Traveling across the globe for the first time

Time passed slowly, and Zhang Haoran's qi and blood were steadily increasing.

On the third day after he began transforming his Qi and blood, his basic Qi and blood had reached 3400 million. At this time, the Southern Emperor's expression became solemn, and his mind began to wander again. He considered whether he should take a gamble and interrupt the operation of the technique, as the improvement was too rapid.

But two more days passed, and he finally relaxed because the Southern Emperor sensed that Zhang Haoran's blood and qi had not increased much, nor had the pressure he felt on him increased much.

He believes that this has passed its period of rapid growth and will stop soon.

The Southern Emperor breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Fortunately, it only increased by a few million units of Qi and Blood, which is not too much. As long as he is still at the ninth level, there is nothing to worry about."

Zhang Haoran hasn't converted much qi and blood in the past few days, except for a slightly larger amount in the first two days.

On the first day, I was so excited that I converted 100 million directly. Later, I tried to slow down, but the effect was not enough, and I converted another 100 million.

However, after that, only 50 were converted each day, which led Nanhuang to misunderstand and think that the conversion was about to end. Little did he know that this was just the beginning.

Zhang Haoran was happy with this arrangement. He really didn't want to fight the other party. Killing a projection wouldn't benefit him much and would interrupt the operation of his cultivation technique. Once it stopped, he wouldn't be able to enjoy such a high conversion rate, and even paying several times the price wouldn't make up for it.

Once the Qi and blood and spiritual energy reach a balance, primal force will be generated, and they can no longer be transformed into each other.

So if he can delay for one more day, he can convert an additional 500,000 calories of basic Qi and Blood. Once his Qi and Blood reach 40 million, and he reveals his true strength, perhaps the Southern Emperor will not dare to make a move.

After all, with such strength, he could not only destroy the projection, but also kill the Southern Emperor's true form. As long as he is of sound mind, he would not make the wrong choice.

Well, even if the Southern Emperor has a problem with his head, he still needs to think this through carefully.

This is true.

At first, Nanhuang sensed that Zhang Haoran's blood and qi were increasing very slowly, and thought that the transformation would end soon. However, as time went by, the other party's blood and qi continued to increase at a steady pace.

This put the Southern Emperor in a dilemma. If he made a move, he feared that the opponent's transformation was about to end, so he wouldn't be able to cause much damage and would only lose his own life in vain, which would be a loss that didn't outweigh the gains.

But watching his enemy grow stronger day by day without taking action was also very distressing for him.

As the Southern Emperor struggled with his dilemma, time passed day by day.

Half a month passed in the blink of an eye. He could no longer sit still. A fierce glint flashed in his eyes, and he gritted his teeth and said, "I can't wait any longer. I must take action. Otherwise, if he continues to improve, he may threaten his original body."

Just as the Southern Emperor was about to make his move, he suddenly realized that his opponent seemed completely unprepared. A thought flashed through his mind, and he thought to himself, "Something's not right! I might have been tricked. This kid deliberately leaked some of his aura so that I could sense him getting stronger. He's just trying to lure me into making a move!"

No one can be completely unprepared in front of an enemy; that's definitely a trap.

The Southern Emperor thought Zhang Haoran was fishing, waiting for him to make the first move!

Otherwise, there would be no need for such a slow conversion. He is very familiar with his Returning to Origin Technique and can complete the entire conversion in a few hours. Even if he is worried that his control over Qi and blood will decline, it will only take a few days. There is no need to drag it out for so long.

"call!"

The Southern Emperor let out a long breath and sat back down, thinking to himself, "Luckily, I stopped in time, or I would have been tricked."

He also knew why the other party was tempting him to make a move.

After all, he had just taught me the Returning to Origin Technique, and he had given me very careful guidance without holding anything back, which was a great favor.

If Zhang Haoran were to attack him, it would be repaying kindness with enmity.

A person who acts without any moral compass can never become a top-tier expert.

However, if the Southern Emperor were to make a move, things would be different. He would be courting death, and others could kill him without feeling any remorse.

Just then, Zhang Haoran's blood and qi fluctuated, allowing him to sense the aura of someone at the peak of the ninth level, approaching that of an emperor.

This made the Southern Emperor even more certain that he was right not to take action.

"This kid is indeed cunning; he was trying to lure me into making the first move."

However, he was still too young and his methods were somewhat immature.

With the enemy right beside you, who would believe you if you acted completely unprepared?
You should pretend to be more vigilant, acting as if you are fully focused on transformation and afraid of being disturbed.

That's the only way to entice me to make a move.

The Southern Emperor inwardly scorned him for a moment, then doubt arose in his heart.

