Chapter 49

Old matters revisited, and Ba Yicheng knew well enough where his master’s difficulties lay. In their eyes, his junior sister was still a child, so naturally, the thought of dual cultivation had never occurred to them. But to everyone else, she was a golden core cultivator, gifted beyond compare. It was known that, compared to their male counterparts, female cultivators’ Dao hearts were generally less steadfast. Thus, when a sect encountered an exceptionally gifted female disciple, they would often pair her with an even more outstanding male cultivator from within the sect, binding them as dual cultivation partners for mutual benefit. When his junior sister first entered the sect, she truly was just a child. The Venerable Xiangyun had indeed mentioned this in passing, but at the time, everyone had taken it as a joke, his master included, who had simply said they would discuss it when she reached the golden core stage. Now, however, the matter was raised in all seriousness, making it difficult to refuse.

Ba Yicheng furrowed his brow. “Master, was it the sect leader who brought this up?” Although Kunlun was one sect, each peak governed itself. Even as a Nascent Soul cultivator, he should not lightly invoke the sect leader’s authority—unless there was some pressing matter at hand.

Li Yunzhan saw the doubt flicker in his disciple’s eyes, and at this point, there was little left to conceal. Nothing could be weightier than the unusual celestial phenomenon at her core formation.

“That Wei family boy has an innate sword body. It’s said he should have been a dual cultivator of the demonic path, but aside from us in Kunlun, no one knows this. That’s why I suspect he’s actually a Heavenly Demon Physique and has secretly cultivated demonic arts. The first time I saw Ze’er, I knew she wasn’t just a heavenly spiritual root but also possessed a fire spirit body. Out of selfishness, I concealed it.” When he finished, he glanced at his disciple, who was gaping in shock, and shot him a glare—honestly, what was the fuss? The boy thought he’d hidden his dual cultivation heritage well, but who in Kunlun’s old guard wasn’t already aware? The father and son were both exceptional talents, and none could bear to expose them. Moreover, the founder of Kunlun himself had once been a dual cultivator of the demonic path, and had he ever brought calamity to the world? So everyone simply turned a blind eye, so long as the boy didn’t overstep. Looking at his disciple, who had already regained his composure, Li Yunzhan thought to himself that perhaps he should have pushed him harder—he was still a bit too easily unsettled.

Ba Yicheng felt as though he’d been battered by one revelation after another. He too possessed a heavenly spiritual root, though not a spirit body, and considered his own progress swift and his talent remarkable. Yet, at the same age, the other was already at the Nascent Soul stage while he was still at Golden Core—and a dual cultivator of the demonic path on top of that. How was he supposed to compete?

However, it now became clear why the sect leader had to personally intervene in the Wei family’s proposal. It wasn’t just the Wei family’s cunning—his own master had been outmaneuvered as well. The moment his junior sister entered the sect, her special constitution must have been discovered, and they’d been waiting ever since, catching his master off guard.

“Master, what does this have to do with the celestial phenomenon at junior sister’s core formation?” He wondered if there was some deeper significance.

Li Yunzhan began to instruct his disciple: “Remember, the celestial sign at a cultivator’s core formation greatly foretells their future. For example, you—when you formed your core, it was a qilin, one of the sacred beasts. This means your future is limitless; at the very least, you’re destined to reach the Nascent Soul. Your junior sister’s celestial sign was a profusion of blooming flowers—her future will be glorious, but to reach the Nascent Soul, she’ll have to fight for it with all her might. As for me, when I formed my core, sword intent soared to the heavens, hence my formidable combat power. Though I am at the early Nascent Soul stage, I can contend with even the Initial Soul Transformation. So, whenever you see a cultivator form their core, pay close attention to their celestial sign. If it’s just ordinary spirit birds or beasts, there’s no need for concern, but if it’s a divine beast or a sign related to the person’s cultivation technique, and so long as they haven’t provoked you, it’s best to steer clear. In all my years, I’ve only seen a few true anomalies: once, a Buddhist cultivator whose core formation saw a towering Buddha image and the scent of sandalwood drifting in the air—his future was boundless. The other was that Wei family boy—when he formed his core, the full diagram of yin and yang appeared. As for your junior sister, the five-colored celestial bridge manifested—her path is the road to ascension.”

