The Long Journey to Immortality

A cultivator who had advanced to the late Foundation Establishment stage just two years prior defeated a cultivator who was not far from the Pseudo-Core Formation stage and had already made full preparations in one move.

Such an event happening before their eyes completely shattered their views on cultivation.

It will take a lot of time to accept reality.

On the contrary, Fu Tianqiao was not surprised by this incident. In fact, when she was setting up heavy defenses around herself, she had a premonition that this would be the outcome.

With the cry of that unknown bird still echoing in her mind, Fu Tianqiao felt that Han Lu was becoming increasingly unfathomable. Her plan to get revenge on Han Lu in the competition three years later cooled down.

After pretending to rest for a while, Han Lu slowly opened her eyes and silently accepted the stares of those around her.

Han Lu felt good about defeating her enemy with one move, and being looked at with such eyes by the Golden Core elders and cultivators of the same cultivation level gave her a secret sense of satisfaction.

However, on the surface, Han Lu maintained an extremely calm state.

She took a deep breath, glanced at Zhong Kaige who was still slumped in her seat and had not yet woken up, then turned her gaze to Yun Min Daoist who was smiling at her. She stood up gracefully from her seat, bowed, and said.

"Sect Leader Yunmin, I think I have won just now."

Yunmin Daoist laughed and said, "Of course, Han Lu, your move just now was very exquisite. I wonder where you learned it?"

Han Lu winked at Daoist Yun Min and said, "When I returned more than ten years ago, I was inspired by the cry of a true spirit phoenix. Based on that inspiration, I cultivated for ten years to achieve that move just now."

When it comes to the ability to lie, even a hundred Yunmin Daoists can't compare to Han Lu.

Furthermore, Han Lu deliberately brought up a secret that only Daoist Yun Min and a few other high-ranking members of the sect knew more than a decade ago, which completely dispelled Daoist Yun Min's idea of ​​"interrogating" Han Lu.

After a hearty laugh and a few more words of praise, Daoist Yunmin made his final decision: "Since Han Lu has kept her promise and indeed won with just one move, according to the rules we established earlier, Han Lu is now temporarily ranked first on the list, and Zhong Kaige..."

When Daoist Yunmin mentioned Zhong Kaige's name, Zhong Kaige, who had been unconscious, seemed to sense something and slowly woke up.

Opening his eyes, he saw everyone staring at him, and he wished he were still unconscious to avoid experiencing this most humiliating moment for a loser.

Upon seeing that Zhong Kaige had awakened, Daoist Yunmin temporarily suspended his judgment.

As the sect leader, he took the initiative to express his concern for Zhong Kaige.

Zhong Kaige never expected that he, who had been scheming to get close to Sect Leader Yunmin, would obtain what he wanted in this way.

Overwhelmed with gratitude, Zhong Kaige brazenly pretended to be nonchalant and tried his best to demonstrate his magnanimity.

He first praised Han Lu, then belittled himself, and finally "voluntarily conceded defeat" before Daoist Yunmin could make his decision.

He had very mixed feelings about this matter.

While not entirely convinced, he did admit that this round of combat proved him to be the arrogant one.

Many of his words were against his true feelings, but they also genuinely expressed his inner thoughts.

Despite being defeated in one move, he showed no reluctance to admit defeat. In fact, he was eager to end the conversation quickly, recover from his injuries, and vent his resentment on the cultivator currently ranked second.

Since Zhong Kaige has voluntarily admitted defeat, there is no need for Daoist Yunmin to continue judging.

After saying a few nice words, he made a few changes on the rice paper with his pen, switching Han Lu's and Zhong Kaige's rankings.

Han Lu's impressive performance immediately captivated the other cultivators who were also eager to take on the challenge, making them wish they could also showcase their skills on such a grand occasion and win applause.

Fu Tianqiao was about to challenge like Han Lu, but her fellow disciple, ranked fourth on the list, beat her to it and stood up to speak.

Not everyone is as confident as Han Lu.

Only those ranked in the top three are eligible to participate, so naturally, many people are eyeing the cultivator currently ranked third.

The battle between the generally recognized fourth and third place teams is fierce, intense, and interesting.

