"Martial Dao reaching its ultimate, entering the Dao and shedding mortality? That sounds awfully mystical. How do you know?"
Li Qingqiu sat in his chair and asked with curiosity. He did not doubt Shen Yue's words; he was simply curious.
Shen Yue was not a rash person. Since he dared to say such a thing, he must have had a basis for it.
When Chu Jing heard Shen Yue's words, his expression changed. As if he had thought of something, his face grew complicated.
Shen Yue replied, "Those who have entered the realm across the world can more or less sense it. Most experts think it's because their state of mind is unstable, so they dismiss it. But my state of mind is firm. For no reason at all, I felt palpitations. After thinking it through, this is the only explanation. I also asked Su Xiling, and she had the same feeling."
Chu Jing spoke up, "I had it too. I just didn't take it seriously before…"
Inside his heart, stormy waves surged. He had lived nearly 200 years and had never seen an expert who had entered the Dao. Even when the so-called martial world legends of the past appeared out of nowhere, he had never felt anything like this.
Later, he learned that those martial world legends were very likely cultivators, which only made him look down even more on the Martial Dao.
Now, hearing Shen Yue say that someone had reached the legendary realm of entering the Dao, how could he not be shocked?
Could it be that the Martial Dao possessed depths beyond anything he had imagined?
Li Qingqiu asked curiously, "After entering the Dao, how would he compare to you?"
Shen Yue answered, "Compared to my current self, it's hard to say. But he is definitely stronger than I was before cultivating. For such a genius to exist in today's martial world is truly remarkable. Sect Master, I didn't come to ask you to eliminate him. I think you should try to win him over."
Li Qingqiu neither agreed nor disagreed and continued asking, "In your impression, who in this world is most likely to enter the Dao?"
Shen Yue pondered for a moment, then said, "Those older than me should mostly be dead by now. I have encountered three peerless geniuses who might have hope of entering the Dao. The first is True Person Baiyan of Fengxia Mountain. When I met him, he was only 16 years old and had already entered the realm. He is very low-key, and Fengxia Mountain never let him roam the martial world. The second is Yan Daozong of Tianxuan Mountain. He should only be a little over 40 this year. His reputation as a genius, I heard from others."
"The one most likely to enter the Dao should be Murong Zhilong of the Murong Clan. This man's Martial Dao talent is extremely high. Before encountering Qingxiao Sect, I believed he was second under heaven."
Li Qingqiu raised an eyebrow and asked, "The Murong Clan? Where did that come from?"
Chu Jing took over, saying, "The Murong Clan is one of the ancient clans. However, when the founding emperor established the dynasty, he sent people to wipe them out. I personally led the team. It seems we didn't kill them all."
Shen Yue glanced at Chu Jing and said, "That's right. The Murong Clan hides deep in the mountains. I stumbled into their territory by chance and stayed as a guest in their manor. At that time, Murong Zhilong was just over 20 years old and was already the strongest in the clan's history. Even then, he possessed the strength to kill an Xuan Gong of the same generation. However, his grandfather forbade him from entering the world. The Murong Clan intends to endure through the Great Li Dynasty and only reemerge when the next dynasty comes."
Hearing this, Chu Jing felt indignant, but he knew Shen Yue indeed had the qualifications to make such an evaluation.
"There really are quite a lot of geniuses and experts in this world," Li Qingqiu sighed.
Shen Yue nodded. "The world is too vast. Peerless geniuses are bound to be born. In my view, if these people have such extraordinary talent in the Martial Dao, then they very likely possess the same in the path of cultivation."
Li Qingqiu did not refute this. Some so-called Martial Dao geniuses lacked talent in cultivation only because they were not truly Martial Dao geniuses to begin with—just people their elders mistakenly believed to be geniuses.
"Since someone has already gone to Tianxuan Mountain, should we send people to Fengxia Mountain and the Murong Clan as guests as well?" Li Qingqiu asked.
