Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 1, Mid-Journey

A boat was soaring through the clouds and the mist, heading straight towards Stillwater City. Ji Ning
lay there within the boat, leaning against the stern of the boat. From this position, he could stare
down at the boundless land beneath him.

“Uncle. Father. Mother. They must be avenged.” Ning pondered to himself. The scroll his father had
left him had the name of his enemy. There had been a total of three malefactors; the primary one
was named ‘Dong Seven’. This was an extremely strange name, but this Dong Seven’s grandfather
was a Primal Daoist.

Ning knew his own power quite well. To be able to kill Adept Xu Li truly didn’t mean anything. After
all, there were exceptionally powerful, talented Wanxiang Adepts such as that Xue Hongyi, who Ning
didn’t feel confident in being able to defeat. As for those lofty, exalted Primal Daoists…most likely, a
single breath of primal flame from them could incinerate Ning and shatter his soul.

Primal fire…this was a sort of ability someone only had upon becoming a Primal Daoist. No one who
was not a Primal Daoist was capable of it, much like how the ‘Myriad Manifestations’ could only be
unleashed by someone who was at least at the Wanxiang Adept level.

“A total of three culprits, with Dong Seven being the primary one. As for the other two, ‘Yu Dong’ and
‘Shui Yi’, they were accomplices.” Ning pondered to himself. According to what his father had told
him, Yu Dong and Shui Yi were like manservants who followed behind Dong Seven. Upon Seven
giving the order, they would immediately attack and kill.

Strictly speaking, the killers were actually Yu Dong and Shui Yi, with Dong Seven having given the
order.

“Dong Seven! Yu Dong! Shui Yi! All three of you deserve death.” A savage light flashed past Ning’s
eyes, and then he considered what to do. “For now, I can’t be in a rush to get revenge. My
foundations are still quite shallow; I don’t even know exactly how strong Dong Seven and the other
two currently are, nor where they are located. There’s no way I can take revenge.”

“It’s best if I first go to Stillwater City. I should find a school and enter it.” Ning mused to himself. Ning
was no fool. His parents had previously told him as well that after he went out into the world, he
should find a major power to take shelter under. After all, it was extremely dangerous for a single,
solitary person to go wandering the world by himself. If he had someone to rely on, then things
would naturally be different. For ordinary Zifu Disciples, it was quite hard for them to be accepted
into a school, but unrivaled geniuses like Ning could easily join with a major power.
Since he obviously was capable of joining a major power, Ning naturally wouldn’t make things
difficult for himself and act rashly by himself.

“Upon entering a school…I will be able to learn divine abilities within the school, and even learn
some supreme Ki Refining techniques.” Ning mused to himself. Even someone like Jadechild had
been able to learn the ‘Heavenly Transformation’ technique at Snowdragon Mountain. As long as
Ning chose a school that was even more powerful than Snowdragon Mountain, he felt certain that
the school should definitely have a divine ability within.

“By borrowing from a school’s strength…my own power shall rise greatly, and my horizons shall be
expanded. Only then will I be qualified to take revenge.” Ning didn’t wish to lose his life for the sake
of revenge.

It was just as his parents had said; taking revenge was one matter, but his life was more important.
He was going to ensure that his name was known throughout the vast world, and that one day, he
was going to meet again with the Lord of Cui Palace.

“Unfortunately, I am not strong enough. Otherwise, I could simply directly enter the Raindragon
Guard.” Ning shook his head. It was too difficult for one to join the Raindragon Guard. Even Adept
Mu Xiao had entered as a late-stage Wanxiang Adept. If Ning were to enter, even if he truly were to
pass, upon others discovering that Ning was only at the seventh stage of the [Crimsonbright
Diagram of the Nine Heavens] and yet capable of unleashing such great power thanks to the
[Starseizing Hand], they would certainly realize that something was amiss.

His divine ability, the [Starseizing Hand], was his true trump card. Ning wasn’t willing to rely on this
technique to enter the Raindragon Guard.

…….

“First find a school and borrow from their strength to increase my own. Afterwards, I’ll join the
Raindragon Guard. The Raindragon Guard’s divine abilities and techniques should be all-
encompassing, and most likely even more powerful than those available to the Marquisate of
Stillwater.” Ning nodded. If one was to stand at the peak, it would be sheer stupidity to foolishly
struggle randomly. Without a powerful Ki Refining technique, he wouldn’t be able to break through to
the Wanxiang level, much less the Primal Daoist level.

The more precious a Ki Refining technique was, the less willing a school would be to allow outsiders
to gain access to it. Anyone who disseminated a precious Ki Refining technique would be hunted
and killed by the school!
Given that his talent was unparalleled…first entering a school, and then entering the Raindragon
Guard was the proper course of action.

The path of cultivation was one where, as the saying went, every third person in a line could become
one’s teacher. The spirit of the underwater estate had also advised Ning to take on many different
teachers and masters, to absorb the best from them, and thus more easily become one of the great
powers of the Three Realms in the future.

“Uncle White.” Ning spoke out. The Whitewater Hound atop the boat turned to look towards Ning.
“Tell me. On this trip to Stillwater City, should I first find a master and then pay a visit to Northmont
Baiwei? Or should I go see Northmont Baiwei first?” Ning said. “This man has treated me quite well,
and he asked me to go meet him if I were to go to Stillwater City.”

“Northmont Baiwei?” The Whitewater Hound spoke in the human tongue. “This person has an
extraordinary background, and likes to make friends. Since he asked you to do so, go and see him.
This Northmont Baiwei must be quite familiar with Stillwater City and the various schools within. This
will be of assistance to you in choosing a school to join.”

Ning nodded lightly. This made sense. After all, the only major sect within the Stillwater
Commandery area which Ning was familiar with was Snowdragon Mountain. He didn’t know much
about the others. However, within the borders of the Stillwater Commandery, Snowdragon Mountain
couldn’t be considered one of the top schools. Only a school that had an Immortal guarding it could
be considered a top school.

…….

The flying boat Ning was aboard didn’t fly too quickly. Each time, it would spend roughly seventeen
or eighteen hours flying, with the other six or seven hours on the ground, where Ning would search
for a place to train, rest, visualize the [Nuwa Painting], and other things. Travelling at this rate, he
was able to advance nearly a hundred thousand kilometers each day.

The sixth day after Ning had left Swallow Mountain. He was aboard his flying boat, moving through
the clouds. “Eh?” Ning suddenly sensed a powerful ripple. He couldn’t help but turn his head to look,
only to see in the distance, a tall ship was pressing down at high speed, generating waves of air in
its wake.

Aboard the large ship, there were many beautiful, flower-like women. On the second deck of the
large ship, there sat a young noble with white skin, who had three beautiful women by his side,
massaging his legs and his shoulders. This young noble was dressed in red clothes. He held a cup
of wine in his hands. He flicked a glance towards Ning, but paid him no heed.
“Look at that man dressed in furs. I wonder which wild, backwater region he came from. He has no
class at all.”

“I can tell with a single glance that he doesn’t come from a major clan.”

Those beautiful, flower-like women aboard the ship all spoke as they looked towards Ning. Whoosh!
The large ship sped off into the distance, quickly disappearing from Ning’s field of vision.

“That ship is rather fast, at least. I imagine that a Wanxiang Adept is controlling is.” Ning still lay
there in his own boat. It continued to ‘slowly’ and ‘leisurely’ advance at the rate of a hundred
thousand kilometers each day. Actually, through the flying speed of a magic treasure, one could
come to a rough determination regarding the strength of its controller.

“The closer we get to Stillwater City, the more frequently we encounter Immortal practitioners. That
large vessel was the sixth one we have encountered.” Ning sighed with emotion.

Stillwater City was the heart and core of the vast Stillwater Commandery. Immortals and devils
congregated there. All of the larger clans, schools, and sects would establish a branch in Stillwater
City. Many Loose Immortals also enjoyed to gather there in Stillwater City. Because so many
Immortals and devils were there, all sorts of treasures were available in the city, which could be
traded for.

In addition, the security of Stillwater City was excellent. One could peacefully train there.

“Time to rest.” With but a thought, Ning sent his boat charging downwards, towards the desolate
mountain forests below him.

Given Ning’s current power, it was indeed quite hard for him to encounter true danger while he was
adventuring. Only Primal Daoists could truly render him helpless, but which of the Primal Daoists
wouldn’t be hidden away in their own estates or caves, training? Even if they occasionally came out
and wandered, they either travelled about in grand fashion or moved about tracelessly.

Whoosh. The boat charged into the mountain forest, then disappeared. Ning and the Whitewater
Hound landed on the ground. “I should rest here, I suppose.” Ning said. With a wave of his hand, he
tossed out three formation flags which landed far into the distance, then disappeared without a trace.

From the outside world, one wouldn’t be able to see Ning and the Whitewater Hound within this area
at all. Ning sat down in the lotus position, beginning to train quietly, the image of Lady Nuwa floating
in his mind.
The Whitewater Hound took out a scroll as well, and it lay there, staring at the dense, complicated
array of characters atop the scroll. This was a copy of the [Nine Scrolls on Formations]. Ning had the
original [Nine Scrolls on Formations], and so by using a simple technique, ‘Water Seal Technique’,
he had printed out two copies of the scrolls. He had left one with his tribe, then gave the other to the
Whitewater Hound.

Uncle White was quite knowledgeable regarding formations. In fact, his accomplishments far
outstripped Nong Zidao’s; naturally, he surpassed Ning as well. Only, he hadn’t had sufficiently good
scrolls on formations to study from. Now that he acquired the [Nine Scrolls on Formations], he
naturally spent every day studying it.

The skies slowly grew bright.

Ning rose to his feet. “Uncle White.” Ning looked at the nearby Whitewater Hound, who was still lying
there, staring at the scroll. Upon hearing Ning’s shout, he immediately clambered to his feet,
collecting the scroll.

“Let’s go.” Ning boarded the ship, with the Whitewater Hound following him. Swoosh! The flying boat
immediately and quickly flew into the skies, continuing to head towards Stillwater City.

“Eh?” After flying just a few dozen kilometers, the boat suddenly came to a halt. Ning lowered his
head, staring downwards. “What is it?” The Whitewater Hound looked at Ning.

“I sense a disturbance.” Ning lowered his head, looking down at the mountainous forests beneath
him. Based on the strengths of the ripples and the general location from which they came, he could
tell that it should be Zifu Disciples who were battling. He immediately spread out his divine sense,
quickly covering the mountain forest below him with it.

Even when he had first broken through to the level of manifesting his divine sense, Ning had been
able to encompass a region of a hundred kilometers. After the passage of half a year, his divine
sense’s reach had further expanded.

…..

Within the mountain forest.

“We are the disciples of the Meng clan.” A handsome, pale-skinned youth was roaring in anger. By
his side, there was a willowy, extremely beautiful maiden, along with an extremely muscular and
sturdy, tiger-backed, bear-waisted youth. The three of them were struggling to defend against their
attackers, who were a pair of white-robed men.

The two white-robed men had unleashed their magic treasures and had completely trapped the
three of them. “Dregs of Snowdragon Mountain. Once my father learns of this, he will definitely
annihilate you two pieces of trash.” The handsome, white-skinned youth roared.

“If the two of you were to leave…our clan won’t come take revenge for a trifling matter such as this.
But if we die, our Meng clan will definitely investigate this matter to the very end.” The willowy
woman shouted in anger and fear as well.

Only that sturdy, muscular youth remained completely silent.

The three of them truly were disciples of the Meng clan. The Meng clan was one of the highly
ranked, extremely large clans within Stillwater Commandery, even more powerful than Snowdragon
Mountain. However, as one of the supreme clans…it had quite a bit internal strife as well. Even the
Ji clan of the West Prefecture had its own internal struggles, much less a supreme, giant clan like
this one. These three were ordinary in terms of talent, and they were born to a fairly low status within
the clan. They weren’t viewed as important, and found it hard to even gain a change to learn some
top-class techniques. Thus, after making their breakthrough to the early Zifu Disciple stage, they
immediately joined forces and set out in the hopes of making it to Stillwatery City and joining a
school.

There were quite a few disciples of major clans who would enter a school. Generally, they were all
people who were not treated with importance in their own clans.

“Senior apprentice-brother, judging from their clothing, these three truly are of the Meng clan.” The
two white-robed men were speaking mentally to each other. “Should we kill them?”

“Clearly, you don’t understand. A truly high-level member of the Meng clan, when setting out on a
trip, will have an entire entourage of maids, servants, and guards. These three in front of us might
truly be of the Meng clan, but even so, they definitely don’t have any important status within the clan.
Kill’m.”

“Alright.”

The two white-robed men came to their decision, then immediately began to launch killing blows.
Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 2, Arrival

Originally, the combined forces of the three members of the Meng clan had been enough to just
barely hold on, but when the two disciples of Snowdragon Mountain stopped holding back, the three
Meng clan members instantly found fighting back much more taxing.

“If I had known this would happen, I would’ve listened to what Rocky said.” The beautiful, willowy
maiden’s face was ashen. She was filled with regret. These three hadn’t dared to continue with their
training after becoming Zifu Disciples, because if upon reaching the middle Zifu stage, their
foundation would have solidified into a set pattern. Some of the more powerful schools wouldn’t be
willing to take them on as disciples.

Thus, all three of them remained at the early Zifu Disciple stage. Prior to heading out, Meng Roch
had said: “Little Xin, our power, amongst Zifu Disciples, is at the bottom end of the scale. If we were
to fly on magic treasures, then once we are attacked…we will be in danger. I recommend we walk
on the ground or ride on mounts, just like ordinary people, and travel slowly. Although it will take
more time, it will be far safer. Immortal practitioners can’t be bothered to act against ordinary
commoners.”

“You idiot.” The other fellow, Meng Jun, had said with anger, “Ride on a mount and travel slowly on
the ground? That’s a distance of a million kilometers. We’ll probably spend a year before we arrive!
Hiking up mountains and wading through lakes? Even if you are willing, I’m not. I refuse to believe
that if we fly as fast as we can, with the goal of making it in a few days, we will be as unlucky as to
encounter someone who attacks us.”

“Rocky, Meng Jun’s words are reasonable. It’s just a few days. There won’t be any problems.” Meng
Xin hadn’t wanted to spend a full year, and so they decided to fly to Stillwater City.

Unfortunately…they really did encounter bandits. Some Immortal cultivators kept their heads down
and toiled bitterly towards perfection, others relied on battle to grow, while still others relied on on
ambushing and slaughtering. Ambushing and slaughtering was the fastest way to acquire treasures.
There truly were quite a few who engaged in this line of work.

…….

“Slash.” One silk ribbon after another coiled about, defending against those encroaching flying
swords, but the force of the impact still caused Meng Xin to vomit up a mouthful of blood. “Little Xin!”
The nearby, straightforward man, Roch, grew frantic. He gritted his teeth, and his face suddenly
turned red as his aura rose dramatically. The nine black stones flying about in front of him suddenly
began to move at a far higher speed, and they howled through the air towards the two white-robed
men.

“Hurry, leave, immediately leave!” Roch howled.

“Rocky!” Xin’s face changed. She naturally could tell that Roch had just used a forbidden technique.
They had come on this trip to join a school. Using a forbidden skill resulted in harm to one’s
cultivation foundation; most likely, it would be hard for him to join a good school now.

“Hurry and leave!” Roch seemed to be on the verge of insanity. “Hurry and leave!” The nearby,
white-skinned youth had already transformed into a wisp of azure smoke, fleeing at high speed.
Gritting her teeth, Xin followed after him and fled.

The two white-robed men, seeing this, just laughed coldly. They wanted to flee, as easy as that?
Those two were dreaming.

Slash! Slash!

Suddenly, a blurred form emerged from the ground, moving as fast as lightning and piercing straight
through the heads of those two white-robed men.

“How could this be?!” “How could…” The two white-robed men stared, their wide eyes filled with
disbelief. The two of them had engaged in quite a few acts of banditry; they were extremely cautious.
Even when engaging others in battle, they would pay close attention to their surroundings, but they
hadn’t sensed any elemental ki ripples earlier. And yet, they had been suddenly ambushed by a
flying sword beneath their feet, and their protective magic treasures hadn’t stopped it at all.

Blood splattered everywhere, mixed in with a bit of white. The bodies of the two white-robed men
went limp, and then they collapsed, life having fled.

“Kill, kill.” The simple, straightforward Meng Roch was in a berserk state, frantically controlling those
nine black stone globes. But suddenly, he saw, to his amazement…that the two white-robed men
collapsed to the ground? Dead?

“But…but…” Roch couldn’t believe it. As for Meng Jun, who had been fleeing at high speed, he
turned to glance behind himself. Upon doing so, he saw those two white-robed figures, lying
collapsed on the ground. Given his visual acuity as an Immortal practitioner, he could clearly see the
bloodstains on the ground.
“Little Sister Xin!” Jun hurriedly sent. “Don’t flee. Those two member sof Snowdragon Mountain are
dead.” Xin couldn’t help but come to a halt as well. She turned, only to see that those two figures
that had been battling them earlier had indeed slumped to the ground.

“Come, let’s go see what happened.” Meng Jun said hurriedly. “Right.” Meng Xin grew cautious as
well. The two of them flew at high speed, returning to the scene of the previous battle. Jun and Xin
had confusion on their faces. They stared at Roch, who appeared completely stunned. Jun then
said, “Rocky, what happened?”

Bang! Suddenly, flames descended from the heavens, completely enveloping the bodies of those
two members of Snowdragon Mountain, completely incinerating them.

“Fire!” The three members of the Meng clan were all startled. They watched as a figure emerged
from the mountain forest, followed by the unclear outlines of a earthbound beast. When they took a
closer look…they saw that it appeared to be a delicate-looking, fur-clad youth, along with a large,
snowy white hound.

Swoosh. The fur-clad youth waved his hand, and the magic treasures left behind by the incinerated
members of Snowdragon Mountain all disappeared.

“Thank you, senior, for your kindness in saving our lives.” The simple, straightforward Roch fell to his
knees, kowtowing to express his thanks.

“No need to show such great courtesy. No need to address me as senior either. We can simply
address each other as fellow Daoist.” Ning couldn’t help but have a good impression of this
straightforward man as he looked at him. Previously, he had been watching with divine sense, and
had discovered that this man had used a forbidden technique and had gone berserk while instructing
the woman to leave. This made Ning think of the uncle he had never met.

This was what his uncle had done; that was why Ning’s mother had been able to escape, which was
why Ning was able to enter the world. Although Ning had moved quickly, and even used his divine
will to control the Evanescent Demonslayer Sword to attack before he himself arrived, it would be
hard for the honest-looking man to recover from the damage his usage of a forbidden technique had
inflicted on himself. “What a pity.” Ning sighed to himself.

“Thank you, fellow Daoist.” The white-skinned youth hurriedly pulled the honest man to his feet. “The
three of us are the disciples of the Meng clan. This is Meng Roch. Next to him is Meng Xin, while I
am Meng Jun. Might I ask who you are, fellow Daoist?”
“Rocky.” Xin pulled at Roch’s hands as well, tears gathering in her eyes. At the same time, she
looked towards Ning. Towards this fur-clad youth, she felt both curiosity and dread. Ning nodded.
“My name is Ji Ning. I encountered the three of you by luck, on this trip to Stillwater City.”

“Brother Ji Ning, you are headed to Stillwater City as well?” The handsome, slender youth said with
joy, “The three of us are headed to Stillwater City as well. Brother Ji Ning, would you be willing to
travel along with us?”

Roch and that maiden, Xin, revealed expectant looks on their faces. Ning nodded slightly. “Alright!”
Earlier, when he had stretched out his divine sense, Roch had just executed that forbidden
technique. Thus, Ning didn’t know who these three were. Judging from their names, however, he
could tell that they were from the same clan, and it seemed to be that they definitely weren’t that old.

“A single clan actually sent out three Zifu Disciples, all of the same age.” Ning mused to himself.
“And all of the same surname, Meng. The map I have showing the various supreme powers include
a clan named Meng.”

…….

One of the reasons he elected to travel alongside these three, was that Ning wanted to learn more
about the outside world from them. After all, the Ji clan’s information regarding the outside world was
far too sparse.

“Come, my friend Ji Ning, taste this wine. This was brewed within our Meng clan.”

“My friend Ji Ning, come taste this fruit.”

A large boat was sailing through the cloudy skies. Ning and the three members of the Meng clan
were all seated. There was a table before them, and the table was covered with fruit and wine. Ning
was clearly very powerful, and the three members of the Meng clan wished to befriend him. In
addition, for Ning to travel with them meant that he was like a guardian spirit for them.

“So they truly are of the Meng clan.” After having travelled with them for several days, Ning had
learned more and more things. Of the three, Meng Jun was the most skilled in conversation as
flattery; however, his flattery was too obvious, making Ning feel rather irritated by him.

Meng Xin was definitely an exceptional beauty, the likes of which would be hard to find in the Ji clan.
As for Meng Roch, that honest, straightforward man who had used the forbidden technique, he was
the only one of the three whom Ning had a good impression of and was willing to make friends with.

“Meng Jun’s words are correct.” Xin shook her head, then said in a clear voice, “Our East Bend
branch has always been squeezed and pressured. Even the clansmen of the East Bend’s main line
of descent just barely get by. As for those of us from secondary lineages, our lives are even worse
off…we are already lucky to have been able to reach the Zifu level in training. To acquire top-tier Ki
Refining techniques? Completely impossible. The other Bends will all squeeze us and prevent our
East Bend branch from growing. Thus, the three of us, after reaching the early Zifu stage, agreed to
head out together to Stillwater City and settle within a major school in the city. We could go visit
many schools and test them, one by one, but unfortunately, Rocky is already…”

Roch chuckled. “It’s fine. It’s enough that we are alive. I only use a forbidden technique once; the
impact won’t be great. No matter what, we are almost at Stillwater City! We’ll have the opportunity to
walk farther on the path of Immortals.”

“Right. We’ve left the clan.” Jun gritted his teeth. “When, in the future, we become Primal Daoists…
hmph. All of those old fellows of the clan will come out and welcome us nervously.”

“Move forward stably, step by step.” Roch glanced at him. Jun immediately raised his head and
sighed. “Unfortunately, the three of us are in an incomparably bad situation. We come from the
exalted Meng clan, but our magic treasures were inferior to those two members of Snowdragon
Mountain.” Jun suddenly glanced towards Ning. “My friend, Ji Ning, your power is incredible. You
killed those two members of Snowdragon Mountain as easily as killing chickens. I imagine that their
magic treasures, my friend Ji Ning, are completely meaningless. My friend Ji Ning…how about
bestowing me with one or two of the magic treasures, so as to allow our strength to rise. That way,
we won’t be slowing you down.”

“Just one or two. I don’t ask for too many.” Jun stared at Ning, his eyes filled with eagerness. Ning
frowned slightly. This Meng Jun…engaging in excessive flattery was one thing, but this? Ning
realized that Meng Jun had a ‘good point’; his tongue was completely shameless.

“No one feels irritated over having too many magic treasures.” Ning glanced at Jun. “I am preparing
to go to Stillwater City to trade for some magic treasures, but I have too few on me. I’m afraid that I
won’t have enough. Fellow Daoist Meng Jun, how about loaning me one or two?”

Meng Jun’s face turned white. He tittered nervously, but in his heart, he cursed, “How stingy. Last
time, when I flattered young master Ruxu, young master Ruxu gifted me with a magic treasure. I’ve
spent so much time flattering this Ji Ning and took out fine wine for him to drink, but I didn’t gain
anything from it. I saw how powerful he was and the fact that he had a Zifu-level spirit-beast, and
thought that he must be quite incredible. But he’s still stingy!”

Ning couldn’t be bothered to even look at this Meng Jun. He had travelled with the three, primarily
because he wanted to learn more about the outside world, and also because he felt kindly disposed
towards Roch.

“Brother Ji Ning.” Meng Xin suddenly pointed downwards and shouted, “Look, isn’t that Stillwater
City?” “Stillwater City?” Ning hurriedly turned to look as well.

Far in the distance, on the vast earth below them, there was an enormous, gigantic city. One
couldn’t see to the end of the city with the naked eye. Even though they were a thousand kilometers
away, Ning could vaguely sense that a series of ripples was emanating from that vast, towering city.
Although the ripples were seemingly weak, the power hidden within them was endless.

Ning, just staring at the city, felt an indescribable pressure emanating from it.

“We made it. Stillwater City.” Ning’s eyes were filled with anticipation. “Stillwater City.” Jun, Roch,
and Xin all had eagerness in their eyes as well. Eagerness towards the future.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 3, Meeting Northmont Baiwei Again

“I heard that it is forbidden to fly in the air above Stillwater City. If anyone dares to fly past its
airspace, they will be in trouble,” Meng Jun said, while the others landed on the ground.

Ji Ning stared at the distant city of Stillwater. This was an unfathomably ancient city that had existed
since the Fiendgod Era. They were currently only a few dozen kilometers away , but Ning could
already sense the boundless torrent of elemental energy that was constantly coalescing within the
city grounds. At the same time, a terrifying presence emanated out from it.

“The entire Stillwater City is like a gigantic formation; I imagine that there should be an Immortal-rank
formation there,” Ning mused to himself. Ning and the other three members of the Meng clan hurried
towards Stillwater City’s eastern gate. The eastern gate was three thousand meters wide and three
hundred meters tall; from this, one could imagine how vast Stillwater City’s walls were.

“Your trading caravan has a total of 321 members. Pay three hundred kilograms of thundergold!” In
front of Ning, there was an awe-inspiring merchant caravan, with almost all members being at the
Xiantian level. The caravan handed over three hundred pieces of thundergold, and then received
around three hundred black embossed books as they entered the city.

“The city entrance fee is two kilograms of thundergold.” A soldier dressed in Dao-armor barked
towards Ning. Ning was leading the Whitewater Hound with him; naturally, they had to pay for two.

Ning waved his hand, retrieving two pieces of a golden metal that flashed with an azure light. This
was thundergold. Its density vastly surpassed that of normal yellow gold’s. In the past, when Ning
had purchased his Darknorth Swords, he had used just a small piece of thundergold…but to a
Xiantian lifeform, two kilograms of thundergold wasn’t that valuable. To Ning, it was even less
noteworthy.

“Alright.” Accepting the thundergold, the soldier handed out two black embossed books.

…….

Soon, the three members of the Meng clan and Ji Ning entered the city of Stillwater. The four of
them flipped through the black embossed books in their heads, which had three characters on the
cover: “Still” “Water” “City”. Upon taking a closer look, they discovered that it actually was a guide to
the entire Stillwater City.

“Stillwater City is 9321 kilometers long and 8910 kilometers wide. It is divided into the east city, the
south city, the north city, and the west city, and the Marquisate.” Ning read through the material
clearly. The Marquisate was located at the very center of the city, and was roughly eight hundred
kilometers in length. It was an absolutely forbidden territory! Entering without permission was a
capital offense!

The east city, the south city, the north city; battle was forbidden in these regions, and they were safe
places to live in. If anyone dared fight in the city, that would mean they were challenging the
authority of the Marquisate of Stillwater! Thus, there were many, varied types of Immortal
practitioners who lived in these three regions, and even some ancient Immortals would seclude
themselves here and live peaceful lives.

“The west city?” Ning’s eyes lit up. The west city. This was the most bustling, lively part of Stillwater
City! West Stillwater City was filled with many large estates, whose owners had exalted statuses or
power rivaling the heavens. Naturally, there were some supreme clans, schools, and sects that who
set up branches here as well. Many would come to Stillwater City and desire to take on a master,
and these people would go to these branches to request admission. In addition, the west city had
many merchants present as well.
There was just one thing! In the bustling, rowdy, lively west city, combat was only forbidden in the
streets. As for the various estates? No matter how viciously or ferociously you battled within the
branches of the various schools and sects, it was fine. But of course, that was if the masters of those
estates and branches permitted you to do this.

“Northmont Blacktiger.” Ning looked at his book, and at the names of the various estates that were
situated in the west city. Amongst them was the name, ‘Northmont Blacktiger’.

“Northmont Blacktiger Estate. It has a perimeter of ten kilometers. In Stillwater City, where every
inch of ground is as valuable as gold…for Northmont Blacktiger’s estate to be so large must mean
that his power is astonishing,” Ning mused to himself. There were also quite a few member of high-
level members of the Marquis of Stillwater’s Northmont clan who had set up their own estates
outside as well. Still, the Northmont Blacktiger Estate, in terms of size, was absolutely supreme
amongst them. From this, one could tell what a status he had!

“Oh!” Meng Jun slapped his head. “So apparently, although it is forbidden for people to fly about in
the skies above Stillwater City, as long as you are at the level of a Primal Daoist, you are permitted
to fly about! I thought that all people were forbidden from flying.” Meng Jun had previously spoken
about this in absolute terms, but upon seeing the words written on the book regarding the actual
rules, he immediately remedied his ignorance.

“Brother Ji Ning, West Stillwater City is an incomparably bustling place, especially the ‘Treasure
Trading Plaza’.” Meng Jun said enticingly. “Let’s go take a look.”

“I’ve heard that there are thousands of Immortal practitioners who have set up shop at the ‘Treasure
Trading Plaza’,” Meng Xin was also quite eager. Meng Roch nodded as well. “Let’s take a look then.”
Ning was quite eager as well. The Treasure Trading Plaza was a place that had been specially set
aside for Immortal practitioners to trade treasures.

……………..

Ning’s group had entered from the gates of the east city. They had to pass through the entire
Stillwater City in order to reach the west city. This was a journey of thousands of kilometers.
Fortunately, all three of them were Immortal practitioners…although they didn’t dare to move too
boldly and so didn’t walk too quickly, in but a single hour, they had reached the Treasure Trading
Plaza of West Stillwater City.

The Treasure Trading Plaza. This was actually an enormous public square, covered with a dense
cluster of stalls. Many Immortal practitioners were here, having set up shop. Next to the stalls were
various white stones that were covered with black words, explaining which treasures the stall owners
were here to trade.

“So many.” Ning held his breath. “At a glance, I can see at least ten thousand Immortal practitioners.
Stillwater City truly lives up to its reputation as a gathering place for Immortals and Devils. It is the
heart of the entire Stillwater Commandery. The Treasure Trading Plaza actually has so many people
gathered here.”

The Treasure Trading Plaza had all sorts of treasures, and even some extremely rare curious. The
greatest benefit to conducting trade here was…it was comparatively cheaper! But the problem
was…it wasn’t safe enough!

This was because it was located in the west city. In the west city, only the streets were safe from
battle. There were no proscriptions against battle in the Treasure Trading Plaza! It was absolutely
possible that someone might appear to kill you and seize your treasures…but of course, this was still
fairly rare, because generally speaking, anyone who dared to bring out sufficiently valuable
treasures to display also was in possession of enough power to intimidate any thieves.

“Although battle is not forbidden in the Treasure Trading Plaza, there’s no way to tell someone’s
power just by looking at them. Thus, how can anyone know how powerful someone else is? Perhaps
the merchant might be a bored Primal Daoist out for some fun,” Meng Xin said. Ning nodded.

“Little Jun!” Suddenly, a voice rang out. Meng Jun turned to look, and he was instantly delighted.
“Third Uncle!” There was a balding, middle-aged man in the distance who was walking towards
them, face covered with smiles.

Meng Xin and Meng Roch turned to look, immediately recognizing this man as well. They, too,
hurriedly called out, “Uncle Ming!” “Haha, all three of you left your clan?” The balding, middle-aged
man laughed. “It’s good that you came out. In the clan, every day, you’d have to swallow your
temper and suffer indignities. It’s better to come out. Did the three of you just arrive in Stillwater
City?”

Meng Jun hurriedly said, “We just arrived at Stillwater City. This time, we have come with the
intention of finding a master. However, we were curious, and so we first came to pay a visit to the
Treasure Trading Plaza.”

“There’s nothing special about the Treasure Trading Pavilion; it just has many different types of
treasures, some of which might be valuable.” The balding man shook his head. “However, one gets
bored after spending too much time browsing. This is your first time visiting Stillwater City; in the
future, after you enter a school, you won’t have much free time to wander about. I’ve spent a century
in Stillwater City; I’m very familiar with it. I’ll take you around to tour it and see some truly excellent
areas.”

Meng Jun, Meng Xin, and Meng Roch were all overjoyed. “And this person is…?” The balding man
had noticed Ning and the Whitewater Hound following behind Ning. Meng Jun glanced back at Ning,
but didn’t say anything. At first, he had constantly fawned over Ning, but after having received no
benefits after so long, he had begun to look down on Ning. Now, after he saw his Third Uncle…he
had naturally mentally discarded Ning already. In the future, he was going to join a school; why
would he need to pay attention to this Ji Ning?

“This is Brother Ji Ning,” Meng Xin said in a clear voice. “He saved the lives of us three.” “Oh?” The
balding, middle-aged man immediately said, “Then I truly must thank you, fellow Daoist Ji Ning.
Fellow Daoist Ji Ning, why don’t you come along with us? This will allow me to take better care of
you, fellow Daoist, and show you proper thanks for your assistance.”

“No need.” Ning shook his head. Meng Xin and Meng Roch both looked at Ning, wanting to urge him
to come. But Ning laughed and said, “Let’s part here. For us to have met was a form of karma; in the
future, if karma wills it, we will meet again.” “Alright.” Roch nodded.

As for the nearby Meng Jun, he quirked his lips. He just smiled towards Ning, not saying anything;
however, his smile was clearly quite superficial. “What a shallow person,” Ning, seeing the way by
which Meng Jun was acting, couldn’t help but muse to himself.

……

After watching the three members of the Meng clan depart behind their Third Uncle, and especially
the way in which Meng Jun continuously chattered with and flattered the old man, causing his face to
be wreathed in smiles, Ning couldn’t help but shake his head.

By the time the Golden Crow was about to set beneath the western mountains, Ji Ning, who had
strolled about for quite some time, finally arrived at the Northmont Blacktiger Estate.

“What a dominating estate.” Ning stared at the distant estate. Before the gates of this towering
estate were rows of heroic-looking soldiers. The enormous stone sculpture of a black tiger which
stood next to the gate was especially intimidating; the head of the black tiger stared down at the
passerbys, appearing quite tyrannical. All the pedestrians walking through the nearby streets
couldn’t help but unconsciously move a bit farther away, not daring to go too close.

As for Ji Ning, he walked straight towards it.

“Who goes there?” One of the soldiers standing at the gate to the Northmont Blacktiger Estate
shouted. Ning understood; once one reached a distance of thirty meters of the estate without
permission, the Northmont Blacktiger Estate’s forces could simply kill the oncomer.

Ning waved his hand, and the ‘Northmont Blacktiger’ insignia which Northmont Baiwei had given him
appeared within it. Upon seeing the insignia, a smile immediately appeared on the soldier’s face,
and he said with tremendous respect, “Might I ask who you have come to meet, milord? I will make
the report.”

“I am Ji Ning. I have come to meet young master Northmont Baiwei,” Ning laughed. “I’ll have to
trouble you to make the report.” “Alright, please wait a moment.” The soldier quickly charged into the
estate. As for the other estate guards, the look in their eyes as they glanced towards Ji Ning had
become markedly more friendly. Still, they continued to stare icily towards the other pedestrians on
the street.

“Hahaha…” Suddenly, loud, clear laughter rang out. A youth strode out quickly, dressed in a black
uniform and with a crown on his head. Upon seeing Ning, his face became filled with excitement and
joy. “Brother Ji Ning. I’ve waited so impatiently for you! You originally told me that you would come
quite quickly, but in the blink of an eye, half a year has passed. You’ve truly broken my heart,
hahaha. Your arrival in the city of Stillwater means that you’ve arrived in my home; there’s no need
for you to worry yourself over anything. Leave everything to me.” As he spoke, he walked forward,
pulling Ning by the arm in a very friendly manner. “Come, let’s enter the carriage.”

By his side, a carriage that seemed to be bathed in flames suddenly moved forward at high speed
before coming to a halt outside the gates. In front of the carriage, there was a woman. The woman
left the carriage, then said respectfully towards Northmont Baiwei, “Young master.”

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 4, Ninestar Immortal Carriage

“Come aboard the carriage.” Northmont Baiwei pulled Ning up onto the carriage. The carriage was
roughly fifteen or sixteen meters long; naturally, the insides of the carriage were extremely
comfortable and spacious. Baiwei and Ning entered, then Baiwei hurriedly said, “Sit, sit.”

“This carriage is quite comfortable.” Ning couldn’t help but sigh as he spoke; there were twelve seats
within the carriage, and the seats were all covered with incomparably soft furs, making sitting on
them very comfortable. “Young master Baiwei, the flames that cover this carriage…?” Just now, he
hadn’t sensed any particular power or presence from the flames.
“It’s just an appearance generated by an emanation of elemental energy.” Baiwei smiled as he
spoke, then gave instructions to the outside: “Go to the Carefree Caverns.” “Yes, young master.”
The woman outside immediately replied respectfully.

Whoosh. The flaming carriage immediately began to move forward at high speed. “Have you
noticed? This female servant of mine, along with the carriage…both of them are constructs.” Baiwei
smiled delightedly. “Ah?” Ning was surprised. “Constructs?” He really hadn’t noticed. After all, they
were in the Northmont clan’s territory; Ning hadn’t dared to casually release his divine sense to
investigate anything in depth.

“Right.” Baiwei said delightedly, “That female servant is a golem which my father bestowed upon me.
It can explode forth with the combat power of a peak Wanxiang Adept…and it is completely fearless.
It is the best guard one can ask for.” Ning nodded.

“As for this carriage, the carriage is named the Ninestar Immortal Carriage.” Baiwei’s face was
covered with smugness. “Once it starts flying, not even a Primal Daoist can catch up to it; in addition,
it also holds within it the Celestial Ninestar Flames. Once it unleashes those flames…it can
incinerate anything and everything. Even some weaker Primal Daoist will be burnt to death by it!”

“What?!” Ning, hearing this, was shocked. Celestial Ninestar Flames? Capable of burning Primal
Daoists to death? Even if it was ‘only’ capable of burning and killing some weaker Primal Daoists,
this was still inconceivable. After all, it was nothing more than a precious construct.

“Haha.” Baiwei laughed, then said, “My father personally bestowed that female guard upon me, but
I’m just temporarily borrowing this Ninestar Immortal Carriage. This Ninestar Immortal Carriage is
the personal carriage of my father; even if I sold off all of my treasures, I wouldn’t be able to afford
even the slightest part of it. I’m only permitted to borrow and use it within the borders of Stillwater
City.”

Ning now understood. So this was the personal carriage of Northmont Blacktiger! This couldn’t help
but make Ning sigh at how deep the roots of the Northmont clan were, here in Stillwater; even
Northmont Blacktiger had a carriage as astonishing as this.

“A treasured construct on the level of this Ninestar Immortal Carriage actually possesses sentience.”
Baiwei stroked the carriage, clearly quite fond of it. “Just now, when I gave instructions to go to the
Carefree Caverns, I was actually speaking with the Immortal Carriage itself. This Ninestar Immortal
Carriage will automatically lead us there.”
Ning had to admit; this really was incredible and impressive! One did indeed gain great face when
riding in this Immortal Carriage, capable of resisting even Primal Daoists. This made Ning fully
understand how wealthy and luxurious a lifestyle the Northmont clan of Stillwater was.

“Look outside.” Baiwei pointed towards the outside world. Ning looked through the windows. This
Ninestar Immortal Carriage moved extremely rapidly, and the streets of Stillwater City were
incomparably wide; the scenes of the outside world passed by in a flash.

“The most mysterious, inscrutable part of the entire Stillwater City is the west city.” Baiwei pointed
towards the outside. “After entering Stillwater City, you should’ve seen a book describing Stillwater
City. Although the book has the names and signs of the various estates, have you noticed
something?”

“I’ve noticed that the Northmont Blacktiger Estate is quite large,” Ning laughed. “Haha, there are a
total of more than a thousand estates with the name ‘Northmont’ in front of them. All of them are the
estates of members of the Northmont clan with some status. The estates are divided into three
sizes; with a perimeter of ten kilometers, a perimeter of one kilometer, and a perimeter of three
hundred meters.” Baiwei smiled. “But if you were to believe that these are the estates of the powerful
members of our Northmont clan, you would be completely wrong.” “Eh?” Ning was puzzled.

“The book should also have quite a few estates which only have a name and no clan, such as ‘Kind
Waters Estate’, ‘Universal Light Estate’, etc…” Baiwei looked at Ning, who nodded. There were
indeed some estates like this. He didn’t know what the origins of these estates were.

“These are all the private estates of Primal Daoists, as well as some Immortals.” Northmont Baiwei
looked at Ning. “Even some of the Immortals of our Northmont clan, due to having lived extremely
long lives, no longer use the ‘Northmont’ name in titling their estates. This makes it so that it is very
hard for outsiders to truly understand how many Loose Immortals and Earth Immortals our
Northmont clan of Stillwater has.” Ning was secretly surprised upon hearing this.

“Many of the estates are empty.” Northmont Baiwei very calmly discussed these rather secretive
matters. “In the vast, endless lands of the Grand Xia Dynasty, there are some extremely mighty
powers. If they pay a visit to our Stillwater City, our Northmont clan will gift them with a private
estate. Although they will come visit only very occasionally, we will always keep these estates in
good condition.”

“And so…West Stillwater City is truly a place where fish and dragons swim together. The more
mysterious and unknown the owners of an estate are, the less you can afford to offend them,”
Baiwei said. “As for North Stillwater City, many of the estates there have been taken over by the
Raindragon Guard.”
“Raindragon Guard?” Ning said in surprise, “I heard that the Raindragon Guard’s headquarters in
Stillwater Commandery is atop an incomparably towering mountain.”

“Right. It isn’t too far away; its name is the Crimson Dragon Mountains.” Baiwei shook his head and
laughed. “The full members of the Raindragon Guard are all quite free and unrestrained; who would
be willing to remain atop that desolate mountain? Given how bustling and lively Stillwater City is, and
how they also have responsibility for maintaining oversight over the various major powers within
Stillwater City, the Raindragon Guards naturally have occupied quite a large amount of land.” Ning
nodded.

“Most of the north city is occupied by the Raindragon Guard. In the south city, most of the
residences are occupied by the Immortal practitioners that make up the soldiers of our army.” Baiwei
laughed. “This is something of an open secret, but naturally, this won’t be recorded in those simple
information pamphlets given to everyone who enters the city.”

“Only the east city has many major trading unions and guilds, along with Loose Immortals, who
gather there.”

……..

As they continued to advance forward, Baiwei told Ning about some secrets, but only those which
many people would learn upon reaching a certain leve. This truly broadened Ning’s horizons.

As for the east city, there were many places for entertainment present. The most famous of those
places was the Mountain of Heavenly Treasures! “The Mountain of Heavenly Treasures takes up an
area of six hundred kilometers. It is a mountain located within the city itself, and the entire mountain
is hollow. There are countless treasures within, along with merchants selling spirit-beasts and
slaves, and all sorts of gambles and battles…in short, any sort of entertainment you can think of, the
Mountain of Heavenly Treasures has it.”

Baiwei shook his head and said resignedly, “However, this Heavenly Treasures Mountain has the
imperial clan of the Grand Xia Dynasty standing behind it! In this vast world, every single
commandery city has a Heavenly Treasures Mountain within it. I can’t even imagine how much
wealth they have accumulated for the Grand Xia Dynasty.”

“The place I’m taking you to, right now, is named ‘Carefree Cave’.” Baiwei winked towards Ning.
“The two most exquisite entertainment venues in the entire Stillwater City are the Heavenly
Treasures Mountain and the Carefree Cave.”
“The Heavenly Treasures Mountain is something that can be seen throughout the Grand Xia
Dynasty. But the Carefree Cave is unique to our Stillwater City, and it was established by three
Celestial Fox Immortals.” Baiwei chortled, “But of course, it also has the support of our Northmont
clan of Stillwater. After all, we can’t let the Heavenly Treasures Mountain make all the money, right?”
Ning laughed as well.

“Young master. We are here.” The voice came from outside. As it did, the speed of the Ninestar
Immortal Carriage quickly dropped as well. Baiwei led Ning out of the carriage, then pointed to an
incomparably vast edifice in front of them. “This is the Carefree Cavern.”

Ning instantly grew rather stunned. He saw, far away, an enormous, incomparably beautiful, dream-
like edifice. It was shaped into the form of a titanic fox; this was a giant building that appeared like a
fox that was hundreds of kilometers long. Its entrance was the mouth of the fox, which had its head
resting against the ground. The dense natural elemental energy in the surrounding area made Ning
feel incomparably comfortable.

The Whitewater Hound leapt out of the carriage as well. Staring at this alongside Ning, it too had a
look of shock in its eyes.

“Young master Baiwei, please, come, come.” Instantly, a tall, muscular, ox-horned man ran over. His
aura rolled out in waves, startling Ning; this monster clearly wasn’t hiding its aura at all, which
allowed Ning to verify that it should be at the Wanxiang Adept level.

“Mmm.” Northmont Baiwei nodded casually. “And this one is…?” The Diremonster looked towards
Ning. “This is my good friend, young master Ji Ning.” Baiwei explained. The Diremonster hurriedly
nodded. “Is this your first time, young master Ji Ning?” Appearing quite courteously, he led the way
forward.

Ning swept his gaze forward. He quickly discovered that there were many people who had entered
the Carefree Caverns to enjoy themselves; however, most didn’t have any attendants come
welcome them. Although some occasionally did, most of the attendants were at the Xiantian lifeform
level, or at most at the Zifu Disciple level. Only Northmont Baiwei had a Wanxiang-level Diremonster
welcome him.

Ning and the Whitewater Hound followed Northmont Baiwei forward. The wide, spacious corridor
was beautiful and almost dreamlike. Soon, they exited it and arrived at an enormous hall. At the left
side of the main hall was a row of individuals who were either monsters or beautiful female Immortal
practitioners. To the right, there was a row of individuals who were either monsters or handsome
male Immortal practitioners.
“We respectfully welcome young master Northmont and young master Ji.” In unison, the individuals
all bowed with respect, their sleeves drooping to the ground.

Upon being welcomed so respectfully by so many monsters and Immortal practitioners, and
especially upon hearing them all call out loudly, Ning was instantly stunned. Fortunately, his soul
was very strong, and so he quickly came to his senses.

“How incredible. The Carefree Caverns really live up to their reputation as a place established by
three Celestial Fox Immortals and the Marquisate of Stillwater.” Ning sighed in amazement.

There were currently many guests seated within the main hall, and amongst them were four people
Ning knew quite well.

……

Meng Jun, Meng Roch, and Meng Xin had been led by the uncle of their clan into the Carefree
Caverns as well. That balding, middle-aged man had said, “The Carefree Caverns are the most top
tier of top tier entertainment sights. In terms of sheer pleasure, it is actually superior to the Heavenly
Treasures Mountain. There are delicacies here which those of you back in the clan would never be
able to even imagine. You will soon enter various schools, and so today, I’ll show you around here
and broaden your horizons.”

“Is this the silverpike of Jimin?” Meng Jun ate while sighing in praise. As for Xin and Roch, they were
clearly also eating quite happy.

Next to them was a Xiantian monster who had transformed into a beautiful woman, who was dancing
about gracefully. There were also human Xiantian maidens who were playing the zither…

“Eh?” The balding, middle-aged man suddenly turned his head. Through another corridor of the main
hall, a group of beautiful women suddenly appeared, either emanating a monstrous aura or an
Immortal practitioner’s aura. A similar group of men appeared as well. They divided up into two rows,
as though respectfully awaiting someone’s arrival.

“A major figure has arrived.” The balding, middle-aged man said hurriedly. “What’s that?” Roch
turned to look, puzzled. Xin called out in surprise, “All of them are releasing their auras. It seems
they are all Zifu-level Diremonsters or Immortal practitioners.”

“Wow, what sort of a person are they here to welcome?” Meng Jun’s eyes began to shine. If he was
able to make friends with this major figure, wouldn’t he instantly rise to the heavens? Suddenly…
The two rows of stunningly beautiful and handsome men and women, who lined up deep into the
recesses of the corridor, all said with great courtesy, “We respectfully welcome young master
Northmont and young master Ji.” Their voices echoed within the main hall.

“Young master Northmont?” The balding, middle-aged Third Uncle immediately said in a low voice,
“This is someone from the Northmont clan of the Marquisate of Stillwater, and definitely someone in
the main lineage with a high status. Otherwise, there is no way the Carefree Caverns would treat
him with such great ceremony. But who is this young master Ji?”

“Let’s see what sort of major figure of Stillwater City this is.” Meng Jun immediately looked over
carefully. In fact, quite a few people were looking towards the distant corridor.

A youngster dressed in a black uniform and a crown walked in. By his side was a youth clad in fur.
Behind them was a Godbeast Whitewater Hound, along with a female servant.

“Brother Ji Ning?” Meng Jun, Meng Xin, and Meng Roch were all completely stunned.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 5, Joining A School

Wasn’t that Ji Ning, who had previously saved them? By his side was that Godbeast, the Whitewater
Hound.

For a period of time, Meng Jun, Meng Roch, and Meng Xin’s hearts were filled with incomparably
complex feelings. “Young master Ji Ning is this incredible?” Xin murmured to herself softly. “I knew
all along that Brother Ji Ning was an extraordinary person.” Roch sighed.

As for Jun, a sunken, dark look was on his face. Previously, on their way over together with Ji Ning
to Stillwater City, Jun had realized that Ning didn’t possess much worldly experience. In experience,
Ning was very stingy. Thus, he ceased flattering Ning, and even went so far as to not even bother
putting on a pretense of cordiality. He knew that Ning had opinions about him, but in the past he
hadn’t cared about that. Now, however, he understood that it was probably too late for him to repair
the relationship between himself and Ning.

“Is it so very glorious and amusing for an honorable, exalted young master to pretend to be a
bumpkin?” Meng Jun felt hidden resentment in his heart. “And you dressed in those furs. You really
know how to put on an act! Now look at how arrogantly you are acting today. I refuse to believe that
in the future, I won’t surpass you!”
Each of the three members of the Meng clan were sighing for different reasons. By their side, their
Third Uncle spoke out. “The Ji Ning we previously met at the Treasure Trading Plaza? Young master
Ji?” The bald Third Uncle was shocked. He then said regretfully, “Alas, I didn’t expect that young
master Ji had such an incredible status. I actually missed the chance to befriend a person like him;
what a pity, what a pity!”

Meng Jun’s face became all the uglier to behold. Just you wait, he told himself. He would show them
all!

……..

Ning felt extremely stunned to have been welcomed by so many beautiful women, handsome men,
and Diremonsters, all of whom were at the Zifu Disciple level. For so many Diremonsters and
Immortal practitioners to work here as servants…this showed how formidable those three Celestial
Fox Immortals were, and also how much time and effort the Marquisate of Stillwater had expended
on the Carefree Caverns.

“The Carefree Caverns are quite a relaxing, entertaining place. Even Immortals wouldn’t dare act
brashly here.” Northmont Baiwei led Ning inwards. The two constantly advanced through the wide,
winding hallways, the Whitewater Hound and the maidservants following behind them.

In the blink of an eye, they had walked more than thirty kilometers. To Immortal practitioners, this
truly was a short distance. What stunned Ning the most was that the ceiling of the thirty-kilometer
walkway was studded with many enormous jewels which flashed with all sorts of colors. This made
the walkway appear both beautiful and dreamlike. Ning had seen some things in his life already, but
jewels of such size…the Ji clan had never possessed any like them.

“These are jewels which were brought here, with great effort, from the depths of the North Sea.
Every single one is a precious item that can be used to refine magic treasures, and they are also
luminous by nature, being capable of drawing in elemental energy. A single one of these jewels is
worth approximately as much as a single Earth-ranked magic treasure.” Baiwei continued in a soft
voice, “The total value of the jewels and decorations in the entire Carefree Caverns is enough to
render even an Immortal speechless and stupefied.”

Ning, himself, was speechless as well. Extravagant. Truly extravagant!

“We need to be able to compete with the Heavenly Treasures Mountain,” Baiwei said softly. “The
luxuriousness of the Carefree Caverns is definitely not inferior to that of the Heavenly Treasures
Mountain.”
Suddenly, a pink-clothed woman with furry ears and a fox’s tail came towards them from afar. Her
smile seemed to be filled with an innate charm and allure. She stepped forward, one step at a time,
her fox’s tail swaying along with her rear in an undulating, enticing manner. Ning was instantly
stunned as well, but soon afterwards, he regained his calm.

“Eh?” The pink-clothed woman looked at Ning in astonishment, then she laughed. “This must be
young master Ji. It seems this is your first time here.” Northmont Baiwei laughed loudly. “This is my
brother Ji Ning’s first visit to Stillwater City. I brought him here to show him our Stillwater City’s
Carefree Caverns. It seems, Miss Ziyi, you aren’t very happy by the fact that my brother wasn’t
bewildered by your charms.”

“I wouldn’t dare.” Miss Ziyi laughed. “Young master Baiwei, the same place as usual?” “Naturally.”
Northmont Baiwei nodded.

Miss Ziyi looked carefully at Ning, then led the way forward. In front of them was an enormous hall.
The entire hall had a circumference of many kilometers, and atop the hall were many jewels of
different colors. The floor of the hall was covered with thirty-meter tall sea corals, along with varied
other decorations. The entire hall was decorated like an abode from Immortals.

Although Ning had the benefit of his memories from his previous life, he was still stunned. This was
a hall that was kilometers in size, decorated with all sorts of marvelous items. Even in his past life,
he had never been as stunned as he was today.

There were tens of women who were fluttering about in a dance within the hall, as well as tens of
master musicians playing the zither and other instruments.

“Young master Baiwei, young master Ji, please, this way.” Miss Ziyi led them towards an arced
entrance that hung in the air, then pushed the door open. Within, there was a secluded, refined
private room that was more than thirty meters long.

“Arrange for the Hundred Treasures Banquet,” Northmont Baiwei instructed. “Alright.” Miss Ziyi
immediately departed, leaving only Ning, Baiwei, the Whitewater Hound, and that female servant
within the secluded room.

“This is a place that must have been sculped with the hands of the heavens.” Ning walked to the
sides of the room. He stared through the completely open window, able to see straight down to the
massive hall that was kilometers in size.
“This is nothing.” Northmont Baiwei lowered his voice to a whisper. “The Carefree Caverns have
many places for enjoyment. Some of them, even I am not permitted to enter. For example, the
legendary ‘Palace of Immortals’.”

“Palace of Immortals?” Ning was startled. “Indeed. Only Immortals or extremely important figures are
permitted to enter. Supposedly, Primal Daoists are responsible for serving them; on occasion, even
one of those three Celestial Fox Immortals will personally go welcome them.” Baiwei continued,
“Stillwater City is the heart of the entire Stillwater Commandery. Thus, most of the Immortals are
gathered here. Normally, when they hold meetings, they hold them within the Carefree Caverns.
Only, when they enter the Carefree Caverns, they will directly fly in through the air, and then enter
through a private, exclusive entrance.”

Ning nodded. Immortals? Given how vast Stillwater Commandery was, and how long it had been in
existence for, there truly were quite a few Earth Immortals and Loose Immortals present here. Thus,
only a school that had an Immortal guarding it could truly be considered a supreme, top-tier school.
Those which did not have any Immortals, such as Snowdragon Mountain, were clearly on a lower
level.

These Immortals were truly the most supreme of individuals within the entire Stillwater
Commandery. They alone would decide the fate of Stillwater Commandery, decide the fates of its
countless tribes, decide who would rise and who would fall. Even the Marquisate of Stillwater had to
curry favor with these Immortals.

………..

One platter of precious delicacies after another was brought in. They even prepared a secondary
side banquet for the Whitewater Hound, and all of the foods they prepared were those which
Godbeast Whitewater Hounds loved to eat. All of the food was extremely exquisitely made. They all
had extraordinary pedigrees. Ning, just listening to the servants describe each of the dishes, began
to grow hungry.

After they ate for quite some time…

“You can leave for now,” Baiwei instructed his servant. “Yes.” The maidservant left respectfully.

“Ji Ning.” Baiwei lifted his beastskull goblet of wine. “Previously, you mentioned to me that you are
going to enter a school. Have you made your choice?” “Not yet.” Ning shook his head. “Brother
Baiwei, can you introduce me to some?” Baiwei immediately asked, “What are your requirements?”
“I hope that my school will have divine abilities, top-tier Ki Refining techniques, and ideally specialize
in sword techniques,” Ning said. Divine abilities and Ki Refining techniques…these would be for
establishing his training foundations. However, the Dao he had gained insight into and the Dao he
had embarked upon was the Dao of the sword. On the path of Immortals, one’s insights into the Dao
was one’s truest foundation.

“Oh?” Baiwei pondered momentarily, then laughed. “You want a school that has divine abilities, top-
tier Ki Refining techniques, and which specializes in sword techniques…I do, in fact, have a school
to recommend.” Ning’s eyes lit up.

“This school is named the Skysplitter Sword Sect.” Baiwei said with great confidence, “This
Skysplitter Sword Sect is ranked as one of the top three major sects within Stillwater Commandery.
In the past, didn’t you have some disputes with Snowdragon Mountain? Compared to them…well,
Snowdragon Mountain simply can’t compare. This Skysplitter Sword Sect has at least three
Immortals! As for Primal Daoists, it has tens of them! Zifu Disciples? It has more than ten thousand!”

Ning was rendered speechless. Tens of Primal Daoists and three Immortals? This, alone, was
enough to stun Ning. Generally speaking, a single Immortal was enough to make a sect a supreme
sect. But at least three Immortals? No wonder it was ranked amongst the top three major sects
within Stillwater Commandery!

“The Skysplitter Sword Sect is famous for its sword techniques.” Baiwei continued quickly, “Just from
the name ‘Skysplitter Sword Sect’, you should realize that they are celebrated for their swordplay.
More than eighty million years has passed since the founder of the Skysplitter Sword Sect
established the sect. The founder of the Skysplitter Sword Sect was a Loose Immortal who had lived
for hundreds of thousands of years. He truly was an incredible figure.”

“Given how much time has passed since its founding till now…the amount of sword techniques its
successive generations have developed is most likely innumerable.” Baiwei looked at Ning. “It is
estimated that this school has at least two or three divine abilities as well, and it certainly must have
many supreme Ki Refining techniques. Otherwise, there is no way it could have given rise to so
many Immortals.”

A look of excitement appeared on Ning’s face. What a school! There was shade to be found beneath
the eaves of a large tree. If he was going to rely on the power of a school to increase his own power,
then naturally he had to choose a mighty school.

“This Skysplitter Sword Sect has a branch within Stillwater City. Generally speaking, it will only
officially accept new students during the twelth lunar month. Although there is one more month
before then…I’ll take you there tomorrow. I’ll simply need to say a few things to them, and this matter
will be settled in advance.” Baiwei smiled as he spoke.

Ning revealed a look of excitement and joy. “Thank you, Brother Baiwei.” “Haha, Ji Ning, for you to
join the Skysplitter Sword Sect is their great fortune.” Baiwei laughed loudly. Suddenly, his eyes lit
up. He stared down through the open window to the nearby corridor it overlooked, then called out in
a high voice, “Brother Zhou Li!” A white-clothed man below them raised his head, then laughed and
said, “Brother Baiwei.”

“Brother Zhou Li, why don’t you come up for a few moments?” Baiwei called out in a loud voice.
“Alright.” The white-clothed man laughed, nodded, then moved towards the corridor.

……….

Baiwei hurriedly said to Ning, “This person, Zhou Li, is one of the disciples of the Skysplitter Sword
Sect who has been sent to stay in Stillwater City. He is a Wanxiang Adept, and quite influential
within the Skysplitter Sword Sect. We just need to mention this matter to him. As long as he says
yes, then the matter of you entering the Skysplitter Sword Sect will be settled.” Ning now
understood.

A knocking sound could be heard. Baiwei hurriedly rose, personally going to open the door. Ning,
naturally, followed behind him to welcome the man.

“Hahaha, Brother Zhou Li, just now, I was discussing your Skysplitter Sword Sect, and now you
appear. Isn’t this quite the coincidence?” Baiwei immediately said, “Let me make an introduction.
This is my extremely good friend, Ji Ning!”

“Brother Ji Ning.” The white-clothed Zhou Li, upon hearing Baiwei describe Ning as ‘my extremely
good friend’, didn’t dare to treat Ning lightly, immediately clasping his hands in greeting as he spoke.

“Brother Zhou Li.” Ning returned the greeting. Baiwei immediately said, “Come, come in and sit.”
“Not now.” The white-clothed Zhou Li immediately explained, “I’m here on someone’s invitation, and
I must go meet with them. Brother Baiwei, if there is anything you need, feel free to tell me.”

Baiwei immediately said, “I’ll speak frankly then. This Brother Ji Ning of mine has heard of the fame
and reputation of the Skysplitter Sword Sect, and his heart was stirred. He would like to enter your
Skysplitter Sword Sect, and so I wanted to let you know about this, Zhou Li. I trust that once you give
the word, this matter will be settled.”
“Oh?” The white-clothed man, Zhou Li, looked towards Ning. He asked Ning, “Brother Ji Ning, what
level have you trained to?” Ning replied, “I’m a twin-refiner; both a Ki Refiner and a Fiendgod Body
Refiner. Both are at the early Zifu stage.”

“Hahaha, early Zifu stage? Good.” The white-clothed Zhou Li immediately felt relieved. Laughing, he
said with confidence, “When accepting new disciples, our greatest concern is that they might have
trained in some superficial, inferior techniques and destroyed their future potential. Since you are at
the early Zifu stage…your foundation hasn’t yet become fixed and immutable. Just let me give the
word first, and when the time of the twelth lunar month comes, you can go to our local branch of the
Skysplitter Sword Sect. You will immediately be accepted.”

“Excellent.” Baiwei laughed, then said in praise, “Ji Ning, await the twelth lunar month. When it
comes, you will be a disciple of the Skysplitter Sword Sect.”

Ning nodded gently. The Skysplitter Sword Sect? In the future, he was going to be a disciple of the
Skysplitter Sword Sect!

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 6, Encountering Northmont Fox

The door to the refined room closed once more.

“You can stop worrying now.” Northmont Baiwei sat down, then picked up the exquisitely made wine
flask and poured Ji Ning a cup of wine. “With Zhou Li’s assistance, after you enter the Skysplitter
Sword Sect, you won’t suffer much.”

“Suffer much?” Ning raised an eyebrow. Baiwei shook his head. “It’s a major sect, after all, with more
than ten thousand Zifu Disciples. Given how many disciples it holds, I imagine you can guess for
yourself how frenetic its internal struggles can be. The disciples are all divided into various levels. As
a new disciple, if there is no one there to help you, I imagine that you will be treated worse than any
of the others.”

Ning nodded gently. It was true. Wherever there were people, there would be competition. A major
sect with more than ten thousand disciples…its internal struggles would indeed be quite fierce.
“With Zhou Li’s assistance, it will be a bit easier for you to rise.” Baiwei continued, “But afterwards,
you’ll still have to rely on yourself and to fight for yourself! Remember; opportunity comes to those
who fight for them. Don’t show any mercy. Although I don’t know the details of the situation, this sort
of major sect surely must run internal competitions so as to divide up its disciples into various levels.
In these competitions, do your best to be number one and become one of the most core disciples of
the Skysplitter Sword Sect.”

“Definitely!” Ning understood this principle. In the Ji clan, he would be given the best of everything,
but in an outside school, he would have to fight for whatever he wanted.

“When you are free, please come visit Stillwater City often. I can introduce some friends to you.”
Northmont Baiwei smiled. “The path of Immortals is an incomparably difficult one. With powerful
friends by your side, things will become much easier. Look…take a look at this person who just
came in.” Ning turned to look through the window.

Miss Ziyi had personally gone to greet this person. The person she had gone to greet was an
extremely handsome young lord, who had more than ten people in his entourage behind him.

“His bearing is extraordinary,” Ning said with praise. “This person’s name is Hun Wuji.” Baiwei said
solemnly, “He is a formidable fellow. As for his clan, the Hun clan, it is an enormous merchant clan.”

Ning was startled. Enormous merchant clan? A merchant? Generally speaking, most of the major
powers were sects, schools, or tribes; there were very few organizations solely dedicated to trade.

“The Hun clan is no ordinary merchant clan.” Baiwei continued, “Their business is spread throughout
virtually the entire Grand Xia Dynasty. Although they can’t be considered to stand at the very top-tier
of the Grand Xia Dynasty, here in Stillwater Commandery, they are one of the top two major
merchant clans! And this clan rose to power only a few short millennia ago.”

Ning said, startled, “Just a few thousand years ago?” Baiwei smiled. “The founder of the Hun clan
was named Hun Tianyou. He’s still alive. You tell me; how long ago was this clan established?”

Ning was shocked. Only a few thousand years had passed since the clan had been established, and
yet it was already one of the top two major merchant clans of the entire Stillwater Commandery, and
had spread its trade throughout the entire Grand Xia Dynasty. This was indeed astonishing.

“This founder and Patriarch of the Hun clan, Hun Tianyou, was originally an orphan and a gangster.”
Baiwei laughed as he spoke. “He himself gave himself the surname of ‘Hun’, symbolizing his original
status as a gangster. He then gave himself the name ‘Tianyou’, meaning ‘protected by heaven’, as
he was born as an orphan and kept alive through the grace of the heavens.”

“This Patriarch of the Hun clan…he wasn’t that talented in the path of cultivation. He became a Zifu
Disciple early on, and then began to truly focus his attention on building up his business. Who would
have imagined that he truly would rise to such heights?” Baiwei sighed, moved. “Audacius yet
prudent, and viciously decisive…this person truly is a towering, heroic figure. In fact, when he was
merely a Wanxiang Adept, he managed to employ three Immortals to have them kill his enemies.”

