Ninth In the World

The number of cultivators on the 51st level was smaller than that on the 50th level. Di Jiu, who did not care about them, continued to gain insight into the Foundation Order.

He moved to the 52nd level, the 53rd level…

As Di Jiu continued to ascend the pagoda, he quickly became famous within the Five Continent Dao Pagoda. Most of the cultivators on the levels Di Jiu surpassed would always remember his face.

He never stayed more than a day on a level before moving on to the next level. It seemed as though he had gone there to conquer each level of the Five Continent Dao Pagoda instead of cultivating.

When he reached the 55th level, Di Jiu saw a familiar face. It was Xiu Yu, the Eldest Senior Brother of the Azure Sect. When Di Jiu had seen him a few months ago, he had been a seventh-stage Void Spirit Realm Cultivator. Now, Xiu Yu was an eighth-stage Void Spirit Realm Cultivator.

Most of the cultivators on that level opened their eyes and glanced at Di Jiu when he entered. They immediately closed their eyes again and started to gain insight into their Dao technique or cultivate.

Xiu Yu also opened his eyes. When he saw Di Jiu, he said in disbelief, “Daoist Di! You reached the 55th level?”

He might have climbed to the 60th level the previous time, but that had been no easy feat. Ascending each level required large amounts of energy. Plus, one had to cultivate on each level. This time, his cultivation level had improved a little in the Five Continent Dao Pagoda. His goal was to reach the 66th level.

Thus, he was surprised when he saw that Di Jiu, whom he had not noticed earlier, had also climbed to the 55th level.

When he thought of the benefits behind this, he immediately got excited.

There were quite a few people on the levels above the 49th level. However, these people were not that many considering that they all belonged to various sects. For example, he was the only member of the Azure Sect able to ascend to the 60th level. His powerful Junior Brother could at most reach the 47th or 48th level. If he did not reach the 49th level, no points would be awarded.

If Di Jiu joined the Azure Sect, the sect’s rank would immediately go up and its resources would increase significantly.

“When you leave the Five Continent Dao Pagoda, do you intend to join the Azure Sect, Daoist Di?” Xiu Yu was evidently not a good conversationalist. He was always forthright when he spoke.

Di Jiu had never intended to stay long in the Small Central World. After staying in the Five Continent Dao Pagoda for two months, he was about to break through to the seventh-stage Essence Soul Realm. Based on his current cultivation progress, he should be able to attain the Void Spirit Realm shortly after he left the Five Continent Dao Pagoda. Once he attained the Void Spirit Realm, he would be able to challenge Sea Roll Experts and return to the Yalun Continent.

“Thank you, Senior Brother Xiu Yu. Let’s talk about joining your sect after I leave the pagoda.” Di Jiu had originally wanted to reject the offer immediately. However, he quickly realized why Xiu Yu was so excited. It was because, now that he had reached the 55th level, he possessed Five Continent Dao Pagoda points. He did not know if these points were useful to him as an individual, but he knew how important they were to a sect.

“Yes, yes. Let’s wait till we leave, Daoist,” Xiu Yu said hurriedly.

Di Jiu did not take this to heart. Instead, he kept gaining insight into the Foundation Order of the 55th level.

After only four hours, he was done gaining insight and he climbed to the 56th level.

When he saw Di Jiu enter the 56th level, Xiu Yu felt even more earnest. Although Gai Shitian had always made friends with everyone, he had finally made a formidable friend.

The 56th level was quite similar to the 55th level. Other than the slightly more powerful tempering of the Spiritual Force and the denser Spirit Qi, there was no difference. The pushing force would affect him less now, as he had mastered the previous 55 Foundation Orders.

Di Jiu reached the 57th level, the 58th level…

By the time he reached the 60th level, his cultivation had broken through to the seventh-stage Essence Soul Realm.

To Di Jiu, cultivating was not that important. He was more desperate to gain insight into the Foundation Orders of each level of the Five Continent Dao Pagoda.

The higher the level, the fewer people he met.

When Di Jiu climbed to the 64th level, he could sense that this level was completely different from the previous ones. The space on the 64th level was much smaller, while there were also 18 fire rings. 17 of them were already occupied by other people, so only one was empty.

When Di Jiu pushed his Spiritual Force inside, a scorching aura instantly entered his body. Even though he did not enter the ring to cultivate, he could still vaguely feel his body become stronger.

Was this a body-tempering level?

It had to be. The body-tempering there was much better than outside in the natural environment. The Laws there were clear, and one could also understand how they could strengthen their body to attain a higher realm.

Back at the Sky Screen, Di Jiu had regretted missing the opportunity to return to the flaming mountain. Thus, when he reached this body-tempering level, he naturally entered the last fire ring without hesitation.

The moment he entered the level, the gazes of the other 17 people on the 64th level landed on him. They were all surprised when they saw a cultivator they had never seen before. There were, of course, past instances when unfamiliar faces had ascended to the 64th level, but such instances were very rare.

It was extremely rare to see such a young, unfamiliar cultivator.

As Di Jiu entered the fire ring, a terrifying scorching heat surged towards him. He immediately started to circulate the Colossal Kun Body-Tempering Art. After completing one Qi Circulation, his physical body started to get stronger. This was the first time Di Jiu visited a place that could temper one’s body without causing any harm or damage.

After several Qi Circulations, he gained insight into the 64th Foundation Order.

