“How could this be?”

“Not only are we practicing the same cultivation technique, but his cultivation is actually higher than mine?”

He Zhenghao was speechless, instantly falling into a deep state of self-doubt about his life.

“This is a disaster…”

In an instant, countless thoughts flooded He Zhenghao’s mind.

But in the end, he still decided to temporarily seek refuge on the Ten Thousand Immortals Island.

Just as he was about to activate the teleportation formation.

“I know you’re hiding inside, why don’t you come out and see me?” The other party’s angry roar rang out again, his voice like thunder.

The entire Glass Island seemed to tremble under the sound of his wrath.

He Zhenghao’s face twitched, he dared not speak, but hastily activated the teleportation formation.

Who would have thought that the other party would have discovered his actions as if he had foreseen them.

“Want to escape? Humph!”

A ripple instantly enveloped the airspace above Glass Island.

He Zhenghao was horrified to discover that the teleportation formation on Glass Island had lost connection with Ten Thousand Immortals Island.

“Spatial lockdown?!”

Cold sweat instantly dripped from his forehead.

But in a flash, He Zhenghao realized.

“No, it’s just that I don’t know what method was used to temporarily affect the connection of the teleportation formation nodes…”

Just as he was secretly letting out a sigh of relief.

He suddenly discovered that the cultivator who had suddenly appeared had transformed into a streak of light, rushing straight towards the protective formation of the island below.

He Zhenghao’s heart surged with joy: “So he’s just a reckless brute! My Mountain and Star Formation isn’t something to be trifled with, even if he’s at the Golden Core stage…”

Just as he was thinking this, something that made his jaw drop happened.

The other party, as if treating the formation as nothing, flew straight in.

His flight path seemed random, yet it always followed the weakest points of the formation’s defenses.

Moreover, his speed was extremely fast. In a blink of an eye, before He Zhenghao even had time to react.

He landed in front of him.

The man coldly stared at him, his eyes filled with killing intent: “You’re the little brat who stole my sect’s cultivation technique?”

He Zhenghao’s mind went blank.

He didn’t have time to think about why the other party could so easily break through his proud Mountain and Star Formation.

A terrifying killing intent, as tangible as substance, enveloped him. He Zhenghao’s heart beat wildly against his will.

“Misunderstanding! It’s definitely a misunderstanding!”

“Fellow Daoist, please don’t act rashly!”

Faced with the threat of death, He Zhenghao shouted repeatedly.

“Fellow Daoist?” The other party’s fierceness intensified.

“A mere Foundation Establishment cultivator, how dare you address a Golden Core cultivator as Fellow Daoist?”

“Are cultivators these days so lacking in manners?”

An oppressive aura, far stronger than that of ordinary Golden Core cultivators, suddenly emanated from him.

He Zhenghao instantly felt as if a mountain was pressing down on his shoulders. His knees buckled, and he almost collapsed to his knees.

He Zhenghao’s heart was filled with grievance.

Not to mention Golden Core cultivators, even Nascent Soul cultivators, He Zhenghao would still address them as Fellow Daoist!

However, with the enemy before him, for the sake of his own life, He Zhenghao had no choice but to temporarily submit to the other party’s power.

Forcing out a strained smile, He Zhenghao said with some difficulty, “Misunderstanding, it’s really a misunderstanding!”

“Senior, let’s talk things through!”

The other party scanned the surroundings with a cold gaze, temporarily withdrawing his pressure.

“I ask, you answer!”

“If you deceive me…”

“Die!”

He Zhenghao’s heart skipped a beat when he heard the other party’s words.

He nodded repeatedly like a chick pecking at rice, indicating that he understood.

“How did you obtain your Sitting Mountain Technique?” the other party asked.

“It was obtained by this junior when I was young, during an expedition to a certain subworld. It was definitely not…”

He Zhenghao hadn’t finished speaking when he heard the other party ask again.

“Subworld? Where is it located? Why would there be my sect’s inheritance there?”

He Zhenghao immediately described the location and internal structure of the subworld he had encountered back then.

The other party’s eyes narrowed slightly, and he remained silent for a moment.

Then, he actually mentioned some details about the inside of the subworld, asking He Zhenghao if it was true or not.

He Zhenghao was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly.

Noticing that the other party’s killing intent was gradually subsiding, He Zhenghao couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief.

Seeing that the other party seemed to be lost in thought, he mustered his courage and asked, “From my observation of Senior’s speech and manner, they are different from ordinary people.”

“Could it be that Senior has just awakened from a slumber?”

It was no wonder He Zhenghao would make such a guess.

In this era, who would still mention anything about sects?

Moreover, there had been cases of ancient cultivators who had slumbered for thousands of years waking up.

He Zhenghao didn’t find it particularly strange.

He just felt that he was incredibly unlucky.

The other party didn’t directly admit it, but his expression became somewhat solemn.

“I would like to ask you, what has happened in all these years?”

“My cultivation technique actually produced a mysterious connection?”

“Heaven and Earth seem to have become different…”

He Zhenghao was even more convinced of his guess.

He immediately described to him in detail everything that had happened in the Xuanhuang Realm after the Heavenly Venerate’s teachings and the arrival of the Great Calamity, including the current state of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance.

The other party’s expression changed repeatedly as he listened.

And through He Zhenghao’s constant probing, he finally gradually learned the other party’s identity.

His name was Li Fan, and he was an ancient cultivator of the Tian Ji Sect.

He had fallen into a slumber due to an accident.

When he woke up, not only had his cultivation regressed to the Golden Core stage.

But he also felt a mysterious connection in his heart.

Without knowing the reason, Li Fan followed the connection to Glass Island.

And when he discovered that He Zhenghao, who was also practicing the Sitting Mountain Technique, wasn’t a disciple of the Tian Ji Sect, he had the questioning scene that had just taken place.

“How did Senior recognize that I’m not a disciple of the Tian Ji Sect?”

Although He Zhenghao lamented his misfortune in his heart, he still had doubts.

Li Fan let out a sneer: “After a thousand years, have cultivators become so ignorant?”

“Your question is like asking why cultivators can tell at a glance that a beast isn’t human.”

“We cultivators of the Tian Ji Sect emphasize the unity of Heaven and Man, and our sect’s cultivation techniques are all inseparable from the flow of Qi. Naturally, I have secret techniques to discern.”

He Zhenghao’s old face turned slightly red as he listened to the other party’s dismissive tone.

Just as he was about to say something else, he saw Li Fan suddenly fix his gaze on him.

“Senior, you…” He Zhenghao couldn’t help but feel a little nervous.

“How long have you been practicing the Sitting Mountain Technique?” Li Fan asked.

He Zhenghao was slightly taken aback: “Over a hundred years…”

“The Sitting Mountain Technique is such a divine cultivation technique, how come you’re only at the Foundation Establishment stage after cultivating for so long?”

Li Fan looked at He Zhenghao with suspicion: “Could it be that you’ve also fallen in cultivation due to an injury?”

Upon hearing this, He Zhenghao’s face instantly turned crimson.

“Senior doesn’t know, this Sitting Mountain Technique…”

He was about to explain himself, but then he suddenly remembered that this person was the ancestor of the Sitting Mountain Technique.

For a moment, he was speechless.

He stammered and stood there dumbfounded.

However, it was Li Fan who saved him.

As if he had remembered something, he suddenly realized: “That’s right, you can’t sense the Heavenly Mechanism. No wonder your cultivation is so slow.”

“Just relying on [Sitting Mountain], without [Mountain Ascension]. Difficult, difficult, difficult!”

(To be continued…)