The Long Journey to Immortality

Hu Zhang straightened his clothes and adjusted the storage bag at his waist before solemnly saying, "I'm ready."

With a slight nod, the referee stepped off the stage and activated the formation.

In that instant, Hu Zhang didn't care whether he knew Lü Feiyan or not, and started to strike up a conversation as if they were old friends.

"Junior sister, which senior brother or elder do you study under? I feel like I've seen you somewhere before."

Lü Feiyan was no longer the little girl who had just arrived in the Central Plains to cultivate under Han Lu. She responded appropriately to Hu Zhang's greetings.

"I studied under Elder Zhenfeng of Dongshan Academy. Perhaps my senior brother happened to see me when he came to Dongshan Academy for a duel."

Two months before the competition began, Lü Feiyan spent a lot of time in the arena to gain practical experience.

However, she had a wide network of connections and ample resources, making it easy for her to hire sparring partners or seek help from senior brothers and sisters to introduce disciples for sparring.

"So she's Elder Zhenfeng's disciple?" Hu Zhang feigned experience, thinking of using his old methods to win over Lü Feiyan, this inexperienced young woman. "Please, junior sister, show mercy. I have great respect for your master, Elder Zhenfeng."

Lü Feiyan received special training in these tricks from Qiu Peng's disciple Hong Tong before participating in the competition.

Although she disdained using it, she wouldn't be foolish enough to fall for such a trick.

After simply replying with "I'll try," she ignored Hu Zhang.

Hu Zhang was completely unaware that Lü Feiyan had seen through his low-class tricks with a single sentence, and he was smug and thought he had succeeded.

Once the arena formation was fully deployed, the referee began the countdown.

"Three, two, one, go!"

Upon hearing this, Lü Feiyan, who was already prepared, took the initiative to act.

With a tap on her storage bag, Lü Feiyan, as the young master of the East Sea Immortal Pavilion, the daughter of the former Holy Maiden of the Five Poisons Sect in the Southern Frontier, and a disciple of the True Phoenix Fairy, unhesitatingly unleashed one of the many magical treasures in her storage bag.

A black iron pagoda appeared in Lü Feiyan's hand.

"Haha, she actually took my magic weapon," Wen Erya, sitting next to Han Lu, said excitedly. "Junior sister, if you didn't know better, you'd think Lü Feiyan was my disciple."

Wen Erya and Xiao Ran spent a full ten years on their honeymoon in the Dayu Dynasty before returning to the Central Plains.

During that time, the newlyweds' relationship deepened considerably.

Because neither of them particularly cared about having children, they had no offspring after many years of marriage.

However, the two also "begged" Han Lu, saying that if they had children in the future who wanted to cultivate, they should follow the example of Yi Qiyan and Lü Zhi and have them become Han Lu's disciples.

Wen Erya and Han Lu were just joking, so Han Lu naturally wouldn't take it seriously.

"Feiyan and Senior Sister's Soul-Locking and Suppressing Pagoda are a perfect match. Otherwise, Senior Sister wouldn't have given this meaningful magical artifact to Feiyan. I won't be jealous."

In the blink of an eye, the atmosphere on the stage turned completely one-sided.

Hu Zhang was smashed all over the arena by Lü Feiyan's "Soul-Locking and Soul-Suppressing Tower".

Lü Feiyan, with her aggressive fighting style, showed no mercy whatsoever.

Although Hu Zhang was badly beaten, he was still a very experienced fighter.

After dodging for ten breaths, he seized an opportunity and flew out a spirit sword from his bosom to attack Lü Feiyan.

While Lü Feiyan used her magic to protect herself, Hu Zhang successfully distanced himself from Lü Feiyan and temporarily escaped the pursuit of the "Soul-Locking and Soul-Suppressing Tower".

With numerous magical treasures at her disposal, although she had not yet unleashed the full power of the "Soul-Locking and Soul-Suppressing Tower" on the arena, Lü Feiyan temporarily set it aside and took out other magical treasures to use and fight.

