Chapter 669: Duel Prodigy, He Yi Yuan Man (Two-in-One)

"Grand Void Divine Mirror…"

Li Yuan strained his eyes to their limit, gazing into the void before him, yet did not see that supreme treasure of the Grand Void Pavilion, and felt rather regretful.

Regarding this treasure that carried the universal knowledge platform of all domains, he was genuinely quite curious, but alas had no fate to see it.

"I heard that composing the Grand Void Illusory Realm, there is also a Dao treasure called the 'Balance Heaven Scale'…"

After letting his thoughts wander briefly, Li Yuan calmed his mind.

【Do you wish to participate in a random duel?】

【Entry to the First-Tier Duel Platform requires ten Yuan Coins; victory returns them, plus an additional five Yuan Coins…】

"Yes!"

As Li Yuan's voice fell, the meditation cushion beneath him grew warm, and his whole person became like a streak of flowing light, plunging into that duel platform ringed by stars.

The next instant, the light and shadows around him faded like ripples.

When he raised his eyes again, he had landed atop a barren mountain; the surrounding mountain forests were dense, with a great river and plains, and several hundred li away stood another barren mountain of the same height, where human shadows could faintly be seen.

This was a First-Tier Duel Platform; the space was not small, roughly ten thousand li across, with all manner of terrain complete, more than enough to support Yi Er Jing cultivators in dueling.

【First-Tier Duel Platform】

【Wind God Tribe, Feng Feng Xiuqi (Second-Tier Duelist), realm: He Yi Jing Dacheng】

"Wind God Tribe?"

Li Yuan glanced at his opponent's information, then with a sweep of his hand plucked a ball of flickering starlight from the void.

He knew all the many rules of the duel platform by heart, and naturally understood the purpose of this starlight: the duel platform forbade the use of any dharma treasure other than one's innate spiritual treasure, but would provide every duelist with one dharma treasure.

Of course, it had to be a dharma treasure one had personally refined, whose inner restrictions were known, and of a uniform grade.

For First-Tier duelists, naturally it was a dharma treasure; Second-Tier duelists received upper-grade or supreme-grade dharma treasures; Third-Tier received lingbao; Fourth and Fifth Tiers saw further upgrades, but at most would not exceed the lingbao category.

Hum—

At a thought from Li Yuan, that ball of starlight had already transformed into wisps of nine-colored mist-cloud — precisely the only dharma treasure he had refined, the Nine-Smoke Gauze.

"Boom!"

Li Yuan was still toying with that ball of starlight when he heard a thunderclap explode — this was the drumbeat marking the start of the duel.

"The Duel Rankings have been open five years, yet a He Yi Jing cultivator is only a First-Tier duelist — a newcomer, eh?"

A great shout came from afar. Li Yuan followed the sound and looked, only to see fierce winds suddenly rise atop that barren mountain, shaped like a tornado piercing straight into the clouds, light and shadow interweaving, reflecting a scene of raging wind and thunder clouds:

"Let this one teach you a lesson!"

He saw the thunder clouds roll and the gale howl, and within them a great bird condensed from wind and thunder flickered in and out of view.

It had plainly summoned its own Shen Jing — the Spirit Phase.

"Screech!"

Within the thunder clouds, the great bird beat its wings, and the void instantly bore traces of being sliced by thousands upon thousands of sharp blades, as if countless invisible wind blades had shot forth.

"First summoning the Shen Jing, then using the Spirit Phase to cast spells? This one has cultivated magical power…"

Li Yuan's eyes lit slightly. Cultivators clashing differed from martial artists butchering each other; though he had seen plenty in the Grand Void Myriad Manifestations, witnessing it with his own eyes still felt quite fresh.

Thoughts turning in his mind did not slow his movements. Li Yuan unhurriedly dispersed the Nine-Smoke Gauze in his hands, his form becoming a streak of flowing light that shifted a hundred li away.

