Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
The Azure Cloud Sect's inner-sect Foundation Establishment division competition came to an end.
Compared to Su Yun's explosive performance in the Qi Refining division, where he crushed his peers all the way through, the Foundation Establishment division's matches were much more orderly.
Every competitor was a Foundation Establishment cultivator. They attacked and defended with discipline, their tactics seasoned, and every match dragged on for a long time. Victory depended entirely on one's foundation and practical experience.
At last, the rankings were settled.
Senior Brother Xiao Fan, relying on his Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivation and extensive combat experience, fought several formidable opponents in succession and firmly outclassed everyone, taking first place in the Foundation Establishment division.
Second Senior Sister Ye Yurou had exceptional talent, but lacked stamina for prolonged battles. She ultimately stopped just short of the top two, taking third place.
The competition had ended, but the turmoil was only just beginning.
The name Su Yun swept through Spirit Province's cultivation world like a gale, completely taking it by storm in just three short days and spreading to every sect, great and small.
Time since joining the sect: just over three months.
Cultivation foundation: started from nothing.
Talent: Metal Heavenly Spirit Root.
Record: With Qi Refining Eighth Layer cultivation, he swept through the Qi Refining disciples without using a single spell. Relying only on his physical body and pure spiritual power, he claimed first place in the Qi Refining division and forced the runner-up to surrender without a fight in the final match.
One fact after another came together, violently shaking the understanding of every young cultivator in Spirit Province.
Everywhere within Spirit Province's major sects, disciples could be heard talking about him.
"Is this insane? Three months! From nothing to first place in Qi Refining?"
"I've lived for nearly a hundred years, and I've never seen anyone break through so ridiculously fast. Even a Heavenly Spirit Root shouldn't be this unreasonable, should it?"
"The most abnormal thing isn't his cultivation realm, it's his combat strength! He used no spells at all, yet crushed a cultivator at the ninth layer of Perfection with pure spiritual power. His foundation has long surpassed the bounds of Qi Refining."
"The Azure Cloud Sect struck gold!"
Countless young disciples were left reeling, crying out that it was unbelievable.
An ordinary genius who reached Qi Refining Eighth Layer in three years would already be cultivated as a prodigy by their sect.
Su Yun had done what others couldn't accomplish in more than a decade in just three months.
Envy, jealousy, and shock intertwined, swirling through every corner of Spirit Province's righteous cultivation circles.
The four top sects of Spirit Province were the Cinnabar Cloud Sect, the Clear Water Pavilion, Red Sun Valley, and the Mystic Sword Sect.
Their sect leaders and senior elders were all in a complicated frame of mind.
Out of courtesy between righteous sects, the four sect leaders personally wrote messages on jade communication slips. One after another, their messages crossed mountains and rivers on their way to the Azure Cloud Main Hall.
They were supposedly messages of congratulations, but their words were steeped in sourness.
In the main hall on the main peak, the Azure Cloud Hall, Li Mofan sat in the seat of honor, receiving dozens of jade communication slips in succession. He tapped each one open and read the identical messages of congratulations inside.
Every message praised Su Yun's heaven-defying talent and envied him for taking in such an unparalleled prodigy.
The joy he had been accumulating for days reached its peak.
The elders around him saw the smile he couldn't suppress. They knew all too well that their sect leader was about to start showing off again.
Sure enough.
Li Mofan casually replied to the sect leaders, his tone mild, but every word brimming with boastfulness.
"You're all too kind, fellow Daoists."
"He's just a disciple. His talent is barely passable, and he's only a little more diligent in his cultivation."
"I haven't put much effort into nurturing him. Usually, he figures things out on his own, and I occasionally give him a few casual pointers."
"There's no need to make such a fuss. A mere Heavenly Spirit Root is nothing worth mentioning."
Those few simple sentences made the four sect leaders grind their teeth in frustration.
What did he mean, "barely passable"?
What did he mean, "nothing worth mentioning"?
Any sect would treat a prodigy who took first place in Qi Refining after just three months like an ancestor to be worshipped.
Only Li Mofan could get a great bargain and still act like he hadn't.
The elders watched him with rueful amusement, but none of them called him out.
If they had taken in a disciple like Su Yun, they would have shown off even more than Li Mofan.
The righteous cultivation world was in an uproar, with undercurrents surging beneath the surface.
The Devil Dao forces of Spirit Province updated the Devil Dao Kill List at the same time.
The list contained only righteous geniuses with immense potential, those who would seriously obstruct the Devil Dao's revival in the future and had to be eliminated in advance.
Today, a brand-new name was added near the top of the list.
Su Yun.
Priority: Highest.
All Devil Dao forces shared their intelligence and issued a unified order to hunt him down.
Inside the main hall of the Joyous Union Sect, a group of elders gathered around a jade intelligence slip, their expressions grave.
"Metal Heavenly Spirit Root, a top-tier talent found once in ten thousand."
"Heavenly Spirit Root cultivators have no bottlenecks in their cultivation, and their combat strength far surpasses that of ordinary cultivators at the same level."
"More frightening still, this boy's foundation is absurdly strong. Even at the Qi Refining realm, he can crush cultivators of the same level and approach Foundation Establishment combat strength."
A white-haired elder spoke in a solemn voice. "We absolutely cannot let him grow."
"As long as a Heavenly Spirit Root cultivator doesn't die prematurely, they're guaranteed to reach Nascent Soul True Lord. With his talent, he also has an excellent chance of reaching Spirit Transformation in the future."
"We already learned our lesson in the righteous-Devil war a hundred years ago. We absolutely cannot let another future prodigy at the Nascent Soul or Spirit Transformation level take root among the righteous factions."
The Devil Dao sects across Spirit Province responded immediately.
If they encountered Su Yun outside, they were to kill him at any cost!
Inside the Ghost Fire Sect's main hall, sect leader Liao Ze sat in the seat of honor, his fingers pinching a jade slip containing all of Su Yun's information. Cold light surged in his eyes.
A moment later, he spoke in a low voice. "Liao Jun."
"Your son is here."
Liao Jun stepped out from the ranks below and bowed.
Liao Ze looked up, his tone icy. "Once the Magneto Secret Realm opens, I'll assign you a top-priority task."
"Take two Foundation Establishment Perfection death warriors into the Secret Realm and kill Su Yun of the Azure Cloud Sect at any cost."
Liao Jun raised his brows slightly at that and blurted out, "Father, isn't that making a mountain out of a molehill?"
"After all, he's only a Qi Refining cultivator. No matter how monstrous his talent is, his cultivation realm is what it is."
"Your son can crush him alone. There's no need to waste the sect's combat strength by sending more people."
In Liao Jun's eyes, a Foundation Establishment cultivator fighting a Qi Refining cultivator was a case of overwhelming superiority.
Even if Su Yun's combat strength exceeded that of an early Foundation Establishment cultivator, Liao Jun himself was at Foundation Establishment Middle Stage. Hunting him alone would pose no difficulty.
Liao Ze shook his head slightly, his tone serious.
"Su Yun reached this level in just over three months and can overwhelm all cultivators at his level. This boy is no ordinary person."
"Prodigies this heaven-defying must have hidden trump cards and life-saving treasures."
"I won't allow anything to go wrong."
"Once you find Su Yun, kill him as quickly as possible and leave no room for complications."
At his words, Liao Jun put aside his contempt and grew solemn.
"Your son understands."
"Rest assured, Father."
"Once I enter the Secret Realm, I'll find Su Yun."
"Not only will I kill him, I'll bring his body back to the sect intact and refine him into a top-grade corpse puppet."
Liao Ze watched his son, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly beneath his mask.