"Judging from the fluctuations in his qi and blood that this kid just revealed, his qi and blood are already close to forty million, but they are still being converted and show no sign of stopping."

Just how high is his mental strength?

Or is this kid just really lucky, with a very high conversion rate?

If he continues this transformation, he'll reach the limit of breaking through nine. Does he really intend to attain enlightenment here?

The Southern Emperor never expected that the Returning Origin Technique, once in the hands of the enemy, could produce such a monstrous effect.

Although no lossless conversion occurred, the proportion was still very high.

Most importantly, the other party had previously consumed a large amount of spiritual essence, so they were not lacking in spiritual energy at all.

The Southern Emperor sighed and said, "Alas! Things have come to this, and there is nothing I can do about it."

I never imagined I would create such a monster with my own hands. I don't know if it's good or bad for the Three Realms.

He had genuinely intended to self-destruct this projection to interrupt it. Even if the other party had already learned the Returning Origin Technique, as long as it wasn't the first time it was used, there wouldn't be such a high conversion rate.

But it's too late to say anything now!

Zhang Haoran's base Qi and Blood is already close to 40 million, almost reaching its limit. Even if he stops now, there won't be much loss.

"Oh well! Never mind!"

The Southern Emperor sighed and said, "This person's rise is beyond my control. Let the other emperors worry about it!"

Because of the favor of being taught the technique, he at least won't be the first to attack the original body.

"The battles to come will be between emperors, and have nothing to do with me, since I am merely a projection."

The Southern Emperor had no doubt that the other party could attain enlightenment. He was so young yet already possessed such strength and had reached this point; attaining enlightenment was only a matter of time.

Zhang Haoran was somewhat disappointed by the Southern Emperor's decision to give up. In fact, he had already prepared to counterattack, and his three clones were ready to strike at any time.

As his strength has increased, his clone now possesses the power of a supreme being, and in a three-on-one situation, dealing with the Southern Emperor's projection is no problem.

The key is that it won't affect the operation of the cultivation technique, and you can continue to enjoy the extremely high conversion rate.

Actually, he didn't intentionally leak his aura just now; it was a natural reaction when his Qi and Blood exceeded 4000 million. Zhang Haoran is now certain that his basic Qi and Blood will not be suppressed, and with his remaining spiritual power, he can convert another five million calories of Qi and Blood.

However, this will take at least another two weeks.

It's better to avoid trouble these days.

After all, the Southern Emperor is the guardian of this place. If we are really willing to go all out, we can still interrupt his cultivation.

Putting everything else aside, if the Southern Emperor were to self-destruct a few more times, causing the checkpoint to collapse, he would have no choice but to leave.

Fortunately, the Southern Emperor was quite afraid of death, so this situation did not occur.

Zhang Haoran breathed a sigh of relief and said, "You're smart to know what's good for you! If you had dared to interrupt me, we would have been mortal enemies! We'd never be friends again!"
I'll make you regret what you did in the past.

New martial artists are known for their vindictiveness!
At that time, he will not let go of this projection, nor even the true body of the Southern Emperor in the Nine Heavens.

Even without leaving this little world, he has ways to deal with the other party.

Don't forget, Zhang Haoran also has the Book of Curses, which is equipment certified by the Myriad Realms Tower. As long as he has the Southern Emperor's essence, he can cast curses across a small world without any problem.

Moreover, it uses the power of deathly stillness.

The test at the Northern Emperor's Gate gave him a deeper understanding of the power of deathly silence.

That's definitely not something a fifth-tier expert can withstand. Even if it can't kill the Southern Emperor directly, it can still greatly weaken him.

Currently, there is already a half-crippled human emperor in the Nine Heavens. If the Southern Emperor is also crippled, it might trigger a war among emperors ahead of schedule. After we get out, we might be able to take advantage of the situation.

Now that the Southern Emperor has calmed down, there's no need to worry anymore; just have a few clones keep an eye on him.

Zhang Haoran shifted his attention to the Origin Space. During this period, the transformation of Qi and blood was very slow, and the Origin Dao had ample time to be tempered. It should have reached the edge of the cliff by now and be able to see the True Gate in the distance.

He needs to assess the situation first before devising a response plan.

Zhang Haoran's consciousness entered the Origin Space and found Number One holding a long sword and staring at the Southern Emperor.

In fact, his body was entirely composed of primordial energy, while the longsword was the true form of Number One and its core manifestation.

Number Three remained at the core of the Innate Sword Formation, presiding over its operation. However, he now held a longsword composed of sharp energy, ready to strike at any moment.

Only Number Two wasn't here. He couldn't stay still, and as soon as the crisis was over, he immediately ran to the end of the Origin Path to check the situation.

