chà bu duō liǎng nián bàn yǐ qián ， xiào lǜ zuì kuài de zhèn fǎ shī men jiù yǐ jīng wán chéng le zì jǐ fù zé qū yù de suǒ líng zhèn de jiàn zào 。
差不多两年半以前，效率最快的阵法师们就已经完成了自己负责区域的锁灵阵的建造。
About two and a half years ago, the most efficient array masters had already completed their assigned regions' lock spirit arrays.
yǒu de xuǎn zé xiē xī 。
有的选择歇息。
Some chose to rest.
yǒu de zé shì wèi le dà bǐ jī fēn ， qián wǎng zhèn fǎ wèi wán chéng zhī dì zhī yuán 。
有的则是为了大比积分，前往阵法未完成之地支援。
Others went to support unfinished areas in hopes of earning points for the grand competition.
bù guò xiàng wǔ xíng dà dòng tiān zhè zhǒng jī mì yào dì ， zhè xiē nián qīng de zhèn fǎ shī hái shì méi yǒu zī gé lái de 。
不过像五行大洞天这种机密要地，这些年轻的阵法师还是没有资格来的。
However, young array masters like those from the Five Elements Great Caverns were not qualified to come here. Li Fan was fortunate enough to arrive due to his connection with Chief Lu and the sudden change in the sky's void in Tianlin State.
lǐ fán yě shì kào zhuó lù shǒu xí de guān xì ， yǐ jí tiān líng zhōu xū kōng de tū biàn ， cái yǒu xìng lái dào zhè lǐ 。
李凡也是靠着陆首席的关系，以及天灵州虚空的突变，才有幸来到这里。
Who would have thought that after two years, the place Li Fan had been working so hard to reach could now be entered simply by applying for it?
shuí céng xiǎng liǎng nián shí jiān guò qù ， lǐ fán chǔ xīn jī lǜ fāng néng dǐ dá zhī suǒ ， yǐ jīng biàn dé zhǐ yào tōng guò shēn qǐng ， jiù néng jìn rù le 。
谁曾想两年时间过去，李凡处心积虑方能抵达之所，已经变得只要通过申请，就能进入了。
"Ah, Fellow Daoist Li Fan! It's been a long time!"
“ zhè bú shì lǐ fán dào yǒu ma ， jiǔ yǎng jiǔ yǎng ！”
“这不是李凡道友嘛，久仰久仰！”
The young array master named Xiang Liu greeted Li Fan warmly.
míng jiào xiàng liǔ de nián qīng zhèn fǎ shī rè qíng de hé lǐ fán dǎ zhe zhāo hū 。
名叫项柳的年轻阵法师热情的和李凡打着招呼。
"Ever since you made such rapid progress in ranking two years ago and consistently ranked among the top three, everyone was talking about it."
“ zì cóng liǎng nián qián ， dào yǒu de pái míng tū fēi měng jìn ， wěn liè qián sān ， nà shì yǐn dé yī piàn huá rán 、 yì lùn fēn fēn 。”
“自从两年前，道友的排名突飞猛进，稳列前三，那是引得一片哗然、议论纷纷。”
"While we all know your achievements, there are many fellow daoists who have worked just as hard if not harder than you."
“ suī shuō dà jiā dōu zhī dào nǐ de shì jì ， dàn yào lùn pīn mìng chéng dù ， hái zhēn yǒu xǔ duō dào yǒu jué bù zài nǐ zhī xià 。”
“虽说大家都知道你的事迹，但要论拼命程度，还真有许多道友绝不在你之下。”
"At that time, people speculated that you must be responsible for building arrays in some extremely important caverns."
“ nà shí hòu ， zhòng rén jiù cāi cè ， dào yǒu nǐ yí dìng zài mǒu chù jí wéi zhòng yào de dòng tiān fù zé jiàn zào fǎ zhèn 。”
“那时候，众人就猜测，道友你一定在某处极为重要的洞天负责建造法阵。”
"Indeed!"
“ guǒ bù qí rán ！”
“果不其然！”
Xiang Liu looked at Li Fan with great admiration and no hint of jealousy.
xiàng liǔ kàn zhe lǐ fán ， shí fēn gǎn kǎi ， yǎn zhōng què méi yǒu jí dù zhī sè 。
项柳看着李凡，十分感慨，眼中却没有嫉妒之色。
Another array master named Gu Youguang could hardly hide his envy: "Fellow Daoist, your background must be quite deep to have the chance to come here."
