Chapter 210: Liquid Spirit Energy

Chen Mobai put down his wine glass, his tone calm.

Qi Rui and Xi Jinghuo exchanged glances, unsure what was "good" about this.

"Junior Brother Chen, although you have a second-tier flying sword, you might win against weaker true disciples. However, Senior Sister Ding Ying has held her position as a true disciple for thirteen years. Even without our Talisman Department's 'Flying Blossom Talisman Armor' set, she still possesses the strength to secure her place as a true disciple."

As fellow disciples from the Talisman Department, Qi Rui was most aware of Ding Ying's strength.

Among the true disciples of the previous decade, Ding Ying had indeed been considered more of a filler.

However, after her peers like E Yun either reached Foundation Establishment or retired, she had risen to become one of the top-tier true disciples.

"Actually, the one I want to face is Mu Yuan."

But Chen Mobai's words made even Xi Jinghuo, an immortal scion, gasp.

Who was Mu Yuan?

He was the true disciple put forward by the Divine Wood Hall, the foremost of the Three Great Halls, a genius intended to succeed Zhou Wangshen, who had successfully reached Foundation Establishment.

It was said that his spiritual root talent surpassed even Zhou Wangshen's. Had it not been for that Heavenly Spirit Root, Mu Yuan would have been the most gifted disciple of the Divine Wood Sect in the past decade.

In last year's sect grand competition, if he hadn't been so young and lacked battle experience, he probably wouldn't have been relegated to fourth place.

Even so, Yuan Chizhi had to use all his trump cards to defeat him, leaving him unable to compete with the other two for final rankings among the top three true disciples, thus placing third.

In this year's sect grand competition, Mu Yuan was widely regarded as a seeded contestant capable of reaching the final round, meaning the top three.

"Junior Brother Chen, I know you were somewhat unwilling to accept your defeat last year, but sometimes, one must accept fate. Mu Yuan is too strong, backed by the Divine Wood Hall, and he possesses two second-tier magical artifacts. Even Senior Uncle Hong He, who was previously ranked first, might not be able to suppress him at the Qi Condensation stage."

Qi Rui earnestly advised him.

Among the previous group of true disciples, Hong He from the Punishment Hall held the top true disciple position for a full decade, while Zhou Wangshen and E Yun from the Divine Wood Hall alternated between second and third place.

And Mu Yuan already showed the makings of another Hong He.

Many believed he could suppress all true disciples and lead the Divine Wood Sect's three thousand Qi Condensation cultivators for the next decade.

"If I can reach the eighth round, I'll inevitably face him anyway. I must have that fight; otherwise, I won't feel right."

Chen Mobai said with a smile. He had already seen the bracket: in the crucial true disciple battle, where 48 contestants are narrowed down to 24, if Ding Ying didn't lose in earlier rounds, they would indeed face each other.

And if he could defeat Ding Ying and then his next opponent, and if Mu Yuan was truly as invincible as rumored, Chen Mobai would meet his old rival in the eighth round, the most critical battle of the competition, which would narrow six contestants down to three.

"Alright. But Junior Brother Chen, please don't be reckless when the time comes. If you can't win, just surrender directly, like last year."

After hearing Qi Rui's words, Chen Mobai said no more, instead raising his wine glass as an invitation to drink.

Xi Jinghuo looked at his expression and felt a flicker of unease, but after the alcohol began to take effect, he dismissed it.

Only Zhuo Ming, who hadn't been drinking, saw clearly.

There was no trace of a smile in Chen Mobai's eyes.

Senior Brother Chen was serious!?

After a long, half-month first round, the drinking trio finally entered their second round.

Chen Mobai and Qi Rui, both at Qi Condensation ninth-level, were considered seeded true disciple candidates and defeated their opponents in a single move.

Xi Jinghuo encountered a Qi Condensation sixth-level opponent with rich combat experience and took a long time to defeat them using the Crimson Flame Sword Talisman.

