Two quarters of an hour passed. The elders who had previously gathered at the center had now stepped behind the Peak Lord. At this moment, the Peak Lord also held a newly drawn-up list in his hand.
"Before I announce the results, I must clarify one thing! Otherwise, it may be unfair to all the disciples."
The Peak Lord's voice wasn't loud, but it boomed like thunder in every disciple's ears. Everyone had expected him to declare the rankings. No one anticipated another twist was still to come.
Confusion grew—but so did curiosity.
'Whoosh!'
With a wave of the Peak Lord's hand, the disciples in Zone A—who had been anxiously awaiting the results—jumped in fright.
His hand was raised in their direction.
A pale golden spiritual energy surged forth. Alchemy prodigy Peng Qi was instantly shackled mid-air by chains of spiritual force.
Before anyone could react, the Peak Lord declared:
"Peng Qi! I've long recognized your diligent cultivation. If you confess now, I'll spare your cultivation base!"
His sharp gaze pierced through Peng Qi, carrying both disappointment and fury. Peng Qi looked stunned, but when he saw the Peak Lord's cold expression—and his own master's disappointed eyes—he realized what had happened.
A cold sneer curled at his lips. He had schemed to escape the interrogation of the Heart-Questioning Talisman, only to be exposed at the final stage of the tournament. Though he didn't know exactly how he'd been discovered, he knew that if he didn't confess now, he'd lose everything he had worked for over the past ten years.
"This disciple admits his mistake. I beg the Peak Lord for leniency!" Peng Qi ground his teeth, his face flushing red from the strength of the golden restraint binding him.
"So it was you!" The Peak Lord's disappointment deepened.
He had harbored a tiny sliver of hope that they'd made a mistake. Wrongfully accusing a disciple was no trivial matter. But Peng Qi confessed immediately—without even trying to deny it.
"Why did you do it? You have talent. If you competed fairly, you might've secured a top spot. Even if not, the Outer Sect Tournament was still an option."
His master, visibly disheartened, looked away as he spoke, his hands trembling.
Far off in Zone D, Chen Jinshu watched all this unfold. Seeing Peng Qi's public confession, the doubts in her heart began to clear.
"How did Peng Qi get exposed? He even passed the Heart-Questioning phase…"
She was both surprised and puzzled.
"Peng Qi," his master now announced with eyes shut, "schemed to sabotage other participants before the competition, causing them to underperform and lose focus. As of now, I expel him from my tutelage and leave him to the Peak Lord's judgment."
Peng Qi had once passed the first-tier Alchemist test while still at the fourth level of Qi Refining. Despite opposition, his master had taken him in—only for this betrayal to follow years later.
"This disciple is unworthy of your teaching," Peng Qi whispered, his eyes reddened. He had truly taken the wrong path.
"Did you also tamper with the alchemy furnaces?" The Peak Lord's tone turned sharp again.
"Yes."
"Who else helped you? You couldn't have done this alone, could you?"
"Those furnaces are kept in the Alchemy King Hall. I refuse to believe you could tamper with them under the noses of so many elders and disciples."
"I lured several senior brothers away with fabricated benefits, then used the opportunity to rig the equipment…"
Peng Qi, now ashen-faced, described in detail how he had sabotaged the furnaces. Gasps of fury rippled among the surrounding cultivators. They had trained hard for this competition—even if their results weren't stellar, the sabotaged furnaces explained many early failures.
But under the Peak Lord's and elders' presence, none dared act rashly.
"Such audacity! Leaving your post unsupervised?!"
"Elder of the Steward Hall, deal with them. Any disciple who influences the competition must not be spared!" The Peak Lord's voice turned fierce, enraged that such a scandal had unfolded under his watch.
He was already forming a plan in his mind—these disciples had grown too idle. They would need tasks to occupy them from now on.
"I was momentarily blinded by greed. I beg the Peak Lord for forgiveness…"
"Hmph! Did you think you'd never be discovered? If not for the backlash you suffered, even I wouldn't have noticed."
"Your ranking would've been fifth place. That slot is now void, and will be passed to the disciple who originally ranked twenty-first." The Peak Lord sighed.
If Peng Qi had tried to lie, the punishment would've been heavier. Now that he confessed so openly, the Peak Lord found himself conflicted.
"Forget it. I won't destroy your cultivation base. But you are expelled from the Xuanming Sect. You'll serve ten years mining spirit ore as atonement. You will also compensate the disciples you sabotaged. Can you do that?"
"Yes, this disciple accepts his punishment."
"Disciples of the Steward Hall, take him away." The Peak Lord waved his hand, and Peng Qi was escorted out.
He could already sense the anger brewing among the crowd—keeping Peng Qi around might lead to a riot. Though his cultivation was spared, mining duty in the Xuanming Sect was almost a death sentence.
These weren't ordinary mines. Spiritual energy was suppressed, meals were basic, and there was no room for cultivation. Ten years in such conditions could destroy a person. Worse still, some mines were harsher than others.
"I heard the Firestone Mines are brutal. The fire toxins alone can cripple a man. None of the mines are easy... I wonder where he'll end up."
Chen Jinshu felt somewhat satisfied. This punishment was far from light—and it gave justice to the rest of the participants.
"Was it backlash of luck? Is that how the Peak Lord discovered him…?" She still had questions.
But for now, the final rankings were more pressing. She turned toward the elders at the center with anticipation.
"Now, we announce the top twenty from this blind-box alchemy competition! These top twenty disciples will earn entry into the Xuanming Cave Heaven, along with their corresponding rewards!"
"First place: Du Yi from Zone A – Tier-1 High-Grade Purple Marrow Pill, superior quality, refining process rated 'Grade A+'."
"Second place: Jiang Daoyu from Zone B – Tier-1 High-Grade Purple Spirit Pill, superior quality, refining process rated 'Grade A'."
…
Chen Jinshu listened as the top fifteen were all listed as Tier-1 High-Grade Pills with excellent ratings.
Her heart sank.
As expected, the top three were all disciples from the Outer Sect's Top Trio, securing their spots without suspense.