The Long Journey to Immortality

Unable to gain any leverage on the ice, Su Wen tried twice, but instead slid cleanly to the ground, falling flat on his face and hastening his defeat.

Lying on the ice, Su Wen barely managed to hold up his shield to block the water dragon that wanted to devour him, but even so, he was still pushed along the arena by Han Lu's water dragon technique.

While casting the Water Dragon Technique, Han Lu also manipulated her spiritual power to freeze the water on the arena. She even had the spare power to control her spiritual sword to launch a thunderous attack on Su Wen.

The electric current temporarily paralyzed Su Wen, leaving him completely defenseless.

Water, electricity, and ice combined in a series of powerful blows, leaving Su Wen trapped in a deadly predicament in the blink of an eye.

Knowing he had no hope of winning, Su Wen reluctantly gave up the fight, put the shield back into his storage bag, and left it to Han Lu to do with.

Seeing this, Han Lu did not stop in time as she had in the previous matches. Instead, she intensified her efforts to retaliate against Su Wen's previous verbal attacks and insults.

Han Lu unleashed the full power of her golden sword, unleashing several bolts of lightning as thick as her forearm once again towards the already demoralized Su Wen.

"Ah! Ah!"

Several screams came from Su Wen's mouth, which made Han Lu feel extremely comfortable.

The muscles in his face were still numb, which prevented him from uttering any more vulgarities in front of Han Lu. Otherwise, he would have certainly hurled a few crude words at her.

This is not over yet.

Han Lu withdrew the Water Dragon Technique and then used the Fiery Rainbow Robe on her body as a medium to cast a fire-attribute spell, burning away Su Wen's long, flowing hair that had already been charred by the electric shock.

Even so, Han Lu still felt that she had already shown mercy.

"It's only because a lot of people are watching, otherwise I would have burned your underwear."

Seeing Su Wen in such a miserable state and already unconscious, Han Lu lost interest in continuing her violence and finally stopped. She then struck out with her palm, like hitting an ice hockey puck, pushing Su Wen a few meters towards the edge of the arena, where he crashed heavily into the barrier.

"Han Lu wins!"

The referee quickly announced the verdict and removed the restraining order.

Immediately afterwards, three Foundation Establishment cultivators flew onto the arena on their swords to rescue Su Wen.

However, Su Wen's actual situation was not as serious as it appeared.

The person with a body of steel only suffered minor injuries and fainting, mainly due to numbness from the electric shock, inability to breathe, lack of oxygen, and pain.

After being rescued, Su Wen gradually regained consciousness and slowly walked off the arena with the help of a cultivator.

His mind went completely blank; he had completely forgotten the grand words he had uttered on stage and only wanted to leave as quickly as possible so as not to give the "vixen" another chance to humiliate him.

Han Lu didn't like to engage in verbal battles. After winning the match, she stepped off the stage without lingering on the messy stage.

Han Lu was overjoyed to have defeated Su Wen, a formidable opponent, in such a clever way.

With no acquaintances around, she could only admire herself in her heart, secretly praising herself, saying, "Holy crap, what a stroke of genius! I'm so clever."

Chapter 106 A Fortuitous Opportunity Arrives

Han Lu won another match, and Piaomiaozi, who had been watching her two beloved students' matches closely, couldn't stop smiling.

The only thing that disappointed Piaomiaozi was that Han Lu did not use the talisman he had given her in the competition.

Otherwise, as the mentor, he would definitely feel more involved and derive more joy from Han Lu's victory.

Because of the previous incident, the abbot of Dongshan Temple, Wuhu Jushi, also paid attention to Han Lu's competition.

Seeing Han Lu win in such a clever way, he couldn't help but admire her in his heart.

After all, every cultivator can use a few spells to some extent, but to use spells flexibly in combat is a skill that requires talent.

However, Wuhu Jushi was not entirely satisfied with Han Lu's final handling of Su Wen.

