personally tested him before and seen with my own eyes that he was just an ordinary
cultivator. It seems that we are being deceived by him all this time," Harrison said as he wore a serious
expression.
"Then, what are you going to do about it?" Hannah asked in a cautious tone.
"The timing is not right. If we do something to him right now, we will have to completely stop the entire
competition for the qualification. It will not be fair for the other disciples and we will certainly receive a
lot of criticisms. So, I guess we can only deal with this matter once the competition is over," Harrison
declared after thinking for a while.
"Well, I think so too…" Hannah nodded and agreed with Harrison's decision.
The strength of a seventh grade Spirit Realm warrior was somewhat equivalent to that of an Immortal
Stage warrior. Thus, when warriors at this level clashed and fought with all of their strength, the area
would surely be filled with overwhelming spiritual power and dazzling lights. At the same time, the
fourteen disciples of the Sword Spirit City at the seventh grade of the Spirit Realm unleashed their
fullest potential in order to win their respective matches.
In the blink of an eye, two hours had already passed. Eventually, winners prevailed one after another.
About another two hours later, with the sudden announcement of Tessa's defeat in her battle, the eight
disciples who were able to overcome their opponents were finally declared, and obviously, Rocky was
one of them.
Moreover, the other seven winners, including Xavier, were all included in the list of the top ten disciples
of the Sword Spirit City. It meant that every participant for the final round was very powerful and
couldn't be underestimated.
With Rocky in the list of the qualifiers for the final round, the people had a consensus that he had no
chance to win a single match in the next round.
Besides, no one really expected that he would be able to enter the final round in the first place. After
all, he was just a newcomer who had only been in the city for less than three months. For many, it was
just his beginner's luck that pushed him this far.
Since the final round would still be held the day after, as soon as the names of the winners were
announced, the competition area was quickly emptied and everyone took the opportunity to take a rest.
At the same time, Rocky tried to avoid extra attention, so he walked fast and attempted to leave the
area without being seen. However, he was easily caught by Tessa.
"Are you trying to desperately sneak out of this place? Don't you have anything to explain to me?"
Tessa asked as her hands rested on her hips. Rocky might have stealthily covered up his real strength
before, but after what he had shown in his previous match, Tessa would be an idiot if she still believed
that it was just out of sheer luck.
"Do I?" Rocky answered with a question as he averted his gaze. It was pretty obvious that he was still
pretending to be someone he was not.
"I've seen it with my two eyes! Stop pretending already!" Tessa's beautiful eyes widened in anger and
she actually wished to tweak Rocky's ear to teach him a good lesson.
"Okay. Okay. I admit that I did conceal my real strength…" Rocky said. At this point, he knew that there
was no reason to hide it anymore.
"I thought so. You should also be at least at the seventh grade of the Spirit Realm. Am I right?" Tessa
asked.
"Well, sort of. I guess," Rocky said in an unconvinced tone.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Tessa furrowed her brows and was not satisfied with his indirect answer.
"Because in my hometown, the classification of a warrior's strength is different from what you have
here. That's why I can't be too sure," Rocky explained briefly.
"Different? Where exactly are you from then?" Tessa couldn't help but ask. She was more curious
about this man than ever.
"I can tell you, but I'm sure that you have never heard of it," Rocky said indifferently as if he was still
trying to cover his identity.
"Fine. Forget it. I won't force you to tell me if you don't want to. Now, is there anything else that you
have been hiding from me? You'd better tell the truth or I swear, you won't get away with this!" Being
kept in the dark and being deceived were what Tessa hated the most. Originally, she was so worried
about Rocky's safety, but then it turned out that he might have been more powerful than her. Hence, all
her worries were just for nothing.
"I actually still have some secrets that I can't tell you for the time being. But please believe me, when
the time is right, I will immediately let you know," Rocky said with utmost sincerity. He knew that Tessa
was a kindhearted person, and that he could trust her with all his heart, so he told her the truth.
"Humph! How do I even know if that's true? You lied to my face already. I don't want to talk to you
anymore!" Tessa's delicate face was still very pretty, even though she was angry. After getting along
with Rocky for a brief period, she had already regarded him as her best friend. Therefore, when she
discovered that Rocky had been hiding so many secrets behind her back, this naturally made her very
unhappy.
