Sixth on the Immortal Ranking

Chen Lingxi looked up at the Void, where the Immortal Ranking was shrouded in purple qi, and the names flowed like an inverted Milky Way.

His name is still listed in the eleventh line.

"I once defeated Bai Lingze, but only by relying on the power of the Enemy-Slaying Spirit Jade."

Without the immense power of the Cauldron Vessel, with my Dao Platform at the initial stage of forming the Profound Root, there would be absolutely no way I could directly confront someone who has borne such Wondrous Fruit."

He muttered to himself, his gaze calm and serene. "If I want to obtain spiritual insights for a higher position on the Immortal Ranking, I need to defeat even stronger opponents."

With each promotion of a rank on the Immortal Ranking, the Daoist essence and spiritual energy contained within it multiplies exponentially.

If I can advance a few more steps from the eleventh position, the spiritual energy I gain will be enough to allow my Thunder-Prison Profound Root to sprout new branches, and I might even be able to reach the threshold of the Profound Root Tree-Formation Realm."

"More importantly... it can make up for the progress of Total Perception Essence Replenishment."

He took a deep breath, and lightning slowly flowed in his eyes, reflecting the densely packed names on the Immortal Ranking deep within his pupils.

Ultimately, the name that came up was sixth.

The name was engraved with a pale purple glow, and between the strokes flowed an untamed, demonic Yao Qi —it was none other than...

[Golden-Crowned Demon Lord of the Southern Heaven Domain].

He had seen this Golden-Crowned Demon Lord from afar during the battle at Ancestral Mountain.

The rooster, with its golden feathers and fiery comb, unleashed a torrent of icy light with a single flap of its wings, its sharpness unmatched.

"This Golden-Crowned Demon Lord has already Profound Root Tree-Formation Realm. In terms of his mastery of great Divine Ability and the depth of his Dao Origin, he is far superior to me."

Chen Lingxi pondered to himself, "However, such a powerful Dao Foundation Realm Incarnation is inferior to mine in this Weiji Grotto-Heaven in one aspect."

His gaze shifted slightly, a flash of lightning appearing in his eyes. "That is because I possess numerous Spirit Artifact and treasures."

These Dao Foundation Realm Incarnations came alone, their projections descending upon this world, and very few people had time to guide their own Spirit Artifact.

Even Bai Lingze only managed to project the Wall-Breaking Shuttle over a long period of time by relying on the Yutai Bai Family's Guiding Passage Formation.

The others were empty-handed and could only rely on their own Divine Ability abilities to fight against others.

As he thought of this, he recalled something Lin Suri had said to him long ago.

"Brother Lin once told me that the Spirit Artifact one refines are part of one's own strength, and naturally they can be recognized by the Immortal Ranking."

In other words, if one has treasures or elixirs that temporarily enhance their strength, or if they receive help from others to defeat a top-ranked expert, the Immortal Ranking will not bestow any spiritual energy.

However, Spirit Artifact artifacts and treasures are an integral part of one's own strength.

The Immortal Ranking is imbued with spirit; it will naturally discern the truth from the falsehood.

Just like the Enemy-Slaying Spirit Jade, it can only temporarily boost combat power, and can only be used five times.

He paused, then looked up at the Immortal Ranking, his eyes growing even brighter.

"Having obtained the spiritual energy from the sixth place on the Immortal Ranking, I can improve my cultivation. Even if I can't make my Profound Root Tree-Formation Realm, it will definitely make up for the seven-tenths of Total Perception progress in Essence Replenishment, allowing me to circulate my Thorough Awakening Divine Ability again."

Chen Lingxi, lost in thought, slowly stood up.

As his Divine Sense flowed, the method of Qi Observation silently unfolded in his eyes.

Dao Origin emerged from the Dragon-Stripping Dao Platform, traveled upwards along the meridians, and entered his eyes.

The lightning in those eyes vanished, replaced by an extremely clear and translucent jade-colored radiance.

According to the method of Qi Observation, all things in heaven and earth possess their own Qi.

Mountains have their own energy, water has its own energy, and so do all living things, including plants and trees.

The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord cultivated the Extreme Cold Dao Origin, whose Qi was ice-blue in color, making him appear like a walking icy abyss in the world, extremely easy to spot.

