Li Qiang stood up and said to the outside, " Nashan, you're still the same as always. Come in and let me see you."
Suddenly, everything outside the door fell silent, then a strange shout rang out, "Huh, is that the boss's voice? Wow, am I hearing things?"
Suddenly, several figures darted in through the door, followed by a flurry of shouts, "Wow, it's the boss! Ah..."
"Master! Master! It is I Zhao Hao!"
"I... I am Tange!"
"Boss, it's me, Zhao Zhi!"
"Uncle-Master! I am Hong Qian!"
In an instant, the room was in complete chaos.
Hearing the word "boss, "Li Qiang's heart trembled. Although he had already cultivated to godhood, he still couldn't forget his brothers.
Nashan was the first to rush in, dressed in a striking silver-white armor. He still looked the same as before, with a face full of menacing features, but the scars on his face were gone, and his blind eye now gleamed with a chilling light. It seemed that after reaching the Nascent Soul Realm, he had removed all his scars, but he still had a bald head, without a single hair.
Nashan rushed to Li Qiang's side, grinning widely and grinning foolishly.
Zhao Hao was the most disciplined. He knelt on the ground and respectfully kowtowed, saying, "Disciple Zhao Hao greets Master."
Hong Qian and Zhao Zhi also knelt down and kowtowed.
Li Qiang hurriedly said, "Get up, get up, are you... are you all alright?"
Mei'er and Geng Feng also stepped forward to greet everyone.
There were several other cultivators behind them, all of whom Li Qiang had brought out from the Black Prison. They greeted each other all at once.
Li Qiang felt a warmth in his heart. He greeted them one by one, checking their cultivation levels. "Good, good, you've all entered the Nascent Soul Realm. Come, everyone, sit down and let's talk."
Mei'er pulled Ling Baihui to sit next to Li Qiang, while Nashan plopped down on the other side of Li Qiang. He said with deep emotion, "Boss, you've been gone for over a hundred years. If I, Old Na, hadn't started cultivating, I would never have seen you again..."
Zhao Hao remained composed; he now appeared to be a young man in his early twenties. Li Qiang recalled the first time he met Zhao Hao, when he looked like an old man—the difference between then and now was enormous.
Zhao Hao said, "Master, when did you return? Alas, I'm truly afraid I'll never see you again."
Nashan spat, "Pah! Pah! Senior brother, don't talk nonsense. What do you mean we won't see him? I, Old Na, have always said that our leader will definitely come back. See, I was right."
Zhao Zhi laughed, "Junior brother, you're still so cheeky. Be careful, or the boss will beat you up."
Li Qiang exclaimed, "Finally back! Haha, it really feels like coming home!"
Mei'er said with a grin, " Baldy, you look much better than before. But now that you've reached the Nascent Soul Realm, why don't you completely change your appearance? Hehe, Mei'er knows you love to show off." This little girl spoke without any restraint.
Nashan and the other men all adored Mei'er; she was like a little princess to them, and no matter what they said, they never got angry.
Nashan rubbed his Baldy and chuckled, "Little sister, I, Old Na, Old Na wanted to change my appearance. Sigh, I was just about to go home for a visit, and I was afraid no one would recognize me when I got back, so I kept my original look. I never thought that I only had one chance to drastically change my appearance. It's a pity that among these brothers... I, Old Na, am the ugliest one..." Everyone couldn't help but laugh.
Li Qiang asked, " Nashan, how is everything at home?"
Nashan said with a bitter face, "Oh no, it's too late to go back. Even my youngest daughter is an old woman now. Alas, I hardly know anyone anymore. From now on, I, Old Na, will wholeheartedly return to cultivating immortality."
His words seemed to touch everyone's emotions, and the room immediately fell silent.
Zhao Hao said, "Don't think about those things anymore. I'm the same way. Forget it, let's just focus on cultivating." As the senior brother of these people, he had been taking care of his junior brothers wholeheartedly since Li Qiang left, so everyone respected him.
Nashan nodded and said, "Yeah, if it weren't for these brothers, I, Old Na, wouldn't have been able to hold on." He suddenly grinned and nudged Li Qiang with his shoulder, "Boss, tell us about your experiences out there, so we can broaden our horizons. Grandpa Fu once told us that you went to a very faraway place, called... um, what's it called... By the way, Linming Planet, was that place fun?"
Li Qiang knew that the jade pupil that Yu Hong had helped him send back must have ended up in Brother Fu's hands. He smiled and said, "It's a long story, but this experience has been invaluable..."
