Chapter 541: Gathering of Monstrous Talents
As they arrived at the Wangxin Hall midway up the mountain, the group from the summit led by Li Hao instantly drew the attention of those who hadn't made it to the top.
Many recognized Li Hao. After all, he had been hanging at the very end of the rankings, just outside the top thousand, yet managed to fish up a Dragon Clan cultivator at the Immortal Lord Realm in the Dao Pavilion—a moment that left a strong impression.
"Everyone around him is at the Immortal Lord Realm!"
"He actually reached the summit?"
Many looked at Li Hao in shock and disbelief, never expecting this young man to reach the top and earn a spot through sheer strength alone.
Among the crowd, the green-dressed girl and her group had already gathered at Wangxin Hall. When they saw Li Hao return, their expressions shifted, turning unpleasant.
If Li Hao had reached the summit and secured a spot, they would surely face him in the upcoming regional battle.
"It's a shame he's only at the True Immortal Realm. If he were at the Immortal Lord Realm, I could have dealt with him."
A young man beside the green-dressed girl, from the same sect, spoke up.
He himself was in the Immortal Lord Realm but lacked the mental fortitude to reach the summit.
"This guy ranked ninth on the Dao Flame List earlier. Among True Immortal cultivators, he's definitely a rare threat," another fellow disciple said with a serious tone.
"Hmph, he's too flashy and loves the spotlight. Others will be targeting him—we just need to avoid direct conflict."
Another True Immortal disciple spoke.
At this moment, Li Hao and his group entered Wangxin Hall.
Li Hao clearly sensed numerous gazes focusing on him, including from some of the other True Immortal cultivators who had reached the summit.
The Immortal Guard Commander then stepped forward and instructed those who had failed the trials to descend the mountain on their own.
Once the remaining disciples from the mid-mountain area had departed, the Immortal Guard Commander spoke again:
"Congratulations. After completing both trials, you are now the top talents of the Southern Region. What lies ahead is the final regional battle to determine the true pinnacle!"
"This upcoming battle will be your chance to show everything you've got. In the True Immortal group, those who make it into the top ten will earn the right to enter the Primal True Realm."
"The battle will take place three days from now at the Imperial Platform. Use this time to rest and prepare yourselves!"
Hearing the commander's words, everyone grew solemn. They had come from all over, crossing countless miles, just for this final showdown.
"The battle is finally about to begin. So many geniuses were eliminated—only a thousand remain now."
"Even the ones who were eliminated were freakishly strong. In my immortal city, they'd be top-tier talents."
"Not just your city. Those eliminated were hand-picked from hundreds of immortal cities. It's just that there were too many monstrous talents this time!"
Throughout the Southern Region's various immortal realms, countless cultivators were filled with excitement and emotion.
Once the Immortal Guard Commander finished speaking, the Trial of Wendao Mountain officially came to a close. Li Hao and the others were enveloped by a force that transported them out of Wangxin Hall and out of the mountain altogether.
The Grand Dream Master, along with Elder Li and other elders from the Nine Abysses, came to welcome Li Hao and the others, escorting them back to their sect's territory.
"You have three days. Rest well and prepare for battle."
The Grand Dream Master looked at Li Hao with gentle eyes, then addressed him and several other disciples.
This time, among the Nine Abysses, excluding the Sword Abyss disciples, the Spear Abyss had the highest number of participants. Besides the three Immortal Lord Realm disciples guaranteed a spot in their respective group, there were nine at the True Immortal Realm—quite a substantial number.
In the Sword Abyss, apart from Li Hao, there were only Yue Xi and Gu Yan, holding one-third of the Sword Abyss's total representatives.
The Spear Abyss also had two who made it through.
Some other abysses saw their disciples eliminated early, leaving none qualified, which was rather awkward.
Still, the Grand Dream Master was extremely pleased with the results. Beyond the number of disciples, quality mattered even more. Li Hao's performance gave her hope for a top-ten finish. If he could enter the Primal True Realm for cultivation, his future would be even brighter—he would definitely reach the King Realm, and possibly ascend to the higher levels within it.
Each level of the King Realm had vast differences in status and power. A peak Immortal King could rule an entire nation.
"Mm."
The nine of them nodded. Nearby, Yin Jingcheng, Meng Huaiyue, and Su Yecheng also nodded, feeling significant pressure regarding the upcoming Immortal Lord battle.
After all, they had only recently entered the Immortal Lord Realm, and during the two trials, they realized many of the other contestants were already at the second or third tier within the realm—some even more terrifying.
"Haotian, you performed well. A lot of people are probably eyeing you as a major threat now. Be careful. Don't let your guard down in the battle."
The Grand Dream Master reminded Li Hao.
Li Hao nodded.
