I Can Extract Divine Power

This time, before starting the grind, he simply crushed the bead.

When the strange creature inside died, he gained another ten wisps of Evil Qi. Combined with the three he already had, he now possessed thirteen wisps.

It was enough to raise the Shattered Cyan Eye to Level 5.

Time trickled by as the Skill Level before him continued to skyrocket.

...

Ever since Shen Bai had given Wang Jiu a savage beating, all of Xuanjing City seemed to have quieted down. No other prodigies dared to stir up trouble.

Some speculated that their patrons had given them stern and repeated warnings, forcing them to behave.

Meanwhile, the opening of the Celestial Pride Hall was drawing ever closer.

Inside an inn, three people were gathered: two men and one woman.

Both men were strikingly handsome, their auras exceptional.

The woman, dressed in white, looked as if she were sculpted from ice and snow.

Her pupils were especially striking—they were as white as snow.

Far from looking terrifying, the white pupils only served to make her aura seem all the more sacred.

The two men were drinking tea in silence.

After a moment of thought, the woman in white broke the long silence.

"You both witnessed what happened to Wang Jiu."

"While his faction in the Great Yue Country may not be the strongest, for him to be so publicly humiliated by Shen Bai of the Great Zhou Country is a bitter pill for Henglian Peak to swallow."

After the woman in white spoke, the man on the left set down his teacup.

"Zhu Qingyao, just say what’s on your mind. Your faction in the Great Nan Country is considered Upper Class. You can’t have come all this way for the Celestial Pride Hall just to go home empty-handed. With Shen Bai blocking our path, you must be furious."

Zhu Qingyao shot the man a look. "Li Ruofeng, your faction is also a top power in the Great Yue Country, yet you’ve been silenced. Wang Jiu, the one who got beaten, is one of your own people from Great Yue. So why are you the one getting impatient with me?"

Li Ruofeng crushed the teacup in his hand, a vicious glint flashing in his eyes. "Zhu Qingyao, do you think you can talk to me like that just because you’re not from Great Yue?"

The tension between them escalated.

Just then, the man on the far right set his teacup down and tapped lightly on the table.

Both Zhu Qingyao and Li Ruofeng turned to look at him, their expressions ice-cold.

The man paused for a moment before speaking. "In your respective countries, you are both rare prodigies of this generation. While your factions may not be top-tier, they are still Upper Class. Of all the factions present this time, we three are the strongest. We shouldn’t be fighting amongst ourselves."

Li Ruofeng snorted and fell silent.

But Zhu Qingyao spoke up. "Nan Huang, it seems your Great Qi Country sent fewer people this time."

Nan Huang smiled faintly. "The Celestial Pride Hall is a fine opportunity, but for the truly top-tier factions, it’s not worth the long journey. Only Upper Class factions like ours bother to come."

"To have this many factions from across the land gather is already quite impressive."

Factions throughout the world are generally divided into several tiers: Lower Class, Middle Class, Upper Class, top-tier, and Unparalleled.

The top-tier and Unparalleled factions wouldn’t travel so far just for the Celestial Pride Hall.

After all, compared to chasing uncertain gains, they would rather save time and use their own factions’ resources for Cultivation.

Hearing Nan Huang’s reasoning, Zhu Qingyao knew he was right.

She pondered for a moment before continuing, "I didn’t invite you two here to argue. My words just now were unintentional."

"I want to know if either of you has a way to deal with Shen Bai."

’Not long ago on that street, Shen Bai was far too arrogant.’

’If their patrons hadn’t been there to stop them, they would have stepped forward to have a serious talk with Shen Bai, one way or another.’

’Now, with the Celestial Pride Hall about to open, they didn’t want to waste any time. Defeating Shen Bai quickly so they could reap the rewards inside the Hall—that was what mattered most.’

Li Ruofeng shook his head. "If we want to deal with him, our only option is to work together. Wang Jiu’s faction in the Great Yue Country may not be strong, but he personally is extremely gifted in Horizontal Refinement."

"Even I would have to put in some effort to defeat him."

"Yet Shen Bai pinned him to the ground and thrashed him with ease. Based on that alone, I’m no match for Shen Bai. At the very least, I couldn’t defeat him quickly."

Zhu Qingyao then turned to look at Nan Huang.

She didn’t speak, but her intention was obvious: she was asking if he had a solution.

Nan Huang maintained his calm demeanor. As Zhu Qingyao looked at him, he gave her a curious glance. "Why do we need to deal with him?"

Zhu Qingyao was taken aback, not understanding his question. Her elegant brows furrowed slightly. "He humiliated all of us. Why shouldn’t we deal with him?"

Li Ruofeng chimed in, "Even though I can’t stand Zhu Qingyao’s personality, she has a point. Shen Bai embarrassed all of us. Are you telling me you can just let that go, Nan Huang?"

The two went back and forth, both insisting that they had to settle this score.

Nan Huang yawned. "I’m a lazy person. If my Sect Leader hadn’t told me to attend the Celestial Pride Hall, I really wouldn’t have come. As for dealing with Shen Bai, I think it’s completely unnecessary. The Celestial Pride Hall is vast, and it’s filled with treasures. There’s no reason for us to clash with him."