The Long Journey to Immortality

Cultivators of the Zhengyi Sect can freely explore the Jitian Palace of the Dayu Dynasty and engage in private exchanges with cultivators of the Dayu Dynasty in various ways.

Meanwhile, cultivators from the Great Yu Dynasty can also learn about the customs and culture of the Central Plains under the guidance of the two factions, preparing for further exchanges in the future.

After exchanging pleasantries, Wenren Mu led Han Lu and the others to the accommodations that Jitian Palace had prepared for the distinguished guests from the Central Plains.

Although both sides wanted to gain an advantage in the upcoming trade exchanges, they still harbored goodwill because they believed that such a win-win situation would eventually be achieved. Therefore, the place where Han Lu and her group stayed was not only not bad, but even better than the place where many other ordinary disciples of the Jitian Palace lived.

Han Lu and the others lived near the arena that was specially built for the exchange competition. Even without using lightness techniques, it was only a three-minute walk away.

The six people lived in a large courtyard with a training room and an alchemy room.

In addition to the functional rooms needed by cultivators, the courtyard also has a garden much larger than the courtyard where Piaomiaozi lives, for cultivators from the Central Plains to relax.

Needless to say, the environment is not as luxurious as the palace where the portal is located, but it is still beautiful and comfortable.

Han Lu was naturally very satisfied with staying here for three days.

The four participating disciples settled in, while Songbai Daoren and Fan Qian went with Wenren Mu to handle matters related to the friendly match.

The friendly match was just one day away, and the preparations before the match were not easy.

It wasn't until evening that Wenren Mu finally found a free moment to visit the Central Plains group's residence. He met Han Lu in the garden, where they enjoyed the moon, reminisced about the past, and chatted about the friendly match the following day.

Chapter 608 Gossip and Casual Chat

There were several well-arranged magic arrays in the garden. The two of them could talk while standing in the magic arrays without worrying about any leaks.

It has to be said that having a good friend to help you when you're out and about makes things much easier.

Without compromising the interests of the Jitian Palace, Wenren Mu spoke freely with Han Lu, telling her about the interesting things that happened during the friendly match.

Although these interesting anecdotes didn't contain much hidden or crucial information, Han Lu still learned some details about the opponents she might encounter in the next two days through Wenren Mu.

For example, the reputation and personality of the four participating cultivators in the Extreme Heaven Palace, and which ones they know might fight each other and kill each other during the friendly match, so they need to be careful.

Wenren Mu didn't just talk about himself; he also inquired about news from the Central Plains from Han Lu.

Han Lu had no intention of revealing any secrets; she simply provided a detailed account of the cultivation levels of the four cultivators, including herself, as well as their past achievements.

This information only allows Wenren Mu to roughly rank the four participating cultivators according to their strength.

That's it.

The communication on this matter lacked the harmonious atmosphere of old friends meeting during the day.

Han Lu felt a little awkward, and Wenren Mu also felt rather unhappy.

However, both of them were cultivators who were good at chatting. Han Lu took the initiative to steer the conversation toward their private matters, and Wenren Mu also cooperated by talking about his son.

Wenren Mu's son, Wenren Ou, served as the intermediary between the two, which was indeed a very suitable way to ease the awkwardness.

Speaking of Wenren Ou, Wenren Mu has transformed from a spirited and talented cultivator of the Jitian Palace into a worried old father.

After that heart-to-heart trip to the wilderness with his father, Wenren Mu devoted more attention to his son.

More than ten years have passed, and Wenren Ou, who was still a Qi Refining cultivator at the time, has long since advanced to the early Foundation Establishment stage, and is not far from the middle Foundation Establishment stage.

The path of cultivation is smooth, so why is Wenren Mu so worried? Naturally, it's because he's worried about life.

Because he disliked that slutty fairy who "sold underwear," Wenren Ou had spent the past ten years finding new lovers for his father.

It must be said that Wenren Ou's approach did have some effect.

That "seductive fairy" did indeed gradually distance herself from Wenren Mu because of his frequent blind dates.

After a series of maneuvers, Wenren Ou really got what he wanted.

Wenren Mu, on the other hand, was left with no way to express his suffering and could only remain single. On the one hand, he repeatedly assured his son that he had no interest in women, and on the other hand, he urged his son, Wenren Ou, to focus more on his cultivation rather than helping his father make friends.