…

As Di Jiu was undergoing a body-tempering process on the 64th level of the Five Continent Dao Pagoda, the crowd on the Five Continent Square ruptured into a tumultuous uproar.

A fella who had appeared out of nowhere had suddenly ascended to the 64th level and placed 86th.

It was important to note that every single time the Five Continent Dao Pagoda opened, anyone who made it to the top 100 was a true genius. The top 100 contestants were all either on the Potential Roll or the Dao Roll.

The Five Continent Dao Convention was not even halfway through, so this would not be the final ranking. However, only a top-notch genius would be able to reach the 64th level within five months and place 86th.

At the moment, all the sects and some cultivation powers were investigating who Di Jiu was. Was he a genius from one of the hidden sects?

Outside the Five Continent Square, Fu Che and company, who were waiting for the Sea Roll’s Five Young Masters, were very excited. They had never imagined that Di Jiu would be able to ascend to the 64th level of the Five Continent Dao Pagoda.

“Big Brother Fu, I failed to expect that Big Brother Di would be so formidable as to reach the 64th level. Back when I attempted to climb the pagoda, I stopped on the 23rd level,” said Liang Guqing in disbelief as she stared at Di Jiu’s name.

Fu Che nodded his head. “Brother Di’s origins must be extraordinary. It was fate that we got to know him.”

He had yet to come out of the stupor and shock of hearing Di Jiu say that the Roast Divine Herbs could be used to condense one’s Spiritual Force. In the blink of an eye, Di Jiu had given him another, bigger shock.

“Big Brother Di must be quite young. When the Five Continent Dao Convention is over, the Potential Roll on the Five Continent Square created by the Prophecy Pavilion will definitely have his name on it,” said Liang Guqing excitedly.

There was no special treatment for the people on the Potential Roll when it came to teleportation, although its worth was equal to having one’s name on the Dao Roll. This was because one had to be younger than 200 years old to be on the Potential Roll.

As the three of them were talking about Di Jiu, the cultivators who had come from the Herald Night Lake got even more excited. They would never have imagined that the person who had helped them would be so powerful as to ascend to the 64th level of the Five Continent Dao Pagoda.

As they heard many surrounding cultivators talk about Di Jiu and theorize about his origins, a cultivator who had come out of the Herald Night Lake could not help but say, “He he… Don’t speak nonsense if you know anything. The Young Master Red Embellishment is not from a large sect. He is an Itinerant Cultivator.”

“The Young Master Red Embellishment? Who’s that?”

“The Young Master Red Embellishment is Young Master Di Jiu, who ascended to the 64th level. He is younger than us, yet he is righteous and likes to keep a low profile. Although he saved us, he was unwilling to accept any rewards, nor did he want us to remember this debt. To tell you the truth, I have seen many young geniuses. However, no one has convinced me as deeply as the Young Master Red Embellishment.”

“Di Jiu is the Young Master Red Embellishment? How did he save you guys?”

Upon hearing this question, a cultivator from the Herald Night Lake that was a better speaker narrated the story of Di Jiu’s deeds.

“That’s impossible. Di Jiu was a third-stage Essence Soul Realm cultivator when he used one saber move to kill seven Essence Soul Realm Warriors? One shouldn’t exaggerate. You shouldn’t speak nonsense, even if you are grateful to the Young Master Red Embellishment for saving your lives.” When he heard about Di Jiu’s deeds, a Void Spirit Realm Cultivator could not help but reprimand the speaker. However, he reluctantly accepted the name Young Master Red Embellishment.

The fourth-stage Essence Soul Realm cultivator who had been saved by Di Jiu said loudly, “I’m speaking the absolute truth. You could ask someone else if you don’t believe me. The Young Master Red Embellishment’s saber is really that formidable. I could only sense a boundless saber aura in that one saber move.”

“You said something wrong,” said a cultivator who had also come out of the Herald Night Lake.

“What exactly? You were also saved by the Young Master Red Embellishment. Why are you sullying his name now?” The cultivator became agitated. The Young Master Red Embellishment didn’t want them to spread his name, but this debt could not be easily forgotten.

“You’re mistaken,” said the cultivator. “The Young Master Red Embellishment did indeed kill seven Essence Soul Realm cultivators with one saber move. However, the most formidable thing about him was not his red embellished saber but his advice.”

“Yes, yes. The Young Master Red Embellishment’s advice was formidable indeed. You might be at the Void Spirit Realm, but if the Young Master Red Embellishment gave you a piece of advice…” The previously-agitated cultivator corrected himself hurriedly. However, he stopped speaking before he’d completed his sentence. After all, he was speaking to a Void Spirit Realm Cultivator so he still needed to be cautious while speaking.

He was not very afraid of the consequences. So long as he was careful, no one would dare attack him on the Five Continent Square. Once the Five Continent Dao Convention was over, he would become an inner sect disciple of the five large sects. Such a person was not someone a Life Tribulation Realm cultivator, let alone a Void Spirit Realm Cultivator, would attack casually.

What kind of advice did the Young Master Red Embellishment give? Even more cultivators were confused.

The various large sects had already heard that Di Jiu had proclaimed himself a Young Master. These sects had started to suspect that Di Jiu came from a cultivation family. Only a cultivator who came from a cultivation family would call themselves a Young Master.

It would be best if he came from a cultivation family, for that way he would still be able to enter a sect. The current topic of interest was naturally Di Jiu.