Chapter 191: Hidden Ten Arrives

He had certainly hit a raw nerve.

The news had even reached Zuoqiu Ting, giving Li Weiyi an instant headache. His reputation was utterly ruined. While other talents from various states arrived at the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival enjoying boundless prestige, commanding influence, and shaking the four borders with their might, he, on the contrary, was like a dragon trapped in a shallow stream, defeated before even beginning his campaign.

Zuoqiu Ting stopped jesting and said solemnly, "Yang Qingxi is very strong. The younger generation of the Yang Sect is also brimming with experts and should not be underestimated. In just a few centuries, they've expanded from a small gang doing water transport to their current scale. Everyone, from top to bottom, possesses a vigorous and sharp spirit of advancement. Yang Shenjing is undoubtedly one of the most formidable figures in the Sky Ascent Realm over the past millennium!"

Among the ten greatest young masters of Lizhou, the Huai Sect claimed three spots, while San Chen Palace had only Chen Wenwu. The disparity in their foundations was immediately apparent. If it weren't for the Cangli of this generation in the Nine Li Tribe, who could possibly suppress Yang Qingxi? The black-clad woman who appeared that night was clearly another top expert secretly cultivated by the Yang Sect. No wonder Zuoqiu Ting felt a touch of emotion.

"Who are you with this new face?" Li Weiyi gazed at Zuoqiu Ting's unfamiliar countenance.

Zuoqiu Ting replied, "The second successor of the Zuoqiu Clan, Zuoqiu Lancheng… Lan Lan's elder brother. You weathered a crisis together in the Thirty-Three Li, and she has always remembered your kindness, asking me about Sima Qin multiple times."

Recalling Zuoqiu Lan Lan's strange behavior at the time, Li Weiyi quickly said, "I will no longer use the name Sima Qin. Do not tell her."

"What's wrong with my Lan Lan? She possesses a Pure Immortal Physique… Alright, alright, let's not mention it!"

Zuoqiu Ting smiled doubtfully, but knowing that Li Weiyi was no ordinary person and likely didn't favor Zuoqiu Lan Lan, he stopped his unfinished remarks and changed the subject: "Today, the second-tier results were announced!"

"Still ten people from each of the four realms."

"Yang Qingxi is at the forefront of the Southern Realm's second tier. Her escape from my grasp has only enhanced her immense reputation. Do you understand now why all the martial cultivators in the city want to see you and Shi Shishi die by her hand, while I alone wish for trickling streams? I never thought the day would come when I, Zuoqiu Ting, would become mere foliage for someone else's fame."

"She's that strong?"

Li Weiyi was moved, and an inexplicable pressure welled up in his heart. In the Southern Realm's seven states, the top three from each state are all powerful individuals. In Lizhou, Qiuzhou, and Fuzhou, the younger generation, in particular, boasts countless experts. And how many spots would be taken by the Zuoqiu Clan, the Jiang Family, Coffin Mountain, Tianya Ridge, and the Nine Li Tribe?

One could say the first tier of the Southern Realm is easy to select, as almost all contenders are successor-level. The second tier, however, is truly fiercely contested. Everyone's strength is quite similar, yet there are only ten spots. It's feared that even some with the Nine Springs Pure Immortal Physique might be squeezed out of the top ten in the second tier. And who would be willing to accept that?

Zuoqiu Ting said solemnly, "The younger generation of the Yang Sect seems to have cultivated two great experts, one open and one hidden. When they cooperate, their teamwork is seamless, doubling their combat power and making them slightly stronger than some successors. Moreover… I always feel that one of them is still concealing her true abilities. If you truly wish for trickling streams, you must be extremely careful not to be captured by her instead."

Given Zuoqiu Ting's high praise for her, Li Weiyi naturally had to treat the matter with extreme caution. After all, the two were now mortal enemies.

Zuoqiu Ting said, "It's less than half a month until New Year's, and the invitations are getting scarcer. Can you really pull this off? If you concede now, five catties of immortal soil will suffice."