Laughing and crying at the same time, Han Lu was speechless. All she could do was promise, as a friend, that she would talk to Wenren Ou during her free time three days later and help Wenren Mu resolve the matter when Wenren Mu asked her for advice.

Upon hearing this, Wenren Mu repeatedly expressed his gratitude, showing none of the omnipotence that a Golden Core cultivator would be seen as omnipotent by ordinary people.

When the topic of Han Lu came up, Han Lu shared some stories about what happened to her within Yu Zheng's inner circle over the past ten years.

Two major competitions, dealing with the plague, and so on.

Although she estimated that she would most likely reveal her true identity as a hybrid of human and spirit to everyone because of this friendly match, Han Lu did not want to tell Wenren Mu about it so soon, but instead kept this secret until the end.

To avoid gossip, Wenren Mu and Han Lu only chatted in the garden for less than half an hour before parting ways.

There were still matches to be played the next day. Although Foundation Establishment cultivators weren't lacking in stamina, Han Lu still wanted to use meditation to conserve her energy and prepare for the next battle in top condition.

The next day, Han Lu got up early and wrote two masterpieces in the study of the house before receiving the message from the paper sword. She then gathered with the other five people and, led by Wenren Mu, headed to the competition venue.

The exchange with the Central Plains of the East was public news in the Jitian Palace. Naturally, many cultivators would come to the scene to join in the fun, like "visiting animals in a zoo," to see how the cultivators from the East, who also had one head and two eyes, differed from the cultivators of the Great Yu Dynasty.

However, with nearly 110,000 cultivators practicing in the Jitian Palace, it was impossible for them all to come to the scene to watch the battle.

However, the higher-ups of the Extreme Heaven Palace had no intention of giving up on this excellent opportunity to increase the cohesion of the sect.

In addition to setting up nearly 20,000 seats around the arena for disciples and elders with cultivation levels of Foundation Establishment or above to watch the battle,

They also used magic to erect several huge "jade stones" in several cultivator settlements in Jitianfu to broadcast the images.

In this way, any disciple of the Extreme Heaven Palace who wants to watch the battle can find a place to participate in this grand event that originally belonged only to the sect's high-ranking members and a small number of disciples.

And what about the six cultivators from the Central Plains who came to participate?

The presence of so many cultivators watching the battle and cheering for their opponents undoubtedly put immense psychological pressure on them.

The two Golden Core cultivators leading the group were the first to take their seats in the VIP section.

Even with Wenren Mu accompanying them, sitting among nearly twenty Nascent Soul cultivators and over a hundred late-stage Golden Core cultivators, the two, whose cultivation levels were not high, still felt extremely uncomfortable.

There was even a slight sense that they were like lambs being led into the jaws of wolves.

Han Lu and the other three waited for a signal. Only when Wenren Mu transmitted his voice to them did they enter through the special entrance channel prepared for them.

Leaving the array barrier in the rest area and entering the arena, even the well-traveled Han Lu had never seen such a scene before.

Especially when the four of them entered the arena, the huge sound waves that erupted from the stands around the arena gave her, a true spirit with the bloodline of the Illusionary Phoenix, the illusion that she had been attacked by a divine soul.

As for others, it goes without saying.

Huang Ziqiang was slightly better off; having faced off against Golden Core cultivators before, he was able to handle this situation.

Fu Tianqiao and Ni Kuan stared blankly at the stands and the arena, their legs even feeling weak and unable to move.

Fortunately, Han Lu noticed this and whistled, incorporating the Illusionary Phoenix Divine Power into the whistle, which woke the two of them up, preventing them from losing face in front of so many cultivators from the Great Yu Dynasty.

After regaining their senses, the two thanked Han Lu in unison before following the group forward. Together with four cultivators from the Extreme Heaven Palace on the other side, they ascended the arena where the battle was about to take place and participated in the draw ceremony.

However, before the draw, Jitian Palace arranged an introduction session to briefly introduce the information of the four participants, including Han Lu, to the spectators.

The speaker was a Golden Core cultivator from the Extreme Heaven Palace, who was eloquent and added a bit of fun to the otherwise somewhat chaotic process.

