Chapter 1219: First Battle

Han Li swept his gaze over the platform to discover that all of the noteworthy names that Zhou Xianyang had mentioned were present, including the likes of Luo Yuanshan of the Azure Remorse Forest, Celestial Maiden Ziluo, and of course, Sikong Jian of the Lone Sun Peak.

The spectators on the plaza were clearly also not fans of this course of action, and a chorus of boos rang out across the plaza.

Sikong Jian remained completely unfazed, and despite all the boos that were ringing out, everyone also couldn't help but be a little envious of his shamelessness. After all, if he could successfully obtain a Bodhi Token, then his shamelessness would be completely vindicated.

Overall, this was not a bad gamble to make for Sikong Jian.

"Sect Leader Zhou, if Fellow Daoist Chang manages to draw Sikong Jian, then he'd better make sure to come out on top. That way, not only will the Lone Sun Peak's reputation be razed to the ground, you'll also be able to give him some well-deserved payback," Zhao Yuanlai said with a smile.

"We can't count on such coincidences," Zhou Xianyang replied with a smile, and while defeating Sikong Jian would certainly be a very sweet victory, he was still hoping that Han Li wouldn't have to face him in battle.

After all, as a sect leader, Sikong Jian was going to be more powerful than most, if not all of the other competitors, and he was renowned for his insidious and devious character, so everyone else was naturally hoping not to have to face.

"I have here ninety-six numbered balls. Each of you will pick one, and the number you pick will be assigned to you. Number one will face number ninety-six, number two will face number ninety-five, and so on. Understood?" the officiating elder asked.

"Understood," all of the competitors answered in unison.

"Begin," the elder declared as he tossed the ninety-six numbered balls up into the air, and they began to glow like radiant stars as they hung above everyone's heads.

All of the competitors swept a sleeve through the air to each draw a ball into their grasp, and after claiming a ball for himself, Han Li injected a wisp of immortal spiritual power into it, upon which the number "ninety-one" was revealed.

Everyone else soon unveiled their numbers as well, and given that Sikong Jian was a hot favorite in the event, many people immediately turned to him to examine his number.

In the face of everyone's scrutiny, Sikong Jian made no effort to hide his own number, raising the ball in his hand up high to reveal the number "ninety" emblazoned upon it.

A loud groan rang out in the crowd, and everyone turned to discover a green-skinned man with a horn on his head, looking at Sikong Jian with utter despair.

Everyone else heaved a collective sigh of relief while also feeling rather sympathetic of Sikong Jian's unfortunate opponent.

"What's your number, Fellow Daoist Chang?" Zhao Bolao asked with a smile.

Han Li showed him the ball in his hand, and Zhao Bolao's expression instantly stiffened as he raised his own ball, which was marked with the number "six".

"Fate truly is a cruel mistress," Zhao Bolao said with a wry smile, but he was struggling to hide the elation in his eyes.

He and Zhao Yuanlai had already completely written off "Chang Qi" as a doormat that Zhao Bolao could walk over as he pleased, so he was naturally ecstatic with this pairing.

"Please take it easy on me, Brother Bolao," Han Li implored, putting his acting skills on full display as he injected just the right amount of disappointment and unease into his voice.

Zhao Bolao's confidence was bolstered even further upon hearing this, but he still put on a modest facade as he replied, "Likewise, Fellow Daoist Chang."

"Fellow daoists with the first and last twelve numbers, please step onto the twelve platforms for your "

Han Li and Zhao Bolao just so happened to be among the first batch of combatants, and in accordance with the assigned numbers, their battle was set to take place on the sixth platform.

Sikong Jian had taken his position on the seventh platform, which was no more than a thousand feet away.

The spectators erupted into thunderous cheers as the first batch of twenty-four combatants stepped onto their respective platforms.

Before Zhou Xianyang and Zhao Yuanlai even had a chance to celebrate the fact that neither Han Li nor Zhao Bolao had drawn Sikong Jian as their opponent, they saw the two of them appearing on the same platform.

"What a coincidence," Zhao Yuanlai and Zhou Xianyang exclaimed in unison, and there was a hint of schadenfreude in both of their voices.

"Sect Leader Zhou, our two sects have always been on very good terms with one another, so regardless of the outcome of this battle, let's make sure that we don't take it personally," Zhao Yuanlai said with a smile, clearly of the opinion that the outcome of the battle was already a foregone conclusion.

"Of course," Zhou Xianyang replied with a smile of his own.

Even if the true Chang Qi were facing Zhao Bolao in Han Li's place, he would still have a great deal of confidence in his junior martial brother.