The implication was clear, and it was the true reason the sect had intervened. Such phenomena could not be concealed. The only reason her elder brother and sister-in-law hadn’t arrived was likely because the little girl herself was unaware of the significance of her own celestial sign and thus hadn’t informed anyone. Once word spread, they would surely hurry over, and the sect needed to secure Ze’er before some other sect’s brat snatched her away. After all, she was a future ascendant.

To be honest, he had been caught unawares by this turn of events. Yet, the thought that the Li family was about to produce another near-Soul Transformation cultivator filled his heart with joy.

Even if Li Mengze was being more or less forced into a dual cultivation partnership, he wasn’t displeased—after all, no sect would allow such a talent to choose her own partner freely. He had always expected this day and had been pondering suitable candidates for some time. In all of Kunlun’s outstanding disciples, Wei Qingtong was surely the best—truly worthy of his niece.

Li Mengze, meanwhile, was still busy compressing the spiritual energy in her dantian, entirely unaware that her lifelong fate was being decided outside her closed-door cultivation. Even if she knew, she would likely accept it calmly—after all, arranged marriages were common, and she was practical-minded. What difference did romantic love make? People still strayed in the end; when it came to betrayal, no one thought of their spouse at home.

Venerable Xiangyun returned to his cave residence brimming with pride. Seeing his son visiting his mother, he clapped him on the shoulder with satisfaction. “See? You still needed your old man to handle things. If it were up to you, you’d remain a bachelor for life!” Before his cultivation days, Venerable Xiangyun had been a notorious rogue, and some of that roguishness remained even now, coloring his words to his son.

In Wei Qingtong’s eyes, his father was single-handedly lowering the reputation of all cultivators. Upon hearing such unreliable words, his first thought was that his father had gone to snatch a bride. But seeing his father looking as pleased as a cat with cream, he knew that was hardly possible. The Sword-Concealing Peak’s head was no pushover; even if his father couldn’t be beaten, he’d surely suffer some losses.

Wei Qingtong could more or less guess his father’s intentions. After all, the celestial sign at the core formation was seen by all of Kunlun. The sect leader would surely choose the outcome most beneficial to Kunlun—it was just unclear whether the other party would accept.

After more than a century of undisturbed tranquility, his heart was now stirred, and it was hard to restrain. From that day onward, he found it difficult to focus on anything, yet the other party remained calm, deep in seclusion and unseen.

As expected, even with Kunlun’s gag order, news of Li Mengze’s core formation celestial sign spread, at least to the leading sects.

Those sending congratulatory gifts were all young talents from various sects, each already a golden core cultivator at a young age, and two were even at the Nascent Soul stage. Their intentions were obvious. After delivering their gifts, none were eager to leave; each acted as though Kunlun were a land of wonder, all expressing a desire to linger and admire the scenery.

The Kunlun sect leader was gnashing his teeth in frustration—was this not blatant poaching?

Fortunately, the main party was still in seclusion, oblivious to the outside world. These young men were simply infatuated and would soon give up.

Still, the sect leader knew it would be impossible to keep these people away forever. He could only hope the seclusion would last three or five years more.

Though these young scions shared the same goal, as the sons of noble houses, none wished to make things too obvious. The sect leader was vexed, and so were they, unable to find a way forward. Yet, another group saw this as a golden opportunity.

Kunlun, as the top sect, had many female cultivators, even among its sword cultivators. In their eyes, their fellow sword cultivators were already quite outstanding, prime candidates for marriage. But before they could make their moves, the best had already been claimed. The arrival of these talented outsiders filled the gap, and those eager to improve their prospects put aside their cultivation and began to dress up, appearing daily along the main paths, sometimes feigning a twisted ankle or other encounter. While this was a bit embarrassing for Kunlun, it nonetheless worked, and many couples were soon matched.

