"Go!" The blue phoenix instantly spread its wings, blazing forth as a streak of blue light. Seeing this, the golden old sage frowned, his face darkening with growing anger. The young opponent had not even summoned a single artifact—only relying on a single phoenix to launch the attack. How incredibly dismissive! With his fury mounting, the golden old sage broke into a smile. Without further words, he swiftly manipulated intricate hand seals with his ten fingers, determined to unleash his most powerful sword technique right from the start, aiming to settle the matter in one decisive blow. The three golden arches above his head emitted a clear, resonant sound like a dragon's roar, then vanished in a flash. In their place, a slender golden thread materialized before him, though delicate, stretching several dozen feet in length. As the golden light flickered continuously, one after another, golden threads surged upward, cascading into the air. In a moment, hundreds of dense, shimmering golden threads appeared, radiating a brilliant, dazzling beauty. "Transforming the sword into threads!" Han Li's eyes flashed with cold light, his face expressing astonishment. Though the other was a sword cultivator, it was truly astonishing that he could manifest so many sword filaments at once. Indeed, Master Zhenkui, the Grand Elder of the Ancient Sword Sect, is no ordinary figure. At this moment, the onlookers below, witnessing the虬发 elder display such a marvel, found themselves most of them with expressions of bewilderment. "Spring Filament Slash!" "Even now, it's clear that experience counts—his very first move is his signature technique." "Francesca has been so careless; she may well suffer losses!" The three elder fire spirits from Baiqiao Hall couldn't help but murmur among themselves in admiration. The middle-aged cultivator accompanying the Golden Elder, meanwhile, beamed with delight, while Lu Luo's expression grew slightly concerned, and the elderly man named Cheng, as well as the female cultivator Ming Xin, remained composed. At that moment, the Golden Elder roared, striking a series of spells consecutively upon the golden filaments before him. Instantly, flashes of luminous energy erupted, and the myriad sword filaments coalesced into a vast golden net, which surged forth and precisely enveloped the approaching blue fire The golden net stretched over ten zhang in width, yet the fire bird was no more than half a cun long—so small that anyone witnessing it would have felt as though using a cow’s knife to cut a chicken. Yet, once the fire bird plunged headlong into the net, a scene unfolded that left the assembled cultivators in astonishment. As soon as the blue fire bird touched the golden net, it burst into splendor, and flashes of light followed, revealing a blooming blue lotus emerging from the flames. This lotus, still closed and poised, spun continuously within the net, its delicate form rotating with grace. Countless golden sword filaments surged toward it, yet they only caused ripples of luminous light around the lotus, unable to make any real contact. All cultivators familiar with the prowess of "Spring Filament Slash" were struck with awe. The old golden cultivator, seeing this, was both stunned and furious, and without hesitation, swiftly drew back his sword, pressing the sword technique with renewed vigor. Immediately, the golden filaments shimmered and glowed, each one growing subtly finer and longer by three parts, now shining brilliantly. Suddenly, he plunged straight into the blue luminous aura, slicing it into fragmented pieces and advancing directly toward the lotus. At that moment, the lotus began to unfurl, petal by petal. A crisp "pffft!" sound echoed as a shimmering, cool blue glow radiated from the petals, enveloping the space within a twenty-zhang radius. The light was so brilliant it made it impossible to look directly at it. Jin, the old golden immortal, immediately felt his connection to his flying sword severed—his sense of it completely vanished. He was startled and quickly focused his attention. A moment later, the robust-haired elder's face grew pale. Where he had stood, the lotus was now completely gone, replaced by a massive block of blue ice. Three golden flying swords were sealed within, completely immobile. Jin's heart sank. With a single hand motion, he tapped his storage pouch, and a translucent jade pendant appeared in his hands. Yet, before he could summon this treasure, a thunderous crack resonated suddenly from behind. Jin, the old master, was stunned, and without hesitation, launched himself diagonally into flight. Yet at that very instant, his protective aura—like a thin window pane—was easily shattered by a single blow. Then, a palm glowing with blue flame materialized, strangely pressing against the right shoulder he had just lifted, and as the half of his body grew cold, he instantly lost all sensation. "Jin, our match ends here. How do you find it?" Han's calm voice drifted gently from behind. "Han, you truly possess extraordinary prowess. I hereby bow to you!" Jin, though momentarily shaken, swiftly and decisively accepted defeat. "Thank you, Jin!" Han smiled lightly, gently tapping Jin's shoulder before withdrawing his palm. And with that touch, Jin immediately felt warmth spreading across his shoulder, and his body swiftly returned to its full vitality. He was startled, quickly turning around to see Han Li standing calmly a few zhang behind him, now with a pair of silver-winged法宝 appearing mysteriously behind him, glowing with continuous flickers of electric arcs. Old Jin exhaled a long breath. It was truly astonishing how the other party had mastered the subtle control of cold and chilly energy. Yet, hadn't it been reported that this person's main法宝 was a set of flying swords, and his primary cultivation technique wasn't even of ice nature? Could it be that his secret techniques were so powerful that they surpassed expectations—this truly left him in disbelief! "Han, you haven't wasted my guidance at all," the Daxian Divine Sovereign suddenly chuckled softly in Han Li's mind. "You've managed to manipulate the Qi