"Tch~ Look at your lack of ambition," Ye Feng remarked, finding Lin Dong's words rather dull.
Li Guanqi, however, gave a soft chuckle. "You can't talk about Dongzi like that. That's his dream. He's simply fulfilled it now, and maybe later he'll have other dreams. Everyone is different. Just because someone's dream sounds modest doesn't mean they lack ambition. None of you have lived through hardship, so how could you possibly understand what he's feeling?"
Lin Dong raised his wine cup, clinked it against Li Guanqi's, and tilted his head back to down the fiery liquor.
Zhong Lin and Ye Feng nodded thoughtfully.
Li Guanqi turned to look at Li Sheng'an, who had matured considerably, and smiled warmly. "Fatty, what about you? Do you have any dreams?"
Li Sheng'an kept his head lowered, a faint smile surfacing on his face as he replied, "Originally, I spent my whole life thinking about merely muddling through. When I was fortunate enough to enter an immortal sect, I didn't think too much of it at first."
At that point, the chubby youth slowly raised his head, looking toward Li Guanqi with an uncontrollable grin. "Until I met you. At first, I only wanted to find a backer. But you made me realize that relying on others is never as good as relying on oneself. So... I also want to climb as far up the mountain of the Great Dao as I can. No matter where I end up, it won't be in vain. Even if I only get to see the scenery halfway up the mountain, it won't be too great a regret."
As Li Sheng'an spoke, his eyes shone brightly. Everyone present could hear the firmness in his voice.
Immediately after, their gazes turned toward Li Guanqi.
The youth smiled slightly, lying on the ground like the others with both hands pillowed behind his head.
Feeling the gentle breeze drifting across the mountain summit, Li Guanqi slowly opened his eyes and reached a hand out toward the sky.
He murmured softly, "I want to have a group of brothers and sisters by my side, and go take a look at the Immortal Realm."
It was only a single short sentence, yet it left the others stunned.
The youth had not spoken of what kind of mighty powerhouse he wanted to become, as if that were something destined for him anyway. He merely stated with complete composure that he wished to become a supreme cultivator capable of ascending to the Immortal Realm—which would require reaching at least the legendary Mahayana Realm!
Ye Feng curled his lip and grumbled, "Leave it to Old Li. Great talent really gives a man confidence. Speaking of something as monumental as ascension so casually."
Yet after the youth finished speaking, an inscrutable gleam flickered in Ye Feng's eyes.
That night, the youths, each harboring their own dreams, drank themselves dead drunk.
Only Yu Sui'an stayed focused on devouring the roast meat with abandon.
Early the next morning, having all achieved Foundation Establishment, the youths selected their respective cultivation peaks near Li Guanqi's Yuhu Peak.
Once Ye Feng finished settling everything, he came straight to find Li Guanqi, sitting at the edge of the cliff and speaking in a low voice.
"Old Li, since you're in no rush to break through and need to temper the foundation of your realm anyway, how about... being my sparring partner? I don't want to fall too far behind you."
Li Guanqi smiled slightly and said softly, "Sure, but you have to pay. And you'd better be prepared to suffer."
Ye Feng waved his hand grandly. "Don't you worry! I'll cover all the spirit stones used for cultivation!"
In the days that followed, disciples of the Great Xia Sword Sect could often see a battered and bruised figure running toward Tianshui Peak every day.
Yet it had to be said that Ye Feng truly possessed outstanding talent, and his comprehension of the sword dao progressed rapidly.
Li Guanqi was not idle either. Every two days or so, he would enter the sword casket's altar and have the sword spirit open the Hundred Champions Illusion.
This time, the champion phantom he faced was a woman wielding Emei piercers.
As the sword spirit put it, in the days ahead, Li Guanqi needed not only to advance his sword dao cultivation, but also to understand the fighting styles of people wielding different weapons as thoroughly as possible.
Furthermore, every three bouts, the sword spirit would manifest a champion phantom wielding a different weapon to battle him to the death.
This resulted in Ye Feng suffering terribly during the day!
Covered in bruises, Ye Feng kept cursing under his breath, "What's gotten into Old Li lately? Why is he carrying so much rage? His strikes are brutally vicious!"
At sunrise, Li Guanqi sat poised atop the mountain summit, facing east.
Wisps of white mist entered through his nose into his body as he gently exhaled turbid breath from his mouth.
As his internal cultivation technique circulated, the origin energy within his dantian that had already been refined was tempered once more.
Strands of origin energy as thick as fingers were compressed, becoming a full third smaller than before.
Lately, he had encountered all sorts of bizarre weapons in the Hundred Champions Illusion.
Yet there was no denying that these champion phantoms all possessed a profound mastery over their respective weapons.
Moreover, after each battle, the sword spirit would explain his shortcomings to him.
His growth in strength naturally drove Ye Feng's improvement.
Often when Li Guanqi was meditating at night, he could see a solitary figure brandishing a sword with all his might on Ye Feng's distant peak.
Perhaps influenced by the atmosphere of Thousand Peaks Mountain, Ye Feng no longer slept in.
With his king-grade spiritual root, his strength advanced by leaps and bounds during this period.
Just as Li Guanqi entered his cultivation state, however, he suddenly received a message from his master.
"Guanqi, come to my courtyard residence."
Li Guanqi rose and flew on his sword toward Tianlei Peak, encountering many fellow disciples returning from their cultivation along the way.
As they passed Li Guanqi, they all nodded respectfully.
Word of his exploits within the mystic realm had long since spread throughout the sect.
Although half a month had passed since the closure of the mystic realm, what was strange was that Ziyang Palace had sent no one over during this time.
After all, to Ziyang Palace, the mystic realm had merely been lent to the Great Xia Sword Sect.
Now that the realm had collapsed, Ziyang Palace ought to have sent people to demand an explanation.
Furthermore, Li Guanqi had noticed that the elders of the various peaks often left for several days before returning.
On top of that, Disciplinary Hall Master Qin Xian had not returned. Though it was publicly claimed he was in secluded cultivation, only Li Guanqi knew the truth.
"It seems... this matter won't end peacefully. I just wonder if it'll spark a major conflict.
"Never mind that. I'll go see why Master summoned me first."
When Li Guanqi arrived at the entrance of the courtyard, he discovered that Second Elder Xu Zhengjie was there as well.
Eldest Senior Sister Gu Ran was present too, and all three turned their eyes toward him.
Li Guanqi stepped into the courtyard, bowing respectfully to the three. "Disciple Li Guanqi greets Master and Second Elder.
"Junior Brother greets Senior Sister."
Gu Ran smiled teasingly. "You little brat, your realm is already equal to mine now. It seems I haven't been working hard enough on my cultivation~"
Li Nanting smiled faintly. He could tell that Li Guanqi's foundation had been thoroughly consolidated during this period, completely devoid of any previous instability.
Nodding in satisfaction, he spoke gently, "Summoning you here today is to inform you of something.
"The Hundred Sects Tournament, held once every hundred years in the Northern Region, has been scheduled. It will take place in one month.
"I called you here so that you and your senior sister can prepare. The Great Xia Sword Sect has ten spots in total, and the two of you are among them."
Li Guanqi was momentarily taken aback, thinking to himself, "The Hundred Sects Tournament? Good heavens... A hundred sects participating?"
Chapter 106