Shen Yue smiled and said, "When I reach the 7th layer, I'll be responsible for seeking out the Murong Clan. As for Fengxia Mountain, you can arrange someone else."
"Alright."
Li Qingqiu agreed. Although he was in the Awakening Spirit realm, he did not look down on the world because of it.
A genius who could surpass Shen Yue in the Martial Dao—someone like that genuinely interested Li Qingqiu.
Shen Yue himself was the best example. Even after switching to cultivation, he still ranked among the top within the sect.
Having some rare free time, Li Qingqiu asked Shen Yue to sit down and tell him stories about True Person Baiyan, Yan Daozong, and Murong Zhilong.
Li Qingqiu had always felt that whether a person's story was fascinating had nothing to do with strength, so he occasionally enjoyed listening to the tales of those storm-making figures of the martial world.
Shen Yue did not refuse. After sitting down, he began talking from his youth.
As Li Qingqiu listened, he gradually felt something was off.
This old fellow was taking the opportunity to show off again.
...
On a snow-covered mountainside, Mo Jiuhong knelt on one knee. His left hand supported his already broken right arm as he clenched his teeth and looked up at the white-robed figure above.
Yan Daozong held a longsword in his hand and looked down at Mo Jiuhong. His handsome face was filled with indifference. His white hair was neatly combed, as if he had not gone through a battle at all, not even a speck of snow clinging to him.
"How is this possible… I'm at the 4th layer of the Nurturing Essence realm, yet I lost to a martial artist…"
Mo Jiuhong's heart was filled with shock and fury. Ever since he began cultivating, no martial practitioner had ever injured him.
Yet the man before him not only saw through his disguise but defeated him with ease, making it hard for him to accept reality.
Recalling the earlier battle, fear lingered in his heart. He had not even been able to see how Yan Daozong drew his sword.
"The qi in your body is not internal qi. Your qi is stronger than ordinary internal qi. You should be a cultivator. Are you from Qingxiao Sect?"
Yan Daozong asked calmly, his tone devoid of emotion, as if he were speaking of something trivial.
Mo Jiuhong felt conflicted. If he revealed Qingxiao Sect, it would stain the sect's reputation. If he did not, he feared he might die here.
Just as he hesitated, Yan Daozong turned around, his back facing him, and said, "You may go."
Mo Jiuhong froze, utterly surprised. He had not expected Yan Daozong to let him off so easily.
"You're not going to ask about my purpose?" Mo Jiuhong could not help but ask.
"Regardless of your purpose, the fact that you came to Tianxuan Mountain is already established. Since Qingxiao Sect wants to understand Tianxuan Mountain, then take this information back. Tianxuan Mountain has no intention of becoming enemies with Qingxiao Sect, so I will not kill you. But if you insist on leveling Tianxuan Mountain, then the next time we meet, I will not hold back."
Yan Daozong's tone was calm. With his back to Mo Jiuhong, he continued practicing his sword.
As he swung his blade, the vital energy between heaven and earth surged toward him, causing Mo Jiuhong to feel tremendous pressure.
Mo Jiuhong stood up, took a deep breath, then raised his hand in salute toward Yan Daozong and said, "Qingxiao Sect has no intention of targeting Tianxuan Mountain. It's just that Tianxuan Mountain has kept its gates tightly shut. On a personal level, I wanted to understand what you were doing, especially since so many demonic and sinister beings have appeared over the years."
Yan Daozong did not respond again, fully focused on his sword practice.
Mo Jiuhong turned and left, quickly vanishing into the vast expanse of snow.
...
As the year drew to an end, a large number of training disciples returned, making Qingxiao Sect lively once more. The most bustling place of all was the Training Hall.
At the beginning of every month, the Training Hall posted the lists for the previous month's Task Rankings and Dao Fate Rankings, showing the top 100.