ér lìng yī wèi jiào zuò gǔ yóu guāng de zhèn fǎ shī zé nán yǎn yǎn zhōng de xiàn mù ：“ xiǎng bì dào yǒu bèi jǐng shēn hòu ， cái néng yǒu jī huì lái rú cǐ zhòng dì 。”
而另一位叫做谷游光的阵法师则难掩眼中的羡慕：“想必道友背景深厚，才能有机会来如此重地。”
"The point system inside the Five Elements Great Caverns is more than triple that of the outside world!"
“ zhè wǔ xíng dòng tiān nèi de jī fēn huò qǔ ， kě shì xún cháng wài jiè sān bèi yǒu yú ！”
“这五行洞天内的积分获取，可是寻常外界三倍有余！”
Li Fan coughed weakly and said, "Ahem, Fellow Daoist, you've misunderstood. I came here by sheer luck, benefiting from Senior Huafu Song's efforts."
lǐ fán qīng ké yī shēng ， zuò chū xū ruò wú bǐ de yàng zi ：“ hē hē ， dào yǒu wù huì le 。 wǒ néng lái cǐ ， yě shì jī yuán qiǎo hé ， zhàn le huáng fǔ sōng qián bèi de guāng ér yǐ 。”
李凡轻咳一声，做出虚弱无比的样子：“呵呵，道友误会了。我能来此，也是机缘巧合，占了皇甫松前辈的光而已。”
"Besides, my time is running out; I'm due to return soon. What use are points or rankings to me?"
“ kuàng qiě ， wǒ rú jīn dà xiàn jiāng zhì ， bù rì jiù yào guī tiān 。 suǒ wèi de jī fēn 、 pái míng ， yòu duì wǒ yǒu hé yòng chù ？”
“况且，我如今大限将至，不日就要归天。所谓的积分、排名，又对我有何用处？”
"It makes no difference where I am."
“ wú lùn zài hé dì ， duì wǒ lái shuō ， qū bié dōu bù dà 。”
“无论在何地，对我来说，区别都不大。”
"As long as the sky's void lock spirit arrays are being built."
“ zhǐ yào shì zài jìn xíng tiān xuán suǒ líng zhèn de jiàn zào jiù xíng le 。”
“只要是在进行天玄锁灵阵的建造就行了。”
Xiang Liu and Gu Youguang quickly put on serious faces upon hearing this.
xiàng liǔ hé gǔ yóu guāng wén yán ， jù shì shōu qǐ liǎn shàng de xī xiào de shén qíng ， biàn dé yán sù wú bǐ 。
项柳和谷游光闻言，俱是收起脸上的嬉笑的神情，变得严肃无比。
"Fellow Daoist, your actions truly deserve admiration."
“ dào yǒu suǒ zuò suǒ wéi ， shí zài ràng rén qīn pèi 。”
“道友所作所为，实在让人钦佩。”
"That's why, despite all the speculations about you ranking second in the outside world, few people are unhappy with it."
“ zhè yě shì wèi shén me ， wài jiè suī rán duì yú nǐ míng liè dì èr ， yǒu zhǒng zhǒng cāi cè 。 dàn shì què méi yǒu duō shǎo rén bù mǎn de yuán yīn 。”
“这也是为什么，外界虽然对于伱名列第二，有种种猜测。但是却没有多少人不满的原因。”
Li Fan didn't expect the point system inside the Five Elements Great Caverns to be so high.
lǐ fán yě méi xiǎng dào ， zhè wǔ xíng dòng tiān nèi de jī fēn jiā chéng rú cǐ zhī gāo 。
李凡也没想到，这五行洞天内的积分加成如此之高。
---
zài jiā shàng liǎng nián duō yǐ lái zì jǐ yī kè bù tíng ， xīn qín láo zuò 。
再加上两年多以来自己一刻不停，辛勤劳作。
For over two years, he had worked tirelessly.
jū rán néng zài dà bǐ jīn bǎng zhōng pái míng dì èr 。
居然能在大比金榜中排名第二。
He ended up ranking second on the grand competition's golden list.
“ dì yī shì shuí ？” lǐ fán bù jīn yǒu xiē hào qí de wèn dào 。
“第一是谁？”李凡不禁有些好奇的问道。
"Who is first?" Li Fan asked curiously.