“He employed three Immortals?” Ning was speechless. Baiwei continued, “This Patriarch of the Hun
clan relied on his tremendous wealth to forcibly increase his power to his current level, that of a
Primal Daoist. Don’t be fooled by the fact that the entire Hun clan only has a total of two Primal
Daoists. The amount of wealth they possess…compared to your enemy, Snowdragon Mountain,
they are unfathomably more powerful.”

Ning nodded. For someone at the Wanxiang Adept level to be able to employ three Immortals…one
could imagine how wealthy he now was.

“The Hun clan is one of the most supreme clans within our Stillwater Commandery.” Baiwei
continued, “For them to reach such a level in just a thousand years…how formidable! As for that Hun
Wuji who just entered? He’s the most prominent person in the younger generation of the Hun clan.
He is viewed with great favor by the Patriarch of the Hun clan. Naturally, we need to be friends with
people like this.”

“Within the borders of our Stillwater Commandery, the Hun clan is like the embodiment of the God of
Wealth.” Baiwei continued, “On the path of Immortals, wealth is very important as well.”

Ning nodded. He understood; magic treasures, unique items, and even spirit-pills were all important.
“Borrow from the strengths of those around you,” Baiwei continued, “And make the strengths of
others your own strengths. Only then will you be able to walk further along the path of Immortals!”
Ning nodded.

“Ji Ning, I trust that in the future, you will definitely become a towering figure somewhere.” Baiwei
seemed to speak with great confidence. Ning replied, “Brother Baiwei, you treat me so well that I
truly don’t know how to repay you.”

Baiwei immediately waved his hand. “This is what my father taught me; when you encounter
someone you view as worth making friends with, you must treat them with sincerity! As for those not
worthy of being your friends? I, Northmont Baiwei, wouldn’t even glance at them.” Ning laughed.
“You must be sincere to your friends. Otherwise, you won’t be able to make any true friends. Then,
when a critical time comes, none of those ‘friends’ will help you,” Baiwei said. “Well-spoken,” Ning
concurred. Only when you treated others with sincerity would they treat you with sincerity.

“If you make friends everywhere, you will naturally build up your own strength. Ji Ning, make some
powerful friends. Within, you will rely on your own power; without, you will have your friends to assist
you. In the end, you might end up becoming the leader of the Skysplitter Sword Sect,” Baiwei
laughed.

Suddenly, laughter rang out from outside. “Hahaha…” The laughter was quite loud, and it echoed
throughout the giant main hall of many kilometers. Upon hearing this laughter, the face of Northmont
Baiwei, who had been chatting happily with Ning, immediately sank.

“Northmont Baiwei.” That deep voice echoed in the main hall, filling every corner of it. Quite a few of
the guests within the various luxurious rooms at the ends of the corridors that hung in midair were
listening with curiosity.

“You want for your good friend, ‘Ji Ning’, to enter the Skysplitter Sword Sect?” That deep voice
continued to laugh wildly. “Hahaha, unfortunately, I can tell you something right now…and in fact, I
can tell this Ji Ning kid directly. Ji Ning, kid, forget about ever being permitted into joining the
Skysplitter Sword Sect!”

“Northmont Fox!” Baiwei suddenly roared out with anger. “What is it?” That deep voice let out a
chuckle. “Are you upset?” Baiwei growled and cursed, “You shameless thing!”

“You do seem quite pissed.” That deep voice chuckled with delight. “Unfortunately, your good friend
won’t be able to enter the Skysplitter Sword Sect.” “Hmph.” Baiwei no longer paid the outside world
any attention. That deep voice said a few more mocking lines, but upon seeing that Baiwei was no
longer responding, it fell silent as well.

Ning frowned, then said in a soft voice, “Brother Baiwei, who was that?” Baiwei’s face was
exceedingly ugly to behold right now. He hurriedly said, “Ji Ning, I truly apologize. I didn’t expect that
your affairs would be disrupted because of me. That person is named Northmont Fox. He, too, is a
member of our Northmont clan.” Ning nodded.

“My father is Northmont Blacktiger. His father is Northmont Yin.” Baiwei shook his head. “His father
and my father are competing to become the next Marquis of Stillwater.”
Ning sucked in a cold breath of air. The next Marquis of Stillwater? It seemed Northmont Blacktiger’s
status was incredibly high. No wonder, as soon as Baiwei camed to the Carefree Caverns,
Wanxiang Adept-level cultivators and monsters had come to greet him in such a grand fashion.

“His father and mine have always been opposing each other. Thus, this kid always is struggling
against me as well.” Baiwei let out a snicker. “His father, Northmont Yin, truly is a heroic, towering
figure, as a crafty as a fox. Northmont Yin gave his son the name ‘Fox’, but all his son is capable of
is petty scheming.”

“I truly do have to apologize. Because of me, you won’t be able to enter the Skysplitter Sword Sect,”
Baiwei said. “For Northmont Fox to proclaim it so boldly means that he definitely must be confident
of being able to ensure it.”

Ning felt resignation in his heart. Just now, he was fantasizing about how viciously he would
‘compete’, but in the blink of an eye, it had all disappeared. He immediately said, “This is just a small
matter. Stillwater Commandery is such a large place, and there are so many schools here. There are
many different places I can choose from.”

“Right.” Baiwei continued, “How about this. Later, I’ll arrange for information regarding the various
schools of Stillwater Commandery to be brought over. You can choose for yourself. When the twelth
lunar month comes, the various schools will all be accepting new disciples. You can go by yourself.
If I don’t go with you, I can’t cause any problems. Given your abilities, it will be very easy for you to
join a school. To be honest, my actions just now were unnecessary to begin with.”

Ning laughed, “We were just a bit unlucky to have encountered this Northmont Fox.”

So what if he didn’t enter the Skysplitter Sword Sect? Even the ancient spirit of the underwater
estate, after seeing that Ning had mastered the Rainwater Sword Domain, had treated him in a
markedly different way. Ning felt certain that it would definitely be simple for him to choose any other
schools.

Knock, knock, knock. A knocking sound at the door. “Brother Baiwei. I am Hun Wuji.” A voice rang
out from outside. “Wuji, please, come in. Why even knock?” Baiwei hurriedly called out. The door
opened.

A handsome, refined young man entered. This Hun Wuji had a smile which made anyone who saw
him instantly feel well-disposed towards him. He immediately said, “If you were the only one here,
Baiwei, of course I would’ve just entered. But Brother Ji Ning is here as well; I didn’t wish to be
discourteous.”
“Ji Ning, come, this is my good friend, Hun Wuji.” Baiwei said. “Young master Wuji.” Ning clasped his
hands in salute. “Brother Ji Ning. I heard your name just now.” Hun Wuji clasped his hands in
response. “Then you heard me being made a fool out of.” Baiwei felt resigned.

“Just now, shortly after I sat down nearby, I heard what was going on between you, Baiwei, and with
Fox.” Wuji sat down as he spoke. “Northmont Fox truly is a fool. How many schools does Stillwater
Commandery have? He has a bit of a relationship with the Skysplitter Sword Sect and might be able
to prevent Brother Ji Ning from entering that sect, but what about the other sects? For a school,
accepting new disciples is a major matter. There are so many schools in Stillwater Commandery that
are seeking new disciples, and he’s only able to affect a few of them. In the end, Brother Ji Ning is
still going to be able to enter a school.”

“Thus, as you said, he is a fool. He always jumps at any opportunity to make trouble for me.” Baiwei
shook his head. “It is as though by doing so, he can demonstrate superiority over me.”

Suddenly, the extravagant music from outside changed. The sound of a zither suddenly rang out.
The gentle, watery strumming sounds were soul-stirring to the extreme.

“Eh?” Ning, Baiwei, and Wuji all looked towards the outside. Ning stared down into the wide hall. He
immediately sat a green-clothed woman who was seated in front of a zither, plucking at its strings.
For a moment, the entire hall seemed to have grown quiet. Only the sound of the zither could be
heard.

Such a beautiful zither song.

Such a beautiful person.

Ning, upon seeing the green-clothed woman, instantly felt that she must be one of the fairy maidens
of legend. The sound of her zither made Ning’s soul feel incomparably comfortable. Her skill in the
Dao of the zither had clearly reached a level of mastery.

After the song was finished, the hall remained quiet for quite some time.

“So it’s actually Zither Fairy.” Baiwei sighed in praise as he spoke, then instructed the servant
waiting outside, “Go, have Zither Fairy come over.” “Yes.” The attendant outside replied.

“You are actually going to invite Zither Fairy to come accompany us? The price you will pay won’t be
a light one.” Hun Wuji glanced towards Baiwei in surprise, but Baiwei simply said, “Earlier, because
of me, Brother Ji Ning’s chance to enter the Skysplitter Sword Sect was ruined. I wish to make sure
that Brother Ji Ning will be happy today.”

Ning was quite surprised as well. He was inviting Zither Fairy over, just for him? And from the sound
of it, the price would be significant. “Brother Baiwei, you truly are too courteous,” Ning said hurriedly.
“That was just a minor matter, not worthy of discussing.”

“Hahahaha…” That deep voice rang out yet again. “Zither Fairy’s skill in the zither is truly at an
incomparably miraculous level. Zither Fairy, would you be willing to accept an invitation to come to
the room of myself, Northmont Fox?” This voice echoed throughout the hall.

Within Ning’s room. Bang! Baiwei, in his anger, smashed his beastskull goblet against the ground.
Grinding his teeth, he said, “What sort of an unlucky day is this? I’m stepping in dogshit repeatedly.”

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 7, Treasure Auction

Within the hall.

Per Northmont Baiwei’s orders, the maidservant outside had exited the corridor and had arrived
within the main hall. Upon hearing the words, ‘Zither Fairy, would you be willing to accept an
invitation to come to the room of myself, Northmont Fox’, she couldn’t help but be stunned. She
hurriedly called out, “Mistress, young master Northmont Baiwei also wishes for Zither Fairy to go to
him.”

Miss Ziyi, next to Zither Fairy, was stunned upon hearing this. Moments later, she laughed. “Young
master Fox, young master Baiwei is also inviting Zither Fairy to pay a visit,” Miss Ziyi called out.

“Haha, Northmont Baiwei, you are also going to invite Zither Fairy?” That deep voice instantly grew
smug. “Why were you so quiet and silent about it? I didn’t hear you say a thing. If you are going to
invite someone over, you have to show some sincerity.”

“How could I be as boorish and uncouth as you?” Northmont Baiwei replied with a cold laugh. The
two were in different rooms, and were both calling out to each other.

Within the other rooms were young masters of major tribes, superb figures of major clans, and
Raindragon Guards. Still, they didn’t intervene, just watched with amusement. After all, Northmont
Baiwei and Fox were both highly ranked young masters of the entire Stillwater Commandery. They
were both descendants of the Northmont clan, and their parents, Northmont Blacktiger and
Northmont Yin, were truly incredible figures. They didn’t dare to rashly intervene in a struggle
between two such young masters. After all, in Stillwater Commandery, the Northmont clan was the
strongest power.

“Northmont Fox?” Ning looked through the window, towards the direction of that voice. Ning could
see a figure in a private room that was a few kilometers away. Northmont Fox appeared quite
muscular, and he had sideburns on his face. His appearance was very different from his name. He
had the frame and musculature of a dominating tyrant, but his eyes were cold, sinister, and arrogant,
like those of a viper’s.

Northmont Baiwei appeared ardent and heroic. Northmont Fox, however, appeared cold and sinister.
They were two diametrically different people.

“Miss Ziyi.” Northmont Fox called out in his loud voice, “This Northmont Baiwei hasn’t reserved
Zither Fairy in advance, has he?” “He has not.” Miss Ziyi, standing on the ground below, shook her
head. “Since there is no reservation, and since both myself and Northmont Baiwei are both inviting
Zither Fairy over, let this be determined by who offers the highest price.” Northmont Fox’s voice
echoed throughout the entire hall as he called out, “I’ll offer ten taels.” Instantly, every single private
room within the giant hall became filled with lowered whispers.

Within Ning’s room.

Ning was puzzled. Ten taels? Ten taels of what? As for Northmont Baiwei, he said with cold fury, “I’ll
offer fifty.” “Hahaha, Northmont Baiwei, you are going to compete against me? Are you able to win?”
Northmont Fox called out from his distant room, with a voice filled with braggado, “I’ll offer a
hundred.”

……

Within Ning’s room. Ning, Wuji, and Baiwei were all seated. Wuji lowered his voice and said,
“Brother Baiwei, if we are going to get into a bidding war, I can assist you.” But Northmont Baiwei
just laughed and said, “No need. In terms of wealth, how could Northmont Fox compare with you,
you little God of Wealth? Inviting Zither Fairy over is only a minor matter. Normally, just ‘one’ is
enough. To spend too much is just foolishness. He’s now offered a hundred; as long as I raise the
price again, Northmont Fox definitely won’t make another counter-offer. By then, I’d have to suffer
the consequences.”
“Why aren’t I hearing anything from you?” Northmont Fox mocked from far away. Northmont Baiwei
called back, “Congratulations, Northmont Fox. You have invited Zither Fairy to accompany you for
the price of a hundred taels of liquefied elemental essence.”

Liquefied elemental essence? Ning was stunned upon hearing this. So the ‘one’, ‘ten’, and ‘hundred’
taels they were referring to…were in reference to liquefied elemental essence! Liquefied elemental
essence was the refined, concentrated version of natural, elemental energy. One could rely on it to
engage in training, without causing any stress to the body. Previously, Ning had acquired a a very
thin layer of liquefied elemental essence from the stone room in the mine, most likely just ten or
fifteen kilograms worth.

He had used up only a third of the essence, less than five kilograms. This had allowed him to
breakthrough to the Zifu Disciple level and also establish and stabilize as an early-stage Zifu
Disciple.

“Ten or fifteen kilograms was comparable to the entire wealth of the Ji clan,” Ning mused to himself.
“A hundred taels of it…that’s roughly equivalent to five kilograms. Just now, in order to have Zither
Fairy accompany him, Northmont Fox casually tossed out a sum that is equivalent to half the total
wealth of my Ji clan? He is too…too insane.”

“A hundred taels of liquefied elemental essence.” Hun Wuji nodded. “That’s roughly equivalent to an
Earth-ranked magic treasure. Given Northmont Fox’s temperament…for him to throw away an Earth-
ranked magic treasure for the sake of making trouble for you is his limit.”

Ning, hearing this, was speechless. Well, then. After killing Adept Xu Li, he had only acquired three
Earth-ranked magic treasures. He had worked so hard to accumulate that amount of wealth…but
compared to exalted young masters of the Marquisate of Stillwater, he was indeed quite far off.

……

Outside the room, Northmont Fox’s voice continued to ring out with arrogance and smugness as
Miss Ziyi was introducing Zither Fairy to him.

Within Northmont Fox’s room. Northmont Fox was currently seated alongside three other men. As
for their servants and followers, they had a separate room of their own.

“I didn’t expect that I would run into Northmont Baiwei here, today.” Northmont Fox held a beastskull
goblet in his hand, his red tongue gently lapping at the wine as he laughed sinisterly. “I just so
happened to acquire a powerful retainer recently, as well as an extremely rare magic treasure. What
happened just now was just the starter course. Today, I’m going to anger him so badly that he
vomits blood. I’ll make it so that he will never forget this day. I’ll make him feel terror in his heart
whenever he sees me!”

“Then let us congratulate you in advance, young master Fox.” “Let’s watch as Northmont Baiwei is
embarrassed.” The other three in the room, Zhou Li included, all cupped their hands in a salute.

“Hahaha.” Northmont Fox laughed joyfully. Right at this moment, Zither Fairy came in, and Fox
immediately said, “Come, Zither Fairy, come. Please come in and sit.” “Thank you, young master
Fox.” Zither Fairy’s gentle laugh made Fox feel as though even his bones had relaxed. This made
him feel all the more pleased.

With a beautiful woman accompanying them, Northmont Fox’s room was filled with laughter and
amusement.

A long time later.

“Mm.” Northmont Fox looked down at the main hall, and at the dais that was beginning to be set up.
“It should almost be time for the treasure auction.” Fox waved his hand, and a grand seal suddenly
appeared within it. He handed it to the neaby Zither Fairy and said, “Zither Fairy, this grand seal is a
top-grade Mortal-ranked magic treasure, ‘Grand Mountain Seal’. It was forged from an actual
mountain, the ‘Grand Mountain’, which was refined into this seal. Its true value comes from the fact
that it is merely a Mortal-ranked magic treasure, but in terms of power, it isn’t inferior to any ordinary
Earth-ranked magic treasures. Thus, this Grand Mountain Seal is absolutely a top-grade Mortal-
ranked magic treasure.”

“Top-grade Mortal-ranked?” “It is extremely rare to find a top-grade magic treasure. Young master
Fox actually has a treasure like this?” Everyone nearby, Zhou Li included, was surprised. Zifu
Disciples were capable of using Mortal-ranked magic treasures, while Wanxiang Adepts were able to
use Earth-ranked magic treasures. But generally speaking, they only used low-grade or middle-
grade treasures. It was extremely rare for someone to be in possession of a high-grade Earth-
ranked magic treasure. As for top-grade…that was incomparably rare.

“I’ll deliver it over now.” Zither Fairy rose to her feet.

…………..

The dais rose up within the main hall below. Miss Ziyi’s voice echoed throughout the entire hall: “It is
now time for the treasure auction. Today, our Carefree Caverns has prepared eighteen treasures,
each with extraordinary attributes. Anyone willing to purchase them can buy them. The high bidder
wins the auction!”

Within Ning’s room. Ning, upon hearing this, couldn’t help but feel startled. Wasn’t this identical to
auctions on Earth? So a place like this, where Immortals and Devils gathered, also had so-called
‘treasure auctions’.

“In addition, honored guests, if you have any precious treasures which you are willing to sell, you
can bring them out as well and allow everyone to bid on them as well,” Miss Ziyi said with a laugh.
“Just now, young master Northmont Fox has brought out a top-grade Mortal-ranked magic treasure,
‘Grand Mountain Seal’, and has made it the nineteenth magic treasure up for bidding in our treasure
auction.”

“Northmont Baiwei! I wonder what sort of treasures you might have for sale?” That deep voice
echoed out once more.

This was a slap in the face. He was directly striking Baiwei on the face! Within his room, Baiwei had
an extremely ugly look on his face. Hun Wuji was frowning as well. “This Northmont Fox actually
managed to procure a top-grade Mortal-ranked magic treasure. Things are now a bit troublesome. I
can bring out quite a few Earth-ranked magic treasures, but in terms of rarity, they can’t compare
with this Grand Mountain Seal.”

Ning could tell what was going on. For these young masters, when they competed in treasures, what
they cared the most about was rarity! Although Earth-ranked magic treasures were much more
expensive, in terms of rarity and uniqueness, they were far inferior.

“Dogshit luck. I truly stepped into dogshit today.” Baiwei gritted his teeth. “I didn’t expect that not only
would I run into this fellow, he actually came prepared. I’ll have to endure. Next time, I will get him
back.”

“Brother Baiwei,” Ning said, “I also happen to have a top-grade Mortal-ranked magic treasure.” “Oh?”
Baiwei and Wuji both looked towards Ning in surprise. A top-grade Mortal-ranked treasure wasn’t
something you could simply buy with money; the reason why they were ranked top-grade was
because they were truly few in number.

“Please take a look.” Ning waved his hand, and the dragon pearl appeared within it, along with four
dragon scales. The dragon pearl had the illusory dragon swimming about in the middle of it.
“A dragon pearl!” Baiwei and Wuji were all startled. Wuji then cried out in astonishment, “A four-
sided formations that matches with a dragon pearl? Judging from how complex the formation is…this
is inconceivable. What formation is this?”

“Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation!” Ning gave his response.

“Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation?” Northmont Baiwei said in astonishment, “Our Northmont clan
has a grand formation called the Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation, but that is a Heaven-ranked
grand formation, and an extremely powerful Heaven-ranked grand formation at that. So there is
actually a Mortal-ranked version of the Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation as well? It was actually
simplified? This truly is unbelievable.”

Wuji quickly said, “Such a grand formation…this is far rarer than what Fox has brought out. In
addition, Fox just brought a single grand seal. What you have here, Brother Ji Ning, is a formation! It
is far more valuable.” The value of a formation was, indeed, higher than that of other magic
treasures of the same level.

The way in which Hun Wuji looked at Ning had changed. Top-grade Mortal-ranked magic treasures
weren’t so easily procured. It seemed as though this friend of Baiwei’s, Ji Ning, was quite
extraordinary as well.

“Ji Ning, are you truly willing to sell it? A treasure like this…after selling it, it will be hard for you to
regain it,” Baiwei said. “Yes, sell it.” Ning laughed.

The Ji clan now had the protection of the Marquis of Stillwater; naturally, it no longer had any need
for the Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation. In addition, a grand formation like this one required five
people controlling it in order to unleash its full combat power. The reason Ning had brought this
formation to Stillwater City was because he planned to sell it, and thus acquire a large amount of
Mortal-ranked flying swords, which would vastly increase the power of his [Lesser Thousand Swords
Formation].

“Alright. Brother Ji Ning, I’m not going to waste too many words on effusive thanks. This time, I’m
going to give Northmont Fox a good slap across the face.” Baiwei’s own face was turning ruddy with
excitement.

“Northmont Baiwei, can it be that you, the young master of Northmont Blacktiger’s estate, don’t have
any treasures?” That deep voice once more rang out mockingly. Baiwei laughed softly, then called
out in a loud voice, “Miss Ziyi, I have a formation here. Although it is quite ordinary, it is still naturally
far superior to what Northmont Fox produced.”
The atmosphere in the hall instantly changed slightly. Everyone understood that young master
Northmont Baiwei was finally standing up and preparing to deliver a vicious slap to his opponent’s
face.

Only, would his slap be a loud, ringing one?

That would depend on whether or not this formation treasure was superior to the Grand Mountain
Seal.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 8, The Boy of Universal Fire

The treasure auction had begun, amidst this strange atmpshere. One treasure after another was
brought out.

“The first treasure.” Miss Ziyi held up a tri-colored stone, which then levitated into the air. “14.5
kilograms of ‘Flame Flint’ which can be used to forge magic treasures. The lowest bid must be at
least 130 taels of liquefied elemental essence!”

“150 taels of liquefied elemental essence.” Wuji was the first to speak out. The other guests in the
various rooms looked towards Wuji, and all of them called out warmly, “Oh, young master Wuji is
present as well?” “Young master Wuji!” They all addressed him in a clearly warm and familiar
manner.

“160 taels.” A clear voice rang out from a distant room. It was a rainbow-clothed maiden. “180 taels.”
An icy voice from a grim, callous-looking youth.

Within Ning’s private room. Ning just sat there, listening to these people bargain. He glanced
backwards towards Hun Wuji. “Brother Wuji, you aren’t going to bid any further?”

“Brother Ji Ning, this is your first time here so you don’t understand.” Wuji laughed as he explained,
“The small-scale treasure auctions which the Carefree Caverns normally offer will have treasures
that start off at a price which is quite a bit lower than its true value. I offered 150 taels, and that’s a
price at which I can definitely make money off this transaction. But as for a price of 200 taels, that’s a
bit too much; only those who truly need it would raise it to such a price. I’m a merchant; I don’t like
doing business at a loss.”

Ning now understood. So the first bid Wuji had made was for the sake of earning money.
“Ji Ning, after you grow more familiar with Wuji, you’ll understand; this young God of Wealth is
always thinking about how to make more money,” Northmont Baiwei said with a laugh.

“290 taels.” A hoarse voice suddenly rang out.

A long silence. “Anyone offering a higher bid?” Miss Ziyi glanced at the private rooms in every
direction. “Since there are no other bids, then this Flame Flint will go to young master Qu of the
Raindragon Guard.”

“Next is the second treasure…” Miss Ziyi quickly began to introduce the next treasure to the
audience.

……

“Young master Qu is a disciple of the Trueflower School as well as a Raindragon Guard.” Baiwei
gave a quick introduction regarding the man. “He is already a peak Wanxiang Adept, and his future
prospects are unlimited. Upon becoming a Primal Daoist, he will truly become a major figure here.”

Ning nodded. The others within this hall might not have statuses as exalted as that of Northmont
Baiwei or Northmont Fox, but they were all extraordinary figures who were able to converse and
interact with Baiwei and Fox as equals. After all, although these two young masters of the Northmont
clan had exalted statuses, they were still young and didn’t truly command great power yet.

The reason why the Carefree Caverns treated them so respectfully was because behind the two of
them were Northmont Blacktiger and Northmont Yin, who were candidates to become the next
Marquis of Stillwater.

“That person just now was Miss Leshan of the Meng clan,” Baiwei said. “Within the Meng clan, she
is viewed with great favor. Her training speed has been extremely fast, and in sixty short years, she
has become a peak Wanxiang Adept. The Meng clan is one of the major clans within our Stillwater
Commandery.”

Ning nodded. The Meng clan? He glanced at the distant maiden, who appeared to only be twelve or
thirteen years of age. She was one of the true, proud scions of the Meng clan. Compared to her,
Meng Jun, Roch, and Xin were far inferior.

…..
One treasure after another was sold off, most of which were meant for Wanxiang Adepts to use.
Although occasionally, there were some appropriate for Zifu Disciples, those were all extremely rare
items. Of the people present, aside from Baiwei, Fox, and some other young masters with
extraordinary backgrounds, most had already reached the Wanxiang Adept level.

“Of the items that our Carefree Caverns prepared, two were not bid on, while the other sixteen have
all been sold. Now, the auction for the top-grade Mortal-ranked ‘Grand Mountain Seal’ of young
master Northmont Fox will begin. This treasure is a grand seal that was forged from the peak of
Grand Mountain. If it was an Earth-ranked magic treasure, it wouldn’t be particularly precious; its
value lies in the fact that it is a Mortal-ranked magic treasure which can be used by Zifu Disciples.
When a peak Zifu Disciple uses this treasure, it can transform back into its original form of the Grand
Mountain and crush downwards with astonishing force. There is no minimum price; everyone can
now commence bidding on the treasure.”

Miss Ziyi was laughing as she spoke. The treasures which guests occasionally brought and auction
off always started off at a minimum price of zero. The amount that was bid would be the amount the
guest would receive; the Carefree Caverns never asked for any commission at all.

Within Ning’s private room. “I wonder how much this Grand Mountain Seal is worth?” Ning mused to
himself. After having visited the Treasure Hall of the underwater estate, Ning didn’t hold the Grand
Mountain Seal in high regard. If it had been left in the Treasure Hall, the first master probably
would’ve just classified as something which only barely qualified as a high-grade Mortal-ranked
treasure.

“Eighty to a hundred taels of liqueified elemental essences,” Wuji said. “This is the most common of
all grand seal-type magic treasures. Although it is top-grade, it isn’t all that precious; it can just
barely reach the price of a normal Earth-ranked magic treasure.”

“Fifty taels.”

“Fifty five taels.”

“Sixty taels.”

The various rooms were all making their bids. Soon, a final price was reached; 110 taels of liquefied
elemental essence. Ning stared through the window towards the distant Northmont Fox, who had a
smile on his face. Clearly, he was pleased with this price.
“Next is a formation technique, one offered by young master Northmont Baiwei,” Miss Ziyi called out
loudly, a look of joy on her face. “The Marquisate of Stillwater has a famous Heaven-ranked
formation, the Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation. As for this formation, this is the simplified version
of that ancient, mighty formation. Although it is simplified, our Carefree Caverns have ascertained
that it was simplified in a nearly perfect way; it is at the utmost peak of Mortal-ranked magic
treasures, a top-grade amongst top-grades.”

In front of Miss Ziyi, a dragon pearl and four dragon scales suddenly emerged, hovering before her.
Everyone present had extraordinary eyesight, and as they stared towards these items, astonishment
appeared on quite a few faces.

“Ziyi!” Northmont Fox had an extremely ugly look on his face. He barked out, “I’ve never heard of
there being such a thing as a simplified Mortal-rank version of the Netherwyrm Heavenlock
Formation. Are you sure you assessed it correct?”

Miss Ziyi just replied in a loud voice, “Our Carefree Caverns is willing to pay two hundred taels of
liquefied elemental essence to purchase this grand formation.” Upon these words coming out, Fox’s
face instantly blackened, and he no longer said a single word. The reputation of the Carefree
Caverns was beyond reproach; if the Carefree Caverns was willing to make an offer, that meant that
it had an extremely good opinion of this formation technique.

“I am willing to offer 210 taels.”

“230 taels.”

Right away, the price began to rise. In his own room, Ning felt his heartrate begin to quicken; this
was his treasure, after all. Slowly, the price continued to tick upwards….

“360 taels!” Suddenly, the clear voice of a young child rang out. Instantly, everything fell silent.

First of all, the price had risen very slowly to 300 taels, and this had been viewed as a hard ceiling to
break through. For someone to suddenly increase the price to 360 taels was surprising. And
secondly, the person who had made the bid had the voice of a child…this caused quite a few people
to look towards him. Even Ning couldn’t resist from turning to look. He saw that in a distant, private
room, there was a child that appeared to be six or seven years of age. He had a golden necklace
around his neck, and he was nibbling on a bone.
“The Boy of Universal Fire?” Baiwei was surprised. “He came today as well?” Wuji was also
shocked. As for Ning, he narrowed his eyes. ‘Boy’? This was the first time he had encountered an
Immortal practitioner who looked like a child.

“Brother Ji Ning, according to stories, this Boy of Universal Fire is a reincarnated Immortal,” Baiwei
said in a soft voice. “He is one of the most indisputable masters of formations, and he stands at the
very top of the field amongst those of us in the younger generation. He has trained for less than
thirty years, but he is already a peak Wanxiang Adept. In addition, he primarily focuses his efforts on
analyzing formations, and has only spent a bit of effort on training. And yet, he has already reached
such a level.”

Less than thirty years of age? A peak Wanxiang Adept? Who only spent a small part of his attention
on training? And was a reincarnated Immortal? Ning was truly speechless.

“Are there any higher prices?” Miss Ziyi looked towards the surrounding rooms, but unfortunately,
there were no further bids. “Then this Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation will go to the young master
of Universal Fire,” Miss Ziyi said in an extremely respectful manner.

The Boy of Universal Fire, gnawing on his bone, instantly began to laugh loudly. “To condense such
a complicated grand formation in such a manner, yet maintain so much of its essence…it has been a
long time since I’ve seen something like this. I truly am curious as to which formations master carried
this out. I bought it for just a bit over three hundred taels…what a bargain, what a bargain!” The Boy
of Universal Fire waved his hand, and the dragon pearl, along with the four dragon scales, flew
straight towards him. At the same time, he also tossed out some black marks, sending them flying
towards Miss Ziyi.

As soon as the dragon pearl and the dragon scales entered his grasp, the Boy of Universal Fire
instantly began to peruse them. The distant Ning, upon seeing this, sighed to himself. Even though
this person was a reincarnated Immortal, he was also insanely dedicated to what he did. If he
wasn’t, could he have reached his current level of accomplishments?

“Hmph.” In the other room, Northmont Fox had an increasingly ugly look on his face. He had lost. His
Grand Mountain Seal had only sold for 110 taels, while the Netherwyrm Heavenlock Formation had
sold for 360 taels.

……

Within Ning’s room. An attendant brought in a stack of black marks, placing them on the table. The
attendant then bowed respectfully and left, closing the door as he did.
“This is 360 taels,” Baiwei said, delivering the stack of black marks to Ning. Ning saw that there were
three slightly larger marks and six slightly smaller marks. On the large marks, there were the words,
‘Heavenly Treasures Mountain of the Grand Xia Dynasty’ and ‘Exchangeable For 100 Taels’. On the
small marks, there were the words, ‘Heavenly Treasures Mountain of the Grand Xia Dynasty’ and
‘Exchangeable For 10 Taels’.

“Every single commandery city controlled by every single Marquisate of the world has a Heavenly
Treasures Mountain within,” Baiwei explained. “This elemental mark is used quite commonly. It is
also a magic treasure that requires someone to be at least at the Xiantian level to bind. After binding
it, you can carry it with you and use it to buy other magic treasures, or trade for liquefied elemental
essence. Liquefied elemental essence is something which every single major power in the entire
world delights in.”

Ning nodded. At Earth, one of the trillion Lesser Worlds, it could be said that gold was a common
commodity used for trade. In this vast world, however, the refined extract of the natural elemental
energy of the world was what was used as a common currency. By relying on them, one could avoid
having to waste precious amounts of time in slowly, bitterly gathering in energy. However, not even
Immortals could be wealthy enough to use liquefied elemental essence nonstop; at most, they would
use them to help in making breakthroughs.

“I’ve caused you, Brother Ji Ning, to lose a grand formation. I truly feel ashamed,” Baiwei said
quickly. “But I acquired this liquefied elemental essence,” Ning replied hurriedly. “As for the grand
formation, it was of no use to me.”

Baiwei shook his head. “It’s not the same. Such a rare formation can easily be exchanged for
liquefied elemental essence, but it will be very hard for you to use elemental essence to buy another
such formation. Still, I have to admit, this feels excellent. Today, Northmont Fox wanted to cause
trouble for me. He first ruined our plans of having you, Brother Ji Ning, enter the Skysplitter Sword
Sect, and then he insisted on taking away Zither Fairy. At last, I’ve given vent to my anger.”

“Given Northmont Fox’s temperament, I imagine that he’s going wild with rage by now,” Wuji said
with a laugh. “Right.” Just thinking of this made Baiwei begin to laugh even more happily.

Ning grinned as well…and in his heart, he was calculating how many flying swords he might be able
to purchase with these 360 taels of liquefied elemental essence.

“When I left Swallow Mountain, I first made a trip to the underwater estate. I passed the second level
of the Wargod Hall and traded for the Nine Yang Swords Formation.” Ning was pondering to himself.
The Nine Yang Swords Formation was an extremely good match for the [Lesser Thousand Swords
Formation]; although Daoist Threelives had individually ranked those nine swords as only being
high-grade, in the modern era, they would all definitely be considered top-grade. In addition, all nine
swords came from the same source, and they just so happened to form a formation base for the
[Lesser Thousand Swords Formation], and so the power of the [Lesser Thousand Swords
Formation] had naturally increased significantly.

“I need to acquire some more high quality flying swords that come from the same source. I can’t
hope for top-grade Mortal-ranked flying swords like these Nine Yang Swords, but I have to try and
procure high-grade or at least middle-grade swords.” Ning understood that there was a direct link
between the power of his [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] and the quality of his magic
treasures. The higher quality those magic treasures were, the greater the power of the formation
would naturally become.

Given the current power of his divine sense, his [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] would be
capable of unleashing tremendous combat power. His true killer attack, the [Starseizing Hand], was
something he would only use at the most critical moments; under ordinary circumstances, he would
rely on the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] to make his way through the world.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 9, Ji Ning Reveals His Fierceness

After having vented their anger through the treasure auction, Northmont Baiwei, Hun Wuji, and Ji
Ning were now chatting and laughing amongst themselves. They were in quite a good mood. Time
passed on slowly, and night began to approach.

“Midnight comes, and the time for the betting arena comes as well.” From outside the window, the
voice of Miss Ziyi could be heard. Ning looked out through the window, only to see that the hall had
now become completely empty. There were two jewels placed in a corner of the room, and Miss Ziyi
was standing in one of the corners while speaking.

“The betting arena duels are absolutely berserk,” Baiwei said as he looked out the window. “Most of
the people here are Wanxiang Adepts, and astonishingly talented ones at that. They will send some
of their Zifu Disciple followers or retainers to engage in battle against other Zifu Disciples and Zifu-
level Diremonsters. The masters on each side will engage in a gamble on the duel.” Ning sighed to
himself as he listened. What a tragic sight!

“The Immortal cultivators and monsters who engage in the betting arena duels participate for the
sake of survival or for the sake of acquiring treasures,” Baiwei said. “However, a duel must be
between two competitors at the same level; there absolutely would never be, for example, a
Wanxiang Adept battling a Zifu Disciple.”
……

Ning stared down at the hall below. An Immortal practitioner with a sword on his back had entered
the hall, and a red-haired man had entered as well. The two stared at each other, their eyes filled
with murderous intents.

They first walked to stand before the two jewels at the two opposite corners of the hall, filling them
with their elemental energy and causing each to radiate light.

“The Immortal cultivator under the command of young master Qu is a peak Zifu Disciple.”

“The Diremonster under the command of Miss Leshan is also at the peak Zifu level.”

Miss Ziyi called out in a loud voice, “Activate the grand sealing formation.” Whoosh! Instantly, a
watery, rippling layer of light that was nearly a kilometer in circumference suddenly appeared within
the hall, covering the Immortal practitioner and the red-haired man within it.

“Qu Yihang, I think you had best admit defeat obediently. Otherwise, not only will you lose your
money, you will also lose your man!”

“Hmph. Just wait and you’ll see.”

Voices rang out from the two private rooms…and the battle below them instantly began. The red-
haired Diremonster instantly transformed into a strange, four-hooved monster of fire. Its body was
covered with armored scales, and it howled as it charged towards the Immortal practitioner while
belching forth fiery light from its mouth.

“Vermin, accept death.” The sword-wielding Immortal practitioner let out a cold laugh. Swish! The
sword on his back instantly flew out, and as it slashed through the air, it left a rainbow-colored scar
through the air…

Ning watched the battle progress beneath him. He nodded to himself. “The Immortal practitioner
should be the winner.” After having battled for some time, the Diremonster let out a grief-stricken
bellow, then collapsed. The Immortal practitioner’s face was ashen as well; he had been forced to
execute a forbidden technique in order to achieve this victory. However, in the end, he had won.
Previously, his master-uncle, Qu Yihang had told him that so long as he won, he would help him
become a inner disciple.
“Success.” The Immortal practitioner had excitement in his eyes. Although he had used a forbidden
technique, he hadn’t used it for very long. In a year or so, he would be fully recovered.

“Hahaha….” Young master Qu immediately began to laugh. As for Meng Leshan, she had an ugly
look on her face.

…..

In Ning’s private room. Baiwei said with a laugh, “Meng Leshan and Qu Yihang are both dazzling,
outstanding talents. Both of them have joined the Raindragon Guard as well. Rumor said that while
on a mission for the Raindragon Guard, the two formed a grudge against each other. Outside
Stillwater City, the two would most likely be plotting each other’s deaths. Within the city itself, they
are still going all out to harm each other.”

“Much like you and Northmont Fox, actually,” Wuji said with a laugh. “Hahaha, yes, just like me and
Northmont Fox,” Baiwei replied with a loud laugh.

Wuji looked towards Ning. “Brother Ji Ning, although these betting duels appear casual, in truth,
many mysteries hide within. You have to select a particularly astonishing individual at the Zifu
Disciple level…but the more talented an expert is, the less willing they will be to risk their lives. Thus,
it’s actually quite difficult to arrange for these betting duels. Both sides have to come up with a way
to recruit someone, and if they lose, not only will they lose money and their fighter, they will also lose
face. Sometimes, if they grow desperate due to their losses, they might even personally join the field
of battle.”

“Personally join the field of battle?” Ning was surprised. These Immortal practitioners all had
extraordinary statuses; they would personally join and fight?

“What’s so surprising about this? These geniuses rose to prominence through combat to begin with.
When enraged, they will personally join the field of battle. Every year or two, there will be Wanxiang
Adepts, unparalleled geniuses all, who will fight a duel to the death here in the Carefree Caverns. If
someone dies, no one can be blamed for it!” Baiwei continued, “But of course, aside from those who
have grudges against each other, most are just trying to win some money through using the servants
and retainers under their command.”

“For example, myself,” Wuji said with a laugh. “I have quite a few servants and retainers. I can send
them down to engage in betting duels, and the stakes for each duel must be at least two hundred
taels of liquefied elemental essence. I can make quite a bit of money in this manner.” Ning nodded.
Ning now understood that although Hun Wuji and Northmont Baiwei were two of the more amiable
figures amongst these exalted young masters…they were still figures of high status. They had high
standards. It was precisely because they thought well of Ning that they were willing to treat him as
an equal and as a friend. To them, ordinary Zifu Disciples were nothing more than retainers or
servants; why would they care about their deaths?

Some time later. More than ten betting duels had already been carried out, and the atmosphere of
the entire hall had become noticeably more heated and wild. There was currently a very tall and
muscular Fiendgod Body Refiner standing in the middle of the hall. As a Zifu-level Fiendgod Body
Refiner with a divine ability, he possessed astonishing combat power.

“Hahaha, everyone, I’ve won six rounds in a row. It seems that the ‘spiritfruit wine’ for today’s betting
duels will be mine for the drinking.” A chubby-faced, big-eared youth in a private room was laughing
merrily. “Is there anyone else? As long as you can beat my subordinate, you will gain three hundred
taels.”

“Su-Su! You’ve won enough. Have your man go down.” A deep voice rang out. Instantly, Ning turned
to look; the speaker was Northmont Fox. Fox flashed a fierce glance towards Ning, giving him a long
stare, then grinning with a clearly wicked idea in mind.

Ning laughed as well. He had overheard quite a few things today, and now understood that these
young masters couldn’t quite be considered the movers-and-shakers of the Commandery. The truly
top-tier figures of Stillwater Commandery were the likes of Northmont Blacktiger. Northmont Fox?
Ning didn’t fear him at all.

“Bang!” The hall suddenly trembled. A two-meter tall horned man with massive muscles and azure
skin strode into the hall, his every footstep causing it to shake. His eyes radiated with azure light as
well. Upon seeing him, every single person understood…that this was a Diremonster! Normal people
could rarely reach the height of six meters, much less be horned.

The giant, muscular, horned Diremonster strode to the two jewels in the corner, then filled them with
his elemental ki and his divine power. “Fiendgod Body Refiner, Ki Refiner. A dual refiner.” Miss Ziyi,
standing in the corner, immediately made this report. “Both are at the peak Zifu level. A Diremonster
under the control of young master Fox.”

Whoosh. The grand sealing formation once more lit up, and the Diremonster stared directly towards
that Fiendgod Body Refiner cultivator. “Die, then.” The azure-skinned, horned Diremonster let out a
loud roar, transforming into a rhinoceros with a single horn that was more than thirty meters tall. Its
entire body then radiated with light, and the body of the Monoceros once more swelled, transforming
to sixty meters in height. The enormous Monoceros…it stared at its opponent as though he were an
ant.

Bang! The Monoceros moved as fast as lightning, intending to trample its opponent. Whap! Whap!
Whap! After three exchanges of blows, the Fiendgod cultivator had been trampled to the point of
having only half his body left. He immediately called out in a high voice, “I admit defeat!” Only then
did the azure-skinned Monoceros come to a halt.

If one side perished or admitted defeat, that represented the end of the battle! If one insisted on
forcibly killing someone who had surrendered, one would be punished with a fine equal to ten times
the stakes of the bet.

“Grrr…” The Monoceros raised its head, letting out a growl, then transformed into mist before
recondensing into that azure-skinned, horned man who was six meters tall.

“Northmont Baiwei. Three hundred taels. Dare you engage in a betting duel with me?” The distant
Northmont Fox pointed from his window towards Baiwei. “I know that you are as cowardly as a
mouse, and won’t possibly dare to engage in a betting duel. Hahaha…as cowardly as a rat!”

The sound of his laughter was so repugnant and vile. Ning now finally understood why some people
would personally go enter the arena.

“I didn’t expect that Northmont Fox would be here today. If I did…I would never have allowed him to
act so arrogantly for so long.” Baiwei gritted his teeth, so hard that they were at the point of
splintering. He was an incomparably proud person; how could he not be enraged after being mocked
repeatedly?

“Brother Wuji, do you have any powerful retainers present?” Baiwei looked towards Wuji. Wuji was
like a young God of Wealth; he often relied on betting duels to earn money. Naturally, he had some
formidable retainers under his command. Nodding, he said, “I do have a powerful retainer amongst
the servants I brought today. However, I truly do not feel confident in his chances. That Diremonster
retainer which Northmont Fox brought out is a Fiendgod Body Refiner with a divine ability; he truly is
extraordinary.”

Ning nodded as well. Monsters were powerful to begin with, and those who trained as Fiendgod
Body Refiners were even tougher to deal with, much less those who also had divine abilities. Their
combat power was at a level higher than even Jadechild had been at. Generally speaking, those
with such a great level of power would disdain from serving as retainers and engaging in betting
duels. However, this person was a Diremonster who had definitely been captured and tamed; thus,
he must have been forced to obey the order to go take part in a betting duel.
“No matter what, let’s give it a try,” Baiwei said. “Alright,” Wuji nodded. “Attend me.” Baiwei called
towards the servant outside, then waved his hand and produced three hundred taels worth of marks,
then tossed them over. “Let’s bet on a duel.” The servant nodded.

………..

Soon, a black-robed cultivator entered the hall. He stared coldly towards his opponent, underwent
the test, and was verified to also be at the peak Zifu level in power. “Kill him!” From far away,
Northmont Fox let out a roar.

That six-meter tall, azure-skinned and horned man stared at the black-robed cultivator, then roared,
“You are dead.” And then, it once more transformed into a towering, massive Monoceros, then
executed its Heavenly Transformation divine ability and increased in size yet again, to sixty meters
in height! Its entire body filled the area with a savage aura, causing the corners of the eyes of the
black-robed cultivator to crease.

“A stupid cow.” The black-robed cultivator let out a cold laugh. Whoosh! A black fog appeared out of
nowhere in the area around them, filling the entire area, including that Monoceros. The only thing
that could be seen within the black fog was an enormous, rainbow-colored serpentine phantom.

“Die, die, die!” The enormous Monoceros wildly charged and trampled about. The black fog swirled
around it, and the massive phantom serpent also coiled around the Monoceros, causing its body to
crackle and pop. Its body was beginning to rot, and its bones quickly became visible.

“Bangbangbang…” The Monoceros rampaged about, its power seemingly great enough to shatter
the skies and overturn the mountains.

“No, I….” Suddenly, a miserable scream rang out. BANG! An explosive sound…and the black fog
dispersed, along with the illusion of a serpent. The enormous Monoceros stood there in the hall,
vestiges of blood and gore visible beneath its feet. Its body was completely rotted away, and thick
white bones could be seen on its back. Still, quite soon, in just a few breaths, its body completely
healed.

“Northmont Baiwei. Is that all you have to show?” Northmont Fox arrogantly mocked him yet again.
“I’m so very sorry…but your three hundred taels of liquefied essence is now mine. I would now like
to propose a challenge of six hundred taels of liquefied essence…dare you accept?”
Silence. Complete silence. The entire hall had fallen silent, and nobody said a thing. Although they
weren’t afraid of Northmont Fox, they truly didn’t have any Zifu-level experts who were capable of
battling that Monoceros monster. Everyone was waiting to see how Baiwei would respond.

…..

Within Ning’s private room. Baiwei stared towards the outside, his gaze narrowing. “Nine hundred
taels! I’ll wager nine hundred taels on a bet with you. Dare you accept it?” Northmont Fox was
continuing to shout provocatively. He wanted to seize this opportunity to deeply humiliate his old foe.
His father, Northmont Yin, strongly encouraged him to suppress Northmont Baiwei whenever Fox
had the chance.

Silence.

Wuji didn’t say anything. He didn’t have any retainers who were more powerful than the monster.
Baiwei’s veins began to protrude from his face, and he muttered to himself, “Endure, endure,
endure…”

“Let me go.” Ning suddenly rose to his feet. “I will go kill that rhinoceros monster.” “You?” Wuji and
Baiwei both stared towards Ning in astonishment.

“No way. Ji Ning, if you train for a few more years, it will be simple for you to kill him, but you’ve only
trained for ten or so years to date,” Baiwei said, shaking his head hurriedly. “You can’t take this risk.”
But in his heart, he couldn’t help but feel slightly moved; he understood that Ning simply couldn’t
watch any longer, and wanted to fight on his behalf.

Ning glanced at the outside. Nine hundred taels of liquefied elemental essence? What he lacked the
most right now was liquefied elemental essence; upon killing the rhinoceros monster, he should
acquire quite a bit of it.

“Don’t worry. Killing him?” Ning let out a chuckle. “That will be as easy as killing a chicken.”

Wuji and Baiwei were both stunned. These words were simply too dominating!

“Fine. Then I’ll bet against him. If we win, the liquefied elemental essence will be yours, Brother Ji
Ning!” Northmont Baiwei felt incomparably excited.
 Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 10, The Monstrous Ji Ning

“Brother Ji Ning, you are willing to risk yourself for me. I truly don’t know what I…” Northmont Baiwei
looked at Ning, then said hesitatingly, “You know, let’s just forget it. Although Northmont Fox is going
too far, it’s not a big deal if we just endure it for a time. In the future, I’ll just seek out an opportunity
to avenge myself.” When he recollected how savage that rhinoceros Diremonster was, Baiwei was
worried for Ning.

“No need to say anything further. The liquefied essence will go to me upon winning, right? That’s
enough,” Ning said with a laugh. Baiwei opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but nothing
came out.

“Don’t worry. I’m completely confident.” Ning cracked his lips into a wide grin. “Excellent!” The
nearby Hun Wuji looked at Ning. “Brother Ji Ning, we will wait here for you to drink with us when you
return.” Ning nodded, a fierce light flashing through his eyes.

This time…would be the first time he would reveal his power in Stillwater City. Since he had come to
Stillwater City, then it was time for him to truly show off what a ‘monstrous talent’ he was.

Since he had already decided to join a school, and since there were so many elite members from
many schools present, Ning had come to his decision. He was no longer going to hide himself and
conceal his power. He had trained in seclusion in the Swallow Mountain region for ten-plus years; he
had concealed enough. In Stillwater City, what he needed was reveal as much of his prowess and
talent as he could; he needed for the various schools to view him as a priceless treasure! To make
the various powers all view him as someone tremendously important! Only then would he be able to
ascend beyond the clouds in the azure sky!

If he was to embark on this path, then he would embark on this path as a genius. The path of a
monstrous genius!

“A rhinoceros monster?” Ning looked through the window towards that savage, massive rhinoceros
Diremonster. “Nothing more than a stepping stone for me.”

“Attend me.” Baiwei once more summoned the servant, then handed over nine hundred taels. At the
same time, he instructed her to take Ning to engage that Monoceros in a duel.

The maid looked in astonishment towards Ning. Within the hallway outside the room, she had seen
for herself how savage and mighty that rhinoceros monster was. This delicate, handsome youth in
front of her was going to battle against that rhinoceros monster?
“Yes.” The maidservant didn’t dare say anything; she immediately led Ning towards the outside.
“Brother Ji Ning, we shall wait here for your victorious return!” Baiwei and Wuji both rose to their feet,
watching as Ning left.

“Be careful.” The Whitewater Hound, resting on the ground, rose to his feet as well as he looked at
Ning. Still, the Whitewater Hound knew very well…that Ning had killed Adept Xu Li with but a single
stroke. Kill this rhinoceros monster? Ning shouldn’t have any problems at all.

Ning turned his head, glancing back towards him, then nodded. And then, Ning departed. Ning
headed out through the hallway, following after the maidservant. There were some other attendants
in the hallway as well. They all looked towards Ning, a mixture of curiosity, grief, sympathy, and pity
in their eyes. As they saw it…this handsome, delicate youth was probably a retainer who was being
sent to his certain death.

“Baiwei, are you quivering in fear?” That deep voice once more called out mockingly. “Northmont
Fox, have that Diremonster under your command prepare for death!” Another voice, a clear one,
rang out from the other room. “In addition, Northmont Fox, let me tell you something. Even if you
occasionally acquire a powerful retainer, you should be modest. The more arrogant you are, the
more miserable your defeat will be!”

“Bullshit!” Northmont Fox instantly grew enraged. Northmont Baiwei just snickered. “Shortly
afterwards, you’ll have to swallow your own pile of crap.” The voices of the two young masters of the
Northmont clan echoed in the air.

As for Ning, he had already departed his corridor and arrived within the main hall.

……

“Oh, Northmont Baiwei actually has a subordinate he can send out? Can it be that he feels confident
that his subordinate will be able to overcome that rhinoceros monster?” A rainbow-clothed maiden
looked downwards from her window.

……

“Someone dares to battle against that rhinoceros monster? Who is it?” A white-robed young master
looked downwards as well.

…….
“Hm.” The Boy of Universal Fire, still gnawing on that bone, looked downwards as well. Although he
had earlier been focusing on analyzing his new formation, the betting duels was the most lively part
of the night, and they didn’t go on for too long. Naturally, he elected to watch them as well.

……

“Who is it? I refuse to believe that he has a subordinate that can kill my rhinoceros monster.”
Northmont Fox stared downwards as well. All of them were staring towards that corridor, and soon,
they all saw a youth dressed in fur enter the main hall, under the guidance of that maidservant. The
youth had a smile on his face, as though this was naught but a game.

“He is Ji Ning.” Zhou Li, next to Fox, spoke out. “That good friend of Northmont Baiwei’s.” “Good
friend?” Fox instantly began ro roar with laughter, and his voice filled the entire hall.

“Northmont Baiwei, do you truly have no subordinates left? You actually asked your good friend to
personally enter the fray? As I recall, this friend of yours wanted to join the Skysplitter Sword Sect. A
young fellow who is just about to enter a sword sect…has actually come out to battle against this
rhinoceros Diremonster, who is in possession of a divine ability? He’s throwing his life away. I’m so
very sorry, but it seems your 900 taels will be mine, yet again.”

“You laugh quite loudly, but you’ll be crying soon enough,” Baiwei said with a cold laugh of his own,
off in the distance.

……

The formidable figures within the private rooms all stared down at Ji Ning. Upon hearing that Ning
was Baiwei’s friend, they all mused to themselves that given Baiwei accepted him as a friend, he
must certainly have some extraordinary attributes. Although he appeared to be a youth, the younger
one appeared to be, the more one needed to be wary of that person.

“Please come.” Miss Ziyi looked at Ning. “This jewel is for testing your divine strength, while this one
is for testing your elemental ki. Prior to the betting duel, you must have your basic level of power
tested. It is absolutely forbidden for a Wanxiang Adept to battle against a Zifu Disciple, or something
similar. If it does happen, then the Carefree Caverns will take the life of the cheater.”

Ning nodded. He immediately filled those two jewels with his Crimsonbright divine power, as well as
his elemental ki. The two jewels radiated with light which was far weaker than the previous
opponents had generated. The light that emanated from the elemental ki test was particularly dim.
“Eh?” Miss Ziyi looked towards Ning in surprise, then called out in high voice, “The Immortal
practitioner who Northmont Baiwei has sent out is a dual refiner, both a Ki Refiner and a Fiendgod
Body Refiner. As a Fiendgod Body Refiner, he is at the late Zifu stage. As a Ki Refiner, he is at the
early Zifu stage.”

An uproar in the audience! “Elemental ki at the early Zifu stage?” “Only a late stage Fiendgod Body
Refiner?” “Not even at the peak of the Zifu stage; is he suicidal? This is insane.” “No wonder he
wishes to enter a school; his elemental ki is only at the early Zifu stage. He is indeed a highly
suitable candidate.”

The formidable figures seated above, upon hearing Ning’s level of power in these two aspects, all
began to shake their head and sigh. Prior to this, they had felt hopeful regarding Ning’s chances of
victories, but now, it seemed clear that the youth beneath them was throwing his life away.

……….

“Activate the sealing formation.” Miss Ziyi gave the order. Around them appeared that giant barrier of
light. Ning gave the light barrier a glance, then at Northmont Fox, who was watching far away, up
above them.

“Kid, you are dead for sure! Even if you have a slightly stronger Fiendgod Body Refining technique,
you are only at the late Zifu stage. You actually want to compete against the rhinoceros monster I
command? You are committing suicide. You probably won’t even have the chance to beg for mercy!”
Fox was incomparably brash right now.

“Just prepare your second opponent for me,” Ning said with a laugh. Northmont Fox was startled
momentarily, but then he bellowed with rage, “Such audacity. Monoceros, go and kill this punk!”

The atmosphere instantly grew tense. In the private rooms above them, Wuji and Baiwei were
feeling concern for Ning, while Fox was hoping for Ning’s death. Others were all watching this play
out with amusement. Still, in their hearts…they felt that Ning’s chances for survival were simply too
slim.

“Bang!” The six-meter tall, azure-skinned, horned man instantly transformed into an enormous
Monoceros. Immediately afterwards, its entire body began to emit a blurry light as it once more
transformed, this time into a sixty meter tall colossus. It had already completely executed its
Heavenly Transformation technique to the utmost; its current level of power and speed could be
described as incomparably astonishing.
“Prepare to die.” The rhinoceros monster galloped forward, its enormous legs causing the hall to
tremble with each step. As for Ning, two Darknorth Swords appeared out of nowhere into his hands.

Bang!

The giant rhinoceros monster instantly charged towards Ning, its enormous hooves slamming and
crushing down towards Ning, but missing each time. “Whoosh!” The Darknorth Swords in Ning’s
hands transformed into lines of rainwater, slashing past one of the giant hooves. Instantly, blood
splattered out, falling down like the rain. One of the rear hooves of the rhinoceros had been
completely severed. It had been charging at high speed forward, and it instantly collapsed to the
ground, its momentum carrying it to roll forward and slam directly against the grand sealing
formation.

Rumble….

A colossal, mountain-shaking collision. Even the grand sealing formation trembled, a few ripples
appear as it blocked the Monoceros monster which had lost a leg. The female attendants outside the
grand sealing formation, along with Miss Ziyi, had been badly startled upon seeing the Monoceros
charge towards them. They knew, rationally, that it couldn’t touch them, but they still took a few
steps back.

The rear hoof of the Monoceros flew straight towards it, once more connecting with the trunk.
“Growl….” The Monoceros rose to its feet, staring at Ning, a hint of dread and nervousness in its
eyes.

Silence! All of the private rooms above them had fallen silent. Fox’s eyes were wide as he stared
downwards. Everyone could easily tell who held the advantage.

Given how massive the Monoceros monster was, its hooves were enormous, yet tremendously
quick. It was actually extremely hard to dodge its trampling attacks…but Ning had done so easily.
Clearly, Ning’s agility was exceptionally formidable, far above that of the Monoceros. In addition, and
more importantly, Ning’s swordplay was particularly powerful as well.

In addition to the magic treasure protecting the body of the Monoceros, after using the Heavenly
Transformation technique, the body of the Monoceros was incomparably tough. And yet, its rear
hoof had been chopped out with one blow? The power of this sword technique…was absolutely…

What no one realized was that Ning’s divine will was controlling his Darknorth Sword. At this point in
time, Ning’s divine will was actually a bit more stronger than even that the power of a peak Zifu-
stage Fiendgod Body Refiner. When matched with the ‘Dao Domain’ level of swordplay and
executed with the Darknorth Swords, which were more powerful than ordinary Mortal-ranked magic
treasures to begin with, how could the power of the blows not be astonishing?

“Aren’t you going to admit defeat yet?” Ning glanced at the distant, towering figure of the Monoceros.
There was a huge difference in size between the two, but at this point in time, the Monoceros’ aura
was clearly far feebler.

“Admit defeat? It isn’t so easy to kill a Fiendgod Body Refiner. Even if you chopped me a hundred
times, I wouldn’t die.” The Monoceros was entering a berserk state. “Kill him, kill him!” Northmount
Fox roared from above, and the Monoceros raised its head, glancing at him. “Don’t worry, Master.”
The Monoceros stared straight at Ning, its eyes seeming to emit flames.

“Since this is the case…then I will send you on your way.” Ning held his Darknorth Swords in his
hands, leisurely strolling forward. “Growl…” The Monoceros bellowed, once more charging towards
Ning, its savage aura filling the heavens and seeming to contain the power to topple the mountains.
As long as he could step on, strike, or even brush against Ning, Ning’s body would probably
explode.

Unfortunately…in terms of technique and comprehension, the difference between the two was
simply too great. “Die,” Ning said. His entire body transformed into a line of rainwater and slashed
outwards. Whoosh…the thick neck of the Monoceros monster was slashed through. Ning flew
upwards past him as blood sprayed wildly everywhere. The body and the head of the Monoceros
had been completely cut into two pieces.

“Waterflame Lotuses.” Ning willed it. BOOM!

After having reached a new level of power as a Fiendgod Refiner, the amount of fire and water Ning
could control had clearly increased significantly. If he was to reach the Celestial Fiendgod level, then
most likely his control over fire and water alone would be enough for him to easily slaughter a Primal
Daoist, without him needing to use any other techniques.

One Waterflame Lotus after another appeared out of nowhere in the surrounding area, slowly
swiveling. Each one of them were at least thirty meters in diameter. In total, twelve Waterflame
Lotuses had bloomed!

As for the Monoceros which had just been decapitated by Ning, its body and its head were still in two
locations. Its head fell between two Waterflame Lotuses and was instantly ground down by them.
The Waterflame Lotuses continuously swiveled, crushing and destroying its body. The completely
defenseless head was completely crushed into smithereens, but even after transforming into dust, it
continued to be assaulted.

As for the other ten loti, they surrounded the entire enormous body of the Monoceros. Although there
were parts of it that weren’t completely surrounded, there was no way for the remaining parts of it to
reform into a whole in this situation.

“Grind!” Ning stood there, within the enormous hall. His twelve giant Waterflame Lotuses bloomed,
and the petals of the lotuses swiveled, wildly grinding down the enormous body of the Monoceros,
slaughtering it and preventing it from reforming. Naturally, this meant it didn’t have a chance to admit
defeat either.

This scene, both bloody and beautiful, caused the entire hall to fall silent. Ning just stood there…and
then, he raised his head to look towards Northmont Fox.

“I told you to prepare a second subordinate.” Ning laughed calmly, as casual and as relaxed as he
had been when he first entered the hall.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 11, The Battle Which Brought Fame

“Excellent!” Back in the private room, Northmont Baiwei’s face was red from excitement. By his side
was Hun Wuji, and his eyes were also filled with shock and delight. “I truly didn’t expect that Brother
Ji Ning would be able to execute that rhinoceros monster with such ease,” Wuji said. “Those
movements…that swordplay…he is truly inconceivable.”

Baiwei nodded hurriedly. “Formidable.” Baiwei was grinning so widely that his face threatened to
split apart. He immediately shouted loudly, “Northmont Fox, I told you earlier that you were spouting
crap. Now, you’ll have to swallow your crap back down!”

…….

Northmont Fox’s face was ashen. Both the actions of the seemingly ordinary youth below him as
well as the words of Baiwei caused his heart to clench. He felt extremely miserable!

…….

“How formidable. What formidable swordplay!” Young master Qu stared downwards.

……..

“He was able to effortless execute that rhinoceros monster? Was that a divine ability? Or pure
swordplay?” A black-robed youth frowned as he stared down towards the hall.

…….

The Boy of Universal Fire, that child who appeared six or seven years old and who had a golden
necklace around his neck, had a look of deep contemplation on his face. He stared downwards at
Ning, in the hall beneath him. “That sword technique…such power. It shouldn’t be a divine ability!
Given how miraculous his swordcraft is…can it be that he has already reached the Dao Domain
realm? That seems unlikely; he’s merely a Zifu Disciple. It’s rather unlikely that he could’ve reached
such a high level of comprehension. But that sword…? Can it be that I was seeing things?”

…….

Although there were quite a few formidable figures present, Ning had executed his sword technique
too quickly. Only the Boy of Universal Fire had been able to just get a vague sense that perhaps
Ning had reached the ‘Dao Domain’ level in swordplay…but even he didn’t dare to feel confident
about it.

The grand sealing formation vanished.

“The Immortal practitioner which Northmont Baiwei sent out…was victorious!” Miss Ziyi called out in
a clear voice, and then she looked towards Baiwei. “Are you willing to continue accepting further
betting duels?”

“Yes.” Ning, standing near her, spoke out instead of Baiwei. Baiwei, within his private room up
above, was startled. He hurriedly sent to Ning, “Brother Ji Ning, you wish to continue?” Ning sent
back, “As long as Northmont Fox is willing to send someone out, then we’ll keep betting against him.
Don’t worry. It’s already quite incredible that he was able to send out a rhinoceros monster. I imagine
it will be quite hard for him to send out anything more powerful. And, even if he does…I am confident
in being able to kill it. As for the stakes…you can add the 900 taels of liquefied elemental essence I
won on top of the stakes as well.”

Ning’s mentally transmitted voice was filled with absolute confidence. He himself had already
actively told Fox to prepare a second person; how could he choose to retreat now? “Fine.” Baiwei’s
eyes lit up.
“Northmont Fox, my good brother, Ji Ning, is down there awaiting your challenge. Weren’t you
bragging quite fiercely earlier? As for the stakes…I’m willing to accept 900 taels, or even 1800 taels!
I’m just afraid that you aren’t!” Baiwei snickered as he spoke, his eyes filled with disdain and
contempt. The words Baiwei had said, as well as the manner in which he had said them, when
matched with that look in his eyes…these things instantly caused the distant Fox to be utterly
enraged. His face turned red and swollen.

……

Northmont Fox’s face looked ghastly. He glanced at several of his nearby friends, then said in a low
growl, “I’ve suffered such humiliation…I am definitely going to slaughter that one named Ji Ning.”
Zhou Li shook his head and said, “To kill Ji Ning…that will be hard. This person’s agility techniques
are shocking, and his swordplay is exceedingly formidable. Even the rhinoceros monster who had
used a divine ability was executed…”

“He isn’t completely flawless.” Another person nearby, a blue-robed, middle-aged man spoke out.
“His divine ability is merely at the late Zifu stage, and his elemental ki is only at the early Zifu stage.
His abilities as a Ki Refiner are so weak as to be negligible; he’s only able to bring out his close-
quarters-combat techniques in a fight. Thus, as long as you prevent him from drawing nearby, you’ll
have won half the battle.”

