Nineteen times!

Zhang Yuan forcefully broke through his previous limits and reached an unprecedented state.

His height shot up by more than a foot, and his physique became extremely robust. The Qi Blood within him boiled, power surged, and the taut skin displayed a bronze hue.

Dark qilin patterns silently appeared.

The temperature in the Quiet Chamber rapidly rose, and invisible Qi Force surged back and forth in the confined space.

Even at this point, Zhang Yuan wasn’t satisfied.

"Hah!"

He suddenly let out a deep shout, and the joints of his whole body exploded once again.

Twenty times power enhancement!

The next moment, Zhang Yuan couldn’t help but let out a muffled groan, as traces of blood seeped from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.

Rip!

The robe tightly wrapped around his body instantly exploded into countless fragments, fluttering in the air.

It was like a snowfall in the Quiet Chamber.

Gray snow!

In Zhang Yuan’s eyes, a sharp glint flashed. He took a deep breath, releasing the augmenting power of the Black Giant Ant.

His body swiftly returned to normal, and the turbulent Qi Blood within him calmed down.

Zhang Yuan couldn’t help but exhale a long breath.

The first host of the Divine Nest, the Black Giant Ant, had long since advanced to Level 5, capable of unleashing up to thirty-two times strength.

But this was only on paper.

Because Zhang Yuan’s physique, or rather his bodily constitution, simply couldn’t bear such an immense power enhancement.

Due to the limitations of a Martial Artist’s physique, he once thought the Black Giant Ant had no need to evolve further.

Until he trained in the "Six Harmonies Qilin Body," a Horizontal Cultivation Technique.

The "Six Harmonies Qilin Body" was strong in defense and recovery, but after Zhang Yuan broke through the Realm of Minor Achievement, he discovered that this technique was incredibly compatible with the Black Giant Ant’s superpower.

The "Six Harmonies Qilin Body" significantly raised the upper limit of power enhancement.

This is why Zhang Yuan didn’t hesitate to invest vast resources to upgrade this "pay-to-win" technique.

And the "Six Harmonies Qilin Body" didn’t disappoint him.

The current Zhang Yuan could already raise the Black Giant Ant’s power enhancement limit to twenty times.

Don’t underestimate the difference between twenty and eighteen times; on the surface, it’s only a twofold difference.

But advancing further is the hardest when you’re already at your peak.

At crucial moments, being just a bit stronger than your opponent determines life and death!

At this moment, Zhang Yuan’s heart was filled with immense joy.

He had a hundred percent confidence in facing the upcoming competition for the Martial Pavilion External Guardian position.

Time flew by, and soon it was the selection day.

At the break of dawn, Zhang Yuan woke up from his deepest sleep state.

After a simple wash, he donned a new set of loose robes and went out to have a hearty breakfast.

Then he hurried towards Chessboard Peak.

It wasn’t Zhang Yuan’s first visit to Chessboard Peak; he had been there last time accompanying Su Jingyao for the Nine Peaks Grand Competition.

This time could be considered as revisiting an old place.

There was only a narrow path up the peak, and on the way, Zhang Yuan encountered many Martial Artists participating in the selection just like him.

Upon reaching the peak, Zhang Yuan felt slightly disappointed.

Because, besides the crowd of participants and spectators, he didn’t see the airship that had left such a profound impression on him. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

It was estimated that these sect treasures were all hidden in the Secret Vault.

Zhang Yuan found a place to sit, waiting quietly.

As time passed, more and more Martial Artists appeared on Chessboard Peak, and the atmosphere gradually became tense.

Shortly after mid-morning, a Martial Pavilion Elder announced the official start of this year’s External Guardian selection.

Then came the first round of match draw!

"First Arena, First Match, Sun Ze versus Zhang Nanxiao!"

"Second Arena, First Match, Zhu Yuanjiang versus Sun Haofei!

"Third Arena, First Match..."

To Upper Scenic Celestial, the selection of Martial Pavilion External Guardians was merely a trivial event.

Thus the process was very simple, with matches drawn publicly and held on the spot, with winners advancing to the next round of drawing.

Until three of the strongest were selected.

But since hundreds of outsider Martial Artists participated in the selection, it was quite lively.

Zhang Yuan, like others, listened carefully with ears pricked up.

The first round results included fifty selected participants, with Zhang Yuan not among them.

Zhang Yuan wasn’t disappointed, intending to observe others’ matches first.

Chessboard Peak was strewn with stone platforms of all sizes; the largest could even accommodate the takeoff and landing of airships, so setting aside twenty to thirty as arenas posed no problem.

Upper Scenic Celestial had dispatched sect Martial Artists, including several Dharma Transmission Elders, to serve as judges for the selection matches.

Those Martial Artists whose names were drawn in the first round ascended their respective arenas.

Intense battles were imminent.

"Oh!"

At that moment, a Little Daoist Child hurriedly ran past Zhang Yuan but staggered, nearly falling.

Without hesitation, Zhang Yuan immediately reached out to support the child, preventing him from a painful fall.

"Thank you, Senior Brother!"

The reckless Little Daoist Child steadied himself, blushing as he bowed to Zhang Yuan.

"You’re welcome."

Zhang Yuan smiled and said, "Be careful."

The Little Daoist Child nodded, quickly running off and disappearing without a trace.

Everyone’s attention was focused on the arenas, so this unexpected small incident didn’t draw any attention.

Zhang Yuan calmly sat back down, looking around.

Once he confirmed no one was watching, he quietly unfolded a slip of paper he held.

The slip of paper was secretly passed to him by the Little Daoist Child he had helped earlier!

The paper had only six words written on it.

Be careful, Yang Family, Tier Six!

Zhang Yuan’s mind raced, instantly understanding.

Someone was warning him that the Yang Family would send a Tier Six expert to target him.

This was to be at the External Guardian selection!

In the Upper Scenic Celestial Martial Pavilion, there were over a few hundred outsider Martial Artists, most of whom were Tier Four and Tier Five, but a very few of Tier Six.

There were in fact a few of Tier Three, but they were negligible.

And those Tier Six experts typically secluded themselves, focusing on intense training, rarely involving themselves with the Martial Pavilion.

For example, the last time Xiao Yan organized the Martial Artist Alliance to attack Mo Yuan Black Dragon Pool, reportedly only one Tier Six outsider participated; otherwise, they wouldn’t have faced such a crushing defeat.

Because of that Tier Six expert, Xiao Yan returned safely to Upper Scenic Celestial.

Zhang Yuan believed Xiao Yan had to pay a high price for that.

A Tier Six expert had prospects of entering the Divinity Realm, valuing their foundation greatly, and wouldn’t easily take risks.

But now, to target Zhang Yuan, the Yang Family had invited a Tier Six?

Actually, it made sense!

With Zhang Yuan enjoying carefree days in the Martial Pavilion, the Yang Family’s prestige diminished, an intolerable situation for a noble family.

Only by thoroughly eliminating Zhang Yuan could they recover their lost prestige!

And Zhang Yuan soon realized the Yang Family’s influence was even stronger than he imagined.