163: Soaring rankings

"Wow!"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone was in an uproar.

Su Ling's expression froze, and he was at a loss.

The remaining 2.7 million points were actually all credited to him.

If one added the 1.8 million points he had already reached before the operation started...

That was a total of 4.52 million points!

It was 150,000 more than the 4.37 million points of Liu Muyao, who was currently ranked fourth on the total points leaderboard!

And Lu Tao, from his previous 3.7 million, soared directly to 4.9 million!

He had already become the number one in the Bitao Faction!

And third on the total points leaderboard!

Not only had he completed the mission entrusted to him by Revered Master, True Lord Lu Feng, but he had also over-fulfilled it!

Even Song Moting jumped from fourth in the faction to second.

He was only 30,000 points ahead of 'Han Yu', who was now ranked third.

Liu Muyao, who was originally first, had now fallen to fourth in the faction.

Faced with this judgment, everyone was a bit surprised at first.

But after thinking about it carefully, they couldn't help but be convinced.

The reason this battle went so smoothly and yielded such massive points...

The role played by 'Han Yu' was undoubtedly the most important.

Crediting the remaining two million-plus points to him was well-deserved!

"Haha!"

Lu Tao grabbed Su Ling's shoulder and slapped it hard, "As expected of my brother, you are truly amazing!"

That expression, that look in his eyes, all spoke of the excitement in his heart.

There was not a hint of displeasure at having his credit stolen.

He was completely happy for Su Ling.

"But..."

Su Ling gave a wry smile, wanting to suggest cutting the points by more than half and sharing them with Lu Tao and Song Moting.

Unexpectedly, Song Moting had already seen through his thoughts and immediately waved his hand to stop him, "Brother Han, you made the greatest contribution in this battle. These points are what you deserve, so accept them with peace of mind!"

"Although I am very jealous, I know even better that if it weren't for your careful planning, we would never have been able to achieve this."

Zhao Lie nodded heavily, his eyes full of conviction and recognition, "Take them, otherwise I, old Zhao, won't have the face to take those 100,000 points!"

"Fellow Daoist Han, there is no need for any concerns. The National War is still long, and I believe we will certainly be able to achieve our wishes."

Murong Yue smiled charmingly, her tone gentle and sincere, "Besides, you even spent over ten million Spirit Stones for this!"

"Senior Sister Murong is absolutely right!"

Lu Tao patted Su Ling's shoulder and said solemnly, "Anyway, my mission is temporarily completed, so you should just accept them... There will be plenty of opportunities to seize points and stabilize your ranking in the future; who knows, you might even have a chance at first place!"

"This..."

Su Ling looked around and, seeing that everyone was in such agreement, he nodded slightly and said helplessly, "Alright, then I will shamelessly accept them."

As soon as the words fell, everyone laughed together.

"Since that is the case, now that this matter is settled, I hope you all will continue to work hard and achieve even greater success..."

Li Xuanfeng smiled faintly, and his figure, along with his two colleagues, faded away simultaneously.

Following the departure of the three inspectors, Lu Tao hurriedly brought up the total points leaderboard.

He saw that on the total points leaderboard, the Azure Sword Cultivator Luo Qianjie still occupied the top spot with 5.23 million points.

Wuji Sect's Feng Yihan held onto second place with 5.03 million points.

Haoyang Sect's Pei Tianque, who was originally in third place with 4.85 million points, had already been surpassed by Lu Tao and had fallen to fourth.

Song Moting occupied fifth place with 4.55 million points.

Next was 'Han Yu', who, with his Core Formation Mid-stage cultivation, had gained 4.52 million points and occupied sixth place.

Liu Muyao, who was originally in fourth place, had 4.37 million points.

Not only did she fall to seventh on the total leaderboard, but she also dropped from first to fourth on the faction points leaderboard.

Although the points gained by others were fewer, their rankings had also risen slightly.

Overall, the harvest of this battle exceeded everyone's expectations.

Such a huge change would likely spread to the seven major factions before long.

Stimulated by this, it is estimated that the intensity of the war between the major factions will reach a new level in the coming period.

But none of this hindered the laughter and joy inside Yangyuan Cave.

...

One day later, Burning Heaven Volcano.