He heard only a few 'screech screech' sounds, and the barren mountain where he had just stood split clean in two, the mountain forests above and below utterly annihilated.

"Screech!"

Within the gale, the wind-and-thunder bird beat its wings again, and invisible wind blades instantly shot forth, blanketing the sky as they converged on Li Yuan, who had just reappeared after shifting a hundred li.

"Quite the veteran."

Li Yuan inwardly praised slightly — first firing wind blades to break the mountain as a feint, then predicting where he would shift to dodge. If this really were a newcomer to the duel platform, he'd have fallen right there.

"Tian Peng Dun Fa!"

Li Yuan's mind stirred, and he was about to flee when he heard a 'Suppress!' followed by a thunderous boom exploding in midair, freezing him in place. Then, the sky-darkening wind blades had already swallowed his figure whole.

"It's over!"

On the distant barren mountain, Feng Feng Xiuqi smiled.

That 'Thunder Roar Suppressing Sound' he had cultivated for years was his true killing move; caught off guard, even a Third-Jing cultivator would be frozen for an instant.

It was precisely by virtue of this trick that, in little more than a month since leaving closed-door cultivation, he had fought his way up from a First-Tier duelist to Second-Tier — he even felt he might fight his way up to the Third-Tier duel platform.

"Hm?!"

Suddenly, the smile on Feng Feng Xiuqi's face stiffened, for he saw that beneath the smoke and airwaves churned up by the converging wind blades, that figure was completely unharmed, looking at him calmly.

"A protective spell?"

"This one has cultivated magic power!"

Feng Feng Xiuqi's heart jolted, when he heard a cry ring out. Following the sound, he saw the vault of heaven above churn like water, light and shadow interweaving, faintly revealing an island.

Within the island, a great tree of ink-jade swayed gently, and a Jin Chi Peng bird perched on its trunk slowly raised its head.

"A Jin Chi Great Peng bird?!"

The instant this thought flashed through Feng Feng Xiuqi's mind, his vision seemed to lurch — a headless body crashed to the ground. His sight flipped, and only then did he realize in shock that his own head had already been lopped off by that Peng bird's wing radiating ghostly light.

His vision was not poor; he could faintly guess that this Peng bird's Spirit Phase had cultivated at least two spells—one escape technique of extreme speed, and one incomparably fierce sword qi!

The former left him no time to dodge, while the latter sliced open his protective dharma robe and protective spell in a single stroke…

【Duel Victor, eighty thousand li】

【Obtained five Yuan Coins】

【Eighty-one victories to advance to Second-Tier Duelist】

【Current: One duel, one victory】

On the stone platform beneath the star curtain, Li Yuan sat cross-legged on the meditation cushion, paying no heed to the five Yuan Coins credited, instead sorting through and reviewing that just-completed battle.

He had to admit, he was somewhat surprised.

Although he had approached this battle with the mindset of experiencing a cultivator's fight, he never expected his first opponent to force him to use three spells.

Yes, three spells.

When the wind blades rained down, Li Li Yuanzhong activated the Kunming Ten Thousand Layers Armor, and when the Jin Chi Peng bird struck with a wing flap, he simultaneously employed the Tian Peng Dun Fa and the Taiyin Sword Qi.

"No wonder some call the Profound Heaven Illusion the greatest creation of the Post-Origin Era; setting aside everything else, this Fighting Platform alone warrants such praise."

Li Li Yuanzhong marveled in his heart.

The existence of the Fighting Platform greatly enhanced cultivators' combat experience; no matter how dull a person might be, after thousands of battles, they would inevitably become proficient in slaughter.

Even by his current standards, Feng Feng Xiuqi's combat style was quite seasoned.

First a feint to force the enemy to shift position according to his will, then releasing a barrage of wind blades, plus that thunder sound capable of freezing one in place for an instant...

"Even without any rewards, this Fighting Platform is a rare treasure."

