With that thought, a cold smile tugged at the corner of Ning Fa's lips.
Since he was here, it wasn't just about resolving trouble.
He would definitely pursue the people who caused the trouble to the very end!
Even if it involved a Great Cultivator, they would have to give him an explanation!
At this moment, Ning Fa suddenly said, "I just heard you talking, and it seems the new Star Ranking has been released. May I have a look?"
Wu Hong was taken aback at first, then immediately handed the Jade Slip in her hand to Ning Fa.
Ruan Bingxin, who was standing nearby, chuckled, "Fellow Daoist Ning, things are different now. The Star Ranking is only released once a year."
Ning Fa showed a hint of surprise upon hearing this. Ruan Bingxin then said with a mysterious smile, "The Spiritual Pivot Pavilion offers more than just the Star Ranking now."
Upon hearing this, the expressions of the other Nascent Soul Cultivators from the Ice Spirit Palace also changed.
Ning Fa was now genuinely surprised. "If what Fellow Daoist Ruan says is true, are there perhaps rankings specifically for us Nascent Soul Cultivators?"
Ruan Bingxin nodded. "Precisely. Not long after the war with Tianli began, the Spiritual Pivot Pavilion released a ranking specifically for us Nascent Soul Cultivators, called the [Profound Ranking].
However, it only lists the top fifty Nascent Soul Cultivators.
Those who manage to get on the list can receive extremely precious Nascent Soul Spiritual Material from the Spiritual Pivot Pavilion.
This Profound Ranking is also updated annually, one month after the Star Ranking. You'll be able to see it then.
Heh heh, I imagine with your potential, Fellow Daoist Ning, you'll have a great opportunity to make the list in the future."
Ning Fa softly murmured "Profound Ranking" in his heart, a flicker of anticipation in his eyes. Such a list would be perfect for him to understand who the current powerhouses of Cangyuan were.
At this moment, Wu Hong respectfully said, "Seniors, you should be heading to Tianyu City, right? Please follow me to another Transmission Hall."
This was to prevent any accidents, so the teleportation array leading to the front lines was not located here.
Tianyu City was a massive city on the very front line, constructed with the combined might of all of Cangyuan. It was equipped with several ancient defensive formations, possessing extremely strong defensive capabilities.
It could be said that even if a Spirit Transformation Cultivator attacked, it would be difficult to breach in a short period. It played a vital role in the war against Tianli.
Mu Nianfeng nodded and said to everyone, "Then let's go."
The group then followed Wu Hong. Ning Fa took the opportunity to place the Jade Slip against his forehead and began to browse the latest issue of the ranking.
1st place, Lu Chenyuan of Wushi Demonic Palace.
2nd place, Chen Jingran of Taiqing Sect.
3rd place, Huo Dantong of Yuan Cha Gate.
4th place, Jiang Yu of Jingming Sect.
5th place, Pei Jinglan of Pei Family.
6th place, Bai Yixuan of Ice Spirit Palace.
7th place, Zheng Xuanyan of Huayu Sect.
8th place, Gu Linchuan of Blood Sword Pavilion.
Seeing this, Ning Fa's expression immediately changed.
Almost all of the top twenty on the Star Ranking had changed. Most of the names from before he went to the Nine Dragons Sea were no longer there. These people had most likely all advanced to Nascent Soul.
After all, they were originally the proudest talents of the major sects, and with the help of the Spiritual Pivot Pavilion, their chances of advancing to Nascent Soul were much greater than ordinary Core Formation Cultivators.
However, the sects ranked at the top had barely changed. After all, these were almost the strongest forces in Cangyuan, with only the addition of the Pei Family.
This was not surprising. The Pei Family had an ancestor in the late Nascent Soul stage, so they could be considered a top force in Cangyuan.
And when he saw the name "Huo Dantong of Yuan Cha Gate," Ning Fa's brow furrowed slightly.
This was because he knew that the Yuan Cha Gate had colluded with Pinghai Pavilion back then.
Pinghai Pavilion was an affiliated force of the Sea Race, and it was even due to the Yuan Cha Gate's assistance that Pinghai Pavilion was able to activate the ancient teleportation array on Ancient Immortal Island.
Logically, the Yuan Cha Gate should have surrendered to the Sea Race.
Before this, Ning Fa had specifically confirmed this matter with Ruan Bingxin and the others.
But to his great surprise, the Yuan Cha Gate was still a Cangyuan force and had played a significant role in resisting Tianli and the Sea Race, no less than the major sects of the Righteous and Demonic Alliances.
Moreover, the Yuan Cha Gate had frankly admitted their past cooperation with Pinghai Pavilion at the beginning.
However, they claimed that they did not know Pinghai Pavilion was a traitor to the Sea Race at the time and had quickly severed ties afterward.
This matter still made Ning Fa feel very strange.
After all, when the ancient teleportation array was connected, the sect master of Yuan Cha Gate, Huangfu Hong, was present.
She had personally witnessed Sea Race cultivators teleporting over, so Huangfu Hong's claim of ignorance was clearly a lie.
However, in the subsequent decades, the Yuan Cha Gate had not shown any signs of rebellion. Instead, they had repeatedly achieved military merits.
Furthermore, seemingly due to some other reason, they had gained the trust of the Supreme Elder Council and held a significant position in Cangyuan today.
Ning Fa decided to temporarily set aside his doubts. He could investigate this matter in more detail later, but the grievances between him and the Yuan Cha Gate were not so easily resolved.
Back then, whether it was on Gray Luo Island or Ancient Immortal Island, if I hadn't been lucky, I might have died at the hands of Yuan Cha Gate.
He couldn't possibly let such a deep hatred go easily.
