"Iron Armor..."

When Master Gu saw the iron armor on Gong Zi, his expression became intriguing.

This thing appeared on Gong Zi…

There was only one reason.

Gu Qilin couldn't help but curl the corner of his lips, trying hard to hold back his laughter, and looked at Gu Shen meaningfully, his eyes full of appreciation for the younger generation.

Good kid, worthy of being the person I have my eye on!

"That iron armor, it looks very rough..."

Mr. Zhou pressed his hands on his cane and murmured, "The Gong family's little fellow is not a reckless person... Bringing such a sealed item to battle... Is there a special effect?"

Mr. Zhou noticed the hidden smile on Gu Qilin's lips and was slightly taken aback, "Is there anything special about this iron armor?"

Gu Qilin smiled without saying a word.

...

...

Lian Zhou narrowed his eyes.

He stared at the iron armor… Out of caution, he used his mental strength to sense it carefully.

But no matter how he looked at it, the iron armor didn't seem to be anything out of the ordinary.

Just an ordinary iron armor?

He moved his head slightly, looking towards "Senior Brother Han Dang" on the side of the venue for help. The latter was expressionless, tapping his knee with a hidden movement, and slowly swiping two fingers together.

The meaning was very clear.

This was to signal Lian Zhou… to end the battle quickly.

Just like yesterday's semi-final—

Unleash the full power of *Paper Scissors*, and win the final showdown!

And this action was actually telling Lian Zhou… that iron armor was not some amazing sealed item.

Just do it!

"Hoo..."

Lian Zhou took a deep breath and bowed slowly to Gong Zi.

This was considered etiquette before the fight.

After bowing, he didn't hesitate and directly sacrificed *Paper Scissors*. A wisp of unintentional shadow appeared in his palm—

Immense mental power poured into it!

In the center of the venue, there was a sound of tearing air!

The next moment!

That invisible shadow disappeared from Lian Zhou's palm.

*Paper Scissors* was so fast that it was unbelievable. In just an instant, it shattered the air—

A series of exclamations erupted from the spectator seats of the venue!

When this *Paper Scissors* reappeared, it was at Gong Zi's shoulder!

However, unlike the scene where it directly cut through the bodies of the transcendents on the seventh floor of the Command, this time *Paper Scissors* completely revealed its prototype. This scissors-shaped sealed item was only the size of a palm, and the paper-like blades seemed thin, but they were extremely sharp!

However… at this moment, the *Iron Armor* did not unleash the dozens or hundreds of attacks per instant!

The very first strike met a wall!

With a "buzz" sound.

The extremely heavy and harsh sound of impact made people frown.

Lian Zhou's expression changed drastically.

He never expected that *Paper Scissors*, his semi-S-rank sealed item with a large amount of mental power injected, would make such a sound when it cut on the iron armor… Could it be that it couldn't be cut?

How is that possible!

His *Paper Scissors* can cut through even a small mountain!

"So this is the method you prepared… It is indeed a strange sealed item!"

Lian Zhou took a deep breath and looked at the iron armor with some dread.

"But… that's all it is!"

...

...

The ear-piercing crash also startled Gong Zi.

Even though Gong Zi had prepared for this battle early… he didn't expect this cut to come so quickly.

Before he could react, everything was already over!

Gong Zi took a deep breath. The iron armor given by Gu Shen… was really a great help!

Without hesitation, he rushed forward quickly!

This was a "ring battle" with limited space. The combat environment of the entire venue was quite narrow. Gong Zi tapped his toes, and like a sharp arrow, he shot out swiftly.

"Tear—"

Lian Zhou reacted immediately.

He retreated sharply, while manipulating *Paper Scissors* to pull away from the iron armor. However, after pulling back and glancing inadvertently… his heart sank.

This sealed item was so terrifying, it was probably a top-notch A-grade item!

In just one strike! The invincible *Paper Scissors*, the sharp point of the tip was actually broken off a small corner!

There was no time to think.

He once again sacrificed *Paper Scissors*. Although Gong Zi had an iron armor to protect himself, no matter how it covered him, it was impossible to cover his entire body… This time, he no longer considered Gong Zi's identity as the young master of the Gong family. He directly manipulated *Paper Scissors* and slashed towards the opponent's head!

