Daoist Competition
Chapter 89 - 9: Gaining True Skill by Chance, Wang Mao Pays a Visit

Chapter 89: Chapter 9: Gaining True Skill by Chance, Wang Mao Pays a Visit

"Yan Lady, Yan Lady, we’ve lost, we’ve lost..." Ling’er’s panicked voice came rushing over.

Tang Yan had been waiting in the hut for news. Hearing this, her face lit up with joy. Unable to maintain her composure, she flung the door open and asked anxiously, "Ling’er, has Zhang Yan been defeated?"

Ling’er stood at the doorway, her mouth opening and closing as she shook her head repeatedly. Stammering, she said, "N-no, no! It’s—it’s Wang Pan who’s been defeated..."

Tang Yan’s expression changed drastically. With a loud "slap," she raised her hand and struck Ling’er across the face, shouting sharply, "Stop spouting nonsense!" Yet, for some reason, an inexplicable sense of foreboding began to spread in her heart.

Covering her face, Ling’er cried, "Yan Lady, it’s true—it’s really Wang Pan who’s been defeated. Ling’er isn’t lying..."

Suddenly, Tang Yan felt an icy chill engulf her whole body, as if she had fallen into an ice cellar. Without a word, she turned around, closed the door, and leaned tightly against it. No matter how much Ling’er knocked and called from outside, she made no sound. A Meridian Opening Cultivator defeating a Ming Qi Second Realm cultivator—what kind of monster was this Zhang Yan?

Could it be that I was wrong all along?

Am I really going to have to lower myself to serve this person? But just thinking about his cold and apathetic demeanor made her seethe with hatred. I, Tang Yan, have never suffered such humiliation—not even from True Masters. Yet with you, Zhang Yan, I’ve been repeatedly degraded.

Ling’er’s sobbing voice came through the door. "Yan Lady, Master Wang is dead. There’s no one left to support us. Wouldn’t it be better to feign compliance for now..."

Tang Yan, whose enchanting eyes had been lifeless until now, was suddenly struck by a thought. Internally, she mulled it over: Perhaps I should submit to him first, avoiding any immediate harm. If yesterday I could align myself with Wang Pan, tomorrow there may be other opportunities. Only by preserving myself can I ensure future prosperity.

With this thought, she took a deep breath, seemingly suppressing all the emotions churning within her. A smile gradually surfaced on her face. Turning around, she opened the door and said, "Ling’er, help me prepare my hair and attire. I will go meet Master Zhang shortly."

Seeing her mistress finally change her mind, Ling’er exclaimed in delight, "Yes!"

That very evening, Tang Yan went to pay her respects to Zhang Yan. But she overestimated her own importance. How could Zhang Yan spare the time to deal with her? Ignoring her intentions entirely, he dismissed her immediately. All that mattered in his eyes now was the Great Dao; trivialities such as beauty and other distractions he had cast aside without hesitation.

At that moment, his full focus was on verifying the insights he had gained from his battle with Wang Pan.

Using Lan Yun Clear Qi as the foundation to refine Qian Spirit Clear Qi—this was an extremely bold idea. He believed it to be feasible, but when put into practice, success wasn’t immediate. Zhang Yan had performed over a hundred trials using the Broken Jade before finally devising a workable method. A sense of accomplishment swelled in his chest.

First, he used True Essence to cultivate a single wisp of Lan Yun Clear Qi. Then he expelled it from his body, allowing it to be contaminated by Evil Qi, before drawing it back into his chest. Using the Taiyin Gold Scripture Dharma technique, he refined it repeatedly, consuming the Evil Qi bit by bit. After dozens of cycles, he would extract a wisp of relatively pure Clear Qi.

This single strand of Clear Qi could not yet be used. He needed to refine seven or eight additional strands of the same quality. Only by combining them into a single stream and tempering it under golden wind and fierce fire could he create a single mouthful of true Qian Spirit Clear Qi.

Although the process seemed intricate and time-consuming, it broke the steps down into smaller increments, making the overall cultivation speed more than twice as fast as using True Essence for direct refinement. Moreover, as Zhang Yan grew more accustomed to this method, the process would likely become even faster.

Cultivating Lan Yun True Qi was comparatively simpler, as it did not require the daily three surges of Evil Qi. This allowed him to fully utilize all available time for his practice.

This was a result of Zhang Yan combining strengths from two Daoist Books, thereby improving upon the conventional cultivation method. The acceleration in his progress was significant. Initially, he estimated it would take him two years; now, based on his calculations, it would require at most a year, or perhaps as little as half a year, to cultivate eighty-one streams of Qian Spirit Clear Qi and formally step into the Ming Qi First Realm.

However, wholly absorbed in cultivation, Zhang Yan failed to anticipate the frenzy of discussions that erupted in the outside world.

The news of Wang Pan’s defeat in the Absolute Fight quickly spread. Those who had been following the matter were first incredulous, then astonished, and finally uproarious. Wang Pan, with his overwhelming strength, had been poised to crush Zhang Yan. How had events suddenly reversed, with Zhang Yan killing Wang Pan instead?

It must be understood that the actions of noble family disciples did not just reflect upon themselves—they also carried the reputation of their families. As one of the more prominent younger figures of the Wang Family, Wang Pan’s defeat at the hands of Zhang Yan, who was two realms lower than him, not only tarnished his own posthumous name but also dealt a blow to the prestige of the Hao Pu Wang Family.