Guan Shanyue was totally dumbfounded.
Although he hadn’t employed the Holy Body Secret Technique, he shouldn’t be this easily defeated, should he?
He was in the late stages of the Palace Mansion Realm’s sixth level!
That was more than two whole levels higher than Ling Chen!
After the Green Lotus Sword Qi shattered the Starfall Hand Seal, its power diminished greatly. Though it hit Guan Shanyue, it didn’t cause him much damage.
"That streak of blood-red..."
Liu Xiao’s eyes widened in shock.
He knew it was called a bloodline!
No wonder the Burning Flame Sect harbored a killing intent towards Ling Chen!
It turned out that Ling Chen was someone with bloodline power.
Liu Xiao burst out laughing: "They’ve wrought their own doom! How could the Burning Flame Sect dare to act against a genius with bloodline power? They are seeking their own destruction!"
Each Bloodline Sect was an incredibly powerful force.
Moreover, even within a Bloodline Sect, only a few possessed the actual bloodline.
Hence, every Bloodline Sect valued their bloodline-bearing members dearly.
If the sect behind Ling Chen knew of what happened, they would probably annihilate the Burning Flame Sect immediately.
"Senior Brother Guan, do you wish to continue?"
Ling Chen turned to look at Guan Shanyue.
In their two exchanges, he had firmly gained the upper hand, managing to repel his opponent just by deploying a low-grade King Spirit Technique.
Guan Shanyue looked at Ling Chen, disbelief etched on his face.
He shook his head and said, "No need."
Apart from the Holy Body Secret Technique, he had tried everything else. Seeing how easily the other coped, there was no need to humiliate himself further.
After all, Ling Chen hadn’t used any Holy Body Secret Technique either!
"Alright! Senior Brother Guan, thank you for yielding!"
Ling Chen smiled and then flew back to Liu Xiao’s side.
Liu Xiao gave Ling Chen a profound look before turning to the other disciples and smiling, "Now, should Ling Chen be qualified to occupy the seat of a Core Disciple?"
Many nodded in agreement.
Ling Chen’s performance was simply too terrifying.
From his easy and leisurely demeanor, it was clear he had not used his full strength!
"Good! From today onwards, Ling Chen will officially become a Core Disciple!"
Liu Xiao announced loudly.
"Congratulations, Young Master Ling!"
A number of disciples offered their congratulations.
"Thank you, everyone!"
Ling Chen nodded at the crowd before turning to Liu Xiao and asked, "Pavilion Master, the ranking of disciples in our Starfall Pavilion is based on strength and not cultivation level, right?"
He suddenly thought of something, a look of shock crossing his eyes.
Ling Chen smiled slightly and said, "Pavilion Master, I wish to become a Core Disciple."
As these words fell, a great commotion ensued.
At that moment, everyone looked towards Ling Chen, their eyes filled with disbelief.
A fourth-level Palace Mansion Realm disciple was actually attempting to challenge the Core Disciples, an unprecedented event!
"Please grant me this, Pavilion Master!"
Ling Chen bowed to Liu Xiao.
"Do you really want to give it a try?"
Liu Xiao’s voice held a note of tension.
Core Disciples had at least reached the eighth level of the Palace Mansion Realm.
Ling Chen was only on the fourth level, with a four-level gap between them.
Even if Ling Chen had the Golden Palace and the power of his bloodline,
At most, he might be able to match such cultivators in terms of attack power.
Yet, the true strength of a Cultivator isn’t determined solely by their attacking ability.
The faces of several Core Disciples darkened immediately.
Ling Chen nodded firmly and said, "Besides, there’s nothing to lose in trying!"
If Ling Chen lost, indeed, there was nothing much to be lost.
But if he won, it would greatly inspire everyone’s fighting spirit.
"Pavilion Master, I wish to battle Young Master Ling!"
A young man stepped forward, bowing to Liu Xiao and spoke in a cold voice.
This person was named Tian Cheng.
