Chapter 562 - 75: Five Emperors Talisman

Of the five hundred names on the Ascension to Immortality List, only a little over two hundred still shone. The rest had all gone dim.

Those who remained were all top-tier masters among the Dharma Realm cultivators of Qianyu Heaven. Almost all of them possessed unique skills and had their own fortuitous immortal encounters.

In the history of Chongxuan Academy, the number of School Principals who had broken into the top two hundred could be counted on one hand.

In the last Spirit Ruins Magic Competition, the one with the highest achievement was School Principal Du Ruo.

This time, two of the academy’s School Principals had entered the top one hundred, which uplifted the spirits of everyone at the academy. They all shared in the glory.

The discussions about Fang Cheng began to spread beyond Chongxuan Academy, especially when his name appeared at forty-ninth on the Ascension to Immortality List. For a time, the moniker "Jade Furnace Golden Cauldron" became known throughout the major factions.

Fang Cheng’s mind was placid and undisturbed. He silently observed the battles between the Dharma Realm cultivators of this world.

Outer World Cultivators like him, who came to participate in the Spirit Ruins Magic Competition, had always been rare.

One could say that the cultivators of Qianyu Heaven crushed Outer World Cultivators in every respect.

The ones Fang Cheng truly paid attention to were the top five on the Ascension to Immortality List.

Xiao Yunyi of Taiqing Academy had dominated the top spot on the Ascension to Immortality List from the very beginning. Every time he fought, he used only a single sword strike.

His mastery of the Sword Technique was sublime, infinitely superior to that of Jiang Zhiruo.

While chatting with the surrounding School Principals, Fang Cheng learned that this man cultivated the *Taiqing Sword Manual*, a technique passed down from the Spiritual Sky Realm. He was also a Spirit Immortal Disciple, and was expected to lead Taiqing Academy in the future.

After his few brief appearances, where he killed his opponent with one strike before gracefully departing, Fang Cheng had no way to judge his true strength.

Second place on the Ascension to Immortality List was occupied by Murong Qing of Nine Heavens Academy. She practiced the *Supreme Nine Heavens Profound Lady True Scripture*, which was also a legacy from the Upper Realm and possessed unbelievable mystery and power.

Fang Cheng had once obtained a copy of the *Supreme Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman Evil-Slaying Secret Scroll* in the Void Ghost Marketplace. It was ranked as one of the "Ten Great Celestial Book Treasure Scrolls" in that World Heaven.

Ye Yan and the other women were currently cultivating this Profound Skill, so Fang Cheng was quite familiar with it.

It seemed now that the *Profound Lady True Scripture* and the *Evil-Slaying Secret Scroll* shared a common origin, but their grades were vastly different.

Although the *Evil-Slaying Secret Scroll* was also a supreme technique, it was clearly not as formidable as the legacy of Nine Heavens Academy. It was more like a Secret Technique derived from the *Profound Lady True Scripture*.

Third on the Ascension to Immortality List was Li Xinghe, from the Celestial Secret Academy. When he fought, he was carefree and unrestrained. With a wave of his hand, he would lay down an Array, trapping his opponent within and refining them in an instant.

This man cultivated the Upper Realm’s supreme technique, the *All Heaven Star Treasure Scroll*, and was an expert in the Array Dao. He was another extremely powerful opponent.

...

A short while later, a green light appeared on Fang Cheng’s body, and he drifted down toward the Four Symbols Sacred Platform in the void.

It was his turn to fight again.

The many School Principals in the hall looked toward him and said in unison, "We wish School Principal Fang a swift and decisive victory!"

Fang Cheng smiled and thanked them, then leisurely walked out of the great hall and landed on the Four Symbols Sacred Platform.

Opposite him was an old man in black robes with the air of an immortal. He was at the Peak of Dharma Form and ranked one hundred eighty-seventh on the Ascension to Immortality List.

"Fellow Daoist Fang, please enlighten me!"

The old man in black cupped his hands in a salute and spoke in a deep voice.

Fang Cheng returned the salute, then threw a punch.

A thunderous crack shook the void. The Dark Gold Fist Aura surged forward, causing the void to collapse in its wake.

The old man’s expression turned grim. He formed hand seals, pushed his Magical Power to its limit, and his entire body abruptly transformed into a hundred-zhang-long giant ship that rammed toward the fist aura.

BOOM!

The qi in the sky suddenly froze.

