After Han Li left Chenyang's residence, he quickly returned to his room and carefully read through the information that Chenyang had given him.

Chenyang had obviously prepared for this and put in a lot of effort. The information was very comprehensive, listing the cultivation methods and special abilities of the experts in other cities, and even detailed records of the battles they had participated in, which was very valuable.

Time passed little by little, and a full three hours later.

Han Li put down the last page of information, raised his head, and a thoughtful look flashed in his eyes.

He now had a general understanding of the strength of the people in each city.

After sitting quietly for a moment, Han Li took out an object from his bosom, which was the statue with three heads and six arms, and placed it in front of him.

Then he took out a jade box, which contained a white beast core, the Heavenly-Grade Beast Core that Chenyang had given him earlier.

Now there were still three months before the Martial Arts Competition, and although this time was not long, he did not want to waste it.

Han Li took a deep breath, and a crystalline light shot out from between his eyebrows and entered the black statue.

The black statue immediately began to gesticulate, making various movements, and dense Heavenly Fiend Suppressing Prison Skill runes appeared on the back of the statue.

Han Li looked at these tiny words, about to take out the beast core to cultivate, when his eyebrows suddenly raised, and he looked at the black statue in front of him.

He was not looking at the words on the statue, but at the statue's movements.

Since obtaining the black statue, he had always focused on the Heavenly Fiend Suppressing Prison Skill, and had not paid attention to the movements the statue made. Crablord had not mentioned it to him either, so he had always ignored them.

The twelve movements that the black statue made should not be random.

Han Li looked at the movements that the black statue kept making, his face showing a contemplative look. After a moment, he suddenly lay down on the ground, with his left hand behind his head, his right foot raised, and his body leaning backward, imitating the first movement of the statue.

As soon as he made this posture, his eyes suddenly widened.

…

Three months passed quickly, and the day of the Five Cities Martial Arts Competition finally approached.

In the City Lord's Mansion, in the reception hall of Chenyang's residence, many people from Qingyang City were gathered.

These people all showed excited expressions on their faces, talking non-stop, obviously looking forward to the upcoming Five Cities Martial Arts Competition.

However, in addition to the excitement, there was also a subtle atmosphere in the room.

Tomorrow was the day of the Five Institutes Martial Arts Competition, and according to what Chenyang had said earlier, the list of participants would be announced later.

This time, Chenyang had brought over seventeen or eighteen people from Qingyang City, most of whom were the chief Xuan Fighters from each district, but the number of participants was only twelve, and a small number of people would be eliminated.

Those who failed to participate also meant that they missed this Martial Arts Competition, not only losing the opportunity to shine and make a name for themselves, but also losing the opportunity to win the various rewards set up for the Martial Arts Competition.

More importantly, as long as they passed the first round of the elimination round in the Martial Arts Competition, those who bore the status of slaves could regain their freedom, and whether or not they wanted to stay in the Xuan Fighting Arena afterward was entirely voluntary.

Therefore, for thousands of years, many people had tried everything possible to improve their strength and status, just to be able to participate in this Five Cities Martial Arts Competition one day.

At this time, eleven or twelve people had already arrived in the room. Yi Liya sat in the center of the room, surrounded by Tu Gang, Sun Binghe, and several others like stars surrounding the moon.

The others in the room were either in groups of two or three, or sitting alone quietly.

Although Du Long was also in the room, he was not staying by Yi Liya's side at the moment, but sitting alone to the side.

He looked at Yi Liya from time to time, his expression somewhat complicated, with some annoyance, and some longing. He wanted to get up and walk over several times, but each time, someone next to Yi Liya would look over, their eyes with a hint of coldness, stopping Du Long from approaching.

Du Long tried to go over several times and was rejected, and finally sat down obediently.

At this moment, a steady sound of footsteps came, and everyone in the room looked out.

A figure appeared outside, it was Han Li.

Compared to three months ago, his figure seemed to have thinned down a bit, and traces of bones could be seen on his hands and feet. The whole person faintly exuded a majestic and sharp aura.

When Yi Liya saw Han Li, his brow furrowed slightly, and a light seemed to flash in his eyes.

The others next to him noticed Han Li, and their expressions also changed slightly.

Han Li glanced at everyone in the room, walked to a corner of the room and sat down.

The people in the room seemed to not have seen Han Li at all, and no one greeted him.

Han Li did not care about this, and closed his eyes to rest after sitting down.

Although he was alone, he did not feel suppressed by the others in the room at all, but rather had a sense of being aloof.

Du Long looked at Han Li, his eyes flashing. After a moment, he seemed to have made some kind of decision and got up and walked over.

Yi Liya and the others next to him frowned when they saw this scene.

"Fellow Daoist Li, long time no see." Du Long sat down next to Han Li and greeted him warmly.

Han Li opened his eyes, looked at Du Long, glanced at Yi Liya and the others in the distance, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth: "So it's Fellow Daoist Du Long, long time no see."

"Tomorrow is the Five Institutes Martial Arts Competition. Seeing Fellow Daoist Li so calm, you must be confident." Du Long chuckled and said flatteringly.

"Where, Li is just participating in such a big event for the first time, and is a little at a loss." Han Li said lightly with a smile.

"Haha, Fellow Daoist Li is really joking." Du Long laughed.

The two of them chatted as if no one else was there.

Yi Liya saw this scene from afar, a cold light flashed in his eyes, and he was about to say something.

