Boom!
Right at this moment, the formation dome that was covering Zhao Long collapsed and revealed Zhao Long's figure.
Zhao Long's figure looked somewhat different. His hair was the same as Zhu Long's — short black hair. The clothes he wore had strange patterns with black, white, red, and orange colors.
His gaze was calm as he looked at Zhu Long who was sitting cross-legged in the void with closed eyes.
Zhao Long immediately sensed Zhu Long's aura and cultivation, which had already broken through to the Early Saint Realm.
Since he could cultivate again, of course he could feel the aura continuously surging out from Zhu Long's body.
At the same time, Zhu Long opened his eyes. His gray pupils stared at Zhao Long calmly.
Feeling Zhao Long's cultivation, which had broken through to the Late Foundation Establishment Realm, Zhu Long smiled in satisfaction.
He then descended from the air and stood calmly. "Come, let's meet the others. They must've been waiting for a long time," said Zhu Long.
Zhao Long nodded, then followed Zhu Long from behind.
After a while, they finally arrived at the mouth of the cave.
At the cave entrance, two people were meditating. They both opened their closed eyes at the same time when they sensed Zhu Long and Zhao Long's presence.
Zhu Long only nodded. "He has successfully restored his cultivation and has broken through to the late stage of Foundation Establishment."
"That fast?" Li Fan was slightly surprised. He stared at Zhao Long in disbelief. However, even so, he had to believe it because he could sense Zhao Long's aura himself.
Xiao Yu, on the other hand, only nodded and smiled. She then looked at Zhu Long. "You also broke through."
Zhu Long nodded proudly. "Of course," he laughed loudly.
Li Fan and Xiao Yu only chuckled lightly. "We did too." The two of them released their aura, revealing that they had broken through to the Mid Saint Realm, causing Zhu Long's expression to turn sour.
He thought he had caught up with those two, but he was still left behind.
Damn it!
Zhao Long on the other hand remained silent. He did not care at all about the conversation between the three of them. His mind kept drifting back to the moment he met his mother, Yun Lan.
"...You will know once you reach certain realms..."
Yun Lan's words made Zhao Long clench his fists. The determination that once disappeared had now ignited again.
"Enough… We don't have much time left. Stop your childish quarrel and let's get out of here." Xiao Yu said with anger, watching Li Fan and Zhu Long who were starting to exchange harsh words.
Li Fan and Zhu Long fell silent. They only snorted coldly and turned their heads away from each other.
Seeing this, Zhao Long could only shake his head slightly. Something he never expected was that his master and his master's uncle had such childish personalities.
After that, they all walked out of the cave.
---
"A few kilometers more and we will arrive at the nearest city." Said Li Fan after spreading his spiritual sense.
Everyone nodded firmly, then continued their journey.
"Stop!"
As they were walking in a very dense forest, they were immediately blocked by a group of people.
10 young men and 3 old men.
The young men wore white robes with a symbol that was a mix between wind and water.
Meanwhile, the 3 old men wore white-golden robes with the same symbol.
Seeing them, everyone's expression turned cold, including Zhao Long.
Zhao Long knew they would be robbed after this.
The young man thought that this group blocking them were bandits.
"Hand over the flower, kid! Otherwise, don't expect to leave alive!" Said one of the old men.
Boom!
With that, he released his aura — he was… a Late Saint Realm cultivator.
But not only him—
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The remaining two old men and the ten young men also released their auras.
The two old men were also Late Saint Realm, while the young men ranged from Core Formation Stage level 2 to Early Soul Transformation Stage.
These young men were geniuses!
However, what Zhao Long did not realize was that these young men actually had a bone age of more than 100 years.
While the 3 old men were nearly 1000 years old.
It was certain that they were from one of the great powers in the Dark Wind Crater territory.
"Handing over the flower?" Li Fan showed a strange smile, then sneered. "Why should I hand that flower to you? It's an ownerless spiritual plant — anyone can take it."
"And you all?" He shook his head in disgust. "Like dogs wanting to steal someone else's food."
The three old men gritted their teeth.
"You… brat, you have a sharp tongue." One of the old men raised his voice. "How about we make a deal instead?"
"Deal?" Xiao Yu raised an eyebrow. "What kind of deal?"
"We will give you some spiritual stones and a rank 8 spiritual herb. And we will even allow you to join the Golden Wind Sect," said another old man.
"Golden Wind Sect?" Zhao Long muttered, his eyes showing a trace of doubt.
The Golden Wind Sect — one of the top first-class forces in the Dark Wind Crater territory among four other powers.
There were a total of 5 peak forces in this territory:
Golden Wind Sect
Sacred Leaf Sect
Wind Lotus Pavilion
Black Mist Sect
Stone Storm Valley
Their power dominated the Dark Wind Crater territory because they had leaders who had surpassed the Divine Ruler stage!
A power that great definitely stood at the peak of one of the territories in the Yan Continent.
**
"That's it?" Zhu Long frowned, clearly displeased.
"Why? You don't want it?" One of the young men, the weakest with Core Formation level 2, spoke with irritation. "Be grateful, kid! Our elders are being generous by negotiating! Otherwise…"
"Otherwise what? You want to kill us? Force us? Threaten us? Just do it — we are not afraid of your cheap threats!" Xiao Yu cut him off coldly.
She immediately raised her hand, and an ice spear appeared. Then, she threw it at the three old elders of the Golden Wind Sect.
Swoosh!
The pupils of everyone in the Golden Wind Sect shrank.
"Bastard! How dare you!" The three old men cursed angrily, forming a spiritual shield to block the sudden attack from Xiao Yu.
However—
Swoosh!
The spear suddenly changed direction, aiming instead at the young geniuses of the Golden Wind Sect.
Boom!
In an instant, the spear pierced and exploded the head of the strongest young man, turning it into a blood mist.
The spear did not stop, continuing to pierce, stab, and explode the heads of the young men.
Within seconds, all the young men were dead, headless, except for the one with the lowest cultivation, the Core Formation Stage level 2 young man.
The young man trembled in fear, his legs weak and powerless. His pants were already soaked, and his face was pale as paper.
He stared at Xiao Yu in disbelief.
Xiao Yu smiled faintly. She stepped forward holding a sword made of ice.
Swoosh!
Li Fan also didn't want to lose. He pulled out a sword from his storage ring.
Burst!
Flames blazed on the sword as soon as Li Fan held it. With that, he shot forward and confronted one of the old elders.
Zhu Long sighed. He took two weapons — a spear and a sword. "Take this," he said, throwing the sword toward Zhao Long.
Zhao Long caught the sword.
"This is your first battle. I will watch you from afar. With that, don't hesitate to use all of your abilities," Zhu Long said seriously, then shot forward to face the remaining old man.
Zhao Long nodded with a serious expression. He gripped the sword tightly with his right hand.
Then his sharp gaze locked onto the young man who was standing with trembling legs and a pale face.
Swoosh!
He dashed forward and swung his sword.
"Sword Slash!" he shouted as he executed a basic technique with strong spiritual aura.
This made the young man's eyes widen. Out of desperation, he quickly pulled out a protective treasure — a talisman paper.
Swing!
As soon as the talisman was infused with spiritual energy, a dome-like formation appeared, blocking Zhao Long's attack.
Boom!