"Number one on the Earth Ranking. She truly deserves her reputation."

Not far away, Li Yun opened his eyes and nodded slightly.

The bells hanging from Feng Qingxiao’s wrist were clearly no ordinary spiritual artifact. Of course, Feng Qingxiao’s own strength was definitely not weak either. Otherwise, no matter how powerful a spiritual artifact was, she would not have been able to unleash its full might.

For Feng Qingxiao to rank first on the Earth Ranking, she indeed possessed extraordinary ability.

Whoosh!

At that moment, another figure rose from the fourth floor and descended directly onto a small floating island on the fifth floor. This person was none other than the strongest Inner Sect Disciple of the Heavenly Sword Sect, Jian Wuhen, who ranked second on the Earth Ranking.

Opposite him, the face of a thin middle-aged man suddenly turned ugly.

Just now, Feng Qingxiao had displayed the terrifying strength befitting the number one position on the Earth Ranking. Jian Wuhen was ranked second, only one place behind her, so how could his strength be much worse?

Sure enough, with only one strike of his sword, the thin middle-aged man was defeated by Jian Wuhen. Following Feng Qingxiao, Jian Wuhen became the second disciple from the Seven Great Powers to step onto the fifth floor of the Floating Island.

On the fifth floor of the Floating Island, the expressions of the remaining eight cultivators became incredibly solemn. This was especially true for those ranked near the bottom, whose eyes flickered with uncertainty.

At first, they had not taken the disciples of the Seven Great Powers seriously. They had thought these people were merely lucky enough to join great sects and were not truly special.

However, the strength displayed by Feng Qingxiao and Jian Wuhen completely erased that idea.

Not only did these cultivators feel pressure, but many disciples of the Seven Great Powers were also stimulated by what they saw. One after another, they began exerting themselves and accelerating their charge toward the higher floors.

For a time, the Floating Island became restless again. At every moment, battles were being provoked.

Under such circumstances, Li Yun’s behavior appeared extremely strange.

The bustling atmosphere around him did not seem to affect him in the slightest. After watching the battles of Feng Qingxiao and Jian Wuhen, he actually sat down again and continued cultivating on his own.

It was not until another day passed, which was also his ninth day since entering the third floor, that he was forced by the rules of the Floating Island to conduct his third match.

In this match, he appeared even more strained than before. He took a full two quarters of an hour to finally defeat his opponent, and even then, it looked like a narrow victory.

"What a piece of trash."

On a small floating island on the fourth floor of the Floating Island, a purple-robed youth could not help sneering.

His eyes were extremely spirited, and his deep purple pupils looked like a swirling galactic vortex. They emitted a profound and strange power that made people feel as if they would be drawn in after just one glance.

This person was none other than an Inner Sect Disciple of the Origin Saint Sect, Xiao Ziming, who ranked twelfth on the Earth Ranking.

He looked down at Li Yun from above and said indifferently, "A piece of trash like this actually dares to be called one of the two rising stars of this era? What a huge joke."

His voice was loud and completely undisguised. It spread out like a tide, instantly reaching every part of the Floating Island. From the first floor to the fifth floor, everyone could hear it clearly.

Hearing Xiao Ziming’s voice, everyone’s gaze immediately turned toward Li Yun.

Faced with Xiao Ziming’s provocation, how would Li Yun react?

However, to everyone’s disappointment, Li Yun seemed not to have heard Xiao Ziming’s words at all. After defeating his opponent, he returned to his small floating island and sat cross-legged on the ground, acting as if nothing had happened.

"Alas, it seems this Li Yun is truly finished."

"Who says otherwise? They say the young are aggressive, and Li Yun is a sword cultivator, so he should have a sharp and murderous personality. Yet, facing this kind of challenge, he does not even dare to respond. Is he not completely terrified of Xiao Ziming?"

"His strength might be lacking, but being this cowardly is truly disappointing. For someone like this to be compared with Yan Wuhen is simply laughable."

Seeing this, everyone could not help shaking their heads, their faces filled with disappointment.

Coincidentally, there was a pair of brothers on the Floating Island this time. The elder brother was at the Half-Step Heavenly Core Realm, while the younger brother was at the peak of Earthly Core Realm.

"Little brother, did you see that?"

The elder brother shook his head and said, "Remember this. On the path of cultivation, you must proceed one step at a time. You must never aim too high or show off for temporary fame. This Li Yun is a living example. You must never learn from him."

"Yes."

The younger brother nodded in agreement, and a flash of disdain appeared in his eyes as he looked at Li Yun.

To think that he had once believed this person was quite powerful and had even admired him. He had not expected that Li Yun was not a genius at all, but merely useless trash.

The crowd did not hide their discussions, and their words entered Li Yun’s ears one after another. However, no matter how they spoke of him, Li Yun’s expression remained incredibly calm from beginning to end.

He did not care about the crowd’s contempt. To him, mastering the first three strikes of Soul Suppressing Nine Strikes as soon as possible was the proper path. Before that, he should keep as low a profile as possible.

On the twelfth day after entering the third floor, Li Yun conducted his fourth match.

In this match, Li Yun spent a full hour before finally defeating his opponent.

"Useless trash."

Xiao Ziming stood on a floating island on the fourth floor and sneered. "To waste so much time defeating an ordinary Half-Step Heavenly Core Realm opponent. A piece of trash like this, I could slap an entire group of them to death with one hand."

He curled his lip and said proudly, "Unfortunately, such trash does not even have the qualifications to climb to the fourth floor and fight me."

Li Yun’s expression remained calm, as if he had not heard Xiao Ziming’s words at all.

On the fifteenth day, Li Yun finally mastered the second strike of Soul Suppressing Nine Strikes. With this second strike, he could unleash a fourfold increase in power, whether through his physical body or his swordsmanship.

If he mastered the third strike, he could unleash a full ninefold increase in power, which would be equivalent to the power of the Seven Slaughter Fist at perfection. Of course, that would be without using his Slaughter Sword Intent.

On the same day, Li Yun faced his fifth opponent. This time, he spent relatively less time and took a little more than a quarter of an hour to defeat his opponent.

"Heh."

Xiao Ziming’s eyes were playful as he smiled faintly. "This kid’s strength has improved a little. But then again, even a pig would learn something after staying on the Floating Island for so long."

With his hands behind his back, he said proudly, "Kid, I am actually hoping now that you can make it to the fourth floor of the Floating Island. That way, I can slap you to death myself."