This battle took place within the main peak of the Eight Generals, with no outsiders to witness it.
The moment Xiang Huaizhi emerged from seclusion and laid eyes on Li Guanqi, his pupils trembled uncontrollably.
Because... Li Guanqi had changed once again, growing even stronger.
By now, he had fully integrated and mastered the strengths of both Nangong Xuandu and Chan Kongzi.
Li Guanqi looked at Xiang Huaizhi and smiled faintly, his heart filled with immense confidence.
Yet despite his confidence, Li Guanqi did not underestimate Xiang Huaizhi in the slightest.
For Xiang Huaizhi to rank near the top among them, his strength was undeniably terrifying.
Long Hou was equally shocked when he saw Li Guanqi.
Seven days—it had been a mere seven days.
Every time Li Guanqi took an interval between fights, the sheer speed of his growth left them dumbfounded.
Fierce, churning sword intent swirled around Li Guanqi, giving even Long Hou a faint prickle of danger.
The battle did not last very long. From the very start, Li Guanqi unleashed the fourth layer of the Divine Punishment art.
His tempestuous onslaught left Xiang Huaizhi struggling for breath.
Yet Xiang Huaizhi was no pushover. Backed by formidable power, he was proficient in every weapon.
Nor was it mere dabbling; Xiang Huaizhi alone possessed four distinct soul-realm intents.
Saber, sword, fist, and spear!
Moreover, as a top-tier alchemist, his control over power and flame was nothing short of frightening.
The clash was fraught with peril and intensely fierce.
Throughout the fight, Li Guanqi demonstrated an astonishing capacity to learn and adapt.
Xiang Huaizhi's broad, eclectic arsenal caused Li Guanqi no small amount of trouble.
Several times, Li Guanqi nearly collapsed under Xiang Huaizhi's unrelenting assault.
Yet he held on, constantly hunting for an opening amidst the onslaught.
The fight raged for an entire shichen without a victor.
Not until the second shichen did Xiang Huaizhi suffer defeat.
It was not that Xiang Huaizhi was weak.
On the contrary, Xiang Huaizhi's overall prowess surpassed even Nangong Xuandu and Chan Kongzi.
Yet... to the present Li Guanqi, Xiang Huaizhi—lacking singular mastery in a single path—actually posed far less of a threat.
Bathed in blood, Xiang Huaizhi curled his lip, swallowed a pill, and cursed under his breath.
"Brat, you're a goddamn freak!
"I could even see shadows of Chan Kongzi and Nangong Xuandu in you."
Saying that, he suddenly froze for a moment.
"You didn't... learn from me too, did you?"
Li Guanqi's face was slightly pale. Panting heavily, he grinned.
"I did!"
Long Hou's expression was solemn. Ever since Nangong Xuandu's defeat, he had no longer been able to underestimate this young man.
His growth was simply too fast... too formidable.
From his narrow victory in the first match against Chan Kongzi until now, less than a month had passed.
And now he could defeat Xiang Huaizhi in head-on combat.
Though Xiang Huaizhi, like Nangong Xuandu, had chosen to suppress his cultivation to the peak Mahayana realm, his discernment and power were by no means inferior to anyone.
Yet the current outcome proved only one thing...
Li Guanqi had advanced too rapidly, his strength growing too vast.
Strong enough that he could shatter Xiang Huaizhi in a straight fight.
Bathed in blood, Xiang Huaizhi was nonetheless easygoing.
Perhaps he had known the outcome of this duel long ago.
Or rather... the moment Li Guanqi defeated Nangong Xuandu head-on, he had already known.
Yet he had chosen to face him regardless, eager to see just how far the young fellow had come.
What he hadn't expected was that Li Guanqi was already powerful to this extent.
Xiang Huaizhi chuckled freely and looked back at Li Guanqi with a grin.
"You truly didn't disappoint me, brat.
"That fight felt damn good!"
At that moment, the corners of Xiang Huaizhi's mouth curved upward; he finally understood what Nangong Xuandu had meant by 'damn good'.
His state of mind rippled slightly from this clash.