“ hái néng shì shuí ？ bù jiù shì nà ge guō yě zhǒng ？” gǔ yóu guāng shì yǒu xiē bù xiè ， shí fēn bǐ yí dì shuō dào 。
“还能是谁？不就是那个郭野种？”谷游光似有些不屑，十分鄙夷地说道。
"It must be that Guo Ye Zhong," Gu Youguang said with a hint of disdain. "He's just lucky."
“ gǔ xiōng ， shèn yán ……” xiàng liǔ kàn le yǎn gǔ yóu guāng ， suí hòu jiě shì dào ：“ rú jīn wěn zuò dì yì míng de ， jiù shì yuán běn de dào shǔ bǎng wěi ， guō yè zhòng dào yǒu le 。” xiàng liǔ yǒu xiē wú nài de shuō dào 。
“谷兄，慎言……”项柳看了眼谷游光，随后解释道：“如今稳坐第一名的，就是原本的倒数榜尾，郭叶仲道友了。”项柳有些无奈的说道。
"Fellow Daoist Gu, be careful with your words..." Xiang Liu glanced at Gu Youguang before explaining, "The current top-ranked fellow daoist is actually the one who was originally last on the list, Fellow Daoist Guo Ye Zhong."
“ guō yè zhòng ……” lǐ fán mù guāng wēi shǎn ， míng zhī gù wèn dào ：“ cǐ rén wèi hé néng cóng zuì hòu yī míng nì xí dì yī ？ ér qiě kàn gǔ xiōng de yǔ qì ……”
“郭叶仲……”李凡目光微闪，明知故问道：“此人为何能从最后一名逆袭第一？而且看谷兄的语气……”
"Guo Ye Zhong..."
bù děng xiàng liǔ jiě shì ， gǔ yóu guāng biàn qiǎng zhe shuō dào ：“ tā hái yǒu shén me běn shì ？ bù jiù shì kào zhe yùn qì hǎo bei 。 jù shuō dāng chū tiān líng zhōu yī zhàn hòu ， shì tā zuì xiān tí chū le tiān xuán suǒ líng zhèn de xiǎng fǎ 。 suǒ yǐ měi yī zuò suǒ líng zhèn jiàn lì ， dōu yǒu tā de yī fèn gōng láo 。 tā jiù néng huò dé yī bǐ bù xiǎo de jī fēn jiǎng shǎng 。”
不等项柳解释，谷游光便抢着说道：“他还有什么本事？不就是靠着运气好呗。据说当初天灵州一战后，是他最先提出了天玄锁灵阵的想法。所以每一座锁灵阵建立，都有他的一份功劳。他就能获得一笔不小的积分奖赏。”
Li Fan's eyes flickered. He asked knowingly, "Why did this person manage to rise from last place to first? And by the tone of your voice..."
“ ér suí zhe xiàn zài zhèn fǎ yuè jiàn yuè duō ， zì rán yě jiù wú rén néng chāo yuè tā le 。”
“而随着现在阵法越建越多，自然也就无人能超越他了。”
Before Xiang Liu could explain, Gu Youguang interrupted: "What does he have that others don't? Just luck, I suppose. It’s said that after the battle in Tianlin State, it was his idea for the sky's void lock spirit arrays. So every time an array is built, he gets a share of the credit and points."
gǔ yóu guāng pǒ wèi bù fèn dì dào ：“ qí shí zhè yě méi shén me 。 bì jìng tā dí què duì zhèn fǎ dàn shēng yǒu zhe gòng xiàn 。 zhēn zhèng yǐn qǐ zhòng nù de ， shì tā zhàng zhe zì jǐ yǐ jīng suǒ huò dé de yōu shì ， tǎng zhe qǔ shèng ， shèn zhì bù yuàn zài duō chū yī fēn lì 。 shì zhū wèi dào yǒu de nǔ lì wèi wán wù ， jiàn tà wǒ děng pīn mìng de yì yì ……”
谷游光颇为不忿地道：“其实这也没什么。毕竟他的确对阵法诞生有着贡献。真正引起众怒的，是他仗着自己已经所获得的优势，躺着取胜，甚至不愿再多出一分力。视诸位道友的努力为玩物，践踏我等拼命的意义……”
"As more and more arrays are constructed, no one can surpass him now."
