Chapter 73: The Fight Begins

  Time passed quietly, day by day, since Gu Chen returned home. Whether it was the Gu family or the Liu and Wan families, everything seemed very calm, like the prelude to a storm.

  Guchen takes Xiaobai to Lingfeng Mountain for training every day, and his daily life hasn't changed much. The only change is Guchen's cultivation, which continues to grow rapidly every day.

  The current situation has not changed much from the previous one. I believe that before the year-end Clan Leader Competition, there won't be any major changes. The key is after the Clan Leader Competition.

  Even if Gu Chen had past life experiences, he couldn't guess how his father and the two elders of the ancient family would react when he became the head of the ancient family. Would they show obedience or firm resistance?

  Submission? Gu Cang Yue has always been arrogant, regarding Gu Cang Yun as a waste. If Gu Cang Yun were to become the head of the clan, it's impossible for Gu Cang Yue to truly submit.

  Resistance? Gu Cang Yue was not reckless, he knew how great the harm of internal strife to the family was. He was a member of the Gu family and had a responsibility to the Gu clan. If the Gu family were to fall into internal strife, only the Yun and Liu families would benefit.

  The Yun family is still okay, the key is that the Liu family's power is too great. If the Gu family's strength is damaged and becomes like the Yun family, then even if the two families join forces, it will be difficult to stop the Liu family's growing influence.

  As for Gu Cangyue's reaction, Gu Chen couldn't accurately determine it. However, one thing Gu Chen was certain of was that if Gu Cangyue didn't care about the family's future and did something to harm the family, then Gu Chen would also be ruthless and eliminate all unstable factors.

  Gǔ Chén's cultivation was advancing rapidly every day. Four months later, Gǔ Chén finally felt the barrier of the fifth layer of Xiantian Realm. This time, he didn't experience an intense battle. It took him half a month to finally break through the fifth layer barrier and enter the sixth layer of Xiantian Realm cultivation.

  The six layers of the Innate Realm, already at the peak of the mid-Innate Realm, and one step further would be the realm of the late Innate Realm. The difficulty of cultivation has increased by a lot compared to before.

  From the fifth floor to the sixth floor of Xiantian Realm, it took a full four and a half months. From the sixth floor to the seventh floor, the required time will be even longer. Even with the continuous consumption of spiritual elixirs and spiritual stones, it would take at least five or six months.

  With only half a month left until the end of the year, it's impossible to make any breakthroughs in cultivation. Gu Chen shifted his focus to the Tian Gang Quan Ti Great Method, and at the sixth layer of Xian Tian realm, he could cultivate the fourth level of Tian Gang Quan Ti.

  After refining the fourth layer of Tianjie Tempering Body, Gu Chen's physical body was strengthened to be comparable to a Ninth Layer cultivator in the Pre-Heavenly Realm. With the added speed boost from the Swift Wind Cloak, his speed could rival that of a cultivator in the Divine Sea Realm, far surpassing that of a Ninth Layer cultivator in the Pre-Heavenly Realm.

  With Gu Chen's current strength, ordinary innate seventh-layer cultivators are no match for him. In a state of physical strengthening and speed increase, even eighth-layer innate cultivators need to temporarily avoid his edge.

  With such strength, no one in the entire Leshui City could threaten him anymore. Unless a congenital ninth-layer cultivator took action, it was impossible to gain an advantage under Gu Chen's hands.

  There is still a month left before the New Year, and with his familiarity with the Tian Gang Quan body technique, he should be able to reach the fourth level by then. As for Gu Cang Yue and Gu Chen, there was no need to worry about them at all.

  If he can be at peace with himself, his cultivation is not easy to come by, let him make contributions to the Gu family, if he has any crooked ideas, Gu Chen doesn't mind erasing him...

  As his strength grew, Gu Chen was no longer the silly and naive kid he was last year. The feeling of being a great master from his previous life gradually returned to him.

  In his past life, Gu Chen had deep-seated grudges and hatred, but he didn't have a good temper. Anyone who provoked him with just one sentence would be in danger. Killing a cultivator was extremely easy for Gu Chen. With the status of a Dan medicine master, he didn't even need to take action himself. He only needed to utter a single sentence, think about seeing someone die, and by the next day, he could see that person's head.

  Of course, these are just some petty characters. The real big opponents, such as Cang Tianji, were still not something that Gu Chen could handle in his past life. Even if Gu Chen wanted to kill Cang Tianji, no one dared to provoke him. When encountering cultivators who knew Cang Tianji, they wouldn't dare to provoke him; just being able to coexist peacefully with their mouths shut was already a great accomplishment.