The Task Rankings were based on the number of completed tasks, while the Dao Fate Rankings reflected the amount of Dao Fate earned through the Training Hall.
Ever since the two rankings were established, many disciples had gained fame, and even more disciples went down the mountain to train and carry out tasks.
Zhang Ping squeezed into the Training Hall. Looking at the sea of people filling the courtyard, he was secretly shocked.
How could there be so many people?
He soon realized that most of the disciples were here just to watch the excitement. In the center of the courtyard stood two wooden boards with the rankings posted on them.
Zhang Ping saw that someone had completed five tasks in a single month and thirty-five tasks over the entire year, which he found outrageous.
Rigged?
Even traveling down the mountain took time. Without eating or drinking, it would still be impossible to complete that many tasks.
Zhang Ping memorized the disciple's name.
Ning Shu!
"This is the power of aristocratic families. He just needs to take the tasks, and his family members help him complete them."
A voice came from behind. Zhang Ping turned around, and his scalp instantly tingled.
Bai Ning'er, who possessed the [Lucky One] Fate, appeared behind him, smiling as he looked at him.
In the past, Zhang Ping would have smiled back, but now he felt that Bai Ning'er was extremely eerie—even his smile sent chills down his spine.
"Doesn't the sect suppress this kind of behavior?" Zhang Ping asked in a low voice, his tone full of confusion.
Bai Ning'er countered, "Why suppress it? Were the tasks not completed? Or was Dao Fate embezzled?"
Zhang Ping fell silent.
He could only turn his gaze to the Dao Fate Rankings. The first place on the Dao Fate Rankings was not Ning Shu.
Yang Dong—last month's Dao Fate: 762. Annual Dao Fate: 9,897.
Such an astonishing amount of Dao Fate!
"The Dao Fate Rankings carry more real value. After all, tasks of different difficulty yield different amounts of Dao Fate. Aristocratic families can only help their disciples complete low-tier tasks. Truly dangerous tasks require real strength," Bai Ning'er said with a smile.
Yang Dong, one of the top ten of the first Combat Tournament, was a genius disciple of the Spirit Management Hall.
No one would question him occupying the top spot.
Bai Ning'er stepped forward, wrapped an arm around Zhang Ping's shoulder, and said with a grin, "Junior Brother Zhang, I've put together a team to complete a major task. Want to come along? The task rewards are very generous—there's a chance we could all make it onto the monthly Dao Fate Rankings."
Zhang Ping asked warily, "What kind of task has rewards that generous? If it's too dangerous, I wouldn't dare go."
He was not only afraid of danger but also afraid of getting possessed again and inexplicably taking hits for Bai Ning'er.
Bai Ning'er lowered his voice. "A task to capture an auspicious beast. I accepted it the moment it was released. I have connections and learned about it in advance, so I was waiting specifically for it."
"What kind of connections are that powerful?" Zhang Ping asked in shock. He was genuinely stunned.
Was Bai Ning'er's reach really that long?
"Where they come from is none of your business. Just tell me whether you're coming or not. There's a True Disciple at the fifth layer in the team," Bai Ning'er said impatiently, glaring at Zhang Ping.
Zhang Ping hesitated. He glanced around, then pulled Bai Ning'er into a corner and asked in a low voice, "What if the Law Enforcement Hall finds out? Will there be trouble?"
"The Law Enforcement Hall?"
Bai Ning'er laughed. If they really investigated, it would lead straight to the Sect Master—let's see how the Law Enforcement Hall disciples would explain that!
Of course, he did not say this out loud. Instead, he muttered angrily, "Why are you acting like such a coward? Forget it if you're not going. I'm only bringing you because you caught my eye. Plenty of people want to join and can't. If you come, you won't need to fight—just help restrain the auspicious beast when the time comes."
He raised his right hand mysteriously and said, "If we complete the task, your Dao Fate will be at least this much!"
He spread his five fingers, making Zhang Ping's eyes widen.