Wu Tao's confidence was not without reason. The others in their party were all rogue cultivators or from families, lacking any exceptional cultivation techniques or magical artifacts.
Moreover, their cultivation realms were uneven. The highest realm among them was merely the same as his, while those with lower realms were only at the twelfth level of Qi Refining. Although they were numerous, they were essentially a disorganized mob.
Even if there were individuals with extraordinary strength among them, their relationships were mostly superficial. It would not be an exaggeration to describe them as harboring ulterior motives and calculating against each other.
Under such circumstances, what did Wu Tao have to fear? Even if they were to gang up on him, if he couldn't defeat them, he could still escape with the help of Senior Brother Chang Pingqian, so he naturally had no need to worry too much.
"Junior brother, you just need to be careful. Don't force things. Harmony brings wealth is the best approach. After all, we can only rely on each other on this trip!"
Seeing Wu Tao's confidence, Chang Pingqian couldn't say much more and could only offer this advice.
Wu Tao smiled, accepting his good intentions. He also understood why Chang Pingqian, despite not having poor aptitude and having a family background, was marginalized by the higher-ups of the outer sect.
After twenty-eight years of cultivation, his realm was still one level lower than Wu Tao's.
He was not suited for the path of cultivation and seeking the Dao.
The actions, thoughts, and desires of cultivators were all about great contention—contending with heaven and earth, contending with demonic beasts, warring with myriad races, and fighting with fellow humans...
Without a heart of "great contention" and the courage to walk the path of slaughter, holding only the notion of harmony bringing wealth would inevitably lead to being taken advantage of or sinking into obscurity, with no hope of longevity.
...
Clearing obstacles, though facing a hundred deaths, would not bring regret. Those who obstruct my pursuit of the Dao and ascension—all things in the world are killable!
This was a fundamental difference in mindset, will, and philosophy, something that could not be swayed by mere words. Wu Tao did not elaborate, changing the subject and chatting about other matters.
...
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye.
On Limofeng Island, one of the East Sea's Star Archipelago, five figures stood on a reef that was just emerging from the waves. Despite the occasional large waves and raging sea winds, the five people remained as steadfast as the rocks beneath their feet.
The five figures were of varied appearances, arranged in a triangular formation. Although the atmosphere between them was not overtly hostile, it was far from harmonious.
After standing silently for a long time, one of the five could no longer bear the somber atmosphere and spoke, "Hey, Ice girl, aren't you afraid of being casually killed if you stray too far from your brother's side and come treasure hunting with us?"
"Hahaha, in that case, your supposedly genius brother would be heartbroken!"
The speaker was a burly and imposing man, clad in a fiery red robe. He laughed heartily in the sea breeze, exuding an arrogant demeanor, clearly cultivating a fire-attribute immortal cultivation technique.
However, his impatient temper seemed to be quite fitting for a cultivator of fire-attribute techniques.
The person he called "Ice girl" was a young female cultivator with a delicate and refined appearance. Perhaps due to her constant exposure to ice and snow, her skin was as fair as snow, and her brows exuded a frosty aura. Without any intentional effort, a mere glance from her could evoke a chilling sense that could freeze a person's heart.
Upon hearing the burly man's taunts, the female cultivator surnamed Bing showed no strong reaction. She merely glanced at him indifferently, then turned back, continuing to stand on the rock and gaze at the vast, boundless sea.
...
As if provoked by the coldness in her eyes, the burly man shivered. Seeing her indifferent demeanor, he became enraged and shouted, "Damn you, you wench, did you even hear what I said?"
"So noisy, so noisy!"
Before the Ice girl could speak, two childish male voices suddenly chimed in simultaneously.
"If you dare to shout any louder, we brothers will join forces and blast you into 180 pieces with lightning magic to feed the fish! Hey, hey! Did you hear us? Did you hear us?"
The ones who chimed in were two young boys dressed entirely in blue. They had delicate features and fair skin, looking very similar. However, in an instant, their eyes darted with a nimble light, giving them the appearance of mischievous sprites.