Recalling the battle just now, Li Li Yuanzhong gained a deeper understanding of combat between cultivators.

Cultivators who have cultivated magic power, unless they are those who have perfected body cultivation, will not engage in close-quarters combat; even when fighting at close range, they still project their spiritual form to strike from a distance.

This, however, is another application of spells.

Li Li Yuanzhong was also aware of this.

The Divine Realm is the place where Essence, Qi, and Spirit converge; the spiritual form is the spirit gathered from these three elements, so the various spells a cultivator learns can naturally be grasped effortlessly and used with ease.

In fact, quite a few cultivators tend toward this type of combat style.

That is, using the spiritual form as the core, combined with various spells; for instance, the several spells Li Li Yuanzhong has learned, including Shan Xuan Gang Zhong Shui, can all be applied to the body of the spiritual form.

The Tian Peng Dun Fa increases its speed, Shan Xuan Gang Zhong Shui increases its form, Taiyin Sword Qi increases its lethality, and Kunming Ten Thousand Layers Armor increases its defense...

Thus, the Peng bird's wing flap moves with lightning speed; relying on the enhancement of various spells, even the simplest collision, with the weight of Shan Xuan Gang Zhong Shui, would be unbearable for an ordinary cultivator.

In the Universal Knowledge Sphere, this type of combat style is called 'Dharma-Image Combat Style'.

"It is said that Feng Feng Qingcang rose to dominance with this type of combat style; using various powerful spells and divine abilities, he forged nine Phoenix Dharma-Images when he reached the Ninth Heaven of the Divine Palace, and once unleashed, they swept all before them!"

Li Li Yuanzhong could not help but think of the outstanding practitioners of this combat style.

The Dharma-Image Combat Style is not something ordinary cultivators can learn, because most cultivators, upon reaching the Great Perfection of the First Heaven of the Divine Palace, will begin planning to forge their Jin Dan; only those with exceptional endowment, at least those who forged a Jin Dan Dharma-Ring at the Seventh Heaven of the Divine Palace, are qualified to cultivate this combat style.

"My four spells, combined with each other, are barely usable..."

A sudden inspiration struck Li Li Yuanzhong's heart, and Yu Yu Xuanji immediately re-entered the Fighting Platform.

This was a deep starry sky woven with light and shadow.

Gazing from an extremely distant point, one could see a continent of magnificent grandeur, suspended in the starry sky like a dam that severed dozens of star rivers.

Countless stars, under an invisible gravitational pull, orbited this continent, resembling brilliant star rings.

This continent is one of the three Tian Shi Yuan domains: Tian Shi Yuan.

Tian Shi Yuan, the place where Daoist Qun Xing gather.

Legend has it that originally, before a world-shaking great power perished, he used immense magic power to resist the power of the Return to Ruin, and with his own Shen De Fa, gathered the remnants of the stars to form it.

Over countless eons, countless other stars merged in, gradually evolving into a towering, boundless giant continent.

Feng Shen City is located in the southeast corner of Tian Shi Yuan; it is one of the ninety-three Xiancheng of Tian Shi Yuan, inhabited by a mix of clans, and since the city was originally built by the Feng Shen Clan, cultivators of the Feng Shen Clan are the most numerous.

"Eighty thousand li... his spiritual form looks very much like a Jin Chi Great Peng bird..."

In a small courtyard somewhere in the Ding'an District of Feng Shen City, Feng Feng Xiuqi recalled the battle just now, and the more he thought, the more alarmed he became.

He claimed he had not been the slightest bit overconfident; he used various spells appropriately, and even chose a protective robe as his magic treasure, yet he was instantly killed in a single move.

"A suspected Jin Chi Great Peng spiritual form, at least two or three spells, and it is highly likely he has cultivated Zhong Pin Fa... Could this not be a true disciple seed from some Sacred Land?"

Feng Feng Xiuqi pondered, opened the Universal Knowledge Sphere, and searched exhaustively within the Profound Heaven Myriad Images for "Eighty Thousand Li".