This scene was seen by the transcendents of the Gong family.

The head of the Gong family looked gloomy and looked towards the temporary Grand Arbiter Zhu Wang on the opposite side of the venue. The latter closed his eyes and rested, pretending not to hear, obviously not intending to make any stopping actions.

With a "swoosh" sound.

Above his head, there was once again an extremely light tearing sound!

Gong Zi's rushing body suddenly paused for a moment.

A phantom of scissors appeared in front of him. The phantom of scissors came too fast. It appeared in this position in just an instant. When slowed down countless times, it looked as if Gong Zi himself had crashed into the *Paper Scissors*.

This move was too fast to dodge at all…

In fact, this was the reason why Han Dang had previously signaled Lian Zhou to act quickly.

Since he had decided to win the championship of this Newcomer War.

Then… the process was no longer important. Offending the Command, offending the Gong family? If he wanted to win the championship, this was an unavoidable fact.

Ending all of this quickly was the most important thing!

Sealed items like *Paper Scissors* were really too difficult to defend against. With such an item, even if you were told plainly… I'm going to attack, there was nothing you could do.

With the power of a seventh-level transcendent, it was impossible to dodge the attack of *Paper Scissors*!

Couldn't dodge.

Couldn't withstand it.

Then the result… was only defeat!

In the midst of a "buzzing" explosion.

In Gong Zi's pupils, the scene of *Paper Scissors* closing fiercely was reflected!

He didn't have time to dodge.

He didn't dodge at all either.

At the last moment… he punched out, and a surge of transcendent source energy condensed, also aimed at Lian Zhou's head.

He chose to trade blows!

...

...

At the moment when the second *Paper Scissors* was sacrificed, Zhu Wang opened his eyes.

He looked at the Gong family members across the venue.

Among the five great families, the Gu family was the first to take the lead, followed by the Gong family. As the well-deserved "giant family" of Changye, the Gong family had always adhered to the principle of balance over the years.

I will not offend others unless they offend me.

And at this moment, the expressions of those high-level transcendents of the Gong family surrounding the head of the family, looking at the seat of the Tribunal, had obviously changed.

These people looked gloomy.

But… it was just a gloomy expression.

Unlike "Chu Chen" in the semi-finals, Gong Zi had the entire Gong family behind him. The identity of this young master determined a fact… He might lose this Newcomer War, but it was absolutely impossible for him to suffer the kind of severe injuries that Chu Chen had suffered yesterday.

These Gong family experts did not take action to forcibly intervene in *Paper Scissors*'s head-exploding kill.

Obviously…

They were not worried that Gong Zi would be hurt by *Paper Scissors*.

Zhu Wang frowned.

The next moment!

"Dang—"

A long and deafening roar erupted in the center of the venue. An invisible phantom of a large bell spread over the venue, and blazing fire enveloped Gong Zi's entire body. Wisps of flowing fire wrapped around him, and a huge phantom of a phoenix was perched on the faintly visible large bell. The broken blade of *Paper Scissors* was now stuck on the surface of the bell.

Gong Zi was burning with crimson Phoenix Fire all over his body.

His clothes were all boiling in the flames, only the iron armor was not ignited. Thus, the seemingly clumsy iron armor… under the reflection of the Phoenix Flame, revealed a unique gilded color, like the battle armor of ancient gods in legends.

The smoke and dust in the venue slowly dissipated.

Everyone could see the situation at the moment—

The two were extremely close, maintaining their final confrontation.

*Paper Scissors* finally hovered at the position of Gong Zi's brow. A notch was cut on the surface of a gilded bell with a phoenix perched on it, and countless phoenix flames flowed and gathered inward.

*Phoenix Bell* was broken by *Paper Scissors*.

Perhaps because it had suffered a setback earlier… *Paper Scissors*'s full force only broke a gap in the *Phoenix Bell* and did not truly break through that layer of defense.

On the other hand, *Paper Scissors* had been injured twice, and its tip was completely broken.

At this moment, the transcendent source energy of the two top-level sealed items was pouring out, and the two energies were incompatible like fire and water, forming a fierce struggle like a silent undercurrent… On the other side of the confrontation, Gong Zi's fist was slightly deflected to the side.

At the last moment.

He did not choose to smash Lian Zhou's head with a punch.

