Best Young Master

The competition continued, and Sun Biyue next ran into the Treasure Pavilion’s Saint Heir, Jin Changgeng, and was defeated once again, looking especially embarrassed, making Li Tianfeng glare his eyes wide in frustration.

Shi Ye and Hu Fei collided with each other, and as expected, Hu Fei was utterly defeated once more, getting slapped by Shi Ye’s massive hand and descending from the stage with a crying face, complaining about Shi Ye’s relentless strikes.

The fifth round of competition went on one by one; all the contestants showcased their flair, displaying remarkable cultivation and talent, regardless of victory or defeat.

Until the dusk fell, with the setting sun like blood, the fifth round of the competition finally concluded.

As the day turned to night, another round of competition was not feasible, so Lan Yingfei directly announced that today’s matches would end here and continue tomorrow.

After he announced the end of the competition, some disciples from the academy were already getting up to leave, but it was tough for those loose cultivators and disciples from small sects who came to watch the competition.

Although there were Transmission Array Platforms, they couldn’t teleport precisely back to their destinations, except for specially-made one-way Transmission Arrays, which were already marked with crossing distances and coordinates.

However, for these small sects’ cultivators and loose cultivators, such extravagance was impossible. Even large families, unless they were the Di Clan, rarely possessed large Transmission Array Platforms, often relying on tamed Xuan Beasts for travel, only using Transmission Arrays when the distance was too great.

After all, carving an Array Platform was laborious, and there weren’t many who truly understood array patterns. It’s also a hassle to initiate and consumes Spirit Stones. It’s more convenient to ride Flying Spirit Artifacts or Xuan Beasts.

As a means of transportation, Xuan Beasts are generally of the flying type, with adequate speed.

Of course, the steeds or spirit artifacts of the helmsmen from various forces were exceptionally luxurious.

The Xuanwu Sect, as a small sect, even had Ancient War Chariots as flying spirit vehicle; the other major forces were not even worth mentioning.

Ye Fan and his group casually ate something and then dispersed as they needed to prepare for tomorrow’s competition, sharpening their skills at the last minute.

Time was extremely precious for these competitors, as they needed to quickly digest and absorb the experience and insights gained from the matches, deepen their memories, and enhance their strength.

Some were researching others’ divine skills and martial arts to prepare corresponding strategies. After reaching the Divine Power Realm, the importance of martial arts wasn’t as significant, but powerful martial arts were still essential.

Therefore, they were studying strategic tactics with specific targets. After five rounds of matches, except for a few individuals, most had more or less exposed some trump cards. How should one handle them if encountered?

That’s one feature of a round-robin tournament, where everyone must compete with others except themselves, forcing them not only to improve their own strength but also develop targeted strategies and tactics.

The participating geniuses were all very shrewd. If an opponent was much stronger, they would choose to concede, preserving their strength to unleash it when facing a rival of similar power to strive for the final victory.

They wouldn’t waste divine power on a match with no hope of victory.

After parting with everyone, Ye Fan returned directly to his own Dong Mansion and entered the Virtual Space to comprehend the Xuandi Fist and Thunderclap Treasure Skill.

Although Ye Fan had long cultivated the early-stage Divine Realm to surpass the utmost, his body seemed like a bottomless pit, with constant training he could sense an increase in strength every time, yet he never truly reached the limit. By now, he didn’t even know how many Spirit Stones were needed to break through to the mid-stage Divine Power Realm.

Thinking of this problem made Ye Fan’s head throb — in the future, to cultivate rapidly, unless he could find a spirit stone mine, his progress would lag significantly behind others.

In the Virtual Space, Ye Fan sat cross-legged on a bluestone, continuously comprehending the Thunderclap Treasure Skill and the Xuandi Fist’s secret technique.

Up to now, Ye Fan’s understanding of the Thunderclap Treasure Skill was basically at the entry level, but there was still some distance to small success.

The reason was simple; the Thunderclap Treasure Skill was too esoteric and hard to grasp. Many sections contained only a few words, relying entirely on the cultivator’s own insights and deductions, demanding exceptionally high comprehension for those cultivating it.

Sometimes, Ye Fan even wondered how the Thunder Venerable Master initially created this groundbreaking treasure skill, seemingly a stroke of genius.

Although the Thunder Venerable Master was not a Great Emperor, his true combat power was by no means inferior to the Quasi-Emperor Peak, being only a hairbreadth away from the Great Emperor. His Thunderclap Treasure Skill manipulated the primordial power of Heaven and Earth’s thunder, which was said to be the most violent force.

To replace the Heavenly Dao and enact heavenly punishment, who else but the Thunder Venerable Master had such immense spirit?