Daoist Duobao, Lü Feiyan, openly flaunted the wealth in her storage bag, which was hundreds of times greater than that of other Qi Refining cultivators, on the arena.

Swords, spears, halberds, axes, hooks, forks...

Although Lü Feiyan did not take out all eighteen weapons from her storage bag, she had already taken out five high-grade magical tools to deal with Hu Zhang from the start of the arena match until the hundredth breath.

Hu Zhang struggled to resist, suffering greatly, and cursed inwardly, "It seems they really held back, not using a single magic weapon to knock me down in one go."

Hu Zhang, a gambler, is a man who is "flexible and adaptable." He already considers himself lucky to have made it to the top 64.

Without hesitation, seeing that he was no match for Lü Feiyan, a third-generation immortal, he quickly conceded defeat to avoid losing both the match and his face.

"I admit defeat, I admit defeat," Hu Zhang said repeatedly.

Upon hearing this, the referee quickly intervened to stop the match.

"Lü Feiyan wins."

Still wielding a set of flying sword magic weapons, Lü Feiyan felt unsatisfied and said with a languid expression, "Senior Brother Hu, you flatter me."

Having said that, she ignored Hu Zhang and nimbly used her lightness technique to jump off the stage. She silently popped a pill into her mouth to regulate her breathing and recover, preparing to face the next battle.

Having suffered a crushing defeat, Hu Zhang wanted to say a few more words, but seeing that Lü Feiyan didn't give him the chance, he could only leave in silence.

He secretly complained about his bad luck and also blamed himself for being born into the wrong family.

"Why don't I have parents who are at the Golden Core stage, or a True Spirit Master who is likely to advance to the Nascent Soul stage?"

Chapter 1156

Talented people emerge in every generation. Although Lü Feiyan mainly relied on the advantage of her weapons to win against her opponents on the stage, this did not prevent Han Lu from being delighted by the outstanding performance of the land and giving Lü Feiyan the evaluation of being good at using her magic weapons.

"Anyway, Fei Yan is Lü Zhi's son, and Lü Zhi will almost certainly inherit the Immortal Pavilion and become the richest man in the East Sea in the future."

"His daughter is proficient in using magical artifacts, and relying on them in combat is not a problem."

"After all, even at the Golden Core Realm, there are likely to be many high-grade spiritual artifacts at her disposal."

"The lack of resources after becoming a high-level cultivator will not ruin Zhong Yong's life."

He thought to himself, "This is probably the difference between a top-tier second-generation immortal and one who comes from a cultivation family."

Cultivators may appear similar, but in reality they can be quite different.

Under the tutelage of Han Lu and her parents, Lü Feiyan possessed a steadfast Dao heart. In this respect, this girl, born to cultivators from the East Sea and the Southern Frontier, completely displayed the demeanor of a cultivator from the Central Plains.

With such a mindset, coupled with ample material support, how could Lü Feiyan not be victorious on the ring?

Over the remaining two and a half days, Lü Feiyan fought her way through the competition, only encountering slight trouble in the final round.

However, the trouble was minor, and it only took a little longer than usual.

After winning the championship, Lü Feiyan's excitement was palpable as she stood on the podium to receive her award.

After receiving the spirit stone trophy from "Uncle Xianyu Ji," whom she had met a few times and had brief exchanges with, Lü Feiyan immediately went to Han Lu to "take credit."

"Master, I did it." As she placed the trophy, made from half of a top-grade spirit stone that had exhausted its energy, into Han Lu's hand, Lü Feiyan thought of the tedium and hardship she had encountered in her cultivation over the past few years, and even shed two tears.

Although Lü Feiyan was not the first disciple under her name to win the grand competition, Han Lu had devoted a lot of effort to her and had a good relationship with Yi Qiyan and Lü Zhi, so she regarded this trophy, which she had seen countless times, as a special one.

Holding the trophy, Han Lu, following Lü Feiyan's expectations, praised her lavishly and concluded with the remark, "She has quite the flair I had back in the day."

This comment was a great compliment to Lü Feiyan, who had idolized "Elder Zhenfeng" since becoming a disciple of Han Lu.

