"You seem to have changed a bit all of a sudden," Li Buwei said, frowning slightly with a hint of confusion.
Inside the mountain gate, protected by the great mountain-guarding formation, he looked at the young Daoist before him. Previously, Ji Yuan had been as calm as still water, giving off an unfathomable aura, like gazing into a deep abyss. But now, Ji Yuan was like a drawn sword, his entire being exuding a potent sword intent, hinting at the ability to cleave through anything!
"It's just your imagination," Ji Yuan replied. He, too, had noticed the change and quickly composed himself, returning his state of mind to peace. The abundant sword intent flowing through him gradually receded, and soon, there was no trace of any abnormality.
Then, as if remembering something, he looked around him and saw Zhou Lianying still trapped in the illusion, her face even unconsciously contorting in pain. It seemed that whatever she had experienced within the illusion was far from pleasant. After a moment of thought, Ji Yuan produced two Clear Heart Focusing Talismans and placed them on Zhou Lianying's forehead and chest. He formed a hand seal and gently touched the girl's forehead. With a vibration of spiritual energy, he uttered a soft command, "Awaken!"
As his voice faded, a soul light appeared between his brows. Under the simple method of dispelling illusions, Zhou Lianying let out a soft hum and then slowly regained consciousness. She looked around blankly, still not entirely clear of the illusion, and struggled to gather her thoughts for a long time. However, Ji Yuan didn't pay much attention. Since she had broken free from the illusion, it would only take a little time to fully recover, and there was no need for him to do anything further.
Having done this, he turned his gaze to the five people beside him, finally taking a proper look at them. Among these five, his attention was most drawn to the young man and woman nestled intimately together. They appeared to be no older than twenty-five or twenty-six, wearing the same style of robes, suggesting they were fellow disciples. Their intimate actions indicated they were likely a couple. A few steps away from them stood a middle-aged man with a sword at his waist. Unlike the ethereal aura of a cultivator, he seemed more like a wandering knight errant. Ji Yuan recalled that it was this man who had, with a single sword strike, repelled several disciples from Wangyue Sect, inflicting injuries on them to varying degrees. Without his intervention, they might not have been able to break through so smoothly, as the Wangyue Sect disciples were somewhat hesitant due to their injuries.
"We're inside?" After a long while, Zhou Lianying finally came to, and then realized she was within the protective mountain-guarding formation. She looked around and asked softly, "Are we climbing the mountain now?" Since they had successfully passed the trial, she assumed they would immediately ascend and seek their own opportunities.
However, Ji Yuan shook his head and spoke after a moment of thought, "Let's wait a bit longer." As he spoke, he turned his gaze to two young men about seven or eight steps away, who looked to be around thirty years old. Their appearances were unremarkable, the kind of people you'd forget at a glance in a crowd. Yet, their auras were incredibly powerful. One had a restless demeanor, clearly not someone who enjoyed stillness, swaying slightly even as he stood. His aura was powerful, and though only at the early stage of the Spirit Opening Realm, he felt no weaker than someone in the middle stage. The other stood with a calm and steady presence, his posture straight, exuding an unshakeable aura. His cultivation had reached the middle stage of the Spirit Opening Realm, and like his companion, his strength was comparable to a late-stage cultivator.
Ji Yuan suddenly had a guess. It was likely this man who had used his abilities to conjure an earth dragon, whose self-detonation had blasted away dozens of cultivators, opening a direct path to the mountain gate for them. If he wasn't mistaken, this person was probably skilled in sorcery; otherwise, it would be incredibly difficult for someone at the middle stage of the second realm to unleash such a grand display of magic.
"What are we waiting for?" After standing still for a long time, Zhou Lianying couldn't help but ask with a face full of confusion. It was evident that her state of mind was unsettled, her emotions clearly displayed on her face, revealing her nervousness, anxiety, and intense impatience. Clearly, her heart was set on the spiritual spring within the cave dwelling.
"Don't rush. Let's see who manages to snatch that jade token first," Li Buwei said from the side. At this moment, everyone's attention was focused on the brawl outside the mountain gate. The Wangyue Sect disciple who had originally obtained the jade token had been forced to drop it under the siege of numerous cultivators. Despite this, the disciple, who had cultivated to the middle stage of the Spirit Opening Realm, had sustained extremely severe injuries. He wouldn't be able to fight with all his might for quite some time. In fact, if not for the protection of his fellow disciples, he would likely have been ambushed by now and robbed of all his possessions.
"It seems this won't be resolved anytime soon," Li Buwei said after watching for a while. "Perhaps it's best if everyone introduces themselves, so we can get to know each other a little." As soon as he spoke, a few people snorted coldly. Out in the world, the less one was known, the better. Even if one had a noble family background or an incredibly powerful backer, it wouldn't serve much purpose. The only potential benefit would be for someone to meticulously plan their every move to ensure a successful, untraceable strike before acting.
