Alex looked down and focused his gaze, a young man dressed in a blue robe, with medium length hair, was standing below him.

It was exactly the dark horse who was the first to enter the mountain during the roll call earlier, Blair.

"Meow!" Realizing the danger, Pearl arched its back. Its fur bristling as it let out a sharp, angry hiss, wanting to deter Blair.

However, how could an cultivator at the Seventh Level of Body Tempering be so easily deterred?

Blair casually waved his hand, effortlessly dragging Alex and Pearl down into the pit.

At the exact same time, a massive boulder fell from the sky. Its size perfectly tailored to completely seal the entrance of the cave.

"So that’s how it is." Alex dusted off his clothes, finally understanding Blair’s intentions.

"Brother, truly excellent methods."

"To actually hide yourself in the pit, deceiving my line of sight to trick me into the trap?"

"It is you who refused a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit." Blair was expressionless, the sword at his waist drawn from its sheath, and with a wave, the tip pointed straight at Alex.

The sword’s texture was sharp, radiating a compelling chill.

A few traces of fresh blood stained it. Clearly, all those fierce beast corpses along the way had perished under this very sword.

"I know you are the precious eldest young master of the Lark family, and that you only had the qualification to come to this Azure Dragon Valley by relying on family connections."

"What I loathe the most is trash like you who relies on connections to get through the back door." Blair shouted sternly.

"The reason the Divine Blade Sect has declined year after year is precisely because of the existence of scum like you!"

"Today, I will cripple and kill you right here, lest a single piece of rat shit ruins the future prospects of the entire Divine Blade Sect!"

The corner of Alex’s mouth twitched slightly, a few traces of anger arose in his heart.

What the fuck did I even do to get scolded so horribly by you? Even that fucking Magnus doesn’t have the guts for this.

"Pearl!" Alex gave a deep shout, pearl immediately understood, leaping down from his shoulder.

Its body crouching low and accumulating power, like a sharp arrow on a drawn bowstring, ready to shoot out at any moment.

"Seventh Level of Body Tempering, is that very impressive?" Veins bulged hideously on Alex’s forehead one by one, the corners of his mouth hooking into a chilling, ferocious sneer.

"Pearl, get him, bite the hell out of him!"

...

The exact moment Alex fell into the trap, the elders watching the Divine Secret Sphere above the Azure Dragon Valley all noticed.

"Hmm?" Sylra frowned slightly and slowly stood up.

The next second, seeing a massive boulder fall from the sky and seal their line of sight completely... Sylra instantly grew anxious, his eyes glaring wide, he slammed the table and stood up.

"Preposterous!"

"Torin, that brat who just dug the trap is a person from your Hundred Souls Peak, right?"

"Right now, amidst the assessment, he actually used such methods to sneak attack a fellow disciple. How could this be overlooked?!"

Torin to the side had a slightly ugly expression, cursing his disciple inwardly.

Didn’t this brat know that sneak attacking fellow disciples was a massive taboo in the Divine Blade Sect?

If you’re going to do it, do it, but how could you do it so blatantly that everyone discovers it?

However, he couldn’t admit fault. The assessment rules were extremely strict, setting up a trap to sneak attack a competitor was a major offense warranting disqualification.

Blair was his direct disciple, the proudest student he appreciated the most. Therefore, even if it was clearly his fault, he absolutely could not admit it.

"Sylra, you can’t entirely blame my disciple for this." Torin said faintly.

"The mountain path is already halfway done. Your disciple has been following behind my disciple the entire time, not having dealt with even a single demonic beast."

"My Blair has always been upright and honest. Naturally, he cannot stand someone sitting idle to enjoy the fruits of others’ labor."

"You!" Sylra was instantly furious beyond control.

"You are clearly using sophistry!"

"What, am I wrong?" Torin hurriedly shot a meaningful glance to the others beside him.

"If you are unconvinced, let everyone judge!"

Peak Master Blake, Peak Master Lorin, and Peak Master Nerin instantly understood, echoing in succession.

"That’s right, Senior Brother Sylra, Torin is not wrong!"

"The essence of the assessment is to select talents with superior aptitude, braver combat abilities, and stronger strength."

"Your disciple Taryn Lark is clearly just being opportunistic!"

"Although Blair was somewhat impulsive, it is still reasonable and fair."

"Senior Brother Sylra, don’t be so overly protective of your dog..."

Seeing the four of them unify their rhetoric and stand on the same united front, Sylra gritted his teeth in anger.

How could he not know what these old geezers were thinking? There was still a bet between them.

If Blair were disqualified... or if Alex just kept following behind Blair and truly managed to mix his way to the summit first... every single one of them would have to lose a Heaven and Earth tier weapon.

Therefore, at this very moment, these bastards shared a bitter hatred of the enemy, and unanimously turning their words against him, the outsider.

"Torin, if you have the guts, let’s raise the stakes!"

"Raise what stakes?"Torin asked in confusion.

Since things had reached this point,Sylra simply went all out. Gritting his teeth.

"Let’s bet on who between Taryn Lark and Blair can walk out of the trap first to continue the assessment!"

"Whoever loses will forfeit five Heaven and Earth tier weapons and ten Heaven and Earth tier pills to the other party!"

"Do you dare accept?!"

Torin froze, somewhat astonished for a moment.

"Senior Brother Sylra, are you certain?"