Breakthrough! Late Mahayana Realm!

When Li Guanqi and his companions returned to the White Jade Tower, he gathered everyone together. As the group assembled in the main hall, Gu Li listened to Li Guanqi while using his divine sense to manipulate over a dozen talisman brushes, busily drafting talismans. Li Guanqi knew Gu Li's temperament well—without a mountain of inscribed talismans on him, he lacked any sense of security—so Li Guanqi simply let him be. Sweeping his gaze over the crowd below, Li Guanqi said in a heavy voice, "By now, you all likely know what happened today. Recently, I've also gained a general understanding of the entire Seventh Domain." The others nodded in succession, though none spoke up. Li Guanqi continued solemnly, "Strength! Here, strength is the ultimate voice of authority! The entire Seventh Domain exists solely to resist descending immortals who come to plunder our resources. Those people are bound by no moral constraints; once they breach our realm, it will inevitably end in wholesale slaughter. And all we can do is make every effort and seize every opportunity to increase our strength before the Human-Immortal Realm Barrier shatters!" Li Guanqi took a deep breath. His eyes gradually grew grave as he spoke in a low voice. "Today's Ye Mohan... is strong! Very strong!" Back when Ye Mohan had moved to draw his sword, Li Guanqi had felt a jolt of genuine apprehension. He had never underestimated the world's monstrous geniuses. "This Seventh Domain... really is a place of hidden dragons and crouching tigers..." Even Meng Wanshu could not help but sigh in admiration. Though she had not been present today, anyone capable of drawing such praise from Li Guanqi was certainly no ordinary figure. Deep down, Li Guanqi was an exceedingly proud man. For him to offer such an evaluation meant the opponent was an extraordinary prodigy on par with himself—at least for now! Yet how could the strand of celestial spiritual energy within Li Guanqi be compared to the ordinary energy found in the first layer? Su Xuan had been absent from his grandson's side for so many years; whether out of familial affection or a lingering sense of guilt, he had used his mighty methods to extract that wisp of celestial spiritual energy directly from the seventh layer! Had it not been for Cao Yan's message talisman, Li Guanqi would already have begun his secluded cultivation to break through to the late Mahayana realm. As for Ye Feng, he had previously reached the peak of the mid-Mahayana realm, and with the aid of the Mystic Origin Sacred Soul Pill, he had pushed through to the late Mahayana realm in a single burst! Li Guanqi cast a sharp, commanding gaze across the gathering. "From what I know, it won't be long before the forces of the Immortal Realm launch another assault. When that time comes, I hope every one of us can take the field!" At this, Li Guanqi could not help teasing, "Fatty Tang has to come along too, though your job will be supporting us from the rear!" Tang Ru nodded vigorously, his face flushed with excitement. Although Cao Yan had helped him resolve the knot in his heart, he still sincerely wished to be of help to everyone. If it was merely analyzing the battlefield dynamics for the group, he was more than capable of handling it. With that settled, Li Guanqi waved a hand and said solemnly, "Once I complete my breakthrough, we'll head to the Celestial Spirit Tower together to collect our identity jade slips." Everyone nodded in agreement. None of them intended to go out in the near future; all returned to their respective quiet cultivation chambers to train diligently. Even Tang Ru was on the verge of breaking through to the late Body Integration Realm. After everyone had departed, Meng Wanshu looked at Li Guanqi with a smile. "I'm going over to the Artifact Tower to see my father. Focus on your breakthrough with an easy mind." Li Guanqi paused slightly. "Can you still suppress your current realm?" Meng Wanshu shook her head. "I've already refined a portion of the inheritance's power. Once I check on my father and return, I'll need to enter seclusion as well." Li Guanqi smiled and nodded. After parting ways, he sat alone in his cultivation chamber, his expression turning grave. Rolling up his sleeve, he revealed a left arm covered in dense, tiny lacerations. A bizarre power of nothingness lingered within these wounds. Had Li Guanqi not been