However, after a moment of contemplation, they all began to speak, each stating a name, whether true or false. The middle-aged man with the long sword, who exuded a strong sense of worldly chivalry, claimed to be a friend from Lingyang Prefecture, who had given him the moniker Nanxi. The man and woman, who appeared to be fellow disciples but were actually a couple, were named Lü Xian and He Yao respectively. Whether these were their real names was unknown. As for the two ordinary-looking young men, the one at the early stage of the Spirit Opening Realm called himself Huo Hou, and the one at the middle stage was named Shi Shan. After Li Buwei symbolically introduced himself, Ji Yuan also stated his Daoist name, 'Ling Yu,' and said nothing more, including his status as a registered cultivator of the Great Yu Dynasty. This identity, while perhaps intimidating to some when he was weaker, held little significance for cultivators beyond the second realm.
"What do you think we should do later? Join forces to kill whoever takes the jade token, or let them choose a path?" Lü Xian, who seemed the most ethereal among them, asked. This man possessed an otherworldly and transcendent aura, like an immortal standing atop a mountain peak. However, despite his voice being as pleasant as a spring breeze, his words carried a chilling killing intent.
"Let's observe for now. If there are too many of them, or if their strength is formidable, it wouldn't hurt to let them have a path," Li Buwei said after some thought, not making an immediate decision. However, for the others, even yielding a path was acceptable. After all, within the mountain gate, there were six paths leading to the summit, and each path was adorned with a shimmering spiritual light. Li Buwei had another intention for allowing a path to be conceded. Before entering the mountain-guarding formation, many had noticed a complex formation pattern at the entrance of the cave dwelling at the summit. It was unclear whether the jade token alone could open it. If the jade token proved ineffective, it might require them to break through by force, in which case, the more people, the better.
The individuals present did not voice any opinions on this proposal, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, each having their own intentions. From the perspective of Li Buwei and Lü Xian, even one or two more people wouldn't be a bad thing; it could even provide a slight advantage in checking the influence of Nanxi and Shi Shan. Although they all prided themselves on their extraordinary skills, they were somewhat apprehensive when facing two cultivators at the middle stage of the Spirit Opening Realm. As for Nanxi and Shi Shan, they were confident in their own strength and therefore didn't care how many joined.
On the side, Ji Yuan quietly observed everyone, also offering no opinion, his face remaining impassive, maintaining a composed demeanor. He kept all his thoughts hidden, preventing outsiders from seeing even a hint of them, which would, to some extent, obscure his true intentions.
After about fifteen minutes, amidst the chaotic battle outside the mountain gate, a rogue cultivator from the wilderness managed to obtain the jade token. Covered in blood, and seeing the surrounding cultivators charging at him, he quickly raised the jade token, infused it with a stream of spiritual energy, and a faint halo spread out, covering a radius of about ten feet. He then loudly proclaimed, using his spiritual energy, that they could enter the mountain gate together and that there was no need to continue the slaughter, which would only benefit others.
It had to be said that by this point, over ten cultivators had already perished. Most people felt a desire to retreat, and upon hearing his words, they immediately joined in without hesitation. In just a moment, seven or eight cultivators had gathered around the rogue cultivator who had obtained the jade token, most of them of similar origins, along with two other lone cultivators. As for the remaining cultivators, besides those who were still hesitant or wished to take advantage of the chaos, they belonged to the same factions or sects, and thus would naturally not join.
"Sometimes, you really can't underestimate rogue cultivators from the wilderness," Lü Xian suddenly murmured to himself. Most of those present nodded in agreement. While the majority of rogue cultivators, due to their incomplete techniques and inheritances, had impure spiritual energy and limited strength, their harsh environments had made some of them far more ruthless and decisive than ordinary cultivators, capable of fighting with incredible ferocity when pushed to their limits. It was akin to the saying in the martial world: the brave win when paths converge. Sometimes, in a cultivator's battle, momentum was crucial. One side was hesitant and restrained, while the other was fearless and fought with all their might. As long as the cultivation levels weren't vastly different, the outcome was predictable.
In mere dozens of breaths, a group of rogue cultivators burst forth. Their life-for-life fighting style forced the surrounding cultivators to retreat, as no one wanted to sustain serious injuries and give an opportunity to those lurking in the shadows. However, though they broke through the siege, they had suffered heavy losses. Of the seven or eight people who had gathered earlier, only four remained, and each bore significant injuries. In contrast, the rogue cultivator who had obtained the jade token, protected by the others, had barely depleted his spiritual energy. Seeing the Wangyue Sect disciples guarding the mountain gate approach, he suddenly pushed several feet behind him, shoving the others beside him aside. Then, after self-detonating a magical artifact and creating chaos, he used all his strength to rush into the mountain gate!
"Congratulations, fellow Daoist, on breaking through the ranks." As everyone around frowned and stared, Li Buwei stepped forward, a smile on his face as he offered his congratulations. Compared to the others, he showed no surprise at the rogue cultivator's actions and instead seemed to greatly approve. He himself was a rogue cultivator, and he knew how difficult that origin could be in the world, looked down upon even by lone cultivators, who possessed a sense of natural superiority. Furthermore, due to incomplete techniques, his progress was incredibly slow, and every bit of cultivation improvement required painstaking effort, with even a copper coin needing to be spent on the most critical needs. Therefore, Li Buwei felt that such an action was not excessive. In his eyes, cultivators were beings who contended with heaven and earth, and fought with all things. It was merely a matter of deception, and one could only blame oneself for not being careful enough to be exploited and lose one's life; it was not others' fault!