Even as stupid as Xiang Mingzi was, he noticed something was wrong. A flash of fear passed through his eyes, but he still forcibly suppressed the look of astonishment on his face, trying to put on an indifferent appearance.

However, unlike Xiang Mingzi, as soon as Gong Yujin discovered Lu Guijiu's unusual behavior, he decisively slowed down and distanced himself from Lu Guijiu and Xiang Mingzi.

Lu Guijiu didn't bother with Gong Yujin who was following behind him, but kept tightly on Xiang Mingzi's tail, yet deliberately not overtaking him.

Xiang Mingzi only felt a chill on his back. He could vaguely hear the sound of air being pierced coming from not far away, a sound that was like a death chase, disturbing Xiang Mingzi's mind and making it somewhat chaotic.

Although Xiang Mingzi was extremely talented, he was still just a teenager of seventeen or eighteen years old. He had not been thrown into an abyss by Zhang Jingmo to train his mind by killing spirit beasts, as Lu Guijiu had been. So when faced with the pressing pursuit of Lu Guijiu, he couldn't help but reveal a hint or two of timidity.

It was these two hints of timidity that became Lu Guijiu's best way to torment him.

Can't shake him off, can't shake him off, no matter what, can't shake him off. Xiang Mingzi, whose mind had been disturbed, no longer cared how much spiritual energy he had left. He just charged forward, wanting to shake off Lu Guijiu who was tightly following behind him.

However, Lu Guijiu was like a leech stuck to the bone, clinging tightly to Xiang Mingzi. He even let out a chuckle by Xiang Mingzi's ear when he sped up. That light laughter pierced Xiang Mingzi's eardrums, making them ache. He felt as if an inextinguishable flame had risen in his heart, burning his mind into a muddled state. He simply couldn't wait to turn around and stab his sword into Lu Guijiu's body.

Fortunately, the last of his reason stopped Xiang Mingzi. He glared with slightly reddened eyes due to anger and continued to fly upward.

However, Lu Guijiu's voice came through clearly. He said, "Xiang Mingzi, Xiang Shixiong, you're not going to tell me that this is all you've got, are you?"

Xiang Mingzi gritted his teeth but did not respond, only increasing his speed.

Lu Guijiu was inwardly amused. This Xiang Mingzi was truly a proud son of heaven. He must have never suffered a bit of anger in his daily life. Being deliberately provoked by him like this, he seemed to have forgotten the issue of how easily spiritual energy would be exhausted when used in such a way. Of course, Lu Guijiu wouldn't point it out. He just deliberately laughed again and continued to follow behind Xiang Mingzi.

After Lu Guijiu and Xiang Mingzi passed the height of the second giant rock, they quickly reached the position of the third giant rock. However, neither of them had any intention of going for the bamboo slip on the third giant rock. Instead, without even a glance, they flew towards the bamboo slip at an even higher place.

On the other hand, Gong Yujin, who had been following behind the two all along, took advantage of the situation. After obtaining the third bamboo slip, he didn't look at the number on it and just stuffed it into his bosom. He then glanced at the location of the fourth giant rock a few times, seeming to be estimating his next move.

In fact, regardless of whether Xiang Mingzi or Lu Guijiu came in first or second, it no longer had any impact on Gong Yujin, because he couldn't possibly surpass those two. The best he could hope for was a reluctant second place, seizing an opportunity after the two main contenders exhausted each other.

After some consideration, Gong Yujin still decided to make an attempt for the fourth giant rock. After all, he had a bamboo slip in hand, unlike Xiang Mingzi and Lu Guijiu who were in a fight to the death.

After passing the third giant rock, the speed of Lu Guijiu and Xiang Mingzi slowed down slightly. After reaching the third giant rock, the two of them could actually feel a very obvious resistance, but this resistance was like a spider's web. With a little effort, it broke open.

Seeing that the position of the fourth giant rock was right in front of his eyes, Xiang Mingzi, like when he encountered the third giant rock, flew straight past it without a glance. It seemed that his and Lu Guijiu's goals were consistent - the champion bamboo slip above their heads, as distant as a star.

At this time, Lu Guijiu also had no intention of fighting with Xiang Mingzi, because every bit of spiritual power was precious. He had no experience in seizing bamboo slips, so he didn't know how far the champion slip was from them. But he thought, since Bai Lingxiao could do it, he should be able to do it too.