That's nothing. As long as one clone takes action, it can easily deal with the Southern Emperor.

Zhang Haoran's consciousness also arrived at the end of the Origin Path. Sure enough, a cliff appeared in front of him. The cliff was not too wide, estimated to be only a few thousand meters long, and it seemed that he could cross it with a little effort.

However, he knew that this cliff was not so easy to cross; it would require the full energy of a beginner martial artist at the peak of the eighth level.

It's important to understand that beginner martial artists don't have any source amplification. When they break through to the peak of the eighth level, they have 40 million units of Qi and Blood, which is all basic Qi and Blood. This is equivalent to the entire Qi and Blood of an emperor.

This also shows how difficult the first test before attaining enlightenment is!
Below the cliff was a pitch-black abyss, unfathomable and terrifying to behold. It seemed as if a black hole was constantly devouring energy, and he was certain that if Number Two were thrown in, he would be doomed.

On the opposite side of the cliff stood a giant silver gate, its shape very similar to the Gate of Qi and Blood.

The real door is now radiating a strong spiritual energy.

Zhang Haoran exclaimed in surprise, "Damn, are you kidding me? I'm a master of Qi and Blood, how could it be the Gate of the Spirit?"

I wonder which emperor guards this true gate? And does he even know that I've arrived at the edge of the cliff?

The true gates that a martial artist needs to break through before attaining enlightenment are also different.

It mainly depends on the cultivation system. A strong person in the path of Qi and Blood should break through the gate of Qi and Blood, but what appeared in front of him was the gate of the spirit.

Then Zhang Haoran realized that the Gate of Qi and Blood had been shattered by Fang Ping and probably hadn't been repaired yet. In addition, he hadn't completed the transformation, and his spiritual power was still stronger than his Qi and Blood. That's why he was mistaken for a strong person who mainly cultivated spiritual power, so it was normal for the Gate of Spirit to appear.

However, this is also a good thing. If there really is an emperor investigating from the other side, he would never have thought that it was a martial artist from the mortal realm seeking to prove his Dao.

Zhang Haoran really didn't know which emperor was guarding the gate of the spirit.

He only knew that the Gate of Qi and Blood was guarded by the Human Emperor, and the Gate of Energy was guarded by the Fighting Emperor. He figured that the guardian of the Gate of Spirit wouldn't be too weak either.

He had limited knowledge of the emperor and didn't really know who was better at mental power.

It might be the Eastern Emperor, or it might be the God Emperor personally guarding it; whoever it is, it will be very troublesome.

As long as the true gate is touched, the other party will definitely sense it and know that someone is about to attain enlightenment!

All the emperors will come to watch, so without absolute certainty, one cannot easily attain enlightenment and must be careful of being surrounded and killed.

"Hey!"

At this moment, Number Two said with a melancholy look, "My main body, I can't use my strongest trump card anymore. Will I become even less noticeable in the future?"

Zhang Haoran turned his head to look at Number Two and said in an annoyed tone, "What kind of trouble are you trying to cause now? What do you mean by that?"

Number Two pointed to the cliff in front of him.

"Look, the road now ends at a cliff!"
I can no longer use sword energy to launch primal attacks. If I shoot sword energy now, a lot of energy will be absorbed by the cliff, and even if there is any remaining power, it will be blocked by the True Gate, making it impossible to enter the Great Dao Universe.

Now we've lost one of our trump cards.

Reminded by Number Two, Zhang Haoran realized that with the cliff and the True Gate blocking his way, his previous attack methods were indeed no longer effective.

He immediately reminded him: "With my current strength, what kind of enemy can't I kill? Why would I care about such a small trick?"
You better behave yourself from now on. Just focus on honing your swordsmanship and don't attract the emperor's attention.

"If you dare ruin my plans, I'll throw you off this cliff and see what's down there."

Number Two glanced at the dark bottom of the cliff and couldn't help but shudder. He asked with some curiosity, "How exactly was this cliff formed? And where does it lead?"
Could it be one of those cracks in the source area?

"Does that mean if we go down from here, we can see the Heavenly Emperor?"

Zhang Haoran said irritably, "How would I know? Why don't you go down and scout ahead? Anyway, if you die, I can revive you."

"Give me a break! I know you've always disliked me, and your memories will definitely be erased after you're resurrected. I'm not falling for that. I'm going to hone my swordsmanship right now. You just stay here and watch."

It is extremely difficult to cross the cliff on one's own; one must be a true follower of the Dao.

In truth, Zhang Haoran didn't care how the cliff was formed; he just hoped it would be as strong as possible. Since he didn't plan to attain enlightenment right now, a stronger cliff meant more time to cross, which would allow him to use that time to further improve his qi and blood. (End of Chapter)