Chapter 1586: The Same Method

Up to this point, Li Yan had consumed almost no magical power. When facing an initial-stage fifth-rank demonic beast, his combat strength was not weakened at all; in fact, it didn’t take much effort.

Moreover, even without much magical power, he could still force his way through with just his physical body. As for whether he could succeed, Li Yan wasn’t entirely sure.

Li Yan’s advance was like splitting bamboo. What he didn’t know, however, was that the commotion he was causing was making Elder Yu on the other side so tired she felt like she could spit blood.

After much hardship, Elder Yu had only just managed to reach three hundred zhang!

Outside, when they saw that Li Yan had finally reached seven hundred zhang after a “difficult” journey, everyone from the Broken Army Sect became nervous again.

Shangguan Tianque had failed just as he was approaching the seven-hundred-zhang mark. Yet, Li Yan had once again unexpectedly reached a new height.

Ren Yanyu’s beautiful eyes shimmered as she watched Li Yan continuously form hand seals, battling a newly appeared Raging Flame Tiger with wings growing from its ribs.

Her jade hands, hidden in her sleeves, were also clenched tightly.

At this time, Li Yan had once again reverted to being a Body Cultivator. His fighting style was a mesmerizing sight for everyone, including Chongyangzi and the others.

The spectacle of a Body Cultivator dueling was far beyond what a Dharma Cultivator could compare to; the visual impact was the most intense.

Nearly every one of Li Yan’s attacks involved closing in on the twin-winged Raging Flame Tiger with rapid flashes and clashing with it head-on, sending sparks of fire flying from its body.

The twin-winged Raging Flame Tiger was sent spinning in circles by Li Yan’s fighting style. Unfortunately, its turning speed was simply no match for its opponent’s. Enraged, it roared repeatedly.

It swung its waist and tail, lashing out with chains of fire, its feet treading on raging flames as it shuttled about, spitting a fire dragon from its mouth, but Li Yan dodged them all with his agile movement skill.

This made the cultivators in the plaza watch with excitement. Regardless of their attitude towards the Broken Army Sect, this kind of intense dueling scene was enough to make one’s blood boil…

People like those from the Bright Flame Sect on the high platform, as well as those from the Blood Lantern Sect who knew a bit about Li Yan’s background, all knew that the Li Yan at this moment was using his true strength.

According to the information they had gathered, this Li Yan was a formidable Body Cultivator. He had managed to hold on until now by relying on a magical treasure.

But in the end, just like Master Wei’s Exotic Fire of Heaven and Earth, Li Yan’s magical treasure finally had its limits, and he had to use his full strength.

When Body Cultivators attacked, besides their earth-shattering and terrifying power, they also possessed the most agile movement skills, leaving the crowd mesmerized.

A quarter of an hour later, Li Yan broke through seven hundred zhang!

Half an hour later, he broke through eight hundred zhang…

At this time, Elder Yu on the other side had only broken through four hundred zhang, and her speed was getting slower and slower. The expressions of the cultivators from the two sects now underwent a relative transformation.

The Bright Flame Sect increasingly felt that Elder Yu had truly encountered a problem.

As for the Broken Army Sect cultivators, they went from being silent at the beginning to clenching their fists and cheering silently.

Now, every one of them had a look of nervous excitement. They just watched as Li Yan climbed higher, bit by bit.

Although Li Yan’s speed was not fast, he had, amidst this heart-wrenching suspense, already broken through to eight hundred zhang!

Watching Li Yan continuously ascend, a faint smile inadvertently appeared on Chongyangzi’s lips.

‘He did understand the meaning of that sentence after all. But in the end, everything still depends on his own strength!’

The voices of the cultivators in the plaza also gradually quieted down. Their attention was now basically focused on Li Yan’s side.

They were watching to see if Li Yan could reach the height that Master Wei had.

In the opinion of most people, after excluding Master Wei, only that Han Zhumei had any hope for the final hundred zhang.

But the Bright Flame Sect had not sent another late-stage Spirit Transformation cultivator before, and the strength of the person they did send seemed even weaker than the initial-stage Spirit Transformation Shangguan Tianque.

An hour later, Li Yan reached a height of nine hundred zhang. Elder Yu was at four hundred and seventy zhang…

At this time, more than ninety percent of the people’s attention was on Li Yan’s side. A cultivator from the Broken Army Sect had actually rushed to the final stretch.

The strength Li Yan had shown before was that of an initial-stage Spirit Transformation. Although he had defeated four mid-stage fifth-rank demonic beasts, it had taken a long time.

However, it was within many people’s expectations that a Body Cultivator could fight above their rank. Li Yan had demonstrated the tenacity and long endurance of a Body Cultivator.