Instead, he shifted slightly.

Part of the reason was "mercy", and the other part was that the outcome of this battle had already been decided.

This punch, if it had not changed direction… then it would have been trading injury for death!

With the protection of *Phoenix Bell*.

Even if *Paper Scissors* could injure himself, the damage would only be limited.

And his punch was enough to kill Lian Zhou, who had no sealed item protection.

Gong Zi said expressionlessly.

Lian Zhou was stunned, looking at the fist, slowly withdrawing from the side of his cheek…

"You lost."

...

...

After the smoke and dust dissipated, the venue was silent for a few seconds at first.

Then.

A huge explosion was ushered in.

"This is… the semi-S-rank sealed item, *Phoenix Bell*!"

"And *Paper Scissors*! It was also a former S-rank sealed item!"

Someone recognized the origin of the big bell and the small scissors.

The uproar instantly became noisy.

The federal government's grading of sealed items was very harsh. According to the degree of lethality and the amount of source energy contained, it was divided into S-rank, A-rank, B-rank… and so on for several levels down.

A-rank sealed items were already extremely powerful and remarkable taboo items. If they could not be completely controlled, they would have to be locked in the federal government's item confinement room to prevent them from flowing out and threatening the safety of order.

As for the rumored "S-rank" sealed items, they were even rarer.

Few people could see a real "S-rank" sealed item, because the difficulty of driving it was too high. Therefore, even if it existed, it was strictly guarded by the federal government… Looking at the entire Eastern Continent, there were very few forces qualified to manage high-level sealed items.

Of course, the three schools and five great families of Changye were all in this "very few" range.

In previous Newcomer Wars, the appearance of an "A-rank" sealed item was already a big news.

This time, first *Paper Scissors*, and then *Phoenix Bell*. Both of these items were "former divine objects" that had fallen from the S-rank rating, but no matter how you looked at it… they should not be items in the hands of third-stage transcendents.

"I heard that *Paper Scissors* is Arbiter Zhu Wang's secret treasure… In order to win the championship, he actually bestowed such a treasure to his disciple…"

"Are you crazy? How can you call the Arbiter by his name? Now you have to call him Grand Arbiter!"

"Tsk… Temporary…"

"Fortunately, the young master of the Gong family had prepared in advance, with the double insurance of *Phoenix Bell* and that iron armor… to win this game…"

These whispering discussions were ringing around the smoke-filled venue.

Hearing these voices, Zhu Wang, who had been calm, now looked vaguely embarrassed.

"The game is not over yet!"

A feminine voice suddenly sounded.

Han Dang stood up.

The noisy venue suddenly became quiet because of Han Dang's appearance.

A powerful mental force swept across hundreds of thousands of seats. Han Dang released his *Truth* domain, but he was very measured. In front of the bigwigs, he only suppressed the noise of the venue with mental force and then took it back.

"I want to report… someone is violating the rules!"

He pointed out a very serious problem with no expression on his face.

"The Newcomer War stipulates that only one sealed item is allowed to be brought to the competition… This Gong family member brought two items. How should this be handled?"

Many noisy voices in the venue disappeared… not only because of the suppression of the *Truth* domain.

Because these spectators also realized the problem that Han Dang was talking about, if the sealed item that finally blocked the fatal blow of *Paper Scissors* was *Phoenix Bell*, then what about the iron armor at the beginning?

It was written clearly in the rules of the Newcomer War.

All participants are only allowed to bring one sealed item to participate!

"Old Zhou… may I ask, in the Newcomer War, how should cheaters who violate the rules be dealt with?"

Han Dang looked at the president of the Federal Security Committee across the venue.

A series of gazes were cast down.

Old Zhou frowned, and he slowly said the regulations of the Federation: "Those who cheat in violation of the rules… will be expelled from the competition and their combat results will be canceled…"

Han Dang continued to ask: "Then, does Gong Zi carrying two sealed items count as cheating in violation of the rules?"

Old Zhou hadn't spoken yet.

Beside him, a young figure slowly stood up, and at the same time, that calm voice echoed throughout the venue.

"Of course…"

"It doesn't count."

...

...

"Gu Shen…"

Han Dang stared at the boy in front of him.