the Thunder Lord, possessing an overbearingly potent attribute in his primal energy, this injury alone would have given him a massive headache. The sword spirit's voice suddenly rang beside his ear. Her brows knit slightly as she crouched down to examine the wound on Li Guanqi's arm, a glimmer of surprise flashing in the depths of her eyes. "That fellow... is pretty formidable." Li Guanqi frowned. "Indeed... to me, that power felt more like a sword intent above the Sword Soul realm! His primal energy was laced with sword intent, capable of piercing straight through my physical defenses!" The sword spirit stood up, curling her lip in contempt. "The Po realm... but he has only touched its threshold." Li Guanqi's brow furrowed. "Sword Po realm sword intent?" The sword spirit gave a slight nod and said softly, "Sword intent at that level is already the absolute peak one can achieve in the Human Spirit Realm. Across the Three Thousand Lower Realms, cultivators capable of reaching it are as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. That fellow's sword... likely belonged to an immortal. He already has remarkable talent in the sword, possesses the special constitution of a natural sword embryo, and inherited a sword path legacy... He can certainly be considered a person of fortune and opportunity." Li Guanqi nodded silently, though he remained entirely at a loss regarding how to elevate his own sword intent. Putting on a slightly fawning smile, he looked up at the sword spirit. "Sword Spirit, can I advance to the Po realm too?" The sword spirit glanced at him, placed her hands behind her back, and smiled faintly. "If you don't reach the peak of Po realm sword intent before ascending, I won't even let you go up." With those words, her figure slowly faded away, her lingering voice echoing softly, "Focus on your breakthrough for now. Next, I need to think carefully about how to elevate your overall strength. The current you... is still far too weak." The corner of Li Guanqi's mouth twitched. Perhaps only the sword spirit had the right to call him 'far too weak.' Still, at the thought of advancing along the sword path and having a real chance of breaking through to the Po realm of sword intent, a surge of excitement stirred within him. At present, Pengluo was still unconscious, though Li Guanqi strongly suspected the little fellow was merely sleeping in to slack off. Its injuries had clearly healed long ago, yet after gorging on celestial spiritual energy, it had simply curled up and drifted into a deep slumber. Even so, Li Guanqi felt fond and protective toward Pengluo. If it hadn't used the innate power of the Divine-Patterned Sky Radish clan to fuse with him earlier, he would have had an extraordinarily difficult time facing Xun Tian. What Li Guanqi did not know was that precisely because of the extraordinary abilities possessed by the Divine-Patterned Sky Radish clan, their fate had always been utterly tragic. Such terrifying support capabilities were vastly superior to spirit-detonating pills and their ilk. Li Guanqi slowly closed his eyes, his entire mind instantly sinking into a meditative state. Primal energy surged around him as purple gold crystals shattered one after another, their rich spiritual energy thickening until it almost turned corporeal. Like a void vortex, Li Guanqi ravenously devoured and refined the pure spiritual energy surrounding him. The cultivation technique within his body churned wildly in refinement, causing his blood and vital energy to surge like roaring waves. His remolded meridians, imbued with celestial spiritual energy, had become vastly thicker and sturdier than before. An indeterminate time passed... *Rumble!* A terrifying pillar of thunderous light erupted from the White Jade Tower, soaring straight into the clouds! Immediately after, streak upon streak of biting sword qi crisscrossed the sky, and an incomparably powerful aura blanketed the heavens in an instant. Numerous powerhouses turned to look, narrowing their eyes as they felt the immense aura radiating from within Li Guanqi. "Heh, these youngsters nowadays truly are something..." "He's not even forty years old! How is that even fair?" "Tch, I heard he's the Realm Lord's grandson... tsk tsk." "Shut your mouth! Even if the Realm Lord were your father, you couldn't reach this realm in your thirties! Just look at how rock-solid that kid's foundation is!"