Wu Tian explained, "Even if he reached that level through his own cultivation, it was merely a forced breakthrough."
"In my estimation, his immortal energy was still a bit short of a high-grade immortal at that time."
"Only when that last bit was met would it be a natural progression, truly stepping into the realm of a high-grade immortal."
"But what was the result? He couldn't suppress his excitement and forcibly pushed his realm upwards."
"Although he succeeded due to luck, this also resulted in his immortal energy being somewhat superficial."
"Compared to true high-grade immortals, he was still lacking significantly, and there was no hope of him ever advancing to a true immortal."
"Under such circumstances, do you think there's no possibility of surpassing him?"
"Is that so?" Li Xingyun asked in surprise. "So, that guy was probably in a hurry to break the record back then."
"After all, before that, the fastest ascension speed among Master's disciples was thirty-three years old. He just wanted to claim that honor."
Li Xingyun paused, then continued, "But then again, that doesn't make sense either!"
"Even if he's a fake high-grade immortal, I'm still only a low-grade immortal."
"I only managed to defeat a mid-grade immortal by using trickery."
"This fake high-grade immortal should still be much stronger than a mid-grade immortal, shouldn't he?"
Wu Tian shook his head, "What you're saying makes sense, but it seems you have no idea what kind of strength you possess."
"The person you dealt with today was not an ordinary mid-grade immortal, but a peak mid-grade immortal."
"In other words, he was just one step away from advancing to a high-grade immortal."
"Zhang Qi isn't much stronger than him, so you wouldn't be defeated too quickly by Zhang Qi."
"Is that really so?" Li Xingyun was greatly surprised, then he chuckled.
"So I'm this powerful, that even a peak mid-grade immortal is no match for me."
"It seems I really am a genius!"
Wu Tian smiled at Li Xingyun's self-praise and did not deny it.
Because Li Xingyun's words were not false; he was indeed a genuine genius.
With Li Xingyun's current strength, if Wu Tian hadn't entered the Thunder God Immortal Realm, he might not have been able to defeat him.
However, after praising himself, Li Xingyun's spirits deflated somewhat.
He said to Wu Tian, "But then again, what's the use of that?"
"'Wouldn't be defeated too quickly' isn't the same as me being able to defeat him."
"After fighting for so long, wouldn't I still lose in the end?"
Wu Tian nodded, "That's right. If you don't use any external help, then you would indeed lose."
"But isn't there me?"
With that, lightning flashed in Wu Tian's eyes, and he suddenly struck Li Xingyun with a palm!
"Ah!"
This sudden palm strike startled Li Xingyun greatly, causing him to fall head over heels.
Seeing him lying on the ground, Wu Tian said helplessly, "No, what are you doing?"
"Your reaction is a bit too much, don't you think?"
Li Xingyun got up from the ground, checked himself over, and then breathed a sigh of relief.
"I'm fine? What do you mean by this?"
"Why did you suddenly scare me?"
Wu Tian said, "Who scared you? Feel your body carefully, see if something has been added to it."
"Hmm?" Li Xingyun frowned, then activated his inner vision.
A moment later, he suddenly exclaimed, "My goodness, what's going on?"
Wu Tian smiled and said, "I told you, as long as you could enter the quarterfinals, I would help you."
"Do you still think you have no chance of defeating Zhang Qi now?"
Li Xingyun was shocked and then said with great admiration, "My heavens, brother, you're too monstrous!"
"How could you possibly do something like this? This shouldn't be possible!"
Wu Tian smiled, "That's not something you need to worry about. Prepare yourself for tomorrow's match first."
"This is your last resort. You can't use it unless it's absolutely necessary."
"After all, it will cause you great depletion."
Li Xingyun nodded, "I know."
"With your help today, I'm confident I can defeat Zhang Qi."
"Damn it, he always bothers me by relying on his senior status. Tomorrow, I'll definitely beat him down!"
Wu Tian smiled and said, "Then I look forward to your performance."
With the matter settled, there was nothing more to discuss.
The two then shared a drink and parted ways.
After receiving Wu Tian's help, Li Xingyun was still extremely excited.
As he left, his footsteps even became lighter.
Watching his retreating back, Wu Tian's expression gradually turned serious.
Suddenly, a look of pain appeared on his face, and then his complexion turned pale. He spat out a mouthful of blood onto the table.
"As expected, it's still very strenuous..."
He wiped the blood from his mouth and said softly.
"Li Xingyun, Li Xingyun, I can only help you this far."
"From now on, it will depend on yourself..."
The night passed quickly. The next day, the tournament entered the quarterfinals.
The atmosphere at the venue was as heated as ever, and the most anticipated match of the day was naturally the one between Li Xingyun and Zhang Qi.
After all, the other match was between a true immortal and a high-grade immortal, and there was no suspense whatsoever.
If a true immortal couldn't instantly kill an immortal, then they wouldn't be worth their salt.
But the match between Li Xingyun and Zhang Qi was different.
Before the match, there were all sorts of speculations about it.
Some believed that as a high-grade immortal, it wouldn't be difficult for Zhang Qi to defeat Li Xingyun.
But others believed that Li Xingyun had already surprised them twice, and perhaps he could do it a third time.
Amidst such disputes, some enterprising individuals even set up betting odds outside the venue.
This directly pushed the atmosphere of the match to its peak.
Everyone was focused, wanting to know who between these two would ultimately prevail.
The Heavenly Sword Divine Sect also knew the audience's eager anticipation, so they scheduled this match as the first one.
The two sides took their positions on the fighting stage, and the cheers from the crowd were incessant.
"Wu Tian, do you think he can continue to win?" Lei Qianjiao asked, looking at Li Xingyun on the stage.
Wu Tian smiled slightly and said, "Win? You underestimate him too much."
"He will not only win this match but also become the final victor."
"He is the chosen one of destiny, and everyone will remember him in the future."