But after receiving the result, he found it even more incredible; this person was practically a newcomer among newcomers, and aside from himself, had only participated in one battle.

"It must be a true disciple seed from some clan? Although I suffered a crushing defeat, this might be a good thing for me..."

As Feng Feng Xiuqi was pondering in his heart, he suddenly heard a deafening, resounding bell sound; looking up, he saw the bell waves, as if made of solid substance, blow away the sea of clouds.

Immediately, thousands of beams of immortal light crisscrossed, transforming into boundless divine rosy clouds.

"Is this... a deity descending?"

Feng Feng Xiuqi was startled in his heart, then immediately went outside, only to see cultivators everywhere in the streets and alleys wanting to pay homage to the deity, including many cultivators of the Feng Shen Clan.

He found an acquaintance to ask, and only then learned a shocking piece of news.

"Brother Feng Feng Wu Ding successfully performed the Xing Ji Gong and has been accepted into the legendary Wei Tian Dao Sect!"

"The Wei Tian Dao Sect!"

Feng Feng Xiuqi was utterly shocked; since he never left the Universal Knowledge Sphere for long, he naturally knew of the existence of the Wei Tian Dao Sect, and his heart was filled with both shock and envy.

"Since a deity is descending this time, it must be to offer congratulations, right?"

With envy in his heart, Feng Feng Xiuqi did not go to join the crowd; although he was a cultivator at the peak of the Second Realm, his status within the Feng Shen Clan was truly low, and even if there were a grand banquet, he would not be allowed to attend.

But he did not leave; instead, he took out the Universal Knowledge Sphere from his sleeve.

The Feng Shen Clan was certainly a major clan of Tian Shi Yuan, but with so many members, those with endowments like his, even after cultivating magic power, would receive very little cultivation resources.

In fact, nearly half of his cultivation resources came from the Universal Knowledge Sphere.

Not from the Fighting Platform, but from the Profound Heaven Myriad Images.

"Profound Heaven Images."

Feng Feng Xiuqi lightly pressed the Universal Knowledge Sphere.

After spending one hundred Yuan Coins, a streak of pure white light shot out from the Universal Knowledge Sphere, transforming into a light-shadow image; what was reflected within was his own appearance.

This was a function within the Profound Heaven Myriad Images; one could spend Yuan Coins to record what one saw and heard, and others could view everything he saw through the image.

Of course, watching the image also required spending Yuan Coins.

"Fellow Daoists, today a great joy has occurred within my Feng Shen Clan..."

Feng Feng Xiuqi steadied himself. Only after seeing that the number of people watching him through the projection had broken a thousand did he raise his head to look at the auspicious immortal light coiling in the air:

"The pride of my Wind God clan, my clansman Feng Feng Wu Ding, has completed his Xing Ji Gong and has already entered the legendary Weitian Dao Sect!"

"Feng Feng Wu Ding? They say this one has a sixth-grade Tian Xing level talent, a prodigy who refined the 'Seven-Scene Jin Dan' on the foundation of the Divine Palace's Seven Heavens—no wonder he could enter Weitian Dao Sect!"

"May I ask, Shadow Lord, which Weitian Dao Sect did your clansman enter?" "Feng Feng Wu Ding? Isn't that one of the people who were tracking the Blood Phoenix along with Feng Huang'er, Ying Ying Shan Xuan Long, and others? If he succeeded, then what about Feng Huang'er?"

"…I heard that a few years ago, in Bei Dou Fa Jie, the true disciple of the Grand Void Gate, Yuan Miao, completed his Xing Ji Gong and entered Weitian Dao Sect. It's only been a few years—has Weitian Dao Sect begun opening its mountain gates widely?"

……

Within the light and shadow, lines of text flickered, and the watching cultivators, drawn by the name of Weitian Dao Sect, began discussing one after another.