"The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord cultivates the Frost Divine Ability. Even if he wants to conceal his whereabouts, he will definitely choose an extremely cold place."

I will first search in the Northern Icefield; if I cannot find it, I will then go to other icy lands."

Having made up his mind, he immediately used his Cloud-Riding Method to break through the surging sea of clouds and flew swiftly northward.

Heading north, the mountains and rivers beneath my feet change from verdant green to withered yellow, and then from withered yellow to pure white.

The Northern Icefield are vast and boundless, stretching as far as the eye can see.

A thick layer of snow covered the ice surface, and the north wind swept the snowflakes across the ice, making a howling sound, as if countless evil spirits were crying in the wind.

Chen Lingxi descended from the clouds above the icy plain, her Qi Observation technique reaching its peak.

Just then, his Qi Observation technique detected a faint, almost imperceptible, energy.

"As expected, it's here." Chen Lingxi felt certain, and silently propelled himself forward on the azure cloud beneath his feet, carrying him swiftly toward the source of the energy.

Deep within that icy plain, a towering snow-capped peak rises abruptly from the ground, its steep slopes and entire body covered in eternally frozen ice, gleaming with a cold, eerie blue light under the sunlight.

At the summit of that snow-capped peak, a simple palace built of ice and snow can be vaguely seen.

Before the palace, a figure dressed in a golden robe sat cross-legged.

Chen Lingxi arrived on a cloud, hovering a hundred feet above the snow-capped peak, looking down at the golden-robed figure.

This person appeared to be in his early thirties, with fair skin, delicate features, and an eerie aura lingering between his brows.

He wore a crimson-gold demon crown, which resembled a rooster's comb. The crown was fiery red, completely incongruous with the extremely cold Dao Origin surrounding him, yet there was a strange harmony between them.

He wore a long robe woven from golden feathers, which shimmered brilliantly in the sunlight.

This person was none other than the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord.

At the very moment Chen Lingxi arrived on the clouds, the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord slowly opened his eyes.

Those eyes were vertical pupils, pale gold in color, radiating a chilling light.

He raised his head and looked at the figure hanging above the snow-capped peak. There was no surprise in his eyes, only an extremely calm indifference.

Upon seeing Chen Lingxi arrive, the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord slowly stood up.

He stood with his hands behind his back atop the snow-capped peak, raised his head, and a cold glint flashed in his vertical pupils, but he did not speak.

Chen Lingxi's gaze swept over the demon lord's body, and she saw that there were faint array patterns flowing under his golden feather robe, just like an extremely complicated Guiding Passage Formation was slowly operating.

The grand formation was not yet fully formed, but it had already stirred the spiritual energy of heaven and earth within a radius of dozens of miles, with the faint aura of treasures flowing in the Void.

It seems that this demon lord, like Bai Lingze, is using this Guiding Passage Formation to try and project some treasure here.

Silence fell between them.

The two didn't waste any unnecessary words.

But then the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord spat out a stream of azure cold air, which flew out of his mouth like a bolt of lightning.

Where the cold current passed, the air was frozen and countless fine ice crystals condensed, which then descended upon Chen Lingxi like a waterfall of ice crystals!

The great battle Dao Foundation Realm is about to erupt!

Chen Lingxi remained calm. With a flick of his finger, a Thunderclap Sword Light slashed out. The lightning and the cold current collided violently in mid-air, exploding into a dazzling burst of light.

The cold current hissed under the scorching lightning, then dissipated into a sky full of white mist.

The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord's eyes flashed even brighter, and the golden feathers around his body suddenly lit up!

At that moment, the hundreds of golden feathers trembled simultaneously, emitting a very subtle and dense ringing sound, as if twelve tiny golden swords were awakening on his body at the same time.

The great Divine Ability he cultivated was called [Spirit-Forge Profound Art], which originated from [The Wondrous-Achievement Constant-Realm Way].

This path is the path of creation, which emphasizes using one's own Daoist essence as a furnace and one's natal essence as a embryo to forge one's own unique "spiritual mystery".

This is unlike any ordinary magic or supernatural Divine Ability!

Ordinary Divine Ability merely draw upon the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to transform into techniques of killing, while the spiritual artifacts Spirit-Forge Profound Art are somewhere between Spirit Artifact and Divine Ability, possessing both the sharpness and solidity of Spirit Artifact and the agility and variability of Divine Ability.