The hundred-zhang-long giant ship shattered and disintegrated inch by inch, then exploded across the sky.

The old man’s life force and spirit soul were completely annihilated in an instant.

Without a word, Fang Cheng turned and left the Four Symbols Sacred Platform.

This battle had attracted everyone’s attention. Countless Dharma Realm and Tribulation Realm cultivators were watching the two.

Someone saw the truth of the matter and sighed with emotion, "A Tribulation Realm physical body."

"Brute force overcomes all tricks. One punch shatters a thousand techniques."

"This person must have obtained a peerless immortal opportunity. Otherwise, it would be impossible to cultivate a physical body comparable to a Tribulation Realm Body Refining Cultivator while still in the Dharma Realm..."

"Could it be that Dual Cultivation Secret Method?"

As the cultivators discussed and debated, many began to suspect: could it be that the technique Fang Cheng had spread, the *Yin-Yang Two Forms Jade Furnace Golden Cauldron Phoenix Lure*, was what helped him cultivate a Tribulation Realm physical body?

What kind of Tripod Furnace could provide such heaven-defying assistance?

...

On the Floating Mountains where Taiqing Academy was located.

Jiang Zhiruo was calm and composed. She watched as Fang Cheng’s name moved up significantly on the Ascension to Immortality List, entering nineteenth place.

The discouragement from her one-move defeat in this Spirit Ruins Magic Competition had long since vanished without a trace.

’Who can force him to reveal his true strength?’

The question arose in her mind.

Now, the name "Jade Furnace Golden Cauldron" had burst onto the scene, shaking the Spirit Ruins. He had become an existence she could only look up to.

The insight of their group of Life Soul Realm cultivators was no longer sufficient to gauge his depth, let alone comment on it. The women were all concentrating on observing the battles between the Dharma Masters, hoping to absorb some enlightenment.

This round of battles lasted for quite some time. Many of the cultivators were evenly matched, often only determining a winner after a thousand moves.

By the end of this round, only one hundred and twenty-five names still shone on the Ascension to Immortality List.

A new round of battles began.

The crowd watched with great relish, finding it thoroughly exciting.

Soon, it was Fang Cheng’s turn to fight again. Jiang Zhiruo grew secretly expectant, wanting to see if this opponent could force a second move out of him.

Unfortunately, although his opponent was ranked ninety-sixth on the Ascension to Immortality List, he still couldn’t last a single move against Fang Cheng.

He was still killed with a single punch.

A clean and decisive rout!

Watching Fang Cheng’s departing figure, Jiang Zhiruo could only continue to wait.

It was a pity that even though Fang Cheng’s opponent in the next round was ranked forty-ninth on the Ascension to Immortality List, he still couldn’t withstand a single punch.

Fang Cheng’s rank soared, pushing him directly into the top ten and securing the seventh spot.

At this stage, the only ones left who could defeat their opponents in a single blow like him were Xiao Yunyi of Taiqing Academy and Li Xinghe of Celestial Secret Academy.

These two had been famous in Qianyu Heaven for a long time. They were both Disciples of a Spirit Immortal Sect, renowned throughout the world, and had long held the reputation of being invincible below the Tribulation Realm.

For Fang Cheng, a mere Outer World Cultivator, to be mentioned in the same breath as these two made him the hottest topic of conversation.

Atop the mountain where Chongxuan Academy was located.

Fang Cheng watched Shuang Ling fighting on the stage, witnessing her true strength for the first time.

The legacy Shuang Ling cultivated was called the *Five Emperors Talisman*. It was also a legacy from the Upper Realm, granting her the ability to control the Five Elements Origin with unpredictable transformations.

She activated five Fifth-grade Talismans, harnessing the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. She combined them into various Talisman Arrays, and her offense and defense both reached the level of a One or Two-Tribulation Great Power.

After the battle, she too claimed an easy victory.

With that, the top thirty-two of the Spirit Ruins Magic Competition had been decided!

Any one of these thirty-two people possessed power comparable to a Tribulation Realm Great Power. They could even fight above their level and slay an ordinary Tribulation Realm Cultivator.

Any one of them, if placed in another World Heaven, would be invincible within their realm and have the potential to one day become the number one cultivator in the world.

And yet, in Qianyu Heaven, there were more than thirty such cultivators.

This was the foundation of the Dongyang Immortal Alliance.

...