Northmont Fox’s eyes lit up. Right. This Ji Ning was only skilled in close combat. As long as one
didn’t let him draw near, then his defeat would be nigh. “Attend me,” Northmont Fox immediately
commanded. “Have the Whitewitch come.”

Fox said to his nearby friends said, “This Whitewitch was offered to me by the White Warlock Sect. I
had planned on enjoying her slowly, but after suffering such humiliation…I can’t be bothered with
personal enjoyment. Although this Whitewitch is somewhat weaker than the rhinoceros monster, she
perfectly counters this Ji Ning.”

“The White Warlock Sect?” Everyone nearby, Zhou Li included, was stunned. The White Warlock
Sect…this wasn’t a sect that was located within Stillwater Commandery. It currently desired to be
permitted into Stillwatery Commandery, and it had offered a witch to Northmont Fox as a tactic. Zhou
Li and the others naturally didn’t dare to say too much about this matter.

Soon, a barefoot woman walked in. She was dressed in a white robe that was hemmed with flowery
patterns, and had long black hair that fell to her buttocks. She had a pair of dazzling, bewitching
eyes, and she exuded an indescribable magnetism. Her gaze was fixed upon Northmont Fox’s
figure, and Fox felt a fire build in his loins as well.
“What an exceptional specimen.” Fox ground his teeth, then said, “Whitewitch, your White Warlock
Sect gave you to me. Your life, your everything…it all belongs to me.”

“Your slave understands. Your slave belongs entirely to you, Lord.” The Whitewitch responded in a
soft voice, so gentle it seemed to be caressing his heart.

Fox nodded. “That kid named Ji Ning, standing there in the hall below us, killed that rhinoceros
monster under my command. Now, I have a feeling of rage that I must give vent to. I order you…to
go kill this Ji Ning.”

“Your slave is to go kill Ji Ning?” The Whitewitch, who had been calm this entire time, was instantly
stunned. Previously, she had been with the other servants in the other private room. Through the
window, they had watched everything happen below them. She knew exactly how formidable this Ji
Ning was! She knew that in terms of power, she was quite a bit weaker than even the Monoceros.
As for Ji Ning…she had no confidence in being able to defeat him at all.

When the White Warlock Sect had sent her here, they had done so in order for her to entice and
mesmerize Northmont Fox!

“Hrm?” Fox frowned. “Are you not going to go? Then what’s the point of keeping you!” “No.” In her
heart, the Whitewitch secretly cursed this man, who was of the primary lineage of the Northmont
clan, for his viciousness. She hurriedly said, “Young master, it isn’t that your slave isn’t willing. It is
that your slave doesn’t feel there is any chance of killing this Ji Ning. Your slave personally
witnessed him killing the rhinoceros monster.”

Fox shook his head. “You don’t need to worry about this. This Ji Ning is extremely weak as a Ki
Refiner; his only strength lies in his close combat abilities! So long as you can make him unable to
draw near you, you will definitely win. As I recall, you have a secret binding skill that is extremely
formidable.”

The Whitewitch gritted her teeth. That was a technique that was meant for pleasure on the bed.
When she and Northmont Fox had been making love, she had once made it so that her hair had
rapidly lengthened, then tied herself up with it. At that time, while they were lovemaking, Northmont
Fox had even asked her about her technique, and she had naturally bragged about it. Who would
have imagined that the end result was this?

“You are skilled in constricting your foes. In addition, your White Warlock Sect is most famous for
your venomous bugs. Amongst them, your technique of ‘Body-Birthing Bugs’ are particularly
famous,” Northmont Fox said.
The Whitewitch’s face turned ashen. The Body-Birthing Bugs? This was indeed a technique of the
White Warlock Sect that made others terrified upon hearing of it, but if she were to execute it…if she
was lucky, she would only suffer severe damage to her elemental ki, but if she was slightly less
lucky, she would die.

The Whiteweitch stared at Northmont Fox…she understood that this Northmont Fox fully intended to
have her fight to her death, if that was what was needed to kill Ji Ning.

“You can choose to go. Or, you can choose death.” Northmont Fox’s voice was cold. The Whitewitch
gritted her teeth. “Your slave shall go.” “Good.” Fox nodded. “The skills of your White Warlock Sect
perfectly counter him. You still have a chance at surviving. Go to the hall and kill Ji Ning.”

“Alright.” The Whitewitch immediately turned and left, her body swaying. As Northmont Fox watched
her depart, a lecherous light flashed through his eyes. He let out a low sigh. “What a waste of a
beauty. Still, there are plenty of beauties in the world. This Ji Ning, however, must die. I have to give
vent to my rage.” He turned to stare through the window towards Ning, his eyes filled with savagery
now.

“Northmont Baiwei. You just won 900 taels, but now you are going to give them back to me? Fine. I’ll
bet against you again and have you send me those 900 taels back to me.”

……

Within the hall. Ning stood there by himself, a hint of a faint smile on his face. He was calm and
unflappable. Since he had already decided to reveal his fierceness…how could a single battle be
enough?

“Eh?” Ning looked forward. From a staircase up ahead, a barefoot, white-robed woman came
striding down, her long black hair falling to her buttocks. Her swaying motion as she walked was
filled with allure. “She has come to fight me?” Ning frowned, puzzled. “This woman seems to be
more suited for seduction.”

The Whitewitch walked to the jewels in the corner, filling them with her elemental ki. Miss Ziyi called
out in a high voice, “The Immortal practitioner which young master Fox has sent out is a peak Zifu-
level Ki Refiner.”

“Just a Ki Refiner? A Ki Refiner is at a disadvantage to begin with when facing a Fiendgod Body
Refiner. She actually dares to come?” Ning pondered for a moment. “She must have a special
technique.” Although he was merely at the seventh stage of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine
Heavens] as a Ki Refiner, the jewels served as a test for the purity and density of the divine power
within his body, then determined his level.

Since ancient times to the present day, the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] had
always been the number one Fiendgod Body Refining technique. Although Ning was only at the
seventh stage, the purity of his divine power truly was comparable to a late Fiendgod Refiner.

“Boom!” The grand sealing formation once more lit up. Within the enormous barrier of light, only Ning
and the Whitewitch remained.

A lady of a sect of warlocks, filled with allure. A handsome, delicate-looking fur-clad youth.

“I was forced to come. Please show mercy.” The Whitewitch bowed slightly.

Ning just smiled. He didn’t say anything.

Whoosh! Suddenly, every single strand of the Whitewitch’s long black hair, previously waist-long,
emanated with a devilish red light. Instantly, that long hair began to grow rapidly…and an instant
later, it filled the air. Countless strands of black hair swept all-encompassingly towards Ning.

“Not good.” Baiwei, in the private room above, was shocked. “If Ji Ning is caught and bound, he will
be in trouble.” Wuji was nervous as well. “Ji Ning is skilled in close combat. His elemental ki is only
at the early Zifu stage; the power with which he can control magic treasures is simply too weak.”

Ning stared at the all-encompassing strands of hair, but just revealed a smile. He knew what his
opponent’s ability was, now. “So she wants to bind me.”

Rustle rustle rustle…

In the area around them, rainwater appeared out of nowhere. The rain was very light. When landing
on someone, it felt cool, refreshing, and comfortable. The countless drops of rainwater instantly filled
the entire grand sealing formation.

“Layered Water Walls.” Ning’s gaze was focused on the black hair sweeping towards him. Instantly,
one layer after another of incomparably sturdy curtains of water began to condense. In the past half
year, Ning had developed the [Rainwater Sutra], and he had indeed risen quite a bit in terms of
comprehension and insight. The power of the ‘rainwater’ of his Rainwater Sword Domain had risen
the most, and Ning had furthermore spent a great deal of time focusing on these curtains of water.
In fact, he had focused on developing this ‘Layered Watered Walls’ technique, and in terms of
intricacy, it was nearly comparable to the ‘Rain Line’ technique, except it was meant to pressure and
bind his foes.

“Slash slash slash…” The countless strands of black hair strove to draw close to Ning, but the layers
of watery curtains were incomparably durable and entangling. This technique of the Whitewitch’s
was meant to be used for pleasure on the bed; while it was exceptionally strong in terms of binding
power, in terms of the innate penetrating power of those strands of hair, it was very weak. There was
no way it could pass through the Layered Water Walls.

Those countless strands of hair flailed in midair, effortlessly blocked by the Layered Water Walls.

…..

“Rainwater Sword Domain!” The Boy of Universal Fire rose to his feet as well. He tossed that bone
to the side of the table, staring down at Ji Ning.

……

“Dao Domain. Rainwater. Rainwater Sword Domain…a Zifu Disciple who has a Dao Domain?” All of
the formidable figures who had been calmly watching this battle were now shocked. For someone
who was merely at the Zifu Disciple level to have reached the Dao Domain level, this…this was
something out of the legends! None of them had been this powerful at the Zifu Disciple level.

“A Zifu Disciple capable of comprehending a Dao Domain? Oh no…oh no! So many people are
watching here today. When word of this spreads…if the sect learns that a monstrous genius such as
him was refused entrance because of me…I will be in trouble.” Zhou Li, next to Northmont Fox, had
an ugly look on his face.

……

The emergence of the Rainwater Sword Domain had shocked everyone. As for Ning, he stood in the
hall, as calm as ever.

“Admit defeat. I’ll give you a path to survival.” Ning stood there, surrounded by rainwater. He glanced
at the distant Whitewitch.
Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 12, The Pebble That Aroused a Thousand-Story Wave

The Whitewitch, upon seeing Ji Ning display the might of his Rainwater Sword Domain, felt her heart
instantly turn icy cold. “A path to survival? What path to survival do I have?” She immediately began
to activate the secret technique of her sect within her body. All of the elemental ki in her blood, flesh,
and essence began to condense, and her entire body began to emit a bloody glow.

Deep within her Zifu, twelve Gu-Bugs that were hidden there began to move about. The bugs within
the bug nest she kept on her also began to move.

“Alas.” The distant Ning shook his head. It seemed as though this woman was being forced by
Northmont Fox to fight to the death. Ning immediately prepared to execute his Waterflame Lotus,
planning to send this woman directly to the Yellow Springs.

But suddenly…

“We admit defeat!” A deep voice rang out. “Eh?” Ning raised his head, glancing over in
astonishment. Northmont Fox, up in his private room, appeared very calm. He even grinned towards
Ning. “I didn’t expect that today, I would have the chance to see a genius such as young master Ji
Ning. You are merely an early-stage Zifu Disciple, and yet you’ve already comprehended a Dao
Domain…admirable, admirable. I, Northmont Fox, am wholeheartedly convinced by my defeat at the
hands of young master Ji Ning.”

The Whitewitch stared in astonishment towards Northmont Fox as well. She knew exactly how
savage and wild Fox had been previously; he had insisted on her going all out to kill Ji Ning. But
now, in the blink of an eye, before she had even lost, Fox had admitted defeat? In this battle, she
represented Fox, and Fox was the one doing the betting. Thus, upon his admission of defeat, the
battle ended.

Whoooosh. The long black hair of the Whitewitch quickly retracted, changing from three hundred
meters to its normal waist-high length.

“Young master Ji Ning was victorious,” Miss Ziyi instantly called out in a high voice. The way in
which she had referred to Ning had changed; previously, she had referred to him as ‘the Immortal
practitioner who Northmont Baiwei sent out’, but now, she directly referred to him as young master Ji
Ning. This was because she knew very well what it meant for a Zifu Disciple to gain insight into a
Dao Domain.
The Dao Domain was a level which only Primal Daoists were generally able to reach. For a Zifu
Disciple to be able to comprehend a Dao Domain…anyone capable of this was a truly monstrous
talent, or perhaps even a major power who had reincarnated. Based on what she had heard
regarding people like this, so long as they survived, they would train in the finest of Ki Refining
techniques, and there was no question that they would become Primal Daoists!

If it was said that she treated Northmont Baiwei and Northmont Fox with care, due to their family
background, she now treated this Ji Ning with the same care due to his innate, terrifying talent.

It must be understood… Primal Daoists were truly influential figures. If one then ascended to
become an Immortal, even the Marquisate of Stillwater would actively reach out to befriend that
person. Such a person would be capable of influencing the major powers of Stillwater Commandery.
A monstrous talent like Ning…so long as he survived, he would have a 100% chance of becoming a
Primal Daoist. As for becoming an Immortal? The chances for that were extremely high as well.

“Young master Ji Ning, are you going to continue with another betting duel?” Miss Ziyi smiled
towards Ning, and as a fox-spirit, her smile was dazzlingly bewitching.

“Hahaha, after young master Ji Ning revealed his Dao Domain, who would dare battle him?”

“There’s no way for us to find another Zifu Disciple who has comprehended a Dao Domain. Anyone
we send would definitely lose.”

“Let the betting duels come to an end.”

“The spiritfruit wine for this series of betting duels shall go to young master Baiwei and young master
Ji Ning.”

Laughter rang out from each of the private rooms. Since they didn’t have any grudge against Ning,
why would they wish to offend a monstrous talent like him? Although these people were elites
amongst their various sects, and although many were Wanxiang Adepts, it was still quite hard for
Wanxiang Adepts to leap to the Primal Daoist level. Actually, they still weren’t even ware that Ning’s
soul had already reached the ‘divine sense’ level. If they did, they probably would be completely
speechless.

It must be understood that by relying on his Rainwater Sword Domain and divine sense, Ning had
passed even the ‘divine abilities trial’ left behind by Daoist Threelives, once of the most ancient of
individuals who had been born when the Cosmos were first created. Thus, he had acquired the
[Starseizing Hand].
But of course, Ning knew that the amount of talent he had displayed today was enough. The divine
ability [Starseizing Hand]…he definitely couldn’t reveal it to anyone. If he did, he would be courting
death! Of course, he could still use it; after all, given the monstrous talent he had already revealed,
even if he unleashed an attack that exceeded the expectations of others, onlookers would come up
with their own explanations, such as Ning having learnt some sort of a special divine ability, or being
in possession of a very unique magic treasure, or that his level of comprehension was very high. In
short, it was normal for a monstrous talent like him to reveal monstrous levels of power.

“Young master Ji Ning.” Northmont Fox was in his distant room, a smile on his face. He called out in
high voice, “Northmont Baiwei and I have always been at loggerheads. Previously, I offended you,
but it wasn’t because of you, young master Ji Ning; what I did, I did to take aim at Northmont Baiwei.
Still, I did offend you, and I hope you will pardon me for that. At the same time, I would like to warn
you, young master Ji Ning, that Northmont Baiwei is a two-faced tiger. He’s quite the faker! Don’t be
fooled by him.”

Ning raised his head, giving him a glance. What a Northmont Fox! Formidable! Previously, he had
acted with such red-eyed bravado and arrogance, but now, after seeing Ning display his Rainwater
Sword Domain, it was as though a bucket of ice water had been poured over his head, waking him
up. He thus immediately stated that his earlier actions were directed towards Northmont Baiwei, so
as to ease the tensions between him and Ning. At the same time, he also tried to disrupt the
relationship between Ning and Baiwei.

“And, young master Ji Ning, if you wish to enter the Skysplitter Sword Sect…there will be absolutely
no problems at all.” Fox laughed as he spoke. Just moments ago, he had arrogantly stated that Ning
could forget about ever joining the Skysplitter Sword Sect, but in the blink of an eye, he had changed
his tune. Ning mused to himself that one truly couldn’t underestimate any of the young masters of
the Marquisate.

“Northmont Fox, you truly are shamelessly thick-faced. As for entering a school? Given the talents of
my brother, Ji Ning, he can enter any school he wishes.” Baiwei immediately began to laugh. “As for
you trying to stir up strife between us, everyone in Stillwater City knows of your reputation, and
everyone also knows what sort of a person I, Northmont Baiwei, am.”

“Only after spending much time with a person will you understand their heart. You two-faced tiger,
do you think I can’t see straight through your façade?” Fox let out a cold laugh. Baiwei shook his
head. “Oh? Then I’ll just wait for you to see through.”

………
Suddenly, a figure shot out from one of the private rooms through the window, moving as fast as a
streak of light. The grand sealing formation had already been dispersed, and the figure flew directly
towards Ning.

“Eh?” Ning glanced at this woman. She seemed to be roughly ten years old, and was innately
endowed with a noble grace. “Young master Ji Ning, my name is Hu Shui. My grandfather is the
leader of the Thousand Rivers School. Given your talent, young master Ji Ning…as long as you are
willing to enter our Thousand Rivers School, I imagine that even the Immortal ancestor of our
Thousand Rivers School would be willing to accept you as a disciple.” The beautiful, lithe maiden
with hairpins in her hair laughed as she spoke, and her voice was so pleasant to the ear.

Ning glanced in surprise at this young woman named Hu Shui. Thousand Rivers School? What
school was this? He had never heard of it before. He had to admit, though, the number of schools
within Stillwater Commandery that he knew of could be counted on one hand. He came from
Swallow Mountain, and his experience was rather lacking.

“Miss Hu Shui, your Thousand Rivers School, in our Stillwater Commandery, isn’t even ranked in the
top ten. You wish for young master Ji Ning to join your Thousand Rivers School? Haha…aren’t you
being a bit presumptuous?” A black-robed man flew down as well.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! One figure after another immediately flew down, and even Northmont
Baiwei and Hun Wuji flew down as well. Baiwei hurriedly send to Ning, “Ji Ning, for now, don’t agree
to enter any of these schools.”

“Alright.” Ning also understood the principle of not acting impetuously or with haste. Stillwater
Commandery had many schools, and the relationships between the various alliances and schools
could be very complex. Choosing a school, for him, was a major affair. Naturally, he had to be
cautious.

Ning immediately looked at all of the powerful figures. Only some of them were from branches of
major schools; others included members of tribes and sects. Some just wanted to make friends with
Ning. A heroic figure like him…why wouldn’t they want to befriend him? As for being jealous?
Perhaps in their hearts, they felt a hint of jealousy towards him, but they all understand that Stillwater
Commandery was filled with countless geniuses. If they kept on feeling jealous of this one or that
one, then they might as well not bother training to becoming Immortals at all.

“Everyone,” Ning said hurriedly, “I’ve just arrived at Stillwater Commandery a short time ago. Joining
a school is a major affair, and I must consider it carefully. I’m unable to come to a clear decision in
such a short period of time.”
“Ah, true. One cannot be rash with regards to such a major affair.” “Young master Ji Ning, I am
Meng Shan of the Meng clan.” “Young master Ji Ning…”

All of them began to chat conversationally. Immortal practitioners had astonishingly good memories,
and so Ning quickly learned and memorized everyone’s names. In truth, there were many figures
who hadn’t revealed themselves prior to this. Ning now met them one by one, and only now did he
truly understand that Stillwater Commandery was a place of crouching tigers and hidden dragons.

……

“Ji Ning? Swordplay?” The Boy of Universal Fire said a few words with Ning as well, then departed.
While leading his servant to leave the Carefree Caverns, he furrowed his brows, pondering to
himself about Ning. “Since he chose to reincarnate in Stillwater Commandery…if he is the
reincarnation of a major power, then in his previous life, he should’ve been living within Stillwater
Commandery as well. But in the past few decades, I haven’t heard of any major powers who were
skilled in swordplay who entered the cycle of reincarnation. Even if they reincarnated, their Immortal
friends should be here to welcome them. Why would they voluntarily wish to join a school?”

“Can it be that an error occurred in the reincarnation process, and that in his past life, he didn’t live in
our Stillwater Commandery? Or is there some other reason?” The Boy of Universal Fire continued to
ponder this question.

As a reincarnated Immortal, he hadn’t been living for particularly long in this life. His recollections of
his previous life were still hazy and indistinct. Every so often, a memory would flash past his mind, or
he might suddenly feel that something was very familiar to him! Although his memories from his past
life had yet to completely awaken, his ability to comprehend formations and understand the Dao had
risen at an astonishing speed. Clearly, he was benefiting from the hidden memories from his past
life. As his strength grew, his memories would become increasingly clear, until one day, he would
completely regain his past memories.

But of course, there were also some truly major powers who would directly awaken their memories,
but that was extremely, extremely difficult.

……

Northmont Fox also went up to say a few words to Ning. He verbally sparred with Baiwei as well,
and then led his group of servants to depart.
Within his carriage. Fox sat there by himself. He was frowning. He was thinking back to everything
that had happened within the Carefree Caverns, starting from the very first words he exchanged with
Baiwei. He thought very, very carefully…

“Fighting against Northmont Baiwei is one thing. How did this Ji Ning get involved? It seems as
though this person has tremendous potential; in the future, he might be influential enough to affect
the major powers of Stillwater Commandery, and even the question of whether or not my father will
be able to become the Marquis of Stillwater.” Fox frowned as he continued to ponder this matter.
There were actually quite a few potential candidates within the Northmont clan for the position of the
next Marquis.

The more powerful one was, the more supporters one would have. Naturally, the greater one’s
chances would then be of becoming the next Marquis of Stillwater.

“Ugh! Northmont Baiwei actually encountered a monster like him. His luck is too damn good.” Fox
gritted his teeth, then shook his head.

……..

Ning bade Hun Wuji farewell, then followed Northmont Baiwei to the Ninestar Immortal Carriage
once more.

Within the carriage. The Whitewater Hound was lying to the side, while Baiwei and Ning were both
seated. Baiwei’s face was all smiles, and he was incomparably delighted. He hurriedly said, “Ji Ning,
the Rainwater Sword Domain you displayed this time truly stunned everyone present. You didn’t see
the way Northmont Fox’s face instantly changed. I understand this punk quite well. Although he’s
vicious and arrogant, he can also change his attitude very quickly. This is one of his rare strengths.”

“For now, stay with me. My estate has many places reserved for guests. This time, you’ve truly
made a name for yourself. There were many people there within the Carefree Caverns, and news of
this battle of yours will quickly spread to quite a few schools and sects. There will definitely also be
many who will wish for a genius such as yourself to join them. If you stay in my place, you won’t be
disturb. Tomorrow, I’ll prepare an intelligence report for you which will introduce you to all of the
larger powers within Stillwater Commandery. Naturally, this will also include information on the
various schools. You can make a good choice based on it.”

Ning nodded and smiled. “Then I’ll have to trouble you for that, Brother Baiwei.”
Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 13, Northmont Blacktiger

It was already late at night. The light of the crescent moon shone down upon this giant, ancient city.
Within it was a Ninestar Immortal Carriage, wreathed in fiery flames, which was entering the
Northmont Blacktiger Estate.

“Young master.” “Young master.” The late night guards all called out towards the carriage
respectfully. Northmont Baiwei led Ji Ning, the Whitewater Hound, and his maidservant out of the
carriage, and then the Ninestar Immortal Carriage, without anyone controlling it, entered the estate
on its own.

“Let’s go,” Baiwei said with a smile, leading them forward. Ning looked around carefully. The door
they were entering was a side door.

“How large.” As they moved forward, the scenery continuously changed, and there were pavilions
and buildings everywhere. Everything was unspeakably beautiful. “An estate more than ten
kilometers in circumference…this can compare with some of the cities I saw in my past life on
Earth.”

“Come into this garden. This place is where all of our guests stay.” Baiwei was striding forward atop
a series of lotus petals which formed a path over a large pool of water. There were also all sorts of
fishes around them, and beneath the water there were some luminous pearls. The light from them
caused the entire pool to seem like a jade lake for Immortals.

Within one of the quiet, private courtyards. “Brother Ji Ning, you can rest here for a period of time.
Generally speaking, schools take on new students in the twelth lunar month,” Baiwei said with a
laugh. “Tomorrow, I will arrange for a book detailing the various major powers of Stillwater
Commandery to be brought to you. You can choose carefully, and you can also often come out for a
stroll and listen to the conversations going on in the outside world. Only then should you decide
which school to join.”

Laughing, Ning nodded. Baiwei continued, “Alright, it is quite late, and I won’t disturb you any further.
If there is anything you need, just instruct the servants. I will leave now.”

…..

This residence was clearly meant for entertaining guests. It was quite large and quite roomy, and
there were five buildings within this residence itself, along with twelve servants that could be
summoned at any time, all of them beautiful, flower-like women.
“Young master.” The twelve maidservants all bowed. Their leader was a tall, willowy Xiantian
lifeform. “Prepare my bath for me,” Ning instructed. “When bathing, I do not wish to be disturbed.”
“Yes.” The tall, willowy woman acknowledged his commands.

Almost all Immortal cultivators possessed extremely good self-control. Even those who were lustful
would only view women as a form of enjoyment. For example, even someone like Northmont Fox
would order the Whitewitch to her death when he felt it was necessary.

A short time later. Within the room. Within an enormous bathtub made from slick, polished rock. Hot
air steamed everywhere. Ning lay there within the bathtub, head resting against a pillow. By his
hands was a tray of fruit and wine.

“Ning, son.” The Whitewater Hound, resting next to the bathtub, glanced at Ning. “You shocked
everyone today with your exploits, and did so in the Carefree Caverns, one of the top entertainment
venues of the entire Stillwater Commandery. This news will surely spread quickly. Did you do this
with the intention of…?”

“Right. I intended to shock everyone today,” Ning said. “The only people I truly have grudges against
belong to Snowdragon Mountain. There are no problems between myself and the various other
major powers. A monstrously talented youth whom they have no grudges against, who had just
reached the early Zifu stage who wishes to join a sect…they will do anything they can to get me to
join their schools, or to befriend me.”

“As for my sole enemy, Snowdragon Mountain, I don’t know if they are still paying attention to me.
Even if they are…I am currently within the Northmont Blacktiger Estate. There is nothing they can do
to me,” Ning said.

“Right.” The Whitewater Hound nodded. “If my predictions are correct,” Ning said solemnly, “Perhaps
tomorrow, Baiwei’s father, Northmont Blacktiger, will come to pay a personal visit to me.”

Ning’s divine sense was exceptionally sensitive. He knew right away that there weren’t any
eavesdropping tools or monitoring tools here. This was a place for receiving guests; if guests were to
discover that they were being monitored, then it would cause tremendous problems. Northmont
Blacktiger naturally wouldn’t act in such a manner.

…..

Within a dark space. A tall, muscular, bald man dressed in a black uniform was seated in the lotus
position atop a fiery red boulder.
“Slither…” A giant black serpent, more than three hundred meters long, coiled around this dark
region. This giant black creature looked like a serpent, but upon taking a closer glance…one would
find that it was completely formed from black flames. Its scales, fangs, and body were all formed
from countless black flames.

The black flames swirled around this area, and the head of the serpent was close to that of the bald
man. “Eh?” The black-uniformed bald man frowned, then opened his eyes. His gaze was like
thunder, striking fear into the hearts of men.

“Whoosh!” He exhaled, and instantly, the black flaming serpent around him transformed into
countless black flames, wildly surged into his mouth. He swallowed it all into his stomach. “Baiwei.
Come in.” The bald, black-uniformed made gave the order.

Creaaaak. A door appeared in this dark space, and Baiwei walked in. He said respectfully, “Father, I
have news.”

This person was the awe-inspiring potential candidate to be the next Marquis of Stillwater –
Northmont Blacktiger. Someone whose power was truly capable of shaking the heavens. “Speak,”
Northmont Blacktiger glanced disdainfully out of the corner of his eyes at his son.

Baiwei instantly recounted with great clarity todays events at the Carefree Caverns. Blacktiger,
hearing this, frowned. “The reincarnation of a major power?” Blacktiger mused to himself, “If he is a
reincarnated Immortal, he should’ve been received by his friends from his former life long ago. Why
would he choose to enter a school?” Baiwei just waited to the side quietly.

“Baiwei,” Blacktiger nodded lightly. “It is good that you can make a friend like him. Tomorrow, I will
go visit him. It’s late. Go get some rest.” “Yes,” Baiwei said, then immediately left this dark space.

Within the darkness, Blacktiger continued to ponder, a considering look in his eyes. “The various
schools, clans, sects, and Fiendgods…I haven’t heard of anyone entering the cycle of reincarnation
in the past twenty or so years. However, for this person to have reached such a level at such a
young age…even if he isn’t the reincarnation of a major figure, he must have encountered some sort
of incredible stroke of karmic luck.”

“Whooosh.” Blacktiger no longer considered this matter. He opened his mouth, and countless flames
charged out from it, quickly forming that enormous serpent of black flames around him once more.
This giant serpent seemed to be quite comfortable within this dark region.

……….
The next morning.

The Golden Crow hung high in the sky, its light covering the entire Stillwater City. Within Stillwater
City’s Northmont Blacktiger Estate. Within the residence where Ning was currently located. He was
seated in front of a table which was covered with fruits and wine. Ning’s fingers were outstretched in
a plucking manner, and between them was hanging a Waterflame Lotus that was constantly
swiveling.

“Water, fire, wind,” Ning mused softly to himself. “Waterflame Lotus…this is formed from three
different types of the True Meaning of the Dao; that of fire, water, and wind. They condense and
form it. With regards to water, I have comprehended my Rainwater Sword Domain, but am
somewhat weaker in fire and wind.”

Ning stared at his fingers and the Waterflame Lotus swiveling between them. He focused on the
mysteries contained within, slowly gaining greater insight into them. At his current level of insight,
with but a thought, he could begin to touch the Dao.

Suddenly, a maidservant ran over from far away. “Hm?” The Waterflame Lotus between Ning’s
fingers disappeared into thin air. “Young master, young master Baiwei sends word. He will
immediately come to visit you, along with the master of the estate.” The maidservant’s face was filled
with nervousness.

The master of the estate? Ning frowned, then immediately rose to his feet. “Alright. I understand.
You can leave now.” “Yes.” The maidservant immediately left.

“The master of the estate? Northmont Blacktiger? So he really did come.” Although Ning’s will and
resolve was firm, in the face of this potential next Marquis of Stillwater, he still felt an invisible
pressure.

The Whitewater Hound that had been lying next to him stood up as well. “Come,” Ning said. “Let’s
go welcome him.” He immediately led the Whitewater Hound towards the doorway. But as soon as
he arrived at the doorway, he saw three figures appear in the distance.

The person walking in the center was a bald man in a black uniform who appeared extremely heroic
and imposing. This bald man’s eyes seemed to be as deep as the abyss, and as he slowly walked
over, it seemed as though he was one with the surrounding universe. An invisible, majestic presence
swept towards Ning, making Ning feel as though he couldn’t even breath.
“Dangerous, dangerous, dangerous!” Ning looked at this person, but in his heart, he had an
inexplicable feeling of tremendous danger impending.

Ning could tell that it wasn’t because he was in imminent danger; rather, it was that the person
before him simply posed far too great of a threat to him, and was most likely capable of instantly
killing him without giving him the chance to resist at all.

“So he is Northmont Blacktiger? How could his aura be so powerful and so dominating?” Ning was
secretly shocked. Baiwei was a graceful, handsome young master. But his father, Blacktiger, was
like an ancient Fiendgod who had been lying hidden for countless ages, filled with inexhaustible
savageness and dominance. The look in his eyes…the way he walked…it was all filled with
‘savagery’. As he walked over, it was as though an ancient, primordial beast was walking over.

One’s aura was built up over the course of many years. The fact that the two of them, father and
son, had such completely different auras made Ning feel puzzled.

“The two by his side…” Ning glanced at them. To one side of Blacktiger was his son, Baiwei. To his
other side was a pale-faced, beardless old man. This old man had a pair of triangular-pupiled eyes.
Even when smiling, he gave others a sinister, cold feeling. Upon noticing this old man, Ning
immediately realized how terrifying he was as well.

If Blacktiger could be described as an ancient, primordial beast, then this old man was like an icy,
sinister viper. If one didn’t focus on him, one might not even notice his presence, but upon focusing
on him carefully, one would discover how frightening he was.

“Dangerous!” Ning sensed how terrifying this old man was as well.

Northmont Blacktiger. The triangular-pupiled old man. The sense of danger these two made Ning
feel…was incredibly strong. Even that Xue Hongyi who he had encountered was like nothing more
than a weak ant before these two.

“Such power. They are too strong, too powerful. No wonder he is someone capable of becoming the
next Marquis of Stillwater,” Ning said to himself. But of course, Ning’s soul was extremely powerful,
and so he was superficially able to maintain his calm.

“Hahaha…” Blacktiger laughed loudly, and his heroic, noble laughter caused the surrounding space
itself to tremble. “I heard Baiwei praise his friend endlessly, but I didn’t believe him. Now that I have
had a chance to see him for myself…he truly is extraordinary. A Zifu Disciple who stands before me
without batting an eye? I can count such figures on a single hand.”
“I came here to take a look at you. Not bad, not bad,” Blacktiger laughed. “Today, I have other
matters to attend to, so I won’t tarry. In the future, after you join a school, you must often come and
visit my estate. Baiwei is lucky to have a friend such as yourself.”

“Making friends with Brother Baiwei is also the good fortune of myself, Ji Ning.” Ning acted and
spoke with modesty and respect. Blacktiger laughed loudly, then departed with the triangle-pupiled
old man. The old man gave Ning a long look, then nodded slightly as well.

The two of them left.

“Whew.” Baiwei let out a long breath. He half-turned, first verifying that his father had departed. Only
then did he completely relax. “It’s been so many years, but I’m still so nervous whenever I am in front
of my father.”

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 14, Black-White College

“Right. Ji Ning, this book holds records of all of the major powers that are located within Stillwater
Commandery. It is quite detailed.” Northmont Baiwei waved his hand, and a foot-long book,
appearing as massive and as heavy as a shield, appeared. There wasn’t a single word on the cover
of this book. He handed it directly over.

Ning stared at the enormous, shield-sized book. He blinked. “This is too big…”

Northmont Baiwei began to chortle. “Think about how large Stillwater Commandery is! This book
holds detailed records regarding every single power within Stillwater Commandery, and it even
describes some of the magic treasures and techniques which the more important Immortal
cultivators of each sect possess.”

“It’s as detailed as that?” Ning was amazed. “I just want to choose a school to enter.” Baiwei grinned.
“I couldn’t be bothered to compile something, so I just had my estate prepare a copy of the pre-
existing intelligence report regarding the various major powers in the region. This is classified at a
fairly low level. The top-secret version is hundreds of books long.”

Ning was speechless. All he needed to do was consider which school he was going to join, but
Baiwei had prepared a copy of a full intelligence report. No wonder there wasn’t even a single word
on its cover. “Take it,” Baiwei said. Ning immediately accepted it.
Baiwei continued, “I imagine you will need quite some time to read this intelligence report. Actually,
given your current power, Brother Ji Ning, if you are to enter a school, you must select one of the
absolute best schools which Stillwater Commandery possesses. Within our Stillwater Commandery,
aside from the Raindragon Guard and the Marquisate, there are a total of eight supreme powers. I’ll
give you a brief explanation of them. Later, when you read the book, you’ll be able to move through it
much more quickly.” Ning nodded.

“These eight supreme powers are divided up as into three major schools, three major tribes, and the
two major churches,” Baiwei said seriously. “They all have incomparably long histories, and their
roots are unfathomably deep. Although some of the other powers might have Immortals guarding
over them, compared to these eight supreme powers, they are still lacking in some manner. Their
Immortals might not be strong enough, or their foundations might be a bit unstable, or they might not
have existed long enough.”

“The three major schools refer to the Black-White College, the Skysplitter Sword Sect, and the
Hundred Flowers Fairyland,” Baiwei said. “These three schools vastly surpass all of the other
schools within Stillwater Commandery. The Thousand Rivers School, the North River School…they
are all much weaker than these three major schools.”

“All three have an incredible background.”

“The Skysplitter Sword Sect is the only one of the three which focuses on swordplay. It has many
disciples, and only by by slaughtering a bloody path through the others will the elites of the school
rise to the peak. All of them are exceptionally talented, combat-eager figures.” Baiwei continued,
“Enough about this one, though; you already know about it.”

Ning nodded. “Please describe the other two.” Baiwei smiled. “The Hundred Flowers Fairyland only
recruits female disciples. Since they only accept female disciples, no matter how much of a genius
you are, Ji Ning, you won’t be able to enter. This school is situated in a standalone dimension which
a major power set up single-handedly. That place is known as the Hundred Flowers Fairyland.”

Established a standalone dimension? Ning’s own underwater estate was also in a dimension of its
own.

“I have no intentions of joining the Skysplitter Sword Sect, and I can’t enter the Hundred Flowers
Fairyland. Then what of the Black-White College?” Ning asked. Baiwei chortled. “For now, let’s not
discuss the Black-White College.”
“Why not?” Ning asked urgently. “I have my reasons,” Baiwei said. “Let me now describe the three
major tribes of the eight great powers. They are the Eastriver clan, the Dragonhunter clan, and the
Bluewood clan.”

“The Dragonhunter clan has a divine ability suited for archers that it does not teach to any outsiders,”
Baiwei said. “This Dragonhunter clan often produces some truly powerful master archers. Master
archers, especially extremely powerful, top-tier ones….they can locate their enemies from far away
with their divine sense, at a distance of a thousand kilometers or even greater, then release their
arrow and badly injure or even kill their foes from that distance. Even if they cannot kill their foes,
they can immediately retreat.”

Ning’s eyes lit up. He himself was in possession of a divine sense that could stretch to a distance of
over a hundred kilometers. In addition, his divine ability, the [Starseizing Hand], allowed the power of
his hands to reach a terrifying level. He could use one hand to grip the bow, and the other to knock
the arrow.

“The Eastriver clan. They are extremely skilled in commanding water. I’d strongly urge you not to
fight against experts of the Eastriver clan in an aquatic environment.”

“The Bluewood clan is the oldest of these three major clans, comparable to our Northmont clan in
age. This is a tribe that was established as far back as the Fiendgod era,” Baiwei said. “The
Bluewood clan is extremely skilled in controlling golems and constructs, and many of the constructs
within Stillwater Commandery were provided by them. Over the course of countless years…who
knows how many powerful constructs the Bluewood clan has amassed? They, too, are a power
which no one wishes to antagonize.”

Ning nodded. Three major schools, three major tribes. All of them were extraordinary.

“The two major sects are the Heavenly Saint Church and the Blood God Church.”

“The Heavenly Saint Church acts in a manner which is big-hearted and honest, but also dominating
and overbearing,” Baiwei said. “They have existed for an extremely long time, and they are also
exceptionally mysterious.”

“The Blood God Church was erected sixty million years ago; it is extremely evil and crazed. The
members of the Blood God Church can be described as ‘madmen’; they will often commit major sins,
then suffer pursuit and assault from the Raindragon Guards.”
“The Raindragon Guards will pursue after and kill them?” Ning asked, puzzled. Baiwei smiled. “Ji
Ning, you should know that in this world, there is such a thing as karmic merits, yes?” “Yes,” Ning
nodded.

Of course he knew. It was precisely because of the good karma that he had accumulated that after
being sent to the Netherworld Kingdom, he had been assigned to be reborn in the Heaven Realm.
However, because of that disturbance in the Netherworld Kingdom, he had entered the mortal realm
yet again. If he hadn’t been able to react quickly, he probably would’ve had his soul shattered.

“Acting benevolently accumulates positive karma; acting vilely results in the creation of sin,” Baiwei
said. “The greater your karmic merits are, the more you shall be loved by the heavens, and the
greater your luck shall be. But if your sins are too great, your ‘three disasters’ and ‘nine tribulations’
will be very terrifying, and your luck will be reduced as well.”

“Killing those creatures who have committed great sins will result in the accumulation of major
karmic merits,” Baiwei said with a smile. “The Raindragon Guard serves as the army of the Grand
Xia Dynasty. Per the orders of the Grand Xia Dynasty, they will seek out and slay those who have
committed grave sins, resulting in the karmic merits of the Grand Xia Dynasty as a whole to rise…
and thus, the Grand Xia Dynasty’s fortunes will grow increasingly rosy, and its foundations will
become increasingly firm.”

Ning was astonished. So the reason that the Raindragon Guards around the world pursued those
who had committed grave sins…was to improve the fortune of the Grand Xia Dynasty? He had no
idea, but upon being informed, it was all so simple.

“Those who have rendered karmic merits shall have a clean aura swirling about them. But for those
sinners, a corrosive aura will swirl about them,” Baiwei said. “Supposedly, those with extremely high
levels of karmic merit will emit a golden light, while those who have committed tremendous sins will
radiate a bloody, vile light. Unfortunately, only someone who has opened the Celestial Eye will be
capable of seeing it.”

Ning now understood. He himself had opened his Celestial Eye, and had noticed through his divine
sense that a faint, clear aura swirled about him. So this was ‘karmic merit’. However, although he
had activated his divine sense many times afterwards, he had never found any others with this clear
aura around them. Clearly, it was quite difficult to reach this level of karmic merit, much less the level
of emanating golden light.

“How can one accumulate sufficient karmic merits?” Ning asked. “Only by doing good deeds can one
gain karmic merits, while carrying out vile deeds will result in sin. As for the details…I’m not too clear
on them either,” Baiwei said. “Karmic merits and sins; all of these things are determined by the
heavens. They are too complicated. However, no matter what, Immortal practitioners must not
wantonly slaughter ordinary mortals. It doesn’t matter if an Immortal practitioner kills another
practitioner, but if he kills mortals…then his sins will definitely accumulate. This is something my
father warned me of.”

Ning was startled. Killing common mortals would result in accumulating major sin? “Thank you for
your guidance, Brother Baiwei,” Ning said gratefully.

“After you join a school, you will quickly learn about the various taboos and proscriptions,” Baiwei
said. “Killing common mortals is forbidden. Killing one or two is one thing, but the more you kill, the
more trouble it will be. That Bei Zishan you killed? It was precisely because he murdered far too
many common mortals that he was covered in sin, and thus hunted by the Raindragon Guard.”

……

After this topic of conversation, Ning suddenly thought of something. “You’ve already spoken of the
Heavenly Saint Church, the Blood God Church, the Eastriver clan, the Bluewood clan, the
Dragonhunter clan, the Skysplitter Sword Sect, and the Hundred Flowers Fairyland. These are
seven of the major powers. Then the final one, the Black-White College; what’s that all about?”

Ning cared more about the schools. He didn’t wish to enter the Skysplitter Sword Sect, and wouldn’t
be permitted to join the Hundred Flowers Fairyland. The Black-White College was the only one
remaining.

“The Black-White College is the most powerful of the eight major powers!” Baiwei looked towards
Ning. “Most powerful?” Ning instantly grew curious. “Yes.” Baiwei’s eyes were shining. “The other
seven powers are on par with each other; they are all very ancient, and their roots are deep. But the
Black-White College is the true cream of the crop. In fact, the Black-White College has even
produced a Celestial Immortal.”

“A Celestial Immortal?” Ning’s heart instantly began to pound. Good heavens. Although quite a few
of the powers located in the Stillwater Commandery had Immortals, those were all Loose Immortals
or Earth Immortals. He had never heard of any power being in possession of a Celestial Immortal.

“Right. Celestial Immortal.” Baiwei continued, “The Black-White College, at its peak of power, was
once comparable to my Northmont clan of Stillwater, as well as the Raindragon Guard.”

“Countless years have passed. Although that ancient Celestial Immortal departed long ago, the
Black-White College remains the strongest of the eight powers.” Baiwei laughed as he looked at
Ning. “And, do you know? Of the three supreme schools, the Skysplitter Sword Sect has a
headquarters that stretches a hundred thousand kilometers, the Hundred Flowers Fairyland has its
own separate dimension, but the Black-White College…it is located right here in Stillwater City.”

“Stillwater City?” Ning couldn’t believe it. “Stillwater City is so small. How could a school be located
here, and such a supreme school at that?”

Baiwei laughed. “That’s because this Black-White College’s members range from Immortals to Zifu
Disciples, and they only number in the hundreds. The entire Black-White College has, in total, a
hundred Zifu Disciples, two hundred Wanxiang Adepts, thirty-plus Primal Daoists, and a number of
Immortals who disappear and reappear randomly. Supposedly, they have at least six Immortals.”

Ning blinked. What? A hundred Zifu Disciples? Two hundred Wanxiang Adepts? There were even
fewer Zifu Disciples than Wanxiang Adepts? They had a ridiculous number of Primal Daoists as
well…and they had at least six Immortals! That was even more than the Skysplitter Sword Sect had!

“Now do you understand?” Baiwei looked at Ning. “The Black-White Palace has exceedingly few
members. To enter it is also exceedingly difficult. Even though I think highly of you, all I can do is
recommend you for entry into the Skysplitter Sword Sect. However, now that you have already
reached the Dao Domain level, you are qualified to enter the Black-White Palace.”

“Only someone like me can enter it?” Ning was curious.

“The Black-White College’s name is known even in the royal capital of the Grand Xia Dynasty.”
Baiwei looked at Ning. “Each year, it will accept at most three or four disciples. Sometimes, it won’t
accept any at all. They only accept those who are true geniuses with unparalleled abilities to
comprehend things. If one’s foundation is even slightly lacking, one won’t be able to enter. The vast
majority of those who are able to enter the Black-White College are the most monstrous geniuses of
the various tribes within the Stillwater Commandery. Even some of the major powers outside
Stillwater Commandery will send their geniuses over in the hopes of joining the Black-White
College.”

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 15, Capturing Fiendgods

“The royal capital of the Grand Xia Dynasty?” Ji Ning felt a certain itchiness in his heart. He couldn’t
help but immediately begin to flip through this enormous compiled intelligence report.
Northmont Baiwei, seeing how eager Ning was, laughed then said, “Intrigued? Now do you know
what I saved it for last?”

Soon, Ning flipped to the relevant page regarding the Black-White College. “So actually…so it’s….”
Ning, upon reading the information regarding the glorious history of the Black-White College, began
to mumble to himself, his eyes shining.

“Black-White Diagram? The Black-White Bedstone Diagram?” Ning, after reading towards the end of
the report, raised his head and looked towards Baiwei, his eyes filled with curiosity. “Brother Baiwei,
is this Black-White Bedstone Diagram truly so incredible?”

“How could it not be?” Baiwei laughed. “After you join the Black-White College, you will personally
see the Black-White Bedstone Diagram. By then, you’ll understand how miraculous it is.” Ning
nodded lightly.

The Black-White Diagram was the most precious treasure of the entire Black-White College! It was
an enormous sculpture that was carved into the diagram of a black-and-white bedstone. The black-
and-white bedstone appeared ordinary, but in reality it was covered with complicated runes, with
white and black lines crisscrossing it. It was so intricate and detailed…that the simple crisscrossings
of the black and white lines created incomparably profoundness which contained many different
types of Dao. It was simply unfathomable.

It allured many of the major figures from outside sects, who would come to stare at it and meditate.
But of course, since this was the most sacred treasure of the Black-White College, the major figures
of other powers who occasionally received a chance to view it would be given a time limit. Only the
disciples of the Black-White College would be given unlimited amounts of time to meditate on it.

“My father once said,” Baiwei explained, “That the Dao is even profounder than the profound. If one
wishes to comprehend it, it is like seeking a flower in a fog…while the Black-White Bedstone
Diagram seems to summarize the profundities and mysteries of the countless Daos in a very
detailed, expert manner. Those countless crisscrossing black and white lines…by viewing them in a
different way, you will gain different insights into different mysteries. Such a marvelous item must
have been born from nature itself, which naturally formed this diagram.”

The Black-White Diagram had been found by an Immortal in one of the minor worlds, who had
brought it back here. By relying on the Black-White Diagram, the College had grown famous and
powerful, and had even changed its name after it, becoming the Black-White College.

“I want to go for a stroll,” Ning said, rising to his feet. “Go where?” Baiwei asked. “The Black-White
College,” Ning said. “Haha, you can’t resist taking a look?” Baiwei laughed. “Only when I see it with
my own eyes will I have a better grasp of whether or not I will choose to join this Black-White
College.” Ning was indeed quite eager to see this Black-White College; after all, every single disciple
of a school such as this could be described as a unparalleled genius. Ning was naturally quite eager
to see what this place, a gathering spot for supreme geniuses, was like.

“Come, I’ll accompany you.” Baiwei rose to his feet as well.

………

Ning, Baiwei, the Whitewater Hound, and that golem maidservant walked together within the estate,
heading towards the outside. “Eh?” Baiwei suddenly noticed several distant figures from the corner
of his eyes.

It was his father, Northmont Blacktiger, and that triangle-pupiled old man, along with a third, tall,
skinny man. “Xuan Six?” Baiwei frowned, musing to himself. “Why has Six returned to the estate?
Can something major have occurred?”

As the only child of Blacktiger, Baiwei naturally knew many secrets. He instantly recognized that tall,
skinny man.

“What is it?” Ning asked. “Nothing. Let’s go to the Black-White College,” Baiwei laughed. “We’re in
no hurry today. Let’s just walk.” “Alright.” Ning laughed, then followed Baiwei out.

………

Blacktiger and the old triangle-pupiled servant just stood there, listening to the report from that tall,
skinny man – Xuan Six. The triangle-pupiled old man glanced sideways, noting the distant Baiwei
and Ning.

“After discovering his whereabouts, we did everything we could to set down an all-encompassing
net. In the end, we finally captured that Primordial Fiendgod. We captured him alive!” The tall, skinny
man spoke with great respect. “Our side lost a squad, a Primal Daoist, and twelve Wanxiang
Adepts.”

“Mm. Well done.” Blacktiger nodded, his deep, abyssal eyes flashing faintly with lightning. “And
where has this Fiendgod been imprisoned?” Blacktiger asked. “In the second ‘Kun’ trigram
character,” the tall man replied respectfully.
Blacktiger nodded gently. “You can leave now.” “Yes.” The tall, skinny Xuan Six immediately, quietly
slipped away.

The nearby triangle-pupiled servant hurriedly whispered, “Congratulations and felicitations, master.
You caught a Primordial Fiendgod alive.” Blacktiger responded in a low voice, “Let’s first see what
sort of Fiendgod it is, how strong it is, and what divine abilities it is skilled in. These Primordial
Fiendgods have been able to struggle at death’s doorstep and survive to this era; none of them are
easy to deal with. Even the weakest of them…might have others of the same race in hiding. No
matter what, we have to take a look. Come, let’s leave the city.”

“Alright.” The triangle-pupiled old servant replied with respect, and soon…

Whoosh! A wave of black energy appeared. Eight black divine dragons, pulling a carriage behind
them, flew out from the Northmont Blacktiger Estate, flying directly into the heavens, finally
disappearing into the skies above Stillwater City.

……

Ning and Baiwei, by contrast, were quite relaxed. The two strolled through the incomparably wide
streets, moving a kilometer with each blink of the eye. The Whitewater Hound and the maidservant
were able to effortlessly keep up.

“Here we are. The Black-White College is up ahead,” Baiwei said, pointing towards the front. The
two quickly came to a halt. Ning lifted his head, staring straight ahead. Up ahead was an enormous
edifice, the main gates three hundred meters tall and nearly six hundred meters wide. The main
gates had three characters inscribed onto it – ‘Black-White College’. In addition, in the center of
these characters, there was a complicated black-and-white diagram of a bedstone.

“The Black-White Bedstone Diagram?” Ning took a look, and as he did, he could sense infinite
mysteries contained within it…but when he took a closer inspection, he felt as though they were all
blurred, and that he couldn’t get a clear grasp on them.

“Those characters in front of the Black-White College, along with that bedstone diagram, were left
behind by that Celestial Immortal to the Black-White College.” Baiwei explained, “It isn’t the true
Black-White Bedstone Diagram; the true Black-White Bedstone Diagram is far larger than this one,
and far more complicated.”

“So that’s how it is.” Ning nodded. On the second floor of the main gate of the Black-White College,
there was an enormous inky-jade stone sculpture of a lion, as well as the inky-jade stone sculpture
of a divine dragon. They stood at each side of the bedstone, with many soldiers in the nearby area
as well.

“Those soldiers belong to my Marquisate of Stillwater,” Baiwei said. “They’ve been sent here to help
guard this place. That lion and that divine dragon? They are the true gate guards for the Black-White
College.”

“Them? Guards?” Ning was astonished. Even with his vision, he hadn’t been able to tell that the
stone lion and the stone dragon were guardians.

“These are two constructs which the Black-White College purchased from the Bluewood clan at
enormous cost,” Baiwei explained. “Supposedly, these two constructs have close to an Immortal’s
power, and they have intelligence no lower than an ordinary person’s. They have already stood
guard here for countless years.”

Ning was speechless. Constructs? That were close to Immortals in power?

“Blackcurrent!” Baiwei suddenly called out in a high voice. “Baiwei!” From within the Black-White
College, a white-robed youth who was leading a group of followers laughed in surprise.

Baiwei immediately sent mentally to the nearby Ning, “This person is named Northmont
Blackcurrent. He, too, is a member of our Northmont clan of Stillwater. However, he’s from an
extremely distant branch of the family. Although his talent was exceptional, he wasn’t viewed as
being very important. Afterwards, however, he actually was able to successfully enter the Black-
White College. His status within our Northmont clan instantly rose dramatically.”

“Oh?” Ning looked at the white-clothed youth with surprise.

“Still, be careful of this person. This person is extremely good at putting on false pretenses. My
father once said…this Northmont Blackcurrent is a viper dressed in a sheepskin. You cannot let
yourself grow too close to this sort of person, but there’s no need to create any grudges between
you either.” This was what Baiwei sent to Ning.

Ning nodded. A viper dressed in a sheepskin?

The Northmont clan of Stillwater had managed to last from the Fiendgod era to the modern era. One
could imagine how many members it had. Some of the more distant branches…probably wouldn’t
have statuses that were much higher than that of the Ji clan’s. Only if they produced a supreme
genius would the Marquisate of Stillwater value them.
“This person had probably been stifled terribly in the past, and so his personality became distorted.”
This was what Ning guessed.

“Baiwei, why have you come?” Blackcurrent laughed. “I brought my good friend, Ji Ning, to come
take a look,” Baiwei replied. “Brother Ji Ning also wishes to enter this Black-White College.”

Ning spoke out: “It is extremely hard to enter the Black-White College. I just want to give it a try.”

Northmont Blackcurrent glanced at Ning. He instantly felt a hint of dislike towards him! His
experiences in his youth had caused him to view all of the members of the primary lineage of the
Northmont clan, all those exalted young masters, with extreme jealousy and dislike! Thus, he now
easily began to view Ning as being on Northmont Baiwei’s side.

“Oh. Even though you might fail, you should still make an attempt,” Blackcurrent said with a laugh.
He looked at Ning…but a hint of pity was in his gaze. “You might be lucky. You might get in. By then,
we will be fellow disciples.”

Ning could sense that this Blackcurrent had an arrogant, lofty demeanor about him. Clearly, as
Blackcurrent saw it, he himself was an unparalleled genius. As for this Ji Ning? Since he had come
alongside Baiwei, Ji Ning’s status was extraordinary, but what of it? What the Black-White College
cared about was a person’s innate talent and comprehension ability.

“Baiwei, I can’t stay here for too long. I have business. Let’s have a good chat, sometime in the
future.” Blackcurrent clasped his hands, then led his group away. Every member of this group had
an extraordinary demeanor. Based on what Ning could sense, it seemed as though all of these
followers were Immortal cultivators.

“What’s going on with those followers?” Ning asked. “Didn’t you say that he is an ordinary member of
a distant branch of your Northmont clan? Why are there so many Immortal practitioners following
him?”

Baiwei shook his head. “Every single disciple of the Black-White College is an unparalleled genius.
You can’t expect them to all do everything for themselves, can you? Thus, the Black-White College
will permit every single formal disciple to accept ten retainers. Thus, although the Black-White
College only has a few hundred disciples, it has thousands of retainers.”

“These thousands of retainers will act on behalf of the Black-White College, and they can also go
listen to the Primal Daoists, or perhaps even the Immortals, expound on the Dao. They can also be
gifted with Ki Refining techniques. If there is a particularly talented person amongst them, they might
even be promoted to the rank of full disciple. But of course, it’s rare for even a single retainer to be
promoted to full disciple, even after a hundred years. The Black-White College’s requirements for its
full disciples are quite strict, after all. Still, no matter what, to be a retainer in the Black-White College
is better than going to be an ordinary disciple in an ordinary school,” Baiwei said. “Thus, many
Immortal practitioners are willing to go be retainers.”

Ning nodded. Formidable. By accepting retainers, these genius disciples essentially formed their
own coteries! This helped make the Black-White College more stable as well.

“However, this fellow clansman of mine, Blackcurrent, seems to not hold you in particularly high
regard, Brother Ji Ning,” Baiwei said. “When the time comes, after you enter the Black-White
College, the look on his face will be priceless.”

Ning laughed. “My mind is settled!” Baiwei was startled. “Are you saying…?”

“At the twelth lunar month, I will enter this Black-White College.” Ning raised his head, staring
towards the words left behind by that Celestial Immortal.

Black-White College…this was the place where he would begin his sudden rise to prominence!

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 16, The Twelfth Lunar Month, Entering a School

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, the twelth lunar month arrived. The first to the third days of
the twelfth lunar month were the days which many of the schools located in Stillwater City would
accept disciples.

“Wow.” Meng Xin, Meng Jun, and Meng Roch walked out of an alley, arriving at the main street.
“There are so many people here,” Meng Xin breathed in amazement. Meng Jun said, his expression
exuberant, “That goes without saying. Today is the first day of the twelfth lunar month, the very first
day in which one can join a school. There are countless people in Stillwater City who will join a
school today. There are ordinary mortals, Xiantian lifeforms, and also Zifu Disciples like us!
However, those top-tier schools generally will only accept early Zifu stage experts! We are all early
Zifu stage experts; it should be much easier for us to join a school.”
Meng Xin secretly gave the neaby Meng Roch a sideways glance. Previously, when the
Snowdragon Mountain experts had ambushed them, Roch had executed a forbidden technique in
order to save her. This had resulted in damage to his cultivation base, and it would now be much
harder for him to join a school.

“Little Sister Xin, let’s go,” Jun said. Suddenly, he gave the nearby Roch a sidelong glance, and then
a look of amusement appear on his face. “Rocky, although your cultivation foundation was damaged,
you are still an early stage Zifu Disciple. If you are lucky, perhaps you’ll encounter some schools that
didn’t investigate too carefully, and you’ll still be able to join them.”

Roch found it hard to hide the anger from his face. What did Jun mean by ‘didn’t investigate too
carefully’? Accepting new disciples was something which determined a school’s future. Which school
was careless in doing this?

“Oho, you are angry.” Jun let out a snicker, then turned and left.

“Big Brother Rocky.” Meng Xin couldn’t help but call out to him, but Roch said in a low voice, “You
two can go. I’ll go by myself to try out some schools.” Xin hesitated, then said, “Big Brother Rocky, I’ll
go with you. Let’s go join a school together.”

Roch couldn’t help but feel surprised and delighted. But right at this moment, Jun, who had already
walked quite far away, turned and called out to Xin, “Little Sister Xin!” Xin stood there by Roch’s
side. “I’ll stay with Big Brother Rocky,” she said. This caused a hint of excitement to appear on
Roch’s face.

Jun stared. “You’ll go with him? How can he possibly enter any decent school?” Xin replied, “When
Big Brother Rocky used that forbidden technique, he saved your life as well. And you actually treat
him like this? I won’t go with you.”

Because she was both beautiful and talented since she was a child, Xin had always been doted on.
Thus, she had a bit of a spoiled streak. Although she slightly looked down on both Roch and Jun,
she still felt very grateful towards Roch for having rescued her life on the journey over. As for Jun…
Xin naturally now held Meng Jun in great contempt, due to the way he treated his savior.

“You…” Jun stared. “Hmph.” Xin just snorted coldly. Jun turned and left. As he did, he said, “You just
wait and see. I want to see what sort of a school you two will end up joining.”

Meng Xin turned to look towards Meng Roch. “Big Brother Rocky, let’s go.” As for Roch, a blazing
fire was in his heart, and so he followed Xin forward. The two would try to join a school on their own.
………

West Stillwater. Northmont Blacktiger’s Estate.

“Brother Baiwei, no need to send me off,” Ji Ning laughed. Northmont Baiwei laughed as well. “Then
I’ll wait for your good news, Ji Ning.” Ning clasped his hands, then turned and left, taking his
Whitewater Hound with him as he headed directly towards the Black-White College.

The recent days he had spent in Northmont Blacktiger’s Estate had all been quite calm and
peaceful. Ning had learned through Baiwei that in recent days, thanks to the power he had displayed
in the Carefree Caverns, there had indeed been quite a few schools which had sent people to the
Estate with the goal of having Ning join them.

All of them had made extremely good offers. Some offered an Immortal as his master; others offered
five hundred kilograms of liquefied elemental essence; still others had prepared a Heaven-ranked
magic treasure for him.

Many offers had been made, and these offers were good enough to make even a Primal Daoist
envious. In terms of value, there weren’t at all inferior to the entire value of the elemental ore mine
that had been discovered in the Ji clan’s territory. Unfortunately, the Skysplitter Sword Sect wasn’t
amongst them, nor the Black-White College.

Of the three major schools that were amongst the eight great powers of Stillwater Commandery, the
Hundred Flowers Fairyland only accepted female disciples, while the Skysplitter Sword Sect was
extremely proud and wouldn’t go recruit disciples. As for the Black-White College, of course it would
never, ever proactively reach out to potential disciples.

“Those schools are all much weaker than the three major schools. The Ki Refining techniques,
divine abilities, and secret arts they have to offer are all on a lower level as well.” Ning shook his
head. This lower level represented a difference that was as great as that between the heavens and
the earth. The more top-tier a Ki Refining technique was, the better a chance one would have of
becoming an Immortal.

Moments later. “Here we are.” Ning raised his head, staring towards the distant Black-White College.
The Whitewater Hound looked at it as well.

“There really are quite a lot of people here today,” Ning sighed. The Whitewater Hound sent mentally
towards him, “This Black-White College is extremely exacting in its standards for taking on new
disciples. Ning, son, don’t be careless and end up eliminated.”
“Don’t worry, Uncle White.” Ning nodded.

…..

Today, the gates to the Black-White College were wide open. People were allowed to freely enter,
and Ning entered, the Whitewater Hound by his side. Within the thronging masses of people present
were the various Immortal cultivators who wished to enter the Black-White College.

“Father, I will definitely work hard. I’ll enter the Black-White College at one try.”

“The Black-White College. I’ll definitely enter!”

“I will definitely become a disciple of the Black-White College. Sister Ru promised that she would be
my wife if I succeed.”

All of the Immortal cultivators were gritting their teeth. Near them, many spirit-beasts, servants,
family members, and friends were present as well. “There has to be thousands of people here,” Ning
said to himself, speechless.

From up ahead, an angry voice rang out. “Why have you, a middle stage Ki Refiner, come to my
Black-White College? Hurry up and leave. Everyone who wishes to enter our Black-White College,
listen up; you must be an early stage Ki Refiner. Our Black-White College will only accept early
stage Ki Refiners! If you aren’t an early stage Ki Refiner, hurry up and leave, unless you want to
listen to me curse at you. NEXT!”

“Mmm. The toughness of your meridian channels is insufficient. Begone. NEXT!”

“You’ve used a forbidden technique, and you still have come to my Black-White College? Scram!
NEXT!”

“Your meridian channels are insufficiently wide. Begone. NEXT!”

“Mmm. You barely qualify. Go inside and wait.”

Ning heard every single evaluation with perfect clarity. Hearing the voice ring out from far away, he
couldn’t help but feel surprised. The vast majority had been eliminated, just based on their physical
qualifications. From this, one could tell how strict the standards were.
A short time later. Ning moved closer to the front, and he saw the scene happening up ahead. There
was a lake in the distance, and above the lake there was a boat with a black-haired middle-aged
man seated on it. The man sat there, holding a flagon of wine, appearing quite relaxed. An
enormous bronze mirror hung there in the air above him, and it shone down towards the Immortal
practitioners that flew towards the man.

“Greetings, senior.” A young man flew forward, standing atop the water without sinking down.
Rumble…the light of the bronze mirror shone down upon him. “Mm. You just barely qualify. Go
inside and wait,” the black-haired, middle-aged man said casually.

“Thank you, senior.” The young man instantly walked forward atop the water, moving at high speed
across the lake and arriving at the opposite end of it. There were tens of young men and women
waiting there already, as well as a few youths.

One Immortal cultivator after another was eliminated, and they all had to return to the side of the
shore from whence they had come. As for those who passed, they all flew to the other shore.

Yet another graceful young master glided towards the top of the lake. Cupping his hands, he said,
“Meng Tang greets you yet again, senior.” The giant bronze mirror shone down on him from above,
and the black-haired, middle-aged man revealed a rare hint of a satisfied smile. “Go in.” Meng Tang
bowed modestly, then flew to the other shore.

“Uncle White. Wait here for me.” Ning looked at the Whitewater Hound by his side, then sent him a
mental message. The Whitewater Hound nodded. Swoosh! Ning’s figure flickered, and he too
appeared atop the lake. Clasping his hands, he said, “My respects to you, senior.”

“He’s dressed in animal furs?” “This young man is dressed in animal furs? How rare.” “I wonder
where he came from.” “He looks quite young…I imagine he must be quite talented.” The spectators
were all chatting amongst themselves.

……..

Ning, however, was quite calm. Although some of those people looked down on his animal fur
clothes, these clothes were a perfect copy of the fur clothes his mother had personally sown for him.
When he wore these furs, he felt incomparably comfortable, as though his mother was right there by
his side. As for the actual fur clothes his mother had sown, he couldn’t bear to wear them, for fear of
wearing them out. He kept them safely hidden away.
The black-haired, middle-aged man on the boat gave Ning a glance. “Move faster. No need to put on
airs.” The bronze mirror in the sky shone down towards Ning as well.

“Hrm?” Ning suddenly had a strange feeling, as though this light had penetrated through his skin,
flesh, and bones throughout his body. “Eh? A Fiendgod Body Refiner?” The black-haired, middle-
aged man gave Ning a surprised glance, then nodded in satisfaction. “Your talent isn’t bad. And
you’ve already reached the Zifu level as a Fiendgod as well, and seemingly in a very perfect
manner. What technique do you train in?”

