"How did you get in?" Yang Xixue asked, quickly getting to her feet. "The pressure here is still very intense for you..."

"What pressure could there be?" Yi Tianyun said. "Just focus on your cultivation. I’m just going to look around." Instead of sitting down to meditate, he began to walk back and forth inside the cultivation room, examining the Divine Runes on the walls.

Yang Xixue didn’t dare to move around freely. After giving him a helpless glance, she sat down and resumed her cultivation. ’There’s no danger here anyway,’ she thought. ’I’ve said all I can. If he won’t listen, there’s nothing more I can do.’

Outside, Yang Yu watched, dumbfounded. Yi Tianyun hadn’t just gone in; he was wandering around aimlessly inside. ’What in the world is he doing?’

News of this quickly spread throughout the Celestial Pattern Pavilion, instantly drawing a wave of ridicule. He had just joined the Celestial Pattern Pavilion and was already challenging the fifth floor—for ten days, no less! ’Even if you have resources, you shouldn’t waste them like that.’

As the news spread, many disciples from the Celestial Pattern Pavilion went to spectate. Among them was Liao Wen, Jia Ping’s companion, who went to take a look. When he saw Yi Tianyun meditating inside, a cold glint flashed in his eyes. He turned to the person next to him and said, "Boss Jia, that’s the kid who beat up Feng!"

Jia Ping sneered. "How long has he been in there?"

"About two hours, I think," a nearby disciple replied, startled to see him.

"’Two hours...’" Jia Ping scoffed. He immediately turned and headed downstairs, returning shortly after with a Protective Talisman. Only with one of these talismans could one enter; otherwise, they could only watch from the outside.

Once he had the Protective Talisman, he strode inside. His rank was twenty-fourth. Steward Huang had said that only those ranked in the top thirty could last for a significant amount of time in here, with "significant" meaning at least several days.

It wasn’t really worth it unless you stayed for at least a few days.

"Boss, someone’s gone in to cause trouble for you!" Yang Yu suddenly shouted into the room.

Liao Wen shot him a cold glare. "Yang Yu, are you trying to pick a fight with us?"

"Pick a fight? I just shouted something. Got a problem with that?" Yang Yu wasn’t afraid of them.

Inside, Jia Ping walked up to Yi Tianyun and said in a low, commanding voice, "Kid, I’ve taken a liking to this spot. Scram."

Normally, no one would disturb another’s cultivation here. Jia Ping, however, had come in specifically to avenge Feng Yulong, not to train.

Yi Tianyun looked up at Jia Ping, his gaze cold. "Didn’t your master ever teach you? Disturbing someone’s cultivation is as good as trying to kill them!"

"Sorry, I don’t have a master. I want this spot. If you want to cultivate, go find another one," Jia Ping said, his shamelessness on full display. He wouldn’t attack, but he could certainly interfere enough that Yi Tianyun couldn’t continue his training.

"Jia Ping, that’s enough!" Yang Xixue, who had been watching from the side, could no longer bear it and stood up to rebuke him. "Aren’t you afraid of becoming a laughingstock for interfering with someone’s cultivation like this?"

"Yang Xixue, what’s he to you that you’re speaking up for him?" Jia Ping said coldly. "Your fiancé is lying in a bed, and you haven’t even gone to see him. Isn’t that a little too heartless?"

"I’m just speaking the truth. If word of this gets out, you’ll only bring shame to the Jia Family! What happens to him has nothing to do with me, and he is not my fiancé!" Yang Xixue retorted. "A proper duel is how a real man settles things, not by resorting to these underhanded tricks!"

She couldn’t stand this kind of behavior. ’A real man acts with integrity. To interfere like this is just pathetic. What’s the difference between him and a common thug?’

"A duel? Of course, I want a duel!" Jia Ping sneered at Yi Tianyun. "Will you accept my challenge and fight me?"

"A duel? Not interested," Yi Tianyun said calmly. "I just want to cultivate here. Everything else is irrelevant."

Jia Ping nearly exploded at his words. He couldn’t believe his challenge had been so casually dismissed.

"You coward!" Jia Ping jeered. "Everyone, look! I offered to settle this like men, and he refused!"

The crowd outside immediately erupted in boos, all thinking that Yi Tianyun was a coward for refusing the duel.

Yi Tianyun sized him up and down, then asked calmly, "How do you want to duel?"

"Good, you’ve finally accepted!" Jia Ping’s eyes lit up as he sneered. "Weren’t you the one who broke the formation the fastest? And you chose to stay for ten days! In that case, let’s compete with our Spiritual Power. Whoever can last longer in here wins. How about it?"

"No problem. But what are the stakes?" Yi Tianyun asked calmly.

"If I lose, I’ll be at your beck and call! If you lose, you’ll be at my beck and call, available anytime, for one year. How about it?" Jia Ping said with utter confidence.

"That’s not necessary. You’re not qualified to be my subordinate," Yi Tianyun said flatly. "My demands are simple. A slap across the face will do. Just to make sure you learn your lesson."

His words stunned the crowd. ’This newcomer is way too arrogant, isn’t he? How dare he say something like that!’ Although Jia Ping wasn’t ranked particularly high, he was still twenty-fourth, a fairly outstanding disciple. ’And he’s not qualified? Does that mean only the top ten would be?’ 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

"Good, good, good!" Jia Ping trembled with rage. "You’ve got guts! If you can beat me, forget one slap, I’ll let you slap me twice! Now, can we start?"

He was about to explode with rage. If it weren’t for the rules, he would have attacked Yi Tianyun long ago. Private fights were strictly forbidden unless both parties formally agreed to a duel; violators would be severely punished.

"We can start whenever you’re ready," Yi Tianyun said, gesturing for him to begin.

"Then let’s start now!" Jia Ping took out his Protective Talisman, sat down beside Yi Tianyun, and channeled his Spiritual Power into it. The talisman immediately lit up, and a frenzied wave of Spiritual Power surged toward him, causing his body to tremble slightly. The duel had begun.

Yi Tianyun also took out his Protective Talisman. After infusing it with Spiritual Power, he began to endure the same assault of Spiritual Power.

However, Yi Tianyun didn’t even close his eyes. He simply continued to examine the Divine Runes on the walls, treating the duel as if it were nothing.

Many people were watching from outside, but none of them favored Yi Tianyun. The reason was simple: Yi Tianyun’s rank was far too low at eighty-first. He was facing Jia Ping, who was ranked twenty-fourth—a gap of nearly sixty places!

These rankings weren’t just for show. Faced with such a massive disparity, they thought Yi Tianyun must have a screw loose to agree to this. Cultivating one’s Spiritual Power was several times more difficult than advancing one’s own cultivation level. Most would rather compete in martial arts than in a contest of Spiritual Power.

Most importantly, Yi Tianyun’s eyes were still open, showing no signs of concentration. ’Is this the act of a fool, or is he truly that confident?’