But at this time, Li Yan’s face had also turned pale and bloodless, and his green robe was tattered in many places. There were even shocking burn marks on his skin.

And he gave the impression that his physical strength was already somewhat exhausted.

However, even in this state, many people, including those cultivators from the Blood Lantern Sect, looked at Li Yan with a touch of amazement in their eyes.

A Body Cultivator is a Body Cultivator, truly powerful and unmatched. He killed four demonic beasts of a higher rank. Although it took a long time, the other party actually did it.

However, this result was only amazing. After all, the four demonic beasts did not attack him at once.

Moreover, in the Immortal Spirit Realm, with all kinds of top-tier cultivation methods flourishing like a hundred flowers, there were many cultivation methods that allowed one to fight above one’s rank. It wasn’t something to be completely astounded by.

And in many sects, there were similar places where members and disciples could temper their cultivation methods.

Often, they would enter with their divine sense transformed. They might even face several or dozens of opponents of the same rank at once, just to see how long they could last.

And many elite disciples could ultimately fight several minor realms above their own, simultaneously dealing with the siege of several strong enemies without being defeated…

After Li Yan flew to nine hundred zhang, he glanced upwards, his chest heaving violently. He did not fly up immediately. He gave the impression that he was trying to seize the shortest possible time to regulate his breath and rest.

At the Broken Army Sect’s location, at this time, including Shangguan Tianque, they were no longer healing, but had opened their eyes and were looking at Li Yan with solemn expressions.

In fact, he had been unable to concentrate too much on healing. Every time he refined some Pill Poison, he would observe the Blood Pagoda Lamp for a moment.

And at this time, when he saw that Li Yan had actually broken through to nine hundred zhang, Shangguan Tianque immediately stood up.

Sensing Shangguan Tianque’s movement, Ren Yanyu looked back. Shangguan Tianque took just a few steps to reach Ren Yanyu’s side.

“Junior Brother Li is truly someone who could escape from that kind of environment unscathed. He can even kill mid-stage fifth-rank demonic beasts one by one!” Shangguan Tianque said softly.

As he spoke, he thought of the secret realm full of death that Li Yan had once mentioned, and a look of amazement appeared in his eyes.

He and Ren Yanyu had guessed that Li Yan’s combat strength was very strong, but to see it for real was an unexpected surprise. And the stronger Li Yan was, the more beneficial it was for the Broken Army Sect.

The two of them, senior brother and junior sister, now understood Li Yan’s character very well. He never cared for so-called power and authority.

Apart from cultivating, Li Yan spent all his days cultivating, and that Mu Guyue was the same. This made them marvel at the dedication of lower-realm cultivators to the immortal path.

Although the demonic beasts in the Blood Pagoda Lamp were only strong in attack, and their defense could only be considered passable—they had no Nascent Soul or demonic core inside them, so destroying their physical body meant defeat—they were still amazed by Li Yan’s combat strength.

This was also because Li Yan, in the grand environment of the Immortal Spirit Realm, knew that a Spirit Transformation cultivator was not really anything special here. His true trump card was having the confidence to escape from the hands of an initial-stage Void Refining cultivator.

Therefore, in order to obtain as many supreme-grade Spirit Stones as possible, it was no problem for him to reveal some of his trump cards.

“Junior Brother Li probably has few opponents among those of the same rank. I am no match for him!” Ren Yanyu said softly.

At this moment, she felt that Li Yan had once again become unfathomable.

Yet just a few years ago, both she and Shangguan Tianque felt that they could already guess the strength of Li Yan, who had revealed his true cultivation.

Now it seemed that they were wrong again!

Ren Yanyu thought again of Li Yan’s concealment of his cultivation, which seemed to have become a habit, making it so that even those familiar with him did not know where his limits were.

After hearing this, Shangguan Tianque also nodded. At the same time, a strong sense of confidence suddenly rose in his heart.

At this very moment, he felt as if Li Yan should be able to pass the final hundred zhang!

“He’ll be fine!”

And just at this moment, Mu Guyue, who had been standing quietly on the other side, suddenly spoke coldly.

Her voice was, as always, giving off a sense of lofty, aloof coldness. She had been watching Li Yan continuously climb upwards.

When she saw that even Master Wei had almost succeeded in passing the trial, she knew in her heart that it was impossible for Li Yan to fail.

She now understood this man too well. He was bold yet meticulous, with methods so numerous they were chilling. Just from what she knew, he still had a late-stage Spirit Transformation tree demon on him!

This assessment did not say that companion spirit beasts could not be used.