“The [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]!” Ning gave a direct response, and his words
instantly elicited surprised cries.

“The [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]?”

“The legendary number one Fiendgod Body Refining technique? Someone was actually able to train
to the Zifu level in it?”

“He appears to be simply a youth…it really is true that the younger an Immortal cultivator appears,
the more one must be wary of them. For him to be able to successfully train in the [Crimsonbright
Diagram of the Nine Heavens] at such a young age…formidable, formidable.”

“There really are quite a few geniuses that have come to join the Black-White College. I came very
early in the morning, and this is now the second person I have seen here who trains in the
[Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] and is at the Zifu level.”

……

Ning’s ears twitched. Oh? He wasn’t the only one here who had successfully trained in the
[Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]?

“Mm.” The black-haired, middle-aged man nodded with a smile. “Go. Still, you must not be the
slightest bit careless. Perhaps you might be able to enter my College after all.” Ning bowed, his heart
filled with surprise. “Thank you, senior.”

It seemed as though the Black-White College’s requirements for accepting new disciples truly were
exacting. Even someone at the seventh stage of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]…
only ‘might’ have a chance at entering? Still, the Black-White College attracted the interest of all of
the supreme talents of Stillwater Commandery, and even some of the supreme geniuses outside of
Stillwater Commandery would come here. Each year, they would at most select three or four
disciples, or perhaps none at all!

Just by relying on the fact that Ning was at the seventh stage of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the
Nine Heavens], he could probably easily enter the Skysplitter Sword Sect. But it was incredibly
difficult to become one of the very few disciples of the Black-White College!

Swoosh! Ning moved forward, and it was as though he was one with the water under his feet. Quite
easily and simply, he flashed across the surface of the water, arriving on the opposite shore.

“Fifth Bro, yet another practitioner of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] has come.” A
youth was currently speaking to a black-clothed youth next to him. The black-clothed youth gave
Ning a glance, and Ning glanced back at him.

“What stage of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] have you reached?” The black-
clothed youth asked. But Ning just turned his head, not even glancing at him.

The black-clothed youth frowned. Within his clan, he was viewed as a peerless, heaven-favored
genius. He was used to being pampered. Moreover, he had reached the seventh stage of the
[Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens], and was now at the Blood-Drop Rebirth level of
power. He, too, had decided to join the Black-White College. He was accustomed to not holding
others of the same generation with any regard, and by relying on his divine ability, he was even able
to fight those at a higher level. Naturally, he was an extremely proud man.

“Hmph. He doesn’t know his place.” The black-clothed youth gave Ning a glance, then paid him no
more attention. As for Ning, he chose a large rock, then sat down atop it in the lotus position. He
couldn’t be bothered to notice that black-clothed youth.

As time passed on, the number of young men and women nearby grew more and more numerous.
Some were from major tribes, and there were even those from outside Stillwater Commandery. Even
members of the Northmont clan of Stillwater had come. Ning occasionally would glance at them, but
he wouldn’t engage any of them in conversation. He knew that of the people in front of him, most
likely at most one or two would actually be able to enter the Black-White College.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 17, Myriad Thunderbolts Launched Together

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, it was sunset. By now, only the silhouette of half the sun
could be seen.

“Today, things will end here. Those who wish to join my Black-White College, please come early
tomorrow morning.” The black-haired middle-aged man on the boat within the lake waved his hand
as he spoke, and the bronze mirror in the air above him rapidly began to shrink to the size of a palm
as it landed towards his hand. After that, the ship automatically began to move towards the other
side of the lake.

The man stored away the ship, then disembarked. He looked at the thronging masses of youths,
then nodded slightly. “Those who are confident in themselves will generally come on the first day to
apply for entry. The majority of those who were accepted by my Black-White College all came on the
first day.”

“A total of 962 of you have passed the preliminary selection process on the first day, but the number
of which you who will truly be able to join my Black-White College can be counted on one hand.
Thus, all of you must be incomparably cautious. You must put forth your full effort.”

“Yes.” The nine hundred plus selectees all responded in unison. The black-haired man nodded.
“Mm. Follow me.” Turning, he walked away.

Instantly, this group of young Immortal practitioners all moved to follow him. Ning turned to glance
backwards, and he saw that on the other side of the lake, there were quite a few people still waiting
quietly. These should most likely be the family, friends, and servants of the selectees. There was
also a large Whitewater Hound who stood there, quietly staring towards this side.

……..

The Black-White College, located within Stillwater City, took up an area with a circumference of
roughly nine hundred kilometers. Amongst the various Immortal practitioner schools, this was
definitely one of the smaller ones. Still, nine hundred kilometers…in his past life on Earth, one of the
trillion minor worlds, it would be comparable to a local county. As for Stillwater City, the very heart of
Stillwater Commandery and a place where countless powerful experts gathered, it was larger than
entire countries back on Earth.

Given that it was roughly comparable to a county in size, strictly speaking, the Black-White College
couldn’t be described as ‘small’ per se. And within the Black-White College, there was even a small
mountain range.
Ning and the rest of his group, under the guidance of the black-haired man, quickly advanced more
than a hundred kilometers, arriving within a gorge. “Halt,” the black-haired man said. The nine
hundred plus individuals all came to a halt.

“Arise,” the black-haired man suddenly barked.

Rumble…

This wide, spacious gorge had a perimeter of many kilometers. Suddenly, from far away, a curtain of
clear water could be seen, which had formed into an enormous grand sealing formation. This grand
sealing formation was extraordinary large; not only did it cover the entire gorge, it even covered
several of the nearby mountain peaks. Naturally, the nine hundred plus selectees were trapped
within it as well.

“Rumble…” “Rumble…” “Rumble…” Multiple mechanical noises rang out. From within one of the
caverns within the region covered by the grand sealing formation, multiple giant shadows suddenly
flew out. 810 of these shadows flew out consecutively, halting in midair.

These were 810 dragon heads, all of which had their mouths open wide as they stared down below.

“A grand construct formation.” “A grand formation formed from more than 810 constructs!” Some of
the nine hundred plus Immortal cultivators below instantly began to call out, quite a few of their faces
ashen.

Swoosh! The black-haired middle-aged man charged into the skies, flying to the top of those 810
dragon heads. At the same time, five additional figures flew out from the cave next to him, each with
powerful auras. There were a total of six figures, including the black-haired man; five men, one
woman. All of them stared downwards.

“Listen up,” the black-haired man barked. “Afterwards, the grand golem formation will launch
attacks…what all of you need to do is endure the attacks and charge into the skies, and to arrive at
this cavern by my side. You have as much time as it takes for a stick of incense to finish burning. If
you do so, that means you’ve succeeded. But if no one manages to reach this cave before the stick
of incense is burnt up, that means none of you are qualified to join my Black-White College!”

Some of the nine hundred plus youths below were confident, while others were nervous. Still others
just waited quietly.
“Hiss.” A stick of incense appeared out of nowhere within the black-haired man’s hands, and then it
was immediately set alight. At the same time, those 810 dragon head’s simultaneously began to
glow with a dazzling azure light, and then, from the mouth of every single dragon head shot out rays
of azure lightning. The sound was thunderous! Boom! Boom! Boom! One bolt of lightning after
another rained down upon them.

It was as though ten thousand bolts of lightning were descending at the same time!

“It begins now!” The black-haired man barked at them.

……

Given that the dragon heads had begun to vomit lightning, and that the stick of incense had already
been lit, everyone knew that it had begun.

“Charging into that cave won’t be easy.” Ning raised his head, giving it a glance. In his heart, he
instantly realized that because the 810 dragon heads were next to the side of the cave, if one wished
to enter it, one would have to fly directly past those 810 dragon heads…which were constantly
raining thunderbolts downwards towards them.

Down below, given how much space there was, each person wouldn’t have to face too many
thunderbolts. But the closer one flew towards the cave, the more tightly packed the thunderbolts
would be.

“Bang!” Ning, wielding his Darknorth Swords, chopped directly towards one of the encroaching
thunderbolts. The Darknorth Swords were filled with elemental ki, and were capable of blocking
lightning.

“So powerful.” Ning felt his hands tremble violently. “The power of this lightning is significant.”

“Up!” “Let’s go!” “Charge!”

Instantly, multiple figures mounted their magic treasures and, in unison, charged towards the sky.
But the farther up they went, the more thunderbolts awaited them. They were only able to hold on for
a few breaths, making it halfway up, then were knocked downwards by the dense rain of
thunderbolts, forced to land again.

…..
The six Primal Daoists of the Black-White College who were above the dragon heads watched on,
chatting and laughing amongst themselves. “Everyone, of these youths, how many do you think will
enter the caves?” A middle-aged man with a long beard laughed as he asked this question.

A short, chubby, bald man chortled. “Perhaps not even a single one.” “It shouldn’t be that bad,” a
white-robed woman said with a laugh. “There should at least be three or four who can enter the
cave. Look, there’s someone charging upwards. She shouldn’t be too weak.”

Instantly, the other Primal Daoists turned to look carefully. A black-clothed woman was charging into
the skies, her body surrounded by multiple tendrils. When the lightning bolts struck against her, the
tendrils and vines would actively go block the lightning, defending against one bolt after another.

Soon, she made it to the halfway point, and moved closer and closer towards the formation of
dragon heads. “Half of the grand golem formation.” The black-haired, middle-aged man suddenly
spoke softly, and instantly, of the 810 dragon heads, 405 of them focused on that black-clothed
woman.

Instantly, thousands of bolts of lightning wildly, completely focused on that black-clothed woman.
Although those tendrils and vines struggled ferociously, they weren’t able to do anything. BOOM!
Vines and tendrils exploded, and the black-clothed woman fell down from the skies.

“She couldn’t even withstand half.” The black-clothed, middle-aged man shook his head. The white-
robed woman shook her head as well. “She can’t be considered a true genius.”

……

Ning was in no rush to charge forward. He watched for a period of time first. He watched as that
black-clothed youth who also trained in the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] charged
upwards. As that youth moved extremely close to the formation of dragon heads, he suddenly
suffered the attack of every single dragon head. As the youth slammed to the ground, Ning
understood everything.

“At the very bottom, you only have to meet an occasional bolt of lightning. The higher up you to, the
more bolts will strike you. If you pass the halfway point, you will suffer an attack from half of the
dragon heads. And, when you are extremely close, you will suffer mass attacks from all the dragon
heads.”

“You have to be able to withstand the full might of all of the dragon heads in order to enter the
cavern. At such short range…even if two or three people joined forces, upon suffering the full bront
of the attacks of the dragon heads, whether or not they work together becomes of little importance.”
Ning understood this principle. When they were extremely close to the dragon heads, the amount of
space for maneuvering was too small. The myriad thunderbolts would form a nearly complete, solid
attack. A web of lightning would completely surround that entire region, and to pass, one would have
to charge through. There were no shortcuts around it!

“Charge!” After making sure that there were no other oddities, Ning’s body instantly became
surrounded by six full layers of Waterflame Lotuses. At the same time, a flying sword appeared
beneath his feet, and he immediately controlled the sword to soar into the skies.

“Let’s go!” “Charge!” At virtually the same instant Ning flew upwards, eight other figures charged
upwards as well. These had all been watching silently. After seeing how the black-clothed man had,
in the end, suffered attacks from all the dragon heads…they all realized that there were no shortcuts
to be taken, and so had decided to charge.

“Charge!” The black-clothed man, who had fallen down halfway, gritted his teeth upon seeing the
others charge upwards. He, too, flew upwards yet again.

……

The 810 dragon heads were clustered in one location, quite close to the cave. To enter this cave,
one would have to pass through the center of them…which ensured that one would have to face all
810 attacks.

The Six Primal Daoists stared downwards, watching. “This fellows are all quite spirited. None of
them are holding back now.” The black-haired, middle-aged man laughed. “Everyone, who do you
think will pass?”

“That fellow controlling the Azure Dragon construct.” The white-clothed woman’s eyes lit up as she
stared at a white-clothed youth who stood atop an Azure Dragon. This white-robed youth was clearly
quite young; there was still a hint of youthful shyness on his face, but the Azure Dragon construct
under his control was incomparably nimble, occasionally dodging while knocking aside the bolts of
lightning at other times.

“Within this grand sealing formation of ours, one can only use a golem or construct which one
personally made.” The white-clothed woman continued, “Look at how he controls that construct. He’s
at the level where it is like controlling part of his body; he is the construct, and the construct is him.
He is absolutely a genius of the Dao of Constructs.”
“Mm.” “Right.” “Formidable.” The others all nodded and assented. These Primal Daoists were no
ordinary Primal Daoists; they were the Primal Daoists of Black-White College. All of them were
naturally extraordinary figures, and their judgment was impeccable. They could instantly tell that this
white-clothed youth had astonishing talent in the Dao of Constructs.

“What do you think of the others?” The black-haired, middle-aged man laughed.

“The others?” “I don’t see anyone particularly outstanding.” “They are average.”

These Primal Daoists all had extremely high standards; although all of the others, Ning included, had
displayed formidable abilities, there was nothing which could make these Primal Daoists feel
surprised.

“Hahaha.” The black-haired, middle-aged man instantly began to laugh loudly. “All of you bury
yourselves in training. We’ve asked you to come this time to organize the acceptance of new
disciples, but you aren’t aware of many things. As for this old Daoist…I collect news from
everywhere, and know that there is a true genius in this group. Look over there; that fur-clad youth
whose body is surrounded by those blooming lotuses of fire and water.”

“Him?” The other five Primal Daoists looked over. The white-clothed woman said, “Although his
lotuses of fire and water is quite marvelous, it can’t be described as astonishing. What about him?”
And indeed, the other Primal Daoists didn’t understand either.

The black-haired man laughed. “He is dressed in furs, can create lotus flowers of fire and water, and
uses a sword…nine out of ten says that he is that youth, Ji Ning, of the Carefree Caverns. A young,
early stage Zifu Disciple who has already gained insight into a Dao Domain.”

“Gained insight into a Dao Domain?” The other five Primal Daoists were all shocked, and they all
lowered their heads, looking towards Ning, who had seemed so ordinary and unremarkable.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 18, Ji Ning and Mu Northson

Ten thousand thunderbolts shot down simultaneously, crashing down towards the figures below.
Those Immortal cultivators, in turn, all flew for the skies, each displaying their own abilities. Layers of
golden light appeared around some of their bodies, while others had illusory divine dragons appear
about them. In this situation, the Waterflame Lotuses swirling around Ning’s body truly wasn’t that
special.
“Go.”

“Go.”

A white-clothed youth was currently standing atop an Azure Dragon construct. The Azure Dragon
coiled about, its body occasionally lashing out while its sharp claws swept out in each direction.
Even its draconic tail whipped about. For now, not a single bolt of lightning was capable of drawing
close to him.

“Azure Dragon Swings Its Tail.”

“Azure Dragon Flies Skyward.”

The white-clothed youth was gently mumbling a few words every so often, his eyes blazing with
heat. Clearly, he was completely lost in controlling his Azure Dragon construct, and he appeared to
be incomparably excited.

“Half the construct formation, focus.” The black-haired, middle-aged man hovering high in the air
gave the order. Instantly, more than four hundred of the dragon head constructs began to focus their
lightning bolts down towards Ning and the others who were charging skywards.

“Awesome, wonderful, incredible!” The white-clothed youth grew increasingly excited. The Azure
Dragon construct he controlled was displaying all of its unique points and releasing tremendous
amounts of combat power. It was able to effortless block all of the oncoming bolts of lightning.

“Bang!” With but a twist of its tail, multiple lightning bolts were knocked aside by the dragon, but Ning
was right by its side. The Waterflame Lotuses swirled around Ning, who had the Darknorth Swords
in his two hands. Those lightning bolts, despite being able to pass through the protective Waterflame
Lotuses, were easily blocked by Ning’s two swords.

Ning’s sword light flashed forward like water, moving with ease and grace as he blocked all of the
bolts of lightning. “Eh?” Ning’s face changed. Three bolts of lightning had suddenly attacked him,
and they were too close. They instantly arrived, catching Ning, who had been unprepared,
completely off-guard.

“Watertight.” Ning’s swords instantly changed directions, hurriedly moving to block those lightning
bolts. At the same time, Ning couldn’t help but give that white-clothed youth close to him a glance.
Just now, he had been affected by the actions of that youth.
The white-clothed youth was currently looking towards Ning as well, and a look of embarrassment
was on his face. He hurriedly sent, “I’m ashamed, I’m ashamed. It was accidental.”

Seeing how the white-clothed youth was sending a mental message, even at a critical time like this,
Ning actually felt kindly disposed to him. He sent back, “No worries.”

“I’ll be more careful in the future,” the white-robed youth sent back. “Just be careful. We’re about to
face the combined attacks of all those constructs,” Ning said with a laugh.

The two were both able to converse mentally at a time like this; clearly, they still had energy to
spare. They continued to fly higher!

The outlines of the dragon heads up above them grew increasingly clear. The 810 dragon heads
were clustered together quite tightly, and of the group that had charged up alongside them, two had
already been struck down. Only eight figures were able to continue to fly upwards.

“The entire construct formation, focus!” The black-haired, middle-aged man gave the order once
again.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

Instantly, it was as though the skies had shattered and the earth had collapsed. All of the dragon
heads focused their attacks on a single area, and for a moment, it seemed as though the entire
world was filled with lightning bolts. Every inch of the surrounding area seemed to be filled with
azure bolts of lightning; clearly, they had completely satured the area.

“Waterflame Lotuses!” Ning’s eyes flashed with a fierce look, and one layer after another of
Waterflame Lotuses began to manifest around him. Whenever one layer was damaged, a new one
would be born. As for the two swords in Ning’s hands, they flashed about, filling the area around
Ning with sword light. Not a single bolt of lightning was capable of penetrating Ning’s swordplay
defense.

“Charge!”

In an instant, Ning managed to pass through this saturated field of attacks.

Swish! As he charged through the heavens and past the formation of dragon heads, Ning was now
able to clearly see, with a single glance, the six Primal Daoists who were watching this event.
“Rumble…” An incomparably dominating Azure Dragon charged into the heavens, also moving past
the dragon head formation. The white-clothed youth atop the Azure Dragon, seeing that Ning had
charged out as well, revealed a hint of a friendly smile towards Ning.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Ning immediately flew towards the cave, and the white-clothed youth also flew
over, then stored away his construct.

“Bang!” “Clash!” “Boom!” Continuous sounds of explosions could be heard, with furious roars mixed
in. Three more figures charged past the saturated field of lightning and into the cave.

The cave was many tens of meters wide. The white-robed youth walked forward alongside Ning. “My
name is Mu Northson. I truly am embarrassed for what happened earlier. My mastery over my craft
was insufficient, and I ended up harming you, fellow Daoist.”

“My name is Ji Ning.” Ning smiled towards him as well. “You can’t be blamed. You were trying to
enter the school, just like me. How could you be careless?” The white-clothed youth hurriedly
nodded.

Ning could clearly sense that this white-clothed youth seemed slightly immature. By the looks of him,
he was even younger than Ning himself. Most likely, he had reached the Xiantian level even before
Ning had. He immediately asked, “Brother Mu, I’m sixteen years of age this year. How old are you?”

“Fourteen.” The white-clothed youth, Mu Northson, gave an honest response. Instantly, the other
three youths who had charged into the cave had changed looks on their faces. The three of them
looked towards Ning and Northson with incomparably complicated looks on their faces. Monster…
monsters! One was sixteen, while the other was fourteen! How young were they? And yet, these two
had actually broken through the lightning construct formation before everyone else.

The black-clothed man even had some injuries on his body. He gave Ning a hard look. “This person
named Ji Ning is only sixteen, but he’s already at the Zifu level in terms of the [Crimsonbright
Diagram of the Nine Heavens]. In addition, he was actually able to charge in with ease. I had to
make two attempts before succeeding.”

Earlier, he had been the first to try to charge in, but had ended up failing on his first attempt. It was
only after seeing him fail did Ji Ning and the others make their charge.

He had immediately charged in behind Ning, and then followed the Azure Dragon construct of the
white-robed youth, Northson, in charging past. With the Azure Dragon construct blocking some of
the lightning, things had been slightly easier for him. Still, it had only been slightly easier; he still
suffered an injury in order to enter.

“It truly was hard.” The white-clothed youth, Northson, glanced downwards, then sighed, “This grand
lightning construct formation truly was hard to pass through. The Black-White College really lives up
to its reputation.”

Ning looked downwards as well. Below them, the other Immortal cultivators were still continuing to
charge upwards, time and time again. “It is hard,” Ning agreed softly. “However, the vast region
controlled by the Stillwater Commandery holds many geniuses.”

Swoosh!

Yet another figure passed through the blocking field of lightning. Slashing forward in a lonely arc, it
landed at the entrance to the cave. This was a violet-robed maiden whose face was like the frost and
the snow. Judging from the look in her eyes…clearly, she had been arrogant since she was a child.
Still, every single person who was able to enter the cave was a true talent.

A few moments later. “The time has come to an end.” The black-haired, middle-aged man spoke out
in a high voice, and instantly, the 810 dragon heads came to a halt. Those Immortal cultivators who
were in midair still wanted to fly upwards, but…

“All of you, go down!” The black-haired man gave a sudden roar, and his eyes instantly became
terrifying to behold. A terrifyingly powerful divine sense swept downwards, and instantly, all of the
Immortal cultivators who had wanted to fly upwards came to a halt. And then, all of them began to
drop downwards.

“Divine sense?” Ning’s eyes lit up as he saw this. “A divine sense attack!” When those Immortal
cultivators had been hit by the attack, their gazes had turned dim, and then they had fallen out from
the skies. Clearly, their souls had been impacted by the attack.

“So there are attacking techniques for the divine sense as well?” Ning instantly felt an itchiness in his
heart. His greatest strength was his divine soul, which was already comparable to a Primal Daoist’s.
In addition, by relying on the [Nuwa Painting] visualization technique, his divine soul was continuing
to grow stronger by the day. At this point, however, he had only been able to use his divine will to
control items to assist himself. He had never heard that there were techniques which could allow one
to use one’s divine sense to directly attack someone’s soul!
“A divine sense attack? How would that even work? I’ve never heard of it…it must be an extremely
high-level technique. Since that black-haired man is able to use it, then I imagine the Black-White
College must have this divine sense technique amongst this records.” Ning instantly made up his
mind that no matter what, he had to acquire and learn this technique.

…….

The black-haired man and the rest of the six figures flew into the cave. They all appeared different;
one looked graceful, another was short and chubby, a third was cold-faced…but they all possessed
shockingly powerful auras.

Ning and the rest of the nine called out respectfully, “Respectful greetings, seniors.” The six Primal
Daoists swept Ning and the rest of the nine with their gazes. “Mm.” Quite a few gazes paused for a
period of time after landing on Ning.

“You.” The black-haired, middle-aged man pointed to a blue-clothed youth who wore a crown and
whose gaze was flashing. The blue-clothed youth’s face changed, and he hurriedly said, “Senior,
this junior is Eastriver Lush.”

Ning and the others gave him a glance. Eastriver clan? That was one of the eight major powers.

“Eastriver clan?” The black-haired, middle-aged man laughed coldly. “I don’t care where you came
from. Everyone, even a member of the Northmont clan of Stillwater or the imperial clan of the Grand
Xia Dynasty, must obey the rules of the Black-White College if they wish to join our Black-White
College. You used a Dao-seal. You violated the rules. Hurry up and begone.”

The crowned youth gritted his teeth, then immediately transformed into a ray of light as he flew
towards the cave entrance.

“He used a Dao-seal?” Ning stared in astonishment at this disciple of the Eastriver clan. When
testing new disciples, there had been, at the gate, a list of the various necessary requirements. Dao-
seals and other external sources of support were forbidden. One had to rely on one’s own power to
pass the trials. All who used external sources of power would be expelled.

“You are Mu Northson?” The black-haired man turned to look towards the white-robed youth, a smile
on his face. “Greetings, senior,” Northson said respectfully. The black-haired, middle-aged man
nodded. “Fourteen years. Not bad. Let me take a look at your construct.”
“Alright.” Northson knew the rules; there were restrictions on utilizing constructs. If one was an
Immortal practitioner who walked on the Dao of Constructs and golems…if they wished to bring a
construct into a trial, it was forbidden for the construct to possess sentience! Nor could there be an
elemental energy core within the construct. It had to be completely controlled by their own elemental
ki.

Actually, during the earlier trial, the six Primal Daoists could already tell the truth of the matter. This
‘examination’ was just for the sake of following the rules to the letter.

The inspection concluded. “Mm.” The black-haired, middle-aged man nodded. “Acceptable.”
Northson immediately accepted the Azure Dragon construct back.

“The eight of you.” The black-haired, middle-aged man swept Ning and the other seven with his
gaze. “You’ve passed through the first test. Next is the second and final test. As long as you can
pass it, you will become a disciple of our Black-White College. If, however, you are unable to pass,
I’ll have to ask you to all leave.”

“The second and final test?” Ning was surprised. Even that black-haired youth who had reached the
seventh stage of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] had just barely passed the first
test. And yet, there was a second, follow-up test?

“Chong, child.” One of the six Primal Daoists, that white-robed woman, spoke out. The black-clothed
youth said respectfully, “Aunt.”

“Once you reach the ninth stage of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens], you will
definitely be able to enter our Black-White College. But you are only at the seventh…” The white-
robed woman shook her head.

“I can’t wait any longer. I’ll need at least ten to twenty years to reach the ninth stage,” the black-
clothed youth replied impatiently. The white-robed woman shook her head. “You won’t be able to
pass the final test.”

“Aunt. I wish to try.” The black-clothed youth gritted his teeth. How could he casually give up at a
time like this?

His response caused the white-robed woman to shake her head.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 19, The Final Guardian

As one of the managers of this recruitment effort, Fairy Hua Yun naturally knew how difficult the final
test would be. This junior of her clan, Hua Chong, had no chance of success at all.

“The eight of you, follow me,” the black-haired, middle-aged man said. The six Primal Daoists began
to walk in front, while Ji Ning and the rest of the eight followed from behind.

Ning glanced sideways at the nearby black-clothed youth. The youth’s eyes were filled with defiance
and madness. His aunt was Fairy Hua Yun…her status in the Hua clan was extremely high, and
although the Hua clan had an Immortal guarding it, since Fairy Hua Yun was a Primal Daoist of the
Black-White College, her combat prowess was definitely comparable to an Immortal’s.

He had to honor and respect the words of Fairy Hua Yun. But…he also had to enter the Black-White
College. He, too, wished to be like his aunt and be a member of the Black-White College! “I have to
enter. The Dao of the Heavens ensures that one will always have a chance.” The black-clothed
youth gritted his teeth.

……..

After walking through the dark, gloomy caves for a period of time, they arrived at an exit. Up ahead,
there were nine different entrances.

“Halt,” the black-haired man said. Ning and the other seven all came to a halt. “These nine entrances
are each guarded by a Zifu Disciple of our Black-White College.” The black-haired, middle-aged man
swept Ning and the others with his gaze. “The eight of you shall each choose a passageway.”

The faces of Ning and the rest of the eight all changed. What?! Guarded by full disciples of the
Black-White College? These were people who trained in supreme techniques and arts, while the
eight of them were all only early Zifu Ki Refiners.

“After you each enter your chosen corridors, you will encounter these guardian disciples. As long as
you are able to charge through out of cave while they are guarding it, you will become a disciple of
our Black-White College.” A smile was on the face of the man. “Don’t worry. These Zifu Disciples on
guard are only permitted to use a single type of technique, while all of you can go all out. In addition,
there is no need for you to defeat the guardian disciple; you only need to charge out of the cave.
Afterwards, we shall all reunite at the peak of this mountain.”
“Alright.” Ning and the rest of the eight all nodded. “Go, then,” the black-haired, middle-aged man
instructed.

They quickly each selected a corridor. Ning pondered slightly, then chose one for himself as well.
Only the black-haired youth hesitated for a period of time…and then, gritting his teeth, he entered a
corridor as well. All of them entered their corridors.

“Wu Xiu.” The short, pudgy, bald man laughed. “You are in charge of this disciple recruitment, and
are managing it from start to finish. Tell me, of the eight, which will be able to become disciples of
our Black-White College?”

The black-haired, middle-aged man hesitated. “If I have to choose…of the eight, I’d say Ji Ning will
definitely succeed!”

“Right.”

“Yes, he’ll definitely succeed.”

“Everyone knows that Ji Ning will succeed, old Daoist Wu Xiu. What about the other seven?” All of
the others were laughing while speaking.

The black-haired, middle-aged man pondered for a bit longer, then said, “Of these eight, only Ji Ning
will definitely succeed. It will be hard for all of the other seven. If you insist on me choosing
someone…that fourteen year old kid who controls the Azure Dragon construct, Mu Northson.
There’s a chance for him as well.”

“Mm.”

“Right. Aside from Ji Ning, the others will all find it quite difficult, especially that clansman of Fairy
Hua Yun. He found it rather difficult to even make it through the lightning construct array; he
definitely won’t make it past this one.”

“Everyone knows how smart you are.” The white-robed woman gave the bearded, middle-aged man
who just spoke a hard look.

…….

While the Primal Daoists were chatting amongst themselves, they were also using their divine
senses to investigate what was going on within each of the mountain tunnels.
“Oh, it’s Bloodrinker Bladask.”

“The corridor which Ji Ning chose is guarded by that kid, Bladask? He’s quite arrogant. He definitely
won’t make it easy for Ji Ning to pass through.” The Primal Daoists all leisurely watched the events
going on through the eight corridors.

Within the corridor Ning had chosen. Roughly a hundred meters past the entrance, there was a
white-robed youth. This youth had three bloodstains on the side of his chest. A white vest, with three
drops of blood on the chest…only the genius disciples who had acquired the legacy of the
Bloodrinker clan were qualified to wear this.

The Bloodrinker clan…was one of the supreme tribes that was located outside of Stillwater
Commandery.

“They had me stand guard?” The white-robed youth, Bladask, just stood there, a flying sword
hovering around his body. He gently stretched out a finger and tapped it. Rumble…a sword hymn
instantly filled the cave. He couldn’t help but close his eyes, revealing a look of enjoyment on his
face. “No matter how much of a genius you are, you can forget about successfully passing through
the tunnel I have chosen.”

Bloodrinker Bladask’s arrogance made it so that he definitely would not permit any juniors of the
early Zifu Disciple stage to successfully pass through his cave.

“A single sword…they only permitted me to use this single sword. Still, it will be enough.” The white-
robed youth tapped the sword again, and the sword hummed out in response, as though it were
behaving coquettishly towards him. He couldn’t help but smile.

Since the day he was born, he had held a wooden sword as he slept. His parents had named him
‘Bladask’, and in the past thirty years, he had focused all of his efforts on his blade. He was at the
point where he was his blade, and the blade was him. Although he was in possession of the
consummate skills of the Bloodrinker clan, the clan had still sent him to the Black-White College of
Stillwater Commandery. He had lived up to their expectations and had entered the Black-White
College.

“He’s coming.” The white-clothed youth sensed the impending ripples. Suddenly, he heard a
resigned voice ring out from outside. “Nine corridors, eight contestants. Mine ends up being the only
one with no selectee…my fellow disciples, I hope that none of you will let these juniors make it
through.”
“Don’t worry, senior apprentice-brother Ox.”

“Junior apprentice-brother Ox, how sad for you.”

“You’ve waited all this time for nothing.”

“Senior apprentice-brother Ox, although I’m only permitted a single magic treasure, these juniors
definitely won’t be able to pass through.”

One voice after another rang out in response. Bladask also shouted back, “Junior apprentice-brother
Ox, please wait just a moment. After I turn back this kid, we’ll go back together.”

Footsteps rang out. Bladask immediately stared forward carefully. He saw, from afar, a figure
emerge from the depths of the tunnel. A youth with delicate, handsome features emerged, holding a
sword in each hand, dressed in furs, and a smile on his face.

“Junior.” Bloodrinker Bladask tapped the flying sword in front of him, and the sword hummed in
response. Bladask said calmly, “In the future, remember this clearly – the one who prevented you
from entering the Black-White College is me, Bloodrinker Bladask.”

“I am…” Ning was about to say something, but Bladask interrupted calmly, “No need to tell me. We
won’t meet again. You don’t need to give me your name.”

Ning frowned. How arrogant. Since this was the case…then he might as well just go ahead and win
this quickly and cleanly.

“Let the lightning descend!” Bladask called out softly, and as soon as he did, that flying sword in front
of him began to emit a thundering sound. One bolt of lightning actually appeared in the surrounding
area, all swirling around that flying sword, then flooding towards Ning with shocking power.

The strength of this blow alone was far superior to the power of Adept Xu Li and the Monoceros. The
sword seemed to have transformed into countless bolts of lightning, striking at an astonishing speed.

“Let the lotus flower bloom.” Ning had a faint smile on his face. Instantly, Waterflame Lotuses
appeared around him. One layer after another of the flower bloomed; a total of six layers of flowers
appeared.

Crackle crackle crackle…

The sword of lightning cut directly through all six layers, but its speed had clearly dropped
somewhat. Ning’s Darknorth Swords swept out in a deceivingly simple manner, deflecting that
powerful, vicious sword blow to one side.

“Such power.” Ning frowned slightly. It had appeared as though he had received that blow with ease,
but in reality, his hand had cracked slightly at the point between his thumb and index finger.

“So you do have some ability. It is useless, however!” Bladask suddenly let out a loud roar.
“Thundergod’s Hell!”

The flying sword continued to hang there in midair, but around it, one violet bolt of lightning after
another appeared. These bolts of serpentine lightning zigzagged into the shape of a prison, and a
powerful pressure filled the entire caverns.

“Feel proud that you were defeated by this technique of mine,” Bladask said coldly. “Go.”

BOOM!

The Thundergod Prison technique flew rapidly towards Ning.

“The Black-White College’s disciples live up to their reputation. With but a single flying sword, he’s
still able to unleash such power and activate so much of the energy of the world.” Ning mentally
sighed in praise as made one flying sword after another appear in the area around him. In total, 729
flying swords emerged.

“A sword formation!” The distant Bladask’s face changed. Anything that had to do with the word
‘formation’ could not be belittled, and there were many swords in this one. If one could perfectly
focus all of the energy into a whole, then the power of that one blow would be explosive! As a
disciple of the Black-White College, Bladask naturally also was in possession of sword formation
techniques, but for the purposes of this assignment, he was only able to use a single sword.

The 729 flying swords hung there in the air. Amongst them, there were eighty one Mortal-ranked
flying swords; they included the Nine Yang Sword Formation swords that Ning had acquired from the
underwater estate, and the seventy two flying swords Ning had acquired after killing Adept Xu Li.
Although he had some other other Mortal-ranked flying swords as well, there weren’t enough of
them, and they were all varied and different in nature. Thus, Ning didn’t use them.

The nine flying swords of the Nine Yang Swords served as the core formation base, while the other
seventy two Mortal-ranked flying swords, all of which came from the same origin, swirled around
them, forming a grand formation of eighty one flying swords. They, in turn, guided the six hundred-
plus unranked flying swords.

“Rumble…” Ning’s elemental ki filled those flying swords and was transformed by them. His divine
soul, which was at the divine sense level, was completely capable of controlling all of these swords,
and soon, in front of his chest, a shocking, awe-inspiringly powerful sword light appeared.

The power of this technique was now truly astonishing. The reason why it was so strong was
primarily because of those nine incredibly rare flying swords he had acquired from the underwater
estate. Every single one of them was comparable to an Earth-ranked magic treasure, and they all
came from the same source, which was even rarer.

“Kill!” Ning willed the attack. Swish! The sword light, now completely in the shape of a real flying
sword, shot out through the air, forcibly slashing open the impending prison of lightning.

BOOM! Moments later, the lightning prison detonated in awe-inspiring fashion.

“Go, go, go.” Ning hurriedly executed three more attacks of sword light, striking out in succession.

“Not good.” Bladask’s face changed dramatically. He was a peak Zifu Disciple, after all, while Ning,
by controlling and transforming his ki through the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] and forming
it into his sword light, had a purity of ki that was comparable to a Wanxiang Adept’s. In terms of
sword techniques…Bladask was of the Bloodrinker clan and was an elite member of the Black-White
College; naturally, he was formidable. But in terms of true insight and comprehension, Ning was on
an even higher level. Thus, when Ning activated his [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation], Bladask
actually was at a disadvantage.

“Polaris.” Bladask had no other choice. In an instant, seven flying swords appeared, flashing with
lightning. The seven flying swords swirled around him, forming into the pattern of an enormous
constellation; it was the Seven Stars of the Northern Dipper.

“Down!” Bladask growled. Bang! Bang! Bang! Ning’s three flashes of sword light were all shattered
by the slowly revolving Seven Stars of the Northern Dipper.

“Hmph.” Bladask turned his head, collected his flying swords, then transformed into a ray of light and
departed. Per the rules, he was only permitted to use a single flying sword…since he had been
forced to bring out his other magic treasures, he had naturally lost.
“How formidable.” Ning watched as that disciple of Black-White College, ‘Bloodrinker Bladask’,
departed. He couldn’t help but sigh in amazement. “The school should have limited him to using just
a single flying sword. As soon as he showed his real power…he instantly suppressed my [Lesser
Thousand Swords Formation]. He’s a peak Zifu Disciple, after all, while I am an early stage Zifu
Disciple. The difference in elemental ki strength…when I encounter another unparalleled genius, the
difference is clear.”

What Ning didn’t realize…was that actually, all he had to do was fly out of the cave. And yet, he had
insisted on forcing the guardian to show his real power instead.

“The Black-White College.” Ning slowly strolled forward, walking out of the cave. He stepped onto a
flying boat, then stared at the boundless, beautiful mountain scenery around him. From this day
forward, he would truly be a member of the Black-White College.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 20, Ji Ning, Disciple of the Black-White College

The six Primal Daoists at the entrance to the caves were roaring with laughter. “Hahahaha…this Ji
Ning really is formidable. He lives up to his reputation as someone who has gained insight into a
Dao Domain. That sword formation technique…although I’ve never heard of it, it clearly is an
extremely complicated and powerful sword formation. For it to control more than seven hundred
swords…the demands it must place on his soul and on his level of comprehension are definitely
extremely, extremely high.”

The short, chubby old man shook his head. “He, an early stage Zifu Disciple Ki Refiner, was able to
force the peak Zifu-level Bloodrinker Bladask to release his own sword formation to block it. Bladask
didn’t have any face to remain after that, and so he immediately left.”

“Right. Formidable.”

“He clearly could’ve just charged out of the cave, but he insisted on fighting one-on-one, fighting to
the point where he forced the guardian disciple to voluntarily retreat.”

These Primal Daoists all sighed with praise. Naturally, all of them took a liking to such a formidable
disciple. This meant that their Black-White College would rise in power yet again. Centuries later,
perhaps the Black-White College would produce yet another formidable Immortal.
“We must provide him with good guidance and tutelage. This Ji Ning has the potential to become an
Immortal,” the black-haired, middle-aged man said. The white-robed woman nodded. “Indeed, he
must be properly guided. He can’t be pampered; if we end up ruining this piece of unpolished jade,
that would be a huge waste.”

Tutelage was an art all its own. Geniuses were naturally endowed with arrogance and pride, and the
path of Immortals was that of the three calamities and nine tribulations. One would grow up in the
midst of battle, and there was no way one could avoid establishing grudges with anyone. All these
things could possibly result in a genius perishing!

…….

Ning rode atop his boat, moving straight to the very peak of the mountain. “A total of eight people
went for the trial. I wonder how many passed.” Ning continued to wait there. “I wonder if that Mu
Northson was able to pass or not.” Of the others, the only one who Ning had spoken with was
Northson, and he had quite a good impression of him.

Swoosh!

From afar, a ray of light flew towards Ning, followed by yet another ray of light.

“Hey, someone passed? Which cave was it? Which of our fellow disciples was guarding that cave?”

Ning stared into the distance. He could just barely make out the appearance of a disciple of the
Black-White College. That disciple gave Ning a few curious glances, then departed.

Moments later. Whoooosh. That distant ray of light shot over; it was an Azure Dragon construct. “Mu
Northson.” Ning was surprised, then immediately clasped his hands. “Congratulations, felicitations.”

“Same to you, same to you.” The white-robed youth, Northson, landed and stored away his
construct, his face filled with joy. “Brother Ji Ning, you truly are formidable. I was nearly defeated, but
in the end, I finally managed to charge out of the caves. But you were even more formidable; you
made it out so quickly.”

Ning could sense the joy radiating out from Northson as he spoke. His eyes were filled with
excitement as well. “Success. I’ve finally become a disciple of the Black-White College. If Mother
finds out, she will definitely be very happy.”
“Right.” Ning nodded, his gaze growing distant. If his own mother knew that he had become a
disciple of the Black-White College, she would definitely be proud as well.

“Father…mother…just wait and see. I, Ji Ning, will definitely have my name be spread throughout
these vast lands. I will become one of the supreme existences of this world. Definitely! Those
disciples of Snowdragon Mountain who caused your deaths…I will definitely execute them all!”

“Hahaha.” Six figures flew out in an arcing pattern, laughing as they did so. They instantly arrived at
the top of the mountain. It was the six Primal Daoists.

The short, pudgy, bald one laughed, “This year, our Black-White College has taken in quite a few
disciples; two at once!” The black-haired, middle-aged man said, “Today’s only the first day. We still
have two more days.”

“Hmph. Everyone capable of joining our Black-White College is a true, unparalleled genius.
Geniuses like that are all supremely confident; if they were to join, they would make us their very first
choice. Thus, they would come on the first day.” The short, pudgy, bald man shook his head. “It’s
been so many years; how many people ended up joining our Black-White College on the second or
third days? If they did, it was only because they were delayed slightly and unable to make it.”

The black-haired, middle-aged man looked towards Ning and Northson. “Ji Ning. Mu Northson. The
two of you, starting today, are now the disciples of our Black-White College.” Ning and Northson
both felt surges of joy in their hearts.

“The grand ceremony of formal apprenticeship will occur after the next two days of recruitment are
finished.” The black-haired man waved his hand, and two insignias appeared. One side of each
insignia was white, while the other side was black. “This is the insignia of our Black-White College’s
disciples. You can bind it now, and in the future, you will be able to freely enter many of the locations
of the Black-White College without being attacked by the various restrictive formations within.”

“Alright.” Ning and Northson each accepted an insignia. They naturally were able to easily bond it,
and upon doing so, Ning could immediately sense that there was a grand formation throughout the
entire Black-White College. He could sense…that this was a terrifying formation indeed. It
encompassed the entire college…and he could sense that it acknowledged him. Ning felt as though
this insignia was quite similar to the control talisman for the underwater estate.

“A disciple of the Black-White College.” Ning looked at the insignia. How many people desired this
insignia? That Hua Chong, the black-clothed youth who had also trained to the seventh stage of the
[Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]…he had failed, in the end. There were also several
other geniuses who were even more talented than Hua Chong, but they had been eliminated as well.
Only Ning and Northson had been accepted as disciples of the Black-White College.

…….

“Wu Xiu, we’ll let you make the arrangements for their residences. We’re going back now,” the
bearded, middle-aged man grinned. “Yes, we’re leaving.” The other Primal Daoists immediately flew
into the air, quickly departing.

The black-haired, middle-aged man waved his hand. A mist instantly arose, lifting up the three of
them. “Let’s go.” The black-haired Wu Xiu immediately guided Ning and Northson to fly forward.

“The entire Black-White College is divided into multiple areas, and it has many rules.” Wu Xiu waved
his hand, then took out two books which he tossed to them. “This book has the rules of our Black-
White College, as well as some other things which you must know. You must memorize everything
within it.”

Ning and Northson accepted the book. Lowering their heads, they saw just two words on the book;
‘Black’ and ‘White’.

……

Atop the peak of a small mountain, there was a graceful little villa. There were multiple buildings
surrounding it, but at the peak of this little mountain, Ning was the only person present.

“From today onwards, I am the master of this peak.” Ning stood in midair, staring down at his
mountain peak. Because the Black-White College had so few formal disciple, one could choose any
mountain one wanted to become one’s estate. Ning thus selected this one, giving it the name
‘Darknorth Peak’.

Darknorth…this was also the name of the swords he wielded. They symbolized that he would
embark on a path of his own.

Darknorth. This also was the place where his parents had met and fallen in love. This was a way of
memorializing his parents.

“Father. Mother…” Ning was silent for quite some time as he reminisced. And then, he turned his
head and immediately flew towards the skies atop his flying boat.
……….

Soon, he arrived at the formal gates to the Black-White College. His Uncle White had been waiting
here the entire time. Ning immediately saw that large, snowy white dog who was quietly waiting by
the side of the lake. The Whitewater Hound was simply standing there, waiting.

“Uncle White.” Ning immediately charged down. The Whitewater Hound lifted his head, a
questioning look in his eyes. “It’s done.” Ning landed, then nodded. “I’m already a disciple of the
Black-White College.”

“If Big Brother Yichuan knew this, he would definitely be ecstatic.” The Whitewater Hound’s eyes
became filled with delight and excitement as well. The Black-White College! What sort of a school
was this? The status of a formal disciple of Black-White College was far higher than that of a
Wanxiang Adept of an ordinary school.

Right at this moment…

“Hahaha, Brother Ji Ning, you only have eyes for this spirit-beast of yours. You didn’t even notice
me.” A voice rang out, and Ning immediately turned to look. There was a carriage parked before the
gates, and Northmont Baiwei was descending from that carriage.

“Brother Baiwei.” Ning immediately went to greet him. Baiwei said, “I expected that you would
definitely become a disciple of the Black-White College, so I predicted that you would return at
around nightfall.”

“Sorry for making you wait so long, Brother Baiwei,” Ning said. Baiwei’s eyes radiated excitement as
he spoke. “Not long at all. You have no idea how happy I was as I waited. Especially towards the
end, when those other geniuses emerged, like Hua Chong, Liu Shuilian…they have been famous for
quite some time now, but in the end, all of them had been eliminated.”

Ning nodded gently. “Hua Chong and the others you mentioned; they should have been eliminated
after the final trial.” Ning had a fairly deep impression regarding Hua Chong, who also had reached
the seventh stage of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] and whose aunt was a Primal
Daoist of the school.

“No matter what, they all slunk away in defeat,” Baiwei said. “In the end…the Skysplitter Sword Sect,
the Hundred Flowers Fairyland, and the other schools will still accept many disciples. Given their
talent, they can easily enter. Only the Black-White College…unless one is truly a supreme,
unparalleled genius, they won’t accept them. Even the most talented of geniuses must undergo a
thorough examination. Given their pride, of course they came. What a pity, what a pity.”

There was no hint of pity on the face of Baiwei at all; all he had on his face was a look of
schadenfreude.

“Right. How many disciples did the Black-White College accept this time?” Baiwei hurriedly asked.
“Today was the first day. They took in two disciples,” Ning replied. “I was one. Another is named Mu
Northson.”

Baiwei nodded lightly. “Mu Northson? This is a name I’ve never heard of before. It seems as though
some of the backwater, out-of-the-way areas will occasionally produce a supreme genius from time
to time. When you are free, why don’t you bring this Mu Northson over? We’ll meet and make friends
with each other.”

“Easily done,” Ning nodded. Baiwei said, “I came for two reasons. First, to congratulate you on
becoming a disciple of the Black-White College. Secondly, to ask you for some help.”

Ning laughed. “As long as I can help, I will.” Baiwei looked at Ning. “Here’s the situation. You should
know that formal disciples of the Black-White College are permitted to bring in ten retainers with
them, right?”

Ning nodded. Ten retainers…to be a retainer of a disciple of the Black-White College was far more
alluring a position than being a disciple of an ordinary school. This was because the retainer would
live within the Black-White College! Even though it would be very, very hard for them to acquire any
techniques, anything they did acquire would be supreme, top-tier techniques.”

“Loan me three of those positions,” Baiwei said. “You should know that I have many family and
friends. There are many that I will find hard to reject, once they ask me to help.”

Ning laughed. “Why the courtesy? Of the ten positions, you can take nine of them. Just leave one for
me!”

That one…

Ning thought back to Meng Roch, who he had encountered on the road to Stillwater City. He knew
that after Roch had used a forbidden technique, he had definitely harmed his own foundation. He
would most likely find it hard to join any school.
Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 21, Viewing the Sculpture at Night

“Leave you with just one?” Baiwei hurriedly shook his head. “How can I do that? Although your Ji
clan isn’t too large, you still have people who broke through to the Zifu Disciple level. I imagine some
of them would wish to become a retainer for a full disciple of the Black-White College. In addition, in
the future, you might encounter a powerful figure who would ask you for a slot. How about this; I’ll
shamelessly take five of your retainer positions, while you hold on to the remaining five. If, in the
future, the five you have is insufficient, come talk to me…I’ll come up with some methods for having
those Zifu Disciples enter a good school. But of course, they must be of the early Zifu stage.”

Ning laughed, then nodded. “That’s fine as well.” But in truth, he really did only need a single slot.
Retainers entered the Black-White College for the sake of gaining top-tier Ki Refining techniques,
but they ideally needed to be early stage Zifu Disciples as well.

If one entered as a middle stage or late stage Zifu Disciple, one’s path would have become set;
there was no way to go back! The Ji clan’s Zifu Disciples consisted of Patriarch Ji Ninefire, Granny
Shadow, Ah Xing, and Ji Truekeep.

The Patriarch and the others were all peak Zifu Disciples, while Truekeep was a middle stage Zifu
Disciple; their paths were already set. As for the younger members of the Ji clan? For one of them to
reach the Zifu Disciple would probably need some time.

“Even if our Ji clan is capable of producing a new Zifu Disciple, they can still rely on their own power
to join another sect,” Ning mused to himself. “If my help is truly needed, in a few years, my power
and status will most likely be higher as well.” In his heart, though, Ning wanted to let those future
descendants of the Ji clan fight for their paths.

At most, he would occasionally give them some opportunities! Only when one adventured through
the world by one’s self would one not fear the wind and the waves of life.

“Alright.” Baiwei nodded. “In two days, after the Black-White College has concluded its recruitment
cycle, I will send five Zifu Disciples to you, as well as some ordinary commoners.”

“Ordinary commoners?” Ning was startled. Baiwei smiled. “Given how few in number the formal
disciples of the Black-White College are, each of them take up an entire mountain for themselves…
although the Zifu Disciple are servants and retainers, they still have to train as well. You can’t make
them spend all their time boiling water, watering the plants, or doing cleaning, right? You can give
them some important tasks, but for the normal tasks, you can have the commoners carry it out.”
Ning now understood.

“I won’t tarry any longer. Take a good stroll around the Black-White College.” Baiwei laughed. “The
Black-White Diagram of the Black-White College has attracted jealousy from countless powers for
many years now. Even the Grand Xia Dynasty will occasionally send people over here, begging for a
chance to see the Black-White Diagram. Only formal disciples like you, however, can view it
whenever you want.”

After speaking, Baiwei laughed then entered his carriage, departing. Ning turned to look at the
Whitewater Hound by his side. “Uncle White, let’s go.” The Whitewater Hound nodded, following
him. “Right.”

Swoosh! The man and the snowy white hound both boarded a flying boat, then sped into the air at
high speed. It was already dark. The Black-White College, shrouded by the night sky, appeared
incomparably tranquil.

“Uncle White,” Ning laughed, “You are at the early Zifu stage. Don’t be in a hurry to train. Soon, I will
ask the school for a top-tier Ki Refining technique for you.”

“Thanks for taking the trouble, Ning, son.” The Whitewater Hound looked at Ning. That child who had
ridden atop his back while training in archery in the mountains had already grown up. Had become
even more powerful than the hound’s elder brother, Ji Yichuan. “Yichuan…I will watch as Ning
becomes a truly majestic, heroic figure within these lands.”

Ning didn’t know what his Uncle White was thinking. He instructed, “Uncle White, your status within
the College will be that of my spirit-beast, and so you’ll be able to follow me around and listen to
some Primal Daoists and even Immortals expound on the Dao. When following me, you’ll also be
able to enter the various parts of the Black-White College. If you are moving about by yourself,
however, you’ll only be able to enter these places.”

Ning waved his hand and retrieved that black-and-white book, flipping to one of the pages within it.
“This is the map of the Black-White College; there are red lines marking the places where you, Uncle
White, can go freely,” Ning said.

The Whitewater Hound gave it a quick look, memorizing everything. “Thanks for taking the trouble,
Ning.” Ning laughed. “No trouble at all.” When he looked at Uncle White, he felt as though he had
returned to those days when he had lived together with Uncle White, Father, and Mother. His
parents were now gone…and Uncle White was his closest family now.
……

Spirit-beasts and retainers were different. Retainers who wanted to train in top-tier techniques had to
work hard for themselves and be acknowledged by the Black-White College; only then might they
have the rare chance to acquire a top-tier Ki Refining technique. In addition, they would only have
access to a small number of top-tier Ki Refining techniques. The retainers had to do everything for
themselves. For the formal disciples to allow them to enter the Black-White College alongside them
was kindness enough.

If Uncle White had entered the Black-White College as a retainer, he too could’ve relied on his own
power, but things would have been very difficult.

As for spirit-beasts, spirit-beasts themselves absolutely could not acquire top-tier Ki Refining
techniques. But Ning, by paying a certain price, could ask for a Ki Refining technique for him. It was
incomparably easier for a formal disciple to acquire a top-tier Ki Refining technique, compared to a
retainer.

However, given how exacting the requirements the Black-White College placed upon its formal
disciples, they couldn’t hurry fast enough to learn techniques and arts; how many of them would be
willing to sacrifice their own advancement chances for the sake of their spirit-beasts?

“Whoosh.” The boat flew to the top of Darknorth Peak. “This is Darknorth Peak.” Ning pointed down
towards the mountain peak below. “From today onwards, this peak shall belong to me, Ji Ning.”

“Uncle White, the only people living at Darknorth Peak for now are you and me. Go and get some
rest. I’m going to the restricted area of the Black-White Diagram to take a look,” Ning said. “The
Black-White Diagram is located in the innermost reaches of the entire Black-White College. Only
formal disciples may go view it. Retainers and spirit-beasts are not permitted to do so.”

“Go.” The Whitewater Hound laughed, then leapt downwards from the boat, transforming into a
streak of light that landed atop Darknorth Peak.

Ning nodded. Whoooosh. His ship immediately turned and flew towards another direction.

………..

Ning descended from the skies. This was a very wide square, and the innermost heart of the entire
Black-White College, a restricted area amongst restricted areas. Even the Grand Xia Dynasty or the
various supreme powers would have to strive mightily and use all their connections they had in order
to come view this Black-White Diagram. Retainers and spirit-beasts were naturally forbidden to
come.

“The Black-White Diagram?” Ning stared at the giant stone wall that was erected within the center of
the square. The stone was of an unknown type; it radiated an inky black aura, and was covered with
dense, crisscrossing black and white lines that formed countless structures. These two different
colored lines intersected in innumerable ways, but in doing so formed the image of an enormous,
circular bedstone.

Black. White. It was like the night and the day. Like yin and yang. Like water and fire. Like darkness
and light…

With Pangu’s creation of the universe, everything in the universe had a ‘dark’ side and a ‘light’ side;
upon seeing those crisscrossing lines, Ning felt as though a powerful aura was surging towards him,
and he immediately even felt his soul begin to ache in pain.

“That’s not right.” Ning hurriedly turned around. “The Black-White Diagram actually has so many
different lines all tangled together.” Ning was secretly amazed. The Stellar Hall of his underwater
estate allowed the various Dao Paths to be completely condensed into separate lines, so that those
within could separately focus on comprehending these various Daos. But as for this Black-White
College…it mixed in countless Daos, and some were only fragmentary.

But those various fragmentary Daos, when mixed with the other Daos…actually formed this
complete Black-White Bedstone Diagram!

“Although in terms of comprehending the Dao, this Black-White Diagram is inferior to the Stellar Hall
of the underwater estate…in terms of how the various Daos complement and connect with each
other, this Black-White Diagram is actually on a higher level.” Ning understood, however, that the
Stellar Hall was comparatively far more valuable.

The Dao was one’s foundation; swordplay and techniques were all extraneous. When Ning had risen
in comprehension and gained the Dao Domain, he had done so because he had risen in his
understanding of his Dao!

As for the likes of the Waterflame Lotus, it was a technique that was fused from aspects of various
different True Meanings of the Dao; it was a matter of applying the Dao.

The Dao was the foundation. Techniques were an application. The Stellar Hall…it separated the
various different Daos, allowing others to clearly comprehend them. Its value was priceless, and it
was the reason why Immortal Juhua, a Loose Immortal, was able to live for millions of years, so that
even the princes of the Grand Xia Dynasty sought to become his disciple to no avail.

The Black-White Diagram was most likely formed by nature itself, and thus contained many different
things within it. It allowed others to easily gain insights into some of those things and develop certain
techniques, such as the Waterflame Lotus.

………..

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” An Azure Dragon construct, a figure on its back, descended
from the skies. It was Mu Northson. “I didn’t expect you’d arrive even earlier than me, senior
apprentice-brother Ji Ning.”

“Junior apprentice-brother Northson.” Ning laughed, then instructed, “No matter what, don’t stare
directly at that Black-White Diagram. The Daos contained by the Black-White Diagram are simply
too vast and unfathomable; we aren’t capable of withstanding them. Just look at a small part of it at a
time.”

Unfortunately, his words were slightly too late.

As soon as he had landed, Northson had unconsciously glanced at the Black-White Diagram;
naturally, in doing so, he had stared at the entire thing. Instantly, he felt the world start to spin, and
his body began to slump and fall from the Azure Dragon construct. Clearly, in terms of the strength
of his soul, he was far inferior to Ning, and so his ability to withstand the Black-White Diagram was
weaker as well.

Hearing Ning’s words, Northson hurriedly nodded. “Right. We can’t stare directly at the entire Black-
White Diagram.”

“Come. Let’s view it slowly.” Ning immediately walked past the stone wall. He stood next to the
Black-White Diagram and began to inspect it closely. Actually, next to it, there were two other walls
to the left and to the right of it, made from similarly unusual materials which radiated white light. Ning
could sense that these three stone walls all had incredibly powerful formations overlaid atop them;
most likely, the Immortals of the entire Black-White College paid extremely close attention to this
place.

After all, the Black-White College had only risen to power after acquiring the Black-White Diagram.
This was their life, their heart.
Each new Immortal of the Black-White College had frenetically added their own powerful formations
to seal the diagram, causing it to become terrifyingly powerful by now. Upon being activated, the
formations of countless elders of the Black-White College would simultaneously explode. Most likely,
even Celestial Immortals would find it hard to survive.

“A three-sided wall. One is the Black-White Diagram, while the other two must have been left behind
by the previous Immortals.” Ning glanced at it all. The three-sided stone walls were all more than
three hundred meters wide, and they were covered with dense, clustered words, most likely more
than ten thousand utterances. From this, one could estimate how many Immortals had been born
from the Black-White College.

Ning’s gaze quickly halted at one of the corners of the Black-White Diagram. He began staring at a
small part of it, focusing on that part.

The white lines and black lines intersected…they were opposite, and yet alike. A sensation of the
marvels of nature completely engulfed Ning. Northson, by his side, was absorbed by the Black-White
Diagram as well.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 22, The Words Left By An Immortal

Throughout the history of the Black-White College, whenever a disciple came to view the Black-
White Diagram for the first time, they would gain from it. The experience they had accumulated
normally, the insights they had gained normally…upon viewing the Black-White Diagram, they would
gain corresponding enlightenment.

Rustle, rustle, rustle…

Ning sat there in the lotus position, meditating as Waterflame Lotuses began to form around him.
One petal after another blossomed, slowly swiveling about him.

A total of six layers of petals had formed…but suddenly, all six layers vanished, reforming into four
layers which appeared even more real and solid than the six.

Time flowed on. In the blink of an eye, an hour passed.

Whooosh. The four quite solid-seeming layers of petals vanished as well, reforming into a total of
two layers of petals. One of two layers of lotus petals was formed from red petals, while the other
was formed from green petals. The two looked identical to the lotus petals of a real lotus flower.

Rustle…

The lotus flower slowly swiveled, and the grinding, killing power of the two layers of lotus petals grew
increasingly powerful. The lotus petals became increasingly clear and lifelike, especially the green
lotus petals; slowly, it continued to grow so lifelike that one could see the plant veins as well. Even at
close range, most would probably take it to be a naturally grown lotus petal.

“Eh?” Ning suddenly woke up, then nodded gently. “I gained from my previously accumulated
experiences. It seems as though my understanding of the Dao has reached a bottleneck in terms of
being able to combine water, fire, and wind.”

He looked towards the nearby Mu Northson. Northson was still absorbed in his trance, appearing
either drunk or mesmerized. “I have the Stellar Hall in my underwater estate. Although the Black-
White Diagram is of use to me, it isn’t as useful as it was to Northson.” Ning turned to walk to the
stone wall on the other side. This wall was covered with words left behind by countless generations
of Immortals.

One row after another of words.

“The path of Immortal cultivation is the Dao of the grand struggle. These are the words of Five
Disgraces!” The powerful intent that surged forth from these characters made Ning feel as though he
could see an Immortal cultivator who was constantly advancing, struggling against the heavens,
against the earth, against other men, against monsters…

“Consider all things carefully, but act with bravery and resoluteness.” An invisible, grim callousness
radiated from these words.

“Where my heart leads me is where I shall go.” A confident, prideful aura radiated from these words,
as though no one could block him from moving forward on the path which his Dao-heart had decided
upon. Any who tried would be slaughtered.

“All mortal and worldly things shall decay; I ask for just two words; Immortal Life.”

Domineering.
Arrogant.

Fierce.

Leisurely.

Calm.

Simple.

The words left behind by the Immortals of the Black-White Diagram caused Ning’s Dao-heart to be
baptized time and time again. He felt as though he could look past time itself to ages past; as though
he could watch as these Immortal cultivators held firm to their own Dao-hearts and embarked on
their own paths.

“Such powerful, resolved, and untainted Dao-hearts,” Ning murmured to himself. Power. Resolve.
Purity. These were the things Ning sensed from the words left behind by these Immortals. Anyone
capable of becoming an Immortal had understood his or her own heart long ago, and knew what
their heart’s desire was! In addition, their Dao-hearts would be incomparably pure and resolved; they
wouldn’t succumb to temptations or let themselves be led astray. The passage of countless years
had caused their Dao-hearts to grow incomparably strong.

But if the Dao-hearts of these Immortals somehow grew bewildered, then their faith in themselves
would collapse, and they might lose everything they had built up over a thousand years! In fact, in
the worst case scenarios, they might not even be able to control the incomparably powerful
elemental ki in their bodies, resulting in death.

From this, one could see that the path of Immortal cultivation was an extremely difficult path; it was
the path of challenging destiny.

“The only desire in my heart is to be carefree, to be able to do as I please. I only ask that my destiny
be in my own hands.” As Ning continued to read, his own Dao-heart grew increasingly pure as well.

The pain and agony he had suffered in his previous life made it so that he was not willing to submit
to fate. Not willing to allow his destiny to be controlled by others. In this life, his parents had both
died; this caused Ning to feel an even greater desire for the ability to not be controlled by destiny.

However, if one wished to surpass the bonds of fate, then one would have to gain tremendous
power! Only by being powerful would one truly be carefree and be able to act as one pleased!
……..

Ning read the words of one Immortal after another. Although Immortal cultivators read very quickly,
by the time he finished reading that section of the wall, it was already very late at night.

“Eh?” Ning turned to look at Northson. Northson continued to sit there in the lotus position, staring at
the Black-White Diagram. Around him were various parts and pieces that were formed from natural,
elemental energy. The countless parts and pieces sometimes joined together and sometimes split
apart, forming dragons, tigers, serpents, turtles…all sorts of monstrous beasts and strange creatures
appeared, constantly forming and reforming.

“He’s making a breakthrough. Junior apprentice-brother Northson’s insights have reached a tipping
point.” Ning felt secret admiration; he had spent less than two hours in meditation, but his junior
apprentice-brother Northson had spent far more time than he had in comprehending the Black-White
Diagram.

“The other stone wall.” Ning turned to look at the final, third stone wall. The words left behind by the
various Immortals were actually meant to help refine the Dao-hearts of their successors. For juniors
whose Dao-hearts were not sufficiently stable, it could have the effect of helping them to constantly
train and test their hearts. Thus, although the Black-White Diagram served as the foundation of the
Black-White College, the words left behind by these Immortals to train the Dao-hearts of their
successors could also be considered one of the important things which this supreme, top-tier school
relied upon as it passed down its traditions over the course of countless years.

This, too, was their foundation!

…….

The night sky.

A short old man, dressed in ragged beggar’s clothes, stood atop the clouds, holding a calabash of
wine and appearing quite at ease.

He seemed to be the very center of the world around him, as though everything would obey his
commands. This natural feeling of dominance, of power…it gave the short old man an aura that was
definitely not inferior to Northmont Blacktiger’s, and perhaps even more astonishing and terrifying.
However, as long as one was not too close to him, one couldn’t sense his majestic presence at all.
“I’ve overcome the ninth-century tribulation… what a wonderful, wonderful feeling.” The short old
man shook his head, seeming completely delighted with himself. “I’ll have nine hundred more years
of good living.” Raising his head, he gargled in a large mouthful of Immortal wine.

“Uh?” The short old man suddenly halted, staring down at the Black-White Diagram below him. “Two
youngsters?” The short old man nodded slightly. “Come to think of it, today is the day in which our
Black-White College is accepting new recruits. It seems these two are new disciples. This old Daoist
wants to take a good look at them.”

