Sign-In System: Starting With Invincible Physique-Chapter 31: Objection

Chapter 31: Objection

Seris.

The transformation of her appearance alone was enough to surprise Rhain.

But it was not merely her appearance that had changed.

An inexplicable, almost holy aura radiated from her presence, making her completely otherworldly.

And most shockingly of all, Rhain’s senses swept over her and locked onto her cultivation base.

Essence Awakening—Level 8.

Two weeks ago, she had been an ordinary Level 2 outer disciple.

To cross six minor realms in fourteen days, this speed was even more shocking than him.

What could have caused such dramatic transformation?

Was it merely because of the resources he provided?

Rhain had a dozen questions he wanted to ask her.

But this was not the time.

Seris was also staring right back at him.

She stood at the far edge of the disciple group, a clear, visible distance maintained between her and the other nine Inner Sect elites.

Whether they had ostracized her for her sudden, incomprehensible rise in power, or she had deliberately isolated herself, the gap was obvious.

Seris wasn’t the only one staring.

Every Inner Sect disciple, along with the lower-ranking elders who had never seen Rhain before, had their eyes glued to him.

Why was an unknown disciple standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the Sect Master, the Great Elder, and other top elders of the sect?

Among the gathered crowd, only Maren remained perfectly calm.

She knew exactly what kind of monster was hidden beneath that calm apperance.

Harmon Vael stepped forward.

His heavy, authoritative gaze swept across the twenty-five selected members. The murmurs instantly died.

"Tomorrow at noon, the Hollow Realm will open," Harmon’s voice echoed across the stone training ground, carrying the pressure of a Spirit Manifestation Realm cultivator.

"I will not repeat the warnings you have already been given. You all know the cruelty of the space you are entering. You know the Ironpeak Sect will not hesitate to slaughter you the moment you cross their path."

Harmon paused, letting the grim reality settle over the disciples.

"Survival in the Hollow Realm relies on one thing above all else. Absolute unity."

The old man’s cloudy eyes sharpened.

"The moment you enter the Hollow Realm," Harmon’s expression darkened as his voice grew heavy, "you will be forcibly teleported to random places. The spatial laws inside are chaotic. If you want to survive, your absolute first priority must be to regroup. The Hollow Realm is merciless, and the Ironpeak Sect is even more so. You must absolutely follow the instructions of the elders without question."

"However, in the event that there is no elder available in your immediate vicinity, a disciple must act as the leader of the disciple group. Because it is extremely important for the group to work as a unified team, if you become conflicted among yourselves over who makes the decisions, the result will be disastrous! Therefore, two leaders have been selected. One elder, and one top Inner Sect disciple."

He looked at the right side of the formation.

"The Elder Leader’s command is absolute for all members of the Azure Cloud Sect. Fourth Elder Torin will lead the elder group."

No one objected.

Torin was at the absolute peak of the Essence Condensation Realm. He was the most experienced, ruthless, and powerful man in the sect beneath the three Spirit Manifestation cultivators of the sect.

The elders and disciples alike bowed their heads in silent, wholehearted agreement.

Harmon then turned his gaze to the left side of the formation.

"The Disciple Leader’s command is absolute for the disciple group in all matters where the elders are not present or cannot intervene."

At the very front of the disciple ranks, a tall, handsome youth with a sharp gaze instinctively straightened his back.

Victor Corvin.

The undisputed rank one of the Inner Sect.

He had persistently fought over the past two weeks, crushing every challenger to secure his position.

Anticipating his name, Victor took a confident half-step forward.

"The Disciple Leader," Harmon announced, "will be Rhain."

Victor froze.

His foot, halfway through completing its step, hung awkwardly in the air.

The entire disciple group was thrown into a sudden, unexpected silence.

Shock. Confusion.

And then, outright refusal.

Some of the disciples furrowed their brows, exchanging bewildered glances.

They had fought tooth and nail in a grueling tournament for the past fourteen days.

Who in the world was Rhain?

Among the ten disciples, two faces turned exceptionally ugly.

The first was Victor Corvin, whose absolute pride had just been publicly slapped away.

The second was a pale, wiry youth standing at the very back of the formation.

Jaro.

The tenth-ranked disciple.

His face drained of color, replaced by a panicked expression.

Ten slots were allocated for the disciples.

If a new, unheard-of disciple was suddenly added to their ranks...

Someone was being excluded. And it was him.