In fact, the Exotic Fire of Heaven and Earth used by Master Wei already possessed a spiritual intelligence no less than that of a Spirit Transformation cultivator. What was the difference between that and a tree demon with a signed contract?

It was just that Mu Guyue also knew that Li Yan, nine times out of ten, would not use the tree demon. But if he were truly forced into a desperate situation, then it was possible.

However, on this point, Mu Guyue was mistaken. It was because she did not know Feng Hongyue’s origin. If she did, she would feel that Li Yan, ten times out of ten, would definitely not use Feng Hongyue.

Putting aside other matters, as soon as Feng Hongyue showed his face, he would probably be captured by Chongyangzi.

Feng Hongyue was not only a traitor of the Heavenly Mountain Garden, but also a thorn in Chongyangzi’s side. Without anyone else needing to act, Chongyangzi would be the first to fly into a rage…

Inside the lamp’s cover, Li Yan was quickly contemplating how to pass the final hundred zhang!

When he had entered earlier, Master Wei had not yet reached nine hundred zhang, so he didn’t know Master Wei’s situation, nor did he know if the other party had succeeded in passing the trial.

‘The previous pass had four mid-stage fifth-rank demonic beasts, so the ones appearing in this pass should be four late-stage fifth-rank demonic beasts, or those four cultivators from the Pure Yang Hall. But they definitely won’t come out all at once, otherwise, it would leave no hope at all!’

Li Yan thought to himself, and his thoughts were exactly the same as Master Wei’s before.

But Li Yan was considering the feasibility of passing the trial based on normal thinking. If those four were to join forces, he might also have to choose to flee.

But if it were in the outside world, in a real life-and-death struggle, even against four late-stage Spirit Transformation cultivators joining forces, Li Yan would not be afraid.

Once he could let go of all restraints and use any means necessary, he was confident he could kill them all.

‘Under these circumstances, I can no longer fight head-on as before. I am an initial-stage Spirit Transformation Body Cultivator. It’s barely explainable that I can fight head-on with a mid-stage cultivator. People would know that my actual combat strength is comparable to the peak of the Mid-stage Spirit Transformation. But if I can repeatedly kill late-stage Spirit Transformation cultivators, putting aside other things, just the replenishment of my magical power and stamina will arouse real suspicion from others. In that case, there might only be one way to pass the final checkpoint…’

As his thoughts raced, Li Yan had already slowly begun to fly up. Then, his divine sense continuously scanned the surroundings. Nine hundred and ten zhang, nine hundred and twenty zhang, nine hundred and thirty zhang…

Suddenly, a desolate rhino completely covered in fire appeared.

‘Just as I thought!’

The moment Li Yan saw the desolate rhino appear, his body suddenly accelerated. Before the other party could launch an attack, he turned into an afterimage and flew upwards like a flash of lightning.

“Moo!”

This made the desolate rhino let out a sudden roar. Its four hooves trampled on the flames as it immediately gave chase!

Li Yan had actually adopted the exact same method of passing the trial as Master Wei.

The appearance of this scene, while exciting everyone, also filled their eyes with surprise. Master Wei had been defeated while passing the trial in this very manner.

In a flash, Li Yan reached the nine-hundred-and-sixty-zhang mark, passing through like a gust of wind. Then, a golden crow appeared.

This demonic beast was also stunned for a moment, then let out a sky-shaking “caw.” Someone was trying to escape right before its eyes. It immediately gave chase.

But at this time, Li Yan had already passed nine hundred and ninety zhang. There, a crimson flood dragon appeared, but Li Yan had already reached the thousand-zhang mark.

And at this moment, under the gazes of the outsiders, the crocodile-shaped demonic beast at the thousand-zhang mark appeared almost simultaneously with the three demonic beasts below.

As soon as the crocodile-shaped demonic beast appeared, Li Yan was upon it.

His figure blurred and flashed to the top of the crocodile-shaped demonic beast’s head. His speed was so fast that none of the four demonic beasts had time to react.

However, in the eyes of the outsiders, Li Yan was just once again displaying the dodging movement skill that Body Cultivators were best at. This had already happened several times before.

Almost at the same time Li Yan’s figure was still a blur, the Fuxi Plate above his head had also disappeared.

At the same time, Li Yan, who had reached the top of the crocodile demonic beast’s head, quickly glanced down. The three demonic beasts had also reached the crocodile demonic beast’s feet, only a fraction slower than him.

Therefore, he only had one chance to attack!

“Die!”

Amidst Li Yan’s explosive shout, flames also rose from his body.

He already knew that the sea of fire here was an extreme Yin fire, so while attacking, the best defense was naturally to use Yang fire to counter it.