“That white-robed kid…he walks the Dao of Constructs? And he seems quite impressive; quite
talented, in fact. It seems as though although I have been in seclusion for many years, the quality of
the disciples of our Black-White College hasn’t dropped in the slightest.” The old man nodded in
satisfaction, then turned his gaze towards Ji Ning, who was staring at the the stone wall with writing
atop it. “That kid dressed in furs; he’s actually reading those words that were left behind? Can it be
that he has finished viewing the Black-White Diagram? I wonder how long that kid viewed the Black-
White Diagram for, and how his potential is.”

The longer one was able to view the Black-White Diagram, the more one would gain from it.

……

Ning continued to read the words left behind by the Immortals on the wall. Every single character
was a representation of the path an Immortal had followed. Amongst these Immortals, there was
only a single Celestial Immortal; the rest were all Loose Immortals or Earth Immortals. From this,
one could tell how difficult it was for someone to truly escape the confines of the Three Realms and
no longer be bound by the Five Elements.

“Eh?”

Ning looked towards a new line of words, but as soon as his gaze fell upon it, he suddenly felt as
though a sword was being pointed at his eyes.

“My three-foot sword in hand, I shall exterminate all injustices! These are the words of Northwalker!”

A very simple line of words. Ning stared at this line of words, left behind by Immortal Northwalker,
and could vaguely sense the powerful energy emanating from these words. As Ning carefully sensed
and probed it with his own soul, instantly, a powerful aura instantly sprang out from these words,
completely filling his consciousness.
A silver-haired old man stood in the void, a sword in his hand. Hua! His entire body became filled
with a heaven-towering sword ki, as though he himself had transformed into an enormous sword.

“What a sharp sword.” When Ning saw the silver-haired elder, he had the feeling as though the elder
himself was a sword as well, and the most indestructible, the toughest, the most overbearing sword
in existence at that. In fact, Ning even felt as though nothing could possibly withstand this silver-
haired elder.

Ning trained in the sword ever since he was young. The sword was the weapon of his choice, and
his father had personally taught him. By now, Ning had the heart of a true swordsman. When he saw
this figure, who appeared to be the utmost embodiment of that which swordsmen aspired to
become…the desire Ning felt in his heart and the sincerity he felt towards the sword slowly began to
transform, causing that aura that had filled him to begin to resonate with him..

…….

“Eh? That fur-clad little…” The short old man in the clouds above stared down in shock. “Is this…?”

Ning, in the plaza below, was standing next to one of the giant stone wall, and on that stone wall, a
certain line of characters was slowly beginning to glow and radiate light. The characters were, ‘My
three-foot sword in hand, I shall exterminate all injustices! These are the words of Northwalker!’.
Every single character was lighting up, and a powerful sword-intent completely filled each and every
one of them.

Ning just stood there, his entire body faintly radiating a sword intent as well. The two had actually
begun to resonate with each other. The sword-intent radiating from Ning was far from being able to
compare to the heaven-shaking profoundness of the line of characters, but without question, the
sword-intent radiating from him was resonating with that of the wall.

“He actually…he actually managed to activate the sword-intent ripples left behind by senior
Northwalker?” The short elder stared downwards in astonishment. Although Immortal Northwalker
was a Loose Immortal, it could be said that within the Black-White College, his status was
comparable to that Celestial Immortal’s, and in fact, his influence was even a bit greater. He had
lived for over a million years before finally perishing under the weight of the increasingly powerful
heaven-sent Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations.

A Loose Immortal who had survived for a million years? This was something out of the legends.
Loose Immortals capable of surviving for a hundred thousand years were already incredibly powerful
figures; afterwards, surviving for another hundred thousand would be very difficult. Loose Immortals
that had survived for two hundred thousand years and three hundred thousand years…they were all
completely different, but the longer they lived, the more terrifying their power was.

Loose Immortals who crossed the threshold of one million years were absolutely comparable to
Celestial Immortals. However, in terms of the foundation of their elemental ki, they were clearly
weaker than Celestial Immortals; the reason they were said to be comparable was because in terms
of their comprehension of the Dao, their degree of enlightenment, and their techniques, they were
superior to Celestial Immortals! This was why, despite being mere Loose Immortals, they were
comparable to Celestial Immortals!

“Sword-intent? The sword-intent ripples are this strong?” The short old man stared, wide-eyed, at the
scene below.

…….

Within Ning’s consciousness. The sword-intents of himself and the words had reached an
astonishing level of resonance. The figure of that silver-haired elder in his mind…suddenly began to
move and display sword techniques. At the same time, he began to chant out the words to a song.

“What is the purpose of a life lived?”

“All I ask for is to be joyful.”
“Kill, kill, kill.”
“Exterminate all injustices!”
“Exterminate all those who deserve killing!”
“Only then will I be exultant.”
“As Loose Immortals, there is no path to immortality.”
“Thus…”
“Better to live passionately for a day, than to live a century while stifled.”

“My sword is the joyous sword, the sword of passion, the sword which exterminates all injustices.
The name of this sword technique is the [Three-Foot Sword].”

The voice of the old man echoed within the vast, empty void of Ning’s consciousness.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 23, Immortal Diancai

The short elder clutched that gourd of wine in his hands, but completely forgot to drink from it. He
stared downwards towards the fur-clad youth. The sword-intent radiating from the youth was
incomparably firm and resolved, and it continuously resonated with the glowing words on the stone
wall.

“Epochal Transmission!”

“Senior Northwalker is transmitting his sword intent to him. And, from the looks of it, this fur-clad
youth seems to be receiving it with ease; clearly, he too has the heart of a true Sword Immortal.” The
short elder took a deep breath, tamping down his excitement, then turned and sent mentally with a
howl, “Junior apprentice-brother Diancai, hurry the hell out!”

“Hurry the hell out!”

“Hurry the hell out!”

His voice transmitted through the air, past countless layers of restrictive spells, and entered the ears
of a black-robed, black-haired man who was currently seated in the lotus position atop a jade bed.

“Eh?” The black-haired man revealed a hint of puzzlement in his eyes as he opened them. But then,
a look of understanding appeared. “It seems as though senior apprentice-brother Fivecraze has
successfully endured the great tribulation which occurs every nine centuries. And he seems to be in
quite a good mood!”

The black-robed, black-haired man took a single step forward, then disappeared from his room.

The night sky. The black-robed, black-haired man strode through the skies, moving a hundred
kilometers with each step. If one didn’t stare at him carefully, it would seem as though he wasn’t
even present.

“Senior apprentice-brother Fivecraze,” the black-haired, black-clothed man said. The short old man
gave him a glance, blinked, then mumbled to himself, “You freak. You are growing more and more
powerful. It’s been less than a century since we last met, but you’ve reached such a level of power.
After I entered the Black-White College, you are the only one I have met who I believe has a great
chance of becoming a Celestial Immortal.”

“The path to becoming a Celestial Immortal is incomparably difficult. All I can do is strive as much as
I can and to use all my power to attain that goal.” The black-haired, black-clothed man laughed.
“Your junior apprentice-brother has to congratulate you, senior apprentice-brother Fivecraze. You
once again overcame the nine-century tribulation.”

“I didn’t call you over to chat about becoming a Celestial Immortal.” The short elder pointed
downwards. “Quick, look.” Immortal Diancai stared downwards. There were two people in the plaza;
one was currently meditating in front of the Black-White Diagram, clearly reaping great rewards from
it, while the other was in front of one of the stone walls with words left behind by the Immortals. A
line of characters atop that stone wall was currently glowing with light, and the light from each
character was incomparably blinding. At the same time, surges of deep, powerful sword-intent
radiated from the characters.

The line of words was: ‘My three-foot sword in hand, I shall exterminate all injustices! These are the
words of Northwalker!’

“Senior Northwalker’s Epochal Transmission?” Immortal Diancai was stunned. He was an absolute
genius which even the Black-White College saw only once in a million years, and the member of the
Black-White College with the greatest chance of becoming a Celestial Immortal. When Immortal
Diancai had originally entered the Black-White College, he, too, had received an Epochal
Transmission from Immortal Northwalker.

“In the past, you received the sword-intent transmission from senior Northwalker, right?” The short
old man laughed. “Right.” Immortal Diancai stared down carefully towards that fur-clad youth. His
gaze was extremely focused; he was carefully weighing this youth.

“Who is he?” Immortal Diancai finally spoke out. The short elder knew that Immortal Diancai was
asking about the fur-clad youth below, and he shook his head and said, “How should I know? I just
came out from seclusion and happened upon him by chance, and so I immediately called for you.
However, today is the day in which our College accepts new disciples; I imagine this youth should be
a newly admitted student.”

Immortal Diancai nodded slowly.

All the higher level members of the Black-White College knew that ever since Immortal Diancai had
entered the school and received the sword-intent transmission from ‘senior Northwalker’, and had
learned about the life of senior Northwalker, he had felt incomparable respect and veneration for
him. Diancai had considered himself to be Northwalker’s apprentice, and had frantically sought out
any information he could find about Northwalker, as well as regarding his sword techniques…he had
even visited all of the places which his revered mastered, Northwalker, had ever travelled to, in the
hope of finding his tracks.
During this process, Immortal Diancai had grown more and more powerful, to the point where he
could be described as the second coming of senior Northwalker. All the Immortals of the Black-White
College acknowledged him as the one amongst them with the highest chances of becoming a
Celestial Immortal.

“Well? Will you take him as your disciple?” The short elder chortled, lifting his gourd of wine up and
taking two drinks. This junior apprentice-brother Diancai of his had never before accepted a disciple,
because junior apprentice-brother Diancai had once said…only someone who had also received the
Epochal Transmission of senior Northwalker’s sword-intent could become his disciple.

Immortal Diancai had trained for less than a thousand years. During the course of these thousand
years, there had been quite a few who had sensed the unusualness of that line of characters, but
none of them were capable of receiving the sword-intent transmission.

“He’s not bad.” Immortal Diancai nodded gently. “Only…I still need to watch him to determine
whether or not I will take him as a disciple.” The short old man shook his head. “Your standards
really are high.”

Immortal Diancai didn’t respond. He continued to focus on the fur-clad youth below. He watched in
silence. But suddenly…

“Rumble…” The glowing characters on the stone wall suddenly flared with blinding brilliance, to the
point where the characters themselves, formed from light, seemed to leap out of the stone wall. One
character of light after another hung there in midair. ‘Hand’ ‘Wield’ ‘Three’…

Every single character radiated with blinding light; they seemed to be characters, but every single
stroke of the characters contained the shadow of a sword, as though these were words formed from
countless sword-shadows.

“The [Three-Foot Sword] technique. The complete [Three-Foot Sword] technique.” Immortal
Diancai’s eyes were shining, and a look of shock and delight was in them.

“That sword technique…that’s the legendary [Three-Foot Sword] technique!” The short old man
didn’t appear to be the slightest bit relaxed as well, and his eyes were filled with shock, surprise, and
ardor.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

At virtually the same instant, three more figures suddenly appeared in the night sky. One was an old
man with a long beard, a crown on his head, and who had an extraordinary bearing; when he strode
forward, it was as though an emperor was walking past, naturally capable of commanding a realm.
The second was a childish-looking boy who radiated an inexhaustible frigid aura, and whose eyes
appeared incomparably ancient. The third was a tall, muscular man whose entire body was covered
with chains.

The three of them all stared downwards.

“The [Three-Foot Sword].”

“The [Three-Foot Sword] has once more revealed itself to the world!”

“Our Black-White College has recruited yet another incredible disciple.” The three stared downwards
towards Ning, their eyes filled with anticipation and excitement. Immortal Diancai and the short elder
also stared downwards. The five of them didn’t say a single word.

Swoosh!

Suddenly, yet another figure appeared in the air. This was a white-robed youth who was
incomparably handsome, almost devilishly so. The white-robed youth appeared, then immediately
said respectfully, “Greetings, Uncle-Masters.”

“Don’t say a thing.” The short elder immediately gestured at him. The white-robed youth nodded.
Although he had the exalted status of headmaster of the Black-White College, in front of these five,
he still showed the respect due to seniors. He stood there obediently, not saying anything further.

…..

‘Hand’ ‘Wield’ ‘Three’ ‘Foot’ ‘Sword’ ‘Kill’…the characters formed from sword-shadows hung there in
the air, radiating light. But suddenly, all of the glowing characters flew straight towards Ning’s
eyeballs.

Ning shut his eyes. And then, in the same istant, the glowing line of words atop the stone wall
suddenly dimmed, becoming ordinary looking and no longer emanating any radiance or aura
whatsoever. Perhaps, when the time was right and when yet another disciple capable of receiving its
sword-intent transmission appeared, it would once more display its extraordinariness.
“It’s over.” The short old man laughed. “Senior Northwalker’s complete [Three-Foot Sword] has been
transmitted to this kid.”

“Right. The complete [Three-Foot Sword].” The bearded, crowned elder sighed with emotion as well.
“How many years has it been? The last time the [Three-Foot Sword] emerged was nearly thirty
million years ago. Finally, yet another disciple has inherited the complete [Three-Foot Sword].”

“The [Three-Foot Sword]…it exterminated countless vile demons, and killed until the heavens grew
dim and the earth turned dark. It killed so many that even the entire Grand Xia Dynasty was
shocked, and it even slaughtered a path out of our very world of existence.” The tall, muscular man
who was covered in those bizarre chains spoke in a low, rumbling voice as well. His eyes were filled
with eagerness as well.

They were all Immortals, but the difference in their power was great. Immortal Northwalker was at a
level where he was no weaker than a Celestial Immortal, and where even some Celestial Immortals
would be afraid of him. For someone like him…killing an ordinary Loose Immortal or Earth Immortal
was as easy as slaughtering a chicken.

This was precisely why, despite the passage of countless years, the Black-White College continued
to feel the utmost of veneration for Immortal Northwalker. In fact, he was the only person in the
entire history of the Black-White College whose status was considered to be even higher than that of
the Celestial Immortal they had produced.

“The [Three-Foot Sword].” Immortal Diancai spoke very slowly. “According to the legends, it has a
total of nine stances; the first six stances are recorded in the secret annals of our Black-White
College, but the final three stances…they were what Immortal Northwalker truly relied on when he
roamed the world and dominated it with invincibility. They were impossible to record down through
words and pictures; the only way one can receive them is through the profounder-than-profound
Epochal Transmission.”

“This child has the heart of a Sword Immortal.” The bearded elder stared downwards at Ning. “In
addition, his Dao-heart is incomparably firm and pure, and his soul is very powerful. Only one who
fulfills all three criteria can receive a technique such as this [Three-Foot Sword].”

The juvenile-looking boy nodded. “In each generation, our Black-White College has a good number
of disciples who have firm Dao-hearts and powerful souls, but the heart of a Sword Immortal…this is
too rare, too rare.”
“The heart of a Sword Immortal represents the true essence of a swordsman, that which stems from
the heart.” The short old man said with a sigh, “In addition, being able to develop the heart of a
Sword Immortal is a prerequisite for embarking on one of the Grand Daos, the Dao of the Sword.”

……..

“Junior apprentice-brother Diancai, are you going to accept this excellent disciple or not? If you
won’t, I will,” the bearded elder said with a laugh.

The juvenile-looking boy’s eyes were blazing. “Junior apprentice-brother Diancai, I’ll take this
disciple. Although he isn’t able to execute the [Three-Foot Sword] right now, it has already been
imprinted onto his soul. Once he reaches the proper level, he’ll be able to execute it. I am quite
eager to have the chance to cultivate a Sword Immortal who will be in possession of the [Three-Foot
Sword].”

“Junior apprentice-brother Diancai…” All of them spoke out. But Immortal Diancai just glanced out of
the corner of his eyes at the four. “I haven’t even taken a single disciple. Are you all going to fight
with me over him?” The other four all laughed.

“Jadesea.” Immortal Diancai looked towards the white-robed youth. “Uncle-master.” The white-robed
youth immediately nodded. Immortal Diancai chuckled, then asked, “Who is that young fellow below
us?”

The white-robed youth, Daoist Jadesea, immediately responded, “He is one of the two disciples
which our Black-White College has just accepted. His name is Ji Ning, and he comes from a minor
tribe, the Ji clan, which lives in the Swallow Mountain region of our Stillwater Commandery. His
parents are already deceased. Ever since he was young, he displayed astonishing, unparalleled
talents, and at the age of eleven, he executed the Zifu Disciple, Bei Zishan, who was being pursued
by the Raindragon Guard.”

“Then, because Immortal Firedragon made a breakthrough in the territory of the Ji clan and caused
an elemental ore mine to appear, a local branch of Snowdragon Mountain sought to annihilate the Ji
clan, but the end result was that Snowdragon Mountain lost a Wanxiang Adept and more than
twenty Zifu Disciples. The main reason why Snowdragon Mountain suffered such a catastrophic loss
was this Ji Ning.”

“Afterwards, he became friends with Northmont Baiwei, who is of the direct, primary lineage of the
Northmont clan. He engaged in a battle in the Carefree Caverns, and during the battle revealed that
he was already at the level of comprehending a Dao Domain. He is currently sixteen years of age.
The other person who entered our Black-White College, Mu Northson, is fourteen years of age.”
The five Immortals, upon hearing this information, all nodded. Ning’s growth rate was monstrous and
astonishing in the ears of others, but in the eyes of these Immortals of the Black-White College,
Ning’s growth rate was just decent at best. After all, they had all even seen quite a few reincarnated
Immortals.

“This Ji Ning shall be my disciple.” Immortal Diancai glanced at the surrounding individuals. “My four
senior apprentice-brothers, please support me in this.”

“Haha.”

“I thought you’d never take on a disciple, junior apprentice-brother Diancai.”

“I won’t fight with you over him. You have gained the deepest level of insight regarding the
swordplay of senior Northwalker; if you don’t teach this boy, who will? If I taught him, wouldn’t I
hamper his progress?”

And so, over the course of this conversation amongst Immortals, Ning’s future master had been
determined, just like that.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 24, The Grand Admissions Ceremony

It was late at night.

There were only two disciples of the Black-White College located in the plaza which held the Black-
White Diagram. Ji Ning slowly opened his eyes. Although it was a late night in the twelfth lunar
month, and it was extremely cold, Ning’s heart was filled with a scorching heat. He stared at the
words left behind by Immortal Northwalker, hidden amongst the countless words left behind on the
stone wall, and his emotions continued to fluctuate for a time.

“My sword is the joyous sword, the sword of passion, the sword which exterminates all injustices! It
is better to live passionately for a day, than to live a century while stifled.”

Ning still remembered with perfect clarity that vision of that silver-haired old figure, who seemed to
be as exalted as the heavens themselves. He clearly remembered that heaven-surging sword-intent,
clearly remembered that sword technique. All of these things had been deeply engraved in his heart!
“What level of swordcraft is this? Comparing my swordcraft to it would truly be like comparing the
light of a firefly to the brilliance of the full moon.” Ning’s heart was surging with emotions, and his
eyes were filled with boundless admiration.

Suddenly…Ning’s ear twitched. He immediately turned, only to see a white-robed figure walk over
from afar.

“Eh?” Ning was startled. Today, the only two new students should have been himself and Mu
Northson. Aside from the two of them, who else would come here in the dead of night?

The white-robed youth walked over from afar, and as he did, Ning felt as though endless, boundless
waves were slowly surging towards him in a crushing flow. The entire world seemed to have
transformed into waves…but when they reached Ning, things grew clear once more. There were no
waves at all…just that white-robed youth walking towards him.

“How terrifying.” Ning felt alarm in his heart. Although there was no oppressive, dominating aura, the
sense of danger which this white-robed youth had given him wasn’t one whit inferior to that which
Northmont Blacktiger had given him. In addition, this white-robed youth was handsome to the point
of being devilish.

Ning clasped his hands in a salute. “This junior, Ji Ning, pays his respects to you, senior.” Before
coming, Ning had already received an intelligence report from Northmont Baiwei regarding the
school. Based on the information in that report, Ning already had an idea as to who this person was.

“My Daoist title is ‘Jadesea’,” the white-robed youth said. “I am fortunate enough to hold the position
of headmaster for now.” Ning responded with respect, “Greetings, Headmaster.”

The headmaster of the Black-White College, ‘Daoist Jadesea’, was naturally a truly influential and
powerful figure within Stillwater Commandery.

“Headmaster, junior apprentice-brother Northson is…” Ning looked towards Northson, who was still
absorbed in meditation in front of the Black-White Diagram, seeming to be drunken or dazed.

“No need to disturb him,” the headmaster, Daoist Jadesea, said while shaking his head. “You are the
one I’ve come to visit.” As he spoke, a scroll appeared in front of Daoist Jadesea. He then extended
his arm, even more pure and jade-white than most women’s, and the scroll floated towards Ning.
Ning respectfully accepted it.
“After reading it, you will understand.” Daoist Jadesea looked towards Ning. “As the Epochal Heir of
Immortal Northwalker, you must not be indolent. Remember. After finishing reading this scroll,
destroy it.” After speaking, Headmaster Daoist Jadesea turned and departed, quickly disappearing
from Ning’s field of vision.

Ning stood there, stunned. Epochal Heir? Could not be indolent? Ning immediately unfurled the
hide-bound scroll; this scroll was made from the hide of an ordinary animal, but the words and
information atop it instantly drew Ning’s attention.

“Immortal Northwalker?” A look of delight appeared on Ning’s face. He had been wanting to learn
more regarding this Immortal Northwalker. The upper part of this hide-bound scroll described
Immortal Northwalker’s experiences as he grew in power, as well as some notable events he had
been involved in. Ning was completely engrossed and mesmerized by the information within.

This was a true legend. The legend which the entire Black-White College held in the greatest
respect. “In acting, one should act as senior Northwalker did,” Ning murmured softly to himself.

When senior Northwalker acted, he did so in a manner which could be described in two words;
‘straightforward’ and ‘passionate’! That was the only thing he cared about, to the point where, when
he saw the disciples of a supreme clan acting in sinful, wicked ways, he annihilated them all in his
anger and even destroyed their souls. This resulted in him being pursued and attacked by this
supreme clan, a pursuit which lasted for centuries. Immortal Northwalker had even been forced to
flee from this major world, but over the course of this pursuit, he had grown more and more powerful.
Afterwards, when he had returned, many of the powerful experts of that supreme clan were killed or
injured, and in the end, they had been forced to lower their heads and admit defeat, paying
reparations and reconciling themselves to him.

“I wonder which supreme clan it was,” Ning mused to himself. “This scroll didn’t record their name;
clearly, they don’t want for this matter to become public. Most likely, this was part of the
reconciliation process that occurred.”

Given what a massive battle this had been, clearly, that supreme clan was truly incredible as well. At
the same time, it also demonstrated how straightforward and passionate Immortal Northwalker’s
actions were. He truly did act to exterminate all injustice!

The middle of the scroll recorded a dialogue. A junior disciple posed a query to Immortal
Northwalker: “Countless vile actions were being carried out in this vast world; if one always went to
exterminate evildoers, how could one possibly ever kill them all?”
Immortal Northwalker had responded thusly: “The number of sins and wicked deeds carried out in
this vast world are numerous beyond count, and I can’t be bothered to take charge of all matters in
this world. Any injustices that I personally encounter, however, I will naturally exterminate, and so
return joy and passion to myself.”

His meaning was simple and clear. If he didn’t personally encounter injustice, he couldn’t be
bothered with it. But if he did? That would ruin his mood…and he would exterminate it.

“He truly did live a carefree live, where he did as he pleased.” Ning felt admiration for the man.

……

After reading through the records of Immortal Northwalker, Ning turned to the bottom part of the
scroll, which began to introduce the [Three-Foot Sword]. The [Three-Foot Sword] had a total of nine
stances, and was the supreme technique which Immortal Northwalker had used to stun the entire
Grand Xia Dynasty. It was the distilled essence of his million-plus years of experience, and it was so
powerful that even Immortal Northwalker himself was unable to completely record down this
technique in a manuscript for transmission to later descendants.

The Dao Repository Vault of the Black-White College only held the first six stances of the [Three-
Foot Sword]. To this very day, no one was capable of recording down the final three stances in
written form.

However, those words left behind on the stone wall had been personally penned by Immortal
Northwalker. Only when there was a sword-intent resonance would an Epochal Transmission occur,
and could the [Three-Foot Sword] be transmitted.

“So that’s how it works. Occasionally, a later disciple of the Black-White College will receive an
Epochal Transmission, but even if they do, it’s quite rare for them to obtain the complete sword
technique. The last time a complete sword technique was transmitted was more than thirty million
years ago.” Upon reading this, Ning finally understood how astonishing a gain he had just reaped.

Ning also now understood why Headmaster Daoist Jadesea had given him this scroll. It was
precisely because of how important the [Three-Foot Sword] was; if some of the enemy powers were
to learn that the Black-White College had produced yet another genius who had gained the complete
legacy of the [Three-Foot Sword], they would probably use any means at their disposal to ensure
that this genius would fall early on.
Thus, this news absolutely could not be publicized. But of course, he could still use the [Three-Foot
Sword]; after all, the Dao Repository Vault had the secret manuals for the first six stances of the
[Three-Foot Sword]. As for using the seventh stance of the [Three-Foot Sword], if the situation called
for it…then there was no need to keep the secret any longer. Once one possessed the power of the
seventh stance of the [Three-Foot Sword], then one would already be standing at a peak of power.
After all, the seventh stance was already something which even Immortal Northwalker was unable to
commit to paper; from this, one could imagine how powerful it was.

…….

Two more hours passed. Only now did Northson completely come to his senses.

“Wonderful, absolutely wonderful.” Northson’s eyes were blazing as he turned to look at the nearby
Ning. He immediately called out in excitement, “Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, this Black-White
Diagram is simply too helpful in training. I feel as though I have made tremendous, tremendous
progress in the Dao of Constructs.”

But immediately afterwards, Northson realized something; Ning had awoken before he did. Most
likely, he hadn’t gained as much from the Black-White Diagram as Northson himself did. This made
Northson feel rather embarrassed.

“Indeed, I’ve gained much,” Ning said with a laugh. “It’s late. I imagine that it will be dawn soon.
Junior apprentice-brother Northson, it’s time to get some rest. Two days later, we’ll go to the
Headmaster’s Palace.”

“Right.” Northson nodded.

“Also,” Ning warned, “These words left behind by Immortals all have quite a history and are worthy of
you viewing.” Northson walked the Dao of Constructs; naturally, he wouldn’t have the heart of a
Sword Immortal and wouldn’t be able to receive the legacy of the Immortal Northwalker. However,
although Ning had received the Epochal Transmission of Immortal Northwalker, it could very well be
that there were other legacies left behind by other ancestors of the school on the stone wall.

“Right. It’s almost dawn. I’ll come here in the future and read through them slowly,” Northson said
with a laugh.

Whoosh! Whoosh! The two left, one on a wooden boat, the other on an Azure Dragon construct.
They each headed towards their own abodes.
…………

In the blink of an eye, two days passed. As had been predicted, on the second and third days, there
were no applicants who were qualified to become formal disciples of the Black-White College! Thus,
this year, the only new disciples of the Black-White College were Ji Ning and Mu Northson.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Ning and Northson were streaking through the air above the Black-White College like two streaks of
light, moving directly towards the Headmaster’s Palace.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” Northson’s eyes were filled with eagerness. “Today, we will
receive black-white pellets. We’ll be able to enter the Dao Repository Vault and exchange it for Ki
Refining techniques or secret Immortal techniques. In addition…we will be paying our respects to
our masters. We don’t even know who they will be yet.”

“Right. I wonder who will be my master,” Ning mused in a soft voice. Master. For an Immortal
practitioner to acknowledge a master was completely different from how he had acknowledged
Blindfish to be his master when learning archery as a child. Archery was just the technique of an
ordinary mortal, but your master on the Immortal path…what they passed down to you would help
you on your road to becoming an Immortal. The value of this benevolence shown was far greater,
and most likely the relationship between a master and apprentice would persist for centuries or even
millennia.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Ning and Northson landed in front of the Headmaster’s Hall. Quite a few formal
disciples had already gathered together within the Headmaster’s Hall, at least a hundred or more.
They were casually chatting amongst themselves, and all of them had extraordinary demeanors.

When Ning and Northson entered the palace, quite a few of the formal disciples turned to glance at
them. Most of them had kind looks in their eyes, and they nodded slightly, signifying greetings.

“It seems only part of the formal disciples of the Black-White College have come,” Ning mused to
himself. “It makes sense. Immortal practitioners can’t always be staying within the school; I imagine
many are outside.”

Each year, there would be a grand ceremony for admitting new disciples. But sometimes Immortal
practitioners would enter closed-door meditation for decades; thus, attendance at this sort of
ceremony was not too important. Those who could come would; if one couldn’t, it didn’t matter much.
Still…for most, as long as they weren’t engaged in any pressing matters within the school, they
would still come and pay their respects at the Headmaster’s Palace.

“The Headmaster is coming,” someone suddenly called out. Ning and the others immediately turned
to look. A white-robed youth was descending from midair, and there were multiple figures behind
him. All of them were Primal Daoists of the Black-White College; this entire group of Primal Daoists
descended en masse.

“According to the normal customs of the Black-White College, new disciples of the College will
generally take on Primal Daoists as masters,” Ning mused to himself. The Primal Daoists of the
Black-White College were not like those of ordinary schools; some of them had such astonishing
power that they were comparable to ordinary Immortals. Thus, being able to become a disciple of a
Primal Daoist of the Black-White College was quite a fortunate affair.

“I wonder which one of them will be my master?” Ning swept his gaze past all of the Primal Daoists,
including the headmaster, Daoist Jadesea. He began to privately guess at which of them it would be.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 25, Daoist Title, Darknorth

Daoist Jadesea sat on high in the headmaster’s seat, staring downwards towards the Primal
Daoists, who had lined up into two rows. Beneath the palace was a group of Wanxiang Adepts and
Zifu Disciples.

Within the Black-White College, the various disciples were primarily divided into three generations of
status. The Zifu Disciples and Wanxiang Adepts were considered to be of the same generation of
status, and could refer to each other as junior or senior fellow disciples. This was because it was
extremely easy for any of these Zifu Disciples to reach the Wanxiang Adept level.

Primal Daoists were on a higher level. Immortals, in turn, had the highest status. Generally speaking,
when disciples like Ji Ning met with an Immortal, they would address them as ‘Patriarch’, while when
they met with a Primal Daoist, they would address them as ‘Uncle-Master’. But of course, if one was
able to take on an Immortal as one’s master, they would naturally refer to that Immortal as ‘Master’.
Still, in addressing other Immortals, one would still use the term ‘Patriarch’.

Generally speaking, status amongst Immortal practitioners was determined by strength and power,
and they each befriended people on the same level of power.
“Everyone,” Daoist Jadesea said, seated atop his high chair, his voice echoing throughout the hall.
“Our Black-White College has taken on two new disciples. The skinny, fur-clad one on the left is Ji
Ning.”

Ning gaped. Skinny? Well, it made sense; it wouldn’t be appropriate to refer to him as the ‘youth’
either.

“The one on the right, the even skinnier one who is dressed in white robes, is named Mu Northson,”
Daoist Jadesea said.

Northson blinked as well. Even skinnier?

The hundred-plus disciples within the palace all began to laugh, and looks of amusement had
appeared on the faces of the Primal Daoists as well. Clearly, they all knew what sort of a character
their headmaster, Daoist Jadesea, was.

Daoist Jadesea grinned as he looked towards Ning and Northson as well. “The people present within
this palace today consist of a portion of the disciples of our Black-White College. Many are either in
closed-door meditation or wandering the world. In the future, you will meet them all. From today
onwards, you are all members of the Black-White College. We must be of one mind and one heart; it
is forbidden for members of the college to engage in fratricide.”

“Understood.” Ning and Northson both immediately acknowledged these words. Daoist Jadesea
continued, “Mm. Then let us begin the Oath of Blood.”

Ning and Northson glanced at each other. They immediately stretched out one finger from their right
hands, and a drop of fresh blood emerged from their fingers.

“Let our heart’s blood bear testament, and let the Dao of the Heavens stand witness. I, Ji Ning (Mu
Northson), willingly and freely join the Black-White College. As disciples of the Black-White College,
I shall obey the rules of the Black-White College…”

A nameless, ancient aura began to circulate throughout the hall. Nobody else said a word; the only
ones speaking were Ning and Northson, and their voices echoed within the grand palace.

An Oath of Blood, sworn to the Dao of the Heavens!

This was a mighty oath that absolutely could not be foresworn. This was also the reason why it was
extremely rare for someone to betray their school in the Grand Xia Dynasty. If one did betray one’s
school, even before the school came to punish them, the punishment of the Dao of Heaven would
have already slain the traitor. But of course, if the school had wronged the disciple, or if it had
expelled the disciple, then it would no longer be the disciple’s fault.

Since every single disciple was willing to swear an oath to the Dao of the Heavens, it was still quite
fair.

……

After hearing the swearing of the Oath of Blood to the Dao of the Heavens, Daoist Jadesea nodded
in satisfaction. “Excellent. You have now formally joined our school. Since you have joined us, you
need to choose your Daoist titles. Each of you can choose a title you like.”

Ning and Northson both began to ponder this. A Daoist title…for example, Daoist Jadesea’s Daoist
title was ‘Jadesea’, and Immortal Firedragon’s Daoist title was ‘Firedragon’.

“If you don’t wish to choose a Daoist title, you can use your own given name as your Daoist title,”
Daoist Jadesea said with a laugh. “There are some disciples who are accustomed to using their own
names and unaccustomed to Daoist titles. There are thus quite a few who use their own names.”

“My Daoist title shall be ‘Twinwood’,” Northson suddenly said. Daoist Jadesea nodded lightly.
“Twinwood? Very well.” He looked towards the nearby Ning next. “Ji Ning, what about you?”

Ning said slowly, “My Daoist title…let it be Darknorth.”

“Very well.” Daoist Jadesea nodded. “Since your Daoist titles have been chosen, let the elders of our
Black-White College discuss amongst themselves who will take you as their student. If you aren’t
willing, you can speak out at this time.”

“Understood,” Ning and Northson both said. Unwilling? What sort of a joke was this? As long as
there was no enmity between them, generally speaking, as long as an elder was willing to be their
master, the disciple would not refuse to be their student.

“Mu Northson.” Suddenly, from amidst the crowd of Primal Daoists near Daoist Jadesea, a white-
haired, baby-faced old lady suddenly spoke out. She looked at Northson, a hint of benevolent love in
her eyes. “I heard that you walk the Dao of Constructs. I, Jadefine, have also gained quite a few
insights into the Dao of Constructs. I wonder if you would be willing to accept me as your master.”
Ning’s heart thumped. Jadefine? According to the intelligence report which Northmont Baiwei had
provided him, Daoist Jadefine had the highest degree of understanding of the Dao of Constructs in
the entire Black-White College.

“Your disciple is willing.” Northson respectfully fell to his knees. “Your disciple pays his respects to
you, Master.” Daoist Jadefine smiled, then nodded. “Mm.”

Ning turned to look at the various Primal Daoists up ahead. Which one of them would become his
master? Which one? But Daoist Jadesea and the other Primal Daoists didn’t say a single word.

“Hrm. Strange. Why aren’t any of them accepting junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning as their disciple?”

“Right. None of our uncle-masters are saying a thing.”

The other disciples were secretly chatting amongst themselves. But Daoist Jadesea, seated above
them, suddenly turned to stare towards the outside of the palace. A figure had appeared within the
doorway to the palace; a black-haired, black-robed man was walking in. His gaze was both stately
and fierce, and as soon as he stepped into the palace, it was as though the entire palace had been
steeped into darkness. All of the disciples turned to stare at this man.

“My respects to you, Patriarch.” Many of the disciples quickly spoke out. A few of the others were a
bit lost; clearly, they didn’t recognize this man. Still, they hurriedly imitated the other disciples in
bowing respectfully. As for Ning and Northson, they followed the crowd in bowing as well.

“My respects to you, Uncle-Master.” The Primal Daoists in front all called out respectfully as well.
“Uncle-Master.” Daoist Jadesea rose as well.

The black-robed, black-haired man’s figure had instantly become the center for the entire palace. It
was as though the entire world was revolving around him.

“Ji Ning.” The black-robed, black-haired man looked towards Ning. “Are you willing to become the
senior disciple under my tutelage?” Ning was shocked. As soon as this man had spoken, Ning had
immediately realized who he was.

The intelligence report Baiwei had provided had very little information on the various Immortals in the
palace, with just a few lines of information for each; after all, the information on the Immortals was
very highly classified, while the report Baiwei had provided him consisted of fairly open secrets.
Thus, there was just a very simple introduction regarding Immortal Diancai..
Immortal Diancai: An Earth Immortal of the Black-White College. Highly specialized in swordplay. No
disciples to his name.

Of the living Immortals of the Black-White College, Immortal Diancai was the only one who had
never accepted any disciples. Upon hearing the words, ‘senior disciple under my tutelage’, Ning
immediately understood who the person before him was.

If he didn’t apprentice himself to this man, then who?

“Your disciple is willing.” Ning fell to his knees, respectfully kowtowing in a ritual manner. “Your
disciple, Ji Ning, pays his respect to you, Master.”

“Mm. Folllow me.” A rare hint of a smile was on Immortal Diancai’s stern face. Nodding to the others
and saying a few words, he immediately left the hall, and Ning hurriedly followed after him.

As for the other disciples in the hall, they all stared in astonishment. An Immortal had taken a direct
disciple? This was extremely rare. Only the most monstrously talented of their generation had been
accepted by one of the Immortals as a disciple, and all of these monsters were rumored to actually
be reincarnated Immortals.

…….

The clouds swirled about Immortal Diancai and Ning as they flew at high speed towards an estate.
They entered the estate, then into the main hall.

Immortal Diancai sat down atop his jade bed. As for Ning, he stood there to one side, incomparably
respectful. He could tell that Immortal Diancai was normally quite a stern, taciturn person.

“In my entire life, the person I hold the most admiration for is senior Northwalker,” Immortal Diancai
said. “I once swore that I would not accept any disciple who did not receive the sword-intent
transmission from senior Northwalker. As for you, not only did you receive his sword-intent
transmission, you even inherited his legacy, the complete [Three-Foot Sword]. Even I don’t know
anything at all regarding the final three stances of this technique.”

Ning just listened respectfully. Given that even the headmaster knew about this matter, for his own
master to know of this was only natural.
“The only ones who know that you inherited the complete legacy of the [Three-Foot Sword] are
myself, Jadesea, and the other Immortals,” Immortal Diancai said. “Thus, you cannot reveal it
either.”

Ning said respectfully, “Your disciple understands.”

Immortal Diancai looked towards Ji Ning. “You should know that in our Black-White College, if you
wish to gain a top-tier Ki Refining technique or top-tier divine ability, you have to use black-white
pellets to trade for them.” Ning nodded. The black-and-white book he had read earlier had described
these things.

If one wished to acquire the divine ability, ‘Heavenly Transformation’, one needed a certain number
of black-white pellets. If one wanted to gain a certain Ki Refining technique, one would also need a
certain number of black-white pellets. If one wished to acquire a technique for their spirit-beast, one
would still need to use black-white pellets to trade for it!

Black-white pellets were rewarded to disciples by the school. For example, if one reached the Dao
Domain level, one would be rewarded with black-white pellets. If one became a Wanxiang Adept,
one would also be rewarded with black-white pellets. Upon becoming a Primal Daoist, one would
receive still further black-white pellets. If one joined the Raindragon Guard, one would be bestowed
black-white pellets…

In short, the better one’s performance was, the more black-white pellets the school would bestow.
Naturally, this would allow one to gain access to ever more profound techniques owned by the
school.

“Has your soul reached the ‘divine sense’ level?” Immortal Diancai asked. Ning couldn’t help but feel
shocked; he had never revealed this before.

“Receiving the complete [Three-Foot Sword] legacy places enormous strains on the soul. In the
past, virtually every single person who ever acquired the complete [Three-Foot Sword] legacy was a
reincarnated Immortal whose soul was at least at the ‘divine sense’ level,” Immortal Diancai
explained.

Ning said respectfully, “Your disciple’s soul has indeed reached the ‘divine sense’ level, but as for
being a reincarnated Immortal…it seems your disciple…’
“After having drank Granny Meng’s Elixir, you naturally will have forgotten the memories from your
previous life.” Immortal Diancai shook his head. “However, given how powerful your soul is, even if
you aren’t a reincarnated Immortal, you must have encountered a tremendously great karmic event.”

Immortal Diancai fell silent for a moment, then started to muse to himself. “You’ve just entered the
school, so you can receive the basic reward of a thousand black-white pellets. You have reached the
Dao Domain realm, so you can be rewarded with another thousand black-white pellets. Your soul is
at the divine sense level, and so you can be awarded two thousand black-white pellets. As your
master, I can bestow you with another two thousand black-white pellets. Thus, you have a total of six
thousand black-white pellets.”

Immortal Diancai said seriously, “Since you have already received the complete legacy of the
[Three-Foot Sword], in the future, you will definitely be forced to use it. Thus, when you go to the
Dao Repository Vault, you must trade for the first scroll of the [Three-Foot Sword]. The [Three-Foot
Sword] is the swordplay which has secured the foundations of our Black-White College; thus, even
the first scroll will cost you two thousand black-white pellets.”

Ning was speechless. He clearly had inherited the entire legacy of the [Three-Foot Sword], but in
order to hide it, he would actually have to go trade for the first scroll of the [Three-Foot Sword]? And
the price was two thousand black-white pellets! So this was the reason why his master had
bestowed him two thousand black-white pellets.

“As for your Ki Refining technique…remember, you absolutely must select a Ki Refining technique
that you can use to train all the way to the Immortal level,” Immortal Diancai said. “As for divine
abilities and sword techniques…choose as you see fit.”

“You can go now. Go directly to the Dao Repository Vault and withdraw your black-white pellets and
your liquefied elemental essence. Afterwards, go choose your Ki Refining techniques, sword
techniques, divine abilities, and what-not.” Immortal Diancai concluded, “If there is something you
cannot comprehend, come ask me.”

“Yes.” Ning bowed with respect. And then, he departed, heading directly to the Dao Repository
Vault.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 26, Within the Dao Repository Vault

The morning sun rose, and the light of the dawn shone upon the entire Black-White College.
Whoosh. Ji Ning, mounted atop his flying boat, was soaring through the skies. Soon, he saw a
majestic, towering vault beneath him. This was the edifice which, within the Black-White College,
had a status that was not inferior to the Black-White Diagram’s; the Dao Repository Vault! Whenever
the disciples of the Black-White College wished to learn top-tier Ki Refining techniques, divine
abilities, or secret arts, they would come here.

A large, muscular man, dressed in a beautiful set of armor, was currently seated next to a stone
table, holding an exquisite goblet of wine and enjoying it.

Ning landed on the ground. “My respects to you, Uncle-Master,” Ning said with a bow. “Oh?” The
large, muscular man glanced sideways at Ning. “You are the new disciple, Ji Ning?”

“Yes,” Ning said. This large, muscular man was one of the Dao-Protectors of the Vault, a position
generally given to Primal Daoists. “Here are six thousand black-white pellets.” The large, muscular
man waved his hand, and a black jade bottle flew out towards Ning.

Ning accepted it and filled it with his elemental ki. Within this jade bottle, there really was a veritable
mass of pellets, all of which were black and white in color.

“Here are fifty kilograms of liqueified elemental essence. For disciples of the third generation, every
ten years, they will receive this amount of liquefied elemental essence.” The large, muscular man
tossed another jade bottle to Ning. “Alright. You’ve collected your black-white pellets and your
liquefied elemental essence. You can go in now.”

Two bottles; one a dark jade color, the other an emerald jade color. They were used to store six
thousand black-white pellets and fifty kilograms of liquefied elemental essence, respectively.

“The Black-White College lives up to its reputation,” Ning said to himself with a sigh. “Someone like
me, a third generation disciple, will receive fifty kilograms of liquefied elemental essence each
decade. Doesn’t that mean that every century, I will receive five hundred kilograms? An ordinary
Earth-ranked magic treasure is only worth around a hundred taels of liquefied elemental essence,
while most Heaven-ranked magic treasures are worth just ten thousand taels or so.”

The five hundred kilograms of liqueified elemental essence which disciples of the Black-White
College received each century were already enough to trade for a Heaven-ranked magic treasure.
But of course, no one would be so stupid as to save them all up; this liquefied elemental essence
was meant to help them rise in power by allowing them to not need to waste a great amount of time
in slowly absorbing energy from nature.
“Thank you, Uncle-Master.” Ning immediately strode into the Dao Repository Vault.

……

There were a total of three levels to the Dao Repository Vault. As soon as Ning entered the first
level, he felt as though he had entered a sea of books. One enormous book shelf after another could
be seen, with countless numbers of books placed on them. At first glance…Ning dared to guess that
there had to be more than a million books here, and the vast majority of the books which lined the
largest walls and shelves had a single large character on the sides: ‘Technique’!

“Techniques!” Ning mused to himself, “The Dao Repository Vault has three levels. The first level
focuses on techniques, the second on arts, and the third on miscellaneous things.”

The word technique, in this case, referred to refining techniques, such as Ki Refining and Fiendgod
Body Refining techniques.

The word arts referred to secret magic arts used by Immortals and Fiends. They included ingenious
ways of using power, and included the ‘divine abilities’ of Fiendgods, the ‘sword arts’ of Sword
Immortals, the ‘forbidden techniques’ which one could use in a crisis, the ‘evasion arts’ one could
use when fleeing…all techniques which relied on special tricks and applications of power were
classified as skills.

As for miscellaneous, they consisted of things that were not classified with the first two. Constructs,
formations, venomous pests, refining magic treasure, refining magic pills, poisons…

“Master said that I absolutely must trade for the first scroll of the [Three-Foot Sword], as well as a Ki
Refining technique that can be used all the way up to the Immortal level.” Ning didn’t hesitate at all,
immediately beginning to search through the first level of the Dao Repository Vault.

Ki Refining techniques were divided into Immortal-rank, Heaven-rank, Earth-rank, Mortal-rank, and
so on. Immortal-rank…this meant that this was a Ki Refining technique that could be used to train all
the way up to the Celestial Immortal level.

“All the way up to Celestial Immortal?” Ning sighed with emotion. “Although supposedly one can use
Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques to train all the way up to the Celestial Immortal level, even
the Black-White College has only produced a single Celestial Immortal in its entire history. Even
Immortal Northwalker and those other outstandingly talented figures were unable to become
Celestial Immortals. The path to becoming a Celestial Immortal is indeed as difficult as Judge Cui
described; the tribulations one must face are boundless.”
Ning continued to search carefully. Soon he found, deep in the depths of the Dao Repository Vault, a
black, wooden table. Atop it, there were a total of twenty nine golden books arranged in a row. This
table had a single character carved on its side – Immortal!

“Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques?” Ning hurriedly picked up a golden book. This book was
named [Samgha Sutra of Ascending to Heaven]. This was just a simple, abridged tone; after all, an
Immortal-ranked Ki Refining technique was definitely one of the most important, foundation-
establishing texts for a school. It absolutely would not be permitted for it to be leaked to the outside
world.

“This first scroll of the [Samgha Sutra of Ascending to Heaven] actually costs 1500 black-white
pellets.” Ning was secretly speechless. Turning his head, he saw that atop the tall bookshelves,
there were rows on rows of Earth-ranked Ki Refining techniques, and all of them were complete
copies, not abridged ones…

“These are so cheap, just a hundred black-white pellets,” Ning mumbled to himself. Suddenly, a
voice rang out by his side. “Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.”

Ning turned to look. He saw, from afar, a white-robed youth who had just arrived; his junior
apprentice-brother, Mu Northson. Northson was clearly quite excited. “Senior apprentice-brother Ji
Ning, there really are very many Ki Refining techniques here.”

“The school has existed for so long. How can it not have many techniques?” Ning replied. And then,
the pair of fellow disciples began to once more earnestly search for their own Ki Refining techniques.

An hour passed.

“I’ll choose this.” Ning picked up a golden book; it was the Immortal-ranked Ki Refining technique,
the [Flowing Watersource]. The first volume could be purchased for 1500 black-white pellets. The Ki
Refining technique which Ning had trained in since he was a child was the [Water Element Art]; after
having established his Zifu, of the Five Elements, he was naturally most suited to water-attribute
techniques.

“When adding the cost of the first scroll of the [Three-Foot Sword], which I have to acquire, I need to
pay 3500 black-white pellets. I have another 2500 black-white pellets I can use.” Ning began to
ponder to himself. He needed to acquire a technique for Uncle White. He also needed to acquire a
divine ability. He also needed the later parts of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens].
“Uncle White is at the early Zifu stage; he is in urgent need of a Ki Refining technique. In addition, of
the Five Elements, he too is most suited to water. This [Flowing Watersource] is very suited to him
as well.” Ning continued to ponder.

Although he had just chosen a single copy of the [Flowing Watersource], if he wanted to let Uncle
White train in it as well, then he would have to pay another 1500 black-white pellets! If he didn’t…
then that would mean that they had stolen the technique, and an Immortal-ranked technique at that.
This was a tremendously grave crime, and the Oath of Blood he had sworn to the Dao of the
Heavens, by itself, would deliver a punishment that would probably shatter Ning’s soul.

“I have a thousand more black-white pellets remaining.” Ning instantly felt as though he didn’t have
enough black-white pellets to spend. But what he didn’t realize was, no one else would be willing to
spend such a fortune on a spirit-beast.

……

A short time later, within the first level of the Dao Repository Vault, Ning was able to find the books
focusing on Fiendgod Body Refining. He also found the later scrolls introducing the number one
Fiendgod Body Refining technique, the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]; the so-called
‘second scroll’ to the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens].

The second scroll of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] also had nine stages to it. It
consisted of the tenth, the eleventh, the twelfth…all the way to the eighteenth stage.

These levels corresponded to the Wanxiang Adept, Primal Daoist, and Void stages.

Upon reaching the eighteenth stage of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens], one would
undergo a tribulation. If one successfully endured that heavenly tribulation, one would become an
Empyrean God!

As for Ki Refiners, once they overcame their tribulation, they would become Celestial Immortals!

Empyrean Gods and Celestial Immortals…these were two different branches.

“A hundred black-white pellets? So cheap.” Ning, upon seeing the price, couldn’t help but sigh in
relief. “Although it will let you train all the way to the heavenly tribulation, it only costs a hundred
black-white pellets. It really is the most easily acquired technique.”
It was the number one Fiendgod Body Refining technique. It was also the most easily acquired
technique. And, in turn, it was the most difficult technique to learn.

…….

Ning took a copy of the [Flowing Watersource] and a copy of the second scroll of the [Crimsonbright
Diagram of the Nine Heavens], then left the first level of the Dao Repository Vault and went to the
second level. The second level was also filled with countless bookshelves.

“Arts!” Ning took a deep breath. These were the secret arts of Immortals and Fiends. They
represented ways in which one could apply the Dao, divine abilities, sword arts, spells, forbidden
techniques, evasion techniques, and more. All of these were classified as ‘arts’.

“Divine abilities.” The first thing Ning did was to head to the bookshelves which held the records on
divine abilities. Divine abilities…these were extremely rare. Even his mother’s Yuchi clan had only
been in possession of a single divine ability, the [Windwing Evasion] technique.

“So few. So expensive!” Ning finally found the shelf which contained the divine abilities, but the
entire shelf only had five abridged books. In other words, despite the passage of countless years,
the entire Black-White College was only in possession of five divine abilities! They were even more
rare than Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques!

These five techniques were the [Heavenly Transformation], [Divine Thunderbolt Eye], [Myriad
Hibernating Venoms], [Three Heads, Six Arms], and [Eye of the Luminous Heart].

“[Three Heads, Six Arms]?” Ning’s eyes instantly lit up. The [Heavenly Transformation] technique
was the most common divine ability; generally speaking, all top-tier schools and sects had it. As for
the other three divine abilities, [Divine Thunderbolt Eye], [Eye of the Luminous Heart], and [Myriad
Hibernating Venoms], these were divine abilities which, according to rumor, some major powers
would often use.

“[Three Heads, Six Arms]; it seems to be ordinary in effectiveness, but in reality, once one reaches
the late stages of this divine ability, it grows tremendously powerful,” Ning mused to himself.
Humans only had two arms; even though, by relying on their divine power or elemental Ki, they
could coalesce additional arms, these arms couldn’t possibly compare to true arms.

But the [Three Heads, Six Arms] technique…once this divine ability was executed, one truly would
gain four additional arms and two additional heads. The power of these four additional arms was
comparable to that of one’s true arms; it would be as though three Ji Nings were linking hands
against a single foe! It must be understood that just by wielding twin swords, one’s power would
increase multiplicatively; with six swords joining together in an attack, the power would reach a truly
ridiculous level.

……

Five divine abilities. After seeing them, a look of lust was in Ning’s eyes. [Three Heads, Six Arms]
was extremely famous; naturally, there was a reason for that. And thus, the price of the first scroll
alone was three thousand black-white pellets.

The [Heavenly Transformation] technique was the most commonly seen technique, but when trained
to the later stages, it was also capable of unleashing astonishing levels of power. Its first scroll cost
five hundred black-white pellets.

The [Myriad Hibernating Venoms] was also a true killer technique; the first scroll to this divine ability
cost five thousand black-white pellets.

The first scroll of the [Divine Thunderbolt Eye] cost two thousand black-white pellets as well.

As for the [Eye of the Luminous Heart], the first scroll cost five thousand black-white pellets.

“This is too…” Ning had to grit his teeth and pick up the abridged version of the [Heavenly
Transformations] technique. As for the other four divine abilities, there was no way for him to acquire
them at all. The cost of these techniques was vastly greater than the cost of those Immortal-ranked
Ki Refiner techniques. But it was only reasonable; these were divine abilities, incomparably precious.

……

Ning, those books in hand, continued forward through the second level in search of even more
unusual ‘arts’. After searching for a long time…

“Found it.” Ning finally found, atop a bookshelf, three golden books. The entire shelf only had these
three golden books atop it; apparently, the value of these books wasn’t at all inferior to those divine
abilities.

Ning immediately picked up one of the golden books. Atop the cover, there were three words: “Soul”
“Shaker” “Art”. [Soulshaker Art]!
This was precisely what Ning was searching for; an art which would allow him to use his soul to
engage in an attack. This was an extremely rare type of art.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 27, Training in the Still Room

The [Soulshaker Art] was something only a person with a divine will could use; it could be used to
shake the opponent’s very soul. If the enemy’s soul was particularly weak, it might even cause their
soul to be extinguished.

“This is it.” Ning nodded. “Previously, during the recruitment, Uncle-Master Wu Xiu used the
[Soulshaker Art] to cause hundreds of Zifu Disciples to all fall down from midair. Something only
capable of being used at the ‘divine will’ level? I’ve already reached the ‘divine sense’ level!”

Ning continued to read carefully. It really was alluring. Given the power of his soul, once he used the
[Soulshaker Art], he would be able to deal with the vast majority of Wanxiang Adepts! After all, it was
virtually guaranteed that only Primal Daoists would have souls at the divine sense level! Ning’s soul
was so very powerful that if he were to use the [Soulshaker Art], he would naturally be able to
dominate the vast majority of Wanxiang Adepts.

“Two thousand black-white pellets?” When Ning saw the price of this art, he immediately shook his
head.

There were a total of three books on this shelf. One was the [Soulshaker Art], one was the
[Soulcharmer Art], while the other was the [Soulslayer Art]!

Of the three, the [Soulshaker Art] and the [Soulcharmer Art] only required someone’s soul to be at
the divine will level in order to learn them. The prices for them were two thousand and three
thousand black-white pellets, respectively.

As for the [Soulslayer Art], this was truly used to extinguish an opponent’s soul, an art used for
divine souls to engage in battle. In addition, it required a person to be at the divine sense level to
learn it…and in terms of rarity, it was even rarer than divine abilities! To trade for it, one would need
ten thousand black-white pellets.
“All I can do is stare at it and drool.” Ning laughed, then shook his head. He immediately turned to go
look at the other arts available.

……..

The Dao Repository Vault was divided into techniques, arts, and miscellaneous. Virtually all of the
skills available were extremely powerful or particular sinister. There were also all manner of brilliant
sword arts as well.

Ning had, in total, just six thousand black-white pellets. Which should he purchase? Which shouldn’t
he purchase? He had to gain a clearer understanding.

……

Six full hours later, Ning finally departed from the third floor of the Dao Repository Vault, then walked
out of the vault.

“You’ve chosen?” The tall, muscular Dao-Protector gave Ning a glance.

“Right.” Ning nodded, but he couldn’t help but turn to look backwards. It really was…really was…he
really wished he had a few hundred thousand black-white pellets and was able to pick from those
skills as he pleased. There were all sorts of Immortal and Fiend techniques that were simply too
mysterious and godlike, as well as some truly powerful evasive techniques that made Ning truly
tongue-tied. Only now did he truly understand how deep the roots of the Black-White College were.

Unfortunately, he only had six thousand black-white pellets, and he absolutely had to choose the first
scroll of the [Three-Foot Sword], as well as an Immortal-ranked Ki Refining technique.

“Let me take a look,” the Dao-Protector said. Ning handed over the abridged books in his hands. The
Dao-Protector, after accepting them, immediately saw that on top was the first scroll of the [Three-
Foot Sword]. He immediately said with a frown, “The [Three-Foot Sword] is one of the techniques
which secured the legacy of our Black-White College, and its power is absolutely astonishing. But to
comprehend it…will be extremely, ,extremely hard. It is a bit too early for you to start training in the
[Three-Foot Sword]; in addition, it will cost you two thousand black-white pellets to trade for it.”

Ning felt helpless. He didn’t want to choose it this early either, but his master, Immortal Diancai, had
ordered him to do so. He had no one to blame but himself for having received the legacy of senior
Northwalker.
“The [Lesser Five Elements Sword]?” The Dao-Protector, upon seeing the second book, immediately
nodded. “The [Lesser Five Elements Sword] is also one of the top five sword techniques of our
Black-White College, and it is unfathomably deep and profound, allowing one to start at a basic level
but progressively comprehend more. It is very suitable for someone who wishes to focus on the Dao
of the sword, and it costs eight hundred black-white pellets as well. Actually, I recommend that you
only trade for the [Lesser Five Elements Sword], and temporarily set aside the [Three-Foot Sword]
for now.”

“The [Flowing Watersource]. An Immortal-ranked Ki Refining technique. Not bad.” The Dao-Protector
nodded, then raised his head and looked towards Ning. “You made up your mind? These are all you
want? You won’t change your mind?”

“I will not.” Ning shook his head. There were many arts that were quite enticing to him, but Ning had
given them up. He had even given up acquiring the second scroll of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of
the Nine Heavens]. After all, training in the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] required
one to absorb the energy of the Solar Star and the Lunar Star…Ning was currently only at the
seventh level. To reach the ninth level, he would still need a long period of time. During this period of
time, he would probably be able to acquire more black-white pellets.

“Even if I’m not able to acquire the second scroll of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]
in the Black-White College, I can join the Raindragon Guard and acquire it there, or even purchase it
from other places,” Ning mused to himself. The second scroll of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the
Nine Heavens] was fairly easily obtained.

As for those various sword arts…Ning had spent a long period of time analyzing them in the Dao
Repository Vault. Given that his divine ability, the [Starseizing Hand], was with him, so long as his
swordplay was strong enough, his own power would naturally rise.

For fleeing, he had the [Windwing Evasion]. In a true battle of divine abilities, he already had the
[Starseizing Hand], and so wasn’t in a rush to obtain other divine abilities. What truly mattered was
his Ki Refining technique and his sword arts!

The [Lesser Five Elements Sword] was the most suitable technique for him, because he had a deep
level of insight into three of the elements already; water, wind, and fire.

“2000 black-white pellets for this, 1500 for this, and 800 for this. The three come to a total of 4300
black-white pellets.” The Dao-Protector looked at Ning. “Give me the black-white pellets, and I’ll go
get the copies for you.”
Ning shook his head. “Not only am I going to train in the [Flowing Watersource], I am going to give
my spirit-beast a copy as well.”

“Your spirit-beast?” The Dao-Protector was shocked. “You are going to give your spirit-beast such a
good Ki Refining technique? That costs 1500 black-white pellets. Moreover, you have just started
training; this is a critical moment for you. With 1500 black-white pellets, you can purchase many
powerful secret arts to protect yourself. There’s absolutely no need for you to spend so much effort
on your spirit-beast. Just have him wait a bit longer; in a few decades or in a century, purchase it for
him then. Or, just give him a slightly weaker Ki Refining technique.”

As this Dao-Protector saw it…Ning was a formal disciple and a truly monstrous talent. For him to
give a spirit-beast such a great benefit was a rash, hot-headed act.

Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques! Something like this could only happen within the Black-
White College. If they were roaming in the outside world, even if a Zifu level monster risked his life
for centuries, he would still find it virtually impossible to acquire an Immortal-ranked Ki Refining
technique.

“My mind is decided,” Ning said. The Dao-Protector shook his head. “Alas. Why must you be such a
fool?” Ning did not respond, but his gaze told the Dao-Protector that his decision was an
incomparably firm one.

“Fine, then,” the Dao-Protector said, rising to his feet. “I will help you find these copies. Give me
those 5800 black-white pellets.” “Mm.” Ning nodded, watching as the Dao-Protector entered the Dao
Repository Vault.

Uncle White…Uncle White wasn’t just his spirit-beast. More importantly, he was family. If Ning were
to acquire a large pile of divine abilities and secret arts, but give nothing to Uncle White, he truly
would feel terrible in his heart! In addition, even if he was able to trade for a large number of secret
arts, he would still need a large amount of time and energy to focus on training in them.

“I will spend my time focusing on comprehending this [Lesser Five Elements Sword],” Ning mused to
himself. The [Flowing Watersource] was something he could simply train in. The [Three-Foot
Sword]? His current level of swordplay was somewhat lacking; he couldn’t even execute the first
stance of the [Three-Foot Sword]. The only thing he could slowly spend time on comprehending, for
now, was the [Lesser Five Elements Sword].

……
The Black-White College. Darknorth Peak.

Ning was standing atop a flying boat in the air, and he sent the boat charging downwards as he
entered Darknorth Peak.

“Uncle White,” Ning called out as he landed into the courtyard. Whoosh. A large white hound
bounded over from nearby. It was the Whitewater Hound. “Ning, son. You have apprenticed
yourself? Which one is your master?”

“Immortal Diancai,” Ning replied, his face covered with joy. The Whitewater Hound’s face became
filled with delight and astonishment as well. “An Immortal?” Prior to this, he had chatted with Ning
and also made guesses regarding which Primal Daoist would be Ning’s master.

“Uncle White, this is the Ki Refining technique I traded for you, the [Flowing Watersource],” Ning
said. “You absolutely cannot reveal this technique to any outsiders; if you do, the Oath of Blood
sworn to the Dao of the Heavens will punish you, and your soul will be destroyed.”

“I know.” The Whitewater Hound nodded. Formal disciples, retainers, spirit-beasts…all those who
lived within the Black-White College had to swear the Oath of Blood to the Dao of the Heavens! After
all, retainers and spirit-beasts all had the chance to learn some top-tier techniques.

“Take it,” Ning said, handing over the [Flowing Watersource], a thick, coiled up booklet. “This is the
first scroll; you can train with it directly to the peak Primal Daoist level. After we reach the Primal
Daoist level, we can go trade for the second scroll.”

“Thank you for troubling yourself, my boy Ning.” Although the Whitewater Hound had never heard of
this technique before, he could guess that given Ning had purchased it for him, it definitely wouldn’t
be poor.

Ning chuckled. “Uncle White, I’m going to go train.” Swoosh! Ning’s heart was pumping mightily right
now, and he was filled with eagerness. Naturally, he charged directly towards the underground quiet
room he had prepared for himself.

Darknorth Peak had many buildings atop it; naturally, it also had some private rooms that were used
for Immortal cultivators to train in. All of these private rooms had grand formations set up around
them that were linked up to the grand formation which protected the entire Black-White College as a
whole. Once one entered secluded meditation, not even Immortals could hope to barge in.

“Creaaaaak!” The stone door slammed shut.

Within the ten foot wide stone room. The ceiling up above was filled with many luminous jewels;
these jewels naturally weren’t as extravagant and costly as the ones in the Carefree Caverns, but
they were still extraordinary. The light from them made it so that the stone room was perpetually kept
bright by the light of the jewels.

Ji Ning sat there in the lotus position atop his jade bed. The runes inscripted onto the jade bed had
the effect of calming one’s heart. “[Flowing Watersource]!” Ning flipped through the [Flowing
Watersource] in his hands, spending a full hour reading it as he completely memorized the entire
book. The memories of Immortal practitioners were exceptionally good. For someone like Ning, who
had reached the ‘divine sense’ level, they could actually flip through all the memories in their soul
which they had acquired since they were a child, just like flipping through a book.

“Whoosh.” A flame appeared out of nowhere within Ning’s hand, and it burned the [Flowing
Watersource] to ash. An Immortal-ranked Ki Refining technique like this definitely was not permitted
to be revealed to the outside world. Thus, upon finishing reading this technique, one had to destroy
it. Thus, killing a disciple of the Black-White College in order to gain some top-tier techniques was
completely impossible.

“Let’s begin.” Ning waved his hand, and a jade green flask landed on the floor before him. He
opened the bottle, and a dense elemental aura wafted out. The green jade bottle had fifty kilograms
of liquefied elemental essence within. Originally, Ning had used up just five kilograms of liquefied
elemental essence in order to break through from the peak Xiantian level to the early Zifu level, and
had also solidified his base as an early Zifu level.