Li Weiyi sat on the stone stool beside him and smiled confidently, "If I didn't have absolute confidence, would I wager ten catties of immortal soil against you for a Dao Lotus? I'd be at a huge loss!"

"Your cultivation and combat power are becoming increasingly inscrutable to me."

Zuoqiu Ting narrowed his eyes: "Zuoqiu Baiyuan said that Zang Jin, one of the four greatest experts under the Young Venerable, was hidden inside Qian Yanzhen, who sat at our table that day? You really managed to injure it? I think you might have overestimated your opponent; that definitely wasn't Zang Jin."

"Why are you so certain?" Li Weiyi asked, puzzled.

Zuoqiu Ting explained, "Because every martial cultivator in the city knows that Long Ting is dead, and beneath his skin is Zang Jin. It's impossible for there to be two Zang Jins, right?"

"Long Ting was found?" Li Weiyi asked.

Zuoqiu Ting shook his head: "That's the strange part. Everyone is searching for him, but he has vanished without a trace, as if he evaporated from the world. Even the Zuoqiu Clan, with countless informants throughout the city, can't find the slightest clue."

"Actually, there's another possibility! Long Ting isn't dead, and what's beneath his skin isn't an Ember Spirit at all," Li Weiyi said.

Of course, Zuoqiu Ting had considered that possibility, and he said meaningfully, "Now that would be truly interesting! But let's not dwell on Long Ting for now; the Zhu Clan and Thundercloud Sect will naturally pursue that investigation. I came to you to learn the Art of Bone Transformation and Spirit Exchange. Only with this secret art can one contend with those Ember Spirits who like to wear human skins."

"Fighting fire with fire?" Li Weiyi suggested.

"Precisely! They can change their appearance and hide among human martial cultivators. I, too, can assume countless forms, become one of them, and stir this Qiuzhou state capital into a muddy mess."

Zuoqiu Ting's eyes darted, and he smiled, "Your Disguise Art has reached a considerable level of mastery. How about helping me out?"

"No! With my current cultivation, if I were to participate in your top-tier confrontations, I wouldn't even know how I died."

Li Weiyi had no desire to push himself into the limelight. Only by remaining hidden in the shadows, navigating the crevices between various undercurrents, could he potentially seize the greatest value at critical moments.

Immediately, right there in the courtyard, Li Weiyi began to impart the Art of Bone Transformation and Spirit Exchange to Zuoqiu Ting. He not only provided the incantations but also meticulously guided him. This lost secret art originally belonged to the Zuoqiu Clan. Now, he was merely fulfilling his spirit-tablet master's dying wish, returning the item to its rightful owner in this manner.

Two hours later.

Zuoqiu Ting practiced in the courtyard while Li Weiyi went upstairs to sleep. He hadn't had a proper rest in days and felt extremely fatigued. Now that his Blood Qi had reached minor completion and his strength had advanced further, the sense of urgency in his heart had somewhat relaxed.

Of course, he couldn't afford to relax his guard. Before getting into bed, he released the seven little ones, who concealed themselves in various corners of the room. After fully digesting the Millennium Cold Ginseng, their body length had reached a full five inches, making them equivalent to seven human martial cultivators of the successor level, reaching the Fourth Stage of the Fifth Sea Realm. Their combat power was formidable enough to rival experts in the Fifth Stage of the Fifth Sea Realm.

As for clashing with martial cultivators of the Sixth Sea Realm… There could be no weaklings among martial cultivators who reached the Sixth Sea Realm; their baseline was high, and their foundations extremely solid. This was because the Sixth Sea was located at the 'Wind Palace' of the Eighth Spring in the Spring Sprout Realm. Martial cultivators who broke through to the Fifth Sea from Seven Springs could not reach this realm. To be precise, all martial cultivators who broke through to the Fifth Sea from Seven Springs would be eliminated at the Fifth Stage of the Fifth Sea Realm; this was their upper limit, the end of their path.

"No Seven Springs are seen in the Dao Seed Realm; below Nine Springs, there is no eternal life." This was a widely popular saying in the martial world!