Feng Feng Xiuqi watched and couldn't help but nod inwardly. The name of Weitian Dao Sect was still great—before, there hadn't been this many people watching.

"Right, didn't the Shadow Lord say that after closed-door cultivation he would fight his way up to the third-tier Combat Platform before leaving a projection?"

At this moment, a line of text popped up on the shadow screen.

"……"

Feng Feng Xiuqi's face twitched. He had originally intended to wait until his final battle upon advancing to the third-tier Combat Platform to open the projection, so he could rake in a hefty haul of Yuan coins.

But now……

"It's a long story."

Seeing people on the screen discussing this matter, Feng Feng Xiuqi couldn't help but sigh: "My luck was bad—I actually ran into a once-in-an-age talent who had refined the spiritual form of the 'Jin Chi Da Peng,' and even though I fought with everything I had, I still couldn't win…"

"The Jin Chi Da Peng is a top-grade spiritual form. Such true-form charts mostly come from the 'Great Scriptures.' Against such a prodigy, you still had the strength to fight back?"

"Has the Shadow Lord gone mad?"

"Upload the battle quickly, I want to watch!"

The shadow screen instantly became lively.

Compared to the Weitian Dao Sect, which only existed in legends, the vast majority of cultivators were still more interested in top-grade spiritual forms, because every cultivator watching had a spiritual form of their own.

"Watch the battle?"

Feng Feng Xiuqi's heart stirred. He slowly walked back to his small courtyard and, in front of the many watching cultivators, opened the Combat Platform's battle record.

【Ba Wan Li】

【Human Race Cultivator】

【Second-Tier Combatant】

【Current: 103 battles, 103 victories】

"?!"

Seeing this, Feng Feng Xiuqi couldn't help but shrink his pupils.

Second-tier combatants, even those with a hundred-win streak, weren't rare—every time the Combat Rankings opened, such records were everywhere.

But how long had it been?

He had only stepped out for a walk, and this Ba Wan Li had already achieved a hundred victories?!

……

……

"Li~"

The great peng spread its wings, streaking through at extreme speed. In the blink of an eye, it shifted position many times, weaving through the countless sword-qi that formed a net across the vault of heaven and bursting out.

"Ah!"

A burly figure over a zhang tall had just emerged from a void-escape, not even having time to cast another sword art, when the great peng bird that arrived at extreme speed smashed him into a Feng Feng Mantian of blood mist.

【Combat Victor: Ba Wan Li】

【Obtained 500 Yuan coins】

【818 victories needed to advance to third-tier combatant】

【Current: 142 battles, 142 victories】

On the Dingxin Dingxin Shitai beneath the star-curtain, Li Yuan sat quietly with closed eyes, and the scenes of the hundred-plus battles just now floated up in his mind-sea.

"Among the 142 battles, 120 were He Yi Jing cultivators, yet those who had refined magic power numbered fewer than thirty, and those who had refined more than three spells numbered fewer than ten…"

After fighting over a hundred battles in a row, Li Yuan didn't even feel tired.

He had a foundation in combat and killing. Once he was slightly familiar with combat between cultivators, he naturally stopped dawdling—and in over a hundred consecutive battles, he was almost overwhelmingly dominant.

The reason he said "almost" was that he still ran into two relatively more troublesome opponents, like the zhang-tall sword cultivator 'Yu Lu Lu Bailing' from earlier.

That one was a 'Sword Spirit clansman,' who had refined eighty-one strands of magic power, wielded a natal sword pellet, and with a single sword could split into myriad swords—his killing intent was ferociously violent.

"The Longevity Scripture's amplification of Kun Peng magic power is really great."

After over a hundred consecutive battles, Li Yuan truly felt the benefits of cultivating the Longevity Scripture to completion. The several spells he cultivated—even his spiritual form—had all received tremendous enhancement.