jiàn gǔ yóu guāng yuè shuō yuè guò fèn ， xiàng liǔ lián máng jiāng qí dǎ duàn ：“ qí shí ， guō dào yǒu hái shì tǐng bù cuò de ， kě wèi shì tiān zòng qí cái 。 jù shuō ， tā bù jǐn jǐn zhǐ shì tí chū le suǒ líng zhèn de xiǎng fǎ ， ér shì qīn zì shè jì bìng chuàng zào le suǒ líng zhèn de chú xíng 。”
见谷游光越说越过分，项柳连忙将其打断：“其实，郭道友还是挺不错的，可谓是天纵奇才。据说，他不仅仅只是提出了锁灵阵的想法，而是亲自设计并创造了锁灵阵的雏形。”
Gu Youguang grumbled, "That’s not the issue. He did contribute to the birth of these arrays. What really angered everyone was that he relied on his advantages, resting on his laurels, even refusing to put in extra effort. He treated our efforts as toys and trampled on the meaning of hard work..."
“ ér qiě ， xiān qián tā yì zhí líng jī fēn ， yě zhǐ shì bèi mǒu xiē jǐn yào shì dān gē le ér yǐ 。 fēi shì gù yì wèi zhī ……”
“而且，先前他一直零积分，也只是被某些紧要事耽搁了而已。非是故意为之……”
Seeing Gu Youguang's increasingly disrespectful tone, Xiang Liu quickly interrupted: "Actually, Fellow Daoist Guo is quite good; a true prodigy. It’s said that he not only proposed the idea for the lock spirit arrays but personally designed and created their prototype."
gǔ yóu guāng lěng hēng yī shēng ：“ shén me jù shuō ？ shuí xìn a ！ wǒ hái tīng shuō zhè xiē dōu shì yīn wèi tā yǒu gè hǎo diē ne ！”
谷游光冷哼一声：“什么据说？谁信啊！我还听说这些都是因为他有个好爹呢！”
"Moreover, his zero points earlier were just due to some urgent matters, not intentional..."
“ yǒu dào yǒu shàng mén zhǎo tā lǐ lùn ， tā fēi dàn méi yǒu kuì jiù zhī xīn 。 jū rán hái lǐ zhì qì zhuàng de zhì wèn ‘ zěn me ， nǐ bù fú qì ma ？’”
“有道友上门找他理论，他非但没有愧疚之心。居然还理智气壮的质问‘怎么，你不服气吗？’”
Gu Youguang sneered, "What 'said'? Who believes it? I heard it's because of a good father!"
“ zhēn shì wú chǐ zhì jí 。 xiǎng dào céng hé zhè zhǒng rén yī qí xué xí guò ， zhēn shì gǎn dào ě xīn ！”
“真是无耻至极。想到曾和这种人一齐学习过，真是感到恶心！”
"When Fellow Daoist approached him to argue, he didn’t even feel guilty. Instead, he asked with righteous indignation, ‘So you’rediscontent (displeased)?’"
xiàng liǔ jiān gǔ yóu guāng mǎn shì fèn mèn de shén qíng ， bù yóu kǔ xiào ， lián lián yáo tóu ， bù zài xiāng quàn 。
项柳间谷游光满是愤懑的神情，不由苦笑，连连摇头，不再相劝。
"Really shameless! Thinking about studying with such a person makes me sick."
“ guō yè zhòng 。” lǐ fán zài dù huí yì qǐ huán yǔ bié yuàn zhōng yǔ cǐ rén xiāng yù de qíng xíng 。“ hái zhēn shì wǒ kàn zǒu yǎn le ……”
“郭叶仲。”李凡再度回忆起寰宇别院中与此人相遇的情形。“还真是我看走眼了……”
Xiang Liu saw Gu Youguang's angry expression and couldn't help but chuckle, shaking his head in despair.
jiē xià lái xù jiù zhōng ， zài méi yǒu tí qǐ cǐ rén 。
接下来叙旧中，再没有提起此人。
"Guo Ye Zhong." Li Fan recalled their encounter at the All-World Academy. "I really misjudged him..."
zhǐ shì huí yì wǎng xī gòng tóng qiú xué shì de suì yuè ， lǐ fán xún wèn tā men zài wài jiè de jiàn wén 。
只是回忆往昔共同求学是的岁月，李凡询问他们在外界的见闻。
During their reunion, they didn’t mention this person again.
yī fān xián liáo hòu ， jiàn shí hòu yǐ jīng chà bu duō le 。
一番闲聊后，见时候已经差不多了。
Instead, they reminisced about their shared student days as Li Fan asked them about what they had seen outside.