Even a Great Emperor needs to comprehend the primordial power of the Heaven and Earth Great Tao when proving the Dao, going with the flow.

However —

The Thunder Venerable Master sought to replace the Heavenly Dao, a path to Dao verification that was among the most arduous and unlikely to succeed.

The more Ye Fan understood the Thunderclap Treasure Skill, the more he felt awe for this unprecedented Thunder Venerable Master.

He was a madman whose Dao verification ambition was stupendously audacious. If he truly became an Emperor, he would almost be invincible among Great Emperors.

This kind of power had surpassed the limits of this world and thus was not tolerated by the Heavenly Dao. Ultimately, he failed to verify the Dao, leaving an everlasting regret.

Although the Xuandi Fist was incredibly mysterious, touching upon the world’s primordial power, Ye Fan’s body, after all, contained part of the Nine Heavens Xuan Emperor’s bloodline, with his indelible imprint, making it not too difficult to comprehend.

Moreover, there was Elder Xuan by his side, continuously directing and correcting any mistakes in his understanding, which made his progress in the Xuandi Fist comprehension rather swift.

The flow of time in the Virtual Space did not synchronize with the outside world, so Ye Fan had plenty of time to comprehend cultivation techniques and martial arts, a privilege others didn’t have.

After reaching the Divine Power Realm, as Ye Fan condensed an unprecedented human-shaped Holy Embryo, there was nothing more Elder Xuan could teach him. The road ahead was entirely for him to walk on his own.

However, Elder Xuan still shared some good news with Ye Fan — at the Immortal Martial Academy, specifically in the Immortal Secret Realm, the restoration speed of the Nine Heavens Mysterious Crown had accelerated a bit. Though it remained unusable, it was nonetheless a positive sign.

"It’s time to find some Great Emperor-exclusive artifact refining materials for the Nine Heavens Mysterious Crown!"

Ye Fan pondered, stroking his chin.

For such a long time, the Nine Heavens Mysterious Crown had been self-repairing. He had almost never intervened, except during his time in Xuanwu City when he found a bronze fragment, and now in the Tianyuan Secret Realm, part of the Xuanwu Secret Realm, he found a piece of Dark Immortal Gold, and that was about it.

The big furnace acquired in Stone Village had also been completely absorbed by the Nine Heavens Mysterious Crown for energy, turning into thorough scrap.

If Elder Xuan hadn’t actively mentioned it, he would have long forgotten it. Previously, seeing that big furnace’s peculiarity in Stone Village, he had collected it into the Virtual Space.

"I wonder how Little Doudou is doing now?"

Thinking of Stone Village naturally brought thoughts of the little girl with the Innate Essence Body. Her physique was absolutely that of a cultivation prodigy. Presumably, her cultivation had reached the True Essence Realm by now?

Ye Fan mused that when he had the chance, he must return to Stone Village to see her and visit those simple and honest ordinary people.

Those sincere villagers regarded him as the Holy Spirit guarding the village, yet he had given them nothing in return and even after leaving, hadn’t returned to see them. As their Holy Spirit, he truly felt himself lacking!

However, he couldn’t help it at the moment; his current strength was still far from enough, and he couldn’t even protect himself. Recklessly going to Stone Village might bring disaster to this peaceful and harmonious small village. He had to be cautious.

Since arriving in this world, his ties and concerns had increased significantly, especially the perpetual longing for his mother.

After witnessing the enormous power of the Ling Family, he grew increasingly worried about his mother’s situation. After all, she was alone, and her cultivation level unknown. If discovered by the Ling Family, the consequences would be dire.

Additionally, Ye Fan harbored another concern — Chen Daozang!

Since arriving in the Xuan Realm, this cunning figure had disappeared without a trace, as if he had vanished into thin air.

But Ye Fan knew that if this ambitious man hadn’t perished, they were bound to clash in the future — a destined battle, unavoidable.

Chen Daozang had excellent talent and comprehension. Even in the Earth, where Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi were scarce, he could cultivate to the half-step Yuan realm. How could he not flourish in the Xuan Realm?

He most feared Chen Daozang revealing Earth’s secrets. If the Xuan Realm’s mighty ones learned of the existence of such a world, they would undoubtedly harbor invasion intentions, turning Earth into their strategic resource reserve.

By then, wouldn’t Earth people become something bred by others? What’s the difference from cattle and sheep?

He would never allow such a thing to happen!

Fortunately, the space channel had already been sealed. Moreover, Chen Daozang was likely to have broken through to the Holy Embryo Realm, and once reaching that realm, he could never return to Earth through the space channel.

Each world has its own laws, not allowing existence that surpasses its power.

However, even with late-stage True Yuan Realm cultivators, Earth people couldn’t deal with them. That was the real crisis!

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