Sect Master Sun Tong of the Xuyi Sect was trembling all over at this moment. He saw his son, Sun Xiucheng, standing among the disciples of the Han Yuan Sect. Seeing Sun’s look towards him while winking and signaling, Sun Tong suddenly felt a rage and blacked out. If the E Mountain Sect discovered this, the Xuyi Sect could never escape accountability.

Yong Fu saw the cloud raft approach in the blink of an eye, then stood up, stepped onto the Gang Wind, and actively greeted it.

Zhang Yan also got up and descended from the cloud raft, floating forward.

Before long, the two met in the field, exchanged polite greetings, and after some initial banter, then moved on to the topic at hand. Yong Fu said, "Fellow Daoist Zhang, earlier I mentioned competing in three bouts of fighting. But since both of us are Sect Leaders, reaching this level is not easy, and fighting bare-chested would be inappropriate for our status. How about using a different method?"

Zhang Yan replied, "Then, according to your idea, how should it proceed?"

Yong Fu stroked his beard, seeming to ponder for a moment, and said, "Let’s do it like this: Each of us selects one Hua Dan disciple from our sect, grants them a Dharma Treasure, and we each apply Daoist Skill to see which sect’s disciple can last longer, then it’s considered a win. How do you see this?"

Zhang Yan’s eyes flashed slightly. Yong Fu indeed put some thought into this. Being a Nascent Soul True Master, when facing a Hua Dan disciple in front of all the Sect Masters at Divine House Mountain, he could not shamelessly kill them. This truly tests one’s finesse in controlling power. This approach significantly reduces the cultivation advantage, but Zhang Yan didn’t mind, and smiled, saying, "As the guest follows the host’s arrangement, I’ll adhere to what fellow Daoist suggests."

Yong Fu gave a bowing salute, returned to the building, and after a short moment, his senior disciple, Bai Jiyin, emerged through drifting smoke, came before Zhang Yan, and saluted, saying, "I am Bai Jiyin, greetings to True Master Zhang. Please be lenient afterwards."

Zhang Yan glanced at him. Bai Jiyin had smoke and flames venting from his mouth and nose, evidently attempting to condense the True Imprint of Dharma Power, likely a Second Realm Cultivator of Hua Dan, with cultivation higher than Chu Daoist, nodded, saying, "What Dharma Treasure do you possess, you may summon it forth."

Bai Jiyin saluted once more, then withdrew several dozen feet back. In the distance, he waved his hand, tossing out a five-story Golden Pavilion with numerous brilliant rays reflecting. After a spin in the air, it descended, firmly protecting his body.

Observers below exclaimed, "Golden Pavilion Treasure Cover?"

Someone else remarked, "So Master Yong’s confidence lies here. With this treasure, True Master Zhang may face a challenge."

This Golden Pavilion Treasure Cover was a Supreme Treasure borrowed by Yong Fu from his friend, Master Fang, a Mystical Artifact. A cultivator hiding within was akin to being in an Array, extremely difficult to break.

Zhang Yan contemplated briefly, then smiled slightly, forming a spell, instantly summoning a drop of Xuanming Heavy Water, and then concentrated his mana on it. After a moment, he flicked his finger, a seemingly unimpressive pure black water droplet flew out, and soon struck the Treasure Cover.

Bai Jiyin saw the droplet was unremarkable, initially considering Zhang Yan was just probing and hadn’t truly acted. But unexpectedly, upon collision, a sudden loud noise sounded near his ear, stunning him, and upon looking again, was dumbstruck, as the Golden Pavilion Treasure Cover had transformed into a golden light, flying to Heaven out of sight.

Yong Fu was immediately astonished, this situation clearly indicated that the Dharma Treasure sustained damage and instinctively returned to its master’s hand.

What kind of method was this, able to injure a Mystical Artifact on the spot? Even if this treasure was managed by a Hua Dan Cultivator, it shouldn’t have disintegrated so swiftly.

Bai Jiyin stood there, somewhat at a loss, took a while to recover, hastily saluted, and returned to Yong Fu’s side, kneeling, saying, "Disciple is incompetent, please Master punish."

Yong Fu sighed lightly, saying, "It’s not your fault, it was I who underestimated the opponent."

With Bai Jiyin defeated, it was the turn of a Han Yuan Sect disciple to enter the fray. Since there was no Hua Dan Cultivator among the junior disciples, they could only select one from Chu, Wen, and Zhao. After some discussion, Chu Daoist came forward, came before Master Yong, said, "Please, Master Yong, enlighten."

Yong Fu pondered for a moment, suddenly said, "No need to compete in this round, I concede."

He understood clearly that Chu Muran possessed a Protective Dharma Treasure bestowed by Shen Baishuang. He felt that unless he fought ruthlessly, he could not defeat them as swiftly as Zhang Yan, so he chose to hide his skills and reserve his methods for later use.

Zhang Yan raised his brows; Yong Fu was indeed decisive, smiled, and asked, "Master Yong, how do you propose the second round be conducted?"

Yong Fu waved his sleeve, then four Powerful Warriors carried out two millstone-sized ice blocks. These ice blocks were as clear as glazed tiles, translucent and pure, showing no signs of melting under the blazing sun. More strangely, each ice block contained one fist-sized, spiky, coarse-haired, armored jointed, menacing strange insect.

He pointed and said, "This item is called ’Ice Plate Stone Embryo’, unique to our Divine House Mountain, originally formed from soft jade core bamboo shoots and Divine Bird Saliva, buried thousands of years under ice. Inside the strange insect is a pair of thousand-year-old scorpion spiders. This second round of fighting relies on this item; you and fellow Daoist will refine the ice plates with mana without harming the scorpion spiders. Whoever releases the poison insect first and subdues it, wins this round."

Below, the Sect Leaders of various sects turned pale. The thousand-year-old scorpion spider is extremely vicious, in full force capable of battling Nascent Soul Third Realm Cultivators. Though sealed in ice for untold years, significantly weakened, once released, it’s challenging to deal with, especially with two present. It’s uncertain whether Yong Fu and Zhang Yan can suppress them.

Upon hearing the name of Scorpion Spider, Zhang Yan’s demeanor shifted, and he glanced at the ice plates a few times, suddenly smiled, saying, "Daoist Yong, if you can give these two Ice Plate Stone Embryos to me, let this round be considered my defeat, how about it?"

...

...(To be continued. If you like this work, please visit qidian.com to vote for recommendation and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)