èr rén biàn jiā rù jìn shuǐ dòng tiān de zhèn fǎ jiàn zào zhōng lái 。
二人便加入进水洞天的阵法建造中来。
After a brief chat, it was time to join in building the array for Water Cavern.
xiàng liǔ hé gǔ yóu guāng ， zhèn fǎ shuǐ píng yě bù zài lǐ fán zhī xià 。
项柳和谷游光，阵法水平也不在李凡之下。
Xiang Liu and Gu Youguang were no less skilled than Li Fan. With their help, progress accelerated significantly.
yǒu le tā men de xié zhù ， jìn dù dà dà jiā kuài 。
有了他们的协助，进度大大加快。
Moreover, many defenders accompanied them, each carrying a lustrous bottle-like treasure that could emit two parts of lustrous light from it.
ér qiě hé tā men yì qǐ zhī yuán ér lái de ， hái yǒu wèi shù yuàn de zhòng duō xiū shì 。
而且和他们一起支援而来的，还有卫戍院的众多修士。
This mystic light had purifying properties, making it highly effective against the fusion monsters in the Five Elements Great Caverns.
tā men dōu suí shēn xié dài le yī zhǒng liú lí píng zhuàng de fǎ bǎo ， kě cóng píng zhōng fàng chū 【 èr fēn liú lí guāng 】。
他们都随身携带了一种琉璃瓶状的法宝，可从瓶中放出【二分琉璃光】。
With no external threats, the overall progress of the sky's void lock spirit arrays increased daily.
cǐ zhǒng xuán guāng ， yǒu zhe qīng běn guī yuán de jìng huà gōng néng ， duì fù wǔ xíng dòng tiān nèi de róng hé guài wù ， yǒu zhe qí xiào 。
此种玄光，有着清本归源的净化功能，对付五行洞天内的融合怪物，有着奇效。
Four months later, it reached 99% completion.
méi yǒu le wài bù wēi xié ， tiān xuán suǒ líng zhèn de zhěng tǐ jiàn zào jìn dù ， yǔ rì jù zēng 。
没有了外部威胁，天玄锁灵阵的整体建造进度，与日俱增。
At the same time, the process of merging the five elements was nearing its end.
bù guò sì gè yuè hòu ， biàn dá dào le 99% jìn dù 。
不过四个月后，便达到了99%进度。
The inverted giant tree in the sky had countless branches deeply embedded into the azure waters below.
yǔ cǐ tóng shí ， wǔ xíng guī yī de jìn chéng yě kuài yào zuì zhōng lái lái lín 。
与此同时，五行归一的进程也快要最终来来临。
Strange, when water and wood first touched lightly, strange monsters kept appearing. But now that true fusion of wood and water attributes was happening, those peculiar creatures didn't appear anymore.
tiān kōng zhōng de dào xuán jù shù ， yǐ jīng yǒu wú shù zhī yā ， shēn shēn de chā rù jìn wèi lán de shuǐ yù zhōng 。
天空中的倒悬巨树，已经有无数枝桠，深深的插入进蔚蓝的水域中。
But as Li Fan looked at the green branches stained blue, he suddenly saw the fragmented figures again.
shuō lái yě qí guài ， zuì kāi shǐ shuǐ mù zhǐ shì qīng wēi jiē chù zhī shí ， huì bù duàn yǒu yì biàn de guài wù chǎn shēng 。
说来也奇怪，最开始水木只是轻微接触之时，会不断有异变的怪物产生。
"Fellow Daoist Li Fan, it's time to evacuate."
cǐ shí yíng lái zhēn zhèng de mù 、 shuǐ shǔ xìng xiāng róng hé ， nà xiē guǐ yì de zào wù fǎn dào shì bù céng chū xiàn le 。
此时迎来真正的木、水属性相融合，那些诡异的造物反倒是不曾出现了。
Xiang Liu reminded him when Li Fan seemed lost in thought.
zhǐ shì lǐ fán kàn zhe bèi lán shuǐ zhān rǎn de lǜ zhī ， yǎn qián hū yòu fú xiàn le nà xiē cán quē bù quán de rén yǐng 。
只是李凡看着被蓝水沾染的绿枝，眼前忽又浮现了那些残缺不全的人影。
Li Fan nodded slightly and unfolded his Heaven-Evasion Shuttle towards the giant dust-boat appearing in the sky.