After saying all that, she glared at Rocky and quickly left with heavy emotions.
Rocky wasn't able to do anything but just smile bitterly as he looked at her receding figure.
However, what worried him the most was not his misunderstandings with Tessa. Now that his strength
was exposed to this competition, there would be a lot of speculations about him. Therefore, he should
expect that he might encounter some trouble from here on. In order for him to continue reaching his
goal, he should strictly follow his plan and work step by step. First of all, he had to seize the first place
in the final round to get the chance to enter the Martial Spirit Graveyard. This would pave the way for
him to mobilize his plans in the future.
After resting for the night, the eight disciples of the Sword Spirit City, who qualified for the final round of
the competition, went out early the following morning and arrived at the battlefield. Their respective
opponents were already predetermined by drawing lots.
Around the four rings, the crowd was bustling with energetic voices.
Rocky's first opponent was going to be Omar Xu, who ranked within the top ten among all the Spirit
Realm disciples in the entire Sword Spirit City. He was also well-known for his unique sword skill that
utilized astonishing speed.
"Ha! Bad luck for Basil. He has to face Omar right off the bat? He doesn't stand a chance. Only a few
seventh-grade Spirit Realm warriors could withstand his rapid sword, so I don't think that Basil can do
anything about it!"
"That's for sure! Omar ranks fifth among the seventh grade Spirit Realm disciples. He is too strong for
Rocky, and he has the advantage in every aspect!" "Even if we assume that they are of the same
cultivation level, the gap in skills and experiences would be the main difference-maker in this battle.
Once Omar uses his sword, it will be very difficult to guard against it! I wonder how Basil will deal with
that."
The people around the ring, where Rocky and Omar Xu were about to battle it out, were discussing
their matchup intensely. Obviously, they had no qualms that Omar Xu would win this round. After all,
they had already seen how powerful he had been throughout his career as a disciple of the Sword
Spirit Sect.
Although Rocky had shown promising strength in the previous round, no one was really sure what he
could prove. Even if one should assume that he was also at the seventh grade of the Spirit Realm, it
was hard to say how he could stand his ground against Omar Xu. As a senior disciple in the Sword
Spirit City, Omar Xu was more than thirty years old and had reached the seventh grade of the Spirit
Realm five years ago. Therefore, whether it was experience or strength, he was surely better than most
seventh-grade disciples of the same realm.
"I would appreciate learning from you, Omar!" Rocky greeted politely as he cupped his hands towards
Omar Xu.
"I've seen your performance in the previous round, and I would say that your style is a little strange.
However, since you prevailed, I know that your strength can actually match with warriors at the seventh
grade of the Spirit Realm. It's just not your lucky day that you have to be paired against me. After all,
I'm far more experienced than you. Oh well, just as you said, learn from this battle, and maybe you can
go further the next time you try," Omar Xu said confidently.
"You flatter me. I know I'm just a newcomer, so please show some mercy." Rocky smiled calmly as he
tried to lighten up the mood.
"Unfortunately, I can't show you any mercy. But rest assured, I'll try not to hurt you badly. Once I
unleashed my fast swordsmanship, I will never stop at will, unless you admit defeat!" Omar Xu
declared fiercely.
"All right then. Let me see what you've got!" Rocky said as he positioned himself, stretching out his
hand.
Omar Xu acknowledged the young man's bravery by nodding slightly. The next moment, the Lightning
Sword behind him was unsheathed in a flash and flew in the air. Then, it turned into a sword shadow
that bolted out at lightning speed and appeared in front of Rocky in an instant. Although there was a
distance of more than ten meters between the two of them, it covered the said distance in a second.
The moment Omar Xu displayed his fast swordsmanship, the crowd immediately burst into an uproar.
'I must admit that it's really fast.' Rocky's eyes narrowed as he experienced Omar Xu's fast
swordsmanship firsthand. However, no matter how fast his spiritual sword was, before Rocky's eyes, it
was no different from the speed of an ordinary spiritual sword. Therefore, Rocky didn't even take a step
back but just slightly tilted his body to the left. At that very moment, the spiritual sword brushed past his
right shoulder without hurting him.
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