Chapter 157: Missing the Grand Tournament

Heaven Book Academy, fifth floor of the Mingxin Pagoda.

At this moment, Lin Fan was introspecting his Dantian. The news regarding Qingxue County had reached Lin Fan two months ago, and naturally, it was all within his expectations.

Although Bai Qi was only at the Stream Realm in cultivation, his combat strength could definitely surpass ordinary River Realm experts. Coupled with the King Yue Bow that he had won from a lucky draw and given to Bai Qi, shooting down anyone below the mid-River Realm should not be a difficult task.

For experts at the Stream Realm, a single arrow would be enough to kill them; no matter how they struggled, it would be useless!

The King Yue Bow was a great bow he had won during the pursuit when he first came to participate in the Heaven Book Academy. At that time, he had no time to study it, but later on, he discovered the formidable power of this bow.

Given his previous Meridian-Opening cultivation, which could barely withstand the strength of a mid-Stream Realm expert, he had been unable to draw it back, which made him realize that this bow was extremely powerful. It wasn't until he gave the bow to Bai Qi that he finally understood just how powerful it truly was...!

Bai Qi, with his early Stream Realm cultivation and River Realm combat strength, could barely draw the bow to less than a full moon. According to Bai Qi, the arrows he shot—while on his way to Qingxue County—easily killed an early-sixth-rank fierce beast.

That single sentence completely set his mind at ease from his lingering worries!

One must know that fierce beasts were always stronger than humans of the same rank, and an early-sixth-rank beast was equivalent to a mid-River Realm human. With such a powerful bow, what else did he have to worry about?

This was why he had let go of all restraint and embarked on a bloody massacre!

Why had he walked up to the grand hall of the Heavenly Dynasty Society at sunset back then? It was because he had sent Bai Qi back ahead of time to test the bow on the way. Once the news came back, he had already decided to carry out a massive slaughter upon his arrival.

Today, Lin Fan had reached the peak of the Meridian-Opening Realm, and was just a single step away from crossing into the ranks of Stream Realm experts.

Combat strength? Heh, what was the River Realm worth mentioning!

Today was also the day he emerged from seclusion. With that, he knocked in succession on the cultivation chambers of Hongyi, Beihan, and the others. Sensing the early Meridian-Opening cultivation of the few, Lin Fan smiled knowingly; heaven does not disappoint those who put in the effort.

Of course, among these people, there was one who had broken through to the mid-Meridian-Opening Realm, and that was Xiao Beihan!

Xiao Beihan's aura had changed significantly. At this very moment, even standing right beside him, he kept his eyes tightly closed with a completely expressionless face, his entire body releasing no trace of energy whatsoever, as if he were an ordinary person without any cultivation at all.

He no longer favored fancy robes, but instead wore an ordinary black long robe—the kind that could be seen everywhere on the streets!

Shangguan Feihong's entire aura was ice-cold, resembling frost that would not melt in ten thousand years. If Xiao Beihan was expressionless, then he was like an iceberg frozen for ages, his aura chillingly austere to the extreme.

Li Changfeng, on the other hand, was utterly carefree, wearing a confident smile on his face—a smile of absolute confidence. His naturally handsome cheeks possessed even greater charm now, and occasional mischievous grins played at the corners of his mouth. Anyone who saw him would surely take a second look.

For those young maidens and married ladies, his lethality was even stronger.

The tall and muscular physique had already exceeded two meters and thirty or forty centimeters, making him look entirely like a massive savage bull. Yet, from his body was released an extremely ferocious murderous aura, resembling an ancient fierce tiger. Coupled with the huge saber scar across his face, his appearance looked even more ferocious. This was none other than Ou Hu.

However, when Lin Fan looked over, Ou Hu gave an honest and simple smile, scratching the back of his head. The fierce aura all over his body instantly vanished, and his entire person turned honest and obedient, just like a big, goofy simpleton.

Sun Haoran held a jade flute, dressed in a gray long robe. His entire person was filled with a scholarly aura, yet his gaze held resolutely firm and wise undertones. His presence was very weak, yet at the same time exceptionally strong. Because Lin Fan was looking at him, Sun Haoran also turned his head to look back, the friction of his cheeks against his clothes making a soft rustling sound.

Except for Lin Fan, Hongyi, and Beihan, everyone else felt a stir in their hearts, as if they had heard the most wonderful music in the world. Their expressions turned dazed for a fraction of a second, followed instantly by looks of utter horror.

If this were a life-or-death battle, could Sun Haoran have taken their lives in that very instant?

"Not bad, your path is clear, and you have begun to pursue intent!"

Lin Fan nodded, then looked toward Qian Jin. Qian Jin was still the same old self; his chubby face was filled with smiles, making him look precisely like the plump proprietor of a tavern, his eyes holding both warmth and cunning—the very portrait of a crafty merchant.