The scorching magma surged in the depths of the mountain belly, and the steaming heat waves, carrying the scent of sulfur, rushed towards him. Even the howling mountain wind was stained with a scorching temperature.

Luo Xuanxiao stood on the edge of the volcanic cliff with his hands behind his back, his black robes fluttering in the strong wind. His cheeks, which were usually tense, softened slightly, and the corners of his mouth actually hooked into a rare shallow arc, "Brother Han, it has been more than ten years since we parted. Your strength makes me admire you more and more."

As early as when the name of the Azure Thunder Demonic Cultivator first resounded through the Bitao Faction, Luo Xuanxiao had determined that this person was Han Yu, based on the tacit understanding they had developed while fighting side by side back then.

He had come to Burning Heaven Volcano to find Chen Miaoyin, but he had not expected to reunite with an old friend here.

In this cultivation world where human hearts are unpredictable, Han Yu was one of the few comrades he truly recognized.

Seeing him again now, the joy in his eyes could not be hidden.

Su Ling smiled faintly upon hearing this, his tone full of heartfelt admiration, "I also never expected that when we met again, Brother Luo would have already advanced to the Nascent Soul Stage."

Luo Xuanxiao turned slowly, looking directly at him with burning eyes, his tone so solemn that it contained not a hint of joking, "Brother Han, even setting aside the Realm, just based on pure combat power, I do not have absolute confidence that I can defeat you."

"That is an overstatement!"

Su Ling waved his hand helplessly, but his eyes flashed with understanding, "Your Zixiao Thunder Technique is inherently more domineering and powerful than my Azure Heaven Thunder Method. If we really were to fight, I wouldn't even dare to easily bring out the ten thousand souls banner, so how could I be your opponent?"

He knew very well in his heart that the core combat power of the ten thousand souls banner relied entirely on the Soul-Devouring Spider Mother, but the Zixiao Thunder Technique was the bane of all evil and demons, specifically countering Yin Soul-type Magical Artifacts.

As long as Luo Xuanxiao equipped a soul-suppressing Magic Treasure to withstand the first wave of the Soul-Devouring Spider Mother's Soul-Shaking Shriek.

The subsequent Zixiao Divine Thunder strikes would fall, and let alone the Soul-Devouring Spider Mother, even the thousands of remnant souls in the banner would have to obediently hibernate, not even daring to show their heads.

A fierce Battle Intent suddenly ignited in Luo Xuanxiao's eyes, and lightning flashed and vanished in his eyes, "I am looking forward to the day Brother Han advances to Nascent Soul! At that time, I hope Brother Han will not hesitate to give me some pointers, and we can have a hearty battle!"

"Haha, if that day really comes, Han Yu will definitely accompany Brother Luo for a good sparring session!"

As fellow lightning cultivators, being able to fight a powerhouse like Luo Xuanxiao, Su Ling also felt a surge of anticipation, and he immediately agreed loudly.

"It's a deal!"

"It's a deal!"

The two looked at each other and laughed, their palms striking lightly in mid-air, a crisp sound echoing in the crater, sealing this agreement for a spar.

When the words fell, Luo Xuanxiao bowed to Su Ling, and his figure suddenly turned into a brilliant thunderbolt, streaking across the sky like a shooting star, disappearing into the depths of the clouds in an instant.

After the thunder light completely dissipated, Su Ling turned and walked towards the depths of the Yangyuan Cave.

Just as he stepped into the underground cave, a deafening roar rushed towards him.

He saw that in the center of the magma pool, a Crimson Flame Demonic Ape, four or five zhang tall, was struggling frantically.

Its scarlet fur was dyed even more brilliant by the magma, and its limbs were tightly bound by dozens of thick lightning chains. Every struggle caused the chains to emit cracking sounds as if they were about to break, and its angry roars caused the rubble on the ceiling of the cave to fall rustlingly.

The entire cave was over a hundred zhang in circumference, and it was wrapped in crimson flames everywhere, the air so scorching it felt as if it could distort one's vision.

Such high temperatures would likely melt even a Medium Grade Magic Treasure into a pool of molten iron if it fell into it.

It was precisely the innate Spell 'Fire Prison Domain' that the Crimson Flame Demonic Ape was unleashing by utilizing the power of the lava.

A dark red flame barrier enveloped its entire body, and every fluctuation was weakening the surrounding Restriction.