He was unaware of Su Wen's verbal provocation towards Han Lu before the competition began.

"He seems a bit immature, and he's been too ruthless towards his fellow disciples. Shouldn't we remind Piaomiaozi to discipline his disciple properly?"

Wu Hu Jushi subconsciously nitpicked, looking for things about Han Lu that didn't satisfy him, so that his decision that day would seem more correct. On the other hand, Long Tu Daoren, the dean of Zhongshan Academy, didn't hold back his praises and complimented Han Lu.

Longtu Daoist said, "Wuhu, your Han Lu from Dongshan Academy is amazing. She actually defeated Su Wen."

"Just lucky, just lucky," Wuhu Jushi said modestly on Han Lu's behalf.

Longtu Daoist continued, "His techniques are skillfully combined, and his soul is powerful. He can actually use multiple techniques and fight with his sword at the same time at the second level of Qi Refining. Given time, he will definitely stand out in the next competition."

The praise from Daoist Longtu was not just a polite remark.

Although he didn't know the extent of Han Lu's spiritual root talent, he estimated that by the time of the competition five years later, Han Lu would definitely be a cultivator at the ninth or even tenth level of Qi Refining.

Winning the championship in this level of competition is indeed a remarkable achievement for ordinary Zhengyi sect cultivators.

The Hermit of Five Lakes was pleased to hear this and praised Su Wen with great manners, creating a harmonious atmosphere between the two.

The two deans of the East and Central Mountain Academy suddenly started talking eloquently, complimenting each other, which inevitably attracted the attention of the other three deans.

However, when they heard that the two were only discussing a match on "ring number 2", the three of them immediately lost interest and turned their attention back to ring numbers 9 and 10.

To Golden Core cultivators, battles between Qi Refining cultivators are like three-year-olds fighting. Only matches between Qi Refining cultivators at the eighth level or above have any real interest.

It's perfectly normal to look down on Han Lu and Su Wen, these two low-level cultivators.

The exciting match held on Arena 2 was just a small episode in the whole competition. Half a month later, only Su Wen, who was half-bald, would probably still remember the humiliation he suffered in front of Han Lu.

Han Lu defeated Su Wen and made it into the quarterfinals as she wished.

This is the best result that Han Lu and Feng Bailu have ever achieved in the competition.

Back then, when Feng Bailu was at the ninth level of Qi Refining, he defeated strong opponents one after another and advanced to the top eight of the competition. In the end, he was defeated by the final champion only because he was over-exhausted.

Because of this incident, Yuan Xin continued to refer to Feng Bailu as "runner-up" for a period of time after the competition ended.

Han Lu doesn't hold a grudge about this, but it's still fresh in her memory.

Han Lu naturally hopes to achieve a breakthrough and win the championship in this competition where "favorable timing, geographical advantage, and popular support" all come together.

So, Han Lu, unusually, didn't go looking for Wen Erya after stepping off the stage. Instead, she stood obediently below the stage, ready to watch the final match of this round taking place on the second arena.

The two cultivators who took the stage this time were only introduced in four pages in Han Lu's booklet, and both were new disciples who had just entered the sect half a year ago.

Both players were rated as having the strength to reach the quarterfinals in the brochure, so naturally, the match was incredibly intense and heated.

Saying that elbows were flying everywhere is a bit of an exaggeration, but fighting until all ammunition and supplies were exhausted can still be used to describe this match.

In the end, the female cultivator from Nanshan Academy prevailed, winning by virtue of the wood-attribute technique's ability to heal.

However, the female cultivator who won the match was eventually carried off the field by the academy's cultivators.

They won, but it was a Pyrrhic victory.

Looking at the winner lying on the stretcher, Han Lu secretly guessed, "Maybe there will be another chance to compete later."

Sure enough, after a quarter-hour break, before announcing the next round of matches, a cultivator from the academy on Arena 2 informed the seven Qi Refining Level 2 disciples who were still in the competition about the female cultivator's situation.

