The Long Journey to Immortality

"go with!"

After reciting an incantation, Shen Hongbo threw the small flags into the air, and then used his weapon control techniques to make the flags fly to various parts of the arena.

Manipulating so many small flags at once, Shen Hongbo's expression was serious, clearly indicating that this was a very difficult task for him.

Seeing this, Han Lu only hesitated for a moment before realizing what Shen Hongbo was doing.

"These must be array flags for setting up a formation? Interesting."

After a few thoughts raced through her mind, Han Lu came up with a solution.

After reciting an incantation, Han Lu once again unleashed her formidable water bullet technique.

However, this time the water bullet technique was somewhat different from the water bullet technique that Han Lu used when she was in the Dao Child Realm.

Han Lu summoned about seventeen or eighteen water bullets, each about the size of a fist. The water bullets were not clear blue, but rather a murky gray.

This is Han Lu's slight improvement to this technique, replacing clean water with sewage.

With a flick of his finger, he sent a water bomb flying toward Shen Hongbo.

Busy controlling the array flags, Shen Hongbo had no time to dodge and was hit squarely by these water bullets.

Looking at the gray water splashing not far away, Han Lu didn't think that her opponent who advanced to the top 64 had such tricks and would be defeated in one move.

Sure enough, the jade pendant hanging around Shen Hongbo's neck suddenly emitted light, generating a protective shield that blocked all the water bullets.

When the mist cleared, Shen Hongbo was unharmed.

The cultivators who advanced to the top 64 all had some good items in their storage bags. The jade pendant around Shen Hongbo's neck was the main reason why he dared to use the weapon-controlling formation tactic in front of so many cultivators.

However, Han Lu's dirty water bomb tactic did have some impact on Shen Hongbo's strategy.

When attacked by the sewage bomb, Shen Hongbo couldn't see clearly in front, behind, left, and right for a moment. He naturally made some small mistakes when setting up the formation, as he already had some difficulty controlling the twelve array flags.

The three battle flags landed in slightly different positions than planned.

Once the battle flags are on the ground, they cannot be moved at will.

Fortunately, this formation is only the lowest level, and the position of the formation flags does not require complete accuracy.

Even now, the formation can still be activated, but its power will likely only be about 60%.

There was no turning back now, so Shen Hongbo had no choice but to recite the incantation again, communicate with the array flags, and activate the magic array.

Within the barrier of the arena, a light pink magic circle appeared, enveloping Han Lu and Shen Hongbo together.

Seeing this, Han Lu was not flustered. She did not think that the hastily set-up magic array could be very powerful.

"It's probably not a killing formation," Han Lu murmured to herself, sensing the aura emanating from the formation. "Hopefully it's an illusion formation or something similar."

After the formation was activated, a faint pink mist appeared on the arena, completely concealing Shen Hongbo's figure.

Seeing this, Han Lu felt she had already guessed the function of the magic array, but just to be on the safe side, she quickly held her breath, fearing that the mist might not only obscure her vision but also be a kind of poison gas.

When soldiers come, generals will block them; when water comes, earth will dam it. Fortunately, Han Lu's armory has a way to deal with this move.

Han Lu's spiritual energy flowed rapidly through several acupoints within her body. When Leng Yue Han Mu was activated, a change occurred in Han Lu's eyes.

With the help of the secret technique, these illusions were easily broken, and Han Lu immediately spotted Shen Hongbo, who was moving rapidly within the formation, changing positions, and preparing to unleash a spell to launch a sneak attack.

Having figured out her opponent's moves, Han Lu quickly came up with several plans that would allow her to win.

Faced with so many potential competitors, Han Lu did not intend to reveal too much of her trump card, and decided to use the simplest move in these plans to deal with Shen Hongbo.

Pretending to be confused by the pink mist, unable to see Shen Hongbo's location.

Han Lu used her limited artistic talent to wander aimlessly around the magic circle.

But in reality, she had been keeping a close eye on Shen Hongbo's position out of the corner of her eye, while simultaneously casting a spell that could end the match.

Han Lu's less-than-stellar acting completely fooled Shen Hongbo. Shen Hongbo never expected that his invincible moves in the first round would be so easily neutralized by Han Lu.

Piaomiaozi, who was watching the match from the high platform, noticed the change in Han Lu's eyes and secretly cheered for his disciple, already having a judgment on the outcome of the match.

