I bear witness to immortality in the human world.

Chapter 217 The Light Curtain Converges
Bai Qiulan fled in her Radiant Moon Dharma Form, while Zang Mie pursued her relentlessly. It was clear that Zang Mie was slightly faster and gradually caught up with her.

"Heavenly Silver Light Dharma Form..."

Bai Qiulan sensed the situation behind her and frowned. Her Radiant Moon Dharma Form was quite adept at flying, but it was inferior to her Silver Light Dharma Form.

The Silver Light Dharma Form is the Dharma Form within the Tiangang lineage that focuses most on speed of escape.

She actually possessed a rare artifact that could increase her escape speed. If she had encountered someone else, even someone stronger than her, she was confident she could have escaped. But she happened to encounter a Daoist cultivator who practiced the Silver Light Dharma Form.

Swish!
A silver flying sword pierced through the air and caught up to him.

Bai Qiulan had no choice but to manipulate her Dharma form and collide with the silver flying sword twice. Immediately, pieces of moonlight exploded. This brief exchange slowed her down, and Zang Mie behind her closed in even faster.

"It's troublesome."

Sensing that something was wrong, Bai Qiulan's heart sank.

She didn't even aim to break into the top ten; she just wanted to be ranked in the top 100 and enter the second round of assessments at the sacred cultivation ground.

Although only twenty people will be selected in the second round of assessment, the benefits of entering the second round are already numerous, since there are other forces in the Great Jin Dynasty besides the cultivation holy land.

These forces are far inferior to the sacred cultivation grounds, but they are still far more powerful than the Hidden Dragon Academy of Yong Kingdom.

Entering the second round of assessments, even if one cannot join a cultivation holy land, there is still a chance to become a disciple of some second-rate forces in the Great Jin Dynasty. In that case, the future prospects would still be much brighter than staying in Yong Kingdom.

But now,
With Zang Mie relentlessly pursuing her from behind, and no match for him, she had two options: either make a decision now and immediately flee to the outside of the Wangyue Mountain Range to abandon the competition, or continue trying to delay, but the consequence would be that if he caught up, her life would be in danger, since the Hundred Kingdoms Prodigies Battle was not without its dangers.

Just as Bai Qiulan's face darkened and she was about to grit her teeth and make a decision to leave the Wangyue Mountain Range, a voice suddenly entered her ears: "Senior Sister Bai, are you in trouble?"

Ok? !

Upon hearing the voice, Bai Qiulan was slightly taken aback, then revealed a hint of joy. She suddenly turned her head and saw a figure standing in the woods not far away, looking in her direction.

That figure was none other than Wu Ming!
In this battle of a hundred nations, even those from the same country are competitors. But for Bai Qiulan, meeting Wu Ming is much better than meeting other rivals. Even if she has no choice but to give up, she would rather give all her blood points to Wu Ming than let others take them away.

“Brother Wu, this person is a disciple of Gui Li, the Taoist master of the Chi Kingdom.”

Upon spotting Wu Ming, Bai Qiulan immediately changed direction and flew towards him, shouting out to him in a single sentence that revealed the identity of the person chasing her.

It was already quite clear before the conflict between Gui Li and Meng Huaizhen that Gui Li was a Taoist master who had a huge grudge against Meng Huaizhen and Yong Kingdom. He had even given orders to his disciples to kill any Yong Kingdom participants they encountered.

"Ah."

Wu Ming responded to Bai Qiulan's calls with a calm nod. He looked at Bai Qiulan, who was flying towards him in her Dharma form, and simply raised his right hand and pressed down with his palm.

boom! ! !
In an instant, a burst of intense lightning spread and intertwined from his palm, transforming into a massive lightning net that descended upon Zang Mie, who was chasing after Bai Qiulan from behind.

Zang Mie had already noticed Wu Ming. Seeing that Bai Qiulan suddenly had an ally, he frowned slightly. Although his strength surpassed Bai Qiulan's, it wouldn't be easy for him to deal with her in a short time. Now that Bai Qiulan had found another ally, even if he wasn't strong and was only on par with Bai Qiulan, they could still have some self-defense against him if they joined forces.

Just as Wu Ming made his move, Zang Mie's expression changed drastically.

Master!

An expert's skill is immediately apparent. As a master of Taoist magic, Wu Ming's strength was clearly a level above Bai Qiulan's in just one move. His lightning technique was a pinnacle of mastery and posed a tremendous threat.

"break."

Zang Mie held his breath and uttered a low chant. The silver light dharma image, woven from countless silver threads, suddenly trembled and instantly spread out countless silver rays of light, colliding with the spreading lightning net. The light and lightning converged and quickly annihilated each other.