"With my current talent and cultivation, ordinary second-realm cultivators can be killed with a snap of the fingers. Even those who have refined lower-grade magic power can be swiftly slain. As for those who have refined Zhong Shang Pin magic power, I haven't seen any yet…"

Sorting through the gains and losses of a hundred battles, Li Yuan now had a relatively clear understanding of his current combat power.

His magic power hadn't yet been fully refined to eighty-one strands, but because the Green Wood Longevity Scripture had already been mastered, he was no worse off than a cultivator who had refined eighty-one strands of Zhong Pin Fa magic power.

Though his four spells had all just been initiated, because their quality was quite high and they complemented each other well, and were driven by a spiritual form of the same origin, their might was tremendous.

Up to now in his hundred battles, he hadn't even had to fully activate his Kun Peng spiritual form—the great peng spreading its wings was already enough to shake-kill most opponents.

"If I further activate the augmentation of the Soldier Controlling Register, even a third-realm cultivator who has refined magic power is not someone I couldn't fight!"

Li Yuan sensed the Soldier Controlling Register, which glowed brilliantly.

At present, apart from five Shan Xuan Teng She sloughs, he also commanded the Dun Tian Zhou, which had merged the Huo San Mei Yin and the Dragon-Tiger Nurturing Furnace, the Sea-Splitting Dark Whale Hammer, the Sea-Calming Dark Tortoise Armor, the Two-Colored Green Dragon Armor, and the Demon-Subduing Dragon God Blade.

He simply hadn't used them.

"Although the Grand Void Mirror cannot detect the existence of the Soldier Controlling Register, to be safe, it's best not to use it if I don't have to."

Li Yuan deliberated inwardly.

He had yet to encounter a Dao San Jing cultivator in the Combat Arena, but he felt that unless he ran into someone who had cultivated the Divine Palace to the fourth heaven or above, he could still hold his own in a fight.

As for cultivators of the Divine Palace at the third or fourth heaven, or even the sixth or seventh…

"Even on the Combat Star Ranking, there aren't many cultivators who have reached the seventh heaven of the Divine Palace or above. Before breaking into the top three hundred, I probably won't run into them."

Li Yuan looked toward the Combat Star Ranking.

After over a hundred battles, his rank had climbed by a large margin, but he was still a long way from being 'on the list.'

Among the three Combat Rankings, this Star Ranking—which encompassed cultivators of the Yi Er San Jing—had the most participants, and competition was naturally the fiercest. Forget a hundred wins, even a thousand wins wouldn't put him in the top hundred.

"I'd need at least three or four thousand wins to break into the top three hundred."

The Combat Ranking had been open for nearly five years now. The vast majority of cultivators had long since climbed to where they belonged; the value of his hundred-win streak wasn't actually that high.

After all, most of the opponents he'd been randomly matched with were ordinary cultivators who had been grinding for four or five years yet still had records stuck at the first or second tier.

"Third-tier combatants can be considered elite cultivators. If I don't use the Palm Soldier Register, I'm not sure I can keep my perfect record!"

Li Yuan calculated in his heart.

He wanted the rewards from the Combat Star Ranking, but what he wanted even more was the kind of massive 'fame' that could attract millions of cultivators to spectate, like Phoenix Girl and Ying Ying Shan Xuan Long had.

Therefore, while rank was indeed important, an undefeated record was equally important.

If he could maintain a perfect record all the way to the top of the Combat Ranking…

"No rush. There's still five years."

Li Yuan had a clear plan in mind.

The Combat Ranking still had five years before it settled. In five years, cultivating eighty-one strands of magic power was certain, and he could at least cultivate his four arts to the twentieth or thirtieth layer of law prohibition.

As for the Qing Di magic power…

"Buzz~"

Li Yuan was pondering his path forward when he suddenly sensed something amiss. He followed the sound and looked toward the starry sky, discovering that the tremor originated from the starry sky formed by the 'spectator' function.

