How Deep Is the Water of the Purple Bamboo Peak

The sheer volume of information was so massive that it left Ling Xi momentarily dazed.

She subconsciously looked at Gu Changge, who was still leisurely cracking melon seeds not far away.

The Pagoda of Eternal Geniuses? Able to summon same-realm projections of Great Emperors?

Ling Xi's heart was filled with shock and doubt. Such a heaven-defying artifact was completely unheard of!

Even in my previous life, I had only heard of secret realms that simulated battle formations. When has there ever been an existence capable of perfectly replicating the same-realm combat prowess of ancient Great Emperors?

An uncontrollable thought popped into her mind: Could it be... that Master used some special method to create an illusion, causing the two senior brothers to hallucinate?

After all, the belief that a Great Emperor is invincible was carved into the very bones of anyone who had truly witnessed a Great Emperor's might.

Although the two senior brothers possessed extraordinary talent, they were still young. Perhaps they were deceived by some profound illusion of Master's, used as a way to motivate them?

At this thought, the pride belonging to a Great Emperor from her past life was faintly stirred within Ling Xi's heart.

She took a deep breath, suppressing the turbulent emotions in her heart, and looked at Fang Hanyu.

Compared to the outgoing Xiao Ruobai, the reticent Fang Hanyu appeared much more composed.

A sharp gleam flashed across Ling Xi's beautiful eyes. She took a step forward, gave a slight cupped-fist salute to Fang Hanyu, and spoke in a cold tone that carried an imperceptible hint of battle intent.

"Senior Brother Fang, I heard that you once sparred with the projection of Ancient Sovereign Taiyin. Your junior sister is untalented, but having gained some minor insights in cultivation recently, I wish to seek a few pointers from you. I wonder if Senior Brother would be willing to instruct me?"

She was somewhat curious to see the true strength of this senior brother who claimed to be able to engage in a prolonged battle with an Ancient Sovereign!

Hearing this, Fang Hanyu gave Ling Xi a slightly surprised look, then turned to Gu Changge.

Gu Changge paused his motion of cracking melon seeds, a very faint arc seemingly forming at the corner of his mouth, and said casually, "A spar between fellow disciples should stop at the appropriate point. Do not harm your harmony."

Having received their Master's approval, Fang Hanyu nodded and looked at Ling Xi. "Alright."

The two walked to the open space in the courtyard and stood facing each other. Xiao Ruobai enthusiastically stepped aside to watch the battle.

"Junior Sister, please." Fang Hanyu grasped the hilt of his Absolute Beginning Sword, not unsheathing it, and suppressed his aura to the mid-stage of the Purple Mansion Realm, matching Ling Xi's.

"Junior Sister's cultivation is still shallow, and she lacks battle experience. I should hold back a bit more when I strike later!" Fang Hanyu pondered inwardly about how much strength to use.

Ling Xi did not dare to be careless. She circulated the Heaven Swallowing Dao Art, and spirit energy vortexes reappeared around her body as an overbearing intent capable of devouring all living things spread out.

"Senior Brother, be careful!"

Ling Xi gave a light shout, her figure moving like lightning. She struck out with her slender jade-like hand, bringing forth a fierce palm wind imbued with Dao rhythm, aiming straight for Fang Hanyu's face.

This palm strike seemed simple, but it secretly aligned with the ultimate principles of heaven and earth, sealing off several evasion routes. It was exactly the opening stance of a profound palm technique from her past life.

Fang Hanyu's gaze focused, feeling a slight shock in his heart. This opening stance seemed ordinary, but it gave him a sense of pressure akin to facing the projections of ancient Great Emperors. It was as if it contained endless follow-up moves, sealing off all his habitual counterattack routes.

"Junior Sister is this strong?"

Not daring to be negligent, he took a profound step, his figure shifting half a foot sideways like a phantom, narrowly avoiding the peak of the palm wind. At the same time, he formed his fingers into a sword, and an incredibly condensed sword qi arrived first despite being launched later, pointing directly at a vital acupoint on Ling Xi's wrist.

Ling Xi was equally surprised in her heart. The timing of his evasion and counterattack was grasped perfectly, as if he had already seen through her subsequent variations.

She changed moves extremely fast, turning her palm into fingers. A dark light flickered at her fingertips as she met the sword qi head-on.

"Chi!"

The clashing of energy produced a soft sound. Ling Xi only felt an unparalleled sharp sword intent transmitting from her fingertips, faintly carrying an intent of primal chaos opening and evolving all things, which actually caused her devouring power to stagnate slightly.

What a strong sword intent! Ling Xi's heart trembled again.

Fang Hanyu's eyes also turned stern. The devouring and purifying Dao rhythm contained in her finger strength was extremely bizarre, actually capable of wearing away his chaotic sword qi.

He had only felt such a pure and overbearing trait on the projections of the most top-tier Great Emperors inside the pagoda!

"Could it be that everything Senior Brother said is true?" A thought couldn't help but flash across Ling Xi's mind.

Both of them simultaneously put away their last trace of underestimation, truly regarding the other as an opponent of the same caliber.

Ling Xi's figure fluttered erratically, using palms, fingers, fists, and kicks together. Every strike contained the dual Dao rhythms of devouring and purifying. Her attacks surged toward Fang Hanyu like a tide, her moves profound and seasoned, as if she had experienced countless great battles.