With this thought, Lu Guijiu temporarily extinguished the idea of making a move on Xiang Mingzi.

Xiang Mingzi, however, was not as relaxed as Lu Guijiu. Although he still had strength at this time, Lu Guijiu tightly following behind him made it impossible for him to focus all his attention on the champion slip.

Lu Guijiu was like a venomous snake beside him. You never knew when he would extend his sharp fangs and strike.

If Xiang Mingzi's previous dislike for Lu Guijiu was only because of his master's daily indoctrination, then now, he really hated Lu Guijiu a bit.

If Lu Guijiu knew that Xiang Mingzi hated him, he would probably laugh out loud with joy. He followed behind Xiang Mingzi, occasionally spitting out some malicious words from his mouth, sometimes asking Xiang Mingzi where he wanted to be buried if he died, sometimes asking if he had any unfulfilled last wishes. In short, however annoying it was, that's how Lu Guijiu did it.

Xiang Mingzi was disturbed to no end. He almost made a move on Lu Guijiu several times, but the desire for the champion slip suppressed his anger. He gritted his teeth so hard he nearly broke them, vowing in his heart that the day he obtained the champion slip would be the day Lu Guijiu was buried at the bottom of the valley.

At this time, Lu Guijiu looked towards the ground, but could no longer see the scenery on the ground clearly, only a vast expanse of green.

And Gong Yujin didn't follow anymore. He exhausted his last bit of strength to reach the position of the fourth giant rock. After obtaining the bamboo slip, he fell straight down.

He didn't crush the wooden tablet either. He really wanted to see here, in the end, whether it was Xiang Mingzi who took that champion slip, or if it was snatched away by Lu Guijiu.

Yue'er, who had been waiting on the ground all along, saw her senior brother fall from the sky and hurriedly stepped forward to catch Gong Yujin. She asked, "Senior Brother, are you alright? What's the situation with Lu Guijiu and Xiang Mingzi?"

Gong Yujin's face was pale, but his eyes were calm. He said, "Lu Guijiu's cultivation is probably above Xiang Mingzi's."

Yue'er was stunned. "What did you say?"

Gong Yujin frowned slightly. He said, "I didn't expect such a variable to emerge in this Xuanwu Conference."

Yue'er said, "So... you weren't able to use your last move?"

Gong Yujin sighed, but nodded slightly. He had indeed kept his final trump card.

Yue'er said, "Ah, ah, I thought for sure that Senior Brother would be first this time." She pouted as she spoke.

However, Gong Yujin remained silent, raising his head to look at the sky where Lu Guijiu and Xiang Mingzi were no longer visible. Before entering the Xuanwu Conference, Gong Yujin had originally made a meticulous plan, but this plan was ruined by the unexpected variable that was Lu Guijiu.

Gong Yujin did indeed have a final reserve. If only Xiang Mingzi was left when it came time to seize the tallies, then he would have a seventy percent chance of defeating Xiang Mingzi and obtaining the highest-numbered tally.

But Lu Guijiu had inexplicably appeared, and not only appeared, but also displayed strength on par with Xiang Mingzi. So Gong Yujin had no choice but to extinguish his ambition. After all, even if he took out Xiang Mingzi, there was still Lu Guijiu, and first place still would not belong to him.

Fate, this was fate. The sky had cleared up now, and the injurious rain had stopped. Gong Yujin lay weakly in Yue'er's arms and sighed, "The Lingxu Sect is probably going to undergo great changes."

Yue'er had a completely confused expression. She didn't understand those grand principles, and was only thinking that after this Xuanwu Conference ended, her spoiled elder sister would probably be angry again.

After a day of flying, Lu Guijiu and Xiang Mingzi finally arrived at the location of the fifth giant stone.

The bamboo tally on the fifth giant stone had the number forty-nine written on it in glittering gold, so tempting to the two people who were displaying signs of exhaustion.

In front of this bamboo tally with such a large number, Xiang Mingzi wavered. He had already taken several spirit medicines in order to fly to this altitude, yet first place was still hanging over his head, like a star that could never be plucked.

His breathing paused slightly, and he slowed down.

The higher the altitude, the greater the difficulty of flying. Xiang Mingzi felt as if he was trapped in rapids at this moment, and every step forward was extremely difficult. But if he remained in midair, it would be a complete waste of spiritual energy. He was not completely brainless, and after some estimation, he gritted his teeth and made his decision.

