Meet Zhao Aotian again

The dissipating phantom finally transformed into a handsome man, his eyes golden, and his long, snow-white hair flowing.

He had sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, thin lips, distinct angular features, and gently held a Talisman in his left hand.

He chanted in a low voice:

"Birth from evolution, death from transformation, peace for all beings."

"Wish for events, will for defiance, salvation for all beings."

A violent and sharp Aura swept out, making Li Tan unable to open his eyes for a moment.

He dared not hesitate, releasing the pressure of his cultivation!

"Eleventh Layer Qi Condensation!"

After discussing with Wang Longzhi yesterday, the two reached an agreement and spent a large amount of Spirit Stones to purchase top-grade Medicinal Pills, forcefully raising their cultivation by one layer.

After considering the pros and cons, Li Tan ultimately decided to increase his Dragon Blood concentration, temper his Physical Body, and refine his physique; the advancement in cultivation was merely a byproduct.

Polishing the foundation of the Qi Condensation Realm was crucial; he absolutely could not be careless or have any Luck mentality at this point.

Of the ten thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, only seven thousand remained, and the Low-Grade Spirit Stones were completely used up.

However, all these efforts were worth it; he could clearly sense his Physical Body, vaguely glimpsing an invisible threshold.

Striving for perfection, he only needed to spend time and train again to elevate his Physical Body to a new height.

.........

"You are still not my opponent."

After speaking, the handsome man scattered the Talisman in his hand towards the ground.

In mid-air, that Talisman was burned by an invisible flame until it turned to ash.

"Myriad creations, demons and monsters, shall be executed!"

Facing such a formidable enemy, Li Tan dared not be arrogant and quickly mobilized all his spiritual power!

"Dragon Scale Defense!"

A terrifying explosion instantly engulfed the platform, with no corner escaping the aftermath.

From Li Tan's perspective, an extreme light spread outwards, and all the surrounding spiritual power was ignited.

His ears could no longer hear any sound, and his proud figure was also annihilated in the explosion....

..................

When he opened his eyes again, there was no enemy.

Li Tan stood dumbfounded at the exit of Liuying Hall, gazing at his right palm, lost in thought.

"Once you're done fighting, come out quickly! There are many Senior Brothers waiting in line to enter!"

The noisy sounds interrupted Li Tan's thoughts; he sighed bitterly and quietly walked out of the hall.

What greeted his eyes was that familiar figure; he must have been waiting there for a long time.

When Wang Longzhi saw Li Tan come out, he immediately greeted him with a smiling face, grinning widely and chattering incessantly.

"Brother Tan, in that Liuying Hall, I met a strange old man who kept me trapped and wouldn't let me leave. He held a bamboo hammer and kept hitting my head until it hurt."

"The most unbelievable thing is that the old man could actually turn invisible! He would pop out of nowhere and give me a hammer blow. Afterwards, he even gave me a piece of advice."

"Young man, curb your arrogance and impatience, more hammer blows will make you smarter...."

Listening to Wang Longzhi's incessant complaints, Li Tan's mind raced, "It seems that the opponents everyone encounters in the hall are not the same...."

He became a bit interested and asked, sizing him up:

"Brother Long, what is your Liuying Hall ranking?"

Wang Longzhi did not conceal anything and answered every question.

"Over two millionth place. Who would have thought that a young master as talented and strong as me could only achieve such a ranking?"

"But while I was waiting just now, I heard two Disciples discussing it. He said that this Liuying Hall has a recorded ranking list!"

Wang Longzhi scratched his head, recalling bitterly, but after a long time, there was no movement, so he simply asked a nearby Disciple directly.

That Disciple, seeing that the two were members of Linghu, was very charming and eagerly led the way.

After a long time, the three finally arrived at the back of Liuying Hall, where a cloud-ladder-like ranking list came into view.

Each name was inscribed with sparkling large characters, recording the top ten thousand Disciples.

"Two Senior Brothers, this is the Liuying Hall ranking. If there's nothing else, this Junior Brother will take his leave first...."

Li Tan meticulously observed the names on the list, showing no intention of responding, and Wang Longzhi was even more stunned, remaining silent for a long time.

That Disciple was also very perceptive and quietly left the place.

"Liuying Hall First Place, Shatian"

"Liuying Hall Second Place, Gu Xuanfeng"

"Liuying Hall Third Place, Xiao Yunyan"

Without exception, all of the top one hundred Cultivators were Golden Core True Persons!

As for Nascent Soul grand Cultivators, they had no leisure to toy with the training grounds of the younger generation.

"Brother Tan, these people are all monsters, aren't they! Starting from the top fifty, they are all Golden Core Peak Realm!"

"Any one of them could sweep through our Feng City. The Heaven Sword Immortal Sect's foundation of tens of thousands of years is indeed terrifying."

Li Tan gasped:

"This world truly has countless Geniuses and Prodigies; who would dare to call themselves at the Peak of perfection?"

"Geniuses are just the threshold, Prodigies are just the starting point. On stages difficult to even glimpse, there are probably tens of millions of Dragon and Phoenix children."

.......

As the two were lost in emotion and thought, a familiar voice interrupted their musings.

"Brother Long, Brother Tan, long time no see."

Following the sound, a sharp-eyed young man stood upright in front of them.

He was the same as usual, dressed in white, with hair as black as ink, eight feet tall, and an imposing Aura.

Wang Longzhi let out a surprised cry, his face full of excitement: "Zhao Aotian, you brat, you haven't made a sound for two years!"

"I almost didn't recognize you just now. How's your cultivation recently? If anyone bullies you, just tell me."

Zhao Aotian let out a silent, wry laugh at the boisterous Wang Longzhi:

"Brother Long, please rest assured. Although cultivation has been difficult recently, there haven't been any ignorant petty people coming to bother me."

Li Tan stepped forward:

"Having just entered the inner sect, I wonder which organization Brother Long has joined. If you have time, let's meet for drinks tonight."

Zhao Aotian slowly said:

"It's a long story. I was also forced to join the Dragon Birds. Who would have thought that the inner sect would be like this too...."

"I spent a lot of resources to raise my cultivation to the twelfth layer of Qi Condensation, but looking back, I'm still just a tiny grain of sand."

Wang Longzhi clapped Zhao Aotian on the shoulder with a big hand and gave him a thumbs-up.

"Brother Long is always a step ahead of me! It's truly gratifying that you're preparing for Foundation Establishment so quickly. We must drink to our heart's content tonight!"

"But let me tell you upfront, you can't be complacent, otherwise, if I surpass you someday, you can't secretly cry."

Zhao Aotian let out a heavy sigh, his face dejected.

"The path to Foundation Establishment is extremely difficult. Once you step over it, it's a whole new scenery, a whole new sky. With my current foundation, it's still too early."

"I'm afraid I'll have to calm down and train for a few years before I can glimpse a ray of light, and I'll still have to worry about resources...."

.......

Wang Longzhi didn't mind:

"The further ahead one walks, the more attention one pays to the path beneath their feet. When did you ever know how to write the word 'fear'?"

"Enough, enough. It's almost time; we should go and drink our fill!"

"Brother Tan, Brother Long, hurry up! The good wine and food are going to be snatched up...."