Seeing this unexpected scene, the faces of the onlookers all showed a look of astonishment.

"Someone from the True Martial Realm has intervened in the battle!"

"That's right, the power of that palm was extremely fierce; it must have been someone from the True Martial Realm, and not someone who has just stepped into the True Martial Realm, but a very powerful person within it!"

"Who is so bold to disturb the Zhao Family's mid-year assessment?"

The crowd murmured with uncertainty, their gazes sweeping toward the platform. That palm strike had come from the platform.

"Zhao! Wu! Ji!"

Just as everyone was searching for the person who had struck, Zhao Yixin suddenly stood up, her face grim and barely able to contain her anger, her gaze fixed on Zhao Wuji, sitting in the center of the platform. The palm that had injured her son was indeed from Zhao Wuji.

"Boom!"

As soon as her words ended, a terrifying aura burst forth from Zhao Yixin, sweeping across the entire platform, obliterating tables and chairs in front of the Zhao Family's senior members, leaving the crowd no choice but to dodge in a sorry state.

"Zhao Yixin, you are being too presumptuous!"

"Today is our Zhao Family's mid-year assessment, an important day for the family; how dare you disturb the order of the gathering? What crime should you bear!"

"With so many heroes in Qingzhou City witnessing this, how dare you flip the table in public; what would that look like!"

The high-ranking members of the Zhao Family stared at Zhao Yixin in both shock and anger.

"Elder sister, let's not get angry just yet; I will give you a satisfactory explanation." Zhao Wuji was the first to bear the brunt, being blown back two steps by the potent aura of Zhao Yixin, his face looking quite awful as he hastily tried to explain.

"Explanation? There's no need! Since you dare to be the first to act, breaking the assessment rules and seriously injuring my son, then I, Zhao Yixin, need not hold back anymore. But, I won't be as despicable and shameless as you, attacking a junior without any dignity or face for the elders, launching a sneak attack out of nowhere. Now, I'm giving you two options: let your daughter take a palm strike from me, or you take the palm strike in place of your daughter!" Zhao Yixin said coldly and indifferently, for her son Zhao Letian was her bottom line, whoever touched it, she would retaliate tooth for tooth, blood for blood.

The high-ranking members of the Zhao Family all frowned upon seeing Zhao Yixin's attitude, sensing that this matter would not be easily resolved.

Especially for Zhao Wuji, he felt trapped between a rock and a hard place. Asking his daughter Zhao Lingshan to take a palm strike from Zhao Yixin was definitely not an option; even a casual palm strike from her could easily cripple his daughter, not to mention if he really dared to let Zhao Lingshan take the hit while he cowered away, he would likely become a laughingstock forever after.

And to take the strike from Zhao Yixin himself, although it would not be too dangerous, he wasn't confident he could emerge unscathed. If he were to be injured by Zhao Yixin's palm in front of everyone in Qingzhou City, then where would the face of the Zhao Family Head be, as everyone actually knew quite well that Zhao Yixin was originally stronger than him.

"Interesting, the remarkable lady from the Zhao Family of yesteryear is actually facing off against the head of the Zhao Family. If they really come to blows, it would be far more exciting than watching the junior members of the Zhao Family fight."

Spectators showed an eager anticipation on their faces.

"Little sister, since you insist on taking action, fine, I agree to your request. I will take your palm strike shortly. This will be a good opportunity for us siblings to exchange pointers and see just how wide the gap between us really is," Zhao Wuji said with a helpless smile after a moment of quick thought, despite feeling extremely conflicted. He cleverly found an excuse for himself in advance, to soften the blow to his pride should he be injured by Zhao Yixin later on.

"Alright, since you've already decided, save your breath and get ready to take the hit," Zhao Yixin said coldly, her palm slowly lifting as a tremendous force of True Essence Power rapidly gathered in it, startling the surrounding spectators. They feared that such formidable power would be unbearable if it were to hit any of them.

"Little sister, hold on. Since I've agreed to your request, I will take your palm strike sooner or later. But before that happens, I must clarify that my previous strike was not intended to harm Zhao Letian. It was a critical moment and I only wanted to save Lingshan, and in my haste, I misjudged my strength and accidentally injured him," Zhao Wuji quickly explained. Regardless of the truth, he couldn't let the onlookers think he intentionally wanted to harm Zhao Letian, at least not openly, as it affected the reputation of both him and the Zhao Family.

"A critical moment? A hasty action? Yet I fail to see how the situation was so dire. Besides, a person as calculating as yourself, how could you act rashly?" Zhao Yixin retorted with a mocking laugh. Find the source of this chapter at *.

"Little sister, you should be aware that after Zhao Letian executed his sword technique, had that strike landed, it would have severely damaged Lingshan's martial arts foundation, destroying her future, or even killing her on the spot. Don't you think the situation was pressing enough?" Zhao Wuji said gravely.

The audience silently nodded in agreement. Indeed, Zhao Wuji wasn't lying; Zhao Letian's sword strike was truly terrifying.

"But you should have seen that with Tian's strength, he could have easily killed Zhao Zihao and Zhao Hongyu as well, yet he did not do so. How can you be so sure that he would have gravely injured Zhao Lingshan, let alone kill her?" Zhao Yixin said indifferently.

"I cannot be sure, but neither can I be sure that he wouldn't pose a threat to Lingshan. To be cautious, I had no choice but to step in. However, rest assured, even though Zhao Letian was defeated in the platform match, he can still be awarded first place in this martial strength assessment," Zhao Wuji continued, not seeking to convince Zhao Yixin or the onlookers but merely to state his own position to avoid ignominy.

"No need for your charity. My son earned the first place in this martial strength assessment with his own strength, truly deserving the title. I believe everyone present has seen it clearly." Zhao Yixin said coldly, "Are you done with your excuses? If you are, then prepare to take the hit!"

"Sigh, it can't be helped, come then, let me see how much you have improved these years, little sister," Zhao Wuji sighed and also slowly raised his palm. A similarly terrifying force of True Yuan Power instantly converged in his hand.

"Hmph!"

The next moment, Zhao Yixin let out a cold snort and swiftly struck out with a huge Primordial Energy Palm Print, its imposing force bearing down on Zhao Wuji.

"Go!" Zhao Wuji likewise refused to show weakness, flipping his hand to release a massive Primordial Energy Palm Print, boldly meeting the attack head-on.

"Boom!"

In an instant, the two enormous palm prints collided mid-air, and a deafening explosion resounded like thunder from the heavens. A violent shockwave of Primordial Energy swept out, causing the high-ranking Elders of the Zhao Family on the stage to turn pale with horror and frantically scramble for cover. The attack was too fearsome; even just the residual effects were dangerous to them.

A moment later, the two attacks dissipated into nothingness, and the podium swept clean by the residual forces was left only with Zhao Yixin and Zhao Wuji standing. However, at this moment, Zhao Yixin still stood tall and proud, while Zhao Wuji was kneeling on the ground, blood trailing from the corner of his mouth, his face pale and eyes filled with shame and anger, his fists clenched tightly.