“Absorb.” Ning opened his mouth, and instantly, the liquefied elemental essence began to surge out
from the green jade bottle and enter Ning’s mouth. As it did…it quickly distilled into vast amounts of
elemental energy, which surged into his Zifu Violet Palace.

Within the boundless void of his Zifu Violet Palace. There was a lake there. “Rumble…” Suddenly,
the entire Violet Palace began to shudder as an endless torrent of elemental energy surged inwards
and was converted into elemental ki. The lake of elemental ki began to slowly expand in accordance
with the method prescribed in Ning’s [Flowing Watersource] technique, and it began to slowly swivel
as well.

Splash…splash…it continuously swiveled, and as it did, it began to move faster and faster. Soon,
the entire Zifu Lake had transformed into an enormous whirlpool, causing the deep heart of the lake
to grow deeper and deeper.

The formerly placid, flat lake had transformed into a whirlpool; it was like an awl, its depth having
instantly increased hundreds of times over.
“BANG!”

A thunderous explosion. In the deepest part of the whirlpool Zifu Lake, a hole suddenly appeared,
which ravenously began to produce new elemental ki. This hole was the ‘Watersource’ of the
[Flowing Watersource]!

“Middle Zifu level.” Ning continued to absorb the liquefied elemental essence from the jade bottle,
continuing to increase his power.

Rumble…

The deepest part of his Zifu Lake was now a thousand times deeper than it had been in the past.
The absorption and transformation process was clearly much faster than it had been, and the
elemental ki that was transformed and produced by the Watersource was purer than before as well.

“The late Zifu level!”

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 28, Tradition

Ji Ning had already reached the Dao Domain level, and his highest level of accomplishments was in
the water-element of the Five Elements. For him, comprehending the [Flowing Watersource] was
naturally very easy. Although this was his first time training in it, he thoroughly understood the Zifu
level portion of the technique, and even comprehended the majority of the Wanxiang level of the
technique.

In other words, if he so chose, Ning could, at one breath, train straight to the Wanxiang Adept level.
But of course, the prerequisite was that he had enough liquefied elemental essence.

“Rumble…” The elemental ki in his Zifu Lake was slowly swiveling. The waters of the lake were now
swirling in a very slow manner, but the closer to the bottom, the faster the whirling motion was. At
the very bottom of the lake, in the Watersource, the whirlpool was spinning with incredible force. As
the amount of elemental ki in the Zifu Lake grew, the power of the whirlpool grew as well.

In addition, the Watersource grew deeper and deeper. The elemental ki it produced grew more and
more pure as well!
After training for roughly an hour…with a rumble, the entire Zifu Violet Palace began to tremble. The
vast lake of elemental ki’s Watersource once more transformed, and the purity of the elemental ki
once more skyrocketed.

“Peak Zifu level.”

Within the vast Violet Palace region, the turbid waters of the lake continued to slowly expand.
However, in terms of quality, the elemental ki had already reached the ultimate level possible at the
Zifu Disciple level; there was no way to increase it any further. The only thing possible was to
constantly increase the quantity of ki and expand it in size.

…..

Within the still room. The bright jewels continued to gleam brilliantly. Ning, seated on the jade bed in
the lotus position, opened his eyes and glanced at the emerald jade bottle placed before him. He
nodded slowly. “I spent nearly forty kilograms of liquefied elemental essence, and managed to surge
all the way to the peak Zifu Disciple level as a Ki Refiner. Only, to break through from the peak Zifu
level to the early Wanxiang level, and while using a top-tier Ki Refining technique…the amount of
liquefied elemental essence that will be needed is quite shocking.”

The Wanxiang ‘Myriad Manifestations’ level was an extremely unusual level. Some of the
Manifestations possessed by Wanxiang Adepts were merely those of countless stars gleaming in a
night sky. But some Manifestations, such as those of Daoist Mu Xiao or Daoist Xu Li, had a brilliant
moon amidst the sea of stars. Thus, the Manifestation technique they demonstrated was that of a
grand moonlight hand!

However…

According to legend, top-tier Manifestations would generate trillions of stars, the brilliant moon, and
the blazing sun, all at the same time! And only the truly supreme Manifestations could, during the
peak Wanxiang stage, have the ‘Jade Rabbit emerge from the brilliant moon, the Golden Crow
emerge from the blazing sun’.

The emergence of the Jade Rabbit, the appearance of the Golden Crow.

This, and this alone, symbolized that one’s foundations were perfect. This was the so-called
‘foundation of a Celestial Immortal’. If you didn’t reach this stage, there was no way you could
become a Celestial Immortal at all.
But where did the supreme Manifestations come from? In truth, they relied on the practitioner having
built up an extremely large ‘Zifu Lake’ during the Zifu level. The Zifu Lake is the fundamental
foundation for an Immortal cultivator; the deeper and wider the lake is, the deeper the practitioner’s
elemental ki foundation would be, and the more astonishing a Manifestation they would be able to
create.

“Some poor-quality techniques will result in a Zifu Lake that is both shallow and small. Upon
reaching the peak Zifu level, they won’t even be able to expand the size of the lake; they won’t have
any hope of becoming Wanxiang Adepts.” Ning sighed to himself. That was exactly the case for his
own Ji clan; their techniques were simply too poor, and the Zifu Lakes that they were able to create
were correspondingly weak to the point where they could never break through to acquire
Manifestations!

The Manifestation of the Stars was the weakest Manifestation.

The Manifestation of the Bright Moon was on a slightly higher level.

The Manifestation of the Sun and the Moon was the best Manifestation.

And, for the Jade Rabbit and the Golden Crow to appear during the peak Wanxiang Adept level was
proof that one’s foundation was perfect.

“Based on the recorded experiences of disciples of the Black-White College regarding the [Flowing
Watersource],” Ning mused, “Upon reaching the peak Zifu level, if one absorbs a further 250
kilograms of liquefied elemental essence, then one will gain the Manifestation of the Sun and the
Moon. If one absorbs 400 kilograms before one breaks through to the Wanxiang Adept level…then
at the peak Wanxiang level, the Manifestation will produce the Jade Rabbit and the Golden Crow.”

This was one of the benefits of having a sect; the experiences of the forerunners would guide the
latecomers in knowing what to do.

Fortunately, this was an Immortal-ranked Ki Refining technique. If it was a poorer technique…even if

one had unlimited amounts of liquefied elemental essence, one wouldn’t be able to absorb it all. It
would be useless.

……….

He had spent two hours to reach the peak Zifu Disciple level. Next, Ning flipped through the [Lesser
Five Elements Sword] tome.
This was how things were in supreme schools, for disciples the schools cared about. Training was
as simple as this. Once they reached a certain level of insight, the school would make it so that they
could save as much time as possible in training, allowing them to focus their attention on
comprehending the Dao, analyzing sword arts, divine abilities, etc.

“Sword arts!” Ning’s eyes were gleaming, and a hungry look was in them. Ever since he had reached
the Dao Domain level, the sword arts manuals of the Ji clan had become useless to him; his level of
insight was simply too high.

To a true Sword Immortal…an incredibly deep and profound sword art could let them unleash
incredibly great power in battle. Although Ning was only at the Dao Domain level, if he focused on
comprehending sword arts, he could gain insights into sword arts which were on a higher level than
he himself was at.

“The [Lesser Five Elements Sword]! One of the top five sword arts in the entire Black-White College,
something which even Immortals would be wiling to study.” The cost of this sword arts manual was
close to that of a divine ability manual; from this, one could see how powerful it was.

Ning gently flipped through the pages. Stretching out his fingers, he formed them into the shape of a
sword, testing the movements. These still rooms inside the Black-White College were specially
designed for its formal disciples to train in, and the formation protecting these rooms were linked
together with the grand formation which protected the entire College. Even if one tested out
techniques within…as long as one was not an Immortal, there was no way one could possibly
damage the still rooms in the slightest.

“Crackle.”

“Slash.”

Ning read while testing out the movements, completely absorbed in this sword technique. He felt as
though he were back in his youth, when he was training in the [108 Swords of the Gods and
Demons] for the first time. Back then, his father taught him, but this time, Ning analyzed everything
by himself.

………..

As Ning was analyzing this sword technique. Within the estate located on another mountain peak
within the Black-White College.
“Junior apprentice-brother Bladask, junior apprentice-brother Bladask,” a voice rang out. “Senior
apprentice-brother Bu. Please, come in.”

A calm voice rang out from within the estate. Instantly, an azure-robed, long-haired man drifted in.
This estate had a Zifu Disciple and some ordinary mortals within it, all of whom saluted. They
naturally couldn’t compare in status to a formal disciple of the Black-White College.

“Might I ask why you have come here, senior apprentice-brother Bu?” A white-robed youth walked
over. It was Bloodrinker Bladask.

“Junior apprentice-brother Bladask,” the azure-robed man laughed, “I heard that during our recent
recruitment, the mountain tunnel which you guarded was broken through, correct?”

Bladask’s face sank. This was a humiliation for him! That time, Ning had forced him to use a sword
formation to block. Given his proud nature, he naturally remembered the matter. Thus, when Ning
and Northson had undergone the formal ceremony, he had not attended.

“Right,” Bladask said coldly. The azure-robed man laughed. “Junior apprentice-brother Bladask,
don’t be angry. I imagine you don’t know this yet but…that Ji Ning is so talented that he has already
been accepted by our College’s Immortal Diancai as his first, senior apprentice.”

A look of shock appeared on Bladask’s face. “Immortal Diancai?” Immortal Diancai was a Sword
Immortal! As for Bladask, the path he walked was the Dao of the Sword as well. In the past, he had
desired to become Immortal Diancai’s apprentice, but formal disciples, upon entering the school,
were generally apprenticed to Primal Daoists. It was very rare for Immortals to directly choose them
as an apprentice. As time had gone on, they had all grown accustomed to this, and he felt that it was
normal that Immortal Diancai had not taken him as a disciple. But this Ji Ning had actually become
apprenticed directly to Immortal Diancai!

“What about it?” Bladask had a sharp look in his eyes. “His future level of strength will depend on
himself.”

The azure-robed man nodded. “Right. Training depends on one’s self. However, junior apprentice-
brother Bladask, the reason why you lost to Ning last time was only because you were only
permitted to use a single flying sword. You weren’t able to unleash your true power at all.”

Bladask didn’t say a word. In terms of power, he felt that he was far more powerful than that kid
named Ji Ning.
“And, junior apprentice-brother Bladask, you should also know,” chuckled the azure-robed man,
“That our Black-White College has an unspoken custom; all new apprentices will be taught a lesson
at the Dao Debate Palace.”

Bladask nodded. The battles at the Dao Debate Palace were an extremely safe sort of sparring
matches. The Black-White College’s formal disciples loved to engage in this sort of battles against
each other!

“All new disciples were supreme geniuses in their former organizations, and are accustomed to
being arrogant. The Dao Debate battles…they can help these new disciples wake up. Help them
understand a certain principle; that there is a heaven beyond the heavens, and that there are
geniuses beyond geniuses.” The azure-robed man laughed. “I wonder, junior apprentice-brother
Bladask…would you be interested in having the chance to help that genius, Ji Ning, wake up and
understand that in the Black-White College, he’s nothing more than an ordinary figure?”

Bladask’s eyes instantly lit up. After hesitating just a moment, he said in a cold voice, “I will only spar
with Ji Ning!”

“There are quite a few other fellow disciples who want to fight,” the azure-robed man said with a
laugh. “What we need to do right now is to go invite Mu Northson and Ji Ning to a battle.”

…………

Northson was currently standing atop his Azure Dragon construct, flying through the air towards his
own residence. “The Black-White College really lives up to its name.” Whenever he thought about
the secret manual on constructs which he held in his hands, he felt a blazing fire in his heart. This
manual held answers to many of the questions he had regarding the Dao of Constructs, and he had
been completely absorbed by it.

Whoosh.

The Azure Dragon construct which Northson stood upon descended from the skies.

“Junior apprentice-brother Twinwood.” A blue-clothed maiden in front of his gate called out to him.
“Who are you, senior apprentice-sister?” Northson remembered seeing this woman amongst the
other formal disciples of the Black-White College; she had been with them during the grand initiation
ceremony. Immortal practitioners had formidable memories; after having seen her once, he had
firmly memorized her appearance.
The blue-robed woman laughed, “My name is Winterain. You can simply address me as senior
apprentice-sister Winterain.” Northson said happily, “I don’t have a single servant yet, and thus
ended up treating you discourteously by having you wait outside. Please forgive me, senior
apprentice-sister.”

Seeing the way in which he acted, the blue-clothed woman felt a hint of goodwill towards Northson.
She thus said, “Junior apprentice-brother Northson, I’ve come here to invite you to the Dao Debate
Palace…”

“Dao Debate Palace!” Northson’s eyes instantly lit up. He had read the black-and-white book, and
knew that the duels in the Dao Debate Palace were extremely safe. They had nothing to do with
elemental ki, power, or magic treasures; what they competed in was comprehension regarding the
Dao and the ways in which they would apply the Dao. This is why it was described as a ‘Dao
Debate’. In addition, there would generally be stakes in these ‘debates’, such as black-white pellets
or liquefied elemental essences.

“To be able to spar with you, senior apprentice-sister, is something I’ve been looking forward to,”
Northson said eagerly. “Then let’s go,” the blue-clothed woman said.

“Alright.” Northson’s eyes were filled with an eagerness for combat. Geniuses all had their pride. In
the past, they had never before met their matches. Although they knew that these old disciples of the
Black-White College were all extraordinary, in their hearts, the new students would still feel an
eagerness to do battle.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

The blue-clothed woman and Northson flew rapidly through the air, heading towards the Dao Debate
Palace.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 29, Ji Ning’s Early Insights Into the Sword

The towering Dao Debate Palace was located at the very top of a mountain peak, and the figures of
quite a few people could be seen within it.
The Dao Debate Palace…it had always been the place where the disciples of the Black-White
College enjoyed to gather at the most. These genius disciples, all of whom had arrogance bred into
their bones, would often spar with each other here.

“Swoosh!”

A ray of light shot out from the Dao Debate Palace. Immediately afterwards, a blue-clothed maiden
flew out after it. “Junior apprentice-brother Twinwood, junior apprentice-brother Twinwood!” The
blue-robed woman was standing atop a giant flower basket, chasing after him at high speed.

“Senior apprentice-sister Winterain, why are you chasing after me?” Mu Northson, standing atop that
Azure Dragon construct, had a look of rage on his normally bashful face. “This was what you all
planned this entire time, wasn’t it? Hmph!”

The blue-robed maiden, Winterain, shook her head and said, “Junior apprentice-brother Twinwood,
actually, you can’t blame your fellow disciples. In our Black-White College…throughout our history,
each time a new disciple joins us, that person will taught a vicious lesson at the Dao Debate Palace.
This has already become a tradition. Although it isn’t one of the laws of the College, it has been
passed down for countless generations.”

“Teach a lesson to new disciples?” Northson stared at her. “If it really was just a lesson, why did the
need to pretend to be on par with me at the start?”

“That makes the lesson a deep one, one that you won’t forget,” Winterain explained. “It is to help you
understand that there is a heaven beyond the heavens, and geniuses beyond geniuses! Actually,
when I first joined the college, I suffered in a similar manner. This happens in each generation; every
new apprentice-brother and apprentice-sister will suffer this lesson. It is meant to tamp down their
pride. The elders of our College all tacitly approve of it.”

Although Northson understood this principle, he was still only fourteen years old. In addition, the two
Dao Debates he had just engaged in had caused him to lose two hundred black-white pellets and
ten kilograms of liquefied elemental essences. Although it was just a small bet, his losses had still
caused him quite a bit of heartache.

Northson clasped his hands and said, “Senior apprentice-sister, you actually gave me a veiled
warning earlier. I was too rash and impetuous. However, there’s no need to say too many words of
reconciliation.”

Swoosh! Northson, mounted on his Azure Dragon construct, departed at high speed.
“Alas.” Winterain watched as Northson departed. She couldn’t help but shake her head. Although
she had gone to invite Northson to participate, the simple interactions she had with him had made
her feel very well disposed towards this junior apprentice-brother of hers. But because this was a
tradition…it wasn’t appropriate for her to intervene in the Dao Debate Palace. At most, she could
give a hidden warning. Fortunately, this time, he had only lost twice before giving up. If he had
continued to duel, his losses would have grown increasingly dire.

…….

“A heaven beyond the heavens, and geniuses beyond geniuses!” Northson was seated on the
rooftop of one of the houses in his estate, a jade bottle of wine in his hands. He raised his head,
taking a swig.

“Cough, cough.” Northson drank too quickly, and he began to cough. “In the future, I can’t be too
careless.” Northson had slowly calmed down and regained his mental clarity. He had entered the
Black-White College at the age of fourteen. Ever since he was young, he had never met a match.
The unconscious pride and arrogance he felt was what made him go spar against his fellow
apprentices. He knew that the foes were very powerful, but he still felt he should be remarkable.

……

Darknorth Peak. The still room. Ning was still completely absorbed by the [Lesser Five Elements
Sword].

The [Lesser Five Elements Sword] was divided into a total of nine chapters: [Metal Element], [Wood
Element], [Water Element], [Fire Element], [Earth Element], [Duality], [Tripartite], [Four Symbols],
and [Five Elements].

Every single chapter allowed one to start from the basics, then go progressively deeper. The basic
parts were even inferior to the “Rain Line” technique he had developed. But at a high level, this was
a swordplay suitable for a Celestial Immortal!

Ning was carefully meditating on the [Water Element], [Fire Element], and the wind of the [Wood
Element] parts 1. These were the three aspects of the Dao which he had the deepest level of
understanding about. As for metal and earth…he was lacking considerably in these two aspects.
Naturally, he wouldn’t squander his energy in analyzing them.

“Drizzling Rain!” Ning murmured to himself, and the sword-fingers of his right hand shot out. In
midair, drops of rain began to appear out of nowhere. These raindrops struck downwards like
meteors, slamming against the walls of the still room. A hazy, blurry light appeared on the walls of
the room, covered with layers of mysterious runes.

“Success.” A look of joy appeared on Ning’s face. “This skill is even more powerful than my ‘Rain
Line’ technique.”

When developing new techniques, one could only develop techniques at the level of one’s own
enlightenment. But when learning, one could learn techniques that were at a higher level than one
was currently at.

“Fire, water, wind. I’ve learned a total of seven major sword stances from these three parts. They are
considerably superior to the sword techniques I developed myself, but the increase in power isn’t
that noticeable.” Ning immediately flipped through the book in front of him, straight to the [Duality]
part. “Only when these different insights regarding different Daos are merged together and
unleashed in a single attack will the power of the attack increase explosively.”

The [Duality] part had a total of eighty nine different sword stances! For example, there were two
Duality stances formed from joining the wind and the fire. There were two others formed from joining
the earth and the fire. There were yet two more from joining metal and earth.

In short, the sword techniques developed from joining together the profundities of two different Daos
were all included within this part, the [Duality] part.

Joining different Daos together truly could allow for the power of a technique to increase explosively.
The power could jump to a whole new level! This is what ‘sword arts’ were! There were some Ki
Refiners who could rely on exceptionally powerful sword arts and flying sword formations to kill
same-level Fiendgod Body Refiners, even if they were in possession of divine abilities.

Sword arts, when trained to an ultimate level, were not at all inferior to divine abilities!

After another hour passed…

“Swish!” Ning’s right hand waved out once more, and a sword-finger shot out. Instantly, a ray of
azure fire slashed through the air in the form of a fiery sword, seeming to vaguely shatter space
itself. It slammed directly against the stone wall, and the glowing layer of runes atop the wall once
more lit up.
“Success. The [Azureflame Duality Sword]!” A look of delight immediately appeared on Ning’s face.
The [Azureflame Duality Sword] was a sword technique that contained the fusion of the True
Meaning of Water and the True Meaning of Fire.

The power of this technique vastly outstripped Ning’s former supreme attack, [Drizzling Rain]. As for
the [Rain Line] technique he had developed at Swallow Mountain? That couldn’t even be mentioned
in the same breath. The power of this new technique was formed from joining together two
completely different True Meanings of the Dao! But of course, the reason why he was able to
develop it so quickly was because Ning had a high level of comprehension regarding the Dao to
begin with, and his foundation was very solid. In addition, he had seen the Black-White Diagram,
which had been of great help in inspiring him regarding how to join together different Daos.
Naturally, he had only needed an hour in order to be successful.

This was a case of making a natural breakthrough after accumulating experience!

………

Ning once again flipped to a new part of the book. The [Tripartite] chapter!

This chapter had a total of ninety two sword stances. There was a [Tripartite] sword attack based on
the fusion of earth, metal, and fire; there was also one for the fusion of wind, earth, and metal.

As for Ning, however, without question, he was only capable of learning a very small part of the
stances within; the sword technique formed from the fusion of wind, water, and fire. But there were a
total of eight stances for this type of [Tripartite] sword attack.

It was dark. Only now did Ning leave the still room, jubilant. “I spent ten-plus years at Swallow
Mountain, then comprehended the Dao within the Stellar Hall of the underwater estate…but I’ve
never been able to acquire a truly powerful sword art. Now that I have obtained the [Lesser Five
Elements Sword], I really am like a tiger who has gained wings.” Ning laughed with delight and glee.
He truly felt wonderful. This feeling of learning a truly powerful sword art really was wonderful!

“I have already learned two of the powerful sword techniques of the [Duality] chapter. Of the
[Tripartite] chapter, I have learned one sword technique as well.” Ning smiled to himself.

The [Tripartite] chapter represented the fusion of three different True Meanings of the Dao. This sort
of multiplicative power resulted in a soaring rise in power! Fortunately, he had previously reached a
bottleneck in his understanding of the Waterflame Lotus technique while meditating before the
Black-White Diagram. With that as his foundation, he was able to, in four short hours, develop an
extremely powerful sword technique from the [Tripartite] chapter – the [Tripartite Lotus Sword]!

The [Tripartite Lotus Sword], compared to Ning’s Waterflame Lotus, was like a different melody that
was played with the same level of skill; they were two different approaches that led to the same
result. However, it was actually even more profound and sharp! This was because Ning had only
developed it after comparing the similarities between the two techniques.

“I imagine it will be very hard for my sword arts to improve significantly in a short period of time.”
Ning understood this; after all, he only had some insights into three of the Five Elements, and was at
most able to comprehend the [Tripartite] chapter. As for the [Four Symbols] and the [Five Elements]
chapters, he was completely unable to understand them.

…….

In a single short day, as a Ki Refiner, he had risen from the early Zifu level to the peak Zifu level. His
sword arts had consecutively risen by three complete tiers. After having learned a powerful
technique from the [Lesser Five Elements Sword], the [Tripartite Lotus Sword], he had reached a
limit. This caused Ning to naturally feel an incomparable joy in his heart.

“Ning, son.” The Whitewater Hound was walking over from far away. He sent mentally, “There is
another formal disciple of the Black-White College within your estate who has come to pay you a
visit. He has waited for a very long time.”

“A formal disciple? Here to see me?” Ning was surprised. He hurriedly walked towards the door; he
couldn’t slight his fellow disciples.

He soon walked out and saw, from afar, an azure-robed man who was standing leisurely with his
hands clasped, staring at the crescent moon in the sky. The man seemed to sense Ning’s footsteps,
and he immediately turned to look, a smile appearing on his face. “Junior apprentice-brother
Darknorth.”

“Might I ask who you are, senior apprentice-brother?” Upon seeing this person, Ning immediately
knew that he was a fellow disciple, because he had met this person in the Headmaster’s Palace.

“My name is Bu Ying.” The azure-robed, long-haired man laughed. “My Daoist title is Hawkfish.”

“Senior apprentice-brother Bu, why have you come here?” Ning asked. The azure-robed man
laughed loudly. “I saw how talented you appeared at the Headmaster’s Palace, junior apprentice-
brother Darknorth, and then I saw you be accepted by Immortal Diancai as an apprentice…I imagine
that you must be extraordinary, and so some of our fellow disciples wish to have a sparring
competition with you.”

“Competition?” Ning had a sudden thought. “A spar at the Dao Debate Palace?”

The azure-robed man laughed. “Right, the Dao Debate Palace. To engage in a discussion on the
Dao at the Dao Debate Palace is a superb affair.”

Ning was intrigued. The black-and-white book he had read had discussed the Dao Debate Palace;
there was no danger at all in sparring within the Dao Debate Palace, and the disciples of the Black-
White College all delighted in sparring there.

However…because he had read the intelligence report Northmont Baiwei had given him, Ning knew
that the Black-White College had a certain tradition where some of the new disciples would be
taught a lesson and made to suffer a loss at the Dao Debate Palace. In addition, the old disciples
loved to watch this happen. The first reason was to help these newer disciples wake up and temper
their pride. The second reason? They, too, had suffered this in the past.

“Very well.” Ning’s eyes lit up, and he laughed, “I, too, would deeply desire to spar against my fellow
disciples.”

“Hahaha.” The azure-haired man, Bu Ying, began to laugh. “Let’s go. Let’s go to the Dao Debate
Palace.” The two immediately mounted on their magic treasures and soared into the skies, heading
towards the Dao Debate Palace.

…….

Ji Ning and Bu Ying were flying through the night sky. Suddenly, a ray of light shot towards them
from the ground below. “Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” A white-robed youth, mounted on an
Azure Dragon construct, came to greet them.

“Junior apprentice-brother Northson?” Ning was surprised. Northson was reeking of wine. What Ning
didn’t understand…was that just before this, Northson had been drinking wine on the roof of his
estate. When he saw Ning and Ying soar past, he had flown into the air as well.

Northson said frantically, “Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, have you been invited to go to the Dao
Debate Palace…”
“Junior apprentice-brother Twinwood!” The azure-robed Bu Ying frowned. But Northson continued
frantically, “Don’t believe them. They are going to intentionally deceive you to make you lose black-
white pellets and liquefied elemental essence to them. I lost to them; don’t be deceived by them as
well.” Northson was clearly quite frantic, afraid that Ning would suffer in the same way he had.

The azure-robed man, Bu Ying, barked at him, “Junior apprentice-brother Twinwood, there are
always some small stakes when one engages in a duel in the Dao Debate Palace. For someone to
win, someone must lose. Can it be that you think things are only fair when you win? If everyone has
to be a winner, then there’s no point to even going to the Dao Debate Palace.”

“Senior apprentice-brother Ning.” Northson was extremely nervous. “Junior apprentice-brother

Northson,” Ning said reassuringly, “No need to say anything more. I know what is going on. If I lose,
I can’t blame anyone else. However, I, Ji Ning, still have a certain degree of confidence in my heart.”

Northson was frantic. “Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, you…!”

“Let’s go.” Ning, who had read the intelligence report long ago, actually knew exactly what was going
on.

“I’m going with you,” Northson immediately said. In his heart, he thought to himself that if he were by
Ning’s side, he could at least try to help persuade Ning and ensure Ning didn’t lose too much.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

The three flew towards the Dao Debate Palace at high speed. Soon, the towering Dao Debate
Palace could be seen at the top of the mountain peak, shrouded by the night sky. Ning’s group of
three charged downwards, moving towards the Dao Debate Palace.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 30, The Battle at the Dao Debate Palace

Ji Ning’s group of three landed at the gates to the Dao Debate Palace. As they looked inwards, they
saw that although it was night, the insides of the Dao Debate Palace were brightly lit, and the sound
of calm laughter rang out from within.

“Senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus, I’ll accept these hundred black-white pellets and five kilograms
of liquefied elemental essence.” The speaker was a white-robed man, who had a blood-drop pattern
atop his white robes. It was Bloodrinker Bladask. Bladask had a hint of delight on his face; clearly,
he was quite happy at having won a victory in the Dao Debate.

In front of him, seated in the lotus position, was a long-haired maiden dressed in water-blue robes.
She arose and flew over, landing nearby and shaking her head. “Three years ago, I was able to beat
you by a hair, junior apprentice-brother Bladask. I didn’t expect that this time, I’d be defeated by
you.”

“Your junior apprentice-brother had to work very hard to just barely eke out a victory.” Bladask,
normally quite prideful, was currently quite humble.

“Senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus, when sparring, it’s all about that hint of a chance at victory. You
and junior apprentice-brother Bladask are comparable; only, junior apprentice-brother Bladask’s
attacks are just a hair sharper than yours.”

“Senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus…” The various men and women were chatting amongst
themselves. At this moment, Ji Ning, Mu Northson, and Bu Ying entered the Dao Debate Hall, and
they all turned to look towards them.

“Ninelotus?” Ning’s gaze instantly turned towards that woman who had been referred to everyone as
‘Ninelotus’. She was dressed in casual, water-blue robes, and had long, black hair. Although her
face could be considered beautiful, she was slightly less attractive than even Meng Xin. Only, this
senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus had a certain graceful aura about her. She was like a fairy lotus,
causing the fellow male disciples around her to unconsciously be drawn to her.

“Given her aura and demeanor, I imagine she must have an extraordinary background,” Ning mused
to himself.

“Senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus.” Upon seeing Ninelotus, Bu Ying’s voice went slightly higher. A
smile on his face, he hurriedly said, “These two are the new disciples that just joined our Black-White
College. This is Mu Northson, and this is Ji Ning.”

Ninelotus turned her gaze towards them, a hint of a smile on her lips. “I heard that during the day,
junior apprentice-brother Mu Northson was defeated twice while sparring here at the Dao Debate
Palace, and was so angry that he left.”

Northson was rather bashful to begin with. A hint of awkwardness immediately appeared on his face.
“That’s only because he just entered the school, and has never before suffered a setback like that,”
Ning spoke out.
Ninelotus looked towards Ning. “So you are Ji Ning, who Patriarch Diancai took on as his senior
apprentice.” Ning nodded. “I am.”

The nearby Pu Yinig hurriedly said, “Junior apprentice-brother Darknorth, you are the disciple of
Immortal Diancai. Senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus, however, is the disciple of Immortal Fivecraze.”

“The disciple of Immortal Fivecraze?” Ning was surprised. “I just arrived back at the College tonight,
and so I wasn’t able to attend the grand ceremony earlier,” Ninelotus said softly. “Now that you’ve
arrived, junior apprentice-brother, are you willing to begin a Dao Debate?”

Laughing, Ning nodded. “I would very much like to spar against my senior fellow disciples.” Ninelotus
laughed. “Then you have to be careful. I just lost a round myself, just now.”

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning!” A cold voice rang out. Ning turned to look. The speaker was the
white-robed Bloodrinker Bladask. Bladask’s purpose for coming was to defeat Ning, and thus vent
the anger in his heart. He hadn’t expected to encounter Ninelotus, whom he had always admired
very much. He had gone all out to defeat Ninelotus, in the hopes that this senior apprentice-sister
would remember him in the future. Who would have imagined that after Ning arrived, he would
immediately get into such an involved conversation with senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus.

“Senior apprentice-brother Bladask,” Ning laughed. Bladask responded in a cold voice, “Do you
remember our battle at the cave?” Ning nodded. “I do. That time, I wished to tell you my name, but
you, senior apprentice-brother Bladask, refused to let me do so. You said that we’d never meet
again.”

The look on Bladask’s face changed as he heard this. Ning laughed and continued, “I didn’t even tell
you my name, but it appears you already know it, senior apprentice-brother. Might I ask why you are
calling for me?”

Bladask’s gaze was filled with a cold light. “Dare you go onto the dais and debate the Dao with me?”
Ning turned his head to look towards the giant Dao Debate Palace. “Go onto the dais and debate the
Dao?” The giant palace was quite similar to a giant dining room from his past life. There were quite a
few seats nearby, and in the center, there was an enormous battle arena. At the same time, at each
side of the arena, there was a tall stone pillar. The Dao debaters would seat themselves atop the
stone pillars and rely on golems to engage in a battle!

Ninelotus, standing to the side, said, “Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, you must be careful. The
person I just lost to was junior apprentice-brother Bladask.” Bladask, hearing this, felt all the more
jealous, and the cold light in his eyes grew increasingly sharp. “Dare you, or dare you not?”
“I’ve come here precisely to spar with my fellow disciples. Why wouldn’t I dare?” Ning shook his
head and laughed. “It’s just a hundred black-white pellets and five kilograms of liquefied elemental
essence.”

“Haha, a hundred black-white pellets and five kilograms of liquefied elemental essence is just the
smallest wager possible.” Bladask laughed coldly. “Black-white pellets are gifted to us by the College
and are extremely rare. I’m willing to wager fifty kilograms of liquefied elemental essence. Do you
dare accept?”

Ning frowned. Bladask continued in his cold voice, “Oh, right. As a new disciple, you only have fifty
kilograms of liquefied elemental essence. I imagine that you probably wouldn’t be able to produce so
much, junior apprentice-brother.” As he spoke, he waved his hand and produced an insignia. “This is
an elemental mark from the Heavenly Treasures Mountain. It represents a thousand taels of
liquefied elemental essence, which is to say, fifty kilograms. If you take it to the Heavenly Treasures
Mountain, you can trade it for fifty kilograms!”

“Dare you accept my wager?” Bladask looked towards Ning.

……..

The atmosphere instantly turned stiff. The other disciples immediately understood that there was
something not quite right between Bladask and Ning. Previously, when they had battled Northson,
they had only made the smallest of wagers; after all, nobody wanted to generate enmity and strife
amongst their fellow disciples. For Bladask to increase the wager was a clear sign that he wanted to
mistreat Ning.

If a new disciple were forced to take out fifty kilograms of liquefied elemental essence, wouldn’t that
mean they wouldn’t have anything to train with?

But of course, they had no idea….that although Bladask originally did want to fight against Ning, he
hadn’t planned on being so nasty. Only, he had noticed how engaged Ninelotus had been in her
conversation with Ning. Ninelotus normally would say just a few meaningless phrases to him when
he spoke to her, but towards Ning, she voluntarily spoke out to him. This made Bladask feel quite
mistreated.

“How am I inferior to this Ji Ning? Why is it that senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus seems to treat him
differently, from the very moment they met each other? In terms of treasures, family heritage, power,
or clan, this Ji Ning is inferior to me!” The look in Bladask’s eyes grew still colder.
“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning,” Ninelotus said. “You just joined the school. Let me lend you fifty
kilograms of liquefied elemental essence.” When he heard these words, the angry aura emanating
from Bladask grew only more terrifying.

But Ning only laughed. “No need. Since senior apprentice-brother Bladask wishes to wager fifty
kilograms, then I will accept.” Ning waved his hand, and several insignias appeared as well. “These
are elemental marks of the Heavenly Treasures Mountain. They can be traded for a thousand taels
as well.”

“Eh?” “Elemental marks of the Heavenly Treasures Mountain?” All of them stared at the elemental
marks. Bladask had entered the school long ago, and had gone adventuring in the outside world; it
was normal for him to have acquired some treasures and traded them to the Heavenly Treasures
Mountain for elemental marks! But Ji Ning had just entered the school, and yet he was able to
casually bring out a thousand taels as well…this was quite extraordinary. What none of them
realized was that Ning had won these marks at the duel at the Carefree Caverns.

Although news regarding the battle at the Carefree Caverns had spread out, these disciples of the
Black-White College knew very little about it. Of the Primal Daoists, only Wu Xiu knew a bit more
about these matters.

……

“A hundred black-white pellets and fifty kilograms of liquefied elemental essences.” An old voice
rang out. A white-haired old man who stood at the side of the Dao Debate Palace had spoken out.
“Since you both accept, then let this be the wager.”

“Now, I’m going to ask the two disciples to each select their golem.” The white-haired elder
continued to speak. He was a golem as well; he was responsible for some of the matters here in the
Dao Debate Palace.

Ning and Bladask both immediately headed towards a side door; there were many golems placed
within this side door to the Dao Debate Palace.

They entered a small hall. The white-haired elder pointed to the many golems; there were at least
hundreds of them present. These golems were black, and looked like stone sculptures. “These
golems have identical elemental ki cores. The energy they release will all be at the early Wanxiang
Adept level. That way, those reincarnated Immortals who are within our school who are in
possession of a divine sense won’t be able to use it to influence the battle significantly.”
Ning nodded. Divine sense was slightly superior to peak Zifu level power, but roughly the same as
the early Wanxiang level. Even if it was used to control weapons, it wouldn’t impact the battle too
much.

“These golems all come with their own weapons,” the white-haired elder continued. “They include
flying swords, flying needles, giant warhammers…in short, all types of magic treasures are present!
Choose a golem based on the type of weapon you prefer.”

Bladask was very quick to make his choice. He immediately walked towards a golem, placing it on
the golem’s body and quickly binding it.

“I’ll go now. You can take your time in choosing.” Bladask gave Ning a glance, then immediately left.
As for that golem, it transformed into a blur as it followed after him.

…….

The spectating disciples within the Dao Debate Palace, Northson and Ninelotus included, numbered
eight.

“The wager is actually this large. A hundred black-white pellets is one thing, but fifty kilograms of
liquefied elemental essence! Junior apprentice-brother Bladask is going a bit too far. Hazing the new
disciples is one thing, but you can’t do it like this.”

“It is a bit much, I agree.” The fellow disciples were all chatting amongst themselves. Right at this
moment, Bladask walked back from the side door, then leapt directly forward by more than three
hundred meters before landing atop a stone pillar that was thirty meters tall. He took a seat atop the
stone pillar. Swoosh! That golem also leapt up and landed within the battle arena, then quietly
waited there.

“He chose the Polaris Golem.”

“Senior apprentice-brother Bladask really is being quite vicious; he actually chose the Polaris Golem
which he is the most proficient with.”

“I wonder which golem junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning will choose.”

There were no differences in quality in the golems; the only question was whether or not one was
accustomed to using them. If, for example, Ning were to choose a golem that used a giant
warhammer, he wouldn’t be able to unleash much of his power.
“He’s coming out.”

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning is coming out.” They all looked over. Northson’s eyes were filled
with worry. As for Ninelotus, she stared carefully at Ning, her eyes filled with curiosity.

Ning walked out, a golem following him. Swoosh! Swoosh! Ning and the golem, in quick succession,
leapt up then landed; Ning landed atop a stone pillar, sitting down, while the golem landed in the
battle arena below, causing the arena to shudder slightly.

The two sat on their stone pillars, staring at each other from afar. Ning and Bladask’s gazes crossed.
They were roughly three hundred meters away from each other. The golems below them were
roughly three hundred meters away from each other as well.

“Begin!” The white-haired old man barked.

Rumble…instantly, a barrier of clear water immediately appeared. It was an enormous, barrier-type

grand sealing formation that completely sealed the entire arena. Northson and the others were all
outside of it, while Ning and Bladask were within it.

“The Thousandswords Golem!” Bladask, seated in the lotus position on the distant stone pillar, gave
it a glance, then snorted coldly. “He doesn’t know his own limits.”

“I’d like to ask you for some guidance, senior apprentice-brother,” Ning called out in a high voice.

“Please.” Bladask shouted back.

The surrounding disciples all watched with bated breath. The newcomer who had been accepted by
Immortal Diancai as his disciple, Ji Ning. Senior apprentice-brother Bladask, who had entered the
school many years ago. Which of the two was the stronger?

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 31, Shock and Awe (part 1)

“Win. Win. Win.” Mu Northson stood outside the grand sealing formation, staring towards Ji Ning,
who was seated on that distant stone pillar. His eyes were blazing with hope. “You have to win.”
Prior to this, he had lost two rounds in a row. In his heart, he viewed himself and Ning as standing on
the same side; they were both new disciples.

As for those old disciples, they were simply teaching the new disciples a lesson in accordance with
that ‘tradition’. He lost; naturally, he now hoped that Ning would win a round and gain a bit of face for
them, the two new students. In addition, this Bloodrinker Bladask had gone too far in making the
wagers so large.

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning is in for it now.”

“Senior apprentice-brother Bladask really did set a high wager. He showed no mercy at all.”

The old disciples were all chatting amongst themselves. But as for Ninelotus, she stood there,
staring carefully at Ning, who was within the grand sealing formation. She said softly, “My fellow
disciples, it’s too early to say such things. It’s hard to say who will win; junior apprentice-brother
Bladask or junior apprentice-brother Darknorth.”

“Junior apprentice-brother Bladask entered the school many years ago. Can it be that he is inferior
to Ji Ning?”

“Senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus, it isn’t very likely that Ji Ning will be able to win.”

All of the disciples present, Northson included, felt surprised at the words of Ninelotus. After all,
Ninelotus, logically speaking, should be on the side of the old disciples.

“Just watch.” Ninelotus still had that calm smile on her face.

……….

Bladask sat there atop his stone pillar in the lotus position. He noticed that Ninelotus, standing
outside the sealing formation, was paying more attention to Ning. This caused his gaze to grow ever-
colder.

“Once the protective surface armor of the golems you two are controlling has been broken, that
means that you have lost.” The white-haired elder watched from afar while speaking out. Ning
nodded lightly.

The golems were representations of themselves. Breaking through the golem’s armor, in a real
battle, was something comparable to truly killing the enemy! Naturally, that represented defeat.
“Since you know the rules, then…begin!” The white-haired elder called out. Within the vast, empty
space inside the sealing formation, the two golems simultaneously began to move. Ning controlled
the Thousandsword Golem, while Bladask controlled the Polaris Golem.

“Swish!” “Swish!” The two golems retreated at the same time, pulling away from each other. Neither
of them wished for their golems to be too close, because once their protective armor was breached,
that would mean they had lost.

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning! Watch out for this!” Bladask, seated on that distant stone pillar, let
out a loud shout. Immediately afterwards, he began to control his Polaris Golem, which had seven
flying swords on its back. A savage, baleful aura filled one of the flying swords which instantly shot
out, filling the entire area nearby with a dense, bloody light.

“Ursae Majoris Warbreaker!”

“As soon as junior apprentice-brother Bladask attacked, he immediately used the Ursae Majoris
Warbreaker. He really is filled with a killing intent right now.” The spectating disciples in the distance
were all stunned.

The flying sword slashed through the skies, and as they did so, it was like an iron-blooded army was
marching forth. A series of bloody lights flashed, and even the vague sounds of slaughter and
warcries could be heard. They struck directly towards Ning’s Thousandswords Golem.

“He really does have quite a bit of a killing intent.” Ning sat there in the lotus position on his stone
pillar. Seeing this, he just let out a soft laugh. “Let me extinguish that killing intent of his. Go.”

Clang!

One of the countless tiny swords on the back of the Thousandswords Golem instantly flew out.
When it flew out, it was only the size of a sewing needle, but soon it expanded to the size of a palm.
The flashing sword flew out…and as it did, the entire area became filled with flowing water, with the
flashing sword light submerged within the water.

“Break!” Bladask’s face sank. That flying sword of his, filled with a boundless killing intent, didn’t give
way in the slightest. It struck directly towards the flowing water. This Ursae Majoris sword…what it
needed was its imposing manner! It couldn’t lose that!

The flying sword struck directly towards the flood of water. Splash! The flowing water was blasted
apart, but the water then swirled and reformed around the flying sword, once more entrapping it. As
the saying goes, one can swing a blade at water, but the water will still flow; even a blade that had
been tempered a hundred times, when faced with this sword light that flowed with endless water,
would become as weak as a finger.

The first blow was filled with energy. The second was weaker. By the third, there was nothing left.
“Not good.” Bladask’s face changed slightly. He knew that Ning had blocked him with but a single
flying sword.

“Formidable.”

“He used just a single flying sword to block junior apprentice-brother Bladask’s Ursae Majoris
Warbreaker sword attack. I imagine that junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning isn’t much weaker than
junior apprentice-brother Bladask.”

The azure-robed man, Bu Ying, said with a frown, “This is the ‘Flowing Water Sword’ of the [Lesser
Five Elements Sword].”

“[Lesser Five Elements Sword]? Are you sure about that, senior apprentice-brother Ying?” The
others all looked towards Bu Ying, puzzlement on their faces. They had all heard of the famous
[Lesser Five Elements Sword], but they didn’t focus on swordplay…naturally, they didn’t understand
the sword stances of the [Lesser Five Elements Sword] very well.

Bu Ying nodded. “I’m sure. I’ve meditated on the [Lesser Five Elements Sword] before. This
technique is the ‘Flowing Water Sword’ technique within it. I didn’t expect that although junior
apprentice-brother Darknorth has just entered our school, he has already begin to gain insights into
the [Lesser Five Elements Sword].”

Ninelotus just listened, smiling gently as she watched the battle.

……….

Bladask couldn’t hear the conversation going on outside, but he could guess at it. Both sides had
used just a single flying sword, but Ning had actually blocked him. How could he not feel humiliated?
After all, he had joined the school many years ago.

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, receive my Polaris Direwolf Skyripper!” Bladask let out an angry
roar. Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The other six flying swords on the back of the Polaris Golem all flew out at the same time. The first
flying sword flew back as well, and the seven flying swords instantly formed into a Polaris Sword
Formation. Rumble…in midair, one enormous star after another began to appear. The seven giant
stars formed into the shape of the Big Dipper, and then a flashing sword light began to expand
rapidly.

“Howwwwwwwwwl!” At the core of this sword light, an enormous black wolf phantom actually
appeared out of nowhere. The Direwolf raised its head, letting out an angry howl. And then, still
howling, it charged straight towards Ning. It looked as though the Direwolf was bounding towards
Ning, but in reality, those seven flying swords were launching a simultaneous attack.

“Go!” Ning’s cold voice rang out. Eight more flying swords flew out from the back of the
Thousandswords Golem. Along with the first flying sword, they instantly joined together into a simple
‘Nine Palaces Sword Formation’. Ning had acquired the ‘Nine Yang Sword Formation’ in the
underwater estate, and this formation contained quite a few profound mysteries as well. Although it
wasn’t as complicated as the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation], it was still extraordinary.

Ning had quite a bit of ability with regards to formations, and this ‘Nine Palaces Sword Formation’
was quite an excellent one as well.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Nine rays of sword light howled through the air,
leaping forward to greet the giant, advancing Direwolf. As they flew over, the light of the nine swords
suddenly flashed, then transformed into more than a hundred densely clustered sword shadows.
These hundred-plus sword shadows then quickly transformed into drops of rain, and it was as
though a hundred-plus meteors of rain were pummeling into the Direwolf.

Smash! Smash! Smash! Smash! Smash! Smash! The hundred-plus meteors of rain smashed
downwards, every single drop containing awe-inspiring power.

“Not good.” Outside the formation, the azure-robed Bu Ying leapt to his feet, his eyes filled with
astonishment. “How could he have…”

Every single drop of rainwater contained awesome power. Rumble…the unceasingly destructive
strikes actually completely smashed apart that baleful, heaven-menacing Direwolf, and it also
blasted apart those seven flying swords.

“How can this be?” Bladask, who was seated on the stone pillar, controlling everything, had a
completely different look on his face now.
“Swish!” Immediately after disintegrating the Direwolf phantom, several flying swords continued to
charge forward, not weakening in the slightest. Howling through the air, they instantly struck against
the body of that Polaris Golem. BANG! They slashed straight through it, and the black, rocky exterior
of the Polaris Golem was instantly split open, revealing the fiery red body of the golem within.

“Ji Ning wins!” The distant, white-robe elder immediately called out in a high voice.

As for Bladask, his face instantly turned completely ashen.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 32, Shock and Awe (part 2)

“Lost. I lost. How could…” Bloodrinker Bladask sat there atop the stone dais, his face ashen. He
couldn’t believe what had just happened.

When Immortal cultivators engaged in a battle, life and death was separated by a hair. If they lost a
single exchange, they could die.

“He used a golem. I also used a golem.” Bladask simply couldn’t accept this. “The two golems have
identical elemental ki cores, and the same amount of elemental ki. It is an extremely fair situation;
what we compete in is our comprehension of the Dao, our sword arts, and other skills. How could his
sword arts actually be even more powerful than mine?”

How could he have known that Ning had actually reached the Dao Domain level long ago? The Dao
Domain level was, normally speaking, the level which Primal Daoists were at. But of course, at the
Black-White College, everyone was a supreme genius, and so there were many powerful Wanxiang
Adepts who were at the Dao Domain level. Bladask, however, was still a hair away from being able
to reach the Dao Domain level.

Through his swordplay, he could just barely touch the Dao Domain level. This was much like how,
when Ning was young, when executing the [Raindrop Sword], he was able to unleash the power of
being ‘one with the world’ with his sword attacks, even though he himself had not yet reached that
level. This was one of the strengths of possessing powerful sword arts!

In terms of comprehension, Ning was at a higher level. In terms of sword arts, after having been
doubly baptized by the Stellar Hall of the underwater estate and the Black-White Diagram, and after
having meditated on the [Lesser Five Elements Sword], Ning’s sword arts had reached a limit.
In terms of soul, Ning was at the ‘divine sense’ level. Even amongst the Wanxiang Adepts of the
Black-White College, only those reincarnated Immortals, so few they could be counted on one hand,
were comparable to Ning.

In every single field, he was inferior. How could he not have lost?

“Senior apprentice-brother Bladask, I was lucky enough to win by one stroke.” Ning rose to his feet
with a laugh, and the grand sealing formation around them disappeared. With a tap of his feet, Ning
flew out of the arena, landing in the distance.

Bladask had an ugly look on his face. He flew out of the arena as well. He walked straight towards
Ning, and with a wave of his hand, produced two jade bottles which he tossed to Ning. “A hundred
black-white pellets and fifty kilograms of liquefied elemental essence. Take it.”

Ning naturally stretched his hand out to accept them. “Hmph. Ji Ning.” Bladask stared at Ning, his
eyes filled with a desire for battle. “No wonder Immortal Diancai accepted you as his disciple. I have
nothing to say about my defeat. Next time, however…I will challenge you again.”

“I will wait for you.” Ning laughed. If someone wanted to deliver more black-white pellets and
liquefied elemental essence to him, why would he refuse? “Hmph.” Bladask immediately walked
towards Bu Ying. “Senior apprentice-brother Ying!”

The azure-robed man, Bu Ying, gave him a glance. “Don’t worry. Leave it to me.” This time, it was
Ying who had set up and arranged for the new disciples to be taught a lesson, and he had also been
the one to personally invite Bladask over. Clearly, now that Bladask had lost, no matter what, he, Bu
Ying, couldn’t just let Ning leave victoriously.

Bu Ying’s gaze fell towards his fellow disciples nearby.

“Formidable.”

“Junior apprentice-brother Darknorth’s power truly cannot be underestimated.” This geniuses all had
looks of caution in their eyes. From watching Ning’s attacks just now, they sensed that Ning’s power
was definitely not lower than theirs. Without a certain degree of confidence, they naturally wouldn’t
be willing to proceed.”

“Senior apprentice-brother Ying.”

“Senior apprentice-brother Ying, you are the only person who can succeed.”
“Right, senior apprentice-brother Ying, you have also trained in the [Lesser Five Elements Sword],
and the time you have spent training in it is longer. Your chances of winning are greater.” Everyone
was saying this.

Bu Ying cursed to himself. So what if he trained in it for longer? Training in sword arts wasn’t a
matter of time; it was a matter of how much one understood regarding the Dao. An Immortal training
in the [Lesser Five Elements Sword] for the first time would, in half a day, train to an extremely high
level in it.

But Ying also knew…that since he was the instigator of this event, no matter what, he had to get
involved. One had to be able to bear responsibility for one’s actions.

……

Ji Ning had immediately won with his attack; this had caused Mu Northson to be incomparably
excited. “Well fought! Let those old disciples know that they can’t just teach lessons to every new
disciple as they please.”

Ning laughed. Winning was quite enjoyable. In addition, a hundred black-white pellets and fifty
kilograms of liquefied elemental essence was his, just like that. Previously, when he had advanced
from the early Zifu level to the peak Zifu level, he had used less than forty kilograms of it.

“Junior apprentice-brother Darknorth.” Bu Ying emerged from the group of old disciples. “Senior
apprentice-brother Ying,” Ning responded.

“Junior apprentice-brother Darknorth, your power truly is formidable. I didn’t expect that shortly after
joining our school, you would have already reached such a level in your understanding of the [Lesser
Five Elements Sword]. I imagine that your insights into the Dao are at a very high level,” Bu Ying
said..

Ning knew that his opponent wanted to gain some intelligence about him. He immediately laughed
and said, “I just gained some initial insights into it, and have much to learn.” Bu Ying laughed loudly.
“You are being too modest, junior apprentice-brother. I, your senior apprentice-brother, also train in
the [Lesser Five Elements Sword]. As I watched you execute your sword arts…I couldn’t help but
feel my hands itch. What say you and I spar for a bit?”

“Oh, this is what I wish for as well!” Ning immediately said. Someone was delivering more gifts to
him? Why wouldn’t he want it?
Based on Ning’s calculations, especially given how strong his soul was, he felt that he should hold a
major advantage over the other. There were probably not many Zifu Disciples who could match him,
unless a reincarnated Immortal emerged to battle.

“What is the wager?” Ning asked. Bu Ying laughed. “Naturally, just a hundred black-white pellets and
five kilograms of liquefied elemental essence. Overly large wagers will hurt the camaraderie
amongst us fellow disciples.” Ning nodded. “Alright.”

…….

Moments later. Ning and Bu Ying were each seated in the lotus position atop their stone pillars.
“Begin,” the white-haired elder barked. Instantly, the grand sealing formation once again appeared.

“The golem which I have chosen is known as the Six Harmonies Golem.” Senior apprentice-brother
Ying’s voice rang out. “Be careful, junior apprentice-brother.”

“Senior apprentice-brother. Please proceed.” Ning’s voice rang out as well.

The two sat on opposing stone pillars, staring at each other. The two golems below stared at each
other as well.

“Kill!” Previously, Bu Ying had a smiling look on his face, but his face now turned solemn as he let
out a low growl. Instantly, the Six Harmonies Golem simultaneously shot out thirty-six flying swords,
every single one of them covered with unique runes. The reason why this golem was named the Six
Harmonies Golem was precisely because it was capable of executing this ‘Six Harmonies
Formation’.

Ning, seeing this, frowned. “Go!” Twelve flying swords emerged from the back of the
Thousandswords Golem. These twelve flying swords hissed as they slashed through the air,
transforming into a dense layer of rain, each containing inexhaustible amounts of power.

Rumble…

The thirty-six flying swords swiveled as they flew, six of each forming into a formation base, with the
six bases forming the Six Harmonies Formation. In addition, the entire formation transformed into a
giant windmill.

“Rumble…” The power of it crushed downwards.

Crash crash crash….

The countless droplets of rain smashed viciously against that giant windmill, but the thirty-six flying
swords of the windmill swiveled about, easily dissipating the smashing power.

“Can’t block it. This Bu Ying truly is much more formidable than Bladask; fortunately, I was prepared
long ago.” Ning’s face changed, and a fierce look flashed through his eyes. The twelve flying swords
under his control suddenly separated into two parts. One part spun in a circle in midair, while the
other formed a cross.

Whoosh! The twelve flying swords merged with each other, transforming into an azure, flaming
sword. BOOM! The giant, azure flaming sword pierced directly through the windmill. The windmill
was only able to take it for a brief moment before crumbling.

“[Duality Azureflame Sword]!” Bu Ying, seated there on the pillar, saw this. His face turned ashen,
and then he let out a sigh. He didn’t even try to fight back, allowing Ning’s azure, flaming sword to
pierce directly through the protective layer of his golem.

“Ji Ning wins!” The white-haired elder once more called out in a high voice.

……

The Dao Debate Palace was a hubbub of noise right now. Bu Ying was definitely an outstanding
figure amongst the Zifu Disciples of the Black-White College, and could be considered one of the
movers and shakers. In terms of power, he was far superior to Bladask. And yet, even he had been
defeated by this new disciple who had just joined the Black-White College?

“They are all supreme geniuses…but this Ji Ning is an absolute monster.” Ninelotus watched
everything happen, and she murmured in her heart, “He reached the Dao Domain level at merely
sixteen years of age? And his soul has supposedly reached the divine sense level…he’s absolutely
a monster, like those reincarnated Immortals.”

“To lose to a monster like him…their defeats are nothing to be ashamed of.”

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 33, Two Major Factions

With a thought, Ning removed his binding from the Thousandswords Golem, then leapt three
hundred meters and landed outside the battle arena. He secretly sighed to himself, “Although I have
reached the Dao Domain level, and my soul is at the ‘divine sense’ level…if I hadn’t meditated on
the [Lesser Five Elements Sword] and increased the power of my sword arts, it would be hard to say
if I would have won, or this Bu Ying would have won.”

His foundations were exceptionally stable, at the level of a reincarnated Immortal. However, prior to
joining the Black-White College, his sword arts had been very weak; only after learning the [Lesser
Five Elements Sword] had he been able to address this shortcoming.

If he hadn’t learned it, he would have had to rely on the power of his soul and controlled even more
flying swords to achieve victory through numbers.

Swoosh! Bu Ying landed next to Ning as well. “Senior apprentice-brother Bu Ying,” Ning greeted him
modestly.

Bu Ying sighed. “No wonder Immortal Diancai accepted you as his disciple, junior apprentice-brother
Darknorth. I whole-heartedly acknowledge my loss. You were able to simultaneously control twelve
flying swords and execute the ‘Drizzling Rain’ technique. Your level of insight is very high, and your
soul is powerful; all of these things inspire admiration in me. In addition, junior apprentice-brother,
you were even able to execute the [Duality Azureflame Sword]…I have nothing to say about my
loss.”

“Here are a hundred black-white pellets and five kilograms of liquefied elemental essence.” Bu Ying
tossed two bottles to Ning, who accepted them. “However, junior apprentice-brother, you’ve now
defeated both Bladask and myself.” Bu Ying looked towards Ning. “Make your preparations. This
matter will not conclude here.” After speaking, Bu Ying began to walk towards the outside.

“It won’t conclude here?” Ning frowned, then followed him outside.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” Northson excitedly ran over. It
was as though he was even more excited than Ning by Ning’s victory. “That was too incredible. And
to think those old disciples wanted to teach us new disciples a lesson. Hahaha! They’ve lost two
rounds in a row now. This time, the old disciples really did lose face.”

Ning laughed. “It was nothing more than a spar.” Northson disagreed. “No, this was about face. This
year, there are only two new disciples, you and me. Now that you’ve won, senior apprentice-brother,
as your junior apprentice-brother, I’ve gained face as well.”
While chatting, the two moved to the outside. As for the old disciples, none of them, including Bu
Ying, Winterain, and Bladask, moved to speak to Ning. The atmosphere was clearly rather awkward.
The only person to move closer to him was Ninelotus.

“Senior apprentice-sister.” Ning felt his heart clench. Ninelotus truly was a naturally mesmerizing
figure. In terms of appearance, she could be described as a peerless beauty; of all the beauties Ning
had ever seen, she was second only to Meng Xin. But in terms of grace and aura, she was
unquestionably number one.

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” Ninelotus’ voice was very soft and gentle. “You must be careful.
You won two rounds in a row. The old disciples won’t just let things slide like this. No matter what,
the traditions of our Black-White College will not be broken just for you. When you go back, you
need to make your preparations.”

Ning’s pupils contracted slightly. He nodded. “I, Ji Ning, have always looked forward to the
opportunity to spar with my fellow disciples.” Ninelotus nodded as well, then departed.

Ning glanced at the other old disciples. However, given that even Bu Ying had been defeated, none
of the others felt any confidence in being able to win, and so they naturally didn’t say a word.

“Let’s go.” Ning immediately led Northson away, and the two left the Dao Debate Palace. Swoosh!
The two quickly disappeared into the night sky.

……….

They watched as Ning and Northson left. Only now did the old disciples within the Dao Debate
Palace begin to speak amongst themselves.

“We actually lost two battles in a row!” A tall, skinny youth said in a hoarse voice, “We old disciples
are meant to teach a lesson to the newer disciples, to let them understand the principle that there is
a heaven beyond the heavens, and geniuses beyond geniuses. This is a tradition of our Black-White
College that has lasted for countless years! All of us are old disciples who joined years ago. No
matter what, we can’t just admit defeat like this!”

“Right. If we admit defeat, then that means that we old disciples are admitting inferiority to the newer
disciples.” Even Winterain nodded as well. The old disciples all nodded. This was a tradition!

The old disciples were to teach the new disciples a lesson. These old disciples had joined many
years ago, and although some of the weaker ones amongst them would occasionally lose to a new
disciple, the stronger ones amongst the old disciples would gain a victory back in turn! If they weren’t
able to do so…didn’t that mean that every single one of them was inferior to the new disciples?

“From ancient times to modern times, there has never been anyone capable of forcing the old
disciples of the Black-White College to admit defeat. Not even reincarnated Immortals!” Bu Ying
nodded solemnly as he spoke. “I will go ask junior apprentice-brother Qinghe.” After speaking, Bu
Ying left the Dao Debate Palace.

“Let’s go!” The old disciples all departed from the Dao Debate Palace, transforming into streaks of
light and disappearing into the sky.

……..

The disciples of the Black-White College were divided into three generations. The third generation
consisted of Zifu Disciples and Wanxiang Adepts. Amongst the Zifu Disciples…the most outstanding
and dazzlingly strong one was Qinghe.

Qinghe entered the school at eighteen years of age, and had also reached the Dao Domain level.
Given his current level of insight, he could easily reach the Wanxiang Adept level, but he needed to
further solidify his foundation. Only with a sufficiently stable foundation would the Zifu Lake within his
body truly expand to the limit, allowing his future potential to be greater.

Late night.

“Junior apprentice-brother Qinghe, junior apprentice-brother Qinghe.” Bu Ying charged into the skies
above a towering mountain, then immediately began to shout, his voice echoing within the entire
estate.

The Zifu Disciple retainers and the commoner servants in the estate below all began to react.

“Senior apprentice-brother Bu Ying, why have you come to speak to me so late at night?” A figure
suddenly emerged from the courtyard, head upraised and staring towards Bu Ying, who stood there
in the night sky. Bu Ying immediately landed within the courtyard.

“I’ve come here this late at night to inform you about something, junior apprentice-brother.” Bu Ying
shook his head and sighed. “I’m ashamed to even say this. Each year, the new disciples of our
Black-White College will go to the Dao Debate Palace and be taught a lesson by us old disciples. In
the past, the two of us experienced this as well.”
Qinghe laughed and nodded. “Right. The old disciples have all been in the school for many years.
Naturally, they will win.”

“Except, we lost.” Bu Ying shook his head. “Just now, several of us old disciples were at the Dao
Debate Palace, sparring with the new disciples, Ji Ning and Mu Northson. We defeated Northson
twice in a row…but afterwards, when we sparred with Ji Ning, we were defeated by him twice in a
row. In fact, even I lost to the hands of junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.”

“What?!” Qinghe was shocked. “Senior apprentice-brother, you lost?”

“Right. That’s why I came to invite you,” Bu Ying said. “You can be said to be the Zifu Disciple
amongst us who is at the very peak of power, and so…”

Qinghe nodded. “Senior apprentice-brother, don’t worry. Naturally, I won’t shirk my duties in this
matter.”

……

“Senior apprentice-sister, senior apprentice-sister.” Ninelotus stood there in midair, staring down
towards a graceful estate below.

“Little sister, you came?” A clear, cold voice rang out. “Why don’t you come in?” Ninelotus
immediately landed. There was a black-robed maiden standing there, beneath the moonlight. In front
of her there was an exquisitely carved wine flask and wine goblets.

This maiden’s beautiful features were absolutely superior to that of even Ninelotus…and that cool,
indifferent aura made her seem like a true Immortal of the heavens. And, in truth, this black-robed
maiden was indeed a reincarnated Immortal. Within the Black-White College, she was an extremely
famous reincarnated Immortal, the Rainbowflame Fairy, Yu Wei! As one of the extremely few
reincarnated Immortals, although she was currently only at the peak Wanxiang Adept level, her
status was comparable to that of the Primal Daoists.

“Senior apprentice-sister.” Ninelotus sat down as well. “Are you aware that amongst the new
disciples, there is one who is apparently a reincarnated Immortal as well?”

“Are you referring to junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning?” The black-robed maiden sat down, then
nodded gently. “I heard that Immortal Diancai chose him as his disciple.”
Ninelotus immediately said, “Senior apprentice-sister, you don’t know this, but even before joining
the school, Ji Ning has already reached the Dao Domain level, and his soul has supposedly even
reached the ‘divine sense’ level.”

“His soul has supposedly reached the ‘divine sense’ level?” The black-robed maiden was rather
surprised. Ninelotus nodded. “This is what my master told me.”

“Immortal Fivecraze?” The black-robed maiden nodded gently. “Intriguing. I didn’t expect that one of
the new disciples would be such an impressive figure.”

Ninelotus continued, “And just now, at the Dao Debate Palace, this Ji Ning consecutively defeated
two of the old disciples. I trust that once this information spreads out, the old disciples definitely
won’t let this matter rest. No matter what, they will have to win it back.”

“Mm. Win. Yes, it will be necessary to win a match back.” The black-robed maiden nodded, then
smiled. “But if he really is a reincarnated Immortal, given his current level of insight, he might even
have some of his former memories from his past life. If you aren’t careful, his power might suddenly
explosively increase. Defeating a reincarnated Immortal won’t be an easy matter.”

Ninelotus glanced at this senior apprentice-sister of hers, this Rainbowflame Fairy, Yu Wei. Of
course reincarnated Immortals were terrifyingly strong. All of them had astonishing levels of talent,
and when they started to train, they increased in power at a shocking rate.

“This Ji Ning is only sixteen,” Ninelotus said. The black-robed maiden laughed. “If he hasn’t
awakened any of his former memories, beating him shouldn’t be too hard. When are they going to
go challenge him? I will go and take a look.”

“It should be tomorrow,” Ninelotus said. “Fine. I’ll definitely go.” Yu Wei nodded.

……

Wanxiang Adept Northmont Blackcurrent frowned. “Ji Ning?”

