John raised his eyebrows as he heard this line from the Elder.
'Did he detect my disguise? No, that's impossible, the Sect Elder confirmed that no one would be able to see through it. As for my body, I've already used my control over it with my Immortal Asura Body to make it look normal, so he shouldn't be able to detect that either.'
John remained silent for a moment.
"Explain myself? Explain what?" John asked.
"Your power! Explain where it came from," the Elder elaborated.
John internally heaved a sigh of relief, but outwardly kept a straight face. Even though the slap he had given the other Elder was a simple slap, it was laced with many profundities that the lead Elder saw.
Not only was it incredibly quick, it was also powerful, and without any warning or telltales at all. Before the Elder realized what was happening, it had already struck him. A normal Late Core Formation youth should not be able to do this, and even an early Meridian Forging cultivator shouldn't be able to either. Just from the slap, the Elder was able to tell that John's combat prowess and instincts were incredible.
This slap infused many of the trainings and teachings John had learned from the Vice-Sect Leader, which was why the Elder had been unable to detect it in time. Now that he was prepared for it, he would be able to defend against it however.
"As I said before, during the fight with the Heavenly Lightning Sect, I was pushed to the brink of death. While on death's door, I was able to peer deeper into the martial laws of this world and make several incredible breakthroughs" John replied, keeping his explanation as short as possible.
The shorter the explanation, the less holes there would be in his story.
The room fell silent at John's explanation, as they ruminated over whether his words could be true or not.
"That's it?" the lead Elder asked another question.
He wanted to discover if John had discovered something incredible, like a medicinal ingredient which bolstered his power, or an ancient cultivation technique.
"That's it," John replied calmly.
The Elder once again fell into a deep contemplation. It was true that John had only revealed incredible instincts, and nothing else. Since this was the case, what John had said was most likely the truth.
"Who cares about that. He must die!" the Elder who had been slapped spoke up. He was still incredibly angry, and embarrassed, about being slapped by a youth much weaker than him, in front of his peers no less.
"Silence," the lead Elder commanded.
The angry Elder wanted to rebuke, but decided against it. The lead Elder began to ponder the situation, as a look of comprehension suddenly appeared in his eyes. He looked back to John.
"I've heard some rumors as of late, about a Bloodfiend Sect youth conquering some powers near the borderlands, claiming them as his own. I dismissed such news as mere rumor, as none of our powerful disciples have been to that area, or would care to do such a thing. However, maybe they were more than just rumors. Was that youth you?" the Elder asked.
John raised his eyebrows slightly, surprised that the news had even reached the Elder's of the sect. However, he had no reason to hide it. He nodded his head in confirmation.
"That was me. "
John's reply was short and to the point. Slight surprise filled the faces of the rest of the Elder's upon hearing this.
"Of those powers you conquered, three had early Meridian Forging leaders. How did you achieve such a thing? Did you coax them with promises of riches from the sect?" another Elder chimed up.
John looked to that Elder and shook his head.
"No, I just killed them, and took over their cities. I was bored, and those experts all offended me one way or another, so I took their heads and cities as payment," John replied, hiding nothing.
"Impossible. You dare lie to us again?" the Elder who had been slapped raged out. He wanted nothing more than to see John be killed, and so was finding any opportunity to achieve such a thing.
John's eyes turned cold as they locked onto the Elder before him.
"Do you want to find out right now if such a thing is impossible?" John spat out words at the Elder. The Elder's cultivation was the same as those he had slain, and so the threat was quite straightforward.
John still wasn't satisfied however, as the Elder was getting on his nerves. He took a step towards the Elder, as if ready to attack at any moment.
"How did you even become an Elder anyways?" John mocked. "You're the weakest Elder I've ever seen. I should kill you right now to do our glorious Bloodfiend Sect a favor."
The eyes of all the Elders in the room widened slightly in surprise at John's brash comments, but none of them rebuked him. It was true that the Elder John had slapped was incredibly weak, and was only promoted to the rank of Elder due to some connections he had in the sect.
However, none of the Elder's treated him with much respect, as they knew he didn't deserve the position.
The slapped Elder took a step backwards as he looked into John's eyes. Based on the look John was giving him, he knew his threats were true. There wasn't a single falsity in his eyes. He had hoped to use this opportunity to get a bit of respect from his fellow Elder's, but his brash decisions seemed to have only worsened his situation.
After a moment of hesitation, the Elder harrumphed and strode out of the room, clear that the situation was far out of his control by now. Staying would only serve to further embarrass himself, and so he decided to remove himself from the situation entirely.
The other Elder's watched him leave, but made no efforts to stop him. The door slammed hard behind him as he left the room, leaving John and the other nine Elders left in the room.
Silence filled the room for some time before the lead Elder spoke up once more.
"I've made my decision. You are not to be executed. Leave and return to your lodgings," the Elder instructed.
Slight surprise washed over John's face as he heard this. He had been expecting to put a lot more effort into changing their minds, but all it took was a simple slap and a little bit of defiance. He nodded his head and left the room, as no matter the reasons, his goal had been accomplished.
The nine Elder's watched John leave the room, as the proceedings for the Execution Trial had ended.