"It seems that not all the people in Yong Kingdom this generation are useless..."

He glanced coldly at Wu Ming through his Dharma form, snorted at Wu Ming, and neutralized the lightning magic released by Wu Ming. He lost interest in continuing the fight and turned to leave.

Wu Ming's strength is no less than Bai Qiulan's. If he joins forces with Bai Qiulan, even if he can hold her off, he won't gain much advantage. Continuing to fight is pointless.

But Wu Ming had already noticed his actions. He slightly shook his raised right hand, and a golden stone drum appeared in his palm. He raised his left hand and gently tapped the drumhead.
"Since we've already tracked you down here, we might as well stay."

boom! ! !
The lightning net had almost dissipated, with only a few faint arcs of lightning remaining in the void. But with Wu Ming's gentle tap, an even more surging and mighty force of lightning suddenly rose up. The nearly annihilated lightning net exploded like silver snakes dancing wildly, as if it had been infused with new energy.

Wu Ming had already sensed Bai Qiulan and Zang Mie approaching. However, Zang Mie was not weak. He was able to force Bai Qiulan to flee in a sorry state. He was at least at the level of being able to pass the eighth level of the Hidden Dragon Tower, on par with Gu Liufeng. Moreover, the Dharma Image he cultivated was the Heavenly Gang Silver Light Dharma Image, which was extremely good at speed.

While this Dharma form is slightly lacking in both offensive and defensive power, it is extremely fast. When encountering an opponent that is difficult to defeat, it is still faster to escape. Even though Wu Ming's Heavenly Gang Thunder Yuan Dharma form is also good at speed, it may not be able to beat the Heavenly Gang Silver Light Dharma form in a full-blown battle.

That's why Wu Ming hesitated to make a move, concealing his aura until Bai Qiulan brought Zang Mie close. Only then did he suddenly attack, and his first move wasn't even a full-force attack. He simply used the Divine Firmament Thunder Technique as a foundation to create a moderately powerful lightning net, preventing Zang Mie from turning and fleeing.

now,

Using his initial lightning net technique, he suddenly amplified the power of the Golden Thunder Stone Drum, instantly creating a blockade stretching for dozens of feet, completely enveloping Zang Mie within it!

"not good."

Zang Mie's expression changed drastically; he had already sensed something was wrong.

With a low shout, he channeled his soul and released his magic, condensing his vast soul power into a silver blade. Then, the silver avatar burst forth with a dazzling silver radiance, and an arm extended, guiding the silver blade, sweeping across all directions and colliding with the lightning net that spread in all directions, cutting and severing the lightning bolts. At the same time, he steered the entire avatar to retreat rapidly into the distance.

No matter how fast the Silver Light Dharma Form was, it still took time to neutralize Wu Ming's thunder spell enhanced by the Golden Thunder Stone Drum. It couldn't get rid of Wu Ming's thunder spell entanglement instantly. It was during this short period of time that Wu Ming made his move.

boom! ! !
Raging flames surged from his body, followed by blinding lightning bursting from the fire. He was bathed in flames, clad in lightning armor, like a god or demon descended to earth, his overwhelming power sweeping across all directions.

The Dharma Form of Heaven and Earth Thunder and Flame!

Zang Mie is quite strong, comparable to Gu Liufeng. For Wu Ming, he might be able to defeat him by using only the Thunder Element Dharma Form, but if Zang Mie is given the opportunity to break free from the entanglement of the Thunder Net and escape directly using the speed of the Silver Light Dharma Form, then chasing him would be time-consuming and laborious, and he might not even be able to catch up.

He led Zang Mie into his trap step by step, not just to defeat Zang Mie, but to keep him alive!
"The Dharma Body Merges!"

As Zang Mie watched the overwhelmingly powerful Dharma Image erupt, his eyes widened in disbelief. As a Daoist cultivator, he knew all too well the significance of fusing Dharma Images. It required not only mastering the two Dharma Images to perfection but also having a profound understanding of the two natures of heaven and earth, namely thunder and fire.

Furthermore, judging from Wu Ming's method of merging the two Dharma forms, those two Dharma forms are clearly not ordinary; they are probably among the most outstanding Dharma forms. The combined power of these two top-tier Dharma forms is naturally terrifying and boundless.

boom!
Wu Ming raised his large hand and pressed it down on Zang Mie.

With this palm strike, flames soared into the sky, lightning filled the air, and its power was vast and mighty. It directly broke through the limit of the fifth level of refinement and reached the threshold of the sixth level. The astonishing momentum made Bai Qiulan, who was not far away, feel shocked.

"No wonder he was able to pass the ninth level of the Hidden Dragon Tower..."

