(MC POV)
I watched with mild amusement as the participants of the tournament were waiting for the signal to start their match.
The others within the room had already returned to their seats and for some odd reason, Sect Mistress Hua still continued to sit on my couch like it was hers.
Her guards had also recovered since I lifted my hold over them, returning to stand behind their Sect Mistress to glare at me, though they made no move to attack me anymore.
I noticed that her fan no longer has a picture of me, most likely having faded away during the spectacle with the gods.
"Do you have any idea how fortunate you are right now?" She hissed.
I smiled and tilted my head lazily at her, "Really? I think you're the one that's the lucky one though."
"Are you not afraid of death? Are you really not aware that you were just a snap away from death mere moments ago?"
I nodded at the fan she was holding in her hands, "You're talking about that, right? Why don't you do it again?"
"I am not so stupid as to be baited by such a thing. I will not make a fool of myself in front of the Gods like you have."
I shrugged, "More like you can't do it. If you wish to kill me, you must first have the power to destroy a universe."
She snorted at me, obviously thinking I was a lunatic, not that I would bother explaining to her anyway.
"If you truly value your life, I suggest that you leave this place and find somewhere to hide. In a few moments, your mistresses down there will find that they have overestimated themselves and you'll be left without protection. As much as I would like to teach you your place, you are not important enough for me to notice."
I really want to ask why she chose to approach me if I was so beneath her but decided not to point that out.
Right then, the signal for the tournament to start was given and everyone directed their attention to the three stages, no doubt expecting my disciples to be defeated instantly.
So full of expectations were they that everyone in the arena let out a roar of anticipation, a few of them even chanting out taunts at my disciples.
I'll have to remember their faces to teach them a lesson later.
Contrary to what they expected however, Lian Li immediately 'killed' the man beside her, Kiyomi froze the ones that tried to leap at her and Manami had already bathed her entire stage in a sea of flames.
Woah, I know I said to put on a show but I'm still impressed by how they're doing it.
Lian Li was trying to make use of the participants' fear by slowly taking them out one by one, making sure all of them know the disparity in their strengths before she hunts them down with them being able to do nothing about it.
Kiyomi had the idea of instilling a sense of helplessness in her opponents by robbing them of their ability to do anything with her freezing Techniques. Allowing them to feel despair as she took her time in dispatching each of her opponents.
Manami opted for the more flashy approach by making it hell for the participants to even stand on the same stage as her. The weaker ones would be incinerated quickly while the stronger ones would burn slowly.
Just from the first minute of the fight, it was already made clear that my disciples were anything but shams.
The arena slowly quietened down, the spectacle in front of them inconceivable to their eyes.
Everyone in the VIP area was also watching with disbelief plastered on their faces, only Master Hei was nodding at the sight contentedly.
I shifted my gaze away from the stage and smiled at Sect Mistress Hua, "As I was saying… You are the fortunate one, not me."
She turned to look at me with wide eyes, "Your… Your mistresses have a Sacred Treasure each?!"
I snorted, "Please, what you see there is their own strength. None of them possess a Sacred Treasure of any kind. Didn't we already say this multiple times? We are visitors from the Earthen Plane, there weren't any gods there to grant us Sacred Treasures."
There was a loud boom and I turned back to see lightning striking down Lian Li's enemies with impunity.
"Im… Impossible… Di… Divine Lightning? But that's the power of the Gods…" She muttered, her eyes looking like it was ready to pop out of her sockets.
Suddenly, her expression cleared and she whipped her head back to me, "I know now! You! They don't have Sacred Treasures! You're the one who possesses the Sacred Treasure! You borrow power from your patron God and lend the same power to the three women!"
Wow… Talk about being delusional… It seems like this is a universal problem here since everyone else also seemed to agree with her, their gazes slowly shifting into one of self-satisfaction as though they had solved a great mystery themselves.
I decided it wasn't worth my time and effort to explain it to them so I simply shrugged, "Whatever makes you sleep better at night I suppose. I already said we don't have Sacred Treasures on us."
"Fufufu… It seems like I hit the nail right on the head, haven't I? I admit that might be an impressive Sacred Treasure, but you are still not exempt from death you know? My Fan of Life can still cut your existence short if I choose to."
I waved my hand dismissively at her, "If you're just going to talk about it but not do it, then just don't speak at all. You already bore me in case you aren't aware."
Her guards must have found courage from their Sect Mistress claims of my power being borrowed and turned to growl at me.
"Watch your tone. You may be safe because the Gods are here now, but once they leave, everyone in this city is going to set their sights on you. Do you think you can even escape here with your life?"
I shrugged noncommittally, "I think the real question is whether this city can escape my attention after this."
Nothing else was said between us although the whispers of the other Practitioners in the room were quite annoying.
I didn't even need to try and listen in on their conversations to know they were trying to figure out how they can take me out later on.
Looking up at the tower that the gods were occupying, I could see that most of them weren't even paying attention to the tournament in front of them.
Instead, almost all of them were looking at me, some of them giggling and a few even fainting when they realised I was looking at them.
Sylphy, Shea and Anul were no different, the three of them practically swooning as soon as I settled my gaze on them.
Yep… I'm pretty sure at the end of this tournament, all of the Practitioners here would be singing a very different tune.
