Chapter 1185: Weizhen South

Volume 6: Heaven-Reaching Spirit Treasures

"So it's Senior Wu; that's good too." The stout old man brightened at these words.

"Hmph, no wonder your Yellow Maple Valley is so concerned about this person. Ever since Fellow Daoist Linghu passed away, your valley hasn't had a single Nascent Soul cultivator presiding over it. If Fellow Daoist Linghu hadn't made an agreement to help this person and informed our five sects, your Yellow Maple Valley probably wouldn't be able to hold its ground in the Northern Liang Kingdom anymore." The woman glanced at the stout old man and scoffed.

Hearing this, the old man's face showed an embarrassed expression.

Over the next two months, the entire Heavenly South region was abuzz.

Every slightly larger cultivation sect throughout the Heavenly South cultivation world received an invitation from the Falling Cloud Sect, stating that one of their elders had advanced to the late Nascent Soul stage and that a grand ceremony would be held to celebrate this achievement. Therefore, they invited various major sects to send representatives to attend the ceremony.

Although the invitation didn't specify which elder it was, Han Li had once shocked the Heavenly South as the top cultivator below the late Nascent Soul stage. Almost everyone immediately assumed it was Han Li without needing to guess.

This caused a stir among all the sects, regardless of their size.

Smaller sects, filled with trepidation, readily agreed to attend the ceremony. Larger sects, though having many reservations, also agreed to send at least one elder to participate.

For a time, Han Li's name once again shocked every corner of the Heavenly South. Whether it was rogue cultivators living in remote mountains and deep valleys, or cultivation families and sects of all sizes gathered in spiritual vein areas, "Han Li" was probably the most frequently mentioned name in recent centuries.

Everyone discussed with great interest this fourth Grand Cultivator of the Heavenly South, who had advanced to the late Nascent Soul stage at such a young age.

Thus, three months later, the Falling Cloud Sect's observation ceremony commenced.

Over a hundred Nascent Soul cultivators attended, along with several times that number of Core Formation cultivators who also came to Cloud Dream Mountain to observe the ceremony.

Han Li, the protagonist, only made a brief appearance on the first day of the ceremony, speaking just a few words. He then invited over a dozen elders from various sects, all at the mid-Nascent Soul stage or above, to gather in a secret hall within the Falling Cloud Sect. Among them were the two late-stage Grand Cultivators: Old Devil Hehuan of the Joyous Union Sect and Wei Wuya of the Intent Transformation Sect.

Three days and three nights later, when these old Nascent Soul monsters emerged from the hall again, they were all pale and showed signs of hidden fear. Wei Wuya and Old Devil Hehuan, in particular, had much dimmer eyes and extremely grim expressions.

Some curious cultivators attending the ceremony naturally stepped forward to inquire about what had happened in the hall. However, those asked either gave a bitter smile and remained silent, or shook their heads repeatedly with lingering fear, all evasively refusing to say anything.

This, of course, made the other cultivators even more curious.

The ceremony lasted for half a month, but Han Li never appeared in front of everyone again. The dozen or so highest-cultivation Nascent Soul old monsters showed no surprise at this, and the moment the ceremony concluded, they all left the Falling Cloud Sect uneasily, with not a single one lingering for even a moment.

This naturally made the other cultivators even more curious about what had happened in the secret hall, causing these individuals, including the two Grand Cultivators, to appear in such a state.

Although none of the old monsters who attended the gathering in the hall wished to speak much about what transpired there, they each had a few close friends and particularly intimate associates. Consequently, it wasn't long before some news eventually leaked out.

However, the content of the news once again shook the Heavenly South cultivation world.

Some of these Nascent Soul old monsters surprisingly revealed that the Falling Cloud Sect's newly advanced fourth Grand Cultivator had actually proposed to spar with Wei Wuya and Old Devil Hehuan in the hall. Originally, this would have been a very normal occurrence; after all, it would be natural for Elder Han, having just achieved this cultivation level, to use the ceremony as an opportunity to compare his abilities with other Grand Cultivators and establish his prestige before the mid-stage cultivators.

However, Elder Han's proposal was to challenge both Wei Wuya and Old Devil Hehuan simultaneously, by himself. This was truly astonishing.

It was unknown how Wei Wuya and Old Devil Hehuan deliberated, but after only a brief consideration, they actually agreed.

The result of the spar left all dozen or so old monsters dumbfounded: Han Li, by himself, consecutively displayed several incredible divine abilities and utilized several unimaginably powerful treasures, easily defeating the two Grand Cultivators.

Wei Wuya and Old Devil Hehuan, two Grand Cultivators who had shaken the Heavenly South for centuries, were no match for Han Li even when joining forces. Under his powerful assault, they each suffered minor damage to their vital energy.

The old monsters present were also horrified to discover that, based on Elder Han's seemingly effortless performance, he appeared not to have used his full range of divine abilities.

Everyone was too shocked to speak.

The remaining time, under Han Li's guidance, was merely for the Nascent Soul old monsters to exchange cultivation insights. However, this exchange, which everyone usually valued, left the old monsters present restless and on edge, as if sitting on pins and needles.

As soon as the three days concluded, these old monsters emerged from the secret hall, their unusual expressions immediately noticed by other cultivators. When such astonishing news spread, most people who heard it naturally didn't believe it at all, even deeming it absurd. However, as the news circulated more widely, and the dozen or so old monsters who attended the hall gathering all remained silent, with not a single one coming forward to refute the claims, everyone realized that this matter might actually be true. For a time, the entire Heavenly South fell silent. Whenever anyone mentioned Han Li or discussed matters related to him, they naturally lowered their voices, even if they were in a secret chamber or a rarely visited wilderness, not daring to utter any disrespectful or casual remarks.

And so, the title of "Heavenly South's Foremost Cultivator" quietly began to circulate throughout the Heavenly South cultivation world.

Above a certain sea area near Seven Spirit Island, a middle-aged Daoist with pristine white skin and an old man in a green robe hovered, facing each other at a distance. Both had unusually grim expressions and remained silent.

After an unknown period, the old man in the green robe finally stirred, his expression shifting, and he spoke:

"Brother Zhiyang, you suddenly arrived here and sent a sound transmission inviting me out. You're not just trying to play riddles with me, are you? If you have something to say, please just say it."

This old man in the green robe was none other than Wei Wuya, one of the three Grand Cultivators.

"Brother Wei, are you feigning ignorance or playing dumb? You can't possibly not know why I sought you out?" the middle-aged Daoist said indifferently.

"Heh heh, it seems Brother Zhiyang finally couldn't sit still after hearing the rumors!" Wei Wuya chuckled, a hint of mockery appearing at the corner of his mouth.

"So, some of the rumors are actually true. You and Old Devil Hehuan really suffered a small loss at that person's hands!" The Daoist's expression instantly turned serious as he slowly asked.