The outline of Thunder Dragon Mountain was faintly visible in the churning thunderclouds. From a distance, the entire mountain looked like a giant dragon coiled between heaven and earth, with its ridges undulating like a dragon's spine and its peak piercing the clouds, constantly entwined by thousands of thunderbolts.
The further down the mountain you go, the more the violent lightning-attribute Spiritual Qi in the air gradually subsides, replaced by an ancient and serene aura, as if something has been sleeping beneath this land for countless years, and even the thunder dares not disturb it.
As Zhou Yuan walked, he introduced things to Han Xuanji.
In fact, this Thunder World is inhabited by native inhabitants.
This world is not only for the trial participants; these natives call themselves the Thunder Clan, and have worshipped the Thunder God for generations—that is, the purple thunder dragon deep in the sky.
Their cultivation methods are completely different from those of cultivators outside. They do not directly absorb the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, but instead use an ancient sacrificial ritual to temper themselves with the power of the thunder dragon. Although their combat strength is not as good as that of geniuses outside the same level, they have their own unique way of using the Thunder Principle. In particular, geniuses outside the world have only one-tenth of their original strength, so they cannot gain much advantage against these natives.
The indigenous population is small, with some scattered around the world, but most live in Thunder Dragon Village at the foot of Thunder Dragon Mountain.
Zhou Yuan speculated that the Lineage's legacy was hidden somewhere near this village. As he said this, his tone was filled with barely suppressed anticipation, and his pace quickened unconsciously.
Han Xuanji followed beside Zhou Yuan, listening attentively while keeping an eye on their surroundings.
After entering the area of Thunder Dragon Mountain, other trial participants began to appear one after another along the mountain path.
These cultivators, in groups of three or five, were either gazing into the distance from the cliffs or conversing quietly by the streams, clearly all sharing the same goal: to explore this area.
However, to Han Xuanji's surprise, the people who saw him and Zhou Yuan from afar reacted in a rather strange way.
Most people seemed somewhat afraid of him. When they saw him looking over, they would avert their gaze and subconsciously move their feet to the side, as if he were some kind of monster.
Zhou Yuan was also somewhat bewildered by this situation, scratching his head and muttering to himself:
"Brother Han, why do they look at us like we've seen a ghost? Is there something on my face?"
"Have no idea."
Han Xuanji answered expressionlessly, though he had some guesses in his mind.
The reactions of these people are most likely related to their previous battle with the Ten Thousand Immortals Association.
However, he didn't realize that someone was actually hiding, and he hadn't even noticed them.
The two walked along the mountain path past a forest of dead trees scorched by lightning, and suddenly the view opened up before them.
Thunder Dragon Village is located at the foot of the mountain in a valley surrounded by mountains. It is much smaller than Han Xuanji had expected, with at most a hundred or so households.
The buildings in the village are not the wood and stone structures commonly seen outside, but are built of black volcanic rock. Each stone house has a thick iron pillar on its roof, and the top of the pillar is inlaid with a fist-sized thunder crystal that shimmers with a ghostly blue light.
The entire village seemed to be shrouded in an invisible electric grid supported by these iron pillars. Occasionally, when lightning struck from the clouds, it would be silently channeled into the ground by the iron pillars, emitting a very faint hum.
At the entrance of the village stands a stone tablet about ten feet tall, its body as black as ink, with the three large characters " Thunder God Village " engraved on it in ancient script.
Zhou Yuan leaned closer to the stone tablet and examined it for a moment, then turned to Han Xuanji and whispered:
"Brother Han, Thunder Dragon Mountain is what we outsiders call it. These natives call it Thunder God Mountain, and this village is called Thunder God Village."
The population density inside the village is much higher than outside the village.
Besides the Thunder Clan natives dressed in coarse linen clothes, you can also see many outsiders with different outfits. Some are standing in front of the stone houses gesturing and talking with the villagers, some are squatting by the village road studying the lightning patterns on the ground, and some are gathered in groups of three or five around a stone platform in the center of the village, seemingly watching something.
Han Xuanji stepped into the village and scanned the crowd, quickly spotting a familiar blue figure.
Lan Miao was standing beside the stone platform in the center of the village, holding a light blue longsword in her arms, talking to several Rogue Cultivator beside her.
His signature blue hair stood out starkly in the dim lightning, and his expression was more radiant than usual, suggesting that the conversation had been quite pleasant.
Lan Miao seemed to sense Han Xuanji's presence as well, and turned to look towards the village entrance.
Their eyes met, and he was taken aback for a moment, then a bright smile bloomed on his face. He strode towards Han Xuanji, his voice preceding his arrival:
"Junior Brother Han! You've finally arrived! I was wondering why you hadn't come yet. If you hadn't come soon, someone else would have gotten to know the secret of Thunder God Village first."
"Oh?"
Han Xuanji was somewhat surprised, but hadn't had a chance to ask yet.
Lan Miao walked closer, looked Han Xuanji up and down, and couldn't hide the excitement in her voice. Suddenly, she lowered her voice and leaned closer, saying mysteriously:
"Junior Brother Han, do you know how famous you are now? Everyone knows your reputation!"
Han Xuanji's lips twitched almost imperceptibly as he thought to himself, "Just as I thought," and he sifted through all the possible sources of information.
The members of the Ten Thousand Immortals Association would naturally not actively publicize their own defeat. Zhou Yuan had been by his side the whole time and had no opportunity to spread the news, Li Fu was more likely to do so.
But given Li Fu's personality, if he really said it, the version would surely include how his heavy sword slaughtered everyone in the world, so how could it have been distorted like this?
It's likely that they and the Ten Thousand Immortals Association weren't the only ones present at the time; there were others hiding in the shadows who witnessed the entire battle.
But it doesn't matter anyway.
The news spread, and it might not be a bad thing for him.
Reputation can be a problem sometimes, but it can also be a shield.
Now everyone in the First Heaven knows that Han Xuanji is not someone to be trifled with, so at least no one dares to provoke him anymore, which has also reduced some trouble for them.
As for drawbacks, of course there are.
Many people probably already consider him a formidable opponent.
People like Jiang Hanzhou and Chen Bei probably feel that he is a great threat, and they may not have the same attitude towards him if they meet again.
As for what Chi Yuan thought, Han Xuanji didn't care at all.
Even without this news, their score was already high enough; one more point wouldn't make a difference.
Lan Miao was still there, talking non-stop, repeating the versions she had heard from various sources one by one.
As he got more into the conversation, he suddenly changed the subject, a mischievous smile appearing on his face:
"However, I also heard another version of the story, which says that Li Fu fought against two opponents at once, making Liu Wanxu and Wang Jue run away with their heads in their hands, and Junior Brother Han, you were just watching from the sidelines and got a free assist."
I don't really believe that. Liu Wanxu may not be much of a threat, but he shouldn't have been beaten that Li Fu."
He leaned closer and lowered his voice to ask:
"Junior Brother Han, what exactly happened back then? It seems that the rumors about your strength are making it harder for me to understand."
Han Xuanji couldn't help but chuckle upon hearing this. He waved his hand, his tone indifferent:
"When I found out they were chasing Zhou Yuan, I rushed over and encountered Li Fu on the way. He helped me fight the Ten Thousand Immortals Association members. It wasn't a one-against-seven fight, but rather a three-against-seven fight."
Lan Miao nodded, seemingly lost in thought.
Even so, it's still quite remarkable.
Could he have done it in that position?