"...withdrew from this competition."

When Han Lu returned to the ring after running to the restroom, she only heard the tail end of the song, but that didn't stop her from trying to seize this small opportunity.

With only seven players available in the quarterfinals, some will naturally receive a bye and advance directly.

To avoid gossip and accusations of "behind-the-scenes manipulation," the academy added a lottery process for the seven disciples in front of the second arena.

The draw was conducted in the order of appearance in the Round of 16, with Han Lu, who was the second to last to appear, being placed last.

Knowing that her chances were not good, Han Lu did not have much expectation of getting this bye and advancement spot.

But when she watched the six monks ahead of her reach into the cardboard box, pull out slips of paper, and all of them wore bitter expressions.

Han Lu had no choice but to openly accept this opportunity amidst the envious and resentful gazes of the crowd.

Han Lu handed the slip of paper with the words "bye" written on it to the academy's cultivators, and then presented her identity token, thus completing her mission.

Han Lu would never have believed that advancing through a random, unpredictable opportunity would have happened before her reincarnation.

After completing the registration, Han Lu successfully became the first contestant among the seventy-nine cultivators on the ten arenas to advance to the final four.

Although she had advanced ahead of schedule, Han Lu thought for a moment and decided to stay in front of the second arena for the time being, instead of going to the sixth arena to cheer for Wen Erya, so as not to attract "jealousy" and affect Wen Erya's mood.

Perhaps learning from the experience of that female cultivator, the other cultivators who advanced to the top eight on the second arena were somewhat more restrained in this round of competition.

Unless absolutely necessary, I would rather win the game while preserving my own safety.

To avoid a life-or-death struggle where you end up advancing only to benefit someone else.

Adding to the fact that the remaining contestants were all roughly equal in skill, the three matches lasted for nearly 45 minutes before finally ending.

Besides Han Lu, the other three Qi Refining Level 2 cultivators who advanced to the semi-finals came from the West, South, and North Mountain Academy, respectively.

If Su Wen hadn't met Han Lu earlier, he would probably have a place here too.

The final four have been decided, with Han Lu and Wen Erya both advancing smoothly. The final winners of each category will not be announced until the morning of the following day.

[Author's Note] Tomorrow is August, so I'm symbolically asking for monthly tickets and death threats.

Chapter 107 Wang Han Joins

That evening, perhaps because the lunch gathering among the three of them wasn't very pleasant, Han Lu and Wen Erya, who had successfully advanced to the semi-finals, did not meet up to celebrate. Instead, they each stayed in their own courtyards to rest and prepare for the semi-finals the next day.

Meanwhile, the Golden Core cultivators who had been watching the battle from the viewing platform during the day were forced to "work overtime" and once again gathered in the council hall where two meetings about the ancient cultivation secret realm had been held, waiting for someone to arrive.

At this moment, the Golden Core cultivators were no longer as serious and silent as before.

In small groups, people discussed the day's matches. Some gambled, betting spirit stones and magical artifacts with acquaintances, predicting who would be the champion in a certain category.

At this point in the competition, the final champions in some categories were already quite clear.

Among the many disciples of the Zhengyi Sect, there is naturally no shortage of geniuses who can crush cultivators of the same level.

In the eyes of many viewers, Wen Erya has already secured the title of champion at the sixth level of Qi Refining.

He possesses profound magical power, rich combat experience, and numerous magical artifacts.

In the grand competition for cultivators at the sixth level of Qi Refining, very few could withstand ten rounds against Wen Erya.

The pre-match training conducted with Han Lu's help did indeed have an effect.

Many people even believe that Wen Erya has the ability to challenge the champions of the seventh or even eighth level of Qi Refining.

In addition, the outcome of the competition between the ninth and fourth levels of Qi Refining has also become clear.

The two exceptionally talented cultivators advanced to the semifinals with an overwhelming advantage. Like Wen Erya, they were considered the absolute champions even before the start of the final day of the competition.