Shen Hongbo used a few simple spells, and Han Lu pretended to rely on luck to dodge them.

Once he was certain that Han Lu had completely lost her way within the formation, Shen Hongbo held his breath, took a few steps to the side, and prepared to unleash his ultimate move.

But who would have thought that Shen Hongbo's first move would lead to a change in this contest of skills that most people could not have imagined?

By the time Shen Hongbo realized something was wrong with the ring he was standing on, it was too late.

The water prison rose, and the water prison trap set by Han Lu temporarily imprisoned Shen Hongbo.

Water prison traps are a relatively common technique, and many cultivators know them. So when Shen Hongbo saw the several columns of water around his body, he instantly understood what had happened.

Shen Hongbo was shocked, finding it all unbelievable. "How could I have stepped into a trap? Was Han Lu just unaware and set it up carelessly?"

Seeing that Shen Hongbo had fallen for the trap, Han Lu stopped trying to put on her clumsy acting.

With a wave of his hand, four ice walls, each about half a meter thick and three meters high, appeared outside the water prison, completely surrounding Shen Hongbo.

Immediately afterwards, Han Lu raised her hand and silently recited the incantation of the Water Condensation Technique, gathering all the water vapor in the air of the arena.

A localized torrential rainstorm occurred on arena number 2.

Not knowing what level of magical artifact Shen Hongbo's jade pendant was or how many attacks it could withstand, Han Lu chose to use the "flooding the seven armies" method to win the match.

Shen Hongbo, who was imprisoned in a water dungeon and surrounded by ice walls, was instantly drenched in cold water.

Just as Shen Hongbo was about to use magic to escape and leave.

He discovered that the torrential rain had turned the area within the four ice walls into a pool of water, and in just a moment, the water level reached his thighs.

"Oops."

Upon seeing this, the clever Shen Hongbo immediately understood Han Lu's intention.

He knew in his heart that something was wrong, but it was too late.

In an instant, the water completely filled the ice pool formed by the four ice walls.

Imprisoned in the water dungeon, Shen Hongbo could only hold his breath and helplessly thrash his hands in the dungeon, trying to cast a few simple spells that did not require chanting incantations to escape.

Han Lu's water dungeon was not a shoddy construction project; her insignificant magic could not help Shen Hongbo break free of the confinement.

Just in case, Han Lu raised her hand again and summoned an ice wall.

The ice wall fell from the sky, as if to put a lid on this "Pacific Ocean".

Seeing this, Shen Hongbo, who did not want to be defeated again while pretending to be full of water, quickly raised his hands in the water dungeon as if to surrender.

Han Lu roughly guessed Shen Hongbo's meaning from his body language, but she didn't stop.

After all, simply raising your hand doesn't mean surrendering or admitting defeat, and the game isn't over yet.

As Han Lu continued her actions, she asked, "Junior Brother Shen, are you admitting defeat?"

Just as the lid was about to be closed, Shen Hongbo nodded frantically in the water upon hearing this.

Han Lu glanced at the referee out of the corner of her eye.

The referee saw Han Lu's gaze and guessed what question she wanted to ask, so he simply shrugged and looked helpless.

All of this is against the rules of the competition, and the referee cannot declare the winner of the competition based on this action.

Therefore, Han Lu could only continue casting spells and use this combination of punches to end the battle.

The ice walls fell, and the five ice walls, together with the arena, formed a small, enclosed space filled with water.

Although Shen Hongbo was a cultivator, he was a landlubber who was not good at swimming. Under these circumstances, holding his breath for a minute and a half was already his limit.

Seeing Shen Hongbo waving his hands helplessly behind the ice wall, making a gesture of begging for mercy, Han Lu still showed no intention of stopping.

Shen Hongbo, already feeling dizzy and lightheaded due to lack of oxygen, was utterly despondent.

Perhaps, only by learning the water dungeon escape trick of a worldly acrobat in an instant could Shen Hongbo escape from this desperate situation, which is a hopeless predicament for a Qi Refining Level 2 cultivator.

After confining Shen Hongbo for two minutes, and seeing that Shen Hongbo, who was running in the water, was no longer moving, and that the illusionary formation in the arena had also dissipated, Han Lu released the spell and let Shen Hongbo out.