His expression didn't change much, but in reality, the anger in his heart was already滔天. These days, he had been dormant and hadn't gone to find Gu Shen's trouble… but Gu Shen took the initiative to stand up!

"This iron armor was borrowed to Brother Gong by me." Gu Shen said lightly: "This is not a sealed item at all. At best, it can only be said to be a little harder than ordinary steel…"

"Bullshit!"

Hearing this, Han Dang subconsciously opened his mouth in anger. Then he immediately realized his gaffe, and quickly adjusted his expression, and coldly asked: "It can block a blow from *Paper Scissors*, and you say it's not a sealed item?"

Gu Shen smiled.

He said softly: "If you don't believe it, you can let the Security Committee take it for investigation and test the ingredients… Old Zhou, why don't you go and check it now?"

Old Zhou looked at Gu Shen meaningfully, and then looked at Gu Qilin.

He thought of the smiles of the two when they saw the iron armor earlier… as if he understood something.

In front of the entire venue, in front of everyone, Old Zhou came to Gong Zi… The flowing fire of *Phoenix Bell* slowly withdrew, *Paper Scissors* fell to the ground with a clang, and the red iron armor was no longer bright and eye-catching, and returned to its original clumsy and ugly appearance.

Old Zhou stretched out his finger and knocked on it.

He also carefully investigated it with mental force.

He shook his head and said in a deep voice: "This is indeed just a… common item. It doesn't count as a sealed item."

As soon as this statement came out.

The whole place was in an uproar.

Han Dang looked dazed and couldn't believe it.

"May I ask, Old Zhou… in the Newcomer War, is wearing iron armor to the battle considered a violation of the rules?" Gu Shen asked seriously, carefully inquiring.

"Of course not." Old Zhou said slowly: "As long as it is not a sealed item… it can be carried into the arena. This is the freedom of the participants."

Ordinary iron, no matter how it is processed, cannot withstand the power of a transcendent!

In important duels, everyone will wear some protective gear…

This iron armor can be considered a "conventional protective gear", but the appearance is much uglier than those light alloy armors.

Ugly, what kind of violation is that?

Zhu Wang, who had not spoken all the time, looked extremely ugly.

Just now *Paper Scissors* was sacrificed for the first time.

He could see clearly.

His treasure was blunted by the iron armor in just one blow!

You're telling me, this is a common item?

Unable to accept it… Zhu Wang couldn't sit still, took a deep breath, and said in a deep voice: "President Zhou, you might as well take a closer look. Are you sure… you didn't see it wrong?"

Zhou Wei's originally gentle face became cold when he heard this.

In yesterday's duel, Lian Zhou used *Paper Scissors* to injure Chu Chen. It was the most serious injury incident in the Snow Forbidden City Newcomer War in the past ten years, without exception… As the president of the Security Committee, Zhou Wei felt heartbroken for the poor young child when he heard the news. Immediately afterwards, he felt angry for his old friend Gu Qilin.

He couldn't imagine that it was just a "point-to-stop" competition. In order to win, Zhu Wang's disciple used such extreme methods.

But due to "written rules".

Using the pseudo-S-rank sealed item *Paper Scissors* is not considered a violation.

No matter how you care about this matter, it can only be regarded as Lian Zhou being "unethical".

Just because *Paper Scissors* hurt people… the Security Committee cannot really take substantial action.

So he came here today.

It was both an explanation to his old friend and an expression of the Security Committee's attitude… When he came to the venue today, he told himself not to let yesterday's events repeat themselves.

At this moment, Zhou Wei suppressed his anger and asked softly, word by word: "This… temporary Grand Arbiter, are you questioning my ruling?"

The word "temporary" made the dark clouds on Zhu Wang's face much heavier.

He slowly stood up.

The huge Grand Arbiter's robe fluttered in the sunlight falling in the venue.

Zhu Wang looked down from above, looking at the center of the venue below the railing.

The huge pressure oppressed the entire venue.

Zhu Wang suddenly frowned.

*Paper Scissors*, which was lying on the ground and had a broken notch… suddenly moved.

The distraught Lian Zhou slowly raised his head.

He looked at Gong Zi.

*Paper Scissors* on the ground disappeared instantly!

The next moment, *Paper Scissors*, which had exploded with full power, pierced through the void, aimed at Gong Zi's forehead, and cut down!