【Someone is watching your battle with the Sword Spirit Race's Yu Yu Xuanji…】

【Someone is watching your battle with the Wind God Race's Feng Feng Xiuqi…】

"Hmm?"

Li Yuan's mind stirred, and he discovered that several hundred people were watching his battles. In just this short while, he'd actually earned over ten thousand yuan coins.

He was somewhat surprised, and immediately traced the source—the battle with the most spectators.

【Human Race cultivator Ba Wan Li battles Wind God Race's Feng Feng Xiuqi… Spectating costs 30 yuan coins; immersive experience costs 300 yuan coins】

【Total viewers: 670; currently watching: 36…】

"Feng Feng Xiuqi?"

Li Yuan recalled this person—he was his very first opponent today.

He casually searched a bit and found that this fellow was actually a minor Shadow Master; every time he left a recording, hundreds or thousands of people watched.

"That works too…"

Li Yuan's expression was subtle; he only felt that the déjà vu from his past life was a bit too strong.

His thoughts shifted slightly, and he immediately sensed wisps of incense faith emerging from the void within his Niwan Palace as well—where they came from was self-evident.

"Consider it a pleasant surprise."

After learning the reason, Li Yuan wasn't too surprised.

The Grand Void Illusory Realm carried cultivators from all domains, and the elite among them naturally had enormous fame. After over a hundred consecutive battles of his, stirring up a few ripples was perfectly normal.

True inheritors from holy lands and great clans like Phoenix Girl and Ying Ying Shan Xuan Long could draw hundreds of thousands of viewers for a single battle.

"It's still a source of income."

Ten thousand yuan coins wasn't much, but Li Yuan was in a good mood.

This whole year had been all outflow, no inflow. Watching his Shan Gong dwindle had made him a bit anxious.

"This is just the beginning."

Closing the Tongshi Sphere, Li Yuan began to circulate his art and cultivate his methods, while multitasking—reading, listening, and driving his spirit phase to cultivate arts.

Everything, in orderly fashion.

……

Seeing the income, Li Yuan didn't blindly seek more battles; instead, for the next several days he didn't return to the Combat Arena at all.

Each day, he took pills and cultivated arts, absorbed spiritual qi, focused entirely on cultivation, immersing himself in the gradual process of self-improvement.

In the blink of an eye, over two years had passed.

"Hah!"

"Hoo!"

In the bamboo tower, Li Yuan sat still circulating his art. Wisps of mist emerged from the void, enveloping his bamboo tower and even the entire mountain range.

In a bamboo tower not far away, Shen Ying'er—who had been meditating—felt a stir and looked up, seeing vapor rising and mist swirling.

Faintly, she glimpsed wondrous scenes and divine light flickering within the mist, and a vast, mighty aura spread with the vapor, radiating who knew how many hundreds or thousands of miles.

"He's broken through again?!"

Looking at the hazy mist enveloping the entire mountain, knowing this must be a sign of Li Yuan's successful art circulation, Shen Ying'er's face was full of envy.

She truly felt the terror of a disciple of the Weave Heaven Dao Sect!

She had watched Li Yuan achieve He Yi success, cultivate magic power, master four powerful arts, refine the Nine-Smoke Gauze, and nurture his Dao Soldiers to the third realm…

Looking at the aura of his art circulation now, he was probably already at the peak of He Yi Jing!

And this, in just three short years!

"Is he about to forge the Divine Palace?"

Shen Ying'er truly couldn't describe her feelings at this moment. In the same three-plus years, she—who had essentially had to start her cultivation over—still hadn't managed to cultivate magic power.

"Hah!"

"Hoo!"

In an instant, the mist shrouding the mountains abruptly withdrew into that bamboo tower. Li Yuan slowly opened his eyes and raised a hand to disperse the remaining mist.

He Yi Jing — magic power caps at the number of nine-nine.

He has now refined eighty-one strands of magic power; his cultivation of He Yi Jing is already complete!

(End of chapter)