Unlike Han Lu's "one move decides the outcome" approach, the cultivator who initiated the challenge obediently followed Yun Min Daoist's instructions.

Therefore, all the disciples and branch deans who were still conscious moved to Daoist Yunmin's training room, leaving the dean of Zhongshan Academy, who was not feeling well, to look after the three "useless" people who had not yet woken up in the conference room.

Standing beside the ring watching the fight, Fu Tianqiao subconsciously moved closer to Han Lu, thinking of getting closer to this opponent who had once defeated her.

Han Lu was also able to sense Fu Tianqiao's goodwill. While watching the game, she would occasionally speak up and exchange a few words with Fu Tianqiao to avoid appearing too aloof or unapproachable in front of others.

The story of a gekokujo (overthrowing one's superior) did not occur in this great war.

The battle lasted a full ten minutes, but in the end, the cultivator ranked fourth was defeated.

The cultivators, who had just fought a great battle, were given about fifteen minutes to recover. Now it was finally Fu Tianqiao's turn to appear.

Before going on stage, Fu Tianqiao solemnly asked Han Lu for the "secret to victory".

Instead of answering the question directly, Han Lu started talking about her ranking.

“Fellow Daoist Fu, you are ranked second on my list, while he is only fifth.”

Upon hearing this, Fu Tianqiao was immediately filled with confidence, as if she had suddenly gained three points of spiritual power within her body.

As Han Lu had predicted, Fu Tianqiao returned victorious without expending much effort.

Like Han Lu, the other two female cultivators present were both ranked in the top three, temporarily securing two spots to participate in the East-West Friendship Match.

[Author's Note] After starting work, I no longer know what April Fool's Day is.

Chapter 598 The Dust Settles

Because of Han Lu's momentary willfulness and the "arrogance" of some of her fellow disciples involved in the matter, most of the remaining participants were slightly injured and unable to exert their full abilities.

Therefore, Daoist Yunmin simply scheduled the second round of selections for the same time three days later, thus ending the first day of the challenge, which was originally scheduled to consist of four to five rounds.

The fierce battle had taken its toll, but Fu Tianqiao was happy with it.

The other participants naturally had no objections.

Everyone felt they needed time to recover from their injuries, gather information, and cherish the challenge they had.

Especially Zhong Kaige, who was the most seriously injured.

If he were to challenge any of the top three in his current form, he, whose strength is certainly among the top three, would have absolutely no chance of winning.

Everyone was happy, except for the cultivator who had failed in the challenge, who looked dejected.

If he still wants to participate in the East-West Friendship Tournament and try to win the championship and prizes, then he will have to compete with other losers and many fellow disciples who have returned from their travels at some point in the future.

To keep the matter a secret, Master Yunmin repeatedly instructed everyone not to spread the word. Only after everyone swore an oath did he trigger the restriction, open the door to the training room, and let everyone leave.

Han Lu was the first to leave, but she was stopped by Daoist Yunmin as she was leaving.

Slightly puzzled, Han Lu stepped aside and stood silently to the side, waiting for everyone else to leave, leaving only her and Daoist Yunmin.

"Sect Master, what business do you have with me?"

She had already told Yunmin Daoist all the information about the Great Yu Dynasty, and for a moment she couldn't think of when Yunmin Daoist would need to talk to her privately again.

"It's nothing serious," said Daoist Yunmin. "I just wanted to ask you about something trivial. Do you remember that elder who came to the Zhengyi Sect from the Seven Mountains Alliance a few years ago looking for you?"

Han Lu nodded and said, "Of course I remember this. What, Daoist Yunmin, did I meet that Fairy Feng Yufei by chance when I was returning from the Great Yu Dynasty and passing through the Seven Mountains Alliance?"

This was the explanation that Han Lu and Feng Yufei had agreed upon, but it had never been mentioned to Daoist Yunmin.

"Oh, I see," Yunmin Daoist said without doubt, and continued to ask, "Then do you know the true identity of this Phoenix Fairy?"

"This... I don't know," Han Lu feigned surprise. "Sect Master, could it be that this Senior Feng Yufei is not an elder of the Seven Mountains Alliance?"