Among all of them, he possessed the least aura of an expert, looking entirely like someone born a local ruffian and a thoroughgoing swindler.

*Clang!*

Lin Fan raised his fingers and smilingly clamped down on a flying dagger aimed at his throat. The dagger was more than half a palm in length, less than half a finger wide, and exceptionally sharp.

"Very good. Making people lower their guard to the absolute minimum makes it very easy to find an opportunity. However, when will you reach mastery—the point where even if others maintain their vigilance against you, you still have the blade in your heart, the blade in your hand, and never miss your mark?"

With a twist of Lin Fan's wrist, the flying dagger he had caught shot back like lightning. Qian Jin was greatly startled and had no time to dodge whatsoever before the flying dagger came to a halt right before his throat.

"The Dao of flying daggers is something I do not understand, but the end of all Daos is the same. Understand one, and you understand them all. I cannot give you pointers; you must walk your own Dao!"

Qian Jin nodded and put away the flying dagger. It was unknown where he stowed it, as he did not place it into a storage ring.

Finally, Lin Fan looked at Hongyi. Hongyi looked back at him and smiled sweetly. Lin Fan said nothing more, took Hongyi's small hand, and walked down the Mingxin Pagoda.

Beihan followed silently right behind them, his entire person looking like a walking corpse. Li Changfeng and the others exchanged glances; naturally, they understood why Beihan was like this, and their eyes held a hint of worry, yet they also understood Beihan's persistence, so they shook their heads and followed along.

Now, whether it was Beihan or Qian Jin, having reached the Meridian-Opening Realm, their auras had all changed according to their respective cultivation techniques.

Although they could not yet be considered grand masters of one side, each of them had acquired an extraordinary bearing of their own.

Some were like stagnant pools of water, some like an iceberg, some like a young sovereign. Some were tyrannical and fierce, while others were gentle and refined, yet resembled marketplace profiteers.

Of course, Lin Fan did not mention Hongyi, nor did he need to. Anyone capable of sensing Hongyi's cultivation could feel a terrifying aura of the destruction of all things, genuinely experiencing death right here.

Her expression was very placid; she would only smile when facing him, and to everyone else, she was just an ordinary, placid young girl!

When all was said and done, whether it was Hongyi, Beihan, or Shangguan Feihong, the emotions of all three were somewhat similar, yet upon closer distinction, there were differences.

Hongyi's placidity was true placidity, beneath which lay a terrifying aura capable of destroying the heavens and the earth!

Beihan's expressionlessness was actually a dead silence—resembling a dead corpse, a dead silence born from killing until all things were extinguished, a dead silence that even killed oneself. Hidden behind him was earth-shattering murderous intent.

Shangguan Feihong was ice-cold, his entire person like a piece of unfrozen permafrost. Ever since he practiced Ximen Jianchen's cultivation technique, he radiated a bone-chilling cold from the inside out that kept all living beings at a bay.

After emerging from the Mingxin Pagoda, Lin Fan and the others realized they had missed the academy grand tournament. At this moment, they encountered Princess Muxia and Long Xinlan—who were being pursued by other sects and academies—and Li Changfeng stepped in to teach them a lesson.

As Lin Fan's group walked out of the Mingxin Pagoda and strolled along the paths of the Heaven Book Academy, their moods were quite good. With their cultivation having greatly advanced, they chatted and decided to head to the Four Seas Tavern for a drink.

At the same time, because of their closed-door cultivation, the group also learned the news that they had missed this secret realm competition, which had already concluded more than ten days ago.

In this secret realm competition, whether it was the Heaven Book Academy, the four affiliated academies, or the super sects, virtually all their elites had been deployed.

Figures like Liu Qi and Dai Zengxu from the Law Enforcement Department of the Heaven Book Academy, Lie Changkong and Lie Tianyu from the Nine Sovereigns Pavilion, Meng Qishang and Bei Wuxie from the Martial Arts Association, and even Baili Chuan and Zhao Hai from the Heavenly Dynasty Society, along with many other powerful students, had all returned.

These people had not entered the inner courtyard as Yang Xiaoyue had imagined, but instead had undergone special training!

On the day of their return, although they had not stepped into the Stream Realm, they were all at the absolute peak of the Meridian-Opening Realm—half-step Stream Realm experts. Yet Yang Xiaoyue and the others could all see that it was not that these people could not step into the Stream Realm, but rather that they were stubbornly suppressing their cultivation.

The reason was self-evident: it was all for this secret realm competition!

According to the news from the days leading up to the opening of the secret realm, this secret realm would be somewhat different. Because this secret realm coincided with a century-long cycle, vast amounts of inheritances, the birth of offspring from the most formidable fierce beasts, and all kinds of powerful secret treasures would appear.

Therefore, this session's competition for the secret realm was exceptionally fierce. Liu Qi and the others had clearly received orders from the academy to suppress their cultivation so forcefully, all while allowing their combat prowess to skyrocket.