Looking at Lu An on the steps, a wave of energy suddenly surged around him, and his aura soared.
With a loud shout, his aura finally reached its peak.
A cracking sound echoed, as if something had shattered.
Lu An felt his dantian suddenly expand, and his meridians thickened noticeably. His soul in the sea of consciousness grew by more than double, surpassing even that of late-Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Since his primary cultivation technique was the Yi Mu Sheng Hun Jue, his soul was exceptionally powerful.
In contrast, the increase in his physical strength and true qi was relatively small, even less than that of an ordinary cultivator's breakthrough.
This was unavoidable; the Yi Mu Sheng Hun Jue primarily focused on the soul aspect, so his body and technique were naturally not as impressive.
However, this did not mean that Lu An's true qi and physical strength were weak; on the contrary, both were still at a top-tier level among cultivators of the same realm.
The reason for this was the existence of the Extreme True Intent.
As his Extreme True Intent increased, his physical strength and true qi continuously grew stronger, just not as much as his soul.
If Lu An's soul had surpassed the typical level of a late-Foundation Establishment cultivator, then his "body" and "technique" had just barely touched the threshold of late-Foundation Establishment.
Even so, this was enough to crush cultivators of the same realm.
Lu An stood up, clenched his fists, and smiled slightly.
His current strength had more than doubled compared to before, and the Water Sky Dharma Assembly was not yet over.
The Qing Shan had a total of nine hundred ninety-nine levels, and every hundred steps provided a reinforcement. He had just received two reinforcements.
If he could reach the top of the Qing Shan, he would receive seven more reinforcements; he wondered if that could help him break through to late-Foundation Establishment.
Thinking of this, Lu An shook his head slightly.
The spiritual energy required for late-Core Formation was far beyond that of early to mid-Foundation Establishment. The only reason he had broken through to mid-Foundation Establishment was due to his substantial previous accumulation.
Having just broken through, relying on subsequent reinforcements to break through again seemed highly unlikely.
Nevertheless, he intended to absorb as many reinforcements as possible; this would greatly shorten his future cultivation time.
He narrowed his eyes slightly and continued to climb upward.
A month of time is insignificant for cultivators. However, for the contestants scaling Qing Shan, every second brought immense pressure.
During this month, the Qing Shan Rankings changed numerous times before finally stabilizing. The reason was simple: everyone had reached the edge of their limits and could no longer continue climbing.
The rankings on the Qing Shan had been set and remained unchanged for a long time.
First place: Wu Zisi, 599 levels.
Second place: Ji Xidong, 501 levels.
Third place: Ji Daoquan, 492 levels.
...
As Wu Zisi ascended each step, he left behind a black mist of malevolent energy that made Ji Xidong's climb excruciating. Even Ji Daoquan was affected, but neither could do anything about it.
Initially, Ji Xidong had considered dragging Wu Zisi down with a magic treasure, but he soon discovered that neither treasures nor techniques could reach someone on a higher step. With no other option, he could only watch as he fell further behind.
Meanwhile, Wu Zisi was stuck on the 599th level, unable to advance despite any method he tried. The 600th level's reinforcement was so close, yet he was unwilling to stop here.
However, as the leading competitor from Zhao, he found some comfort in his position, feeling somewhat smug.
"Hmph, the human race is indeed an inferior species."
He glanced proudly at the Qing Shan Rankings, seeing his name far ahead, and couldn't help but smile.
Just then, he suddenly furrowed his brow.
The rankings below were continuously changing, and one name was rapidly climbing.
At this point, how could someone still have the energy to continue?
He focused his gaze and saw a name he had never encountered before in the 20th position.
20th place: Lu An, 399 levels.
Before he could examine it closely, Lu An's name suddenly disappeared. Searching upward, he found Lu An again in the 15th position, and the number had changed.
15th place: Lu An, 400 levels.
A shock hit him; 400 levels was a significant barrier, one that had stumped many others, which explained why Lu An's rank had suddenly increased by five places.
He felt something was off. He had left behind a black mist on the 300th level; how was this person seemingly unaffected?
Before he could gather his thoughts, the Qing Shan Rankings shifted again.
14th place: Lu An, 412 levels.
13th place: Lu An, 426 levels.
...
Wu Zisi stared, utterly dumbfounded as if he had seen a ghost.
4th place: Lu An, 490 levels.
Only then did he snap out of his shock.
"Not good, my position is unstable! I have to keep climbing!"
His expression serious, he gathered all his strength and charged toward the 600th level.
Not just him; the audience outside also noticed the changes in the Qing Shan Rankings.
"It's him, Lu An!"