“ lǐ fán dào yǒu ， gāi shì chè lí de shí hòu 。”
“李凡道友，该是撤离的时候。”
The remaining work wouldn't need their help from here on out.
xiàng liǔ kàn zhe yǒu xiē chū shén de lǐ fán ， chū shēng tí xǐng dào 。
项柳看着有些出神的李凡，出声提醒道。
As countless daoists returned to the dust-boat, dark figures flew back to various array nodes they had built earlier.
lǐ fán wēi wēi diǎn tóu ， zhǎn kāi dùn tiān suō ， cháo zhe tiān kōng zhōng nà sōu zài dù chū xiàn de jù dà dù chén zhōu ér qù 。
李凡微微点头，展开遁天梭，朝着天空中那艘再度出现的巨大渡尘舟而去。
They would use Eternal Tribulation Golden to protect the key structures of the lock spirit arrays.
jiē xià lái de gōng zuò ， jiù bù xū yào tā men zhè xiē zhèn fǎ shī le 。
接下来的工作，就不需要他们这些阵法师了。
Once everything was set and the Heaven-Evasion Mirror installed, the sky's void lock spirit array for the Five Elements Great Caverns would be completely constructed.
zài wú shù xiū shì fǎn huí dù chén zhōu de tóng shí ， yī dào dào qī hēi de shēn yǐng ， nì zhe zhòng rén ， fēi xiàng xiān qián jiàn zào de gè gè zhèn fǎ jié diǎn 。
在无数修士返回渡尘舟的同时，一道道漆黑的身影，逆着众人，飞向先前建造的各个阵法节点。
"Let’s hope nothing goes wrong," Li Fan thought as he returned to the dust-boat.
tā men jiāng huì yòng 【 yǒng jié jīng jīn 】， jiāng suǒ líng zhèn de guān jiàn jié gòu bǎo hù qǐ lái 。
他们将会用【永劫精金】，将锁灵阵的关键结构保护起来。
"Pupil, what do you think this cavern will look like after the five elements merge?" A young child's curious voice echoed in his ears.
děng dào yī qiè jiù xù ， ān zhì tiān xuán jìng miàn ， lǒng zhào wǔ xíng dà dòng tiān de suǒ líng zhèn jiù suàn chè dǐ jiàn zào wán chéng le 。
等到一切就绪，安置天玄镜面，笼罩五行大洞天的锁灵阵就算彻底建造完成了。
(End of Chapter)
About two and a half years ago, the most efficient array masters had already completed their assigned regions' lock spirit arrays.
Some chose to rest.
Others went to support unfinished areas in hopes of earning points for the grand competition.
However, young array masters like those from the Five Elements Great Caverns were not qualified to come here. Li Fan was fortunate enough to arrive due to his connection with Chief Lu and the sudden change in the sky's void in Tianlin State.
Who would have thought that after two years, the place Li Fan had been working so hard to reach could now be entered simply by applying for it?
"Ah, Fellow Daoist Li Fan! It's been a long time!"
The young array master named Xiang Liu greeted Li Fan warmly.
"Ever since you made such rapid progress in ranking two years ago and consistently ranked among the top three, everyone was talking about it."
"While we all know your achievements, there are many fellow daoists who have worked just as hard if not harder than you."
"At that time, people speculated that you must be responsible for building arrays in some extremely important caverns."
"Indeed!"
Xiang Liu looked at Li Fan with great admiration and no hint of jealousy.
Another array master named Gu Youguang could hardly hide his envy: "Fellow Daoist, your background must be quite deep to have the chance to come here."
"The point system inside the Five Elements Great Caverns is more than triple that of the outside world!"
Li Fan coughed weakly and said, "Ahem, Fellow Daoist, you've misunderstood. I came here by sheer luck, benefiting from Senior Huafu Song's efforts."
"Besides, my time is running out; I'm due to return soon. What use are points or rankings to me?"
"It makes no difference where I am."