Han Lu's acting was realistic and consistent, perfectly matching her identity as a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator when she returned to the sect.

“That’s not it,” Daoist Yunmin said, no longer keeping her in suspense. “It’s just that today I saw that the soul attack you used was something you learned from the True Spirit Phoenix, which reminded me of this matter.”

“This Fairy Feng Yufei is the true spirit of a phoenix from the wilderness, but she is an elder in the Seven Mountains Alliance in human form.”

"I was thinking that since you know her, you might be able to use that connection to ask her for advice directly."

It turned out that Daoist Yunmin was worried about Han Lu's cultivation, which was why he kept Han Lu alone to discuss personal matters and offer her guidance.

Han Lu could truly feel Yunmin Daoist's enthusiasm.

Unfortunately, Han Lu told many lies about this matter, and this obvious Illusionary Phoenix Divine Power certainly could not be inspired by Feng Yufei, the Prison Phoenix, to achieve further improvement.

However, hearing these words still moved Han Lu quite a bit, and she felt that her decision to return to Zhengyi Sect was absolutely correct.

"I see," Han Lu said, feigning great inspiration and thanking him repeatedly. "Thank you for your guidance, Sect Leader. Before this competition, I will try to find Fairy Feng in the Seven Mountains Alliance to see if I can gain some more insights from her."

Aside from that, Daoist Yunmin didn't mention anything else to Han Lu. He opened the door, told Han Lu not to forget the second round of selection three days later, even if she came in first, and then left on his own.

Three days later, Han Lu arrived as promised.

This time, in addition to Daoist Yunmin, the five branch deans, and the nine Foundation Establishment disciples who participated in the selection and could initiate or accept the selection, an acquaintance of Han Lu appeared in the training room of Daoist Yunmin's residence.

This matter concerns the behemoth that is the Great Yu Dynasty, and is closely related to the development of the Central Plains and sects for the next few decades or even centuries.

Such a momentous event naturally required the intervention of Venerable Qingyang, who had been a constant presence in the sect in recent years.

With a higher-ranking elder present, Daoist Yunmin, the rotating sect leader, naturally chose to take a back seat and serve as an audience member, while Venerable Qingyang took full charge of today's selection.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Venerable Qingyang announced the start of today's selection process.

Venerable Qingyang came here partly because this matter was of great importance, and partly because he had heard Yunmin Daoist's report and had become interested in Han Lu's illusion technique.

Also, take this opportunity to meet with the disciples of the Zhengyi Sect who may have the opportunity to advance to the Golden Core realm in the next ten years or so.

For this reason, Venerable Qingyang spoke less and observed more, handing over the leadership of the entire event to the disciples who were willing to challenge him.

After announcing that challenges could begin, Zhong Kaige, who had been preparing for battle for two days and had recovered 95% of his strength, immediately jumped onto the arena and challenged Zhen Hua, a cultivator from Beishan Academy who was ranked second by everyone.

Why search for Zhen Hua, who came in second place, instead of Han Lu, who came in first place, or Fu Tianqiao, who came in third place?

Zhong Kaige had his own ideas.

After being defeated by Han Lu in one move, he still had the idea of ​​getting revenge on Han Lu, but he had also realized the truth: he was no match for Han Lu now.

Revenge will have to wait ten years.

Fu Tianqiao was a friend of a friend of his, and they had a somewhat distant relationship, so she was not suitable as a target for his challenge.

After counting and considering, Zhen Hua, who had once been his defeated opponent, was naturally the most suitable to be his adversary.

Although Zhong Kaige only managed to defeat Zhen Hua by chance in the last competition, it wasn't because his strength was significantly superior to Zhen Hua's.

But at this moment, Zhong Kaige, full of fighting spirit, unleashed 120% of his ability, and actually suppressed Zhen Hua firmly on the stage from beginning to end, and successfully won the final victory.

This match unexpectedly became the only highlight of today's second round of selection.

The injured Zhen Hua was unable to fight again.

The remaining few were all rotten fish and shrimp.

Although he mustered up the courage to challenge Fu Tianqiao repeatedly, he ultimately failed to defeat her in third place by using a strategy similar to a tag-team battle.