"Oh my gosh, was he hiding his strength before?"
"The competition isn't over yet; he might really push that Zhao competitor down. Our Qi Kingdom might be saved!"
However, not everyone was so optimistic. At least half the crowd wore expressions of concern.
The rankings had been suppressed by Zhao, and they were unwilling to accept that. But with Lu An still nearly a hundred levels behind the leader, overcoming that distance was no easy feat.
Especially at such heights, every step faced pressure far beyond that of earlier levels.
Though they hoped Lu An could win, they were skeptical; the reality was clear, and Lu An's chances seemed slim.
Lu An, however, did not think about any of that. He just wanted to absorb all the remaining reinforcements.
At this moment, standing at the 490th level, he could already see Ji Xidong and the others' positions.
However, the steps above were shrouded in black mist, making them hard to discern.
Lu An didn't mind; instead, he thought as he walked, "Whose malevolent energy is this? It's so pure, even stronger than what I absorbed in the Xueming Array."
"Does this person know my Soul-Devouring Sword needs malevolent energy to advance? What a good person."
He stepped onto the 491st step, and the black mist immediately began to envelop him.
However, as soon as he got close, a terrifying suction from the Soul-Devouring Sword surged forth, causing the dense mist around him to dissipate rapidly until it vanished completely.
Feeling the Sword's excitement, Lu An smiled slightly and stepped into the 492nd level.
Ji Daoquan, a competitor from Han, was also on this level, desperately using his technique to fend off the encroaching malevolent energy, completely unaware of Lu An's arrival.
"Hmm? Why is this malevolent energy becoming weaker?"
"I can move!"
Noticing this change, he was overjoyed and suddenly opened his eyes wide.
Around him, the malevolent energy had completely dissipated, and a young man in a green robe stood beside him.
Startled, he trembled all over and blurted out, "Who are you?"
The young man had arrived at his side without him noticing. If he had intended to attack, he probably would have died countless times already.
Realizing this, he felt a wave of fear and chided himself for being careless.
Lu An heard the question and expressionlessly pointed at the Qing Shan Rankings in the sky. "Me? I'm Lu An from Da Qi."
After saying this, Lu An didn't engage in further conversation and continued to ascend.
The black mist ahead was still waiting for him to absorb, so he wouldn't waste words with Ji Daoquan here.
In the next moment, he stepped onto the lower level and plunged into the black mist.
Ji Daoquan opened his mouth, wanting to say a thousand things, but not a single word came out.
Lu An's calm demeanor and leisurely strides had a profound impact on him.
With the black mist now dispersed and the corrosive malevolent energy absent, he could move freely again, pressing onward to the lower levels.
However, upon seeing Lu An, he suddenly felt that climbing further had lost its meaning.
At that moment, the black mist on the steps in front of him dissipated again, and Lu An stepped onto the next level.
Ji Daoquan's expression fell, and without hesitation, he crushed the jade token in his hand, teleporting away.
Fourth place—his ranking was now set.
As Lu An stepped into the 500th level and received his cultivation reinforcement, he finally spotted Ji Xidong's figure.
Noticing something unusual behind him, Ji Xidong quickly turned around, suddenly widening his eyes.
"Junior brother? You, you..."
Lu An smiled slightly, stepped onto Ji Xidong's level, and absorbed all the malevolent energy before speaking:
"Brother, I told you I would catch up, and I haven't gone back on my word."
With the malevolent energy gone, Ji Xidong felt greatly relieved and smiled.
Seeing Lu An catch up brought him genuine joy.
"Well done! I didn't expect you to have this kind of strength; you're only in Foundation Establishment..."
"Wait, you've broken through to the mid-stage?"
Lu An nodded and slowly replied, "Thanks to the reinforcements from each hundred levels, I barely managed to break through. Your cultivation should be nearing completion, right?"
A hint of bitterness appeared at the corners of Ji Xidong's mouth as he shook his head.
"If I could reach the 600th level, I would be complete, but I'm still a bit short."
"Moreover, with the black mist ahead, I'll need to expend some cultivation to resist it; it seems impossible now."
Upon hearing this, Lu An couldn't help but smile and said, "If I can deal with this black mist, will you be able to fight again?"
"You can deal with the black mist? That malevolent energy is unusual. I saw you using that long sword to absorb the black mist, but I assume there are limitations, right?"
He thought the Soul-Devouring Sword had a space inside it to store the black mist.
Such treasures were common; he had a fire gourd that could collect raging flames.
But once the quantity reached a limit, it could no longer be used.
However, he didn't know that the Soul-Devouring Sword didn't store the mist but rather consumed it directly, converting it into its own energy.