He briefly recounted his experience of being chased by immortals from the Heavenly Court Star, a story that lasted for most of the day. He didn't mention the Spirit Ghost Realm, and there were some things he couldn't talk about, which he glossed over. Even so, he left the group of people dumbfounded.
This was the first time Ling Baihui had heard of such a strange experience. She now realized just how powerful Li Qiang was; those he fought and associated with were either immortals, Loose Immortal, or Great Gods and Devils. A great question arose in her mind: What exactly did Li Qiang cultivate to be so powerful?
After Li Qiang finished speaking, he asked, "Are Brother Fu and Brother Hou in Heavenly Fate City or at the Chongxuan Sect?"
Zhao Hao said, "Grandmaster and Elder Hou are not on Sealed Fate Planet. They left a message saying that if you return in the next few years, you might still have a chance to meet them. If you return later, it will be difficult to meet them in this realm. I have a Law Treasure left by Grandmaster. As long as Master returns, you can use this to notify Grandmaster." He took out a black, bird-shaped Law Treasure and handed it to Li Qiang.
Li Qiang glanced at it and said, "It's the Yang Sparrow Talisman." He flicked it lightly with his hand, and the Yang Sparrow Talisman instantly transformed into a beam of green light, shooting out the door.
Li Qiang laughed and said, "Luckily I made it back in time. I would have regretted it if I hadn't been able to see my two elder brothers."
Zhao Hao asked one of his disciples, "Have you informed the headmaster?"
The disciple replied, "The message has been sent back."
Zhao Hao nodded and said, "Okay."
Li Qiang laughed and said, " Zhao Hao, don't spread the news of my return everywhere. After the Dao Technique and Law Technique Grand Competition ends, I'll be going into seclusion to cultivate. Hehe, I don't know how much longer I can stay on Sealed Fate Planet."
Li Qiang now only wants to wait for Gu Xing to return, so that he can prepare for the reincarnation of Mo Huaiyuan and Qi Junsha.
He believed he could finally settle down and cultivate in peace. He had been traveling around for a long time and felt tired and annoyed. He just wanted to meditate quietly.
Cultivators are indifferent to eating, drinking, and sleeping. They chatted for a long time before they were satisfied. Zhao Hao arranged a quiet room for Li Qiang to cultivate in seclusion.
Mei'er, holding Little White, pestered Ling Baihui to go out to play. Zhao Hao immediately arranged for a disciple to accompany them, instructing the disciple, "Buy whatever Miss Mei'er and Miss Ling like, and pay on credit under the name of the Ancient Sword Academy."
Nashan said, "I, Old Na, will accompany the little girl too. There's a lot of stuff in the Sleepless City, hehe. I'm quite familiar with this place now." He really liked this Tianzhen little girl, so he volunteered to be her guide.
Geng Feng grinned and wanted to go too. For Mei'er, the more people, the better; she loved a lively atmosphere.
Not long after Nashan took Mei'er and Ling Baihui out on the street, Qian Chi'ou arrived with several experts from the Ancient Sword Academy.
Qian Chi'ou was very excited when he received the news. When the old academy master Ling Junyan was traveling, he had instructed him to leave Li Qiang behind to guard the Ancient Sword Academy for a period of time and to provide guidance to the Ancient Sword Academy. Therefore, after receiving the news of Li Qiang's return, he did not delay at all and rushed over immediately.
Before Li Qiang could even go to the meditation room, he saw Qian Chi'ou rushing over. Li Qiang was now a generation older than Qian Chi'ou and was also the abbot of the Ancient Sword Academy, so he received a bow from Qian Chi'ou.
Qian Chi'ou was a very composed person. He suppressed his excitement and asked Li Qiang to sit down.
Li Qiang didn't want to act like an elder, so he sat down very humbly.
After exchanging some pleasantries, Qian Chi'ou looked troubled and said with a wry smile, "Junior Uncle, my master has already gone on a journey, and Senior Uncle Qi has also been gone for a long time. I don't know where he is now, and there's been no news of him at all. Alas, I'm all alone in the Ancient Sword Academy..."
Li Qiang looked at him noncommittally.
Qian Chi'ou continued to complain, "Junior Uncle, you know I'm better at maintaining the status quo than expanding it. Junior Uncle, could you stay at the Ancient Sword Academy a little longer this time? Please help your disciple."
Zhao Hao laughed and said, "Senior brother, don't worry, Master will definitely help you. My master is the most enthusiastic." He actually knew how to flatter.
Li Qiang couldn't help but look at Zhao Hao with new respect. He smiled and said, " Zhao Hao, it seems you and Chi'ou have a good relationship."
Zhao Hao rubbed his hands sheepishly and said, "Master, my senior brother is very good to us brothers. He has always taken good care of us. We have been cultivating in the Ancient Sword Academy for over a hundred years. Hehe, we are like family."