Word of the celestial phenomenon spread among the sects, but by then, Li Yunran and his wife, having received a message from their brother, were already en route to Kunlun. Their daughter had never been a source of concern—when she was young, they had worried she might struggle on the cultivation path, but now it seemed those concerns were unfounded. Their own path was still uncertain, yet their daughter was already set to become a cultivator on the verge of Soul Transformation—a situation that could only be described as “the child outshines the parent.”

Through his father’s network, Wei Qingtong learned of Li Yunran and his wife’s impending arrival. Though the match was essentially set, he still wanted to make a good impression on his future in-laws. So, he spent the time quietly cultivating, focusing on the inheritance he’d obtained in a secret realm.

Though his cultivation was high, Wei Qingtong was not as versed in the ways of the world as his parents. Both felt that, instead of focusing on cultivation, he should have been collecting rare treasures and alchemical ingredients to present as gifts, winning their favor. Otherwise, if he surpassed them in cultivation when they arrived, how would they address him? If he broke through during their visit, they might think he was doing it on purpose to assert dominance, and he would certainly not be well received.

Of course, Venerable Xiangyun kept these thoughts to himself, but Li Yunzhan made sure to inform his brother and sister-in-law about Wei Qingtong’s family background and cultivation.

Thus, when the two families met for the first time, Li Yunran faced a son-in-law whose cultivation matched his own and even surpassed his wife’s. Though he knew in his heart that the higher the boy’s cultivation, the better for his daughter, it still left a sour taste—damn it, the world would never lack for prodigies, especially those who advanced without a thought for others, leaving all behind.

Yet, this only spurred Li Yunran on. If the boy’s cultivation remained higher, and his daughter was wronged in the future, what could he do? He wouldn’t be able to best him in a fight. Clearly, it was time to double his efforts in cultivation.

Meanwhile, Li Mengze was still unaware of all the trouble caused by her celestial sign. If she’d known, perhaps she would have chosen to form her core in Peach Blossom Village, gone out to train, and only returned later, claiming she’d achieved her breakthrough elsewhere. But life offers no remedy for regret—if she could, she’d surely reserve one in advance.

In the world of cultivation, time slipped by unnoticed. Only after compressing the spiritual energy in her dantian to the utmost did Li Mengze stabilize her cultivation at the early golden core stage. She retrieved a jade slip containing the early golden core techniques, intending to practice them before emerging from seclusion. By this time, more than a year had passed in the outside world.

Less than two years remained until the grand centennial competition, now the hottest topic among all sects. This year’s rewards were already announced: the top hundred would gain access to the Qinshan Secret Realm, jointly managed by the three great sects, said to hold the legacy of King Qinshan. There were also ruins of ancient battlefields, countless spiritual herbs and magical artifacts, and even the immortal tools of ancient immortals. This was a secret realm never before entered, as unlocking it required the combined power of five Soul Transformation cultivators.

With such generous rewards even for the top hundred, one could only imagine what awaited the top ten or top three. The entire cultivation world was in a frenzy, with countless wandering and demonic cultivators flocking to Kunlun, the site of the grand competition.

The centennial competition had always been held at the leading sect, and Kunlun was the natural host. The young talents lingering in Kunlun were clearly waiting for news of the competition. Kunlun, showing the magnanimity of a leading sect, opened its training grounds to all visiting cultivators.

The sect disciples barely noticed the difference, but for those who had long cultivated in lands poor in spiritual energy, this was a paradise. They were reluctant to leave the training grounds, hoping to improve further before the competition. Kunlun’s competition was open to all, including rogue cultivators; they would not cut off their own disciples’ opportunities by holding preliminary rounds. However, not all sects were so generous. Aside from their elite disciples who could enter directly, others had to compete in sect trials. If they failed but still wished to participate, they could only do so as rogue cultivators, vying for those limited spots. The competition among rogue cultivators was even fiercer—when sect disciples fought each other, they tended to show restraint, but among rogues, it was a fight to the death.

As more and more cultivators arrived at Kunlun, the nearby marketplace grew ever livelier. Inns run by cultivators were in short supply, forcing many to lodge with mortal families. Fortunately, the spiritual energy at the foot of Kunlun Mountain was abundant, so cultivation did not suffer.