Ning Fa's gaze quickly settled on the name of the seventh-ranked "Zheng Xuanyan."
He was a little surprised. His Senior Brother Zheng was now in the top ten, ranking seventh. This was quite a high position.
Ning Fa remembered that Zheng Xuanyan had only ranked over 100th at his highest before. It seemed his strength had advanced by leaps and bounds in recent years.
While Ning Fa felt gratified, he also sighed slightly. This also indicated that Zheng Xuanyan had not yet formed his Nascent Soul.
And he knew the reason. In the previous war between the sect and Myriad Laws Sect.
Because the situation was critical, Zheng Xuanyan had overdrawn his potential and forcefully advanced to Late Core Formation, making his hope of forming a Nascent Soul extremely slim.
Ning Fa decided that upon his return, he would see if he could help Zheng Xuanyan repair his foundation.
He had killed so many Nascent Soul cultivators and possessed numerous treasures, including some precious Spiritual Materials that could mend foundations. Perhaps they could be effective for Zheng Xuanyan.
Ning Fa deeply admired this Senior Brother Zheng. He admitted that he couldn't be as devoted to the sect as Zheng Xuanyan, willing to sacrifice himself.
Ning Fa continued to look down and found that almost all the names above were newcomers. Most of the names he used to see on the rankings were no longer there.
Clearly, these people had either advanced to Nascent Soul or had perished.
Ning Fa continued to look down, and his gaze soon froze.
"49th place, Yuan Cha Gate's Ning Huarong."
Ning Fa's sword-like eyebrows immediately shot up, and a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.
What was going on?
He could understand Ning Huarong's rapid rise in ranking given her talent, but why was she now listed under Yuan Cha Gate on the Star Ranking?
At this moment, Ning Fa suddenly remembered that Ning Huarong, like True Lord Tianyou, had been approached by Yuan Cha Gate for a wager.
Yuan Cha Gate had given Ning Huarong a cultivation method of extremely high quality called the "Purple Nether Profound Maiden Art," in exchange for her completing a few tasks after forming her Core Formation.
Could it be that Ning Huarong hadn't completed them and was thus forced to join Yuan Cha Gate?
Ning Fa's brow furrowed, feeling that it might not be that simple.
Because he had stolen two drops of the extremely precious Myriad Spirit Heavenly Treasure Liquid from Yuan Cha Gate's sect leader, Huangfu Hong, and then teleported away.
Would Huangfu Hong vent her anger on the Ning Family and Huayu Sect because of this?
Then, could Ning Huarong joining Yuan Cha Gate be due to this reason?
And the trouble Wu Hong had just mentioned, could it have originated from Yuan Cha Gate?
Thinking of this, a shadow flickered in Ning Fa's eyes.
If Yuan Cha Gate had indeed done something, he would absolutely spare no effort to kill everyone in Yuan Cha Gate, even if the highest elder council tried to stop him!
At this moment, Ning Fa suddenly asked Wu Hong, "Your sect's Divine Maiden... Fellow Daoist Zhu, how is she doing now?"
Wu Hong was stunned for a moment upon hearing this. After a slight hesitation, she replied, "The Divine Maiden has been in seclusion for many years. This junior hasn't seen her for a long time."
Ning Fa's brow furrowed slightly. Judging from Wu Hong's somewhat hesitant demeanor, there seemed to be some hidden story.
Ning Fa didn't ask any further questions and silently followed the crowd forward.
The people from Ice Spirit Palace seemed to sense that Ning Fa was in a bad mood, and their expressions varied. Soon, everyone arrived at another Transmission Hall and disappeared in a flash of white light.
A short while later, everyone was teleported to another hall.
They saw a three-colored protective shield covering the teleportation array next to them, which appeared to be a defensive barrier of considerable power.
At this moment, footsteps could be heard. A team of armored guards walked over quickly, led by a middle-aged man in the Mid Core Formation realm. He clasped his hands and said:
"This junior, Fang Yong of Spirit Talisman Sect, greets all seniors. Please present your tokens."
Mu Nianfeng nodded and, with a flip of his right hand, produced a pale green circular token.
The middle-aged man also took out a token engraved with runes. It emitted a faint spiritual light. The man nodded and then flashed it towards the three-colored shield.
The shield rippled, and everyone walked through.
It was clear that the defensive level of Tianyu City, being on the front line, was much higher.
Ning Fa looked at the middle-aged man, his expression shifting.
He recognized this person; it was Fang Yong of Spirit Talisman Sect.
When Huayu Sect and Golden Rainbow Sect held their relocation ceremony after moving to the Yunxi Mountain Range, Fang Yong had publicly challenged him at the ceremony. Now, this person had advanced to the Mid Core Formation realm.
Just as Ning Fa was about to speak, the sound of breaking wind suddenly erupted.
A person quickly walked into the hall. Before he even arrived, his boisterous voice could be heard, "Fellow Daoist Fang, has anyone from our Huazhen Sect arrived yet?"
As this person approached, he was stunned. Then, his gaze fixed intensely on Ning Fa. First, he wore an expression of disbelief, and then his face contorted into one of shock, as if he had seen a ghost.
He even pinched himself hard, suspecting he was hallucinating due to recent overwork.
Ning Fa looked at the round-faced cultivator and couldn't help but reveal a slight smile.
This person had an even deeper connection with him. It was Cao Xian.
When Ning Fa had just entered Huayu Sect and was still a Qi Refining Cultivator, he had already met this person. At that time, he had to call him "Senior Brother."
Later, this person had even followed him for a period. However, Ning Fa later discovered that Cao Xian was actually a spy from the Righteous Path Alliance's Huazhen Sect, and he had expelled him from the sect.
He never expected to encounter him here.