"As long as the sky's void lock spirit arrays are being built."
Xiang Liu and Gu Youguang quickly put on serious faces upon hearing this.
"Fellow Daoist, your actions truly deserve admiration."
"That's why, despite all the speculations about you ranking second in the outside world, few people are unhappy with it."
Li Fan didn't expect the point system inside the Five Elements Great Caverns to be so high.
---
For over two years, he had worked tirelessly.
He ended up ranking second on the grand competition's golden list.
"Who is first?" Li Fan asked curiously.
"It must be that Guo Ye Zhong," Gu Youguang said with a hint of disdain. "He's just lucky."
"Fellow Daoist Gu, be careful with your words..." Xiang Liu glanced at Gu Youguang before explaining, "The current top-ranked fellow daoist is actually the one who was originally last on the list, Fellow Daoist Guo Ye Zhong."
"Guo Ye Zhong..."
Li Fan's eyes flickered. He asked knowingly, "Why did this person manage to rise from last place to first? And by the tone of your voice..."
Before Xiang Liu could explain, Gu Youguang interrupted: "What does he have that others don't? Just luck, I suppose. It’s said that after the battle in Tianlin State, it was his idea for the sky's void lock spirit arrays. So every time an array is built, he gets a share of the credit and points."
"As more and more arrays are constructed, no one can surpass him now."
Gu Youguang grumbled, "That’s not the issue. He did contribute to the birth of these arrays. What really angered everyone was that he relied on his advantages, resting on his laurels, even refusing to put in extra effort. He treated our efforts as toys and trampled on the meaning of hard work..."
Seeing Gu Youguang's increasingly disrespectful tone, Xiang Liu quickly interrupted: "Actually, Fellow Daoist Guo is quite good; a true prodigy. It’s said that he not only proposed the idea for the lock spirit arrays but personally designed and created their prototype."
"Moreover, his zero points earlier were just due to some urgent matters, not intentional..."
Gu Youguang sneered, "What 'said'? Who believes it? I heard it's because of a good father!"
"When Fellow Daoist approached him to argue, he didn’t even feel guilty. Instead, he asked with righteous indignation, ‘So you’rediscontent (displeased)?’"
"Really shameless! Thinking about studying with such a person makes me sick."
Xiang Liu saw Gu Youguang's angry expression and couldn't help but chuckle, shaking his head in despair.
"Guo Ye Zhong." Li Fan recalled their encounter at the All-World Academy. "I really misjudged him..."
During their reunion, they didn’t mention this person again.
Instead, they reminisced about their shared student days as Li Fan asked them about what they had seen outside.
After a brief chat, it was time to join in building the array for Water Cavern.
Xiang Liu and Gu Youguang were no less skilled than Li Fan. With their help, progress accelerated significantly.
Moreover, many defenders accompanied them, each carrying a lustrous bottle-like treasure that could emit two parts of lustrous light from it.
This mystic light had purifying properties, making it highly effective against the fusion monsters in the Five Elements Great Caverns.
With no external threats, the overall progress of the sky's void lock spirit arrays increased daily.
Four months later, it reached 99% completion.
At the same time, the process of merging the five elements was nearing its end.
The inverted giant tree in the sky had countless branches deeply embedded into the azure waters below.
Strange, when water and wood first touched lightly, strange monsters kept appearing. But now that true fusion of wood and water attributes was happening, those peculiar creatures didn't appear anymore.
But as Li Fan looked at the green branches stained blue, he suddenly saw the fragmented figures again.
"Fellow Daoist Li Fan, it's time to evacuate."
Xiang Liu reminded him when Li Fan seemed lost in thought.
Li Fan nodded slightly and unfolded his Heaven-Evasion Shuttle towards the giant dust-boat appearing in the sky.
The remaining work wouldn't need their help from here on out.
As countless daoists returned to the dust-boat, dark figures flew back to various array nodes they had built earlier.
They would use Eternal Tribulation Golden to protect the key structures of the lock spirit arrays.
Once everything was set and the Heaven-Evasion Mirror installed, the sky's void lock spirit array for the Five Elements Great Caverns would be completely constructed.
"Let’s hope nothing goes wrong," Li Fan thought as he returned to the dust-boat.
"Pupil, what do you think this cavern will look like after the five elements merge?" A young child's curious voice echoed in his ears.
(End of Chapter)