Projection of the Heavens: I prove my immortality through slaughter.

Zhao Song left in resentment, but the oppressive aura of a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator lingered like an invisible haze, heavily enveloping the entire training ground and making it hard for people to breathe.

A tense atmosphere, like the impending storm, hung in the air. All the disciples held their breath, their hearts pounding with anxiety. They knew that an inner sect deacon's humiliation was far from over and would not be tolerated.

Today, Lin Xuan has temporarily passed the test thanks to Elder Mo, but in the days to come, it is easy to dodge open attacks but difficult to guard against hidden arrows. Every step he takes in the sect may be fraught with thorns.

A variety of gazes, complex and unspoken, focused on the young man in the green robe. Some admired his composure and reasoned argument, others felt deep sympathy and regret for his future, and a few harbored a cold, gloating schadenfreude.

However, in this oppressive, almost frozen silence, just when everyone thought Lin Xuan would take the opportunity to retreat, seeking more protection from Elder Mo or going into hiding—

But he moved.

It's not about retreating, but about taking another step forward!

This step, steady and firm, landed on the white marble floor, producing a clear sound that, in this environment where you could hear a pin drop, was like the sound of a war drum, striking heavily into everyone's heart.

Facing the high platform, his posture as upright as a pine tree, he bowed deeply once more to Mo Yuan and the elders, his movements precise and full of respect. His voice was clear and melodious, like a jade chime, without the slightest tremor, and clearly resonated in every corner.

"Disciple Lin Xuan thanks Elder Mo and all the elders for upholding justice!"

His words were sincere and his manners were impeccable.

But the next moment, he suddenly turned around!

With this turn, it was as if he had broken free from all invisible constraints. A sharp, unyielding, and indomitable aura, like a dragon emerging from the abyss, suddenly burst forth from his slender body! His gaze, like two beams of cold lightning, swept over the thousands of fellow disciples present. The determination and resolve contained in his gaze made everyone who met his eyes feel a jolt in their hearts.

Finally, his gaze seemed to pierce through layers of palaces and cross space, firmly locking onto the direction Zhao Song had left, the direction that represented the inner sect's power and oppression.

He took a deep breath, a breath that seemed to suck in all the surrounding air, his chest rising and falling slightly. Then, he channeled his spiritual power, and the sound wave was no longer a simple transmission, but like rolling thunder, carrying a fierce, all-consuming aura of relentless destruction, exploding above the Qingyun Sect and clearly imprinting itself deep into the souls of everyone present.

"Inner Sect Deacon Zhao Song, listen up—!"

A sharp shout, like a thunderclap, completely extinguished the still-unquelled whispers!

"Today, relying on your cultivation, you have forcibly tarnished my reputation, disregarded the sect's rules, and attempted to commit unjust and unjust acts! Such behavior disqualifies you from being a steward, and you are utterly unworthy to stand under the Qingyun Sect as our elder!"

Every word was forceful and sharp, tearing away Zhao Song's fig leaf and exposing his ugly deeds to the public!

"I, Lin Xuan, though of humble origin and with shallow cultivation, only at the Qi Refining stage, possess an unyielding spirit that will not tolerate being slighted! Moreover, I have a heart devoted to the Dao, fearless of power and undaunted by death!"

His voice carried an almost religious steadfastness, a conviction that belonged to his Daoist heart, which could not be defiled or trampled upon!

"Today, I, Lin Xuan, will stand here in this sacred ground of the sect, before all the elders and thousands of fellow disciples—"

His voice suddenly rose to its highest point, each word like a burning star, carrying a resolute determination to incinerate everything:

"I publicly challenge you to a duel!"

"Six months! Just give me six months!"

"Six months from now, at the sect's life-or-death arena!"

"I, Lin Xuan, with my Qi Refining cultivation level, challenge you, a Foundation Establishment deacon!"

"It not only determines who is superior, but also decides life and death!"

"Do you dare accept the challenge?!"

He practically roared out the last four words, the sound wave like a tangible shockwave, sweeping across the entire training ground, making the eardrums of some disciples with lower cultivation levels buzz and their minds tremble!

boom--!!!

The entire training ground, and even those further away who had been alerted by the sound, fell into an extreme silence, as if time itself had stopped at that moment!

Everyone's expression froze, their pupils contracted sharply, and their minds went blank.

A challenge...a duel? A Qi Refining stage disciple publicly challenges an Inner Sect Deacon in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage?! And on the most brutal, no-holds-barred arena of life and death?! To determine both superiority and certainty, life and death?!

This Lin Xuan… does he even know what Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining mean? This isn't just commendable courage; it's utter madness! It's courting death!!

After a brief silence came an uncontrollable, deafening uproar and commotion, like a volcanic eruption!

"He's insane! Absolutely insane!"

"Six months? From Qi Refining to Foundation Establishment? Unprecedented in history! Who does he think he is?"

"No matter how powerful the Star Finger technique is, it can't possibly cross a major realm! A Foundation Establishment cultivator's spiritual energy has liquefied, their divine sense is just beginning to form, and they can fly on artifacts. What can he possibly use to fight them?"

"It's over. Even if Elder Mo admires him, he can't save him this time. He's courting death!"

"How magnificent! Though there be thousands, I will go! Regardless of success or failure, I admire this courage!"

On the high platform, the elders' expressions changed drastically, exchanging incredulous glances. Even Mo Yuan, who had remained calm and composed, and who held Lin Xuan in high regard, suddenly leaned forward slightly, his brows furrowed, his gaze towards Lin Xuan filled with unprecedented solemnity and a hint of barely perceptible worry. This young man's fierceness and decisiveness far exceeded his expectations!