“Right. Ji Ning. He consecutively defeated two of the old disciples. Even Bu Ying was beaten by
him.” A black-robed youth sat there, chatting leisurely.

Blackcurrent laughed. “I didn’t expect that the Ji Ning who Northmont Baiwei befriended is actually
as powerful as this. I previously misjudged him. Since he is going to be challenged tomorrow, I’ll go
and take a look as well.”
…..

“Ji Ning? I heard that in the Carefree Caverns, he unleashed a Rainwater Sword Domain. Clearly,
he’s already reached the Dao Domain level, yes?”

“What? Dao Domain level? No wonder he is this powerful.”

…..

“The new disciple, junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, defeated two of the old disciples? How can we
accept this? No matter what, we have to win a match back.”

…..

One told ten, and ten told a hundred.

There were only so many disciples in the Black-White College to begin with, and most of them had
known each other for many years and were on quite good terms with each other. As they exchanged
this news amongst each other…by the second day, this news had already spread throughout the
entire Black-White College. In fact, even some of the well-connected major powers within Stillwater
Commandery, such as the Northmont clan, had received word of it.

For now, the other disciples all felt that, no matter what, they had to win a match back.

The disciples of the entire Black-White College had naturally divided into two major factions. The first
was the new disciples faction; this consisted of just Ji Ning and Northson. The second was the old
disciples faction; that consisted of all of the other disciples.

“Senior apprentice-brother, did you just say that this disciple of mine consecutively defeated two of
the old disciples?” The black-robed, black-haired Immortal Diancai had a hint of curiosity in his eyes.

“Right. Virtually all of the third-generation disciples are going to the Dao Debate Palace. They
definitely want to win a match back..” The short elder, dressed in ragged beggar’s clothes, said with
excitement, “Hahaha, it’s been a long time since something so amusing has happened within our
Black-White College. Myself, an ole madman, just survived the ninth-century tribulation, and now I’ve
encountered this. Intriguing, intriguing. When the time comes, I’ll definitely go watch. Are you going?”

Immortal Diancai nodded gently, then laughed, “Since you are going, senior apprentice-brother, as
your junior apprentice-brother, I’ll naturally accompany you.”
“Hahahaha. Great, great, great. Intriguing, intriguing.” The short elder, Immortal Fivecraze, suddenly
waved his hand. “Now hurry up and bring out that Centiflower Immortal Wine and let your senior
apprentice-brother have a taste.”

“Centiflower Immortal Wine? But I got that in one of the minor worlds…” Immortal Diancai’s face
turned ashen.

The short elder stared at him. “I, your senior apprentice-brother, probably will only be able to live
another nine centuries. And you can’t even spare me some wine? If you refuse to give me any wine
to drink, then when Ji Ning competes against the old disciples, I’ll play some underhanded tricks in
secret!”

Immortal Diancai let out a long, helpless sigh. “Fine, I’ll give it to you!”

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 34, Fated to be Master and Servant

“Whew.” Watching the sun rise in the east, Ning let out a soft breath. “Come, all of you, come. I’ll
take on all comers!”

He had won two consecutive battles last night. The parting words of senior apprentice-brother Bu
Ying and senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus allowed Ning to understand…that no matter what, the
old disciples definitely wouldn’t just let things rest. They would have to win one round of battle, no
matter the cost. Ning had to admit; some of the supremely talented disciples of the Black-White
College would definitely find it hard to admit inferiority.

However, Ning wouldn’t easily admit defeat either. If he had to lose, he had to be thoroughly
convinced of his defeat.

“If you want to defeat me, then you need to make me feel completely convinced of your superior
power.” Ning’s eyes were filled with a readiness for battle. This entire night, he had been analyzing
the [Lesser Five Elements Sword]; since he knew that he had to engage in battles tomorrow, he
naturally had to seize every moment.

Whoosh.

Ning willed it, and a flying boat appeared next to him. He prepared to go meet with his master,
Immortal Diancai…after all, there were many questions he had encountered when analyzing the
[Lesser Five Elements Sword]. Perhaps by asking his master, he would have some of his questions
resolved.

Swoosh! The flying boat instantly disappeared into the skies. But suddenly, a voice rang out. “Senior
apprentice-brother Darknorth!”

Ning, atop the boat, turned to look. A middle-aged man, mounted on a sword, was flying towards
him. A hint of nervousness and awe was on his face, and the borders of his sleeves were decorated
with white and black embroidery. Upon seeing the embroidery, Ning immediately understood that
this should be a formal disciple’s retainer.

Every single formal disciple was able to take on ten retainers. These Immortal practitioner retainers
would carry out some some important tasks, deliver messages, stand as guards, etc. These were
the tasks they would carry out.

“What is it?” Ning looked towards him. The middle-aged man replied respectfully, “There is someone
outside the College who wishes to see you, senior apprentice-brother Darknorth. He calls himself
Northmont Baiwei.”

“Northmont Baiwei?” Ning nodded. “I’ll head right over.” Swoosh! He immediately directed the boat
towards the Black-White College’s main gate. Moments later, he arrived and saw that outside the
gate, Baiwei was seated atop his Ninestar Immortal Carriage in an extremely ostentatious manner,
with the driver still that female servant construct.

“Ji Ning.” Baiwei, upon seeing Ning fly over aboard his boat, immediately disembarked from the
carriage. “Baiwei.” Ning landed. “Why have you come so early this morning to the College?”

Baiwei laughed, then pointed towards three people standing nearby. All of them had fairly
exceptional auras. “I told you before that I wanted five slots from you. These three will fill up three of
the slots. As for the other two…they’ll arrive after a period of time.”

“The three of them?” Ning sized them up carefully. Every single formal disciple could only have ten
retainers. Once a master-servant relationship was established, they would generally be together for
a century, or even centuries.

“These three are all not bad.” Baiwei pointed to the tallest one, a rather skinny youth. “His name is
Cloudship. He’s a member of the Cloud tribe, and an early stage Zifu Disciple.”
Cloudship’s eyes were very bright. He immediately said with respect, “Cloudship pays his respects
to senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.”

“This is Cloudship’s little sister.” Baiwei pointed to a devilishly beautiful, tall, willowy woman who was
dressed in white muslin. This woman’s eyes were extremely large, soft, and moist. Her eyes were
just as bright as her older brother’s. She gave Ning a deep look, then curtsied and said, “Cloudjade
pays her respects to senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.”

Baiwei then pointed to the final person, a seemingly ordinary youth. “His name is Forgard. He was
originally one of my guards, and is extremely loyal.”

“Forgard pays his respects to senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” The ordinary-looking youth also
bowed with respect.

“Cloudship, Cloudjade, and Forgard.” Baiwei laughed. “They will be your retainers, Brother Ji Ning. If
they treat you with any disrespect at all, you can immediately expel them from the Black-White
College. As for myself, Northmont Baiwei, I’ll never meet them again after that. In dealing with them,
you do not need to consider the question of giving me face at all.” Ning nodded.

“Here are another hundred ordinary mortals. They were all carefully selected, and all have some
special talents. They are skilled in calligraphy, painting, cooking, and the likes.” Baiwei pointed
towards a group of ordinary mortals. These were almost all women, with only two or three dozen
being men.

When Baiwei pointed towards them, they all fell to their knees in respect, not daring to show the
slightest hint of discourtesy.

“Sorry for the trouble, Brother Baiwei.” Ning nodded. Baiwei asked, “If you aren’t in a hurry, how
about, in a few days, you, me, and that Mu Northson have a little get together?”

“Very well.” Ning hurriedly added, “Right. There’s something I need to trouble you about, Brother
Baiwei.” “Oh? Pray tell,” Baiwei said.

Ning nodded. “Here’s the situation. When travelling to Stillwater City, I encountered three early stage
Zifu Disciples of the Meng clan. Their names were Meng Xin, Meng Roch, and Meng Jun.
Afterwards, they met with one of their seniors of their clan, someone they addressed as ‘Uncle
Ming’, a balding, middle-aged man.”
“Of the three of them, Meng Roch once used a forbidden technique and harmed his foundations. I
imagine that it will be hard for him to enter a school, and so I want to give one of the retainer
positions to him. Only, I have no idea where he is living, so I’d like to ask you to help investigate,
Brother Baiwei.”

“This is a minor matter,” Baiwei said with confidence. “The Meng clan is a major clan. The Heavenly
Treasures Mountain will definitely be keeping track of the movements of the members of their clan.
I’ll go investigate and will immediately find out.”

“Alright, if there’s nothing else, I won’t tarry.” Baiwei once more walked to his Ninestar Immortal
Carriage. The two clasped hands towards each other, bidding each other farewell, and then the
Immortal Carriage transformed into a blaze of light, disappearing into the horizons.

With but a thought, Ning made his flying boat increase in size, to a ship that was many tens of
meters in length. “All of you, come aboard.” The three retainers and the many mortal followers all
boarded the ship, and then the ship soared into the skies, flying at high speed towards Darknorth
Peak.

……..

Baiwei, riding within the Ninestar Immortal Carriage, quickly arrived at the Heavenly Treasures
Mountain.

“I heard that the new disciple of the Black-White College, Ji Ning, defeated two of the old disciples in
a row last night!”

“What sort of a person is this Ji Ning? He is that amazing?”

“No idea. All I heard is that he was accepted by Immortal Diancai as his apprentice.”

As soon as he left the carriage, Baiwei overheard two Immortal practitioners engaged in a
conversation. The Heavenly Treasures Mountain was a place where fish and dragons intermingled;
there was quite the free flow of information here.

“Oh?” A hint of a smile appeared on Baiwei’s face. “My brother Ji Ning actually did something so
incredible last night, and I didn’t even know about it? Mm. First, I’ll help him locate that Meng Roch
fellow. Since my brother Ji Ning remembered him, I imagine that this Roch must have some
extraordinary qualities.”
……..

East Stillwater City. Within an exquisite estate. Meng Roch was seated here, drinking wine.

“Little Sister Xin, let me.”

“Little Sister Xin, I’ll help you package these.”

Meng Jun was quite the busy bee right now, helping Meng Xin take care of and package some of
her household items. They had been living in their Third Uncle’s residence in recent days, but since
they had entered a school, the school had given them three days time to prepare. Then, they would
leave Stillwater City and head to the headquarters of the main sect, located a million kilometers
away from Stillwater City.

Meng Jun glanced sideways at Meng Roch, who was drinking wine gloomily, then sighed, “Rocky,
just endure it for a bit. In a few more years, when your injuries can no longer be detected, you’ll be
able to join a school as well. I must say though, it seems as though karma has bound myself and
Little Sister Xin together. We actually ended up in the same school by coincidence. Haha, what
luck.”

Still drinking wine, Roch’s face sank, and he crushed the beastskull goblet in his hand to dust.

“Hmph.” Jun let out a snort, then turned his head and left.

“Despicable fellow.” Roch gave him a glance.

Actually, he was able to guess that Jun had been following after Xin…and so, when Xin had entered
a school, Jun had chosen that same school. Xin and Jun were equally talented, and so it wasn’t
strange for them to both join the same school.

Roch had been infatuated with Xin since he was young, but the same was true for Jun! This made
Roch feel all the more miserable.

“Despicable fellow!” Roch ground his teeth. “I hate the fact that I…”

“Big Brother Rocky.” Xin stood there next to him. Roch raised his head, looking towards her. “Don’t
give up. I believe that you will definitely succeed.” Xin’s eyes were slightly red. Roch instantly felt a
warm feeling in his heart, and he nodded strongly.
“Succeed? Hmph.” From nearby, a strange, bizarre sounding snort could be heard. “Little Sister Xin,
let’s go. We should go to our Thousand Rivers School.” Xin gave Roch a deep look, but in the end,
she had to leave. She had to go to the main sect. Had to embark on her Immortal path.

Roch silently watched as she left.

“Little Xin. Wait for me,” Roch silently said to himself. However, the fact that he had been kicked out
by various schools for three days in a row made Roch feel all the more miserable and frantic in his
heart.

……

Within the Black-White College. Ning was carefully observing Cloudship, Cloudjade, and Forgard.
Although Baiwei had brought them here, if Ning truly disliked them, he could still kick them out. After
all, masters and retainers would be together for a very long period of time. As for Cloudship,
Cloudjade, and Forgard, they were rather nervous as well.

“This Forgard was originally a guard? And is quite loyal?” Ning had immediately felt well-disposed
towards Forgard. “Cloudship, upon seeing me, immediately smiled; he knows how to flatter. As for
his little sister, Cloudjade…what the hell was Baiwei thinking? Why’d he deliver such an alluring girl
to me?”

Cloudjade definitely could be considered an alluring girl. In terms of appearance alone, she was not
even inferior to Meng Xin, and more attractive than even Ninelotus. In addition, her entire body
seemed to naturally exude a certain magnetism, and her soft, moist eyes were extremely seductive
as well. It seemed as though ever since she had seen Ning, she was either consciously or
unconsciously attempting to seduce him.

“Forgard. Why do you have a name like this?” Ning asked.

Forgard said solemnly, “Originally, I had no name. Afterwards, I was given a name by the young
master and served him for many years. Perhaps the young master felt that I would have great future
accomplishments, and so he gave me this life-changing chance. And thus, he also gave me a Daoist
title, ‘Forgard’; he wished for me to forget that I was once a guard, and wished for me to truly
become a formidable Immortal practitioner.

Ning nodded.
Whoosh. The ship descended towards Darknorth Peak. The nearby Cloudship, Cloudjade, and
Forgard all nervously awaited Ning’s questions…but unexpectedly, Ning didn’t ask them a single
thing.

“Uncle White.” Upon landing, Ning spoke out, and the Whitewater Hound immediately appeared.
Ning glanced towards the three retainers and many commoners, then said in a clear voice, “All of
you, listen up. This is Darknorth Peak, of the Black-White College. Here in my Darknorth Peak…you
must always obey the words of my Uncle White. Whatever Uncle White tells you to do, you do. You
must never disobey.”

“Yes.” Cloudship, Cloudjade, Forgard, and the crowd of commoners all assented respectfully.

“Uncle White, those three are retainers, while the rest are all ordinary mortals.” Ning looked towards
the Whitewater Hound. “I’ll hand full responsibility for all matters in Darknorth Peak to you, Uncle
White. Give them their instructions and tell them about the rules here at the Black-White College.”

The Whitewater Hound immediately transformed into mist, and when he reformed, he appeared as a
white-robed, white-haired man.

The white-robed, white-haired man had a very gentle look in his eyes, and he seemed to extrude a
natural aura of friendliness, as though he brought the gentle, warm spring wind with him. He laughed
and said, “Ning, son, go ahead and leave these things to me.”

“Alright.” Ning immediately transformed into a ray of light, quickly departing from Darknorth Peak. As
for the others, including the retainers, they were restricted as to where in the Black-White College
they could go.

A short while later, Ning arrived before the mountain peak which was the residence of his master,
Immortal Diancai.

“Ji Ning. Enter.” A calm voice rang out by Ning’s ears. “Yes, Master.” Ning immediately descended
towards the peak.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 35, Immortal Diancai’s Guidance

There was no one within the hall, only the black-haired, black-robed Immortal Diancai. The Immortal
was seated in the lotus position atop his jade bed. Ning stepped into the room, then immediately
bowed with respect. “Master.”

Immortal Diancai nodded slightly. He looked at Ning, a hint of amusement visible on his face. “Ji
Ning, I heard that yesterday, you defeated two of your senior apprentice-brothers?”

“Yes,” Ning said. “Only, I’m afraid my fellow disciples won’t let the matter rest. Today, they will
probably come challenge me again. Thus, I have come to you, Master, in the hope that you can
provide me with some guidance.”

“Mm. At least you are grounded. You didn’t grow arrogant just because you defeated two Zifu
Disciples.” Immortal Diancai nodded. “Everyone who has been accepted to the Black-White College
is a supreme genius. The third generation is primarily divided into Zifu Disciples and Wanxiang
Adepts.” Ning listened carefully.

“My Black-White College has more than a hundred Zifu Disciples, and more than two hundred
Wanxiang Adepts. Why?” Immortal Diancai continued, “These disciples are all at fairly high levels of
comprehension; if they wanted to enter the Wanxiang Adept level, I imagine that all of them would
be able to do so. The reason why there are still a hundred-plus Zifu Disciples is for several reasons;
firsts of all, they want to solidify their bases of power and prepare an ‘Immortal foundation’. The
second is because they wish to increase their level of insight and comprehension; that way, when
they encounter the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations, they will naturally have a greater chance
of surviving them.”

Ning nodded. Three Calamities, Nine Tribulations…as an Immortal practitioner, Ning naturally knew
of them. The power of these trials was something that was related to time; the more time passed, the
more powerful they would become. In addition, they were also related to one’s karmic merits or sins.
The greater the sin, the more difficult the tribulation. Finally, they were also related to one’s level of
power. If they had trained for the same period of time, the tribulation for a Primal Daoist would be
more dangerous than the tribulation for a Wanxiang Adept….

But of course, there were many other variables. It was difficult to predict the power of the Three
Calamities and Nine Tribulations, and in the end, it was the guillotine held over the necks of all
Immortal practitioners.

However, there was one commonality: Strengthen one’s level of comprehension! Strengthen one’s
soul! Strengthen one’s Dao-heart! The more stable one’s foundation was, the greater one’s chances
at overcoming the tribulations would be.
“It is precisely because they wish to prepare for the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations, and
because they wish to establish a foundation to become a Celestial Immortal, that none of them are in
a hurry to make their breakthrough,” Immortal Diancai explained. “Generally speaking, new disciples
will remain at the Zifu stage for ten or so years. But of course, those who are slightly weaker in terms
of comprehension might stay at that level for fifty or sixty years. As for the extremely talented ones,
they’ll stay at that level for half a year before making their breakthrough.”

“This is why the Wanxiang Disciples represent the true elites of the third generation.” Immortal
Diancai looked at Ning. Ning nodded. He understood.

“The Wanxiang Adepts of our Black-White College are different from the Wanxiang Adepts of other
schools. They are true geniuses amongst Wanxiang Adepts!” Immortal Diancai said. “For other
schools, every so often, they might have one or two Wanxiang Adepts who reach the ‘Dao Domain’
level…but for our Black-White College, almost every single Wanxiang Adept is at the Dao Domain
level.”

Hearing this, Ning felt shock in his heart.

“There are some who are even more formidable. They have an incredibly deep comprehension of
their chosen Dao, and perhaps even many insights into other Daos as well. They are able to reach
the ‘Dao Domain’ level in multiple, different Daos!”

“There are some who are even more monstrous. While at the Wanxiang Adept level, they have
completely understand an entire ‘Dao Path’.”

Hearing this, Ning’s face instantly changed. A complete Dao Path?

“In other schools, generally speaking, only Immortals will comprehend an entire, complete Dao Path.
But in our Black-White College, every single Primal Daoist has comprehended an entire Dao Path,
and amongst the Wanxiang Adepts, a few of the most talented, most monstrous of the Adepts have
comprehended an entire Dao Path as well.”

“However, Ji Ning, you have no need to feel embarrassed. These geniuses who were able to
comprehend an entire Dao Path? Two of them are reincarnated Immortals, while the other three
have been training for more than two hundred years. They might break through to the Primal Daoist
level at any moment.”

“If you stay at the Black-White College for a bit longer, you’ll understand a few things. One of them is
this; our Black-White College has an unspoken rule that only after one has comprehended a
complete Dao Path will one make a breakthrough to the Primal Daoist level.” Immortal Diancai
looked towards Ji Ning.

Wanxiang Adepts were the true elites amongst the crowd. For example, Ning himself; once his Zifu
Lake expanded to the limit, he probably wouldn’t hesitate at all and break through to the Wanxiang
Adept level. Thus, those who remained behind at the Zifu Disciple level were, generally speaking,
the average-to-below-average bunch amongst these supreme geniuses.

“Wanxiang Adepts can be divided into three levels. The first level has only reached the Dao Domain
level. The second has reached the Dao Domain level in multiple Daos. The third level has
comprehended a complete Dao Path.”

Immortal Diancai looked towards Ji Ning. “Don’t worry. This time, your fellow disciples amongst the
Wanxiang Adepts level won’t interfere too casually; they’ll first have the most powerful Zifu Disciples
make their attempt. But if even they are unable to defeat you, only then will the Wanxiang Adepts
make their moves! No matter what, however, those supreme few who have comprehended a
complete Dao Path will not interfere. If they did, that would be going a bit far.”

Ning nodded. “Master, how many reincarnated Immortals are there amongst the Wanxiang Adepts?”
Ning was curious.

Immortal Diancai laughed. “You disciples are always curious about the reincarnated Immortals.
Actually, it’s even possible that you yourself might be a reincarnated Immortal. Amongst the
Wanxiang Adepts, there are three who have been verified to be reincarnated Immortals. Two of
them spent eighty years in training and have comprehended a complete Dao Path, while the other
one has trained for twenty or so years.”

“After having heard me say so many things, you should now understand the situation.” Immortal
Diancai sighed. “You’ve only defeated two of the Zifu Disciples, and they aren’t even two of the
strongest Zifu Disciples, much less the Wanxiang Adepts.”

“Your student understands,” Ning nodded. Immortal Diancai concluded, “Alright. Time to display your
sword arts to me. Show me everything without holding back anything; you won’t be able to damage
this hall.”

“Alright.” Ning didn’t hesitate at all. He immediately executed his most powerful sword attack…the
[Tripartite Lotus Sword]. The Darknorth Sword in his hand shot out, and as it did, it divided into three
colors. Lotus flowers began to bloom with incomparable beauty, but within the beauty, there was a
sword light with astonishing power.
“The [Tripartite Lotus Sword]?” Immortal Diancai laughed. “The [Lesser Five Elements Sword]. I,
your master, have also studied the [Lesser Five Elements Sword]. This sword attack you just
displayed can be considered to have a tenth of its grace and charm.”

“A tenth?” Ning blinked. “Just a tenth?”

Immortal Diancai shook his head. “What do you expect? The [Tripartite Lotus Sword] focuses on it
being ‘Tripartite’; it requires balance! Your comprehension into these three Daos, however, clearly
shows that your understanding of the Dao of Rainwater is much stronger, while the other two are
much weaker.”

Ning was speechless.

“You’ve only developed your Rainwater Sword Domain. If you were to develop two other Dao
Domains, then at that point in time, you would be able to display the true [Tripartite Lotus Sword],”
Immortal Diancai said.

Ning nodded in acknowledgement. He had to admit, it was true that the [Tripartite Lotus Sword]
required balance. His comprehension into the various Daos, however, was unbalanced.

“Your comprehension of the Dao of Rainwater is stronger,” Immortal Diancai said. “Since that’s the
case, then I’ll help you retrofit your [Tripartite Lotus Sword] into a [Neo-Tripartite Lotus Sword].”

Immortal Diancai immediately waved out a sword-finger. Slash! A sword light instantly flashed, and
wherever it passed, flowers began to bloom. Only, the green color within the flowerbuds was
noticeably stronger, while the other two colors served to accentuate it.

……

Four hours later, Immortal Diancai’s guidance came to an end.

“I’ve already explained as much as I can regarding the mysteries and secrets of the [Neo-Tripartite
Lotus Sword] and the [Three-Foot Sword]’s first stance,” Immortal Diancai said. “Given your current
level of understanding, you should completely focus your attention on analyzing these two sword
arts. When the day comes where you are able to release the power of both sword arts, come find me
again.”

“Yes.” Ning bowed with gratitude. The saying was true; listening to a master say a few words was
superior to training by one’s self for a year.
The [Neo-Tripartite Lotus Sword] was something which he had already begun to vaguely grasp;
most likely, he would soon be able to unleash its power. As for unleashing the true power of the
original [Tripartite Lotus Sword], he would have to wait until he comprehended three Dao Domains.
When the three became one, he would be able to unleash the most power possible from the
[Tripartite Lotus Sword]. What he was able to unleash right now was nothing more than some
scraps.

As for the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword], that was simply unfathomably profound. The
[Three-Foot Sword] focused more on the heart; training in the sword was also training in the heart.

Swoosh!

Ning immediately boarded his flying boat and departed from his master’s residence.

The Golden Crow hung high in the sky. The Dao Debate Palace, atop the Dao Debate Peak. Today,
this place was incomparably lively. One streak of light after another flew towards here, riding on
flying swords, flying boats, flying chains, flying gourds, flying red banners, flying leaves, and all sorts
of curious magic treasures. One after another, they flew into the Dao Debate Palace.

“Senior apprentice-brother Icezen, weren’t you wandering outside?”

“I just so happened to be over at the Raindragon Guards’ place, and I heard that one of our new
disciples, Ji Ning, defeated two of his Zifu Disciple colleagues in sequence. I’m quite curious, so I
came over to take a look.”

“Quite a few fellow disciples have come today. It has been a long time since our Black-White College
has been so lively.”

The two figures chatted amongst themselves as they flew to the Dao Debate Palace.

The battle arena was at the heart of the Dao Debate Palace. At the sides of the arena were many
chairs. The higher-ranking disciples of the College sat down, while the Zifu Disciples remained
standing to the side, chatting amongst themselves and in no rush to sit. After all, who knew how
many fellow disciples would come today?

“Senior apprentice-brother Northmont Blackcurrent came as well.”

“Senior apprentice-brother Gatherform came as well.”

One Wanxiang Adept after another arrived, all quite well-known. One high-ranking leader after
another arrived; naturally, these junior fellow disciples all had blazing looks in their eyes. As
latecomers, they naturally had limited experience in adventuring in the outside world. But these
fellow disciples who had joined more than a century ago already had shocking stories and legends
about them that circulated in the outside world. It was actually quite a frequent occurrence for the
Wanxiang Adepts of the Black-White College to be able to battle at a higher level and combat even
Primal Daoists.

“It’s senior apprentice-brother Holyfire.”

“Senior apprentice-brother Holyfire!”

“Even senior apprentice-brother Holyfire came as well.”

The entire Dao Debate Palace was now filled with disciples. All of them, Zifu Disciples or Wanxiang
Adepts, turned to look. A bald, barefoot, handsome youth who was dressed in fiery red robes came
walking in. His forehead had a svastika symbol in the middle, and wherever he passed, it was as
though a sea of flame moved with him, as the temperature of the surrounding area instantly
skyrocketed.

Holyfire!

He was an absolute leader amongst the third generation disciples of the Black-White College.
Although he wasn’t a reincarnated Immortal, he had still comprehended an entire, complete Dao
Path. He could become a Primal Daoist of the College at any moment.

“Senior apprentice-brother Holyfire.” Blackcurrent was the first to draw close to him.. “Blackcurrent.”
Holyfire glanced at Blackcurrent, then said calmly, “Has the new disciple, junior apprentice-brother Ji
Ning, arrived yet?”

“Not yet. There was a junior apprentice-brother who went quite some time ago to junior apprentice-
brother Ji Ning’s Darknorth Peak, but he hasn’t come yet,” Blackcurrent explained.

Holyfire nodded, then strode forward, taking a seat atop one of the centermost stone seats. The
fellow disciples seated around Holyfire were all formidable figures within the College. For the likes of
the Zifu Disciples, they could only stare at him from afar; after all, they didn’t have a relationship with
him.
Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 36, Junior Apprentice-Brother Ji Ning Welcomes All
Challengers

The winter wind was quite refreshing. Ji Ning stood atop his boat, soaring through the skies, and in
his mind, he continued to think back to the scenes of his master, Immortal Diancai, displaying sword
arts for him to see.

“Master’s sword arts have truly reached an inconceivable level,” Ning sighed to himself Diancai has
often referred to as the ‘second coming of Immortal Northwalker’, and also as the disciple of the
Black-White College with the greatest chances of becoming a Celestial Immortal. Immortal Diancai’s
sword arts vastly surpassed the level which Ning was able to comprehend.

“Hm? Someone’s here?” As his flying boat reached the air above Darknorth Peak, Ning saw that
there were currently two people standing outside the gates to his estate. It was a white-robed Mu
Northson and Winterain, dressed in white cotton clothes.

Swoosh. Ning landed on the ground. “Master.” The ordinary mortals standing at the gate
immediately saluted.

“Junior apprentice-brother Northson, senior apprentice-sister Winterain, why are you here?” After
landing, Ning smiled towards them. Only now did Winterain let out a long sigh of relief. “Junior
apprentice-brother Darknorth, can it be that you don’t know about today’s matters?”

Of course Ning knew. “Senior apprentice-sister Winterain, are you referring to the challenges at the
Dao Debate Palace?”

“Of course.” Winterain nodded. “Today, many of our fellow disciples have hurried over there. Even
some of our fellow disciples who were not present in the college, upon hearing this news, have
hurried back. I’ve came to invite you to the Dao Debate Palace, junior apprentice-brother Darknorth.”

Ning nodded. Winterain continued, “Let’s hurry. I imagine many of our fellow disciples are growing
impatient.”

“Alright.” Ning looked towards the nearby Northson. “Junior apprentice-brother Northson, why didn’t
you go to the Dao Debate Palace, and instead came to find me?”

“Need you ask?” Northson stared. “The entire Black-White College only has two new disciples; you
and me. The two of us are on one side. All those people at the Dao Debate Palace are older, more
senior disciples. If I go there, what am I supposed to do? Just stand there like an idiot and be stared
at by everyone?”

Ning laughed. “Let’s go.” There was no way to back off now. If he backed off, he would be looked
down upon by everyone. He might as well openly go welcome the challenges.

Whoosh. The three rode atop their respective magic treasures or construct, quickly disappearing into
the skies as three rays of light which sped towards the Dao Debate Palace.

…….

It was rare for so many fellow disciples to be gathered here at the Dao Debate Palace. Every single
one of the disciples present today could be described as truly heroic figures.

“Why hasn’t that junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning arrived yet?”

“That young junior apprentice-brother, Ji Ning…he wouldn’t be afraid, would he?”

The fellow disciples were all chatting in small groups amongst themselves as they waited. It was,
however, almost noon. Some of those who had come earlier had been waiting for nearly four hours.
Naturally, they were growing rather impatient.

Suddenly…three figures flew towards them from afar, then landed at the gates to the Dao Debate
Palace. This instantly attracted the attention of many of their fellow disciples.

“He’s here.”

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning came.”

“That’s junior apprentice-brothers Ji Ning and Northson. Next to them is junior apprentice-sister
Winterain.” Ji Ning and Northson had appeared at the grand ceremony of initiation, after all; most of
the people were still able to recognize them with one glance.

Senior apprentice-brother Holyfire, seated in the center, glanced at them then said softly, “That fur-
clad one is Ji Ning?” Northmont Blackcurrent, seated next to him, immediately said hurriedly, “Right,
he is Ji Ning.”
“Just from the look in his eyes, I can tell that his Dao-heart is very resolute,” Holyfire said softly.
Blackcurrent replied, “If junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning knew that you were praising him like this,
senior apprentice-brother, I imagine he would be endlessly overjoyed.”

……….

After entering the Dao Debate Palace, Ning went directly to the side room where he had previously
activated the Thousandswords golem, and then brought the golem to return to the hall.. He stood
there, in the hall, sweeping everyone with his gaze.

There were familiar figures, such as Ninelotus and the others. There were several figures he didn’t
recognize, but who the other fellow disciples surrounded; clearly, these were extremely high-ranking
figures of the College, such as that bald, fiery-robed youth, that black-robed maiden, or that sloppy-
looking fat youth, or that large, muscular youth whose entire body gleamed with magic treasures but
whose skin was jade-white…

“Those people being surrounded by others are probably the most supreme members of the third
generation. They have probably either comprehended an entire Dao Path or are reincarnated
Immortals,” Ning mused to himself.

Swoosh. Ning leapt forward like a streak of light, moving three hundred meters and landing on a
distant stone pillar. Staring at his surroundings, he said in a clear voice, “My senior fellow disciples.”

Instantly, the entire Dao Debate Palace grew silent.

“Yesterday, I was lucky enough to defeat two senior apprentice-brothers,” Ning said in a high voice.
“Thus, today I have come again. Any of my senior fellow disciples who wishes to discuss the Dao
with me can come up and do so. As for the wager…I’ve recently joined the school, and can’t afford
too large a wager, and so we’ll just go with the smallest wager of a hundred black-white pellets and
five kilograms of liquefied elemental essence. I will wait here. Anyone who wishes to discourse on
the Dao with me can come up.”

His words concluded. The entire Dao Debate Palace remained quiet for a moment of time.

That seemingly sloppy-looking, pudgy youth who was surrounded by many others laughed, his face
covered with delight, as he looked towards Ji Ning, who stood there in the distance atop the stone
pillar. “This junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning really is straightforward and passionate. I like him.”
This sloppy-looking, pudgy youth…was, awe-inspiringly enough, the undisputed number one figure
of the third generation of Black-White College disciples. In the outside world, he was often referred
to as the ‘Sloppy Daoist’, but his actual Daoist title was ‘Threefat’. Although he was not a
reincarnated Immortal, Daoist Threefat was able to suppress the two reincarnated Immortals in
might, and so became known as the number one figure amongst the third generation. One truly
couldn’t judge by looks alone.

……..

“Hear that? Even little Sloppy likes this Ji Ning.” In a corner of the Dao Debate Palace, the similarly
sloppy-looking short elder chortled. Next to him, the black-haired, black-robed Immortal Diancai said
resignedly, “Senior apprentice-brother Fivecraze, why did we have to come here to the Dao Debate
Palace? We could’ve stayed in our own estate and used a water-scrying technique; wouldn’t we still
be able to see everything going on here? Our apprentice-nephews such as the headmaster are
definitely all watching this in their own estates through a water-scrying technique.”

The short elder glanced sideways at Immortal Diancai. “When we watch here, we can also hear the
conversations going on between the third generation disciples. That’s so much more fun. As for little
Sloppy, he really is the disciple I love the most; even his thoughts are identical to mine. Don’t worry;
we’ll watch here secretly, and those third generation disciples won’t notice a thing.”

“Alas.” Immortal Diancai shook his head helplessly. This old fellow really was getting crazier and
crazier.

Birds of a feather flock together; ‘Sloppy’ had even given himself the Daoist title ‘Threefat’, and was
incredibly sloppily dressed. Immortal Diancai was an extremely strict person; naturally, he disliked
this tremendously. But there was nothing he could do…’Old Crazy’ was the oldest of the Loose
Immortals of the Black-White College, while ‘Young Crazy’ was the most talented disciple the Black-
White College had to offer.

“I hope that I can live to witness little Sloppy become an Earth Immortal. If I can witness him become
a Celestial Immortal, I’ll die with no regrets.” The short elder suddenly turned somber and serious.

“Senior apprentice-brother?” Immortal Diancai was startled. The short elder stared at the fat, sloppy-
looking youth who was surrounded by many other disciples. “Just you wait and see. Little Sloppy will
definitely be more powerful than me.”

Immortal Diancai’s gaze fell towards the distant stone pillar, and towards Ji Ning who was seated
atop it. This was the only disciple under his tutelage.
“It’s about to begin.” The short elder’s eyes lit up. “It’s the fellow called Qinghe.”

………

There were very many third generation disciples gathered here at the Dao Debate Palace. The first
to stand out was Qinghe, the man who was publicly acknowledged as the strongest of the Zifu
Disciple students.

Swoosh. An azure-robed figure moved forward like a blur, flying directly towards the distant stone
pillar before coming to a halt atop it. The golem he controlled moved with him, landing on the arena
below.

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” The azure-robed figure stared at the distant Ning. “My name is
Qinghe. I joined a few years before you did, and would like to discuss the Dao with you.”

“Alright.” Ning nodded.

“Begin.” The white-haired elder let out a loud shout, and the grand sealing formation instantly
covered the entire arena. Ning sat down calmly in the lotus position, and senior apprentice-brother
Qinghe did the same.

“Be careful, junior apprentice-brother. I am going to use a secret art which I discovered when
adventuring in the outside world; it is an art which a dying senior left behind, which allows for the
control of many flying needles. This isn’t a technique which our school has records about,” Qinghe
said.

“Senior apprentice-brother, feel free to use it,” Ning replied clearly. The territory controlled by the
Grand Xia Dynasty was too vast. Over the course of countless years, there were quite a few
legacies left behind by Fiendgods or various major powers. As for legacies left behind by senior
Immortal cultivators…those were countless beyond counting. Only, these relic sites also involved
tremendous levels of danger. Without having enough ability, one could not rashly enter them.

“Watch carefully.” Qinghe appeared quite relaxed, but suddenly, his gaze sharpened.

Swish swish swish swish swish. Countless flying needles suddenly flew out of the body of the golem
below him. Those countless jade-green flying needles spun in midair, resonating with each other and
actually forming an enormous green scorpion. This giant jade-green scorpion’s eyes were flashing
with a ferocious intent.
For some reason, this caused Ning to feel alarmed. “Not easy to deal with.” He had been planning to
once more use his [Duality Azureflame Sword], but he instantly decided to use his current most
powerful technique; the [Neo-Tripartite Lotus Sword].

What he didn’t know was that Qinghe, as the publicly acknowledged number one expert of the Zifu
Disciples, had a level of insight into the Dao that was comparable to that of most Wanxiang Adepts
already. He, too, had reached the Dao Domain level. In terms of insight, he definitely was not inferior
to Ning. In addition, he had spent many years analyzing this ‘Scorpic Godneedles’ technique. Given
his power, if Ning didn’t fight back at full strength, he would probably be crushed instantly.

“Swoosh.”

Three swords suddenly lit up. One transformed into a watery light, the second into a fiery glow, and
the third into an azure aura. The three flying swords formed into a tripartite formation, and as they
flew forward, suddenly transformed into an enormous lotus flower, which had an incomparably sharp
and fierce sword light within the blossom.

……

“He wins.” The short elder in the corner of the Dao Debate Palace sighed. “This sword art was born
from the [Tripartite Lotus Sword], but is more heavily focused towards the water-element of the Five
Elements. However, this power really is quite something! Ji Ning just entered the College, and yet
was already able to learn such a powerful technique. He’s definitely not weaker than any ordinary
Wanxiang Adept disciples. Sword Immortals…they are famous for their combat abilities. With the
heart of a Sword Immortal and a sword art such as this…if he encounters someone at the same
level of insight, he will win for sure.”

As the short elder was speaking, the sword light in the form of a lotus flower was clashing repeatedly
in midair against the giant, jade-green scorpion. With each clash, a few of the needles would be
knocked loose. After six consecutive clashes, the giant, jade-green scorpion completely shattered,
transforming back into countless flying needles.

“Slash.” The protective armor of the Godneedles Golem was pierced by that sword light as well.

The entire Dao Debate Palace instantly fell silent. He had lost? The most powerful of the Zifu
Disciples, Qinghe, had actually lost? If even he had lost…could it be that one of their senior
apprentice-brothers at the Wanxiang Adept level would enter the fray? For the sake of a new
disciple, they were going to have a Wanxiang Adept do battle?
“Ji Ning wins.” The white-haired old man spoke out, and his voice echoed within the Dao Debate
Palace.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 37, Two-Clawed Raindragon Guard

On the distant stone pillar, Qinghe rose to his feet, then clasped his hands. “I lost. I whole-heartedly
acknowledge my defeat.”

Ji Ning rose as well, also clasping his hands, and then he swept the entire palace with his gaze,
looking towards each of his fellow disciples. In a clear voice, he said, “Are there any other fellow
disciples who wish to exchange pointers with me?”

His voice echoed within the entire palace.

“Alas.” Qinghe shook his head, then leapt three hundred meters and landed next to the white-haired
elder. He took out two jade bottles, then placed them in front of the elder. This was the wager he had
lost. Turning his head, he left.

For a period of time, the Dao Debate Palace was silent. Nobody took up the challenge.

“Even junior apprentice-brother Qinghe lost.”

“The Dao Debates are a competition of one’s comprehension of the Dao, as well as one’s skills. It
doesn’t have much to do with one’s elemental ki. Even many of the Wanxiang Adepts amongst us
are only on par with junior apprentice-brother Qinghe.”

“I imagine that only those who have comprehended multiple Dao Domains are capable of defeating
junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.”

Of course there were people who could defeat Ning! In addition, there were quite a few. For
example, those three reincarnated Immortals who were at the Wanxiang Adept level. Anyone who
had comprehended a complete Dao Path could effortless crush Ning. There were also a pile of
disciples who had comprehended multiple Dao Domains. But which one of them would stand out?
“Which of my senior fellow disciples wishes to provide me with some guidance?” Ning stood there
atop the stone pillar, speaking in a clear voice. “If no one else comes, then I shall retire.”

In this moment, Ning felt filled with a heroic aura. How joyous. He faced a group of supreme
geniuses, and he, a newly recruited disciple, was challenging them. This really was a wonderful
feeling.

“Since my other fellow disciples aren’t going to participate, then I’ll embarrass myself by
volunteering.” A clear, cold voice rang out and a white-robed, white-haired youth strode forward.
With a single step, he transformed into a streak of light which entered the side room. Soon, he
returned with a golem by his side.

“That’s senior apprentice-brother Bloodshadow!”

“Senior apprentice-brother Bloodshadow is skilled as a Fiendgod Body Refiner and at close combat;
he isn’t skilled in a golem-based Dao Debate!”

“I heard that senior apprentice-brother Bloodshadow is already a two-clawed Raindragon Guard. In a

real battle, he probably isn’t one whit inferior to an ordinary Primal Daoist. But senior apprentice-
brother Bloodshadow’s power primarily stems from his various divine abilities, his Bloodforged
weapons, as well as his Fiendgod Body Refining Technique, the [Indestructible Bloodshadow Body]!
In terms of controlling golems, though, he’s a bit weaker.”

As the white-robed, white-haired youth appeared, a buzz of conversation swept the entire palace.
Ning’s ears twitched. He couldn’t help but feel secretly surprised. What a tremendous background
this senior apprentice-brother Bloodshadow had. The Rites of Bloodforging…although the likes of
the Ji clan had never heard of it, the Black-White College had. Only, one needed five hundred black-
white pellets to trade for the technique.

“And he’s actually a two-clawed Raindragon Guard as well!” Ning was privately shocked. After
entering the Raindragon Guard, one would become an ordinary one-clawed Raindragon Guard, and
the Black-White College would reward you with a thousand black-white pellets. If you became a two-
clawed Raindragon Guard, you would be rewarded with five thousand black-white pellets. Upon
becoming a three-clawed Raindragon Guard, the reward would be increased to fifteen thousand
black-white pellets…

However, it was very difficult to become a two-clawed Raindragon Guard. Generally speaking, only
someone at the Primal Daoist level of power could become one. Only a very few, exceptionally
monstrous Wanxiang Adepts were able to reach that level. As for that so-called ‘genius’ of
Snowdragon Mountain, Xue Hongyi, by comparison, he was far inferior to this senior apprentice-
brother Bloodshadow.

“Swoosh!” The white-haired, white-robed Bloodshadow’s body flickered, and he appeared on the
opposite stone pillar. “Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” Bloodshadow stared towards Ning. “I’m
more used to engaging in close combat. I’m not that skilled in controlling magic treasures to attack.
However, I’m still a bit stronger than junior apprentice-brother Qinghe. You must be careful.”

“I await your instructions, senior apprentice-brother,” Ning said solemnly.

This was no joke. A freak capable of becoming a two-clawed Raindragon Guard, even one who was
primarily a Fiendgod Body Refiner, definitely wouldn’t be weak when controlling magic treasures.
Fortunately, he would be doing so through the golems…and so his divine body and divine abilities
would be of no use. Otherwise, there would be no need to compete at all. Ning would simply admit
defeat.

“Begin!” The white-haired elder called out in a high voice. Rumble…the grand sealing barrier once
more covered the entire arena.

Ning sat down in the lotus position. Bloodshadow did the same. “Junior apprentice-brother, be
careful!” Bloodshadow called out in a cold voice. Instantly, the strange flying swords on the back of
the Nineswords Golem began to fly out. Nine of the queer flying swords flew through the air,
beginning to emit a dense, bloody light. The flying swords were all connected by the bloody light,
and they quickly formed into an enormous…

Something. It had enormous cicada wings, a head with three horns, a mouth that was as long and
sharp as a blade, and a savage, flashing gaze. In fact, the killing aura coming from this creature was
even more terrifying than that of the Direwolf which Bloodeater Bladask had summoned.

“Mosquito?” Ning, staring the beast that had appeared, couldn’t help but feel astonished. This was a
titanic mosquito.

Swoosh! That sinister-looking, baleful giant mosquito of blood suddenly charged forward, howling
through the air, its blade-mouth formed from one of the flying swords. The power and invisible
pressure from this creature caused Ning’s heart to clench.

“[Neo-Tripartite Lotus Sword]!” Ning didn’t hesitate at all, immediately executing his most powerful
sword art. Instantly, three flying swords flew out from the back of his Thousandswords Golem. They
soon formed an enormous, blooming lotus flower of sword light which stabbed directly towards that
baleful, heaven-defying mosquito of blood.

“Bang!” The two attacks were both as fast as lightning, and they instantly crisscrossed in the sky.
The blooming lotus flower’s sword-light trembled, beginning to grow unstable.

“It’s going to collapse.”

“Although senior apprentice-brother Bloodshadow is not skilled in using flying swords, it isn’t too
hard for him to suppress a young, newly recruited disciple.”

“He’s won.”

Quite a few fellow apprentices nodded musingly to themselves. As for Northson, he clenched his
fists nervously as he watched, his heart filled with worry. It was as though he himself wanted to
personally charge up. “You must win. You must win.”

“Not good.” As soon as he began fighting, Ning began to sense how terrifying the penetrative power
of the blood mosquito’s blade-mouth was. “Bang!” The blood mosquito moved as fast as a shadow,
quickly smashing yet again against the lotus flower. Instantly, the blooming lotus flower crumbled,
and the three flying swords were scattered to one side.

However, Ning had expected this long ago. He had already prepared six more flying swords, which
shot out from the back of the Thousandswords Golem.

“Go, go, go.” A savage look was in Ning’s eyes. Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Every three flying
swords formed a blooming lotus of sword-light, and even the three original scattered swords once
more reformed into a giant lotus of sword-light. All of a sudden, the air was filled with three
enormous flashes of sword light, each of which bloomed into giant loti. They flew out in a straight
row, simultaneously striking towards the blood mosquito. Meanwhile, Ning’s eyes were filled with
savagery as he controlled them in attacking.

“What!”

“He’s actually able to simultaneously unleash three of those [Tripartite Lotus Swords]?”

“How can this be?”

The spectating disciples were all speechless. Using top-tier sword arts was tremendously taxing on
one’s mental faculties. For something like the [Tripartite Lotus Sword]…most would be able to
unleash just a single one at most. To unleash three at the same time was rather ridiculous.

…..

At the corner of the Dao Debate Palace. Immortal Diancai nodded gently.

“He simultaneously executed multiple sword arts.” The nearby short elder shook his head
repeatedly. “There’s only two possibilities. The first is that his current comprehension of the Dao is
far beyond the level of this sword art, and so it is simplicity itself for him to use it; only then can one
simultaneously use multiple sword arts. The second is that his soul is incomparably powerful, and so
he can easily withstand the pressure this sword art creates, allowing him to use it multiple times
simultaneously.”

Either one had a high level of insight, or one had an extremely powerful soul.

“Your disciple’s soul…is at the divine sense level?” The short elder looked towards Immortal Diancai,
who nodded. “Right.”

“As I thought,” the short elder said softly. “If he has a ‘divine soul’ at the divine sense level…I
imagine he can execute two or three more sword-lights. This battle…your disciple is probably going
to win.”

…….

The giant blood mosquito blurred, then transformed into three smaller blood mosquitoes,
simultaneously defending against the three [Tripartite Lotus Swords].

Boom! Boom! Boom! There, in midair, the three [Tripartite Lotus Swords] battled against the three
smaller blood mosquitoes. Everything was a blur as they clashed and battled against each other
repeatedly. Each side wanted to break through the protective armor of the other’s golem, but they
also wanted to block the enemy attacks…for now, they were battling to a standstill.

“Go, go!” Ning’s eyes were bloodshot, and the veins on his forehead were protruding. Clearly, he
was now going all out. Instantly, six more flying swords flew out from the back of the
Thousandswords Golem. The sky was soon filled with two more [Tripartite Lotus Sword] attacks. A
total of five [Tripartite Lotus Swords] were surrounding and attacking the blood mosquitoes.
“Eh?” Seated in the distance, Bloodshadow’s face changed. He immediately willed the three blood
mosquitoes to once more transform into a giant blood mosquito. The cicada-like wings of the giant
blood mosquito fluttered, wrapping around that Nineswords Golem while the blade-beak struck
repeatedly against those [Tripartite Lotus Swords].

The five [Neo-Tripartite Lotus Swords] attacked wildly in unison.

“Five!”

“Five [Tripartite Lotus Swords]?”

The spectating disciples were all rather stunned. They knew exactly how much stress would be
placed on the soul when one executed five powerful sword arts simultaneously. To an ordinary
person, dividing their mind to carry out just two tasks simultaneously was already very difficult.
Dividing one’s mind to execute multiple supreme sword arts…and five in total, at that!

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning’s comprehension must be at a very high level, or his soul must be
very strong.”

“He cannot be underestimated.”

“It seems as though senior apprentice-brother Bloodshadow is about to suffer from it.”

…….

If one remains perpetually on the defense, one will eventually lose. Under the repeated strikes of
Ning’s five [Neo-Tripartite Lotus Swords], in the end, the blood mosquito wasn’t able to block an
attack, and the protective armor of the golem was breached.

“Ji Ning wins!” The white-haired elder called out in high voice. Only now did Ning finally relax.

He had won.

He had actually defeated a two-clawed Raindragon Guard! Although this Raindragon Guard was
more skilled as a Fiendgod Body Refiner and in using divine abilities, and although this was just a
competition of the arts one could use based on their comprehension of the Dao…the fact that he had
defeated a two-clawed Raindragon Guard still filled Ning’s heart with incomparable joy.
“I lost.” Seated atop the distant stone pillar, Bloodshadow rose to his feet. Shaking his head, he
laughed. “Junior apprentice-brother, you are already so impressive after entering our school. In the
future, you will definitely not be any weaker than me.”

“Senior apprentice-brother, you praise me too much.” Ning rose as well. “If we were in a real life-
and-death battle, I probably wouldn’t have been able to withstand a single blow from you.”

Bloodshadow laughed. This junior apprentice-brother of his was incredibly talented, and yet clear-
minded and modest. He hadn’t turned smug from his victory in the Dao Debate. Most likely, in the
future, this youth would have astonishing accomplishments. He was worth befriending.

“Haha…” Bloodshadow laughed, then with a flicker, disappeared from the arena, reappearing before
the white-haired elder, who he gave two jade bottles to.

Ning took a deep breath. He had gone all out in his earlier battle against Bloodshadow. The sword
art he had used was the strongest one available to him, and by relying on the power of his soul, he
had gone all out to generate five of those [Tripartite Lotus Swords]! This was his limit. He had
nothing further up his sleeve…and would probably lose the next match.

However, if he was going to fight, he was going to fight to the bitter end.

“Are there any other senior fellow disciples who would like to exchange pointers with me?” Ning
looked about the room and spoke in a clear voice. His voice echoed in every corner of the palace.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 38, My Heart Holds Only the Sword – The Sword Immortal’s
Path

The entire Dao Debate Palace once more fell silent. Everyone turned to look at their neighbors.
Since Ji Ning was even able to defeat Bloodshadow in a Dao Debate, defeating him would be no
easy task. Who would be the next?

“His heart…it has changed!” In that quiet corner, the short elder suddenly spoke out. “This last Dao
Debate was a form of baptism for your disciple.” Immortal Diancai turned to look towards Ning as
well. There was no hesitating in Ning’s eyes at all; instead, there was a frightening desire for battle.
“Right.” Immortal Diancai nodded lightly. “His heart has indeed changed. It is purer now. Before this,
he had many miscellaneous thoughts in his heart, but right now, all he desires is the next battle. This
is indeed a rare baptism for his Dao-heart.”

…..

Ning had only one thought in his heart right now; to engage in the next battle! If he was going to
fight, he was going to fight to the very end!

The entire Dao Debate Palace was silent for three breaths. Finally, an azure-robed woman walked
out.

“It is senior apprentice-sister Whitesnow.”

“Senior apprentice-sister Whitesnow’s [Celestial Silknet Formation] is extremely powerful. In terms of

just the Dao, not even senior apprentice-brother Bloodshadow is a match for senior apprentice-sister
Whitesnow.”

“Right. I wonder if this junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning has anything else left up his sleeve. If he
does not, he is probably going to lose.” Conversations were going on everywhere.

As for senior apprentice-brother Holyfire, surrounded by many fellow disciples, he stared into the
distance, then said softly, “If my guess is correct, that was the limit of junior apprentice-brother Ji
Ning’s power. This next battle…junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning is going to lose.”

“When he encounters junior apprentice-sister Whitesnow’s [Celestial Silknet Formation], this junior
apprentice-brother is going to lose.” This was the soft comment by the fat, sloppy-looking youth as
well.

……..

“Senior apprentice-sister. Will junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning win?” Ninelotus was next to the
black-robed maiden, who stared into the distance. “Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning is probably at
his limit. This should be his final battle.”

………

The short elder, standing in the corner of the room, nodded as well. “It’s about time. This series of
Dao Debates should be coming to a conclusion. Your disciple is at his limit.”
“Right.” Immortal Diancai nodded lightly, continuing to stare towards his disciple…

On the pillar. Ning stood there, waiting quietly.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, win. Win! I believe in you. You will definitely win.” Mu Northson’s
fists were clenched tightly, and he called out in a high voice in the distance. Ning smiled towards
him.

The azure-robed woman stepped out from the side-door, leaping gracefully atop the opposing stone
pillar. She looked towards the distant Ning, her gaze bringing a cold, quiet feeling. Looking at her
was like looking at a sickly, yet beautiful woman. She finally spoke out. “Junior apprentice-brother Ji
Ning, I have chosen the Skynet Golem. Be careful.”

“Senior apprentice-sister, please feel free!” Ning sat down in the lotus position, and the azure-robed
woman did the same. The two stared at each other.

“Begin!” The white-haired elder let out a loud shout. Rumble…the grand sealing barrier once more
covered the entire battle arena.

“Go!” The gaze of the azure-robed woman, seated in the lotus position, was cold and dim. The
Skynet Golem beneath her instantly began to emit one line of silk after another, transforming into
streaks of light.

“[Neo-Tripartite Lotus Sword]!” A sharp look flashed through Ning’s eyes. Not hesitating at all, he
immediately, consecutively released fifteen flying swords from the Thousandswords Golem, creating
five [Tripartite Lotus Swords]. These five flashes of sword-light…they blossomed into lotus flowers,
streaking forward to greet the flashing lines of silk.

Whoosh…

The silken rays of light suddenly slashed out in arious arcs. Instantly, the entire world seemed to
change, as these silken ribbons of light actually formed a giant, completely sealed spherical region,
trapping Ning’s five [Neo-Tripartite Lotus Swords] within them. The five flashes of sword-light wildly
struck at one location, and a large bulge appeared on the side of the silken ribbons of light, but it still
successfully kept the sword-light trapped within.

“Constrict!” The azure-robed woman, seated in the lotus position, shouted softly. The silken ribbons
of light, in the shape of that giant sphere, began to swivel and shrink, beginning to crush down upon
the five flashes of sword-light within it.
Although Ning could release these fifteen flying swords and control new ones…if he wasn’t able to
defeat this technique, even if he unleashed more flying swords, the end result would simply be that
they would be trapped.

“Break!” Ning strove to control his swords to break through.

“Go.” The azure-robed woman once more pointed. Whoosh! Yet another silken ribbon of light flew
out from the golem, this one moving directly towards Ning’s Thousandswords Golem.

“Hmph.” Ning’s gaze turned cold. Three more flying swords flew out from the Thousandswords
Golem’s back, transforming to yet another [Tripartite Lotus Sword] and intercepting the ribbon.

There were six [Tripartite Lotus Swords] that had been unleashed, and Ning’s eyes were now
completely bloodshot. Taxing. This was incredibly taxing. But Ning didn’t think of anything else. In
his heart, there was only one thought; to use all of his power and fight to the bitter end! To force his
flying swords to unleash the greatest amount of power possible!

In this moment, the only thing in Ning’s heart…was the sword!

……..

Within the arena.

Ning and the azure-robed woman stared at each other, the golems they were controlling clashing
against each other time and time again. Clearly, the azure-robed woman held the upper hand…but
no matter what, she wasn’t able to defeat Ji Ning. In particular, with that giant, spherical region, one
enormous bulge after another would appear. Clearly, the five rays of sword light within were still
struggling, and with greater and greater power. The azure-robed woman couldn’t help but focus a
great deal of her attention on that sphere.

In the corner of the Dao Debate Palace. The short elder’s eyes suddenly lit up, and he murmured to
himself, “My heart holds only the sword?”

Immortal Diancai stared at his disciple as well. He, too, had noticed Ning’s change. “My heart holds
only the sword!” Immortal Diancai said softly, “Finally, his sword-heart has finally begun to reach this
level.”

“Now things are unclear,” the short old man sighed. “This disciple of yours truly is a rare talent. This
Dao Debate Palace is currently filled with the disciples of our Black-White College. So many
geniuses are present…this disciple of yours is welcoming all challengers, and so in the end, he will
definitely be defeated. And yet, this process has caused his sword-heart to grow brighter and
brighter.”

“It’s still early. Let’s see if he can actually comprehend it thoroughly.” Immortal Diancai stared at Ji
Ning. Stared at him without blinking.

…..

Simultaneously executing six [Tripartite Lotus Swords] was Ning at his absolute limit, and he even
felt his head going dizzy. But Ning didn’t think of anything else; the only thing he wanted to do was
fight! Fight with all his power!

His heart was completely focused on those flying swords of his. In this moment…Ning, who had
gained insight into the heart of a Sword Immortal long ago, was currently seeing his own Sword
Immortal’s heart grow brighter and brighter. In fact, one memory after another began to flit up
through his mind.

“Ji Ning, I am going to demonstrate the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword] to you – the Lustrous
Sword-Heart!” Prior to this series of Dao Debates, Ning had gone to see Immortal Diancai, who had
carefully explained the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword] to him.

“This is the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword]!”

Sword-light flashed like fire, slashing through the air but not dissipating.

“This, too, is the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword]!”

A ray of sword-light flashed like water, circling and spinning in the air, as though the sky itself had
been parted from the world by this layer of water..

“This, too, is the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword]!”

A cyan light that tore open the skies themselves.

One sword technique another another…they were clearly different sword techniques. Some were
average in power, while others were incredibly powerful. But according to Immortal Diancai, all of
these techniques were the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword].
“The [Three-Foot Sword] is a supreme sword technique which leads to one of the Grand Daos, the
Dao of the Sword. In order to become a true Sword Immortal who has comprehended the Grand
Dao of the Sword, the first thing you need is a sword-heart. Over many years of training, you have
long ago unconsciously developed the heart of a Sword Immortal, but the so called sword-heart
requires one to truly have supreme loyalty to the ‘sword’. You must understand your own sword-
heart.”

“Once you truly comprehend your sword-heart and learn what it means to be a Sword Immortal…
only then will you have opened the gates to actually becoming a Sword Immortal. That will be the
moment when you will naturally learn how to execute the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword].”

“The first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword] – Lustrous Sword-Heart!”

“After your sword-heart becomes lustrous and bright, you will be able to see the true path a Sword
Immortal must follow.”

……

The scenes of Immortal Diancai displaying the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword], the ‘Lustrous
Sword-Heart’, played over and over in his mind. Some of the attacks were extremely weak, while
others were extremely strong. However, all of them were flashing through Ning’s mind, and Ning felt
vaguely moved; he began to dimly understand something, although he didn’t fully comprehend yet.
However, he knew that he had already begun to gain a few insights.

Whoosh! Sword-light continued to flash and dance. The [Tripartite Lotus Sword] continued to flash in
the air, and the sword-light grew sharper and sharper, the more growing mightier and mightier, to the
point where they began to press down on the silken ribbons of light.

“Rumble…” The five [Tripartite Lotus Swords] within the enormous spherical region were beginning
to struggle more and more forcefully as well. One giant bulge after another appeared on the surface
of the sphere of silken light, each bulge greater than the last.

Whitesnow, the distant azure-robed woman who was seated in the lotus position, began to sweat.

“What?!” Holyfire, watching from afar, had a changed look on his face.

The fat, sloppy-looking youth’s eyes instantly turned round. “How the hell…he actually, he actually
made a breakthrough in comprehending the sword.”
The black-robed woman’s face, formerly as cold as frost, suddenly had a look of shock appear on it.
“A Sword Immortal?”

…..

BANG!

A sudden explosion rang out. The sphere of silken light, which had been stretched to its limits, finally
exploded. Silk ribbons scattered everywhere, and the six [Tripartite Lotus Swords] once more rose
into the skies with incomparable sharpness. The power of the swords was clearly much greater than
before, and they charged directly towards the Skynet Golem. Soon, the protective armor of the
Skynet Golem was shattered.

“Ji Ning wins!” The white-haired elder called out in a high voice.

A look of disbelief filled the face of the azure-robed woman. Someone had actually made a
breakthrough mid-battle? She couldn’t help but mumble to herself, “A monster, he really is a monster
of the Dao of the Sword.”

Ning rose to his feet, turning his gaze towards the entire hall. He called out in a high voice, “Are
there any other senior fellow disciples who wish to exchange pointers with me?”

……

The short elder in the corner couldn’t help but say, “A true genius of the Dao of the Sword. He really
is a genius of the Dao of the Sword. This Ji Ning was born to walk the path of the Sword Immortals!
His innate affinity towards the sword surpasses that of others; in fact, we can use the word
‘monstrous’ to describe it. In addition, he has a heart which is supremely devoted to the sword.”

“Right.” Immortal Diancai stared at the distant Ji Ning. “He was meant to be a Sword Immortal.”

“Yet another disciple has gone up.” The short elder nodded. “It’s good that he did. What Ji Ning
needs right now is battle experience. The greater a pressure is brought to bear on him, the more
lustrous his sword-heart will become.”

“Perhaps…through these battles…he might even comprehend the first stance of the [Three-Foot
Sword] – Lustrous Sword-Heart!” Immortal Diancai mused to himself.

……..
Ning stood there atop the stone pillar. On the other stone pillar was a black-robed youth. Ning’s eyes
seemed to be filled with the light of the sword, and he said in a clear voice, “Senior apprentice-
brother, please make your move!”

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 39, [Three-Foot Sword] – The First Stance

“Junior apprentice-brother, for you to gain sudden enlightenment regarding the sword in a moment of
battle means that you truly are a marvelous talent for training in the sword. No wonder Immortal
Diancai took you on as his disciple.” The black-robed youth said calmly, “Junior apprentice-brother,
my techniques are far more vicious than senior apprentice-sister Whitesnow. You must be careful.”

“Senior apprentice-brother, feel free to use everything you have!” Ning sat down in the lotus position,
and the black-robed man did so as well. The two stared at each other from afar.

The surrounding area was silent once again. Previously, the two Wanxiang Adepts, Bloodshadow
and Whitesnow, had been defeated consecutively. The person who had now joined the fray,
Venomblood, was naturally even more formidable than the two of them in a discourse on the Dao.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have come.

“Go! Go! Go!” The black-robed youth’s eyes flashed with cold light. Instantly, oily-jade hooks began
to fly out from the back of the golem he was controlling in the arena below. Eighteen oily-green
poisoned hooks slashed through the air, and while flying over, the tips of these eighteen poisoned
hooks began to faintly glow with a venomous, tricolor light. The eighteen poisoned hooks flew
straight towards the Thousandswords Golem which Ning was controlling.

It seemed as though the power of this attack was compressed; he didn’t sense any danger at all.

“Eh?” Ning’s face changed slightly. A tricolored poisonous light? Previously, he had fought against
Bloodshadow and Whitesnow. Bloodshadow was apparently someone who focused on a single Dao,
and had mixed in his insights into other Daos into his techniques; much like Ning, he had reached
the Dao Domain level in just a single Dao, and not in the others. However, Bloodshadow had
reached an extremely deep level of understanding into that Dao, most likely far surpassing Ning’s
understanding of his own. Ning had to rely on the power of his ‘divine soul’ to defeat Bloodshadow.

As for Whitesnow, she should have mastered two different Dao Domains! And this Venomblood…
should have mastered three different Dao Domains!
Immortal Diancai had told him that after he reached the level of having three Dao Domains, he would
be able to unleash the true power of his [Tripartite Lotus Sword]. But this Venomblood had already
reached this level.

“So what if you have gained three Dao Domains? Go!” A fierce sword-light flashed in Ning’s eyes,
and eighteen flying swords instantly flew out from the back of his Thousandswords Golem.

The eighteen flying swords slashed through the air, instantly booming into lotus flowers and
transforming into eighteen flashing sword-lights of the [Tripartite Lotus Swords]. Although a sword-
light formed from three swords was very powerful…when dealing with a foe who shot out eighteen
attacks, Ning naturally would use eighteen of his own to deal with it!

A competition on quantity? Ji Ning had never feared anyone in this regard!

“Cling!” “Clang!” “Swish!”

Eighteen blooming lotuses of sword-light on one side, and eighteen venomous tricolored hooks on
the other. It was as though eighteen Immortal practitioners were controlling them; they clashed in
midair time and time again.

Those eighteen venomous tricolored hooks possessed shocking power and were able to completely
suppress Ning’s attacks, but Ning’s sword-light attacks were aligned with water, and possessed
tremendous resilience and elasticity. In addition, the tremendous pressure caused Ning to once
more enter that earlier battle-mode; to enter the mindset of discarding everything, leaving behind
only the sword in his heart!

My heart holds only the sword!