His opponents in the third and fourth rounds were both at the late Qi Condensation stage, but Chen Mobai, wanting to test the power of his Divine Wood Sword, let them use all their techniques. Unfortunately, the opponents were too weak to last even ten moves.

Finally, in the fifth round, he met a decent opponent: a Qi Condensation ninth-level true disciple candidate named Guo Sheng, a disciple from the Sword Cultivation Department.

Guo Sheng practiced the Golden Light Sword Art and was the strongest opponent Chen Mobai had faced, other than Mu Yuan, in his two sect grand competitions.

Unfortunately, Guo Sheng faced him, and lacking a second-tier flying sword himself, after several clashes between his diligently cultivated Golden Edge Sword and the Divine Wood Sword, which caused his sword's spiritual light to dim, he painfully stopped using his flying sword.

Afterward, Guo Sheng fought with sword aura, but Chen Mobai meticulously defended himself with the Divine Wood Sword, gradually exploring all the properties of this second-tier flying sword during the battle.

When spiritual energy was infused, the attacks unleashed by the Divine Wood Sword were equivalent to a sword cultivator's "sword aura transmuted into qi."

For disciples at the Qi Condensation stage, these attacks were virtually unstoppable, a sure kill.

Only second-tier defensive talismans or magical artifacts could withstand them.

Guo Sheng tried every method, relying on his thirty years of extensive sword-fighting experience, managing to evade seven streams of Divine Wood Sword Qi, hoping to exhaust Chen Mobai's spiritual energy and turn the tide.

Unfortunately for him, Chen Mobai had already surpassed the Qi Condensation stage by utilizing the three Foundation Establishment treasures—Jade Marrow Pills and Profound Fire Spirit Liquid—in the Immortal Sect.

Although he hadn't fully achieved Foundation Establishment.

His muscle and marrow cleansing was complete, and the condensation of qi into liquid had also begun.

Within the spiritual energy vortex at the core of his dantian's Qi Sea, two drops of liquid spiritual energy had already formed.

Each drop of this liquid spiritual energy was equivalent to the entire spiritual energy of a peak Qi Condensation ninth-level cultivator.

If one were to achieve Foundation Establishment using the Evergreen Immortal Sutra, this second step, 'condensation of qi into liquid,' required condensing ten such drops of liquid spiritual energy.

When Chen Mobai attempted Foundation Establishment, his Qi Condensation ninth-level wasn't yet perfected. Despite the aid of elixirs and cultivating in a chamber with a third-tier spiritual vein, he could only condense two drops before losing momentum, forcing him to halt at this step using a critical technique.

Even so, he had already surpassed the Qi Condensation level.

If he wished, he could expend these two drops of liquid spiritual energy to cast second-tier spells or fully unleash the Divine Wood Sword's most potent power.

This was Foundation Establishment-level power, capable of completely overwhelming all Qi Condensation cultivators.

Guo Sheng narrowly dodged four more streams of Divine Wood Sword Qi and found an opportunity to close in, but just as he was about to attack, Chen Mobai slapped a Crimson Flame Sword Talisman onto him.

He barely managed to block the Crimson Flame Sword Qi with his last defensive talisman, only for Chen Mobai to immediately unleash another stream of Divine Wood Sword Qi.

With all his trump cards exhausted, Guo Sheng could only raise his hand in surrender before the sword qi struck. He had no other means left.

If he didn't surrender, even if he survived, he would suffer severe injuries.

It might even jeopardize his fundamental cultivation.

"Victor, Chen Mobai!"

Hearing the elder's announcement from below the stage, Chen Mobai smiled as he put the Divine Wood Sword into his storage pouch. He then gave a slight nod to the sweating, pale Guo Sheng and was the first to descend from the stage and leave.

"Junior Brother Chen, are you free?"

After descending the stage, an unexpected person approached him to greet him.

"Senior Brother Yuan invites me? Of course, I am."

Yuan Chizhi turned with a smile, and Chen Mobai followed him to a private courtyard. They arrived at a pavilion situated over a pond, where food and wine were already prepared.

"I heard you went to see Junior Sister Ding and were turned away."