Rise of the Sword Son-in-Law

Chapter 212: The Situation of Holy Refinement in the Immortal Dynasty

"Qingyi, have you really reached the Fifth Rank?" Dugu Tianyu asked Li Qingyi eagerly.

"Yes, Sect Master, I’ve broken through to the Fifth Rank, and it was not long ago," Li Qingyi said, nodding slightly.

Dugu Tianyu became instantly excited upon hearing this.

"With you breaking through to the Fifth Rank, there is hope for you to enter the top one hundred," Dugu Tianyu said excitedly.

Xu Ping’an smiled slightly.

Top one hundred?

Perhaps Li Qingyi’s goal isn’t nearly as simple.

According to Xu Ping’an’s estimation, Li Qingyi aims to enter at least the top ten, or even the top five.

Of course, Xu Ping’an kept these thoughts to himself.

Li Qingyi’s face didn’t show much expression either.

"Who would have thought Junior Sister Qingyi had become so strong? It seems that this time, the strongest person in Tianlong County should be Junior Sister Qingyi," Situ Feng and others came over and said with a smile.

"Never expected Junior Sister Qingyi to be this powerful. I thought I was the strongest, but after seeing Situ Feng, I realized I’m not even second," Lei Hu said with a carefree attitude.

Situ Feng smiled and didn’t mind.

He had also been desperately cultivating during this period.

The Li Huo Sect and Situ Family had even poured a lot of resources into him.

He thought he would be the strongest, but unexpectedly, he was not as strong as Li Qingyi.

But of course, he didn’t feel jealous.

For Li Qingyi to improve so much, she must have paid a significant price.

It was said that Li Qingyi had left Tianlong County alone, and now she emitted a faint killing intent, obviously having undergone much suffering.

"Junior Brother Ping’an, what is your cultivation now?" Tang Yu asked, looking at Xu Ping’an.

"I’ve just broken through to the Fourth Rank, Sixth Layer," Xu Ping’an said with a smile.

With this statement, everyone was somewhat surprised.

Not because it was too high, but because it was too low.

Xu Ping’an was first in Tianlong County’s great competition, yet his cultivation was almost last?

Dugu Tianyu also frowned slightly. Could it be that Xu Ping’an didn’t have enough cultivation resources during this time?

Otherwise, why would his improvement be so slow?

In fact, reaching the Fourth Rank, Sixth Layer in three months was already quite impressive.

But for a genius like Xu Ping’an, it still seemed somewhat lacking.

Lei Hu and Situ Feng, who were nearby, dropped the topic and continued to ask Li Qingyi about other matters.

Tang Yu felt a bit more balanced upon hearing this.

The champion of the competition, Xu Ping’an, was only one layer higher than his own cultivation, not because he cultivated slowly, but because these guys had all found their own opportunities.

With that in mind, Tang Yu’s gaze towards Xu Ping’an became somewhat warmer.

Dugu Tianyu remained silent; at the moment, he was pondering whether Xu Ping’an could enter the top five hundred.

The Fourth Rank, Sixth Layer, might still be a little difficult.

Even if Xu Ping’an could fight above his level and defeat some at the Fourth Rank, Seventh Layer, it wasn’t necessarily enough to enter the top five hundred.

After all, wasn’t everyone participating in the competition a genius capable of fighting above their level?

Xu Ping’an noticed their expressions and couldn’t help but smile wryly to himself.

Weak? Indeed, in terms of realm, perhaps.

But his Bone Tempering was not done using ordinary strength.

Plus, his Metal Attribute True Elemental had already undergone its First Transformation. If we were to talk about combat power, he was probably not weaker than those at the Fifth Rank, Second Layer, or even Third Layer.

Let it be, he couldn’t be bothered to explain. Once the competition started, everything would become clear.

"Sect Master, can you tell me about this Immortal Dynasty’s Holy Refinement? I don’t know much about it," Xu Ping’an asked.

The others looked towards Dugu Tianyu as well, as they didn’t know much either.

"What do you want to know? You ask, I’ll answer," Dugu Tianyu said.

Aside from being the leader of the Beichen Sword Sect, he also hailed from the imperial Dugu family.