Seeing how the sect leader personally looked out for him, the others glanced at Li Hao with some envy. But they understood—he truly was the sect's hope, performing far better than the rest of them.
After all, apart from Li Hao, no one else had managed to reach the summit of Wendao Mountain.
Even Yin Jingcheng and the other three Immortal Lord cultivators nearby had failed to climb to the top.
"Let's go."
At that moment, Emperor Chu stood up from his seat in the clouds and waved his hand, summoning the royal family of Yan Chu and the various sects to leave and rest.
Li Hao saw Lin Qingying among the Wanshan Sword Pavilion group. The two exchanged a glance, their intentions conveyed through their eyes. They would meet again in three days.
As the various immortal realms departed, the area around Wendao Mountain grew quiet once more.
The golden mist at the mountaintop gently drifted downward, veiling the Wendao Hall at the summit in a timeless silence.
…
Li Hao and his group arrived at the courtyard arranged by the Heavenly Palace to rest.
Each immortal realm was assigned its own quarters to avoid disturbances.
Li Hao presented the two Xuanming Dragon Immortals he had caught earlier to the Grand Dream Master and said, "Sect Master, I noticed your painted realm was missing something. These two dragons might make suitable pets."
"They'd do nicely as pond creatures."
The Grand Dream Master looked at the two dragons he had fished up on Wendao Mountain and couldn't help recalling Li Hao's dazzling performance in the Dao Pavilion. A smile played on her lips as she accepted the two dragons without protest and said:
"With your current strength, these dragons aren't even qualified to be your guards. I'll just take them."
"No need to be polite."
Li Hao grinned.
"During the trial, you might not have noticed, but within the True Immortal group, there are still plenty of powerful opponents worth watching out for. I've recorded their performance from the secret realm and Wendao Mountain. You should take a look—might help you prepare in case you face them in battle."
The Grand Dream Master advised.
Li Hao had initially wanted to decline, but after thinking about the three idle days ahead, he figured it wouldn't hurt to learn more about his opponents.
"The other sects will likely be reviewing your performance too—showing it to their disciples. You're quite the hot topic in the True Immortal group now."
The Grand Dream Master added, then raised her hand. A painting-like Dao Intent manifested, and an ethereal scene appeared in the air. It slowly became clearer, displaying playback scenes of certain disciples' performances during the secret realm and Wendao Mountain trials.
Li Hao dragged over a stool, pulled out some snacks he had prepared in his spatial storage for leisure, and sat in the courtyard, munching while he watched.
Unfortunately, the upcoming battle was too soon—he didn't have time to cook and eat all the ancient demon corpses he'd collected from the spatial rift. Otherwise, his soul power would have definitely strengthened even more!
"What's that delicious smell? Where did you buy this?"
The Grand Dream Master caught a whiff of the pastries by Li Hao's side, her jade-like nose twitching slightly. She asked in surprise.
Li Hao grinned. "I made them myself."
Good thing his Cooking Dao avatar didn't appear during the Wendao Mountain trial—otherwise he would've had to cook a full meal in front of everyone in the Southern Region.
"You made them?"
The Grand Dream Master looked stunned. Her expression turned a little odd as she picked up a piece and put it in her mouth. Her beautiful eyes widened in disbelief.
"You really made these?"
She quickly swallowed and couldn't help but ask again.
Li Hao smiled and nodded, continuing to eat.
The Grand Dream Master stared blankly for a moment, suddenly recalling Li Hao's performance on Wendao Mountain. She fell silent. 'Just how many things about him do I still not know?'
She reached out again, grabbed another piece, and began eating slowly.
Soon, one piece was gone. Then another quietly appeared in her hand, eaten at a steady pace.
As Li Hao ate, he reached for another piece—only to find the plate empty.
He paused, glanced at the Grand Dream Master, and saw her still holding a piece, eating very slowly.
'Did I eat too fast without realizing?'
He looked puzzled but didn't dwell on it. He took out two more plates.
His gaze then fell on a white-clothed young swordsman in the projection.
That person had charged into a horde of ancient demons—and with one sword, wiped them all out!
The sword's brilliance was blinding, even to Li Hao. He admitted to himself that he'd only be able to match that if he unleashed everything he had.
"So strong."
Li Hao narrowed his eyes and muttered in concentration.
The Grand Dream Master saw who he was watching and said in a low voice, "That's Jian Xin, a personal disciple of one of the Heavenly Palace Supremes. You saw him on the Dao Flame List. With his strength, if he went all out, he could probably clear half the secret realm of ancient demons by himself. From what I see, his Sword Dao is already at the fifth stage."
"Sword Dao, fifth stage…"
Li Hao took a deep breath. That was an extremely rare sword genius, one that came only once in ten thousand years.
Among his Nine-Sequence Great Dao, even Sword Dao had only reached the fourth stage.