Xiang Mingzi had made his decision, but Lu Guijiu had no intention of letting his decision be settled just like that. Seeing that Xiang Mingzi had the intention to stop, he said, "Brother Xiang, you can't go on?"

Xiang Mingzi gritted his teeth and said, "I can't go on? In the past thousand years, only Elder Bai has obtained first place. According to what you're saying, aren't all the disciples of the Lingxu Sect unable to go on?"

Lu Guijiu bluntly said, "Naturally."

Xiang Mingzi didn't expect Lu Guijiu to admit it so readily without the slightest concern. He was also somewhat irritated and said, "Since you're so capable, don't follow behind me like a dog. First place is right overhead, go get it yourself." He had barely finished speaking when a raging fire ignited on his body. It turned out that Lu Guijiu had taken advantage of Xiang Mingzi's attention being focused on the golden bamboo tally overhead and casually tossed out a fingernail-sized spark, commanding that spark to silently pounce onto Xiang Mingzi's body.

In an instant, all of Xiang Mingzi's clothing was set ablaze. He let out a miserable cry and used his spiritual power to extinguish the flames. After the flames were put out, Xiang Mingzi hadn't suffered much injury, but all the clothes on his body had been burned to ashes, including all his body hair...

Even a clay figurine would be enraged if suddenly burned like this by Lu Guijiu. Xiang Mingzi said in a hissing voice, "Lu Guijiu, you're seeking death!" He then wielded a magic weapon from his Sumeru Ring, wanting to attack Lu Guijiu.

Seeing Xiang Mingzi in this state, Lu Guijiu laughed and said, "Brother Xiang, you and I are quite similar."

Xiang Mingzi didn't understand, but had a direct feeling of unease.

Sure enough, in the next moment, a wooden plaque that looked very familiar appeared in Lu Guijiu's hand. That wooden plaque was enveloped in flames, but was not ignited. Instead, Lu Guijiu held it in his hand without any concern. He said, "Brother Xiang, it seems you truly have a 'bamboo in your chest'. That wooden plaque, you actually didn't put it in your qiankun pouch, but casually placed it in your bosom. Aren't you afraid of losing it?" After saying this, he began to laugh loudly.

Xiang Mingzi's face instantly turned ashen.

Which cultivator would throw away their life-saving wooden plaque first when seizing tallies? Even if they were seventeen or eighteen years old and hot-blooded, they wouldn't do something so foolish as to gamble with their own life.

The wooden plaques the two of them had thrown away were both fakes. This was also why Xiang Mingzi had no intention of saving even a bit of spiritual power. He didn't have a junior sister waiting for him on the ground. If he obtained first place but exhausted his spiritual power and fell into the cold abyss to his death, wouldn't he be an idiot?

Xiang Mingzi's face was ashen as he angrily said, "How did you know my wooden plaque was hidden in my bosom?"

Lu Guijiu laughed and said, "I didn't know... But I did know that you're afraid of death!"

As soon as spiritual power was exhausted, the originally spiritual energy-powered Sumeru Ring would become unusable. Someone like Xiang Mingzi who cherished his life and feared death naturally dreaded the situation of the ring becoming unusable, so he didn't dare to put that life-saving wooden plaque into this type of storage magic tool.

This made it convenient for Lu Guijiu to take action. As long as he instantly set Xiang Mingzi's clothing on fire, he could quickly find that wooden plaque and take it to his own side.

Now, Xiang Mingzi truly had no way to leave.

At this time, to say Xiang Mingzi's complexion was unsightly would be an understatement. His spiritual energy was about to be exhausted, but Lu Guijiu, who was standing across from him, had a complexion as usual. He hadn't even taken a single pill after arriving here.

At this point, even if Xiang Mingzi was stupid, he could see the insurmountable gap between him and Lu Guijiu. His lips trembled badly, and it took a long time before he spit out a sentence: "Mid-stage of the fifth level."

The smile on Lu Guijiu's face faded. He said, "You should have had a better future, but you followed the wrong master and offended someone you shouldn't have."

Xiang Mingzi's face was the color of dirt.

Lu Guijiu said, "Please be on your way." As his words fell, extremely dark-colored flames ignited around his body. Those flames were still quite far from Xiang Mingzi, but made him feel a scorching heat.

Seeing this, Xiang Mingzi said with a bitter smile, "You actually... still have the strength to use spirit fire."