The information about Han Lu and the others was reported by the monk Fan Qian and the Taoist Songbai. Naturally, apart from their names and some simple information, there was nothing confidential.

It's just a formality.

The first round consisted of cultivators from the Central Plains facing off against cultivators from the Great Yu Dynasty, so the drawing ceremony was not complicated.

To ensure fairness and impartiality, the four sticks made by the Taoist priest Songbai the day before were put into a jade box. Han Lu and the other three each drew one stick, and whoever they drew would be their opponent.

[Author's Note] This period is when the core begins to form.

Chapter 609 Drawing Lots, Information

The eight participating cultivators stood face to face. Thanks to Wenren Mu's "information" last night, Han Lu was still able to match the four cultivators not far away with the information she had learned.

Four people, three men and one woman.

The only female cultivator was named Wu Jiayue. According to Wenren Mu, she was the kind of cultivator with a chivalrous spirit, who was principled in her actions and not the kind of person who would kill a friendly Central Plains cultivator who came to the Great Yu Dynasty on the arena.

The three male cultivators were Mo Zhehan, Dong Fengyu, and Chai Tianjiao.

Wenren Mu spent a lot of time talking to Mo Zhehan and Chai Tianjiao.

According to Wenren Mu, Mo Zhehan is a disciple of the current Palace Master of Jitian Palace, Zhetian Zunzhe, and is also the strongest among all eight Jitian Palace cultivators participating in the competition.

He is warlike, but he is quite measured in his actions. According to Mo Zhehan's own claims, although he has fought at least a thousand battles with other cultivators, he has never killed anyone.

Chai Tianjiao, on the other hand, is the complete opposite of Mo Zhehan.

According to Wenren Mu, Chai Tianjiao was quite ruthless even in competitions within the sect, and at least ten fellow disciples lost their lives in his battles, which earned him a vicious reputation in the Jitian Palace.

If anyone were to die in this series of arena matches, it would be someone who is no match for Chai Tianjiao, but rather someone who is Chai Tianjiao himself.

As for Dong Fengyu, Wenren Mu's evaluation was somewhat peculiar.

It's just that Dong Fengyu's style of doing things is 90% similar to the image of the Central Plains cultivators described by Han Lu.

In addition, Dong Fengyu is the disciple of the junior brother of the Heavenly Venerable, and has a harmonious relationship with Mo Zhehan.

Based on the information provided by Wenren Mu, Han Lu naturally focused more of her attention on Chai Tianjiao.

Considering herself the strongest of the four, Han Lu naturally wanted to help her teammates deal with Chai Tianjiao first, to prevent this "bloodthirsty cultivator" from causing a bloody fight on the arena and resulting in a death.

However, while one may wish to do so, the lottery process ultimately depends on luck and fate.

Han Lu took the jade box from a Golden Core cultivator from the Extreme Heaven Palace who was acting as a referee, and shook it gently twice. A wooden stick slid out from the gap in the jade box lid.

On one side, the referee picked up the wooden stick that had fallen to the ground, glanced at it, and then showed the result to Han Lu and the cultivator who was responsible for using magic to activate the jade artifact to "broadcast the competition".

"Dong Fengyu."

Unable to get what she wanted, Han Lu's expression remained unchanged; she simply handed the jade box in her hand to Fu Tianqiao beside her.

Following the same method, Fu Tianqiao drew Wu Jiayue, and a duel between the two female cultivators will soon take place on the arena.

Compared to Han Lu and Fu Tianqiao, Huang Ziqiang and Ni Kuan from Xuanyang Valley were a little less lucky.

Huang Ziqiang encountered Mo Zhehan, the strongest of the four from the Jitian Palace.

Ni Kuan, on the other hand, faced off against Chai Tianjiao.

Huang Ziqiang and Ni Kuan, unaware of the strengths and styles of the four opponents, were not aware that they had drawn the worst possible lot.

After the draw ceremony, the referee read out the rules of the friendly match on the ring according to procedure.

When it was mentioned that killing was not prohibited in this series of friendly matches, Han Lu paid special attention to Chai Tianjiao's gaze not far away.

Contrary to Han Lu's expectations, Chai Tianjiao's expression showed no excitement whatsoever; in fact, there was even a hint of disappointment in his eyes.