And that level was already rare and terrifying for someone in the True Immortal Realm.
The fifth stage—only cultivators at high levels within the Immortal Lord Realm could reach it!
"Among you True Immortals, he's almost guaranteed to be top three. The only suspense is whether he'll place above or below the other Supreme's disciple."
The Grand Dream Master spoke calmly.
She was at the Immortal King Realm. Even though Jian Xin hadn't revealed much, her vision was sharp enough to sense how terrifying his strength was.
Li Hao nodded, his expression growing more serious. Truly, the world had no shortage of monsters.
Still, he hadn't underestimated anyone. His goal was only the top ten—not first place.
"And the other one?"
Li Hao asked.
"The other is that imperial genius you're friendly with."
The Grand Dream Master waved her hand, and the image shifted to show Di Linchen.
Li Hao watched as Di Linchen stood on the mountaintop, surrounded by ancient demons, yet his expression remained calm and unruffled.
Suddenly, the ancient demons charged. But at that moment, a divine figure appeared behind Di Linchen. He gently raised a hand and pressed down. The ancient demons' innate secret techniques and immortal spells were instantly shattered. They were suppressed by a mighty force and pressure, shrieking and howling in agony, until their organs and bones ruptured. They collapsed in the valley.
Li Hao remembered that bloody scene clearly—he'd seen Di Linchen drinking atop that very mountain.
"This time, three imperial clan members are participating. One is Di Linchen in the True Immortal group. The other two are in the Immortal Lord group—both very powerful and likely to contend for the top spot."
The Grand Dream Master's voice grew wistful. "The imperial clans stand above all others, having produced several Immortal Emperors. Their foundations haven't weakened in ten thousand years. Even after the great war left them deeply wounded, compared to the overall decline of the True Realm, they're still strong."
"Now, ten thousand years later, the imperial clans are stronger than ever. Genius after genius emerges, with heavenly destiny favoring them. Monstrous talents rarely seen in ten millennia are constantly born."
"Some have even said, the 'True Realm' should be renamed the 'Imperial Realm'."
Li Hao nodded. He'd already seen Di Linchen wipe out the ancient demon horde with extraordinary strength and unfathomable methods.
"Aside from them, there's the Bai Zhan Clan, the Heavenly Clan, the Desolate Clan, the Nether Clan…"
The Grand Dream Master lifted her hand, and the projection changed again. One by one, the top talents who had briefly shown their strength in the True Immortal Secret Realm appeared before Li Hao.
All of them were no weaker than the ancient god clan youth, Shen Wuji.
Li Hao suddenly realized that claiming a top ten spot might take a serious fight.
"This time, there are over ten monstrous geniuses—the kind who only appear once in ten thousand years. The competition's fiercer than ever!"
The Grand Dream Master looked at Li Hao with some helplessness. In past years, Li Hao's ability to defeat Immortal Lords while still in the True Immortal Realm would've guaranteed him a top ten finish. But now… things were less certain.
Li Hao gave a slight nod, not offering any comment.
The Grand Dream Master then showed him footage of those who were first to reach the summit of Wendao Mountain—each swiftly defeated their Dao Avatars with ease.
After Li Hao finished watching, the Grand Dream Master quietly finished off the remaining two plates of snacks. Then she stood up and said, "Get some rest. Don't overthink things. No matter what happens, you've already brought glory to our sect. Right now, the name of Da Meng Nine Abyss rings loudly across the entire Yan Chu Immortal Dynasty!"
She wasn't exaggerating. Ever since Li Hao's brilliance in the two trials, Da Meng Nine Abyss had become well-known across all immortal cities in Yan Chu.
"Mm."
Li Hao nodded, reached for the plate—and once again, found it empty.
"…"
He fell silent and gave the Grand Dream Master a mildly aggrieved look.
Her cheeks flushed red. As a sect master, stealing snacks from a disciple was admittedly a little embarrassing.
She turned and floated away, quickly fleeing the scene.
After she left, Li Hao sat quietly in the courtyard, feeling a bit bored.
He thought about painting, but didn't feel inspired. He considered playing a game of chess, but the intensity of the chess battles atop Wendao Mountain had left him deeply satisfied—for now, he didn't want other games disturbing that memory.
"Am I really so bored that I might end up cultivating?"
He muttered to himself.
But now, all of his Nine-Sequence Daos were at bottlenecks. There was no clear path for improvement in the short term.
Instead, his Painting Dao and Fishing Dao both had a chance of reaching the twelfth segment—if only he could find the right trigger.
"Come to think of it, I haven't properly explored the Heavenly Palace domain yet. I heard Huang Tian Sheng and the others came too, but I haven't seen them around. Wonder where they are."
Li Hao thought to himself.