"Sect Master!" Jaro blurted out, unable to contain his panic. "Who is this Rhain? He didn’t even participate in the selection tournament! How can an unknown person suddenly take a slot, let alone be named our leader?"

Many eyes instantly turned toward Harmon, silently echoing Jaro’s question.

They wanted an answer.

"I am Rhain."

The calm, unhurried voice drifted across the training ground.

Rhain stepped forward, separating himself from the group of high elders.

All eyes suddenly locked on his figure like magnet with varied feelings.

Curiosity, Unacceptance, Reluctance.

Harmon looked at the disciples.

He could see the blatant dissatisfaction, the unacceptance, and the rebellious refusal burning in their eyes.

Victor Corvin finally spoke.

He cupped his hands, bowing respectfully toward Harmon, but his voice was tight with poorly concealed anger.

"Sect Master," Victor said, his tone polite but entirely firm. "We do not dare to be dissatisfied with your decisions. But the Hollow Realm is a place of life and death. Our lives will depend entirely on the Disciple Leader’s commands."

Victor straightened his back, his sharp eyes shifting to glare at Rhain.

"If a new disciple, whose strength is completely unknown to us, suddenly becomes our leader... we will inevitably feel insecure. A leader must be strong enough to command respect. He must be someone we are wholeheartedly willing to follow."

The implication was obvious.

Victor was pointing directly at himself.

Rhain tilted his head slightly.

He looked at Victor with an expression devoid of any fluctuation.

"Are you the strongest in the Inner Sect?" Rhain asked disinterestedly.

Victor raised his chin, a flash of absolute pride returning to his eyes.

"I am," Victor stated. "I am the only disciple to have reached the ninth level of the Essence Awakening Realm. In the past two years, no one in the Inner Sect has been able to defeat me."

"I see," Rhain said.

He uncrossed his arms.

"Then how about we spar," Rhain said with a casual tone. "The winner leads the team."

As soon as these words dropped, Victor and the rest of the Inner Sect disciples were completely dumbfounded.

An unknown boy was casually challenging their undisputed number one of their sect?

Victor was momentarily stunned, but his face quickly broke into a confident sneer. He nodded heavily. "Very well! I am ready!"

Harmon watched the exchange from the sides.

He didn’t intervene. In fact, he completely agreed.

Words were useless. Explanations were inefficient.

The fastest, most certain way to silence all dissent and bind these arrogant geniuses into obedience was to crush them with absolute strength.

"The challenge is approved," Harmon said.

At the Sect Master’s command, the elders and the remaining nine disciples quickly backed away.

Since they were already standing in the massive Inner Sect training ground, there was absolutely no need to go anywhere else.

Within seconds, they cleared a massive, circular space in the center of the stone training ground.

Rhain stood on one side, his dark robes swaying slightly in the night breeze.

Victor stood on the other, his Level 9 essence beginning to circulate around his body.

The atmosphere surrounding the cleared circle was sharply divided into three distinct state of minds.

On one side stood Jaro and the remaining inner sect disciples. To them, Victor Corvin was an insurmountable wall.

On the other side stood Harmon, Maren, Torin, and the high elders. To them, this spar was not a clash of geniuses. It was an adult fighting a ten-year-old child.

And finally, standing far at the edge of the formation, was Seris.

She had absolutely no interest in the sparring.

Her pale purple eyes were fixed entirely on Rhain. Even though she knew his strength was incomprehensible, her heart still clenched with quiet, instinctual concern for his safety.

"Are you ready?" Victor asked, his Level 9 essence suddenly erupted.

"I am," Rhain casually replied.

This utterly careless and indifferent attitude was like a heavy slap to Victor’s absolute pride.

"Pretentious Fool!"

Victor snarled in a low voice as he charged suddenly. He vowed to teach this ignorant fool a painful lesson he would never forget in his entire lifetime.

He did not hold back a single ounce of his strength.

He instantly drew upon his entire essence reserve, funneling it violently into his right arm.

A fierce gust of wind blew as a blue light wrapped around his knuckles.

It was an Uncommon-Grade martial art.

For an Inner disciple to be granted the luxury of practicing an Uncommon-Grade technique, they had to be the absolute best amongst all disciples.

Victor was one of those few.

Rhain didn’t evade.

He didn’t even shift his footing. He simply raised his open right hand.

Is he crazy?

Jaro and the other disciples widened their eyes in absolute horror.

Smack.

A dull, quiet sound echoed across the stone training ground.

Rhain’s palm had caught the fist perfectly.

Victor’s confident sneer froze.