Chapter 892: Second Time!

Now that Li Yun had made up his mind, he did not hesitate any longer. He left his residence and went straight to the Everlasting Pagoda, and he drew attention the moment he appeared.

“Isn’t that Li Yun?”

“He vanished for three months after beating Zhang Kuanglie. Why has he suddenly come back to the Everlasting Pagoda?”

“Could he be planning to challenge the second floor again?”

“If he actually clears it, that would be incredible. Out of the thousands of cultivators trapped on Chronospace Island, only Yuan Zhenhai has ever passed the second floor.”

Another cultivator shook his head at once. “That seems unlikely. No matter how monstrous his talent is, he’s only been on Chronospace Island for eight months. How could he clear the second floor that fast? He’s probably just here to test how strong he is now.”

Many people agreed. Li Yun had long since become one of the most famous newcomers on Chronospace Island. Only thirty-seven people had ever cleared the first floor of the Everlasting Pagoda, and he was the most recent of them.

More importantly, he had done it on his very first attempt, and afterward he had publicly defeated Zhang Kuanglie while the two of them fought at the same cultivation level. Naturally, almost everyone on the island now knew his name.

Li Yun ignored the chatter and stepped into the Everlasting Pagoda. A familiar spatial force wrapped around him at once. Since he had already cleared the first floor, he did not need to face the Golden-Armored Guardian again. The world around him warped, and a moment later he found himself above an endless ocean.

The sky was bright and clear, and gentle waves rolled across the water, reflecting the blue sky like a vast mirror. At the center of the peaceful sea sat an old man in a straw raincoat and bamboo hat, quietly holding a fishing rod. It was the Old Fisherman.

His presence was strangely faint. His breathing seemed to rise and fall with the waves, and his aura appeared to have merged completely with the ocean. If Li Yun closed his eyes, he could barely tell the old man apart from the heaven and earth around him.

The Old Fisherman slowly opened his eyes, and a faint smile appeared on his face.

“Oh? So you’ve come back, little fellow.”

Li Yun cupped his hands. “Senior.”

The Old Fisherman studied him carefully.

Li Yun knew perfectly well that judging this man by the cultivation he displayed was pointless. What made him terrifying was not his realm but his control and his comprehension, along with his ability to turn even the simplest movement into an attack that could threaten opponents far above his apparent level. Eight months earlier, Li Yun had learned that firsthand when a single casual flick of the fishing rod killed him before he could react properly.

“It looks like these eight months weren’t wasted,” the Old Fisherman said with a smile, his gaze lingering on Li Yun. “The last time you came here, there was still uncertainty in your eyes. Today you look far more confident.”

“I am a bit more confident than before,” Li Yun said with a nod, and his expression turned serious. “I hope you’ll guide me again, Senior.”

“Very well.” The Old Fisherman slowly got to his feet. “Be careful.”

His wrist moved, and that was all. The fishing rod whipped forward with a whoosh, and the long fishing line vanished.

Li Yun’s pupils shrank. It was exactly the same attack that had beaten him before. There was no huge explosion and no overwhelming buildup of energy. The fishing line simply merged into space. One instant it was hundreds of feet away, and the next it was already in front of him.

Eight months ago, Li Yun had barely understood what happened. Now he could perceive far more. The attack contained astonishing control, with every trace of power condensed into the fishing line, almost no wasted energy, and no unnecessary disturbance.

The Profound Origin Sword appeared in Li Yun’s hand, and sword and fishing line met with a clang. Only after they made contact did the terrifying force hidden in the line finally burst out with a boom.

The sea beneath Li Yun caved in, leaving a circular hollow hundreds of feet across, and towering waves surged outward. His robes whipped violently around him, yet his body did not move back.

The Old Fisherman raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

Li Yun pushed his sword forward and forced the fishing line aside. It struck the sea, which exploded with a great splash.

The Old Fisherman drew back his rod, and surprise showed in his eyes.

“The difference really is considerable.”

Eight months earlier, this single move had ended the fight, and now Li Yun had blocked it head-on. Still, Li Yun knew the old man had only been testing him.

Sure enough, the Old Fisherman smiled. “That was only a greeting.”

He took a step across the water, and his foot touched the sea lightly. Then he took another. A strange rhythm accompanied every movement.

With the first step, the fishing rod moved, and with the second, another attack followed. The third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh steps came one after another, and by the time he had taken seven, the sky had changed completely.

Hundreds of fishing lines appeared across the surrounding space. Some came straight down, others swept sideways, and some curved at impossible angles, while still others vanished into space and reappeared somewhere else.

Within moments, Li Yun was completely surrounded. When he looked up, he could no longer see the sky, only fishing lines, as an enormous net of spatial attacks came down toward him.

Li Yun stayed calm. In ordinary battles, he habitually kept much of his strength hidden, since there was no reason to show every ability against weaker opponents. Even powerful enemies rarely forced him to reveal more than one or two of his Intents.

The Everlasting Pagoda was different. The Old Fisherman was not an enemy who would spread word of his abilities. He was a trial, and Li Yun wanted to answer a question for himself. After all his recent progress, how strong would he be if he truly stopped holding back?

His eyes sharpened.

“In that case,” he said, tightening his grip on the Profound Origin Sword, “I’ll use everything.”