The group of figures seated at the center of the semi-circular stone platform weren't very interested in the battles taking place, and they were casually conversing with one another. There was a restriction around them that ensured that even the other people on the platform couldn't overhear their conversations, and of course, no one dared to try and eavesdrop on them.

"Immortal Envoy Feng Tian, I've heard that there's been a great deal of unrest all over the True Immortal Realm of late. Not only has the Reincarnation Palace been making frequent moves, even the Gray Realm has been very active recently. Do you know what's happening?" Daoist Master Chun Jun asked.

"Gray Realm beings have appeared in many parts of our True Immortal Realm, including the Northern Glacial Immortal Region and the Black Mountain Immortal Region, but it hasn't been a cause for alarm," Immortal Envoy Feng Tian replied in a nonchalant manner.

Daoist Master Chun Jun's brows furrowed slightly upon hearing this. The fact that the Heavenly Court was displaying this type of attitude was already a big problem in itself.

"Hasn't the Heavenly Court been constantly monitoring the Gray Realm? Has something happened in the Gray Realm to trigger this change?" Daoist Master Chun Jun asked.

Immortal Envoy Feng Tian hesitated momentarily, then replied through voice transmission, "Something has indeed happened in the Gray Realm. The previously neutral Black Rope Region has allied itself with the Reincarnation Region, and under the collective pressure from the two regions, the Infernal Region has been forced to cut contact with our Heavenly Court. It seems like they must have reached a consensus, given that they're beginning to invade our True Immortal Realm."

Even though Daoist Master Chun Jun had already received some word of this, he still couldn't help but be taken aback by this personal admittance from Immortal Envoy Feng Tian.

Many years ago, the patriarch of the Nine Origins Temple had analyzed the future state of the True Immortal Realm, and his predictions were gradually beginning to materialize.

Right at this moment, another wave of thunderous cheers rang out as the officiating elder announced the commencement of the battles.

"Please pardon me, Brother Bolao," Han Li said as he cupped his fist in a salute toward Zhao Bolao.

"Go ahead, Fellow Daoist Chang," Zhao Bolao replied as he returned the salute, then swept a sleeve through the air to conjure up a white light barrier that encompassed the entire platform.

The light barrier was flashing incessantly while countless six-tipped snowflake designs roamed over its surface, presenting a breathtaking sight to behold.

"Your command over the laws of ice is truly remarkable, Brother Bolao," Han Li praised with a smile.

"I've never faced a Profound Immortal of your caliber, so this is an eye-opening experience for both of us," Zhao Bolao said he swept both sleeves through the air, and wisps of glacial qi rose up from the platform, while a layer of blue frost quickly spread over the ground underfoot.

Han Li stomped a foot heavily down onto the ground, sending a burst of white energy erupting in all directions, and the converging blue frost was instantly pulverized into dust.

Zhao Bolao remained unfazed as another wave of glacial qi rose up from the ground at his behest, and a series of ice spikes emerged from the platform, pointing up at the sky like a collection of sharp spears.

Several hundred profound acupoints lit up over Han Li's body as he sprang up into the air, and Zhao Bolao immediately set off after him in pursuit with a blue spear in his grasp, appearing behind Han Li in the blink of an eye before thrusting the spear toward the center of his back.

Han Li could easily evade the attack with his speed, but given that he was currently supposed to be Chang Qi, displaying excessive speed would arouse suspicions, so he lowered his own center of gravity, standing on a pair of ice spikes as he allowed the blue spear to strike his shoulder from behind.

Even though Zhao Bolao's attack had missed Han Li's vital regions, the former was very quick to adapt to the situation, releasing a rapid torrent of immortal spiritual power into his blue spear.

A burst of radiant, blue light instantly erupted out of the tip of the spear, culminating in a glacial, blue flame that froze Han Li's entire arm and half of his shoulder solid.

"My apologies, Fellow Daoist Chang," Zhao Bolao said, but he was unable to suppress a smile.

With a forceful flick of his spear, the ice that had encased Han Li's arm was instantly shattered, and Han Li felt a numb sensation run through his arm, but aside from that, he was completely unscathed.

Zhao Bolao had expected Han Li's arm to have been shattered along with the ice that it had been encased in, and he was stunned to discover that this was not the case.

"You may be unfamiliar with Profound Immortals like myself, Brother Bolao. Our bodies are our best weapons, so we're a lot hardier than the average cultivator," Han Li said with a warm smile as a series of profound acupoints lit up over his arm, following which he threw a punch at Zhao Bolao.

He was imitating Chang Qi by releasing his power from his bones, and his entire arm looked as if it had been basked in a layer of white starlight.