Each spiritual energy is connected to the caster's energy channels, just like an arm or finger, controlled and released at will.

The Spirit Profound Swords forged by the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord were twelve [Mystic-Ice Golden Swords] he created by repeatedly refining them with his own natal golden feathers and extremely cold demon essence over countless years.

Then, twelve of the most dazzling golden feathers suddenly detached from his golden feather robe and flew out.

The golden feathers circled once in the air, then grew longer in the wind, transforming in an instant from the size of feathers into a three-foot-long golden sword.

Each sword has a blade made of golden feathers, but the edge is covered with a layer of azure ice.

That mysterious ice was no ordinary ice; it was ten-thousand-year-old mysterious ice condensed by him with extremely cold Dao Origin. Its coldness was so intense that one could feel its bone-chilling cold even from a hundred feet away.

Twelve Mystic-Ice Golden Swords hovered around him, their tips pointing outwards, arranged in a ring and slowly rotating.

On the sword's blade, the sharp, scorching heat of the golden feathers intertwined and collided with the bone-chilling cold of the black ice.

This is precisely the terrifying aspect of the Spirit-Forge Profound Art Divine Ability.

Ice and fire coexist in the same furnace; yin and yang clash.

The Killing Power contained within that sword formation far surpasses that of a single-attribute Divine Ability.

Where the sword light passed, ice and fire descended simultaneously, making it extremely difficult to resist.

The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord extended a finger and gently pointed it in Chen Lingxi's direction.

"Go."

At that moment, the twelve Mystic-Ice Golden Swords moved simultaneously.

They weaved and intertwined in the air with an extremely exquisite trajectory, faintly forming a sword formation.

The sword formation was hexagonal, with twelve swords divided into six groups of two, one yin and one yang, one ice and one fire, echoing and connecting with each other.

As the sword formation took shape, an extremely profound and fierce sword intent soared into the sky, cutting a huge crack in the swirling snow.

Chen Lingxi stood on the clouds, gazing at the sword formation descending upon him, a slight glint of lightning flashing in his eyes.

"The Killing Power contained within this sword formation is extraordinary."

Each Mystic-Ice Golden Swords is equivalent to a high-grade Spirit Artifact, and when the twelve swords are combined into a sword formation, their power doubles.

"It seems I underestimated such a Dao Foundation Realm cultivator."

Chen Lingxi pondered this in her heart, yet she did not back down in the slightest; instead, she advanced.

The Dragon-Stripping Dao Platform spun wildly, and the Thunder-Prison Profound Root trembled violently. A surge of powerful Dao Origin flowed into his right hand like water bursting its banks.

At the same time, the Abyssal Heaven Spirit Sword suddenly flew out and landed in his hand.

He stepped forward and unleashed a sword strike.

The Twelve Heavenly Drum Peals and sped out, like a god beating a drum. Twelve main Sword Qi soared into the sky, and hundreds more Sword Qi bloomed from the precious sword!

"The Weiji Grotto-Heaven actually possesses such a Spirit Artifact? It's at least a fourth-grade Spirit Artifact!"

The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord's expression changed!

It should be noted that for someone in the Dao Foundation Early Stage, a fourth-grade Spirit Artifact is already extremely extraordinary, extremely precious, and extremely powerful.

Although the Big Dipper Northern Dipper Jade Ruyi, which was guided by Chi Jianshu of the Dao-Below Academy, was a second-grade Spirit Artifact, when projected here, a single projection was far from being able to unleash the full power of Spirit Artifact.

In terms of power, it is probably far inferior to this precious sword!

His eyes narrowed slightly, his aura became even more powerful, Dao Origin surged from his icy Dao Platform.

At that moment, as numerous sword lights collided with the sword formation, Chen Lingxi felt an extremely strange power surging from the sword formation.

The power was half scorching hot like fire and half icy cold like ice; the two completely opposite forces erupted simultaneously at the moment of collision.

His Thunderclap Sword Light melted and disintegrated at a visible speed under the corrosive influence of the intertwined ice and fire.

The scorching power burned away the lightning patterns on the outer layer of the sword light, while the icy power penetrated into the sword light, freezing and shattering the Dao essence within it.

