Although Hatake Ziyan's strength had dropped, if his previous limit had been fighting mid- to late-stage Earth Immortals, then now, measured by cultivation-world ranks, killing early-stage Earth Immortals would take him no effort at all. Mid-stage Earth Immortals probably would not pose much of a problem either. If he fought with everything he had, no one in the Earth Immortal realm could match him!
Being invincible within one's own realm was already impressive. Hatake Ziyan could dominate an entire major realm above his own. Even in a cultivation world, he would be a heaven-defying prodigy!
The source of Hatake Ziyan's confidence was the new cultivation method!
There were also reasons why Hatake Ziyan had smashed the incoming puppet and stopped cultivating!
First, the puppet controlled by the White Snake Sage had indeed triggered the mental alarm he had set!
Second, after completing the transition to his new cultivation method, Hatake Ziyan had discovered that absorbing the energy here did little to improve his strength! The energy conversion was too slow to keep up with his normal cultivation, so he had already been considering stopping!
The puppet the White Snake Sage sent flying over had happened to interrupt his cultivation, so he had simply taken the opportunity to stop!
As for what Hatake Ziyan had just said, although he was not entirely satisfied with his cultivation speed here, this spot in Ryūchi Cave was certainly more conducive to his cultivation than other places. That was why he had made that remark!
However, judging by the White Snake Sage's attitude, he did not seem particularly welcome. He could force his way into staying here to cultivate, but there was no need. His current strength was sufficient, and he had yet to decide on his next step, so increasing his strength was not