At the early stage of the eighth layer of the Palace Mansion Realm, he had only recently been promoted to Core Disciple.
He was a cultivator with exceptional talent.
It was quite fitting for Tian Cheng to make a move.
Hearing this, Tian Cheng turned into a streak of flowing light and soared to the nine heavens, looking down from on high at Ling Chen, and said, "Young Master Ling, care to fight up here?"
Ling Chen’s figure moved, and he too rushed to the nine heavens.
The disciples of the inner and outer pavilions were shocked to see Ling Chen actually going to fight a Core Disciple.
"Junior Brother Tian, don’t hold back, give this ignorant fellow a good lesson!"
"That’s right! Does he really think our Core Disciples are pushovers?"
"A mere fourth layer cultivator of the Palace realm, what can he really do?"
Many Core Disciples spoke up one after another.
"Don’t worry, I will definitely have a good exchange with Young Master Ling!"
Tian Cheng said coldly.
With his hands behind his back, he looked at Ling Chen and said, "Young Master Ling, shall we?"
He was the one being challenged.
Being a Core Disciple, he naturally wouldn’t make the first move.
Ling Chen didn’t care much about Tian Cheng’s contempt.
Challenging a Core Disciple was merely to witness the combat power of an eighth-layer cultivator of the Palace Mansion Realm.
After all, he would soon be fighting disciples from the Burning Flame Sect.
A light flashed in his hand, and a longsword exuding a sharp aura appeared out of thin air.
"A high-grade King Spiritual Weapon!"
Many people exclaimed.
No wonder Ling Chen had the courage to challenge a Core Disciple, he actually possessed such a powerful weapon!
A high-grade King Spiritual Weapon is typically something that only strong eighth-layer Palace Mansion Realm cultivators could possess.
"If you’re relying on this sharp weapon, then I advise you to retreat on your own!"
As he spoke, a longsword of the same high-grade King Spiritual Weapon level also appeared in his hand.
"Senior Brother Tian, rest assured, my methods are of course not limited to this!"
Ling Chen smiled slightly.
"Green Lotus Sword Realm!"
Ling Chen let out a low shout in his heart, as eighteen strands of Green Lotus Sword Qi passed through the longsword, soaring into the sky and forming a sphere condensed from numerous sword energies.
"This is a high-grade King Spirit Technique!"
Countless disciples exclaimed in shock.
It was simply too unbelievable.
A fourth-layer Palace realm cultivator was actually able to cast a high-grade King Spirit Technique?
Guan Shanyue’s face was filled with a wry smile.
A trace of relief surged in his heart.
Thank goodness he hadn’t used his full strength, otherwise, even if he had exhausted all his means, he probably wouldn’t have been able to do anything against Ling Chen!
A high-grade King Spirit Technique, how terrifying!
Right now, he could, at most, master a mid-grade King Spirit Technique, without even touching the surface of a high-grade one.
With this, the Core Disciples who originally felt angry and humiliated couldn’t find the words to speak.
It had to be said that Ling Chen’s strength exceeded their imagination.
Tian Cheng put away his look of contempt.
With such cultivation and at such an age, Ling Chen’s use of a high-grade King Spirit Technique was enough to earn Tian Cheng’s respect.
Ling Chen led with his longsword, and the Sword Energy Sphere, with a shout, sped towards Tian Cheng.
Tian Cheng shouted loudly, displaying a mid-grade King Spirit Technique.
His Spiritual Power surpassed Ling Chen’s, and a mid-grade King Spirit Technique was enough to counter Ling Chen’s attack.
A massive hand seal pressed down towards the Sword Energy Sphere.
The two attacks collided in the sky, setting off a terrifying burst of power that almost inundated the whole world.
In the end, both attacks dissipated.
"Young Master Ling, don’t you also possess two layers of Sword Intent? Go ahead and use them."
Tian Cheng said with a smile.
Such an attack was clearly not enough to defeat him.