In fact, Li Qiang was unaware that Zhao Hao was now the head of the Golden Qilin Sword Academy of the Ancient Sword Academy. In the Ancient Sword Academy, his status was second only to Qian Chi'ou, and he had long regarded himself as a disciple of the Ancient Sword Academy.
Li Qiang nodded, feeling very grateful to his friends from the Ancient Sword Academy.
Li Qiang smiled and said, " Chi'ou, I plan to cultivate in seclusion on Sealed Fate Planet for a while. Don't worry, just tell me if you need anything, and I will definitely help you." He readily agreed.
Qian Chi'ou was overjoyed. "That's wonderful! By the way, Junior Uncle, the Daoist Dao Technique and Law Technique Grand Competition is about to begin. This year, our Ancient Sword Academy plans to send a few promising disciples to compete. Could you please give us some guidance, Junior Uncle?"
Li Qiang asked, "Oh, who went?"
Zhao Hao laughed and said, "They are two disciples from our Golden Qilin Sword Academy and two female disciples from our Silver Phoenix Sword Academy. They are currently cultivating in the Ancient Sword Academy. Hehe, they are all disciples with good aptitude that we found on Heavenly Court Star. Two of them are my disciples... Please forgive me, Master... for accepting disciples without your permission."
Li Qiang hadn't expected to be a grandmaster yet. He laughed and said, "It's alright. I didn't have time to ask Brother Fu's opinion when I accepted disciples. Haha, I didn't expect you to be in the same boat. Alright, tell them to come over quickly."
Zhao Hao was relieved. Unlike Li Qiang, he would never disobey his master's orders, regardless of whether his master was right or wrong. Li Qiang, on the other hand, had his own judgment and approach to everything.
Qian Chi'ou laughed, "These four disciples were specially found by my junior brother when he returned to Heavenly Court Star. Hehe, it took a lot of effort. Their aptitude is quite good. They have already reached the Nascent Soul after only a short period of cultivation. We are counting on them for this competition."
Li Qiang asked curiously, "How could Nascent Soul Realm cultivator possibly be better than Leaving the Body Realm?"
Qian Chi'ou explained, "The competition is divided into many events, and the details are very fine. This kind of competition has been practiced on Sealed Fate Planet for many years, and there is already a complete set of competition rules. All sects and family cultivators are very familiar with it, and cultivators from nearby planets will also come to participate. Generally, there are several major categories of competitions. Cultivators below the Nascent Soul Realm, as well as those in the Nascent Soul Realm and Leaving the Body Realm, compete at their respective levels. There is only one competition that is not divided into levels, and that is the most famous Law Technique Grand Competition. Any cultivator can participate. It is not about comparing Daoist cultivation, but entirely about comparing Law Technique."
Li Qiang listened with great interest. "Is it all for a Law Technique competition? Without Daoist techniques as a foundation, Law Technique won't be very outstanding. If it's Leaving the Body Realm Soul cultivator, how can their Law Technique compare to that of the Body Integration Realm cultivator?" He used to be a Law Technique expert, so he paid special attention to the Law Technique competition.
Qian Chi'ou laughed and said, "Junior Uncle, the Law Technique Grand Competition is all about who is more powerful. Generally, those who have reached the Nascent Soul stage or above are all Grandmaster-level experts. They disdain participating in such a competition to prove themselves. Therefore, it is an unwritten rule that cultivators above the Spirit Severing Realm do not participate in the competition. Generally, most of those who participate in the Law Technique competition are Leaving the Body Realm cultivators, and very few are Nascent Soul Realm stage cultivators, unless they have a very powerful Law Treasure."
Li Qiang thought to himself that this competition was very similar to the large-scale sports meet in his hometown, except that here it was a competition of cultivation. He smiled and asked, "What are the benefits of winning?"
Paben said, "Master, there are many benefits to winning first place in a certain event. If you are a disciple of a cultivation sect, you will be highly valued by the sect. If you are a family cultivator, you may be selected by the Cloud Heaven Sacred City and given the opportunity to further improve, or even become a disciple of the Cloud Heaven Sacred City. Hehe, I participated in two such competitions. Although my results were average, I learned a lot."
Hong Qian didn't say much. He sat quietly to the side, listening intently. At this moment, he couldn't help but sigh, "Since coming to Sealed Fate Planet, I've realized how excellent the cultivation conditions are here. When I was cultivating on Tanbang Star, besides having more crystals, there wasn't much else. I rarely even encountered cultivators with whom I could spar. It was really difficult to improve my cultivation level."