Their voices were exceptionally sweet and cute. Even when uttering threats of blasting someone into pieces to feed the fish with lightning magic, it sounded as if they were tickling one's heart, making it impossible to truly hate them.
"Whatever you Yun brothers say goes, Xue Yan doesn't dare to offend you two old folks?"
After hearing the brothers' words, the burly man, surprisingly, did not get angry. Moreover, when he replied, there seemed to be a hint of yielding, as if he had suffered losses at the hands of the Yun brothers before.
What was strange was that at the end of his sentence, he couldn't resist habitually and subtly mocking the two brothers.
After speaking, he regretted it somewhat. Why did he have to provoke these twin troublemakers? However, he knew that for many years, he just couldn't control his mouth.
Because of his sharp tongue, he had fought many unnecessary battles, offended many people, and being chased was a common occurrence. If he could change, he would have done so long ago.
"Hehe, that's better! That's better!"
The two boys, referred to as the Yun brothers by Xue Yan, seemed not to notice any anomaly and happily said in unison.
The Yun brothers then exchanged a glance, immediately crouched down, wriggled, and took off their shoes. They stretched their fair feet into the seawater, and the brothers splashed around playfully.
...
Seeing this, Xue Yan breathed a sigh of relief. He truly dared not offend these two little ancestors. Although the brothers were young, their cultivation realm was actually one level higher than his, at the peak of the Qi Refining stage.
The brothers possessed extremely high aptitude and cultivated what was publicly recognized as the most powerful lightning-attribute immortal cultivation technique in the cultivation world. Their cultivation journey had been smooth sailing, and both brothers were now at the peak of the thirteenth level of Qi Refining. Coupled with the protection of their family's power, no one in this region dared to provoke them.
The brothers' actions were unpredictable and driven solely by their momentary interests, causing immense headaches for anyone who interacted with them.
Seeing that the brothers were no longer bothering him, Xue Yan was about to continue teasing the female cultivator surnamed Bing when his heart suddenly stirred, and he turned to look at the vast, boundless sea beside them.
...
At noon, the bright red sun shone down. The five people on the reef felt no demonic aura and naturally wouldn't mistake it for a demonic beast. They all gazed intently into the distance.
In the azure sky, several dazzling points of light suddenly appeared, flickering continuously and gradually growing larger. After a moment, two small dark figures emerged.
Below the two dark figures, a phantom of a giant true dragon flickered, as if these two dark figures were riding on the true dragon, descending from the sky towards the sea.
Witnessing this extraordinary sight, the commotion among the five people on the reef intensified.
"Quiet! What are you all making a fuss about! This is the Taiyi Immortal Sect's combined flying technique—Dragon Roaming Flight Art. Don't be alarmed, it will only bring shame upon yourselves." An elder with thick limbs, a middle-aged man, who seemed to be the leader, appeared to recognize something. His expression calmed down in the next second, and then his face darkened as he turned to the other four behind him, speaking in a tone that was half explanatory and half reprimanding.
His words were effective. The commotion among the group immediately subsided, although quiet murmurs could still be heard occasionally.
...
A short while later, a howling sound, as if riding the wind and breaking the waves, reached them. Under the scorching sun, the sea surface churned like a colossal鲲 fish, the strong wind carving out two thick white waves.
Steam rose, trailing two long, constantly swirling white mists behind them, resembling the tails of two swimming dragons in the clouds, appearing and disappearing, adding a mysterious aura.
Moments later, an earth-yellow and a golden-yellow escape light descended onto the protruding reef not far away.
The yellow and golden lights interweaved, dazzling and piercing the eyes, making the two figures within appear flickering and difficult to discern for a time.
Among the five people who were initially on the reef, the Yun brothers and Zhao Leiyun were at the thirteenth level of Qi Refining, also known as the peak of the Qi Refining stage. Xue Yan and the Ice girl cultivators were slightly weaker, both at the twelfth level of Qi Refining.
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