UGB Chapter 77 Meeting at Daming Mountain
Chapter 77 Meeting at Daming Mountain
The ten Golden Core cultivators from the Fanli Kingdom instantly stopped talking, their eyes flashing coldly as they looked over. Their disciples also stood up and stood solemnly.
The dozen or so gray-robed elders who had been motionless on the platform simultaneously opened their eyes, their gazes flashing, and stood up, revealing gentle smiles on their faces.
The middle-ranking old man in gray robes had an ordinary appearance and a smile on his face. His temperament and aura were different from the others. He was the cultivator who had reached the Great Perfection of the Golden Core realm.
The moment He Yinghua saw this person, his pupils suddenly contracted, but he quickly calmed down. He and the other nine Golden Core experts from the Fire Feather Kingdom chose an open space and flashed down. The more than a thousand disciples on the Green Spirit Bamboo Raft followed closely behind, and soon they all landed on the summit.
He Yinghua flicked his sleeve, retracting the Green Spirit Bamboo Raft. Only then did he reveal a smile, leading the nine Golden Core experts beside him forward. The other Foundation Establishment deacons and disciples stood motionless with their hands clasped.
"Sect Master Fangtian, I didn't expect that such a small matter would trouble you to come here in person." He Yinghua clasped his hands in a respectful greeting to the Golden Core Great Perfection cultivator, his words carrying a hint of respect, unlike his casual manner with other cultivators of the same level.
The other nine Golden Core cultivators from the Fire Feather Kingdom also dared not be presumptuous, and they all clasped their hands in greeting and exchanged a few pleasantries.
"My Huanyun Sect is the guardian of the entire Qingzhou, while the Zanggui Sect and Kongsang Sect are the only two medium-sized sects in the northern region of Qingzhou. It is only right that I, representing the Huanyun Sect, come to mediate the dispute between you. Sect Leader He, there is no need to be so polite."
Fang Tian stroked his beard, smiled, and spoke in a calm tone.
At this moment, ten Golden Core cultivators from the Fanli Kingdom, led by Gui Sha, slowly walked over.
"Sect Leader He. It's been many years. You still look as dashing as ever. Congratulations!" The ghostly figure wearing a ghost crown spoke in a sinister voice with a forced smile.
"Hmph, Fellow Daoist Ghost Demon, you're too kind. You seem to be living a very comfortable life." He Yinghua snorted coldly, not giving the other party a kind look.
"Sect Leader He, we have no direct enmity; we're just serving different masters. There's no need to hurt our relationship. After the great battle, we'll still be brothers, haha..."
Upon seeing the hostility displayed by the other party, Ghost Cutter not only showed no anger, but instead burst into laughter, as if the anger on He Yinghua's face made him extremely happy.
"Hmph! Eh? This fellow Daoist looks unfamiliar. Are you one of the newly promoted Golden Core cultivators in your Fanli Kingdom in recent years?" He Yinghua was about to make a sarcastic remark, but when he turned his gaze, he noticed a strange face among the crowd.
This person was dressed as a Confucian scholar, which was quite similar to his temperament. Judging from the spiritual power emanating from him, he was indeed at the early stage of the Golden Core realm. He was taken aback and asked in surprise.
It should be understood that although Qingzhou is a vast and boundless region with hundreds of billions of living beings, there are only a few hundred Golden Core cultivators in the four regions of East, West, South, and North combined. Naturally, they are all very familiar with each other, especially the powerful cultivators who are currently employed by various sects, there is no reason why they would not know each other.
"Sect Leader He is joking. A Golden Core cultivator is not so easy to be born. Even for a medium-sized sect like yours or mine, it would be extremely lucky to produce one in a hundred years. This is Fellow Daoist Zhu, a retainer of my Burial Ghost Sect." Ghost Sha frowned at first, then explained, and finally, there was a hint of pride in his expression.
"What? Offering sacrifices! The Burial of Ghosts Sect is really going all out." He Yinghua was genuinely surprised to hear this.
The others from the Fire Feather Kingdom were equally surprised upon hearing this.
Offering is a high-ranking position in a sect. The holder of this title must be a Golden Core cultivator. After being recruited by the sect, they are labeled with the sect's name and receive considerable benefits from the sect every month.
However, they do not fully belong to this sect, so they are not subject to much of the sect's constraints, nor do they need to manage the sect's affairs. They will only contribute when the sect needs them.
Their status within a sect is similar to that of an elder. Apart from being forbidden from handling certain secret matters within the sect, their treatment is otherwise no different from that of an elder.
Most of them originally came from the ranks of rogue cultivators. There are naturally many rogue cultivators in the Qingzhou cultivation world, but eight or nine out of ten are Qi Refining stage cultivators or even quasi-Qi Refining stage cultivators. Even Foundation Establishment experts are rare, let alone Golden Core experts.
Even if such people exist, they are resolute and hardworking cultivators with great opportunities. These people are used to living a carefree life and would not easily serve as retainers of any force. Even if they have some unavoidable reasons, they would join a truly large sect in order to receive better treatment.
Large sects would never refuse offerings of Golden Core cultivators, and would try their best to acquire these rogue Golden Core cultivators, even if it came at a higher cost.
