Hearing Li Yan's question, Ping Tu glanced at Pei Buchong, signaling for him to answer. Since Pei Buchong and Li Yan got along, he could use this chance to let them talk more.
Pei Buchong sat down again, lightly tapping the folding fan in one hand against his other palm as though rapidly sorting through his thoughts. A few breaths later, the tapping stopped, and he slowly spoke to Li Yan.
"How should I put things at the sect? There's good news and bad news..."
That single sentence made Li Yan's calm expression turn grave. He did not interrupt to press for details, and after a brief pause, Pei Buchong began.
"First, the good news. Both Martial Uncle Ping and I have broken through to the Body Integration Realm, and the other disciples of our generation have made breakthroughs of their own.
"Martial Uncle Dong Fu and my master still haven't emerged from seclusion. They fell too far behind, so this time, I don't think either of them intends to come out without breaking through to the Tribulation Transcendence Realm.
"After sensing the changes around them, Senior Martial Uncle Shili and the others said my master has already stirred some changes in the Heavenly Dao—signs that a breakthrough may be coming. Martial Uncle Dong Fu, though, may still need more time..."
As Li Yan listened to the good news, he heard that the Five Immortals Sect's overall strength was rising. Yet even now, his master and Senior Martial Uncle Qian Zhong, who had returned from the lower realm, had not finished their secluded cultivation.
The two had made their resolve plain long ago. After returning from the lower realm and finding that their peers had reached the Tribulation Transcendence Realm, with some even becoming supreme Mahayana Realm experts, how could