Grand Elder Edwin and Grand Elder Inez's eyes constricted once they heard George's unexpected confession, while Vincent was calmer as he had already suspected it. Still, Vincent didn't expect George to reveal this fact in this kind of circumstance.
"Did you know about this Sect Master?" Grand Elder Inez looked at Vincent. She could tell that Vincent didn't react much, and Edwin sensed the same as he glanced at Vincent for an answer. But before Vincent could clarify, George spoke first as he bent his knee in front of them and pleaded, "Please don't blame Sect Master. He didn't know about this, and only I'm to blame for this deception! But I have no intention of harming the AIG Sect since the sect has been nothing but kind to me, and I consider it my home!
"But I won't change the fact that I used deception and even brought trouble to the Sect! I-I don't want to run from reality anymore, so please give me a chance to atone and hand me over to the bank!"
The three Ascension Guardians were shocked by George's words. They could tell George wasn't a fool; in fact, he seemed very meticulous and shrewd, so he should know what would happen to him once the bank got its hands on him.
Even if he can prove his innocence, the bank has suffered a huge humiliation and a blow to its reputation, so they will not stop until they make an example of someone, even if the other party is innocent.
"Are you out of your mind?" Vincent spoke coldly, "You're overestimating yourself if you think I didn't know about your little trick. Still, you have already signed in the registry, which means you can't harm the sect, so it doesn't matter if you are George or not. You are a chief disciple of my sect and also my disciple!"
Vincent then glanced at two Grand Elders who had frowned on their faces, as he stated, "Elders, if we give up our chief disciple who is clearly innocent to appease others, won't the dignity of our sect be sullied, and we lose all face? Today, it's Prime Heavenly Bank, then tomorrow, it'll be some other sect, and even our position as the overlord of the Spirit Inferno Domain will be challenged!"
The two grand elders didn't have words to refute Vincent's statement since they knew reputation meant everything to a sect, but this also made the Prime Heavenly Bank even more dangerous.
Seeing the two Grand Elders hesitant, Vincent confidently said, "Although George had erred, it wasn't his intention, and he had nothing to do with this theft. The Sky Stealer is clearly sabotaging him and might even be our sect as well since he could've robbed any branch, but he had chosen the branch in our territory.
"But he underestimated our sect; no one can do anything to AIG Sect, and the bank would be clearer about this fact than anyone else. If they dare to bully us because we are weak, I'll show them why the AIG Sect has been standing in the Spirit Inferno Domain for almost ten million
"You aren't implying...!?" Grand Elder Edwin's expression changed as he guessed what Vincent was implying, and he looked at Vincent as if he were a madman.
After all, what Vincent was implying was akin to putting the entire sect on the line for George. This was absolutely ridiculous, and they won't let it happen!
Another person was shocked by Vincent's cryptic words, and it was none other than Ace.
He didn't expect this turn of events since he had assumed that they'd agree to hand him over to the bank, and then all he needed to do was follow the next phase of his plan. Yet it seemed there was some kind of secret about the AIG sect that was terrifying enough to even deter the Prime Heavenly Bank.
Still, if that could work, Ace couldn't be happier since he didn't want to leave the sect until he got the inheritance in the Forger Abyss. More importantly, now that he had so many resources, he needed a place to refine them and cultivate the universal black physique!
Ace was confident that, with his plan, they had no choice but to leave him here even if they handed him over to the bank.
"Sect Master, we need to discuss this further. For now, let's calm down and hear George out. There is still the matter about his identity." Grand Elder Edwin quickly said as he glanced at George, who was still kneeling, and said, "We really appreciate your honesty. Since you decided to tell us this much, can you tell us who you really are and why you were hiding your identity?"
Ace was waiting for those exact words as his face began to change in front of everyone's astounding eyes, and just when his real face was revealed, a sudden Qi fluctuation happened. Ace's aura from 1-Star Ascension Warrior directly claimed to 9-Star Ascension Warrior peak! Caught by surprise, even those Ascension Guardians failed to notice something was amiss with the current Ace. They all thought that it was because Ace had stopped using his disguise treasure, but the truth was, in front of them was now Ace's avatar while his actual body was hidden in his avatar's inner soul world!
"Fufu~, your avatar is clearly unusual. Care to tell your dear master what kind of technique this is? Or is this another trick of Heaven's Stealer? I admit, I'm impressed!" Malservus's amused voice rang at this moment as she clearly couldn't keep her curiosity in check and remained indifferent. "Of course, it's part of Heaven's Stealer inheritance!" Ace bluntly lied since he couldn't tell her about the 'B.E.L.L', for even he didn't know what kind of heaven-defying treasure it was that could make something like the Avatar of Holy Twilight!
"Tsk, as if I believed you after seeing your 'performance'!" Malservus snickered, but she didn't ask any more questions since watching Ace had proven to be an exciting experience. True to her word, she didn't interfere with Ace's actions at all.
Ace also ignored her and looked at the three Ascension Guardians, dazzled by his appearance and sudden surge in his cultivation base.
He quickly explained, "As you all can see, this is my true appearance, and my name is Alan. I've become a peak ascension warrior in this short amount of time because of my unusual talent, which allows me to raise my cultivation base by forging treasures.
"This is also the reason I've been hiding my true identity because of this talent. I grew up in the mountains with an old man who called himself my guardian. He was the one who told me to keep my identity hidden and not reveal it to anyone, especially my strange talent, or there'd be some very powerful people looking for me. This disguise method was also given to me by him before he vanished.
"Thereafter, I joined the Violet Yang Grand Sect, but that place was filled with schemes, and I fell in love only to be betrayed, so I left the sect since I was too weak back then.
"So, I decided to focus on cultivation, and that's why I chose the AIG Sect. As you all can see, after learning about forging, my cultivation suddenly surged. But I didn't know something would transpire. I just want to live peacefully and cultivate!" Ace pretended to be bitter and frustrated when he told his cooked-up story.
"But I have never thought of harming the AIG Sect, which gives me this opportunity. That's why, please hand me over to the bank if it means no harm will come to the sect!" His words were filled with resolution and righteousness!
The three Ascension Guardians were lost for words. This entire matter was too strange and truthfully out of their imaginations.
Vincent had a clearer picture of this since he knew about the 'human bloodline' and instantly thought that Ace's talent originated from it. It all started to make sense to him.
But this also made this matter more complex since if the bank hadn't been involved, they would've really nurtured Ace with everything they had, and with this talent, he would've brought the AIG Sect to new heights.
At this moment, Grand Elder Edwin took a deep breath and asked Ace, "This talent, can you
prove it if it's real?"
Just as Ace was about to agree, Guardian Spirit's cold voice rang, making everyone's