Thus, crossing realms became increasingly difficult. To cross two realms and defeat a Sixth Sea martial cultivator was almost impossible, unless successors had outstanding achievements in physical or spiritual cultivation. To cross two realms and defeat a Seventh Sea martial cultivator was even more difficult than ascending to the heavens. Those who cultivated to the Seventh Sea were all Nine Springs Supreme Beings, who themselves had once been prodigies capable of cross-realm reversals.

However, with their numerical advantage, the seven Phoenix-Winged Moth Sovereigns now possessed the ability to breach Yang Zhiyong's combat technique and mental defenses. Killing him, naturally, was no longer difficult.

With them guarding him, Li Weiyi felt at ease. He lowered the bed curtains and immediately fell asleep.

He didn't know how long he had slept when he suddenly awoke, forming his fingers into a palm and striking out. Zuoqiu Ting, who had appeared on his bed at some unknown point, grabbed his wrist. Between Zuoqiu Ting's fingers, a soft, rotating force based on the Eight Trigrams emerged, silently neutralizing Li Weiyi's palm strike.

Zuoqiu Ting made a 'silence' gesture and whispered, "It's me! Someone has trespassed into Qin Garden…"

Lying flat on the bed, Li Weiyi, still startled, exhaled slowly, his heart still pounding rapidly. He glanced at the window beyond the bed curtains; the sky was completely dark. He had actually slept straight through until nightfall. He once again felt doubts about the seven little ones' protective abilities.

He turned his head to look at Zuoqiu Ting, who was so close, and his heart lurched again. Li Weiyi closed his eyes and complained, "Don't just change randomly after learning the Art of Bone Transformation and Spirit Exchange; you'll scare people to death, and it's quite unsettling."

At this moment, Zuoqiu Ting's face was delicate, his skin radiant, his eyes lively, and his long hair flowed loosely, making him look exactly like Yang Qingxi. Even his physique had changed; his arms and legs were long and slender, as if he were truly sharing the bed with Yang Qingxi.

"After learning the Art of Bone Transformation and Spirit Exchange, you absolutely mustn't maintain a disguised state for too long, or it will cause damage to your physical body."

Li Weiyi found it truly difficult to face Zuoqiu Ting in Yang Qingxi's likeness. Doubting his true appearance, he then added, "How about you dispel the Disguise Art and return to your original appearance? If we're to be friends, I think it's better to be honest and sincere. Otherwise, I'll always feel like I don't even know who you are."

"There will be a chance."

Still in Yang Qingxi's captivating form, Zuoqiu Ting squatted on the inner side of the bed. Releasing Li Weiyi's wrist, he gazed out the door with beautiful eyes and smiled, revealing red lips and white teeth, "It seems to be that divine hidden one of national beauty and heavenly fragrance from your Nine Li Hidden Gate. Interesting. What is she doing here alone so late? Aren't you the only one in Qin Garden right now?"

Li Weiyi's expression changed slightly, and he quickly sat up, about to speak to warn Yin Shi.

"Why are you so nervous? Lie back down!" From his sleeve, Zuoqiu Ting produced an Immobilization Talisman and swiftly pressed it onto Li Weiyi's chest, pushing him back down. He even patted him gently with his palm, a smile perpetually on his face.

Li Weiyi was certain that Zuoqiu Ting had known it was Yin Shi coming before he even entered the room. That was why he had hidden in Li Weiyi's bed, satisfying his own curiosity. After all, Zuoqiu Ting had always doubted the authenticity of Yin Shi's 'divine hidden one' status, suspecting that the Nine Li Hidden Gate and Li Weiyi might have deceived him.

After trying for a moment, Li Weiyi found his entire body paralyzed; even his vital energy was immobilized. He could do little more than blink and breathe. His five senses remained active. He could hear soft 'shuffling' footsteps outside, passing through the snow-covered courtyard, then ascending the stairs and stopping at the doorway. There was no knock, as if the person was still hesitating.

"Whoosh!" Zuoqiu Ting extended an arm from behind the bed curtains, flicked a finger, and a speck of spiritual light flew out.