"What a powerful and domineering divine Divine Ability! Using Divine Ability as Spirit Artifact, how profound!" Chen Lingxi thought to herself, but showed no fear on her face.

With a flick of his left hand, the Spirit-Calming Shuttle flew out of the Hongdong Bag.

The three-inch-long black shuttle had barely appeared when it transformed into an invisible and intangible light that pierced through the sky full of sword light and went straight into the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord's brow.

The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord felt a sudden tremor in his Consciousness Sea.

An extremely strange and profound power pressed down on his Divine Sense like a mountain.

The circulation of his demonic energy suddenly stopped at that moment.

The remaining patterns of the hundred restrictions on the blade of Chen Lingxi Abyssal Heaven Spirit Sword lit up simultaneously, and an extremely profound and ancient sword intent emanated from the sword.

With a single slash, the Abyssal Heaven Spirit Sword split into more than ten Sword Qi, which then burst forth!

The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord's expression changed slightly.

He snorted coldly, enduring the discomfort in his Consciousness Sea, and was about to unleash his great Divine Ability.

Just then, Chen Lingxi's Profound-Binding Edict arrived.

The golden edict grew longer in the wind, transforming into golden chains that rolled towards the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord.

Where the chains passed, the Void seemed to freeze. Even the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord, with his cultivation level, was momentarily stunned when the chains wrapped around him.

The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord gritted his teeth.

"This is a secluded Qi-Less Grotto-Heaven, where did Chen Lingxi get so many treasures?"

"That precious shuttle, and this golden book, are both extraordinary. Even in the Great Xuanzhuo Realm, they would be coveted treasures for the Dao Foundation Realm cultivator."

As his thoughts raced, Chen Lingxi pounced on him.

The more than ten Sword Qi that split from the Abyssal Heaven Spirit Sword sealed off all the escape routes around the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord.

Chen Lingxi his right index finger toward the Heavenward Realm, and the Divine Ability Immortal-Calamity Thunder Pool of the Thunder-Prison Heaven Great Divine Power had been compressed to its limit.

The surging pale golden lightning, like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea, frantically converged at his fingertips, instantly transforming into a drop of pale golden lightning liquid no bigger than a grain of rice.

Although the liquid lightning was only the size of a grain of rice, the Killing Power of thunder contained within it had been condensed to an extremely terrifying level!

At the same time, Chen Lingxi unleashed his full power, the True Edict of Audience with the Dao was activated, Palace-Knocking Finger suddenly erupted, blooming simultaneously with the Immortal-Execution Thunder!

With a single finger strike, a grain-sized drop of lightning liquid, like a thunderous comet shooting upwards against the sky, carrying terrifying, world-destroying power, hurtled towards the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord.

The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord's pupils constricted sharply.

Before he could think it through, the golden feather robe around his body suddenly expanded.

He pushed the Divine Ability [Heavenfrost Cold-Feather Armor] to its limit, and also used [Soul-Stabilizing Art] to try to stabilize his Consciousness Sea.

But that finger strike was too fast.

The lightning collided with the golden feathers, and the twelve Mystic-Ice Golden Swords were blasted to pieces by this finger, their icy blue and crimson gold radiance dimming simultaneously.

However, this Golden-Crowned Demon Lord possessed formidable Dao Origin and a powerful aura. With a single swir of Dao Origin on his Dao Platform, his energy immediately became abundant!

Then, the remaining demonic energy around him suddenly burst into flames, and his golden feather robe was torn apart inch by inch by this force, revealing his rapidly expanding body underneath.

His body grew taller and taller, his bones cracking and his muscles expanding wildly. In just a few breaths, he transformed from that effeminate middle-aged man into a rooster with golden feathers all over his body.

The rooster was tens of feet tall, with a comb like fire and wingspan of ten feet, radiating a terrifying pressure that made people's hearts tremble.

He revealed his true form.

The Golden-Crowned Rooster revealed its true form and launched its fiercest attack on Chen Lingxi.

With a flap of its wings, twelve golden feathers, crafted with great Divine Ability, rained down on Chen Lingxi like a deluge.

These golden feathers were all sharper and heavier than before, and the demonic energy swirling around them was also purer and more domineering.

