The struggle for the top thirty in the Heavenly List Tournament became even more intense than before. At this stage, opponents of the same realm required a long time to secure victory, unless there was a significant disparity in their minor realms.
Days passed by.
The number of cultivators coming to the Supreme Sect to watch the tournament grew, and the entire Immortal Cultivation World was discussing the Heavenly List Tournament. Cultivators who displayed their talents in the tournament became famous worldwide and were revered by countless cultivators.
After half a month, fifteen cultivators remained in the Heavenly List Tournament. Qiao Dai from the Supreme Sect advanced again without contest, successfully entering the top fifteen, causing much discussion among the cultivators.
Everyone could see that the Supreme Sect was protecting Qiao Dai, but his Qiao Family came from the Seven Stars Spirit Realm, which made many hesitate to openly question him.
Li Ya also successfully entered the top fifteen, but his condition was worrisome. The high-intensity combat had continuously inflicted internal injuries on his physical body, and fighting between Mortal Spirits and Immortal Spirits also harmed the soul.
Everything has its pros and cons. Gu An didn’t help Li Ya too much, as he needed Li Ya to respect the power far beyond his own.
Nevertheless, the Supreme Sect had succeeded, as there were no cultivators from the Cangtian Sect in the top fifteen. Apart from the Supreme Sect, the best rank among the three dynasties’ sects was twenty-ninth, held by a Daoist Lord of the Cangtian Sect.
With two cultivators from the Supreme Sect in the top fifteen, it solidified their position in the Immortal Cultivation World of the three dynasties.
Another ten days passed, and only eight cultivators remained vying for the top spot in the Heavenly List. The Supreme Sect held two places, represented by Li Ya and Qiao Dai, who advanced by default.
In the battle of the top eight, Qiao Dai fell in the first match, stopping at the eighth position.
Li Ya, relying on Divine Exotic City, advanced to the top four but ultimately stopped at fourth place. His Qi was exhausted, and he fainted on the battlefield after just summoning the army of Divine Soul Demons.
The disciples of the Supreme Sect weren’t disappointed but rather admired Li Ya.
Li Ya, barely over a hundred years old, shouldered the honor and mission of the entire sect. Reaching fourth place in the Heavenly List Tournament was already commendable.
In the previous Golden List Tournament, Li Ya encountered An Hao early and didn’t even make the top five hundred. This time, winning third place, Gu An thought he should have no regrets.
As Gu An had speculated, the final contenders for the top spot in the Heavenly List were the Yellow-Robed Immortal Lord and Yan Qitian.
Their grand battle lasted three days and three nights, finally ending with Yan Qitian conceding defeat.
The Supreme Sect remained bustling, and the tax revenue from various resource transactions delighted the sect leaders. The first Heavenly List Tournament was highly successful; other sects couldn’t easily imitate such grandeur.
Only until autumn did the Supreme Sect regain its peace.
Before leaving, Li Ya visited Gu An. They chatted for two ancient hours before Li Ya departed with grace.
This time, he truly became a hero, gaining great renown. In the Immortal Cultivation World of the three dynasties, his fame overshadowed both the Yellow-Robed Immortal Lord and Yan Qitian, because he was one of their own and due to his age and legendary experiences.
These matters had little to do with Gu An. The Heavenly List Tournament was just a minor episode for him. What truly pleased him was that the Supreme Sect had obtained the storage bag before the Heaven-Cutting Axe. It was the highest-grade storage bag, containing an immense amount of Spirit Stones. After calculating, he felt that the Supreme Sect had not deceived him, showing great sincerity.
The disappearance of that storage bag also thrilled the higher-ups of the Supreme Sect, as they believed it signaled an even closer relationship with Sword Venerable Fudao.
The Supreme Sect acted swiftly, and the roster of the Heavenly List Tournament quickly spread throughout the Immortal Cultivation World, distributed freely. Through the roster, they learned about the origins and formidable cultivation levels of the Heavenly List great cultivators. Unconsciously, the Supreme Sect’s image became even grander in their minds.
To summon so many immortals for combat, the Supreme Sect was undoubtedly the premier sect in the Immortal Cultivation World!
In the Taicang Dynasty, Cangzhou, in the palace garden.
Li Xuandao, clad in a dragon robe, sat at a table, perusing the Heavenly List, and softly praised: “The Supreme Sect is ruthless with this move. With this roster, the world will believe the Supreme Sect has the power to summon immortals.”
Sitting across from him was a woman, Jiang Qiong.
Behind Jiang Qiong stood two figures, two ghost cultivators from the Nine Nether Thirteen Evil, while behind Li Xuandao stood two great cultivators, one of whom was Yi Liuyun, who had once cultivated in Tianya Valley.
Jiang Qiong chuckled: “Isn’t Your Majesty the one who truly benefits? Prince Li Ya’s name is renowned worldwide now; who doesn’t know he is your son?”
Speaking of Li Ya, her feelings were complex.
She and the Ghost Mother of Ephemera had wandered Divine Exotic City, nearly dying, only for a younger generation to obtain it. How could they not feel envious and dejected?
The most important factor was, when she served as the Great Elder of the Supreme Sect’s Outer Sect, she learned about Gu An’s connections. The person Gu An was closest to was Li Ya.
This boy was truly fortunate to have such a master with great Qi Fortune.
Moreover, with her around, Gu An could live peacefully even without leaving the valley.
Thinking of this, Jiang Qiong’s lips curled up.
Li Xuandao set the Heavenly List aside, looked at Jiang Qiong, and said, “I have thoroughly understood the strength of the Juhua Sect. However, even if I unify the world, the Juhua Sect would find it very difficult to overthrow the Supreme Sect’s status.”
