Chapter 36

The courtyard gate was opened, and a young man in blue stood outside.

"Hello, Senior Brother Ye!" The young man was courteous, greeting Ye Feng with great respect.

"Who are you?" Ye Feng did not recognize the young man.

"My name is Lin Hai. Mentor Li asked me to come and deliver this to you." The young man then took out a beast scroll from his chest and handed it to Ye Feng.

"Thank you, Senior Brother Lin, please come in!" Ye Feng remembered that when Mentor Li left, he mentioned that he would send the files of elite disciples from various forces in a few days. It seemed this was the person.

"I won't come in. If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave. Senior Brother Ye, work hard and strive to bring more honor to the academy." Lin Hai did not stay for long and left Ye Feng's courtyard.

Ye Feng did not continue his cultivation. He returned to his room, opened the beast scroll, and saw it was filled with tiny, dense characters. Many people were recorded, totaling several dozen. A few were marked in red, likely to draw Ye Feng's attention.

Starting from the first line, the first person recorded was a disciple of Dalu Academy named Zhang Yuan. This person was ruthless and, if he grew up, would definitely become a formidable leader. His strength was formidable, and compared to Lei Zhan, he was like a baby, incomparable. He was skilled in ambushes and used a ground-penetrating shovel as his weapon.

Ye Feng continued reading. It seemed that Mentor Li had arranged the records to help Ye Feng remember more easily, placing dangerous individuals at the front to attract his attention.

The second name was marked in red, very prominently. This person was called Tian Li, rumored to have been born with divine strength. He broke through to the power of a flying dragon at the eighth level of the Later Heaven stage. He was now at the peak of the ninth level of the Later Heaven stage, rash and could only be defeated by cunning, not by force.

Ye Feng read line by line, paying extra attention to those marked in red. After a quick scan, he found that four people from Dalu Academy required special attention: Tian Li, Fang Yu, Hei Wukun, and Ma Wenqiang.

Tian Li was rash, Fang Yu was cunning, Hei Wukun was sinister, and there was no additional information about Ma Wenqiang, only the words "be cautious of this person."

Moving to the second section, it was also filled with detailed descriptions of various individuals. These were all disciples of Liuli Valley. Ye Feng saw a familiar name: Chen Yiming was also among them.

Five names in Liuli Valley were marked in red, warning Ye Feng to be cautious. Mentor Li's records were targeted, ignoring those with low strength. Based on Ye Feng's current level, those with strength comparable to Zhu Zequn were filtered out.

Five names were marked, one more than in Dalu Academy. It seemed that the current batch of disciples in Liuli Valley was stronger than those in Dalu Academy. The top-ranked person was called Xie Wenhao, whose background was unknown. There was little information, but rumors said he was elusive and rarely appeared. Surprisingly, he was also participating in the Tianxiang Valley expedition.

The next person was Jin Buhuan, who was very special. Rumors said he was the reincarnation of a god of fortune, and his luck was extraordinary. He encountered miraculous events wherever he went and was full of treasures.

The third person was Sun Er, who was timid but very powerful, not to be feared.

Another person was a woman named Yu Xiu, who seemed to be a disciple of a mysterious elder in Liuli Valley. Her strength was unfathomable, and the record stated that she had been selected by the inner sect of Liuli Valley and was already an inner sect disciple.

The last person was Wu Di, whose specialties were not described. Ye Feng memorized all these names, as they were all geniuses, and he might have the chance to test their strength in the future.

The introduction of Guiyun Fort was even more sparse, with only three names, and only one marked in red: Gui Wuxue, who was bloodthirsty and a killer.

It seemed that Guiyun Fort rarely interacted with the outside world, and it was impossible to investigate their outstanding disciples.

Finally, there was Tianling Academy, which Ye Feng was familiar with. The names of the "Three Dragons and One Phoenix" were prominently written, representing the four strongest elite disciples of Tianling Academy.

Closing the beast scroll, Ye Feng spent about an incense stick's time memorizing all these people to avoid being caught off guard in Tianxiang Valley. Knowing who the opponents were would help him make accurate judgments.

The day of the Tianxiang Valley opening was approaching, and Tianling Academy was becoming increasingly lively. Disciples from Dalu Academy, Liuli Valley, and Guiyun Fort were all coming to Tianling Academy to prepare for the joint entry into Tianxiang Valley.

In a secluded valley, a person and a ground demon bear were facing each other, having been in a standoff for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. Neither the person nor the bear was willing to make the first move, waiting quietly.

"Roar!"

The ground demon bear roared, unwilling to continue the standoff. It charged at the figure, its hooves, as large as fans, stomping on the ground, creating deep pits and a loud thudding sound.