At the same time, its fiery red comb suddenly shone with a dazzling light, and a golden beam as thick as a pillar shot out from the comb, shining directly at Chen Lingxi.

The golden pillar of light contained a strange and powerful suppressive force.

Under the golden light, Chen Lingxi felt that the circulation of Dao Origin throughout his body became somewhat sluggish.

Immediately afterwards, the Golden-Crowned Rooster opened its beak and pecked, the phantom of its beak obscuring the sky and carrying destructive power as it fiercely pecked at Chen Lingxi.

This seemingly clumsy peck was actually extremely precise. Three deadly moves: a rain of golden feathers in the front, a suppression of golden light in the middle, and a phantom of a bird's beak in the back. The three attacks were linked together, sealing off all of Chen Lingxi's escape routes.

Chen Lingxi's expression remained calm.

The Profound-Binding Edict, the Spirit-Calming Shuttle, and the Abyssal Heaven Spirit Sword Spirit Artifact activated simultaneously, colliding fiercely with the true form of the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord's killing move.

Lightning collided with golden feathers, sword light intertwined with golden light, and Spirit Artifact clashed with demonic energy, exploding into a series of sky-covering halos above the snow-capped peaks.

Chen Lingxi a series of moves, using the Profound-Binding Edict to lock up the countless golden feathers, the Spirit-Calming Shuttle to suppress the golden light phantom, and the Abyssal Heaven Spirit Sword to split into dozens of Sword Qi.

At the same time, his right index finger pointed to the Heavenward Realm again, and the Divine Ability Immortal-Calamity Thunder Pool of the Thunder-Prison Heaven Great Divine Power condensed again, turning into a drop of even more refined and domineering pale golden thunder liquid, which fiercely pointed at the bird beak phantom pecking down from the sky.

With a single finger, the illusory bird beak shattered inch by inch beneath that finger.

The remaining lightning, imbued with the Great Sage Aura, pierced through the shattered phantom and struck the Golden-Crowned Rooster directly in the chest.

The Golden-Crowned Rooster let out a mournful cry, its massive body sent flying backward by the blow, crashing heavily into the snow-capped peak.

The entire snow-capped peak trembled violently, and he smashed a bottomless golden hole in the mountain wall, stirring up a cloud of snow foam.

Even so, this powerful figure still had spare energy. The icy Dao Origin on his Dao Platform continued to circulate, continuously pouring into the twelve golden feather swords, attempting to make a comeback.

Chen Lingxi, however, did not give him that chance.

But then the Abyssal Heaven Spirit Sword struck out again, and more than ten Sword Qi fell straight into the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord's true form.

The second beam of Soul-Suppressing Light from the Spirit-Calming Shuttle had silently invaded the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord's Consciousness Sea.

The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord shuddered, and his enormous true form disintegrated halfway through, reverting to its human form.

He slumped onto the wrecked ice, his golden feather robe now completely dulled, and pale golden blood gushing from the gaping hole in his chest.

The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord's avatar began to dissipate.

With a flick of his finger, Chen Lingxi unleashed the Azure Edge Method, piercing the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord's brow and shattering his Dao Platform.

This battle for the Dao Foundation Realm was fought without a single word being uttered.

It started extremely quickly and ended extremely quickly.

Chen Lingxi appeared relaxed, but in reality, due to the continuous activation of the Abyssal Heaven Treasure Sword, the Lesser Immortal-Calamity Thunder Pool, the Palace-Knocking Finger, and numerous other treasures, his Dao Origin essence was almost depleted.

If the Golden-Crowned Demon Lord still has any strength left, he will have no choice but to unleash the Void-Return Sword Tower.

The Golden-Crowned Demon Lord's avatar vanished just like that.

Chen Lingxi raised her head and looked up at the majestic purple qi Immortal Ranking standing in the sky.

Above the Immortal Ranking, purple light flowed like woven fabric.

The title of "Golden-Crowned Demon Lord of the Southern Heaven Domain," which once held the sixth position, is becoming blurred and dim at a visible speed.

Finally, the name turned into a wisp of extremely faint purple smoke, drifting away into the Void.

Instead, a brand new name was adopted.

[The Weiji Grotto-Heaven, Chen Lingxi].

Sixth place.