Once the Paijiao members recovered, they sent people out in every direction to find witnesses to the battle and gather accounts. Perhaps, with an onlooker's clearer view, they could learn something about the person who had attacked for no apparent reason. At the same time, they built an altar, burned incense, and contacted the experts at their headquarters.
Pan Long pleaded exhaustion and joined neither effort. He had drawn more than enough attention today; it was better to keep a low profile for a while.
But that hope was clearly in vain. He had barely woken and risen from bed when he sensed He Dazhi waiting outside his hut with someone exceptionally powerful.
The man's aura was calm, no different from an ordinary person's. Yet to Pan Long's senses, his presence was unmistakably intense, like Red Sun descending upon a great river, impossible for anyone to ignore.
He could also faintly sense the aura around the man flowing in a peculiar way, seemingly answering the sun above. If he had to fight this man, he must choose midnight, not noon. The strength the man could bring to bear at those two hours might differ by half or more.
But... perhaps that was only an illusion? Apart from Pan Long and a handful of others, nearly everyone who reached the Return to the Natural State was a seasoned veteran of the Martial World. A little scheming and deception would be nothing unusual.
He hurriedly tidied himself, lifted the door curtain, and stepped out. "I'm ashamed to have kept a Celestial Master waiting outside my door. What a terrible discourtesy!"
The man laughed. "In terms of cultivation, all beneath Longevity are mortals. It's only ordinary people who insist on ranking them. Young Hero Pan, you've reached the Returning to Truth Realm yourself