At this moment, another burst of footsteps came, and two graceful figures walked in, it was Gu Qianxun, and Yao Li, who was always by her side.

A layer of crystal light faintly appeared on Gu Qianxun's face, and she seemed to have changed a bit from before.

"Fellow Daoist Gu, you have been in seclusion for these days, it seems that you have made some progress. This time in the Martial Arts Competition, you will surely be able to go further." Yi Liya immediately stood up, greeted her, and said with a smile.

"Fellow Daoist Yi is too kind." Gu Qianxun glanced at Yi Liya lightly, and her beautiful eyes swept towards other places in the room.

Her eyes suddenly lit up, she nodded slightly to Yi Liya, and walked towards Han Li's location.

When Yi Liya saw this scene, his handsome face suddenly stiffened, a trace of iron green appeared on his face, and he slowly sat back in his seat.

"Fellow Daoist Li, don't mind if I sit here, right?" Gu Qianxun walked to Han Li's side, pointed to a seat next to him, and said with a light smile.

"Of course, Fellow Daoist Gu, please sit." Han Li smiled brightly.

Gu Qianxun sat down next to Han Li, and Yao Li pouted slightly, but still sat down next to Gu Qianxun.

Du Long's eyes flashed with a hint of surprise when he saw this scene.

"Tomorrow is the Five Cities Martial Arts Competition, I wonder how Fellow Daoist Li is preparing, are you confident?" Gu Qianxun asked with a smile, her words implying something.

"The Five Institutes Martial Arts Competition has many strong opponents, how can Li's little ability be enough? I will just try my best." Han Li knew what Gu Qianxun meant, and said with a faint smile.

"If there is anything you need my help with, Fellow Daoist Li, don't be polite, just tell me directly." Gu Qianxun said, her beautiful eyes flickering slightly.

"Then thank you Fellow Daoist Gu in advance." Han Li nodded slightly in salute.

Du Long and Yao Li were both puzzled when they heard the conversation between the two, but they were both tactful enough not to ask.

Time passed little by little, and the others in Qingyang City came one after another. The last person to arrive was the one-horned burly man, Xuan Yuanxing.

This person did not rush to Yi Liya's side like the others, but just nodded slightly to Gu Qianxun and Han Li, and then found an open space by himself and stood with his hands behind his back.

Han Li looked at the referee of the Qingyang City Xuan Fighting Arena, and felt a little puzzled in his heart, but then he understood.

After all, there was no rule that prohibited the referee of the Xuan Fighting Arena from participating in the Five Cities Martial Arts Competition.

"Hehe, I've kept you waiting." Chenyang walked out of the inner room and said with a hearty laugh, his expression seeming quite happy.

"Greetings, City Lord." Everyone bowed and saluted.

"There's no need to be so polite." Chenyang waved his hand and said, then sat down on the main seat.

"Tomorrow is the day of the Five Cities Martial Arts Competition, has everyone prepared well?" Chenyang's face turned solemn, his eyes looked at everyone in turn, and he asked slowly.

"City Lord, rest assured, we have already prepared everything." Yi Liya glanced at Gu Qianxun and said firmly.

The others also responded in unison, their momentum was really like a rainbow, causing the entire reception hall to shake.

Because the city lord changed, the high-level officials of Qingyang City almost had a major reshuffle. Most of the people who came this time were newcomers, and they were very confident in their own strength. Only Xiong Pi and a few others who had participated in the last Martial Arts Competition were silent.

"That's good. Next, I will announce the list of personnel participating in this Martial Arts Competition." Chenyang nodded with a smile on his face, and continued to say, but there was a different meaning in the depths of his eyes.

Hearing this, everyone's body shook, and a nervous look appeared on their faces.

"First, Gu Qianxun, second, Li Feiyu, third, Yi Liya, next are Tu Gang, Sun Binghe, Xiong Pi… Du Long, and Xuan Yuanxing!" Chenyang paused, and then announced twelve names in one breath.

Hearing these names, everyone in the room had different expressions. Some showed joy, and some sighed with disappointment.

Gu Qianxun and Han Li's expressions were calm, and there was not much change, as if they were not surprised by the result.

Yao Li's pretty face sank when she was not within the twelve spots, but Du Long breathed a sigh of relief.

Yi Liya frowned, glanced at Han Li, a cold light flashed in his eyes, obviously he was quite concerned about the fact that his ranking in Chenyang's mouth was ahead of Han Li.

"This Martial Arts Competition is very important to our Qingyang City. The twelve people on the list must strive to be the best. If anyone enters the top four, in addition to the rewards for the Martial Arts Competition, this City Lord will give additional rewards!" Chenyang said solemnly.

"Yes!" Everyone present agreed in unison.

"Alright, tomorrow is the Martial Arts Competition, you all go back and rest, and make the final preparations! Li Feiyu, you stay." Chenyang said.

Hearing this, everyone in the room looked at Han Li, showing a look of surprise, and then they all got up and left.

The coldness in Yi Liya's eyes became heavier, and he stood up and left abruptly.

Soon, only Han Li and Chenyang were left in the room.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, did you leave me here because there are results regarding Ziling and Shi Kong?" Han Li asked directly.

"That's right. In these three months, I have sent people to search diligently, and finally found some clues." Chenyang said this, but his expression was slightly unnatural.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, please speak." Han Li's heart moved, and he stared at Chenyang's eyes.