of the Dry Azure Flame so skillfully—had you not specialized in ice-based cultivation, that would indeed have been a great loss." "Senior, please don't jest," Han Li replied calmly in a quiet transmission. "Though the Azure Flame is powerful, it still hasn't reached the point where I need to revise my primary cultivation technique." Then, the silver wings behind him gradually faded and dissolved without a sound. Then, he swayed slightly and materialized as a streak of emerald light beside the blue giant ice. With a seemingly casual sweep of his robe, a wave of azure mist surged forth, dissolving and shrinking the blue ice within its glow, transforming it once more into a delicate lotus, faintly blue. This light lotus drifted gently toward Han Li, vanishing in a flash upon reaching his forehead—seeming as though it had never appeared at all. The three golden swords, now freed, emitted a faint hum and, weakly, turned into three golden streaks, flying back toward the old golden monster. Though only briefly imprisoned by the blue ice, their spirit seemed somewhat diminished. The old golden monster’s face, naturally, grew increasingly grim; he opened his mouth and silently retrieved the three swords. At that moment, Han Li drifted gently downward toward the mountain peak. From the moment the light lotus formed by the dry blue ice flame froze the flying sword, to Han Li suddenly materializing behind the Golden Old One with his Wind-Thunder Wings, effortlessly subduing his opponent and decisively settling the contest within an instant—leaving several Yuan-Infusion elders who had hoped for a grand battle deeply disappointed, yet simultaneously filled with awe at Han Li's extraordinary abilities—especially since Han Li had not even deployed a single offensive artifact, clearly demonstrating that the disparity in their strengths was far more than merely slight. When Han Li landed on the mountain peak, although the cultivators had previously harbored various thoughts and intentions, they all now approached him with due respect and urgency. "Master Han truly possesses profound mastery—what the rumors have said is indeed no exaggeration." "Congratulations to your sect—now you are officially the first among the sects of Yunmeng Mountain!" These words were spoken by several elders from the Hundred-Tricks Institute, who, though they had just been ranked last, seemed completely unconcerned and instead expressed enthusiastic praise. The middle-aged cultivator from the Ancient Sword Sect looked somewhat displeased, yet could only勉强 manage a few smiles in the face of Han Li's strong presence. Though he opened his mouth, he ultimately failed to utter anything. Ming Xin, on the other hand, aside from a brief look of astonishment at the beginning, now appeared calm and composed. The elderly man with the Cheng surname and Lü Luo naturally rejoiced greatly, exchanging glances that revealed clear expressions of satisfaction on each other's faces. Following this battle, the Luoyun Sect would likely maintain its dominance over the other two sects for at least a millennium. These individuals gathered around Han Li, inquiring about the divine techniques he had just demonstrated. Han Li's demeanor remained unchanged compared to before, yet he only briefly mentioned the achievements of Qianlan Ice Flame and Fenglei Wings, passing them over with a simple remark. No one dared to press further questions. A short while later, the old master, Jin, descended from the sky. Now composed and serene, he seemed as if nothing remarkable had occurred at all, maintaining a gentle, relaxed smile throughout. This gave Han Li a quiet sense of admiration for the elder. After firmly reestablishing the interests of the three sects in Yunmeng Mountain, these ancient beings began exchanging tips on cultivation and offering some rare treasures they no longer needed. However, such limited exchanges naturally failed to capture韩立's interest. He did, in fact, absorb many valuable insights from the cultivation experiences shared with others. Without any significant disturbances, the exchanges concluded smoothly after several days. From the cultivation experiences of these Yuan婴 elders,韩立 truly gained several insights he had previously overlooked. This prompted him to quietly consider that participating in such pure cultivation exchanges would be highly beneficial—perhaps he should attend them more often. After the exchange,韩立 proactively proposed visiting the Lung-Heat Meridian of the Baiqiao Courtyard. This surprised the fire-specialized elder, who immediately agreed. Yet, upon witnessing the deep, unfathomable pool of earth-heat veins before him,韩立 stood aside, pondering for a long while. After another half-day's journey, Han Li and the elder, along with others, eventually bid farewell and departed from Bai Qiao Pavilion. Han Li and his two companions transformed into three streaks of brilliant light, speeding toward Luoyun Sect. However, during the journey, Lü Luo spoke nonstop with great enthusiasm, engaging directly with the Cheng surname elder in discussions about which spiritual stone mines and rare materials sources they would accept. Some of these locations belonged to the Ancient Sword Sect, while others were held by Bai Qiao Pavilion. But soon, a portion of them would soon become the property of Luoyun Sect. Although not as excited as Lü Luo, the Cheng surname elder also appeared deeply pleased. Han Li showed no interest in these matters, merely listening with a gentle smile. Yet, surprisingly, just as they were nearing the sect's gates, the Cheng surname elder suddenly spoke to Han Li in the midst of their flight: "Brother Han, this all thanks to you! Without revealing this to you, it has long been the heartfelt aspiration of our sect's successive elders to become the foremost immortal cultivation sect in Xī Guó. To see this vision realized under my stewardship is truly a source of great satisfaction for my life." After consulting with my brother and Lu's younger brother, I intend to hand over the position of Grand Elder of our sect to my younger brother upon my passing. I wonder how he feels about this.