Fang Hanyu's expression was calm. Although the Absolute Beginning Sword was not unsheathed, he used his fingers as a sword to unleash his sword techniques. Sometimes it was like the initial parting of primal chaos, with majestic and sweeping sword qi.

Sometimes it was like silent drizzle, his sword intent penetrating every gap. His Sword Dao was all-encompassing, allowing him to respond with ease, as if he had fought against countless types of combat styles.

The figures of the two crossed rapidly, with energy flying in all directions. If not for the restrictive formations set up by Gu Changge on the Purple Bamboo Peak, the place would likely be a complete mess by now.

The more Ling Xi fought, the more alarmed she became!

She had pushed her past life's combat experience to the limit, unleashing various profound combat techniques with ease. Combined with the overbearing nature of the Heaven Swallowing Dao Art, she asked herself if she had any rivals in the same realm.

However, Fang Hanyu's sword could always appear from angles she didn't expect. He seemed to have an astonishing adaptability to her combat style, as if he really had fought against countless geniuses, or even projections of Great Emperors!

Fang Hanyu's heart was even more tumultuous.

The pressure this junior sister's combat style brought him was no less than what he faced against those illustrious Ancient Sovereigns and Great Emperors in the pagoda!

Every one of her moves was entirely natural, carrying an imperial bearing that looked down upon all living beings. It forced him to go all out just to barely withstand that omnipresent devouring power and her incredibly exquisite combat techniques.

He even faintly felt that if he hadn't experienced countless fierce battles in the pagoda, he would have probably been defeated long ago!

In the blink of an eye, the two had exchanged over three hundred moves. Energy crisscrossed, yet it was still hard to determine a victor!

Ling Xi's devouring Dao rhythm was peerlessly overbearing, while Fang Hanyu's chaotic sword intent was tough and enduring. Neither could do anything to the other.

Not only did Ling Xi not feel the slightest bit of impatience, but a very faint, almost vivid smile flashed across the depths of her cold eyes.

That smile was hidden in the trembling curve of her eyelashes. It was the genuine excitement of finally finding an evenly matched opponent after standing at the peak and sweeping away all peers for so long. It was the highest recognition of the words "worthy of a battle," unique to an Emperor.

In her past life, she had proved her Dao and become an Emperor with a mortal body, dominating an entire era in the Tianlan Great World. Within the same realm, whether it was the heirs of Holy Lands or awakened ancient physiques, no one could last more than a hundred moves against her.

But today, sparring with Fang Hanyu, over three hundred rounds had passed, and the opponent's chaotic sword intent remained tenacious. Not only had it not been suppressed by her Heaven Swallowing Dao rhythm, but he could even find her flaws in the gaps. This combat power finally brought a genuine tremor to her competitive spirit that had been dormant for years.

However, it was not suitable to fight for too long during this first spar. They should stop at the appropriate point. As fellow disciples, there would be plenty of opportunities for grand battles in the future.

Ling Xi retracted her palm and retreated, the residual devouring Dao rhythm on her fingertips slowly fading away. Looking at Fang Hanyu's still steady figure, the slight doubt in her heart regarding the "projections of Great Emperors" completely vanished into thin air.

Being able to fight her to a draw for three hundred rounds, this kind of practical combat ability was enough to explain everything.

She could not help but wonder to herself: how did her two senior brothers possess such profound combat power at such a young age?

Such formidable strength could not possibly be cultivated through talent alone; their master must have put in painstaking effort to guide them in private.

But on second thought, during her ordinary days at Purple Bamboo Peak, she had never seen their master properly meditate or give lectures. He was usually either lounging in his bamboo chair cracking melon seeds or sleeping in the sun. How could someone like that produce such incredible disciples?

The more she thought about it, the more unbelievable it seemed. Ling Xi quietly raised her eyes to glance at Gu Changge not far away. He was bending over to pick up scattered melon seed shells, his movements slow and leisurely, lacking even the slightest air of a peerless expert.

Yet, despite this seemingly undisciplined appearance, the disciples he taught could battle a reincarnated emperor for three hundred rounds and even defeat the projection of an ancient Great Emperor. Such methods...

In her previous life, when she reigned supreme over the Tianlan Great World, she always felt that being a reborn emperor was her greatest source of confidence. Looking across the Xuanhuang Great World, she believed she should be an unrivaled existence among anyone in the same realm.

But who could have imagined that just a few days after joining Purple Bamboo Peak, the same-realm combat power of any random senior brother would be completely on par with hers? Even the countermeasures hidden within their Primal Chaos Sword Intent secretly alarmed her, an emperor who had immersed herself in the Dao of Combat for ten thousand years.

Just how deep were the waters of Purple Bamboo Peak!

However, this shock acted more like a beam of light, illuminating the path of her second life.

If even her senior brothers were like this, what kind of profound fortune was hidden within the Eternal Paragon Tower?

And as for her master's true strength...

Thinking of this, she took a deep breath. The solitary pride of a Great Emperor buried deep within her eyes gradually faded, transforming instead into boundless anticipation for the future!

Here, perhaps she could truly forge a path even broader than the one in her previous life.

She completely let go of the past. From this moment onward, she was simply a disciple of Purple Bamboo Peak, Ling Xi.