  As the year drew to a close, Gu Cangyun also received some good news. After more than half a year of cultivation, under the catalysis of the remaining medicinal power of Xichendan, he continued to take the top-grade Yuanshen Dan. Finally, before the new year, Gu Cangyun's cultivation broke through to the seventh layer of the Pre-Heavenly Realm, becoming a powerful figure in the later stage of the Pre-Heavenly Realm.

  Gu Zhen also got what he wanted, and before the year was over, he successfully cultivated the Tian Gang Quan Ti Da Fa to the fourth level.

  The cultivation of Tian Jie Quan Ti Da Fa is slower than Gu Chen, although it has already reached the seventh layer of Xian Tian Jing, but Tian Jie Quan Ti has only just been refined to the third level.

  However, a Xiantian Seventh Layer cultivator who has undergone the Three Heavens' Tempering of the Body can possibly defeat a Xiantian Eighth Layer cultivator. As for this Clan Leader Competition, Gu Cangyun can be said to have no pressure at all.

  As the New Year's Day arrived, the whole Leshui City became lively again, and Gu's family was no exception. Now, Gu Chen had already turned 12 years old, but his body was much stronger and taller than that of a normal 12 or 13-year-old boy, looking more like a 15 or 16-year-old young man.

  Without exception, this year's family competition, Gu Chen easily won the first place in the family, revealing his innate fourth-layer cultivation, making Gu Tai, who was still at the second layer of the innate realm, feel hopeless.

  However, this year's most lively event is not the annual clan competition, but the Clan Leader Competition.

  Gu Xian has grown old and is now 70 years old. According to the ancestors' will, he must give up his position as head of the clan.

  Originally, the position of the clan leader was passed down from father to son, and when the clan leader reached 70 years old, he would pass on the position to his son. However, Gu Cangyun was not the biological son of Gu Xian, so he faced opposition from the First Elder and Second Elder, resulting in the position becoming openly contested.

  All second-generation direct descendants who have been nominated by the elders can participate, and after competing in the clan trials, they will engage in a grand competition. The winner will be the future head of the Gu family.

  Gu Cang Yue was the first among the second generation of young masters, his cultivation had reached the Seventh Layer of the Pre-Heaven Realm. He was almost certain to become the City Master.

  Today, Gu Cangyue's mood was very happy, with a smile on his face all day long. As the second-generation disciple of Da Zhanglao and Er Zhanglao, no one would dare to compete with him. The strongest among the second-generation disciples of San Zhanglao had only reached the fifth layer of Xiantian realm, which was far inferior to Gu Cangyue's seventh layer of Xiantian realm.

  Gǔ Cāng Qióng is the greatest competitor for Gǔ Cāng Yuè to take the position of tribe leader, but now his cultivation is only at the fifth layer of Xiantian realm. As a result, Gǔ Cāng Yuè has no pressure on him, he knows that the later the cultivation, the more difficult it will be. Although Gǔ Cāng Qióng's talent is top-notch, he missed the best time for cultivation and it will be hard for him to catch up with Gǔ Cāng Yuè in this life.

  Most cultivators reach their peak around 40-50 years old, after which they can no longer make progress. After the age of 50, the body begins to decline, and even with daily practice, one can only maintain their current level without regressing; if they stop practicing, their cultivation will regress.

  After the family competition, no one left. After Gu Qian Shan announced the results of this family competition, Gu Xian came to the stage and said: "Fellow clansmen, I have been the head of the Gu family for over 20 years, and this year I am already over 70 years old. According to the will of our ancestors, I will step down as the head of the family and let the outstanding second-generation descendants take over as the new head of the family, leading the Gu family towards a brighter future..."

  After a pause, Gu Xian continued: "The Gu family is one of the three major immortal families in Leshui City. This is the foundation laid by our ancestors for generations. Every generation's patriarch has put the interests of the family above their own, and I, Gu Xian, have not disgraced my ancestors, leading the Gu family for over 20 years. The strength of the Gu family has grown stronger day by day. When I eventually pass on, I will be able to face our ancestors with dignity. Whoever becomes the next patriarch must continue to develop the Gu family like our ancestors did and find a better future for it..."

  "As a cultivator, we stand above ordinary people, with stronger powers than ordinary people, more resources than ordinary people, and better lives than ordinary people... However, as a cultivator, we also have to bear greater risks. The world of cultivation is a world where the strong prey on the weak, it's a cruel world, without strength, one cannot survive. Therefore, as the head of the clan, not only must one have good moral character, but also have cultivation that surpasses others."

  "It was decided by the elders that this time, the clan leader competition would be held by each elder recommending a second-generation child with good character, and then the recommended second-generation children would compete to see who is the first, and who will be the next clan leader..."