Seeing Shen Hongbo lying on the ground, already unconscious from choking on water and lack of oxygen, the referee did not hesitate this time and decisively announced the verdict.

"Han Lu wins."

Chapter Ninety-Eight: Observing in Secret

Seeing Han Lu win against her opponent in a very interesting way, Piaomiaozi, sitting on the viewing platform, couldn't help but clap her hands slightly to express her joy.

"Fellow Daoist Piaomiao, what's wrong? What did you see that made you so happy?" A Golden Core elder standing next to Piaomiao suddenly asked.

“Fellow Daoist Yuanfeng, it’s just that one of my disciples won a match; it’s nothing serious,” Piaomiaozi said with a smile, pointing to the second arena.

"Oh? One of the two female disciples you took in this year, right?" Yuanfeng Daoist looked in the direction Piaomiaozi was pointing. "Already at the second level of Qi Refining? Not bad. Fellow Daoist Piaomiao is excellent at training disciples. Perhaps you have some unique secret techniques? Why don't you teach me a few tricks after the competition?"

Yuanfeng Daoist and Piaomiao Zi were in similar positions within the Zhengyi Sect, both being elders who had only reached the Golden Core realm in the last thirty years.

They had known each other since the Foundation Establishment stage, and after becoming elders, they subconsciously "stick together for warmth" to avoid being isolated and helpless within the sect due to their seniority.

Compared to Piaomiaozi, who liked to take on disciples, Yuanfeng Daoren only had a mere five disciples.

These five disciples were taken in by him when he had just advanced to the Golden Core stage, and now they have all advanced to the Foundation Establishment stage. Therefore, his purpose in coming here to witness the ceremony is similar to that of the guest elders.

“There are no secret techniques,” Piaomiaozi knew that Yuanfeng Daoist was just joking with him. “It’s just that I was lucky enough to encounter a good seedling suitable for cultivation, and then I gave him some guidance.”

Yuanfeng Daoist didn't stand on ceremony and followed up on Piaomiaozi's words, saying, "Then why don't you help me keep an eye out for any disciples who are undervalued, so that in two years I won't be left watching you all eat meat without even getting a sip of soup?"

The treasures in the ancient cultivation secret realm are extremely important to Golden Core cultivators like Daoist Yuanfeng and Piaomiaozi, who have barely managed to form a mid-to-low-grade Golden Core.

In Yuanfeng Daoist's view, if he could rely on his disciples to share some of the rare and precious materials from the ancient cultivation era in the secret realm of ancient cultivators, he might be able to surpass himself, achieve the Nascent Soul stage, and stand at the pinnacle of the human world.

“That’s not difficult,” Fellow Daoist Piaomiao said casually. “When the competition for the ninth and tenth levels of Qi Refining reaches the top sixteen, you can take the list, find the disciples who don’t have a Golden Core master on it, and ask them one by one by invoking your own name. You’re sure to get some results.”

Upon hearing this, Daoist Yuanfeng smiled wryly, "Alright, my family isn't wealthy. If I want to rely on my newly accepted disciples to get involved in the ancient cultivation secret realm two years from now, I can only try to get involved with these high-level Qi Refining disciples. But Fellow Daoist Piaomiao..."

"I heard that when you submitted the list a month ago, you included the names of your newly accepted disciples?" Daoist Yuanfeng inquired. "The thirteenth princess you accepted is indeed a cultivation prodigy, and she is expected to advance to the tenth level of Qi Refining in two years. But as for that Daoist boy, I think even if he takes pills every day, he won't be able to open up ten spiritual meridians in two years."

"Yes, that's true. It's just to make up the names so that my two young disciples can get noticed by the Five Lakes Hermit and gain a little advantage," Piaomiaozi said perfunctorily. "Yuanfeng Daoist, I think that disciple from the West Mountain Academy on the number nine arena seems quite good. Why don't you take a closer look?"

Piaomiaozi had already sensed that Yuanfeng Daoist wanted to poach his disciples.

Seeing Piaomiaozi's answer, Yuanfeng Daoren wisely stopped discussing the matter to avoid damaging their friendship.

Having won the first match, Han Lu felt quite satisfied with the result, as she hadn't revealed too many of her cards.

It was still early, and the second match wouldn't start until noon. Han Lu lingered in front of the second arena for a while, watching the matches of several potential opponents before heading towards the sixth arena to find Wen Erya.