In the sixth match, Fang Cheng’s opponent was ranked twenty-seventh on the Ascension to Immortality List: a monk from Bengjia Academy, one of the ten great academies.

With his peerless talent, this man had cultivated Bengjia Academy’s ultimate technique, the "Worldly Sovereign Buddha" Dharma Aspect. He had once fought a Two-Tribulation Great Power to a standstill.

This was also the most formidable opponent Fang Cheng had encountered since the start of the Spirit Ruins Magic Competition.

He had to use a full nine punches to shatter the opponent’s "Worldly Sovereign Buddha" Dharma Aspect. The monk then gracefully flew off the sacred platform and conceded defeat.

In this round, Shuang Ling also encountered a powerful opponent and was nearly defeated.

In the end, she activated the Chaos Five Elements Array within her Five Emperors Talisman and won by a narrow margin, finally advancing to sixteenth place on the Ascension to Immortality List.

Fang Cheng could see that she had reached her limit. Her strength was comparable to that of the monk from Bengjia Academy; luck had played a large part in her getting this far.

For Fang Cheng, the previous few matches had merely been a warm-up. The real battles were against the remaining opponents.

Based on his observations, all the cultivators who had broken into the top sixteen of the Ascension to Immortality List possessed combat power comparable to a Three-Tribulation Great Power.

In recent years, he had been an Ascetic Cultivator of the *Nine Revolutions Profound Origin Technique*. He used the Circulation Qi Collection Technique to refine countless Merit Talismanic Coins, tempering his physical body to its absolute limit. Even he himself didn’t know how strong his body had become.

At the very least, in the Spirit Ruins Treasure Realm, his physical body could withstand three punches from the Demon Lord’s incarnation without dying.

With the addition of the *Mixed Element Seven Tribulations Diagram*, he could now last ten moves against the Demon Lord’s incarnation.

For him, these past ten-plus years of cultivation had been a complete transformation.

In a way, he had even taken the Demon Lord as his master. When he fought, he carried a hint of the Demon Lord’s aura of looking down upon all living things.

Gracefully riding the clouds, bowing his head to gaze upon the world.

The seventh match.

Shuang Ling was the first to take the stage. Her opponent was the number one on the Ascension to Immortality List, Xiao Yunyi of Taiqing Academy.

The moment Shuang Ling attacked, she gave it her all.

She laid out a Talisman Array with her Five Emperors Talisman and activated the Chaos Five Elements Array. Instantly, countless five-colored clouds of light appeared on the Four Symbols Sacred Platform, pressing down on Xiao Yunyi from all directions like a furious tidal wave.

Xiao Yunyi appeared as a tall, handsome, and elegant young man. He calmly defended himself with a beam of sword light.

Previously, every time he had appeared, he defeated his opponent with a single sword strike.

But now, against Shuang Ling, that momentum finally came to a halt.

In the blink of an eye, the power of the Chaos Five Elements Array intensified dramatically. The five-colored radiance flickered in and out of existence like lightning, clashing with Xiao Yunyi’s sword light with tangible force.

To an onlooker, it looked as if within a boundless sea of five-colored light, fantastical radiances swirled with unparalleled beauty. A dazzling beam of sword light, resembling a flood dragon, could be faintly seen weaving and darting about inside, a sight so heart-stoppingly brilliant that it was impossible to look at directly.

The two fought for the time it takes an incense stick to burn. Finally, Xiao Yunyi broke through the Talisman Array. A rainbow-like beam of sword light circled through the air, sweeping up all five of the Five Emperors Talismans.

The sword light twisted several times, and the five Life Talisman Decrees that Shuang Ling had painstakingly refined disintegrated into wisps of smoke and shattered starlight.

Knowing she had no chance of winning, Shuang Ling gracefully flew off the Four Symbols Sacred Platform.

Xiao Yunyi retracted his sword light and said with a smile, "Fellow Daoist Shuang Ling, I never expected you to have cultivated the Five Emperors Talisman to such a level. If you had been able to manifest the aspect of Chaotic Gui Xu, I’m afraid I would have been defeated today."

Shuang Ling returned his smile and said faintly, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, your Sword Technique is exquisite. I have learned much today."

With that, she turned and flew back to the Floating Mountains where Chongxuan Academy was located.

Xiao Yunyi’s gaze followed her, and his eyes met Fang Cheng’s.

Their auras connected. A sword hum emanated from his body, suddenly ringing throughout the heavens.

...