The figure was Ye Feng. In the last few days, after breaking through to the peak of the eighth level of the Later Heaven stage, he left the academy and came to the deep mountains of the Hengduan Range to continue enhancing his strength and combat skills. He found the ground demon bear, known for its strength, to practice with.

This ground demon bear had already reached the peak of the ninth level of the Later Heaven stage, even approaching the level of a先天妖兽 (Xian Tian beast, a higher-level beast). It could open its spiritual intelligence, making it very difficult for humans to hunt, as they also had intelligence.

The ground began to shake. This secluded valley was the habitat of the ground demon bear, and Ye Feng's forced entry and challenge to its authority had thoroughly enraged it.

In this area, the ground demon bear was almost a dominant presence, even ninth-level disciples dared not easily enter, leading to the widespread growth of low-level spiritual herbs, which could not fetch many spirit stones.

As the distance closed, Ye Feng still stood in place, showing no signs of movement. Suddenly, his body shot forward, transforming into a streak of light, his fist glowing.

"Five Horses Tearing a Corpse Apart!"

The Powdering Fist, at its peak, emitted a terrifying wind, as if it could tear everything apart, sweeping straight toward the ground demon bear. It cut through the air, forming whirlwinds that spiraled behind Ye Feng, creating a roaring dragon that lunged forward.

"Boom!"

The previously quiet valley echoed with the sound of the impact, which was reflected by the surrounding stone walls, causing Ye Feng's eardrums to hurt.

The two different forces mixed, creating a terrifying shockwave. The ground demon bear continued its charge, colliding fiercely with Ye Feng.

"Hum!"

Ye Feng felt a wave of dizziness, almost being knocked unconscious. The ground demon bear's physical strength was too powerful, standing over three meters tall. Ye Feng, standing next to it, was half a head shorter.

His body was thrown back, flipping several times in the air before landing, his chest heaving as he tried to recover.

The ground demon bear was also in pain, retreating several meters. Ye Feng's punch, with the power of a flying dragon, had struck it hard, causing a terrible impact.

The ground demon bear's eyes showed a fierce nature, its instincts triggered. Ye Feng had injured it, and it roared, charging at Ye Feng again with even greater force.

"Good beast, my practice is complete. Take one more punch!"

Ye Feng's goal of testing his strength was achieved, and he did not want to prolong the fight. He planned to finish it with one blow.

Instantly, a terrifying shockwave shot from Ye Feng's arm, creating a piercing sound, and a fierce killing aura filled the valley.

Ye Feng burst forth, mobilizing the power of nine dantians, instantly reaching the strength of four flying dragons. Four dragons coiled behind him, and the ground demon bear was greatly alarmed. At the ninth level of the Later Heaven stage, its intelligence was not high, but it understood that it was no match, its eyes showing a flash of fear.

"Bang!"

This time, they collided fiercely, but Ye Feng did not fly back. He remained firmly in place, while the ground demon bear was thrown into the air, flying several meters before crashing to the ground.

"Thud!"

The ground, where the impact occurred, was crushed, and a deep pit was formed. The ground demon bear lay on the ground, not dead but severely injured. Ye Feng's punch had shattered its bones, leaving it unable to move.

"Cannot let it go!"

A bloodthirsty expression flashed in Ye Feng's eyes. The desire to absorb blood drove him forward. His nails, now over ten centimeters long, pierced the ground demon bear's body, and the hot blood flowed up his arm, converting into true qi and filling his nine dantians.

The ground demon bear, over three meters tall, rapidly shrank, eventually becoming only two meters tall, its essence quickly being absorbed by Ye Feng.

After absorbing for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Ye Feng withdrew his fingers. His eyes flashed with a strange red light, and his nails retracted. He felt his true qi had become more refined.

"Tomorrow is the day to enter Tianxiang Valley. It's time to return!"

Ye Feng skinned the ground demon bear and found a century-old spiritual herb in a cave, storing both in his storage ring. He then walked out of the Hengduan Range and returned to Tianling Academy.

After exchanging the items he had obtained for spirit stones, Ye Feng returned to his courtyard and found many unfamiliar figures in Tianling Academy. They were all disciples from various forces, divided into designated areas.

"Quickly give me spirit stones! Since you looked, you must buy this martial technique, or you can't leave!"

A loud shout came from not far away, and many people turned to look. Two people were in a standoff, even starting to struggle.

"Why should I? I just took a look. Who said I wanted to buy it? This is forced trading, and this is Tianling Academy. Don't go too far."

The young man, who was being held, spoke with anger. Ye Feng recognized the voice and looked over, seeing it was Lin Hai, who had delivered the beast scroll, now being held by a young man in black.

"You can't not buy it. Since you didn't plan to buy it, why did you look? Now you can't not buy it. Even if this is Tianling Academy, you must give me spirit stones today, or... hmm!"

The young man in black sneered.

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