Through fighting Li Guanqi, he finally realized that it was not that they had reached the end of their room for improvement;
rather, they had lacked evenly matched opponents—or even foes who could overpower them.
That was why they had lost their goals and drive.
With that, Xiang Huaizhi's heart rekindled with fervor, and he eagerly entered secluded cultivation.
He too had gained profound insights from his duel with Li Guanqi.
Long Hou looked at Li Guanqi and said softly, "Take a longer rest this time.
"I don't want all of them injured either. If something happens, it could be dangerous."
Li Guanqi nodded silently. For him, it was indeed time to rest.
The high-intensity battles were beginning to take a toll on his body.
Long Hou smiled, staring into Li Guanqi's eyes as he said quietly, "I'm looking forward to the day we duel."
Li Guanqi looked at the tall man and nodded with a solemn expression.
"I look forward to it as well!"
Following Li Guanqi's departure, news of his victory over Xiang Huaizhi spread like wildfire.
For a time, the entire Immortal Burial Realm was in an uproar.
Needless to say, Li Guanqi instantly became the topic on everyone's lips.
Yet none of this mattered to Li Guanqi.
Presently, in the courtyard of the White Jade Tower, Li Guanqi lay on a rocking chair taking a nap alongside an old man.
Su Xuan kept his eyes closed, puffing away on his pipe with a smile on his face.
"What are your plans next? Challenge Hong, then Long Hou?"
Li Guanqi shook his head; he had no such intention.
Hesitating a moment, Li Guanqi said softly, "Grandpa, I want to... go outside and look around."
"Oh? Why not strike while the iron is hot?"
Li Guanqi sat up and sighed, a touch of bewilderment in his eyes as he murmured softly, "I feel like I've hit a bottleneck. No matter how hard I try, I can't break through my limits."
Indeed, after returning this time, Li Guanqi had entered the Nirvana Pagoda just as before.
Yet no matter what, he couldn't surpass his limits, as though the growth of his strength had stalled completely.
However, that was only his own perception.
After defeating Xiang Huaizhi, Li Guanqi's strength had grown once more.
Hearing this, Su Xuan raised his eyes to glance at Li Guanqi beside him.
He chuckled softly. "Go on, then. Walking around out there might just do the trick."
Li Guanqi's cultivation had been smooth sailing up to now; it was only natural for him to feel shackled at this stage.
Su Xuan slowly stood up, looked back at Li Guanqi, and said softly, "Wait a few more days. If things on the Immortal Realm's side quiet down for a bit, then you can go wander."
Li Guanqi smiled and nodded, whereupon the old man vanished from the spot in a single stride.
After leaving, Su Xuan took out a jade slip and said softly into it, "My grandson wants to go for a stroll. Kill a few more of them so they keep quiet for a while."
Within the immortal interstice space, facing several hundred descending immortals, an old man stood in the center drenched in blood.
Beneath the old man's feet, corpses piled high like a hill.
The old man, his white hair stained crimson with blood, slowly sat down atop the pile of corpses and brought the jade slip to his ear.
The corners of his mouth curved slightly upward, his gaze turning manic.
His robes had long since soaked into a dark crimson. The moment he looked up into the air, everyone involuntarily took a few steps back.
Ling Tianchen murmured, "Tsk, guess I'll kill a few more then."
Boom!
Raging power erupted in an instant, and several dozen flashes of cold light flickered through the air.
In a flash, several dozen corpses plummeted from midair.
The soles of the old man's shoes pressed bloody footprints into the empty air as he advanced step by step.
High in the firmament stood a massive thousand-foot gate; shadows stirred within it, yet not a single soul dared take a step out.
Ling Tianchen strode forward just like that, while the surrounding cultivators held back hundreds of feet away, none daring to approach.
The sword in the old man's hand was still dripping blood. Looking at the man standing in the center within the gate, he sneered.
"Gutless cowards...
"The Realm Lord said he wants you lot to quiet down for a bit. So I might as well stay right here.
"If you want to kill me, stop sending down trash like these Mystic Immortals and Heavenly Immortals.
"At the very least... send down a Golden Immortal above the True Immortal realm so they can resist the laws between the two realms and kill me!!"
Chapter 1255