Qian Wen Chao's screams grew weaker. The moment the spiritual fire entered his body, his internal organs were being scorched.
The piercing pain was incomparable to the external injuries he had sustained throughout his body.
Ah...
Qian Wen Chao moaned, his face now ashen, bloodshot eyes filled with terror as he stared at the indistinct figure.
If he were given another chance, Qian Wen Chao would absolutely not have chosen to step onto the stage.
"Zhang Ergou?"
When Zhang Ergou appeared and walked to his side, Qian Wen Chao's bloodshot eyes widened in disbelief.
Upon closer inspection, Qian Wen Chao's body was trembling slightly from the pain and fear.
"What? It's me, are you very disappointed?"
Zhang Ergou said lightly. He had no good feelings towards Qian Wen Chao.
Compared to Jiang Tian, Zhuge Wen, and the others, Qian Wen Chao was even more detestable. Not only did he sneak onto the stage at a critical moment of his breakthrough,
but he also severely injured several of his friends. If he hadn't woken up in time, Lin Yichen and the others would likely have met with misfortune.
Zhang Ergou dared not think further; the more he thought, the more he felt a chill of fear.
Naturally, his hatred for Qian Wen Chao intensified. As a master on the inner disciple rankings, he was so insidious and shameless.
A killing intent flashed in Zhang Ergou's eyes, and a cold glint shot towards the struggling and moaning Qian Wen Chao.
Qian Wen Chao shivered inexplicably, a sense of danger vaguely palpable.
"Die!" Zhang Ergou said softly. With a thought, the flame he had released directly entered Qian Wen Chao's dantian through his meridians.
Ah...
The pain of the dantian being burned by fire was even greater than the previous pain. Qian Wen Chao screamed, but no one heard his cries.
Ever since Zhang Ergou summoned the spiritual fire, he had isolated this area with a spiritual energy shield, so the sound could not escape.
Therefore, the inner disciples watching below only heard Qian Wen Chao's initial screams, and after that, there was no further sound from the battle platform.
"What's going on? Why is there no movement on the battle platform?"
"Perhaps Zhang Ergou's friends have already been defeated by Senior Brother Qian, with no ability to fight back."
"That makes sense. Will Senior Brother Qian then attack Zhang Ergou next?"
"Yes, but the dense fog is blocking our view, we can't see anything."
"How did this Zhang Ergou cultivate to cause such a commotion? The spiritual energy of heaven and earth in the Misty Sect's inner sect is likely all being drawn here."
The inner disciples below the battle platform continued to discuss animatedly. In their eyes, Qian Wen Chao was sure to win.
As for Zhang Ergou's friends, they were not close to them.
Besides, those guys seemed a bit foolish to them. Didn't they see the masters on the inner disciple rankings eyeing them covetously?
It was simply going up there to court death.
They had already judged Lin Yichen and the others, believing they would be severely dealt with by Qian Wen Chao.
"Why is there no more movement? Is something wrong with Ergou?"
The dense fog obscured their vision, and Lin Yichen and the others couldn't see Zhang Ergou's actions. Zhang Ergou's spiritual energy shield had also isolated them.
"Nothing will happen. That kid Ergou is even more terrifying than before. Didn't you feel that faint oppressive aura from him just now?"
Xiao Qingyu said in a deep voice. Although the injuries on his body had been mostly healed by Zhang Ergou, they still needed time to recover and adapt.
Lin Yichen, Wang Teng, Lin Yueru, Lu Xiaoyu, and the others nodded. They all felt the gap in their cultivation from Zhang Ergou.
Although Zhang Ergou wasn't deliberately releasing it, they had all keenly sensed it.
While they were happy for Zhang Ergou, the sense of urgency in their hearts deepened. They had all entered the inner sect at the same time as Zhang Ergou.
Now, the gap between Zhang Ergou and them was widening.
Before, they could risk their lives to block Qian Wen Chao and protect Zhang Ergou during his breakthrough.
But what about the future? As the gap in their cultivation widened, the enemies Zhang Ergou faced would naturally become stronger.
The few looked at each other, seeing a sense of urgency in each other's eyes.
...
"You scoundrel, how dare you?"
Suddenly, an angry roar echoed throughout the inner sect's skies. A powerful hand, exuding immense pressure, directly pierced through the clouds and grabbed towards Zhang Ergou on the battle platform.
Pfft!
A spurt of blood erupted. Qian Wen Chao stared dead at Zhang Ergou, never expecting that Zhang Ergou would dare to kill him in plain sight.
With wide eyes, Qian Wen Chao died with his eyes open...
The hand was ultimately too late. By the time it touched Zhang Ergou, Qian Wen Chao had already stopped breathing. Even a Nascent Soul realm cultivator would have been powerless to save him.
"Presumptuous! Zhang Ergou, killing is forbidden on the inner disciple battle platform. You actually broke the law!"
A furious roar resonated through the entire inner sect.
"What? Zhang Ergou killed someone?"
"Wasn't Zhang Ergou breaking through his cultivation? Has he already succeeded?"
"Zhang Ergou killed someone? Who did he kill?"
"Could it be..."
The inner disciples watching the spectacle finally lost their composure. They hadn't expected Zhang Ergou to be so audacious as to kill someone on the inner disciple battle platform.
And to have it directly revealed by the Peak Master of the Discipline Peak.
The commotion from Zhang Ergou's previous breakthrough had been so immense that not only were those two old fellows who clamored to find the Heavenly Dao Elder paying attention,
but the peak masters of the various major peaks in the inner sect were also drawn by such a rare sight.
From the moment Zhang Ergou began meditating, the peak masters of each peak had been observing the situation on the battle platform.
They had naturally seen Qian Wen Chao's earlier actions against Lin Yichen, Lin Yueru, and the others, but there was a rule in the inner sect that elders could not interfere in the disputes between juniors.
Therefore, although many elders did not approve of Qian Wen Chao's actions, none of them came forward to speak.
However, when Zhang Ergou was about to strike and kill Qian Wen Chao, Jin Yuan, the Peak Master of the Discipline Peak, could no longer sit still.
With so many influential figures watching, if he didn't intervene, he would likely become a target of criticism from those old fellows.
Furthermore, Qian Wen Chao's master was also watching them from behind, casting a covetous gaze. Jin Yuan felt that if he didn't act, Qian Wen Chao would surely meet a tragic end.
But what surprised all the influential figures was Zhang Ergou's speed of action, which surpassed everyone's expectations.
Even Jin Yuan's intervention couldn't stop Zhang Ergou. When Qian Wen Chao lay on the ground with his eyes rolling, the inner sect elders erupted.
Jin Yuan felt his face burning. This damned brat Zhang Ergou, he had already made a move, yet he had shown him such disrespect.
Compared to Qian Wen Chao's life, Jin Yuan valued his own face even more.