Because regardless of the type of sect, the number of Golden Core cultivators is an important standard for determining the overall strength of a sect. Even without the help of the sect's patrons, simply labeling these people with the sect's name serves as a deterrent to outsiders.
In short, according to common sense, only large sects have the strength to recruit worshippers.
Therefore, it was inevitable that the cultivators of the Fire Feather Kingdom would be greatly surprised when they heard that the Burial Ghost Gate actually had a Venerable. At the same time, they were also shocked by the Burial Ghost Gate's strength. Originally, the overall strength of the two countries was evenly matched, but now it seemed that the Burial Ghost Gate had gained the upper hand.
"Congratulations to the Ghost Clan Master! Where are the other elders from your sect? Fellow Daoist Gui Li is also absent. His cultivation is second only to yours, and his supernatural abilities are not much weaker than yours. If he were here, wouldn't your chances of victory be much greater?"
After a brief moment of distraction, He Yinghua quickly regained his composure. He glanced at the group and a sense of unease flashed through his mind. He then asked tentatively in a low voice.
"Junior Brother Gui Li and several other elders are currently in seclusion, cultivating a group secret technique. They are currently at a crucial stage in their cultivation, so it is inconvenient for them to appear," Gui Sha said calmly, without any expression.
"A group secret technique? Do you think I'd believe that?" He Yinghua's face turned cold upon hearing this, but considering that his side had made thorough preparations and that the number of Golden Core cultivators left behind by the other side was about the same as his own, he felt relieved.
"I've said what I wanted to say. Whether you believe it or not is entirely up to Sect Leader He." Ghost Killer didn't bother to explain further.
"Sect Master Fangtian, Sect Leader He and his fellow Daoists have come from afar. Why not let them rest for three days before holding the competition? That would be fair. What do you think?" Suddenly, Ghost Clan seemed to remember something, and a smile appeared on his pale face as he made this suggestion to Fangtian.
"Since the Ghost Clan Master has said so, I naturally have no objection. What do you think, Sect Leader He?" Fang Tian smiled slightly upon hearing this and turned to He Yinghua.
"Since Fellow Daoist Ghost Clan is so generous, then I, He, will not stand on ceremony." He Yinghua cupped his hands to the gray-robed elder, did not even glance at Ghost Clan, and led his men away.
He didn't think the other party was being kind; there must be something fishy going on. However, they had been traveling for over a month, and both their physical strength and magical power were depleted. It was naturally good that they could rest for three days to recover.
Seeing this, Ghost Slayer snorted coldly, a glint of evil light flashing in his eyes, and led his men away.
Fang Tian glanced at Ye Qingyun's back, seemingly unintentionally, his eyes gleaming with a strange light, appearing very interested in him, before looking away.
After that, the three cultivators fell silent, all sitting cross-legged and beginning to close their eyes and regulate their breathing.
……
"Finally, I can start trying to break through to the second level of Qi Refining." Du Fan held a bottle of Qi Refining essential oil in his hand, his eyes gleaming with excitement, ready to make a breakthrough in one go.
After a few days, with the help of the Qi Refining Oil, his cultivation had reached the limit of the first level of the Qi Refining stage. At the first level of the Qi Refining stage, his magical power had become incredibly profound. It was as if only a thin layer of paper remained between him and the second level of the Qi Refining stage, which could be easily broken through with a single puncture.
Just then, a loud "boom" suddenly came from the sky, as strong as thunder, which shook more than a hundred peaks of Kongsangmen.
The sudden shaking of the ground caused Du Fan to lose his balance and fall to the ground.
The protective light barrier formed by the mountain gate array, which was originally as calm as water, is now surging wildly, creating large ripples and accompanied by ear-piercing sounds of breaking and tearing.
High in the sky, huge clusters of gray clouds suddenly gathered, layer upon layer, rolling and swirling like a dense, dark cloud.
The sky above Kongsang Gate was dark and gloomy. Amidst the surging clouds, it seemed as if heavenly thunder was about to descend. In an instant, the wind and clouds rose and fell, and a sense of oppression crashed down, making it hard to breathe. Even the spiritual energy of heaven and earth became extremely turbulent.
Fortunately, this phenomenon only lasted for a dozen breaths before stopping. A moment later, the wind subsided, the great array's restrictions stopped trembling, the sky remained blue, and everything was calm.
The sky is not the real sky, but rather a manifestation of a special restriction within the mountain-protecting formation.
Du Fan breathed a sigh of relief, but then his face showed a look of horror.
"Junior brother, are you alright?" Guan Jing had come out and stood in front of Du Fan without anyone noticing.
"I'm fine." Du Fan shook his head, but when his gaze swept in one direction, his heart clenched. He saw that the thatched hut in the spirit garden had collapsed during the earthquake... This scene left him speechless.
"It's good that you're alright. The house can be rebuilt." Guan Jing followed Du Fan's gaze, her expression momentarily dazed before clearing up. She sighed and offered words of comfort.
Du Fan was speechless. That was comparable to a magnitude 10 earthquake. He never expected to experience something like that in this strange world.
Just as Du Fan smiled slightly, about to say something to Guan Jing, another loud "rumble" sound came from the sky. At the same time, clouds surged in all directions, and the earth shook. A moment later, the series of amazing scenes from before were repeated.