Bai Qiulan's heart was filled with turbulent emotions. She knew that Wu Ming was incredibly strong. Being able to pass the ninth level meant that Wu Ming had power comparable to a sixth-level master. However, she did not know how Wu Ming had done it. Now she clearly understood that Wu Ming had comprehended the essence of the Dharma Form and understood the true meaning of thunder and fire, enabling him to combine the two Dharma Forms of thunder and fire!
"Heavenly Silver Light!"

Seeing Wu Ming's Thunder Flame Dharma Form erupt and crash down, Zang Mie was horrified, but he was unable to retreat due to the entanglement of the lightning net. He could only let out a low roar and unleash his primordial spirit with all his might, unleashing a Daoist divine power.

The silver avatar he manipulated had its arms raised high, and a beam of dazzling silver light burst forth from its palms, spiraling out of shape like a galaxy, seemingly capable of absorbing and devouring everything. Boom!!!
Wu Ming's manipulated lightning and fire power crashed down, directly striking the silver disc.

One was a pure burst of power, and the other was a combination of profound Taoist techniques and the power of Dharma form. However, after a brief collision, the silver disc collapsed and disintegrated, and Zang Mie's entire Dharma form body was engulfed by lightning and fire!
No matter how profound the Daoist techniques are, or how special their nature is, they can only be effective when their power is not too different. At this moment, Wu Ming did not bother to make the power of thunder and fire mysterious. He simply used his soul power to mobilize and control it, unleashing the purest and most essential power, which directly crushed Zang Mie's all-out Daoist technique!
boom! boom! boom! ! !
After suppressing Zang Mie with a single palm strike, Wu Ming did not hesitate at all. He continued to swing his arm, unleashing a series of thunder and fire fists, hammering down one after another, causing the earth to tremble and shake continuously.

After dozens of consecutive strikes, Wu Ming finally manipulated the Dharma Image and stopped the action.

On the field,

As the flames of thunder and fire dissipated, a very deep pit was revealed, more than ten feet wide and nearly three feet deep. At the bottom of the pit, there were only some black residues and a silver flying sword, its color dull and without luster. There was nothing else.

Wu Ming dispelled the Thunder Flame Dharma Image and landed quietly. He raised his eyebrows slightly, raised his right hand, and showed his bracelet above the pit. Strands of crimson blood energy surged out from the bottom of the pit and quickly flowed into his bracelet, making the red on his bracelet even deeper. It had changed from an extremely light red to a slightly lighter blood color.

The bracelet was destroyed, the magical artifact was lost, and Zang Mie had clearly vanished into thin air.

at last,

The bracelet swallowed the last trace of blood energy. Wu Ming turned around, looked at Bai Qiulan not far away, and said in a friendly tone, "Senior Sister Bai, why are you still here?"

Bai Qiulan said solemnly, "I can't beat him. If I hadn't met you, I would have been eliminated. If you need it, you can take my blood points as well."

While Wu Ming was dealing with Zang Mie, she could have taken the opportunity to escape, but she was very clear about her own situation. Even if she used Wu Ming's power to get out of danger, it would still be difficult for her to break into the top 100. Besides, she and Wu Ming had a fairly good relationship. If she used him like this, not only would she lose all their previous friendship, but she would also become enemies with Wu Ming.

Besides,

She didn't have many blood points, and Wu Ming might not even be interested in them.

Wu Ming glanced at the almost pure white bracelet on Bai Qiulan's wrist, shook his head slightly. He really didn't care about Bai Qiulan's little bit of blood energy points. He said, "Senior Sister Bai, this battle of geniuses is extremely dangerous. It's best to be careful."

After all,

He then turned around and walked straight into the depths of the forest, quickly disappearing from sight.

Watching Wu Ming leave, Bai Qiulan took a deep breath, glanced back at the golden light screen at the edge of the Wangyue Mountain Range not far away, her eyes flickered slightly, and she quickly regained her composure and turned to walk forward.

Although the battle of prodigies was indeed dangerous, as she had personally experienced, she would not give up easily now that she was here.

……

peripheral.

Yan Chuyu followed beside Meng Huaizhen, her eyes fixed on the golden light screen.

As early as when Wu Ming's name rose to the top of the rankings on the light screen, she had been keeping an eye on Wu Ming's blood energy points and ranking, while also trying to find Wu Ming's location on the map displayed on the golden light screen.

On the golden light screen map, everyone was just a small dot, without a name label. Some of these dots were pure white, while others were stained with crimson. The depth of the red was naturally the representation of the number of blood points.

However, Wu Ming is ranked in the twenties, and there are many people with similar rankings and blood energy points. Yan Chuyu has already followed more than a dozen of them on the screen, but she is not sure which one is Wu Ming yet.

suddenly,

She noticed that on the light screen, two slightly reddish spots were approaching each other.