Li Qiang pondered to himself, "If Mei'er wants to participate in the competition, what event can she choose?" It seemed that she could only participate in the Law Technique competition. He only wanted Mei'er to fulfill her wish, but he didn't realize that Mei'er participating in such a competition was actually unfair to the other cultivators.
Li Qiang said, " Mei'er also wants to participate. Hmm, let her participate in the Law Technique competition."
Qian Chi'ou didn't know who Mei'er was, so he asked, "Who is Mei'er?"
Li Qiang said, "She's my little sister, and she's always wanted to participate in the Sealed Fate Planet Grand Competition, so Chi'ou will register her under the name of the Ancient Sword Academy."
Qian Chi'ou had no objections. The rule of the Ancient Sword Academy was that juniors had no choice but to carry out the orders given by their elders without any questioning. He immediately replied, "Yes, Junior Uncle."
As everyone was chatting, they suddenly heard someone outside shouting in a panic, "A fight has broken out! A fight has broken out!"
Qian Chi'ou's face darkened, and he shouted, "Come in and talk! What's going on?"
A disciple rushed into the room and, seeing Qian Chi'ou there, hurriedly bowed and said, "Uh, Headmaster... it's Senior Uncle Na... and Senior Uncle Feng is fighting with someone..."
Li Qiang was already used to this. He laughed and said, "Did Nashan offend someone?"
The disciple said, "No, someone was rude to Miss Mei'er, and that's why Master Na got angry..."
Li Qiang stood up and said calmly, "Take us there." Everyone felt a chill run down their spines. Although Li Qiang appeared calm, the coldness he exuded made everyone uneasy.
The disciple said nervously, "Lead the way," and then turned and ran wildly towards the door.
By the time Li Qiang and his group arrived, the small skirmish had escalated into a large-scale brawl, and the fighting had moved beyond the initial incident scene into the arena.
The disciple ran to the scene but saw no one. He was so anxious that he was covered in sweat. He asked around and found out that they had entered the arena of the Sleepless City.
There are rules for fighting in the Sleepless City That Never Sleeps. Cultivators can fight, but they are not allowed to fight on the streets. They must settle their disputes in the arena because the destructive power of fights between cultivators is too great. This rule is necessary for the safety of the Sleepless City and is strictly enforced. If the two sides in a fight do not listen to advice, the experts of the Sacred City will step in to intervene.
There are seventeen arenas of varying sizes in the City That Sleepless City. Nashan and his group went to the largest one, also known as the Life-and-Death Arena. Once you enter this arena, your life or death depends entirely on your own abilities. Therefore, when that disciple heard that they had entered the Life-and-Death Arena, his face turned pale with fright.
Qian Chi'ou grew anxious and asked, "Why do we need to enter the Life-and-Death Arena?"
Li Qiang was still unclear about what the Life-and-Death Arena was. He said, "Take us there quickly." Actually, he wasn't in a hurry. With a super expert like Ling Baihui by Mei'er's side, plus Little White's protection, Mei'er would be fine. He was more worried that Nashan and Geng Feng would suffer.
The group entered the Life-and-Death Arena.
It was a double-layered arena, consisting of an inner and an outer layer. The inner layer was Restraining Restriction Method, which Li Qiang knew was extremely powerful. The outer layer was just an ordinary restriction. The arena was enormous, at least the size of three football fields.
The Restraining Restriction Method creates a simultaneous restriction from all directions, both above and below ground. To enter the restricted area, one must pass through several small anti-restriction gates. As soon as Li Qiang and his group entered the arena, they heard Geng Feng's cheerful laughter. He was engaged in a sword duel with a cultivator. The Old Madman was quite formidable now, forcing his opponent to retreat repeatedly.
Li Qiang squinted and looked around. He was slightly startled. He spotted a familiar face among his opponents. It was none other than Henbuyi, the Loose Immortal Hen Buyi from Xiaojue Heaven.
Hen Buyi stood in the crowd, a slight smile on his face, watching the two fighting in the arena.
Li Qiang looked again carefully and found that, apart from Hen Buyi, all the other cultivators were unfamiliar faces; he had never seen them before. He felt very strange. He had only seen Hen Buyi before on Heavenly Court Star; he was Loose Immortal invited by Old Man Baihuang. What was he doing on Sealed Fate Planet this time?
The expert who fought Geng Feng was only at the Late Soul Formation Stage stage. Geng Feng had extremely rich combat experience, and his own cultivation was also high, so he seemed to be doing it very easily.
What Li Qiang found strange was that they only fought with flying swords, without using any other methods. The sword light illuminated half of the arena.