Jiang Qiong responded: “There’s no need to overthrow, just standing firm is enough.”
She had no intention of contending with the Supreme Sect.
The true owner of the Juhua Sect was Sword Venerable Fudao; why compete?
Besides, Gu An was still in the Supreme Sect.
Li Xuandao nodded and said, “Tianwei can no longer pose a threat. If you can help us conquer the Great Jiang Dynasty, I will definitely support the Juhua Sect during my reign and shape it into a picture of the Righteous Path.”
Li Xuandao still held the Juhua Sect in high regard. The strength of this sect was quite extraordinary.
Jiang Qiong nodded and then continued to voice the needs of the Juhua Sect. Li Xuandao patiently listened.
The autumn breeze blew, scattering leaves that rose from the garden and drifted into the distance.
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Time flew by.
A leaf fell, descending into Gu An’s hand.
Another autumn had come. Gu An stood by the wooden railing, enjoying the scenery of Medicine Valley.
Two years had passed since the end of the Heavenly List Tournament, and Yan Qitian had yet to return, causing Gu An to wonder.
Yang Jian suddenly approached, holding a long weapon—a Three-pointed Two-edged Blade modeled after Yang Jian’s weapon in Investiture of the Gods.
Over two years, his aura had grown stronger. Even when hiding his cultivation, he appeared formidable and not to be trifled with.
“Master, a cultivator named Zhou Tongyou has come to the valley entrance, claiming to be your old acquaintance,” Yang Jian said, glancing towards the distance.
Zhou Tongyou was watching two servant disciples play Go, his curiosity piqued.
Gu An turned and looked at Zhou Tongyou, reflecting.
He had killed Zhou Yu. How could he feel indifferent meeting Zhou Tongyou again?
Luckily, Zhou Tongyou was unaware of this matter.
He stepped towards Zhou Tongyou, with Yang Jian following closely behind.
Recalling their first encounter decades ago, Zhou Tongyou had visited the Supreme Sect, sweeping through all disciples under a hundred years old. Noticing Gu An’s disciple Ye Yan practicing spear techniques, he offered guidance, injuring Ye Yan severely. Gu An had to step in.
They didn’t know each other until they fought. Later, Gu An wrote Supreme Immortal Venerable, basing the secondary male character on Zhou Tongyou.
He didn’t expect Zhou Tongyou to remember him after so many years.
Soon, Gu An reached Zhou Tongyou, smiled, and said: “Daoist Friend Zhou, long time no see.”
Zhou Tongyou turned to look at him, smiling.
As arrogant as ever, Zhou Tongyou’s unparalleled pride couldn’t be hidden.
“Coming to the Supreme Sect, how could I not visit you? Your Medicine Valley’s scale truly impresses me—remarkable,” Zhou Tongyou laughed.
The two began exchanging pleasantries.
Zhou Tongyou came as a representative of the Jueshan Sect for an exchange. He wasn’t alone; a group of talented disciples accompanied him, though he acted independently.
The reason he thought of Gu An was due to an encounter with Gu An’s disciple Ye Yan years ago.
“Your disciple’s cultivation level may not be high, but his comprehension of spear techniques is remarkable. He has already grasped Spear Intent,” Zhou Tongyou praised Ye Yan.
Yang Jian was curious—was Ye Yan his senior brother?
As he listened, he realized Ye Yan was merely a servant disciple from the valley and had not received genuine guidance from his master. He was a senior brother in name but not the one his master always mentioned.
The master was truly impressive, nurturing a genius with just a few tips.
In the end, Zhou Tongyou’s gaze fixed on Gu An, eyes burning: “It’s been years; shall we spar again? I will still suppress my cultivation to match yours, how about it?”
Among his peers, Zhou Tongyou had only lost to two people: Lv Xian and Gu An, the latter due to suppressed cultivation.
Gu An feigned hesitation.
“Suppressed cultivation? Then why not let me fight on behalf of my master!” Yang Jian suddenly spoke up.
Zhou Tongyou frowned, looking at Yang Jian. Just as he was about to refuse, his heart inexplicably trembled meeting Yang Jian’s gaze.
For some reason, he thought of Lv Xian, that peerless genius of the past.
“Well, let’s see your power then, and whether you can match your master,” Zhou Tongyou laughed, his eyes turning aggressive.
The two disciples playing Go looked up in anticipation.
Gu An said, “Let’s find an empty place.”
He patted the heads of the two disciples, refocusing their attention on the game.
Zhou Tongyou and Yang Jian followed Gu An. Walking along, Zhou Tongyou inquired about Yang Jian like an elder. Knowing Yang Jian was selected as a servant disciple, he felt relieved.
He truly feared this one was a genius Gu An recruited from a noble family.
Ordinary servant disciples couldn’t be geniuses, as the Spirit Root testing in great sects was reliable.
Thirty minutes later, outside Medicine Valley in a forest.
Zhou Tongyou clutched his chest, his face full of shock, staring at Yang Jian, who remained in a kicking stance as if looking at a monster.
“Are you really in the Energy Cultivation Realm?” Zhou Tongyou couldn’t help but ask.
Yang Jian retracted his leg and said, “We both didn’t use Spiritual Power, so what realm doesn’t matter, does it?”
Zhou Tongyou nearly spat blood at his words. He felt his chest bones were about to break.
How could this guy’s Qi be so strong?
Zhou Tongyou himself was a physical cultivator and had even cultivated the Evil Suppressing Golden Body…
To him, Yang Jian seemed even more terrifying than Lv Xian!