Previously, in the Xueming Array, the Soul-Devouring Sword had already reached the third tier of inferior quality.
If it continued to absorb the subsequent black mist, it might even make a breakthrough.
After all, this malevolent energy was extremely pure, far surpassing what was found in the Xueming Array.
Lu An chose not to explain and simply continued forward with his sword.
"Just follow me, brother."
Despite his doubts, Ji Xidong saw Lu An's confidence and no longer hesitated, rising to follow him.
Next, Lu An led the way, absorbing the black mist, while Ji Xidong waited for the mist to dissipate before stepping onto the next level.
With their cooperation, their speed did not slow at all as they continued to close the distance to Wu Zisi.
At the 599th step, Wu Zisi looked exhausted. The 600th step loomed before him like an insurmountable chasm, preventing him from advancing even a step.
Meanwhile, the numbers after Lu An's name on the Qing Shan Rankings kept changing, and Ji Xidong was catching up as well.
Feeling the pressure, Wu Zisi found himself powerless.
At this moment, he could see the two figures and a cold glint appeared in his eyes.
"I can't get past, and neither of you will either!"
He stopped wasting effort and instead sat cross-legged, waiting for them to arrive.
Soon, the two reached the step below him.
Seeing Lu An had a way to dispel the malevolent energy made Wu Zisi's expression fluctuate.
Lu An, unaware of his thoughts, approached him and asked flatly, "Did you release this malevolent energy?"
Wu Zisi sneered inwardly and replied, "So what if I did?"
However, Lu An's next reaction caught him off guard.
"Do you have more? Can you release some more?"
"Huh?"
Lu An frowned, thinking he hadn't understood, and clarified: "I mean that malevolent energy—can you release more? I didn't absorb enough earlier."
Upon hearing this, Wu Zisi was instantly furious.
Malevolent energy? Not enough?
How dare that despicable human mock me to my face!
He pointed a trembling finger at Lu An, but not a single word escaped his lips.
Seeing Wu Zisi's reaction, Lu An lowered his voice and said to Ji Xidong, "Brother, let's keep our distance from him; there seems to be something off."
He gestured toward his own head.
Ji Xidong chuckled softly but said nothing.
On the opposite side, Wu Zisi seemed to be provoked by something, shouting, "As long as I'm here, you two will never pass!"
Though Lu An had lowered his voice, with Ji Daoquan's cultivation at the Foundation Establishment stage, how could he not hear from such a close distance?
Lu An glanced at Ji Daoquan and thought, "Brother, since you want to settle this with him, I can only help you this far."
Earlier, he had repeatedly angered Wu Zisi, and now his mental state had revealed a crack—this was the chance to win.
On their journey, Ji Daoquan had told him he wanted to deal with this person to avenge the malevolent energy that had tormented them.
Moreover, as a disciple of the national master, he felt he should have a showdown with Wu Zisi, a person from Zhao.
At first, Lu An had naturally refused. Wu Zisi had reached full Foundation Establishment, making him a tough opponent.
If he teamed up with his brother, victory would be assured, but Ji Daoquan insisted he could handle it alone, even invoking the name of his master to pressure Lu An.
With no other choice, Lu An agreed.
He understood his brother was worried about affecting his future results, which was why he insisted on taking care of this matter.
This sentiment was etched in Lu An's heart.
After a moment of silence, Lu An looked at Ji Daoquan and slowly said, "Brother, don't die."
Having said that, he turned to leave.
Ji Daoquan, however, grinned widely and called out, "Junior brother, wait for me to celebrate!"
Seeing Lu An about to leave, Wu Zisi was unwilling and immediately prepared to attack.
But a cold glint flashed before him.
"Your opponent is me."
Ji Daoquan had put away his previous smile, now his face was serious and cold.
In an instant, the two clashed in battle.
Lu An didn't look back at their fight, seemingly possessing absolute confidence in Ji Daoquan.
Now he stood at the edge of the 600th step, and with a quick movement, he stepped inside.
Over the past month, his Extreme True Intent had reached an astonishing level, occupying almost seventy percent of his total true qi.
It's known that for an ordinary person, even a trace of Extreme True Intent in their true qi could exert dominance over other cultivators' true qi.
But now, Lu An's Extreme True Intent surpassed even the amount of true qi he possessed—truly shocking.
He wondered if, upon completing all the steps, his true qi would fully transform into Extreme True Intent.
At that time, would any other changes occur?
As Lu An stepped onto the 600th level, a huge uproar erupted outside.
The Qing Shan Rankings changed once again.
First place: Lu An, 600 layers.