Li Qiang walked over to Nashan and found that Nashan was injured.
Nashan looked rather disheveled; his silver-white armor was riddled with cracks, and if he didn't start training again, it would be ruined. The young man grumbled angrily, and when he saw Li Qiang approaching, he said somewhat sheepishly, "Boss, sigh, I've embarrassed you. My skills are inferior."
Mei'er threw herself into Li Qiang's arms, huffing and puffing, "Brother, they're bullying me!"
The little girl rarely tattled, but Li Qiang knew Mei'er was truly angry. He asked, " Mei'er, what did they do? Nashan, there's nothing shameful about it. What's wrong with losing? Don't look so sad."
Nashan touched his Baldy, looking somewhat distressed. "It was one of their cultivators who harassed Mei'er..."
Li Qiang was extremely surprised. He interrupted Nashan and said, "What? What? You flirted with Mei'er?"
Having spent so long in the Cultivation Realm, he had seen many things, but he had never seen a cultivator with high attainment flirt with a girl before. So his first reaction was: How is this possible?
Ling Baihui said, "It's true, but it seems they're testing Mei'er's background, which is why they're doing this on purpose."
Li Qiang's heart skipped a beat. Mei'er was a Spirit Body, and because of her profound cultivation, ordinary cultivators could not detect her after she transformed. The only possibility was that the Loose Immortal Hen Buyi had become suspicious and sent someone to test Mei'er.
After figuring out the situation, Li Qiang was a little annoyed. This Hen Buyi had gone too far. With the cultivation of Loose Immortal, he actually did such a despicable thing. Mei'er was like his own daughter, and Li Qiang couldn't stand it being bullied.
Li Qiang secretly transmitted his voice to Geng Feng: " Old Madman, give him a good beating. Ignore that Loose Immortal Hen Buyi, just make sure he's half dead."
Geng Feng was also wary of the fact that one of his opponents was Loose Immortal Hen Buyi, whom he had met before on Heavenly Court Star. So he didn't say much, but simply stalled his opponent and waited for Li Qiang to make a decision. When Li Qiang's words rang in his ears, he couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Geng Feng switched sword techniques and used all his skills, causing the cultivator opposite him to become flustered.
A series of explosions rang out as the man was struck repeatedly by the Old Madman's flying swords. His armor shattered, and the flying swords were powerless to retaliate. Seeing that Geng Feng was about to destroy his body, the man cried out in panic, "Save me!"
Hen Buyi's expression changed; he hadn't expected the Old Madman to be so ruthless. He suddenly teleported in front of Geng Feng and reached out to grab his flying sword. Geng Feng saw it clearly, but he couldn't dodge it no matter what he did, and he roared in anger.
Li Qiang also teleported there in an instant. It should be noted that in this arena, apart from experts above the Loose Immortal who can teleport, even experts at the Mahayana Realm cannot teleport.
When Hen Buyi and Li Qiang met, they were both taken aback. He remembered this mysterious young man. He hesitated for a moment, but Geng Feng had already retracted his flying sword and retreated rapidly.
Li Qiang and Hen Buyi made the same move, but Li Qiang grabbed Hen Buyi's wrist, and their hands collided violently.
Li Qiang secretly praised him, thinking, "As expected of Loose Immortal, Hen Buyi actually blocked my hand, which was full of Divine Yi Power."
The two remained locked in a stalemate for a few seconds, until Hen Buyi was on the verge of tears. The power contained in Li Qiang's hand was simply abnormal to the extreme. He felt as if he was about to melt. He had never seen such strange power before.
A flash of blue light appeared on Hen Buyi's face, and a tremendous force exploded on his wrist. Li Qiang was caught off guard and was sent flying. He paused briefly in mid-air before stopping.
Hen Buyi was filled with regret. He had deliberately ordered his disciples to provoke Mei'er because he found Mei'er too strange. She didn't seem like a cultivator at all, and he really couldn't guess what she was.
Unexpectedly, one of his disciples performed so poorly that he angered the other side, thus triggering this fight.
Hen Buyi was extremely strong, so he nonchalantly chose to fight in the Life-and-Death Arena, believing he could completely control the situation. He never expected that his opponent's backer was Li Qiang, leaving him completely bewildered.
Li Qiang nodded and said, "As expected of Loose Immortal! Xiaojue Heaven, Hen Buyi Loose Immortal from Xiaojuetian, actually had the audacity to bully my sister. Fine, since we're in the Life-and-Death Arena, I'll see what makes you so special!"
Hen Buyi was rendered speechless by Li Qiang's words. He awkwardly took a step back, then angrily shouted, "Fine! Let's have a match!"