However, Lu Guijiu no longer said much. He directly wielded his magic weapon and attacked Xiang Mingzi. Xiang Mingzi's spiritual energy was already exhausted. He had hoped to take the bamboo tally and then use the wooden plaque to leave the Xuanwu Conference, but he didn't expect to encounter Lu Guijiu's unexpected move, completely cutting off his path of retreat.

Under Lu Guijiu's onslaught, Xiang Mingzi dodged clumsily, now completely naked like a white-skinned monkey, his face filled with despair.

Xiang Mingzi didn't want to die. He was a prodigy, with a bright future ahead of him. The entire sect praised him as a genius... Even the sect leader. That's right, the sect leader! Xiang Mingzi howled desperately, "Sect Leader, save me! Sect Leader, save me!" He had completely abandoned his dignity, only begging to keep his life.

However, just as stated in the beginning, the sect leader and the elders would not interfere in the Xuanwu Conference. Xiang Mingzi's hoarse cries were met with silence.

Sometimes silence is an answer. Xiang Mingzi exhausted his last bit of spiritual power, watching helplessly as a fiery red sword pierced his chest.

The sword was so sharp, yet so cold, that when it entered his chest, Xiang Mingzi felt a bone-chilling coldness. He saw the young man standing in front of him, looking at him expressionlessly. His handsome and gentle brows were frosted over with a layer of coldness, as indifferent as a judge from hell.

Blood seeped from Xiang Mingzi's chest. He lost his strength, like a bird with broken wings, falling straight from the sky. His eyes were still wide open, filled with unwillingness and fear.

Unfortunately, no matter how unwilling or afraid he was, the inevitable had come to pass.

After making sure Xiang Mingzi had no breath left, Lu Guijiu pulled out his sword, watching Xiang Mingzi fall like a stone.

Lu Guijiu shook the fresh blood off his sword. After sheathing it, he asked expressionlessly, "Lu Shu, can I win first place?"

Lu Shu said, "There's no one else but you."

Lu Guijiu smiled slightly and once again exerted his spiritual power, striking towards that distant star at the top of his head.

Yue'er and Gong Yujin were waiting for the final answer on the ground. They both didn't speak, but focused their attention overhead. Sure enough, after a while, an object fell from the sky.

At first, Yue'er was a bit curious about what it was, a bare, fleshy thing. However, as the object gradually approached, Yue'er wordlessly averted her gaze.

It was Xiang Mingzi's corpse, a wretched, naked corpse. It fell not far from Yue'er and Gong Yujin, plunging straight into that endless cold abyss.

Gong Yujin's expression didn't change much. Seeing Yue'er show a look of pity, he said, "If you can't bear it, go catch him."

Hearing this, the pity on Yue'er's face turned to disgust. She said, "I don't want to. It's so bare and gross. Someone will come collect the body later anyway. Why should I dirty my hands?"

Gong Yujin smiled and said nothing more. His junior sister was hard-hearted, shedding tears at the sight of an injured rabbit, yet showing disgust at the sight of a dead person.

Yue'er quickly forgot about that unsightly corpse. She said, "Senior Brother, do you think that guy named Lu Guijiu can really win first place?"

Gong Yujin said lightly, "How would I know?"

Yue'er said, "If he wins, that wouldn't be bad. We'll get to see for ourselves what makes a champion so different."

But Gong Yujin didn't speak. The thoughts in his heart were much more complicated than Yue'er's. He had thought Xiang Mingzi would lose, but didn't expect him to die so miserably.

Just as the two were waiting, the originally gloomy sky finally cleared up. Gentle sunlight shone on the mountaintop, and a gorgeous rainbow even hung in the sky.

The two waited for a long time. Just as the rainbow in the sky was about to fade, Yue'er seemed to suddenly hear something. She paused and asked, "Senior Brother, did you hear..."

Gong Yujin said, "Dragon's roar."

As soon as he finished speaking, the dragon's roar became more and more distinct. Yue'er looked up at the sky. After a moment, she saw a sight she would never forget in this lifetime.

She saw a dragon, a fiery red giant dragon coiling in the sky. The dragon's body seemed to be made of flames, but its claws and whiskers were so lifelike that it resembled a true ancient behemoth.

Gong Yujin was also stunned. After a long time, he finally squeezed out three words from his mouth: "Lu Guijiu."