"Lin Xuan!" Mo Yuan's voice carried the majesty of a Golden Core cultivator, attempting to quell the chaos and offering a final word of dissuasion. "Do you know what the Life and Death Arena signifies? Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining are separated by the divide between immortals and mortals! It's not something that can be overcome by mere physical strength! It's not too late to take back your words!"

However, Lin Xuan bowed deeply to the platform once more, his spine as straight as a mountain. His voice, clear through the clamor, reached Mo Yuan's ears and resonated in everyone's hearts:

"Reporting to Master, this disciple is well aware that the Life and Death Platform signifies the demise of one's Dao and body, and is even more aware that the difference between Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining is like heaven and earth!"

However, one's Dao heart must not be insulted, and one's dignity must not be violated! If one retreats today because of power, one's Dao heart will be tarnished, and one's will will collapse. On the path of cultivation in the future, one will surely be plagued by inner demons and will never have the chance to make any progress!

He raised his head, his gaze burning like a raging flame, staring directly at Mo Yuan: "This battle is not for a moment of impulsiveness, but to break free of shackles, cleanse myself of impurities, clarify my Dao heart, and prove my path! My mind is made up, I will die a hundred times without regret! Please—Master, grant my request!"

"Please grant my request, Master!" He spoke these five words extremely slowly, yet they carried immense weight, with an unquestionable and do-or-die conviction!

Mo Yuan looked at him, into his clear and resolute eyes, as if he saw the brilliant starry sky and indomitable will reflected within them. The rebuke and obstruction that were on the tip of his tongue ultimately turned into a silent sigh. He understood that for cultivators with such unwavering resolve, some paths, once chosen, could only be followed without hesitation, and no outsider could change their course.

He remained silent for a moment, a moment that seemed to last an eternity. Finally, he slowly sat up straight, his voice regaining its calmness, yet carrying a heavy weight that resonated throughout the entire hall: "Since your Dao heart is so firm and your mind is made up... your master will no longer stop you."

His gaze swept across the entire arena, finally settling on the void, as if declaring to the entire sect: "However, the Life and Death Arena is a place for the sect to resolve irreconcilable grudges. Once both parties voluntarily step onto it, life and death are left to fate, and the sect's rules will not interfere! Do you all understand?"

This is tacit approval of this seemingly extremely unequal duel!

"We obey the Elder's decree!" The crowd below responded instinctively in unison, but their hearts were in turmoil. Elder Mo had actually agreed!

Lin Xuan bowed deeply again: "Thank you, Master!"

He straightened up, no longer glancing at the platform, his gaze sweeping across the countless faces—some shocked, some horrified, some complex, some fanatical—with a cold, sharp intensity. He took a deep breath of the air, which seemed to carry the smell of rust, and with all his might, he uttered his final words, like a declaration of war, resoundingly imprinting them beneath the sky above the Qingyun Sect:

"This statement has been made, and there is no going back! The entire sect bears witness!"

"Steward Zhao Song, six months from now, on the stage of life and death—"

"I'm waiting for you!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned around abruptly, his green robe drawing a resolute arc in the air. Without the slightest hesitation, he walked with calm and steady steps, step by step, on the solid ground, through the automatically parting crowd, towards the exit of the martial arts arena.

The sunlight shone on his slightly thin back, as if gilding him with a tragic yet dazzling golden edge. Under the gaze of thousands of eyes, that figure, lonely yet upright, finally disappeared at the end of the square, vanishing from everyone's sight.

What he left behind was a colossal wave that overturned everyone's understanding and swept across the entire Qingyun Sect!

"Qi Refining disciple Lin Xuan publicly challenges Foundation Establishment deacon Zhao Song to a duel! The duel will take place on the Life-or-Death Arena six months from now!"

This news, like a raging fire with wings, spread wildly and rapidly throughout every mountain peak and every corner of the Qingyun Sect!

Inner sect, outer sect, Danxia Peak, Zhanfa Peak, Law Enforcement Hall, Mission Hall... Regardless of status or cultivation level, everyone who heard this news was initially shocked and incredulous, which quickly turned into indescribable shock and uproar!

The world was shocked! The entire clan was shaken!

Whether they scoffed at Lin Xuan's overestimation of his abilities and his foolish madness, secretly admired his courage and thought Zhao Song deserved to be treated this way for being too arrogant, or stood by and analyzed the pros and cons, everyone clearly realized that an unprecedented storm was brewing within this ancient and ancient immortal sect!

A mere Qi Refining disciple of the lowest rank dared to issue a brutal life-or-death challenge to a Foundation Establishment deacon representing the mid-level authority of the sect! This shattered the long-standing, rigid hierarchical barriers and challenged inviolable authority! It shook the established perceptions of countless people!

In an instant, countless gazes, some open, some hidden, some curious, some malicious, were cast upon the remote and desolate Northern Foothills Herb Garden and upon the young man named Lin Xuan.

Half a year. Just half a year. This short period of time seems so long and full of suspense to everyone at this moment.

What miracles will he create in the next six months? Or will he ultimately become a soul lost on the battlefield, proving the ironclad hierarchy of the cultivation world? How will this seemingly futile and futile battle end in such a tragic or dramatic way?

Lin Xuan's name was no longer just a legend in the outer sect, but at this moment, in the most extreme and shocking way, it truly resounded throughout the entire Qingyun Sect and was engraved deep in the memories of countless people!