The imperial Dugu family had a Seventh Rank expert, so Dugu Tianyu was quite knowledgeable about the Immortal Dynasty’s Holy Refinement.

"Nothing much, just where exactly will this competition be held, in what format will it be conducted, and what’s the strength like of those who will participate?" Xu Ping’an asked.

Dugu Tianyu nodded.

"I’ll answer each question starting with the first. The imperial competition is open to the public; the capital sells tickets for it, which means the venue must be able to accommodate tens of thousands of people. The only place in the capital that can hold so many is the Immortal Dynasty’s Holy Battlefield," Dugu Tianyu explained.

Xu Ping’an nodded; this matched his guess.

He had previously heard about the Immortal Dynasty’s Holy Battlefield from Wu An.

It was a vast battle arena, large enough to hold two hundred thousand spectators and protected by an Eighth Rank Formation.

Hence, Xu Ping’an initially speculated that the competition would take place there.

"Now for the second question, the format of the competition is quite special. It’s divided into three rounds. The first round isn’t head-to-head combat, but rather involves entering a secret realm within the capital and fighting for survival. The final five hundred who remain will be ranked in the top five hundred."

Xu Ping’an nodded.

An elimination round, a common form of competition that tests not just strength, but a variety of skills and is the fairest way to compete.

People like Tang Yu and Lei Hu had piercing glances; their goal was to make it past the first round.

As for Situ Feng, his aim was to push for the second round.

"The second round narrows it down from five hundred to a hundred. Advancement is also quite unique; it’s done by running a gauntlet through the empire’s guardian Immortal Artifact, the Myriad Demons Tower. The tower has a hundred layers, and the challenge will be ranked by points. The top hundred will enter the finals," Dugu Tianyu continued.

Xu Ping’an nodded again.

The Myriad Demons Tower?

An Immortal Artifact?

This seemed to be similar to an Immortal Artifact he had heard about, an extremely powerful one called the Wan Yao Tower. If he wasn’t mistaken, this artifact was likely modeled after that one.

"The final round consists of individual knockout matches to determine the top five," Dugu Tianyu added.

Xu Ping’an now had a good understanding of the upcoming grand competition.

"What about the rewards for the competition?" Lei Hu asked.

"The rewards for the competition change every year. Everyone who makes it into the top five hundred gets a reward, and those who reach the top hundred get even more," Dugu Tianyu responded.

Lei Hu nodded; his goal was the top five hundred.

And the top hundred seemed too difficult for him.

"This time around, from Tianlong County, probably only Brother Situ and Sister Qingyi will have a chance to push for the top hundred," Lei Hu said.

"For me, the top hundred is too difficult. I’ve just got the intelligence that this year’s Holy Refinement has far too many powerful contestants. In the past, there would be only a few dozen at the Fifth Rank, but this year, it’s likely close to two hundred," Situ Feng said, shaking his head.

Xu Ping’an was also surprised.

So many at the Fifth Rank?

Since when did Fifth Ranks become as common as cabbages?

Even Li Qingyi looked serious at this moment.

Xu Ping’an thought that Tang Qingyu, being at the Fifth Rank Third Layer Realm, meant that Fifth Ranks were not that numerous. It now seemed likely that Tang Qingyu had hidden her true strength.

There must be some kind of treasure within her body.

Otherwise, as a Saintess of the Shangxian Sect, her Cultivation wouldn’t be so simple.

"Not just that, but the talents from the major powers are also very strong. They are the absolute geniuses and might have sealed their own Cultivation. You won’t see their true strength until the real finals," Dugu Tianyu remarked.

Situ Feng and the others nodded in agreement, aware that their own Sects didn’t even match a Third Layer strength.

The once-in-a-lifetime geniuses from First Rank Sects had foundations beyond their imagination.

"Interesting, this Holy Refinement by the Immortal Dynasty seems truly intriguing," Xu Ping’an expressed his newly found interest.

At the moment, he was pondering whether he should transform his Thunder Attribute True Elemental into a sword-shaped True Elemental or complete the Second Transformation of his Metal Attribute True Elemental.

Xu Ping’an looked towards Li Qingyi, who also had a surge of fierce combat desire in her eyes.