One of them, she guessed, might be one of the points of light representing Wu Ming, while the other was a slightly lighter color and should be ranked around fifty or sixty, making it unlikely to be Wu Ming.

After the two met, the red light flickered briefly, and then the slightly lighter-colored spot of light vanished instantly, replaced by another spot of light that became redder and brighter.

at the same time,

Yan Chuyu also turned her gaze to the ranking screen on the other side, and saw that Wu Ming's name had quickly climbed up from the twenties, passing more than a dozen names, and finally stopped at the tenth position.

Yongguo Wu Ming, 934 points!
Seeing this scene, Yan Chuyu's eyes couldn't help but sparkle with a bright light. She knew that with Wu Ming's strength, he would definitely stand out in the battle of geniuses, but seeing Wu Ming's ranking finally climb into the top ten, she still felt a great sense of accomplishment. Although this was not her achievement, Wu Ming had come out of Jingye City with her.

Meng Huaizhen also noticed the change in rankings and smiled. He was not surprised that Wu Ming could win the top ten. In Yong Kingdom, it was rare for someone to pass the ninth level of the Hidden Dragon Tower. In the Hundred Kingdoms of the Northern Wilderness, there were only two or three experts of this level each year. It was normal for Wu Ming to break into the top three or even win first place.

Compared to Meng Huaizhen and Yan Chuyu's joy, Gui Li's expression was much gloomy.

He saw that one of his disciples, Zang Mie, had suddenly plummeted in the rankings and disappeared from the list altogether. There were only two possibilities for this: either Zang Mie had been eliminated, or Zang Mie had died.

"Wu Ming..."

Gui Li shifted his gaze to the top of the rankings, looking at Wu Ming, who had climbed to tenth place, his eyes filled with icy coldness.

The Chi Kingdom and the Yong Kingdom are very far apart, almost like opposite ends of the North Wilderness. He knew most of the grandmasters in the Yong Kingdom, but he couldn't possibly know each and every one of the disciples in the Qianlong Academy, and he didn't even pay special attention to them.

The current situation clearly indicates that an extraordinary young talent has emerged in the Yong Kingdom this generation.

The appearance of such a person naturally filled Gui Li with malice, and he even wanted to kill him as soon as possible. But unfortunately, as long as Wu Ming stood out in the Hundred Kingdoms Prodigy Battle, he would have no chance to interfere with Wu Ming's life trajectory, even if he was a Daoist master who had reached the seventh level of the Primordial Spirit Refinement.

A master-level expert who has reached the seventh level of the Nascent Soul stage might be able to roam freely among a hundred kingdoms and go anywhere in the world, but in front of the 'Great Jin' that rules the entire Northern Wilderness, even if they are not ants, they are nothing.

……

Within the Wangyue Mountains, the fighting was incredibly fierce.

Those with the lowest strength, like Bai Qiulan, tried every means to survive, hunting demons and seeking opportunities to accumulate points, while the stronger ones, such as Wu Ming and Da Fan, acted recklessly, eliminating other participants.

The first full day and night passed quickly. Wu Ming's luck was not good, and he encountered very few other participants. He was temporarily ranked eleventh. The list of the top 100 also went through repeated changes. Gu Liufeng's name quietly appeared in the seventy-seventh position, becoming the second person from Yong Kingdom to be on the list besides him.

Of course, Wu Ming himself was unaware of this.

And it was almost at the moment when the first full day and night had passed.

hum! !

The array light barrier that enveloped the entire Wangyue Mountain Range suddenly began to tremble slightly.

Wu Ming was swiftly traversing the forest when he noticed the change in the situation. His eyes flashed, and he looked up at the sky. He saw that the golden light curtain, which resembled an umbrella, seemed to begin to move slightly after rippling.

"Ok?"

Wu Ming narrowed his eyes instantly. After a brief observation, he quickly confirmed that he was not seeing things. The golden light curtain covering the Wangyue Mountain Range was indeed moving, as if it was gradually converging inward from the outermost edge!
The Wangyue Mountain Range itself is vast, covering an area of ​​over a thousand miles. After the first day and night, many people were eliminated, making it even more difficult for the remaining participants to encounter each other. However, now that the formation has been tightened, narrowing everyone's activity range, the situation is quite different. This is to force the remaining people to encounter each other more frequently and fight more often!
"This change is not very friendly to the weak, but it is more suitable for the strong."

After confirming the changes, Wu Ming regained his composure. He was also eager to experience the skills of the geniuses from the Hundred Kingdoms and see if any of them could fight him.

(End of this chapter)