It was no great event in the Cold Mountain Domain for someone off the rankings to challenge a prodigy on the Heavenly Pride Ranking. Such challenges happened often. Unless it involved the top ranks, battles in the latter portion of the Heavenly Pride Ranking did not draw many cultivators' attention.
Yet this challenge spread with astonishing speed, drawing the notice of quite a few Earth God Realm experts.
The reason was simple: the two sides were Shadowy Valley and the Spirit Nurturing Sect. Recently, Shadowy Valley's provocative attitude toward the Spirit Nurturing Sect had practically been written all over its face.
Though Shadowy Valley was still showing some restraint, its stance was already plain to see. If circumstances had not been unusual at present, the two sides might already have come to blows.
At such a time, a disciple of the Spirit Nurturing Sect challenging a prodigy of Shadowy Valley naturally piqued the interest of cultivators throughout the Cold Mountain Domain. When they saw that the Spirit Nurturing Sect challenger was only at the Late Realm Lord stage, that interest instantly exploded.
Everyone on the Heavenly Pride Ranking was at the Realm Lord Peak, because this ranking had been established to compete for Status Spiritual Materials. The closer one stood to the top, the greater one's chance of obtaining Status Spiritual Materials capable of breaking through to the Earth God Realm.
There were no shortage of extraordinarily gifted people among Late Realm Lords, but no matter how exceptional their talent, being a minor realm behind the Realm Lord Peak could not be compensated for in combat power.
Besides, if someone truly possessed such peerless talent, their sect would have already raised their cultivation to the Realm Lord Peak before having them challenge the Heavenly Pride Ranking. Would that not give