Such a joyous occasion naturally calls for a celebration.

Coincidentally, several of Han Lu's disciples and grand-disciples had ranked highly in the competition, so she simply invited all her disciples to gather together and foster closer relationships.

Of course, Wen Erya was also invited to bring her disciples.

Han Lu and Wen Erya have a close relationship, and naturally Han Lu hopes that her disciples can become good friends on the path of cultivation.

Han Lu, Wen Erya, Xiao Ran, Qiu Peng, and Nian Haoge sat together, while the disciples were scattered throughout the hall of Han Lu's house.

The banquet featured several tables laden with spirit wine, spirit tea, and various snacks.

Han Lu chatted with her friends, while her disciples socialized among themselves, creating a harmonious and joyful scene.

In a good mood, Han Lu also had a sip of spirit wine, something she hadn't done in a long time, just to create a festive atmosphere.

Xiao Ran, who was fond of drinking, held a cup of tea in a serious manner and drank it quietly, because of his promise to Wen Erya. He did not have any intention of touching the wine pot or the wine cup.

Occasionally, disciples would come to the table where their masters sat to offer them wine or tea.

Disciples who have just participated in the competition and performed well will usually receive a few words of praise and a gift from their master before returning to their seats.

Disciples who have performed slightly worse in the past year will receive a few words of encouragement.

Materials packaged as gifts were also provided. The five Golden Core cultivators present treated all disciples equally, without simply dividing them into different ranks based on their performance and talent.

Of the five, Han Lu and Xiao Ran were the most generous.

Han Lu was generous because there were indeed many supplies in her storage bag.

Xiao Ran, on the other hand, had finally taken in two disciples with considerable talent in recent years.

His two disciples performed exceptionally well in the competition, which naturally made him, an "outsider," even happier than Han Lu and other cultivators from the Central Plains.

It is perfectly normal to allocate more resources to reward disciples.

Soon, after half a round of drinks, it was Wen Erya's turn to accept her first disciple, Han Yinshuang, a member of the Han family of the Northern Dynasty who had some academy connection with Han Lu.

Han Yinshuang became a member of the Zhengyi Sect instead of joining Xuanyang Valley due to a series of coincidences.

After becoming Wen Erya's disciple, she performed exceptionally well as the senior disciple.

He just advanced to the late Foundation Establishment stage two years ago, and according to Wen Erya, this scion of a noble family is very likely to advance to the Golden Core stage.

Han Yinshuang came to the long table, first toasting Wen Erya and then Xiao Ran, and then offering them tea before greeting Han Lu.

"Greetings, Elder Zhenfeng," Han Yinshuang greeted respectfully.

Within the Zhengyi Sect, Han Yinshuang naturally addresses Han Lu by her Daoist name, rather than by the respectful title used within the clan.

Han Lu nodded slightly, clinked glasses with Han Yinshuang, and took a sip of the wine in her glass.

With a faint smell of alcohol emanating from her breath, Han Yinshuang, slightly tipsy, continued, "Elder Zhenfeng, the clan has encountered some minor troubles. I wonder if the elder could return to the clan in the next few days to help resolve them?"

Anything that requires Han Lu's involvement is definitely not a minor problem.

"What is it?" Han Lu asked with slight interest. "Is it something private? If it's inconvenient to talk about it here, come find me after the banquet."

Helping the Han family of the Northern Dynasty solve their problems was an agreement Han Lu had made with them.

Over the years, the Han family has never used her name to "swindle and cheat" or bothered her with various trivial matters. They even send her a small gift every Spring Festival. This has greatly increased Han Lu's goodwill towards these unfamiliar but blood-related relatives.

Therefore, when Han Yinshuang spoke up, she was in a good mood and decided to take action without much thought.

"Of course we can talk about it here. It's nothing secret or shameful." Han Yinshuang temporarily put aside the words she had prepared to invite Han Lu and got straight to the point.

The matter wasn't complicated; it was simply a competition with two other companies for several mineral deposits near the settlement.

A reshuffling and redistribution of power occurs every hundred years, a customary practice among cultivation families in the Northern Dynasties.