“Kill! Kill! Kill!” The lotuses of sword-light flew about, growing sharper and sharper, to the point where
even the distant, spectating disciples could visibly notice that the power with which Ning controlled
his [Tripartite Lotus Swords] was slowly growing. The sword-lights seemed to be growing ‘sharper’,
to the point where they were slowly taking on a life of their own.

They were continuing to grow more powerful! The might of the lotus sword-lights continuously rose!

……
“He’s still in a prajna-state of comprehending the sword.” Holyfire stared into the distance. “This
junior apprentice-brother possesses truly terrifying potential. He truly is a marvelous student of the
sword.”

…….

“The power of the sword-light is continuously rising. Can it be that this junior apprentice-brother is
really going to enter the first stage of the Sword Immortal today?” The fat, sloppy-looking youth
watched quietly. On the path of Immortals, where were many subtle, varying branches of
enlightenment, such as the ‘Yin-Yang branch’, the ‘Taiji branch’, the ‘Sword Immortal branch’, and
more.

Sword Immortals traversed the Grand Dao of the Sword! Sword Immortals had always been famous
for their combat power, and could be described as the branch most suited for combat. For example,
Immortal Diancai, or Immortal Northwalker, the most famous figure in the entire history of the Black-
White College. They were all Sword Immortals!

……..

“Formidable.” The black-robed maiden let out a soft exclamation of praise as well. As for Ninelotus,
upon hearing this, she immediately stared towards Ning in the arena, her eyes filled with curiosity.

……..

In the corner of the Dao Debate Palace, the short elder was leisurely holding a calabash of wine.
Taking a mouthful of the Immortal wine, he glanced sideways at Immortal Diancai, who was staring
at the battle without blinking. Fivecraze let out a snickering, strange laugh. “Junior apprentice-brother
Diancai, don’t worry. Judging from the situation…this disciple of yours is almost there. Soon, he shall
truly understand what his sword-heart is.”

“Mm.” Immortal Diancai’s lips moved slightly, but his eyes continued to focus unblinkingly on the
battle going on. This was, after all, his very first disciple.

………

The black-robed youth, Venomblood, continued to sit there in the lotus position, the look on his face
growing increasingly ugly. “How can it be like this? A prajna-state of enlightenment should have a
limit; how it is that his sword-light is continuously rising in power? At first, he was at a disadvantage,
but now he’s slowly beginning to gain the upper hand. When exactly will there be a limit to this
prajna-state?”

“What the hell is he gaining insights into?” The black-robed youth gritted his teeth.

For the likes of the Sloppy Daoist and the other supreme disciples, they were able to tell at a single
glance that Ning was walking onto the path of Sword Immortals. However, Venomblood’s experience
was clearly a bit lacking; all he knew was that Ning was in the middle of a prajna-state of
enlightenment, but he had no idea that Ning was embarking onto the path of Sword Immortals.

In midair, those eighteen lotus flowers of sword-light clashed more and more frenetically against
those eighteen venomous tricolored hooks. Those venomous hooks were struggling as much as
they could…but they were clearly at a disadvantage.

“Grr!” The black-robed youth’s gaze flashed with a fierce light, and a berserk feeling filled his heart.
Those eighteen venomous hooks instantly began to transform, forming an enormous venomous
tricolored hook that was more than thirty meters long. The entire venomous tricolored hook glowed
with a hazy light, and it swept directly towards Ning’s Thousandswords Golem.

“Break!” The eighteen lotus flowers of sword-light instantly transformed as well. With six flying
swords forming a formation base, they instantly changed into an enormous [Tripartite Lotus Sword]
which went to welcome the attack.

“BANG!” An explosive collision. The venomous hook was instantly blown apart. The enormous
[Tripartite Lotus Sword] howled through the air, piercing directly through the protective armor over
the body of the Venomhook Golem.

“Ji Ning wins!” The white-haired elder’s voice rang out once more, and at the same time, the grand
sealing barrier began to disappear.

“I lost.” A gloomy look was in the eyes of the black-robed youth, who had struggled for so long and
yet had still lost. He gave the fur-clad youth seated atop the other stone pillar a glance from the
corner of his eyes. Then, he leapt forward, transforming into a streak of light as he left the battlefield.
He handed the two jade bottles to the white-haired elder, then turned and left.

The entire Dao Debate Palace was completely silent for a moment. And then, all sorts of discussions
rang out.

“He lost.”
“Senior apprentice-brother Venomblood lost. Senior apprentice-brother Venomblood has gained
three Dao Domains.”

“Even senior apprentice-brother Venomblood lost. What should we do next?”

Variations on this conversation filled the entire Dao Debate Palace. Many of the disciples were
saying the same thing; if even Venomblood had lost, which of them should go up next?

“Well done! Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, well done!” Northson resolutely supported Ning. He
was the only person who called out in support of Ning…and he and Ning were the only members in
the new disciples ‘faction’.

The other fellow disciples were all chatting amongst themselves, and also discussing who amongst
them should be the next to go up. Only, none of them noticed that something unusual was
happening to Ji Ning right now.

……..

In fact, not even the Primal Daoists that were watching this through a water-scrying technique were
able to notice. After all, they weren’t actually present and able to witness things firsthand. Only two
did – Immortal Fivecraze and Immortal Diancai. They noticed something unusual about Ning.

After defeating the black-robed youth, Venomblood, Ning hadn’t risen to his feet as he had in the
past. Instead, he continued to stay seated in the lotus position.

“Sense his aura.” Immortal Fivecraze’s eyes were growing brighter and brighter. “Ji Ning’s aura…his
aura is sharpening and intensifying.”

“Right.” Immortal Diancai’s eyes were shining as well. He stared fixedly at Ning, seated in the lotus
position atop the stone pillar. For a powerful Sword Immortal like Diancai, he could feel that the
distant Ji Ning was also beginning to emit a similar sword aura as Diancai himself had. Although it
was incredibly weak, it was slowly beginning to manifest.

“He’s growing more and more powerful.” Immortal Fivecraze couldn’t even be bothered to drink
wine. He stared excitedly at the distant Ning. “I feel as though he has completely changed into a
sword.”

“He made the breakthrough.” A smile appeared on the face of Immortal Diancai as well.
As soon as his words came out…the distant Ning arose from the lotus position, coming to his feet.

…….

When he had been battling against Whitesnow, Ning’s mind had become filled with the scenes of his
master, Immortal Diancai, teaching him about the sword. At that time, he had gained a vague feeling
for what the ‘Lustrous Sword-Heart’ was. Now that he had battled Venomblood, his insights had
grown even deeper, and the power of his sword-light was growing increasingly great as well.

In the instant he had defeated Venomblood, he felt as though he were a bubble that had stretched to
its limit, then instantly exploded. All of those doubts and questions in his heart had vanished. Ning’s
heart had become truly lustrous!

“If you wish to become a Sword Immortal, you must have the utmost sincerity owards the sword! The
sword, and the sword in your heart. If you have the sword in your heart, then even with a rock, a
throwing hammer, or a wooden stick, you’ll still be able to execute sword arts.”

“For a Sword Immortal, everything is part of the Dao of the Sword. The Rainwater Dao, the Daos of
Wind, Fire, and other Daos…they will all be merged into the Dao of the Sword.”

“The sword is my body. The sword is my life. The sword is my path.”

Ning opened his eyes. His eyes, his entire body…every single part of him seemed to be brimming
with sword-ki! It was as though Ning himself was a peerless sword!

The sword of a Sword Immortal was the Sword Immortal himself. He was the sword, and he could
use any magic treasures in executing sword arts.

The sword of a Sword Immortal was his Dao. This Dao, when taken to its absolute peak, led one to
supremacy amongst the Three Realms.

The sword of a Sword Immortal was what he relied on. On his path as an Immortal cultivator, only by
using the sword…would he be able to carve a path to the very top. If Gods blocked him, he would kill
Gods; if Buddhas blocked him, he would slay the Buddhas. He would carve a path through all which
would oppose him, and he would rely on his sword to do this!

“I want for my mother and father to be able to live forever.”

“I want my loved ones to be able to live joyful lives.”

“I want for tragedies to never befall me.”

“I want to never again be controlled by the hands of fate!”

Ning’s sword-heart was now completely shining and translucent; all of his hopes, his desires, his
dreams, they were all embodied within his sword! His body, his life, even his future hopes and
aspirations; they were all entrusted to the sword. The sword was what he would rely on to carve out
his future and his path.

“The first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword], the Lustrous Sword-Heart.” Ning instantly
comprehended the very first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword].

There were many different ways in which the first stance could be executed. What one needed to do
was to release the technique in accordance with the insight one had gained into one’s own sword-
heart. That would be enough.

…….

Ning rose to his feet. Standing there, atop the stone pillar, he stared at his fellow disciples in the Dao
Debate Palace, then once more spoke out.

“Are there any other fellow disciples who wish to provide me with guidance?”

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 40 – That Chop

The Black-White College disciples within the Dao Debate Palace began to turn their gazes towards a
small number of people. Venomblood was already quite a powerful Wanxiang Adept in terms of the
Dao Debates, and yet even he had been defeated by Ji Ning. Then, in order to defeat Ji Ning…they
would need someone even more powerful. There were only so many who fit the criteria.

There were only ten or so disciples who had multiple Dao Domains and were extremely strong.

“Given the situation, I would like to test your strength for myself, junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” A
white-robed man who was standing next to Holyfire suddenly stood out with a calm laugh.
“Northmont Blackcurrent?”

“Senior apprentice-brother Northmont Blackcurrent is about to engage. Senior apprentice-brother

Blackcurrent’s ‘Five Energies Grand Grappling Hand’ technique is astonishingly strong, far more so
than senior apprentice-brother Venomblood’s technique.”

“If senior apprentice-brother Blackcurrent engages, he will definitely win.”

Debates rang out once again. Blackcurrent, amongst the Wanxiang Adepts of the Black-White
College, could be considered a well-known figure. But of course, in normal, real battles, the
Fiendgod disciples would be even stronger. The likes of Bloodshadow, for example, possessed real
combat power that was simply heaven-defying. On the battlefield, Fiendgod Body Refiners
possessed an innate advantage to begin with.

Although Blackcurrent was a Ki Refiner, if one only looked at comprehension of the Dao, he
definitely was one of the most impressive of the disciples who had comprehended multiple Dao
Domains. He vastly surpassed Venomblood and the others.

“Northmont Blackcurrent?” Ning looked towards him, immediately recognizing him. When he had first
gone to visit the Black-White College, he had encountered this Blackcurrent fellow. Back then,
Blackcurrent had held him in no regard. “Brother Baiwei, back then, described this Northmont
Blackcurrent as a viper dressed in a sheepskin. Now, it seems…at least I see the sheepskin part.”

Blackcurrent had a smile on his face. He moved with leisurely grace, and was dressed in white
clothes. Indeed, he appeared quite elegant, and it seemed as though he had quite a few friends.

Soon, Blackcurrent emerged from the side room with a construct. With a step, he flew directly atop
the stone pillar, and his golem also landed at the arena below.

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” Blackcurrent stood on the pillar, staring into the distance.
Laughing, he said, “When I first met you, I had no idea that I would be discussing the Dao with you
today at the Dao Debate Palace. The changes of the world truly are marvelous and remarkable.”

“To be able to battle with you, senior apprentice-brother…I, too, am amazed by the countless
transformations of the world,” Ning replied.

Blackcurrent nodded gently, but the desire for combat was quite evident in his eyes. Because he
was born from a fairly remote branch of the Northmont clan of Stillwater, he had always looked down
upon those main lineage disciples who had relied on the protection of their parents. He had long ago
relegated Ning to the side of people such as Baiwei. Ning’s earlier repeated successes had caused
him to feel all the more unhappy.

“His talent is quite exceptional. However, it’s enough for him to have won this many battles,”
Blackcurrent mused to himself.

Suddenly…a white-haired, white-robed man standing amidst the many fellow disciples within the
Dao Debate Palace spoke out. “Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” Ning turned his to look, and as he
did, he clasped his hands. “Senior apprentice-brother Bloodshadow.”

Bloodshadow was a bit weaker in terms of the Dao Debate, but in a real battle, he was definitely one
of the top-ranked disciples of the third generation.

“Junior apprentice-brother, first you defeated three Zifu Disciples, then you defeated myself,
Whitesnow, and Venomblood. And now, you are going to battle with Northmont Blackcurrent…I am
truly in admiration of you. Junior apprentice-brother Blackcurrent is exceptionally talented, while you,
junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, are a peerless genius. It is hard to say who will win this fight. I’m
willing to take out a treasure and add to the intrigue of this battle. If you are able to defeat junior
apprentice-brother Blackcurrent, I will give this treasure to you.”

As soon as these words came out, there was instantly a hullabaloo. Bloodshadow’s words were
rather ‘damaging’ to Blackcurrent’s face, and he clearly was closer to Ji Ning’s side.

“Hmph.” Blackcurrent felt some unhappiness in his heart, but Bloodshadow was one of the third
generation disciples he could least afford to irritate. On the surface, he maintained his calm, smiling
demeanor.

“How can I accept this?” Ning immediately said. “No need to be humble,” Bloodshadow replied. “This
treasure is a Mortal-ranked magic treasure; to me, it’s not very useful. When I was carrying out an
assignment for the Raindragon Guard, I accidentally entered an Immortal estate, and I was lucky
enough to manage to pick up a sword formation technique. I saw that you, junior apprentice-brother,
are skilled in controlling flying swords, and quite a few of them at once at that. This flying sword
formation I acquired is a [Heavenly Spirits, Earthly Fiends] sword formation with a total of 108 flying
swords. They are useless to me, but to you, junior apprentice-brother, they will definitely be of great
use. However, if you want to acquire them, you’ll have to show off your abilities in this battle, junior
apprentice-brother.”

The white-robed, white-haired Bloodshadow had a smile on his face. He did indeed have a very
good opinion of Ji Ning.
He had also been the first of the Wanxiang Adepts to engage Ning. In reality, he was simply
‘throwing a brick to attract jade’, seeking to draw out the others. He often engaged in life-and-death
battles, and so his senses were exceptionally acute. He could vaguely sense that the distant Ji Ning
was like a sword, and he had understood that this junior apprentice-brother of his would have an
unlimited potential.

In taking out this set of flying swords…although he said that it would be the reward for a victory,
even if Ning lost, when the time came, Bloodshadow could still find an excuse to give it to Ning. And
so, the two would naturally grow closer to each other.

“I will definitely work hard,” Ning said. How could this Mortal-ranked flying sword formation be truly
useless to Bloodshadow? If nothing else, he could take it to the Heavenly Treasures Mountain and
exchange it for quite a few elemental badges. Clearly, this senior apprentice-brother wanted to
befriend him.

…….

“That kid Bloodshadow is the first to move to befriend your disciple.” The short elder held the gourd
of wine in his hand, and was drinking it while chatting leisurely.

Immortal Diancai nodded lightly. “Bloodshadow is also a truly heroic figure amongst the third
generation.”

“He stands on the side of your disciple, so he’s a heroic figure?” The short elder gave him a stare,
then said with pursed lips, “Still, to tell the truth, although this kid Bloodshadow is a bit slow in terms
of comprehending the Dao, he’s moved stably and confidently. In particular…he’s quite good at
enduring suffering. Of the various Fiendgod Body Refining Techniques, the [Indestructible
Bloodshadow Body] is described as the most painful technique to train in. If one is successful,
however, the results are bizarrely, astonishingly powerful. In addition, this kid, Bloodshadow, often
takes on dangerous missions for the Raindragon Guard. With his special, unbreakable body, he has
walked the path between life and death on multiple occasions, and his power is increasing at a faster
and faster rate. His divine ability is fairly powerful as well, now…when he first joined, he was
unremarkable, but now he’s one of the most powerful third generation disciples. I imagine that in a
few more centuries, he will have become one of the most powerful members of our Black-White
College.”

“You have such a good view of him?” Immortal Diancai was surprised. The short elder sighed.
“Although comprehending the Dao is important, the Dao-heart is even more important. Once you’ve
seen as much as I have, you will understand.”
“Alright.” Immortal Diancai gave Bloodshadow a long, deep look.

“Battle’s starting.” The short elder’s eyes lit up as he stared at the distant battle. Ning and
Blackcurrent had each already begun to control their golems in combat. “Junior apprentice-brother
Diancai, who do you think will win? As I see it, although your disciples has comprehended the first
stance of the [Three-Foot Sword], that first stance involves comprehending one’s own sword-heart!”

“What is his sword-heart like? No one knows. How powerful will the techniques he unleashes be?
Hard to say. But this ‘Five Energies Grand Grappling Hand’ of Blackcurrent is far more powerful than
the technique that Venomblood kid was using.” The short elder looked at Immortal Diancai, eagerly
awaiting a look of concern to appear on his face.

But Immortal Diancai remained as solemn as ever. “What is his sword-heart like? We’ll know if we
watch.”

“Oh.” The short elder mumbled a response, then shook his head and sighed. “Ohoho, your disciple
is at a disadvantage. Seems as though it’ll be dangerous for him.”

……

Everyone watching what was going on within the sealed arena was holding their breaths.

“Will this junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning be able to produce another miracle?” Holyfire’s eyes were
narrowed.

……..

“It seems as though the sharpness of his sword-light is no longer increasing. Has his prajna-state
come to an end?” The fat, sloppy-looking youth frowned as he watched. “If it has already come to an
end, it’s hard to say who will win.”

…….

“Senior apprentice-sister, will junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning be able to win?” Ninelotus asked. The
black-robed maiden, the Rainbowflame Fairy, just watched silently without saying a word.

…….
“Win, win, win.” Northson and Winterain were standing together in a corner. Northson’s fists were
tightly clenched, and his eyes were round.

…….

Within the grand sealing formation. Although Ning, seated in the lotus position atop the stone pillar,
was at a definite disadvantage, those nine [Tripartite Lotus Swords] were continuing to struggle and
resist the enormous ‘Five Energies Grand Grappling Hand’. However, by the looks of things, if they
exchanged a few more blows, the [Tripartite Lotus Swords] were going to collapse.

Ning was very calm. He didn’t panic in the slightest, which caused Blackcurrent to laugh coldly in his
heart. “It’s about time for you to lose.”

What he didn’t know was that Ning was currently storing up his power. In his heart, the various
insights that he had gained into the sword were surging out in waves.

“To be carefree! To do as I please!”

“To force even fate to beat a retreat!”

Ning’s eyes suddenly exploded with a terrifying sword-intent, and an astonishing sword-intent
radiated from his entire body.

“The first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword] – Lustrous Sword-Heart!” Ning’s gaze solidified, and
instantly, a rumbling sound could be heard. Every single flying sword on the back of the
Thousandswords Golem flew out, including the flying swords he had used before. There were a
thousand flying swords, clustered there in the air, and they caused all of the spectators to be
completely shocked. So many flying swords?! What were they going to do?

Every single one of the thousand flying swords was pointing directly to the ‘Five Energies Grand
Grappling Hand’ ahead of them.

“CHOP!” Ning bellowed forth this single word! The thousand flying swords instantly blossomed into
lotus flowers, and at the same time, they all chopped forward. The thousand flying swords had
instantly transformed into a single, enormous sword-light. Carrying irresistible power and majesty,
they chopped forward!

This single chop! It contained the invincible will of Ning’s sword-heart!

In his past life, Ning had experienced the information explosion era. As the saying goes, one who
enters the red dust of the mortal world 1 will depart while covered in it. The distracting thoughts
generated by the information explosion era were even more astonishing than the distracting
thoughts generated during the era of wandering barbarians.

The experiences he had in this life, the lives and deaths of those he loved, the warmth of family; it
was these things that allowed Ning’s heart to slowly grow lustrous and be purified of those
distracting thoughts.

If a person were to live in a perfect utopia, a peach garden beyond all worldly matters, then perhaps
that person would be able to maintain a pure, lustrous heart. But this sort of pure, lustrous heart
would be a very weak one. Upon encountering any setbacks or seductions, it might easily crumble.

But Ning had seen far too many things in his past life, in the information explosion era. Tormented
and wracked by pain, he had watched as others freely ran about, read books, had lovers, and more.
How painful and tortured that had been!

His heart had long ago been stained by the red dust of the mortal world. In this life, the love and
warmth of family had slowly polished it bright, and now, his heart was all the stronger and all the
more unbreakable!

It was admittedly praiseworthy for someone who stood at the peak of a mountain to maintain perfect
purity, but for someone to be born from the sludge to remain unsullied was even harder to do!

“This is my first stance of my [Three-Foot Sword]!”

“Chop!”

“Chop!!!”

“CHOP!!!”

Ning roared the word ‘chop’ three times, and the sword-light in his eyes was visible to the naked eye.
That powerful sword-intent, that mighty, irresistible will; it caused even those two Immortals watching
from afar to be moved.

BOOM!!!!!
The thousand flying swords, linked into a single, massive burst of sword-light, were all chopping in
unison towards a single direction!

Although that mighty, heaven-defying ‘Five Energies Grand Grappling Hand’ was able to resist for
just a brief moment, with a mighty boom, it shattered apart like glass.

Book 7, Stillwater City, Chapter 41 – Yu Wei and Ji Ning

Some of the extremely high-ranking disciples who had been seated, such as senior apprentice-
brother Holyfire, the fat, sloppy-looking youth, and the black-robed maiden had all risen to their feet.
Looks of shock were on their faces, and they stared, stunned, at the fur-clad youth atop the stone
pillar in the distance.

As for Northmont Blackcurrent, located on the other stone pillar within the grand sealing formation,
his face had instantly turned ashen.

“I, I lost?”

“I, how could I have lost? How could I have lost?” Blackcurrent’s eyes were filled with disbelief. He
was an incomparably prideful figure. He didn’t even hold high-level members of the Northmont clan,
such as main lineage members like Northmont Baiwei, with any regard. This was precisely because
he was absolutely confident in his own abilities. But a new disciple who had just entered the school,
and one who was extremely friendly terms with Baiwei to boot…had actually defeated him in a ‘Dao
Debate’, an arena he had been extremely self-confident in.

“It was that sword…that sword…” Blackcurrent’s mind still clearly remembered that terrifying sword,
that chop that was launched simultaneously by a thousand flying swords. It felt as though that chop
had cut a scar straight into his Dao-heart.

“What a terrifying sword. Only when facing that sword head-on can a person truly understand how
terrifying it is. A sword with no regrets and nothing held back; a sword which nothing can block.”
Blackcurrent’s heart was filled with panic and disbelief that he had lost, but when he thought back to
that sword, he felt completely powerless.
“Ji Ning wins!” The white-haired elder shouted loudly, and the entire grand sealing formation
vanished.

“Senior apprentice-brother Blackcurrent, thank you for taking it easy on me.” Ning’s voice rang out,
echoing throughout the entire Dao Debate Palace. Only now did Blackcurrent come to his senses.
He forcibly clamped down on the wild thoughts running through his mind, then clasped his hands
and said, “Junior apprentice-brother, you truly are formidable. I sigh that I am inferior to you.” After
speaking, he released the bond with the golem, then transformed into a streak of light and left the
arena. He handed the two jade bottles to the white-haired elder, and then, silently and wordlessly,
entered the crowd of spectating fellow disciples.

…….

“What a powerful sword,” the fat, sloppy-looking youth mused to himself.

…….

“In a few decades, our Black-White College will have produced yet another formidable figure.”
Holyfire had a hint of a smile on his face as he looked at Ning.

……..

In the entire Dao Debate Palace, only the two Immortals truly understood that sword technique of
Ning’s! “Lustrous Sword-Heart! What a fine Lustrous Sword-Heart!” The short elder’s eyes were
shining as he stared at Ning. “Such a powerful sword-heart, such a resolute sword-heart…our Black-
White College has truly taken in a treasure this time.”

“We have indeed.” Immortal Diancai was staring towards the distant Ning as well, and his eyes were
blazing. “I wonder, how in the world did this disciple of mine manage to generate a sword-heart such
as this in ten or so short years. The experiences he had did involve life and death, but for them to
produce such a powerful sword-heart…this is truly inconceivable.”

“Hahaha, just you watch and see. Those other fellows are probably going to arrive soon,” the short
elder chortled. Immortal Diancai laughed as well. The short elder let out a weird laugh and said,
“They are definitely feeling regret as well. Regret for not having come to the Dao Debate Palace to
watch in person..”

……..
The headmaster of the Black-White College, Daoist Jadesea, was currently seated in the lotus
position on his bed. Above him, there was a watery scrying mirror which clearly displayed the
discourses on the Dao that were going on within the Dao Debate Palace.

“That sword!” A look of shock appeared on the face of Daoist Jadesea, who was so handsome that
women would be infatuated with him. “Can it be that he has embarked on the path of the Sword
Immortal?”

“Ugh!” Daoist Jadesea let out a regretful sigh. He could only see the images through water-scrying,
but the auras, the presences, the ripples of the world…all of the intricate details were lost.

“I’m going.” Daoist Jadesea didn’t hesitate at all. Waving his hand, he made the water-scrying mirror
disappear, and then his body flickered and disappeared.

……..

Quite a few of the Primal Daoists of the Black-White College were watching this battle through the
water-scrying technique. When they saw that sword emerge, all of them were awestruck. However,
because none of them had personally seen and sensed the sword in the Dao Debate Palace, they
weren’t completely certain of what it was either. Thus, all of them hurried towards the Dao Debate
Palace…and even two of the Immortals headed there as well.

………..

The third generation disciples who were in the Dao Debate Palace, in turn, had no idea about what
was going on in the outside world. They were all chatting amongst themselves. Even Blackcurrent
had lost? Then who would be the next to stand forward? Blackcurrent could be considered one of
the top ten figures amongst those who had multiple Dao Domains.

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, don’t be so sentimental. It’s just a set of flying swords.” Senior
apprentice-brother Bloodshadow was currently chatting with Ning, and offering to him that set of
[Heavenly Spirits, Earthly Fiends] sword formation. Ning laughed. “Fine. Then your junior apprentice-
brother will accept it.”

The simple interactions Ning had had with Bloodshadow made him feel quite well-disposed towards
him. He accepted the set of flying swords, and by doing so, he was clearly acknowledging
Bloodshadow as a friend.
“That’s more like it.” Bloodshadow nodded. “Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, your talent is
astonishing. However, the path of Immortals is not one in which you can simply bury yourself in
training. You also need to wander the world and experience many things for yourself. I imagine that
in a few years at most, junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, you will go out and adventure through the
world. Most likely, you will also join the Raindragon Guard and whatnot. If there’s anything you need,
feel free to come find me. I’m quite familiar regarding the Raindragon Guard.”

“When the time comes, I will definitely go and trouble you, senior apprentice-brother,” Ning said with
a laugh.

“Eh?” Bloodshadow suddenly turned his head to look, and Ning did so as well. A figure had emerged
from the third generation disciples.

“Her?” Ning’s pupils contracted. The person who had walked out was a black-robed maiden.
Previously, she had sat there, surrounded by others; even Ninelotus had been by her side. Clearly,
her status was extremely high.

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” The black-robed maiden walked over, then said in a cool, calm
voice, “I should be the most powerful of the disciples who have comprehended multiple Dao
Domains. If you defeat me, then it will naturally be up to senior apprentice-brother Holyfire and the
others will come out to fight you.” After finishing, she turned and moved towards the side room to
select a golem.

“You are doomed.” Bloodshadow sucked a cold breath. “Who is she?” Although Ning had a guess,
he still asked the question.

“The Rainbowflame Fairy, Yu Wei!” Bladeshadow spoke in a very soft voice. “She is a reincarnated
Immortal, and her talent is terrifyingly great. When she had first entered the school, none of the old
disciples chose to have a Dao Debate with her! Her training speed is astonishing as well; she is
currently just over twenty years old, but her power has already reached a frightening level.”

Ning was inwardly shocked. A reincarnated Immortal? His master had also told him that there were
only a total of three reincarnated Immortals amongst the third generation disciples. Two had trained
for over eighty years, while one had been training for over twenty years. The one who had been
training for over twenty years was most likely this black-robed woman, Yu Wei.

“No wonder she said that she is the most powerful out of those who have comprehended multiple
Dao Domains,” Ning mused to himself in shock.
“Junior apprentice-brother, I’d like to help you, but I’m unable to.” Bloodshadow immediately
departed.

“So what if she is a reincarnated Immortal? She’s just trained for ten or so more years than I have,
that’s all.” Although Ning was on high alert, he didn’t feel the slightest bit of dread.

…..

Just a few moments later. Ning was atop the stone pillar in the arena, under the grand sealing
barrier, and he was staring in astonishment at the scene before him.

He had released a thousand flying swords, which had combined to form the first stance of the
[Three-Foot Sword], and the power of this attack was truly astonishing. But this Rainbowflame Fairy,
Yu Wei, had actually also chosen the Thousandswords Golem, and had also released a thousand
flying swords, all of which had transformed into a sea of fiery sword light.

A scorching sea of fiery sword-light. A sharp, fierce sea of fiery sword-light. An irresistible sea of fiery
sword light!

A head-on clash! A frontal clash!

Although Ning’s sword-light was extremely sharp and extremely strong, that all-devouring flame was
even more berserk. It smashed apart Ning’s sword-light, piercing past the protective armor of Ning’s
Thousandswords Golem.

“Yu Wei wins!” The white-haired elder called out. It was a clean, straightforward win.

“I lost!” Ning rose to his feet and laughed. “Senior apprentice-sister, you are formidable. I whole-
heartedly acknowledge my loss.”

“When I was sixteen, I wasn’t as strong as you are.” The Rainbowflame Fairy, Yu Wei, gave Ning a
glance. “Right. Don’t forget to give me those hundred black-white pellets and those five kilograms of
liquefied elemental essence.”

Ning stared at her, instantly stupefied. He opened his mouth, but no words came out. Why would an
exalted reincarnated Immortal act as though she cared about the wager that much? What, did she
think that he was going to welch on their bet?

……
By now, the various Primal Daoists had all arrived at the Dao Debate Palace. They made it just in
the nick of time, and were just barely able to catch the sight of Ning battling against the
Rainbowflame Fairy, Yu Wei. All of them nodded inwardly. “He really is a Sword Immortal. And what
a powerful sword-heart! In a few centuries, our Black-White College will most likely produce yet
another Sword Immortal that is comparable to Uncle-Master Diancai!”

In a corner of the Dao Debate Palace. Whoosh! Whoosh! Two more Immortals had appeared next to
Immortal Fivecraze and Immortal Diancai. One was a bearded old man with a crown on his head,
while the other was a juvenile child who radiated an aura of infinite cold. Their arrival had not been
noticed by any of the Primal Daoists or the third generation disciples within the Dao Debate Palace.

“Sword Immortal!” The crowned, bearded elder nodded as he spoke. “He has indeed embarked onto
the path of a Sword Immortal. Finally, our Black-White College has yet another disciple who has
begun to comprehend the Grand Dao of the Sword.”

Daos were divided into levels as well. Rainwater, ice, and whatnot; these were all just some of the
countless Daos of the natural world. But the Dao of the Sword, however, was on a higher level; it
was a ‘Grand Dao’.

Even gaining a basic understanding of it was extremely difficult; Zifu Disciples would generally find it
quite easy to comprehend a hint of the True Meaning of the Rainwater, and in fact, it wasn’t even
that impressive for them to comprehend a Rainwater Dao Domain.

But the Dao of the Sword, as one of the Grand Daos…even getting a basic understanding of it was
extremely rare.

“And what a powerful sword-heart. A sword-heart like that, talent like that, and comprehension
abilities like that…” The juvenile child’s voice was quite youthful, but his words rang out in a manner
that seemed aged and sallow. “He is indeed a piece of unpolished jade that can be sculpted into a
mighty Sword Immortal.”

“Right, right, right.” The short elder nodded repeatedly. “Our Black-White College currently only has
a single Sword Immortal, junior apprentice-brother Diancai. Now, we have another one. A Sword
Immortal! Even if he is defeated by the tribulations and ends up becoming a Loose Immortal, he will
still be one with astonishing combat power, haha.”

The crowned, bearded elder instantly frowned and barked, “Senior apprentice-brother Fivecraze,
junior apprentice-brother Diancai is merely an Earth Immortal right now. He has a very good chance
of becoming a Celestial Immortal. Don’t say such negative things at a time like this!”
The short elder immediately looked towards Immortal Diancai. “Junior apprentice-brother Diancai…”

But Immortal Diancai just laughed calmly. “It’s fine. It’s enough so long as I act in a way which is true
to my heart. It is precisely as senior Northwalker said; it is better to live passionately for a day, than
to live a century while stifled. All I need to do is continue moving forward. Whether or not I can
become a Celestial Immortal…that’s secondary.”

“Well-spoken!” The short elder nodded. As for the juvenile youth, he looked at Immortal Diancai.
“Junior apprentice-brother Diancai, Ji Ning is a second Sword Immortal for our Black-White College.
You must train him well!”

Immortal Diancai turned his head, staring at the distant Ji Ning, who was handing over jade bottles
to Yu Wei. An eager light appeared in his eyes, and he slowly said, “That is to be expected. He is my
disciple, after all!”

…….

“Senior apprentice-sister. A hundred black-white pellets and five kilograms of liquefied elemental
essences. Here it is.” Ning handed the two jade bottles to the Rainbowflame Fairy, Yu Wei.

The black-robed Yu Wei glanced at Ning, a hint of amusement on her face. Stretching her arm out,
she snatched the bottles away from Ning, then turned and left.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 1 – Jadesea

The temperament of the black-robed maiden, Yu Wei, was something Ji Ning couldn’t quite get a
grasp on. However, when he thought about how many times the white-haired elder had accepted the
black-white pellets and liquefied elemental essence on his behalf, Ning felt absolutely delighted. In
addition, this series of Dao Debates had also served as a form of baptism. He could sense that he
had evolved, somehow.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning!” A voice rang out in celebration. Ning turned to look, only to see
the skinny, small, white-robed Mu Northson charging over with incomparable excitement. He
hurriedly howled, “Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, you are way too powerful. You consecutively
defeated so many Wanxiang Adepts, and even that seemingly powerful Northmont Blackcurrent was
defeated by you. Just now, I asked senior apprentice-sister Winterain; that senior apprentice-sister
Yu Wei who defeated you is a reincarnated Immortal, and one who has trained for ten years more
than we have, and entered the school long before us.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not upset,” Ning laughed. Northson was still incomparably excited. “In short, you
are way too powerful. I heard senior apprentice-sister Winterain say that it is extremely rare to see
someone like you, and that even in the Black-White College, you can be considered a supreme
genius. Perhaps, in a few thousand years or a few tens of thousands of years, the entire Black-White
College will have firmly memorized your name.”

Ning shook his head. “You praise me over-much.” Suddenly…he heard voices ring out from the side.
“Uncle-Master Headmaster.” “Uncle-Master Headmaster.” A chorus of voices called out.

The group of Primal Daoists, who had arrived soundlessly and without announcement and who had
been hiding themselves, all walked over at this point in time.

“All of you can go back now.” Daoist Jadesea, who was walking at the head of the group, said
calmly, “Ji Ning, stay behind!”

“Yes.” Quite a few members of the third generation still wanted to converse with Ning, and at least
ensure that Ning knew their names. This was because everyone understood something: Given how
powerful he had shown himself to be, so shortly after entering the school…so long as he didn’t die,
he would definitely be a truly influential figure of Stillwater Commandery. However, since the
headmaster had given the order, they all naturally departed.

“Ji Ning?” Senior apprentice-brother Holyfire gave Ning a deep look, memorizing him.

“Intriguing, intriguing. More and more intriguing.” The fat, sloppy-looking youth had a look of delight
on his face. He lazily ambled away.

…….

Ning said to the nearby Northson, “Junior apprentice-brother Northson, you go back as well.”
Northson nodded. “Alright.” He immediately departed alongside Winterain. Soon, no one was left in
the entire Dao Debate Palace aside from the Primal Daoists and Ji Ning, as well as the Immortals
who had hidden themselves in the corner.

“Ji Ning.” Daoist Jadesea looked at Ning, and the Primal Daoists next to him looked at Ning as well,
their eyes filled with curiosity. “Uncle-Master Headmaster,” Ning acknowledged respectfully.
“Do you know what a Sword Immortal is?” Daoist Jadesea asked. Ning replied, startled, “Sword
Immortals? Some Immortals who use flying swords in extremely powerful ways are addressed
respectfully by others in this manner, I believe. Can it be that this term has a special meaning?”
Even up till now, Ning still wasn’t quite sure as to what the term ‘Sword Immortal’ truly meant.

“Uncle-Master Diancai didn’t tell you?” Daoist Jadesea seemed to have thought of something as he
spoke. Ning replied, “Master didn’t discuss Sword Immortals with me in detail. He only provided me
with guidance regarding sword arts. He told me to finish mastering the [Neo-Tripartite Lotus Sword]
and the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword], then to seek him out again.”

Daoist Jadesea nodded. “That explains it, then. If one is capable of executing the first stance of the
[Three-Foot Sword], then one has already become a Sword Immortal. You should know that this
world is filled with many Daos, yes?”

“Yes, I do.” Ning nodded. In his heart, he added…that he also knew that the most supreme figure of
the Three Realms, Maiden Nuwa, had comprehended eighty four thousand different Daos! But of
course, this was according to what he had heard in the past from the Lord of Cui Palace.

“The Daos are numerous beyond counting.” Daoist Jadesea looked at Ning. “In addition, there are
different levels of Dao as well.” Ning’s ears twitched. “Different levels of Dao?”

“Right.” Daoist Jadesea nodded. “The Dao is divided into the supreme ‘Heavenly Daos’, the
extremely exalted ‘Grand Daos’, and the ordinary ‘Daos’.”

“The Heavenly Daos, the Grand Daos, and Dao?” Ning held his breath. Not even his master had
discussed these things with him in detail.

“The Heavenly Daos are the most fundamental of Daos, and they are the underpinning of the
functioning of the cosmos. They are incomparably supreme. For example, the Five Elements! After
Pangu established the universe, the universe was formed from the most basic of particles, the Five
Elements. Normally, when we talk about ‘swearing an oath by the Dao of the Heavens’, or making a
‘Oath of Blood to the Dao of the Heavens’, we are swearing an oath to the Heavenly Daos. The
Heavenly Daos uphold the functioning of the universe, and once we violate an oath sworn to them,
they will naturally punish us. No one can escape the punishment of the Daos of the Heavens. This is
the most supreme of Daos.”

Ning was shocked and stunned.

“According to the legends, so long as one can comprehend a Heavenly Dao, then one will become
one of the most incomparably exalted figures of the Three Realms.” Daoist Jadesea’s eyes were
filled with a boundless eagerness as well, and the gazes of the Primal Daoists next to him became
lost and dreamy as well. To them, the Heavenly Daos were legends and myths.

“But of course, I’ve never even heard of anyone who comprehended a Heavenly Dao.” Daoist
Jadesea laughed as he looked at Ning. “Never, not even in any of the legends or stories.”

Ning sighed to himself. Right. Heavenly Daos. When Immortal practitioners swore an oath, they
would do so towards the Dao of the Heavens. It was the Daos of the Heavens which upheld the
functioning of the entire Three Realms. It was naturally incomparably exalted.

“One level lower than the Heavenly Daos are the Grand Daos!” Daoist Jadesea looked towards Ji
Ning. “Every single Grand Dao is also extremely exalted, and it is extremely difficult to even gain an
initial insight into them.”

“On a level lower than the Grand Daos are the most numerous, ordinary Daos.” Daoist Jadesea
looked at Ji Ning. “Your Dao of Rainwater, and the Daos of Freezing Ice, Mystic Ice, and the like…
these are all ordinary Daos.”

Ning nodded. He now understood that Daos were divided into levels as well! Heavenly Daos were
the most supreme, the fundamental Daos which underpinned the cosmos!

“The Dao of the Sword, however, is one of the Grand Daos!” Daoist Jadesea looked towards Ning.
“Everyone who has embarked upon the Dao of the Sword is known as a Sword Immortal!”

“Ah?!” Ning stared. The Dao of the Sword was one of the Grand Daos? He had actually embarked
onto the path of a Grand Dao?

“To gain an initial insight into the Dao of the Sword, one must clearly develop and comprehend one’s
sword-heart and make it lustrous.” Daoist Jadesea looked towards Ji Ning. “This is also the first
stance of the [Three-Foot Sword]. You need to have a heart which is supremely, sincerely devoted
to the sword, and you need to make that sword-heart of yours lustrous…the difficulty of doing this is
even greater than reaching the Dao Domain level of your Dao of Rainwater.”

Ning nodded in acknowledgement. It was, indeed, a bit harder to reach the ‘Lustrous Sword-Heart’
level than to develop his Rainwater Sword Domain.
“This is the difference in Daos. It is even harder to gain an initial insight into a Grand Dao than it is to
reach the Dao Domain level in an ordinary Dao.” Daoist Jadesea stared at Ning, his gaze blazing.

“This is also why you were able to defeat even Northmont Blackcurrent, who has reached the level
of possessing five Dao Domains. It is because the Dao you comprehended is a Grand Dao!
Although he has comprehended many, they are all lesser Daos! In addition…the Dao of the Sword,
even amongst the Grand Daos, is known as the Grand Dao with the greatest offensive combat
potential. Sword Immortals are legendary for their combat power as well.”

“In our Black-White College…including you, we only have a total of two Sword Immortals,” Daoist
Jadesea said. “One is you, with the other being your master, Uncle-Master Diancai.” Ning nodded.

“Because you have gained an insight into the Grand Dao of the Sword, our Black-White College
shall bestow upon you two thousand black-white pellets.” Daoist Jadesea took out a jade bottle,
handing it over to Ning.

Ning was instantly overjoyed. Two thousand black-white pellets? When his master had bestowed
him with black-white pellets, he had informed Ning that he would receive a thousand black-white
pellets for reaching the Dao Domain level, and just two thousand black-white pellets for his soul
reaching the ‘divine sense’ level. Generally speaking, only Primal Daoists would have a soul at the
‘divine sense’ level. And yet, just gaining an initial insight into a Grand Dao merited a similar award
of two thousand black-white pellets!

“Why are there no records of this within the black-and-white book?” Ning hurriedly asked. “The
black-and-white book has quite a few records regarding various rewards of black-white pellets, such
as for joining the Raindragon Guard, becoming a two-clawed Raindragon Guard, a three-clawed
Raindragon Guard…why aren’t there any records regarding becoming a Sword Immortal?”

“Heavenly Daos. Grand Daos. Ordinary Daos. The fact that there are these differences is not
something which is to be carelessly exposed.” Daoist Jadesea looked towards Ning. “If you hadn’t
comprehended them for yourself and we told you of them, it would actually harm you by affecting
your Dao-heart. You would be unwilling to go comprehend an ordinary Dao, and would focus on
trying to master a Grand Dao. But do you think a Grand Dao is so easily comprehended? If you
aren’t already at that level, letting you know about the levels will harm you for no benefit.”

Ning now understood.

“Even us.” Daoist Jadesea looked at the crowd of Primal Daoists. “Even we only learned about this
matter after we finished comprehending a complete Dao Path. Now that we have mastered a
complete Dao Path, the next step for us is to comprehend a Grand Dao!”
Ning now understood.

“Grand Daos are extremely hard to understand. Even in our Black-White College, and even for the
likes of senior Northwalker, there has never been anyone who has completely and thoroughly
mastered a Grand Dao.” Daoist Jadesea looked towards Ning. “The path of mastering a Grand Dao
is incomparably more difficult than the path of mastering an ordinary Dao; thousands of times more
difficult. However, the power of a Grand Dao is also countless times greater. You must diligently
train and not slacken off in the slightest.”

“Yes.” Ning nodded with solemnity.

“Alright. With regards to Sword Immortals…if you have any questions, go ask your master. In the
entire Black-White College, only your master is capable of truly teaching you.” Daoist Jadesea
laughed, then turned and left.

“Ji Ning, it is quite rare for me to officiate over a recruitment ceremony, and yet when I did, I ended
up taking you in, hahaha.” Daoist Wu Xiu and the others all chatted for a bit with Ning as well. Every
single one of them spoke with Ning for a bit. Clearly, as they saw it…in a few decades, or perhaps in
a century, Ning would be on a completely equal level to them. Shortly afterwards, the Primal Daoists
all departed.

Only now did Ning let out a sigh of relief. “Heavenly Daos? Grand Daos? Daos?” Ning suddenly
thought of something. “The creator of the underwater estate even had many Immortal-ranked magic
treasures and Pure Yang magic treasures. I also heard that he was a Fiendgod who was born during
the era of primal chaos, before the creation of the universe, and that he was one of the major powers
of the Three Realms. Even the [Starseizing Hand] he developed was so powerful…he most
assuredly must have comprehended a Grand Dao. Only, I wonder if Daoist Threelives was able to
comprehend a Heavenly Dao.”

“Well, enough of that. Two thousand black-white pellets!” Ning looked at the jade bottle in his hands.
“And I earned quite a few black-white pellets during the Dao Debates as well. Should I go to the Dao
Repository Vault to exchange them for techniques?” Ning began to ponder. “For divine abilities? Or
for the [Soulshaker Art]?”

Right at this moment, a voice was transmitted towards him. “Ji Ning.” This voice echoed in his mind.
“Master.” Ning hurriedly looked around.

“Go back and calm your mind and focus on your training. You must solidify your foundation to fully
reap the gains from these Dao Debates. I trust you will make even more advancements if you do.
Three days later, come and see me.” Immortal Diancai’s voice rang out in Ning’s mind. As for the
four Immortals in the corner of the room, Immortal Diancai, the short elder, the juvenile child, and the
crowned, bearded elder all gave Ning a final look before disappearing into thin air.

Ning stared around within the Dao Debate Palace, but saw no one else present. Still, he
acknowledged respectfully, “Yes, Master.”

Ning immediately boarded his flying boat. Transforming into a streak of light, he flew out of the Dao
Debate Palace and returned to his Darknorth Peak. He was going to calm his heart and solidify the
gains he had recently reaped.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 2 – Northmont Blacktiger’s Style

The flying boat soared through the skies, entering the Darknorth Peak’s estate.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” Forgard, Cloudship, and Cloudjade, the three Zifu Disciples, all
called out with respect. The Whitewater Hound next to them looked towards Ning as well, and Ning
grinned towards him. “Uncle White, I’m going to go into my private training room to engage in some
closed-door training. Only call me if there is something extremely important.”

The Whitewater Hound nodded. Ning then went directly into his private training room.

Cloudjade nibbled on her lips as she stared at Ning. “He just glanced at me. He didn’t even give me
a good look. Hmph. Back in the tribe, there were so many people who wanted to become Dao-
Companions with me. But this senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning hasn’t even engaged in a proper
conversation with me.”

Cloudjade’s alluring charm was indeed tremendous. The fox spirits and other beautiful maidservants
which Ning had seen in the Carefree Caverns were all inferior to her. Even Ninelotus was slightly
inferior to her. The only one comparable to her was that reincarnated Immortal, the Rainbowflame
Fairy, Yu Wei. No wonder Cloudjade had always been self-confident!

She naturally wanted to reel in this disciples of the Black-White College. This Ji Ning, in her mind,
truly was the best selection for her to become Dao-Companions with. But unfortunately…up till now,
Ji Ning had never said a word to her.

“I refuse to believe it!” Cloudjade mused to herself silently.

“I wonder how the battles at the Dao Debate Palace went.” Cloudship, by her side, had a look of
anticipation in his shining eyes. “None of us know,” Forgard said gravely. Cloudship glanced at
Forgard, then pursed his lips.

…..

Within the private training room. Ning sat there in the lotus position, streaks of sword energy flying
around him, occasionally chopping, occasionally stabbing, occasionally blocking. One stance after
another came out…they appeared ordinary, but they contained a truly heart-shaking fierceness to
them.

Suddenly, all of the sword energies around him vanished. “Whew.” A hint of a smile appeared on
Ning’s face. “I’ve spent an entire night training, and I have indeed made further gains, as well as
solidified my previous insights.”

“The Grand Dao of the Sword? Sword Immortal?” A look of anticipation was in Ning’s eyes. Whoosh.
Ning rose to his feet, and the stone door opened with a rumble. Soon, he arrived outside the
courtyard.

There was a hint of light in the skies. Ning stood there in the courtyard, and as he took in a deep
breath of air, filled with dense amounts of natural, elemental energy, he felt all the happier.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” A soft voice suddenly rang out nearby. Ning turned to look. It
was Cloudjade, dressed in a light pink Daoist robe. Although the robe was rather loose and large, on
her incomparably ravishing body, it gave an alluring feeling that was both faint and bone-deep. Her
long black hair was simply combed, but it also gave off a natural, magnetic aura.

“She truly is a lovely person. Why in the world did Baiwei have her come and be my retainer?” Ning
mused to himself. Although Cloudjade was indeed exquisite in her appearance, what Ning wanted
was to be truly carefree and unbound. How could he so casually select a Dao-Companion? Even if
he were to choose one, it would be an incomparably major affair. For now, at least, this Cloudjade
hadn’t moved Ning’s heart in the slightest.

“I haven’t had a chance to thank you yet, senior apprentice-brother, for giving me the chance to
enter your service and join the Black-White College.” Cloudjade’s willowy, graceful body curtsied in a
show of respect.

Ning nodded gently. Suddenly, a figure ran over from outside. It was a young servant. The young
servant couldn’t help but glance towards that exalted, insurpassably seductive Immortal practitioner,
Cloudjade, but then he hurriedly said in a nervous manner, “Master, someone is outside, and he
claims to be your senior apprentice-brother. He’s right at the door. He’s already been waiting for the
amount of time needed to boil a kettle of tea.”

“Oh?” Ning nodded, then laughed and said in clear voice, “Which senior apprentice-brother is it,
might I ask? I’ve neglected you by making you wait here for so long, senior apprentice-brother.
Please, come in, quickly.”

“Hurry and go prepare refreshments,” Ning said, looking at the nearby Cloudjade. “Alright.”
Cloudjade hurriedly bowed, then quickly departed.

The ordinary, mortal youth had cold sweat rolling down his back. He hurriedly left as well. Just now,
when he had taken a secret glance at that unsurpassingly alluring beauty, Cloudjade, he felt as
though he had seen one of the legendary fairies. At the same time, he sighed to himself, “If I could
have a fairy like her as my woman, even if I could only live for an hour, I would be satisfied. And yet,
Master doesn’t even care about a maiden like her at all.”

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” A youth dressed in a black Daoist robe came walking in. His
eyes seemed to contain the stars in them, and a smile was on his face. “I previously met you both
during the grand entrance ceremony as well as the Dao Debate Palace, but I hadn’t had the chance
to say anything to you. My name is Hu Yongchun, and my Daoist title is the same as my name;
Yongchun, meaning ‘Everspring’.”

“Senior apprentice-brother Everspring, please come in.” Ning, as an Immortal practitioner, had an
incomparably perfect memory. He remembered that during the Dao Debates, this Everspring had
been by the side of the fat, sloppy-looking youth. Someone who was able to stand directly next to
that youth was most likely one of the fairly talented Wanxiang Adepts of the College.

The two fellow disciples sat there facing each other, while Cloudjade delivered fine wine and fruits to
them. “Junior apprentice-brother, you have quite a lovely lady here.” Everspring laughed as he
delivered a few words of praise, and Cloudjade’s face turned slightly red.

Ning laughed. “She’s just taking the chance to train under my service.” “Oh.” Everspring nodded. He
immediately noted that this junior apprentice-brother of his seemed to hold no interest at all in this
devilishly attractive maiden, and so he didn’t mention her any further.

………
Cloudjade served the two, watching as Ji Ning and Everspring, two formal disciples of the Black-
White College, chatted and laughed amongst themselves. At first, she had been filled with
eagerness, but towards the end, she felt vaguely heartsick. At first, Everspring had praised her
beauty, but afterwards, both he and her own master, Ji Ning, had completely focused on their
conversation, not sparing so much as a glance for her.

Both of them were blessed by the heavens with talent; clearly, they didn’t care about her
appearance. This truly hurt her heart.

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning!” Suddenly, a voice rang out from outside. “Another one,” Ning
mused to himself. The reason why he had left the private training room so early today was precisely
because he realized that his performance during the Dao Debates had probably attracted the
attention of quite a few fellow disciples, who would come in order to make friends with him. In turn,
the more friends he had amongst his fellow disciples, the better it would be for him.

The formal disciples of the Black-White College, after all, were people who outsiders would view as
extremely hard to befriend, even if they wanted to. One formal disciple after another arrived, either
alone or in pairs or triplets, causing the courtyard to become quite rowdy. Every so often, one of
them would leave, but there would always be from three to five people within the courtyard.

Cloudjade, as his female servant, naturally served them personally. What hurt her the most was…
aside from those senior apprentices who offered her a kind word of praise, there was only a single
senior apprentice-brother out of the twenty-plus formal disciples who gave her so much as a close
look. That senior apprentice-brother’s Daoist title was ‘Joybliss’. According to what he said, he
delighted in tandem-training.

“These disciples of the Black-White College, aside from that one that likes to engage in tandem-
training, truly all have extraordinary Dao-hearts.” In the end, Cloudjade could only sigh to herself in
amazement. Indeed, everyone capable of joining the Black-White College was a peerless talent.
And, from the sounds of it…

Her own master, Ji Ning, was one of the most outstanding members of this group of peerless talents,
someone who could be described as a monster! This was why so many fellow apprentice-brothers
and apprentice-sisters had come to befriend him.

“Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, I brought two of my junior apprentice-sisters over as well Would
you be willing to meet them?” A soft voice rang out, and instantly, Ji Ning and the two people he was
chatting with turned their heads. They soon saw three streaks of light moving towards them through
the air from afar.
“Senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus, since you wish to meet with me, how would I dare refuse?” Ning
raised his head to stare at Ninelotus, high in the sky. Ninelotus was accompanied by a lovely woman
dressed in red robes as well as a silver-robed maiden with a fierce aura. The three women landed
from the skies at the same time.

“They…” Upon seeing these three senior apprentice-sisters descend, Cloudjade suddenly had a
sense of self-contempt in her heart. The bearing and aura of these three…only they were truly
worthy of being referred to as fairies.

“This is junior apprentice-sister Qingqing, while this is junior apprentice-sister Whitewater.” Ninelotus
laughed as she looked towards Ning. “Greetings to you, senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” Both the
willowy, red-robed woman and the silver-robed maiden looked towards Ning.

……….

Only with the arrival of nightfall did Ning’s Darknorth Peak return to its usual calm. His fellow
disciples had all left. Only…one more person had arrived. It was Northmont Baiwei.

“Baiwei, sit.” Ning and Baiwei sat down. Baiwei smiled and said, “I knew that you would definitely be
very busy today, and that quite a few of your colleagues would definitely come visit you. So, I
intentionally waited until it was almost dark before coming.”

“Baiwei, you truly are formidable,” Ning said in praise. Baiwei laughed loudly. “How could I not guess
that this would happen? Right; today, I’ve come at the orders of my father.” Ning was startled. “Your
father?”

Northmont Blacktiger…the intimidating aura of that man filled Ning with fear. He definitely wasn’t
inferior to the headmaster of the Black-White College, and he was a man with an exceptionally
dominating, overbearing aura! One of the candidates to be the next Marquis of Stillwater!

“You’ve come here because…?” Ning was stunned.

Clap, clap. Baiwei clapped his hands twice. Instantly, the two Zifu Disciple servants standing behind
him immediately moved forward. They each took out multiple black jade platters from their storage-
type magic treasures. These black jade platters were all engraved with the exquisite carving of a
black tiger, and the platters themselves were crystal clear, incomparably beautiful works of art. Atop
each platter, there were multiple items.
There were, in total, six black jade platters. They had on them a pair of jade bottles, a small boat, a
set of black wings, and two sets of flying swords that were the size of sewing needles.

“There are two sets of flying swords. One has 72 flying swords, while the other has 18. They are all
excellent Mortal-ranked flying swords.”

“This set of black wings…is a high-grade Mortal-ranked wing-type magic treasure.”

“This boat is a top-grade flying magic treasure.”

“This jade bottle holds a miasma gas treasure, which is a type of fleeing treasure.”

“This other jade bottle holds five hundred kilograms of liquefied elemental essence.” Baiwei said,
with composure and assurance, “Accept all of these things.”

Ning was poleaxed. He could clearly tell that these were all extraordinary gifts. Aside from the set of
black wings, which was slightly poorer, the others were extremely valuable. “This…how can I accept
this?” Ning hurriedly refused. “It’s too expensive.”

“My father ordered me to come here, and I’ve already delivered the items. Everything else has
nothing to do with me.” Baiwei waved his hands and said, “You don’t have to be modest. You and
my father have had the chance to meet each other, and my father has given these congratulatory
gifts with good intentions. Just accept them.”

Ning hesitated momentarily. Since Baiwei and himself were good friends, there now existed an
irreversible relationship between himself and Northmont Blacktiger’s Estate. Since that was the
case, he might as well accept them.

“Alright.” Ning nodded.

“That’s more like it! No point in not accepting my father’s things, and these aren’t that important for
someone like him,” Baiwei said. “Oh, right. You asked me to search for that Meng Roch. I’ve already
found him. It’s true; he hasn’t been able to join any sect at all. Do you want for me to send someone
to deliver him directly to the Black-White College?”
Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 3 – Our Master, Ji Ning

“Meng Roch?” Ning’s eyes lit up. Although he had only known Roch for a few days when they met
on the way to Stillwater City, he felt extremely well-disposed towards Roch. In addition, the fact that
he was willing to sacrifice his own life for others meant that he was someone worthy of Ning’s
assistance.

“Cloudship!” Ning called out in a high voice. Cloudship soon hurried over, bowing and saying with
respect, “Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, you wanted me?”

Ning nodded, then pointed to the nearby Northmont Baiwei. “Baiwei, in a short while, lead this
Cloudship and arrange for someone to send Cloudship to Meng Roch’s place. Let Cloudship bring
Roch back to the Black-White College.”

“Alright.” Baiwei nodded. Ning looked towards Cloudship. “Cloudship, do you hear and understand?”
The reason why he wanted Cloudship to go was because he could tell that Cloudship was a lively
fellow who was able to make snap decisions based on the actual situation. Whatever Ning asked
him to do, he would definitely do perfectly well.

Cloudship immediately nodded. “Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, don’t worry. I will definitely invite
Meng Roch over.” “Good.” Only now did Ning nod.

Baiwei laughed. “I’ve carried out my father’s tasks as well. Next are the gifts that I personally
prepared for you.” “Baiwei, what are you…” Ning hurriedly moved to refuse, but Baiwei immediately
interjected, “Don’t decline. You and I are brothers. You have entered the Black-White College, and
had a glorious performance at the Dao Debate. As your brother, how can I not prepare a
congratulatory gift? Don’t worry; because of the restrictions which Father placed on me, I’m not as
wealthy or as generous as Father, and my gift isn’t that valuable.”

Ning let out a laugh. If Baiwei had already put things this way, what else could he, Ning, do? Baiwei
waved his hand, and a thick, seemingly ordinary-looking book appeared. Although this book seemed
to be made from excellent materials, Ning couldn’t notice anything special about it at first glance.

“I imagine that quite soon, you’ll be going out to do some adventuring. Immortal practitioners all must
be tempered by countless life-and-death experiences. Only then will we be able to walk farther on
our Immortal paths.” Baiwei laughed and continued, “Thus, I prepared a map for you! This is a map
of the entire Xia Dynasty.”
Ning called out in shock, “The entire Xia Dynasty?” The Xia Dynasty was unimaginably vast! “Don’t
get too excited. The Xia Dynasty is enormous, and this map only goes into detail regarding our
Stillwater Commandery. It only has some rough information regarding the distant places of the vast
Xia Dynasty, which is thousands of times larger than our commandery. At least, however, you won’t
get lost.” Baiwei was a bit resigned. “A detailed map of the entire Xia Dynasty is something which
even I don’t have access to.”

Ning sighed inwardly. To Immortal practitioners who went out adventuring, the importance of a good
map was unquestionable. This was because there were simply far too many mysteries, dangers, and
terrifying locations in this vast world. If one moved about blindly and ignorantly, one might
accidentally charge into a fatal area. If that happened, one really would die a miserable death.

“Now that I’ve done what I need to, it’s time for me to leave.” Baiwei rose and laughed, “I know that
for a genius like you, your training time is quite precious.” Ning rose to his feet as well and asked,
“Leaving so soon?”

“Your Black-White College is within Stillwater City. I can come any time.” Baiwei led his servants and
Cloudship, then quickly departed.

……

Ning watched as Baiwei and the others transformed into streaks of light and departed. Only now did
he lower his head to stare at the six jade platters of treasures that were before him.

“My [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] just so happened to be lacking in swords, and now I’ve
received two sets of them.” Ning stared at the two sets of flying swords; one a set of 72, the other a
set of 18. The set of 18 swords in particular appeared to be all exceptionally fine flying swords.
“Although I haven’t used the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] many times, Northmont
Blacktiger clearly knew long ago that I need a large number of flying swords. He really lives up to his
reputation as being a potential candidate for the next Marquis of Stillwater. His information really is
reliable.”

“As a Zifu Disciple, it should’t be too hard for me to cobble together seven hundred or so Mortal-
ranked flying swords. But once I reach the Wanxiang Adept level, I’ll need seven hundred or so
Earth-ranked flying swords. As a Primal Daoist, I’ll need Heaven-ranked flying swords.”

Ning sighed to himself. The [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] was something which caused
even Immortal Juhua concern. Ning also possessed the [Nuwa Painting], and walked the path of the
Sword Immortal. Indeed, the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] was extremely well suited for
him. Most likely, the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation], in his hands, would be even more
effective than it had been for the Thousand Swords Immortal.

Ning continued to view the treasures. “Wings?” Ning looked at the black wings atop the jade platter.
“They are much better than the wings I acquired after killing the disciples of Snowdragon Mountain.”
The wings weren’t that useful for Ning, as he primarily used them to cover-up the fact that he used
the [Windwing Evasion].

This was a divine ability which the ancestor of the Yuchi clan had only acquired after rescuing a
Celestial Immortal, who in his gratitude had bestowed it upon the clan. It was abundantly clear from
the fact that even the entire Black-White College only had five divine abilities that divine abilities
were incomparably precious. No wonder the Yuchi clan insisted on using wing-type magic treasures
to disguise themselves.

“The flying boat!” Ning stared at the fourth present, then laughed. “A top-grade Mortal-ranked magic
treasure. In the future, I’ll be able to travel much more quickly.” Ning stretched his hands out,
effortlessly binding both the wings and the boat-type magic treasures.

“The miasma gas magic treasure.” Ning stared at the fifth treasure. He picked up that white jade
bottle. After easily binding it, he discovered that within, there was a white pearl, surrounded by an
extremely dense foggy white miasma gas.

“Step back. Go far away.” Ning swept the surrounding area with his gaze, and the nearby Cloudjade
hurriedly retreated all the way out of the courtyard. “Activate.” Ning willed it.

Instantly, a large amount of white miasma gas filled the courtyard. The white miasma gas covered
an area of many tens of meters, and the density of it was such that even Ning’s Fiendgod-enhanced
eyes were only just barely able to view his own fingers. In fact, it even influenced the surrounding
elemental ki flow, causing Ning to be unable to sense what was around him.

“According to what I hear, miasma gas magic treasures are extremely suited for fleeing, precisely
because they prevent both vision with the naked eye as well as sensing one’s surroundings.” Ning
nodded lightly. “So it really is the case. Even I, the person who released the miasma gas, am unable
to see the surrounding area. Once I release this miasma gas…for a short period of time, my foe will
be unable to find me. I can choose a direction and immediately flee.”

Miasma gases were unable to distinguish from friend or foe. What Ning bound was the jade bottle
and the pearl within it; that miasma gas simply existed within the pearl itself.
“I wonder if my divine sense can see through it.” Ning willed it, and suddenly…whoosh! His divine
sense spread out, instantly encompassing the entire courtyard. “Eh?” Ning revealed a hint of delight.
Although the miasma gas was so powerful as to be able to disturb the flow of natural elemental
energy, under Ning’s divine sense…everything still appeared.

“Excellent.” Ning was overjoyed. “To others, miasma gas magic-treasures are only for fleeing, but for
me…I can release the miasma gas to befuddle my foes, then engage them and kill them in close
quarters.” This combat tactic instantly flashed through Ning’s mind. Given that his own divine sense
was not affected by the gas, in the future, it would be much easier for him to deal with Wanxiang
Adepts.

“Yet another killer move,” Ning laughed. Ning then looked towards the sixth jade platter. Five
hundred kilograms of liquefied elemental essence! This was an astonishing fortune; ordinary Earth-
ranked magic treasures were worth merely five kilograms, which was to say that this gift was the
equivalent of a hundred Earth-ranked magic treasures! Even if he wanted powerful Earth-ranked
magic treasures, he would still be able to trade for eight or ten of them.

Even when Baiwei and Fox had been betting frantically against each other, the stakes had only gone
up to forty or fifty kilograms of liquefied elemental essence.

“Northmont Blacktiger really is quite generous.” Ning no longer hesitated; he collected the treasures,
picked up the jade bottles, and headed for his private training room.

…….

Within the private room. The jade flask was placed in front of him, and the stopper had been pulled
open. Ning sat in the lotus position atop the jade bed, calming himself down. He opened his mouth,
and the liquefied elemental essence within the jade bottle instantly began to fly out and be absorbed
by Ning’s body.

Rumble…

The enormous Zifu Lake within the illusory space of the Zifu Violet Palace. The watersource
suddenly began to surge with large amounts of pure elemental energy. The entire Zifu Lake began
to swirl about expand in an incomparably rapid pace.

The outer regions of the Zifu Lake were constantly expanding towards every direction. The lake was
growing to take up a larger and larger amount of the illusory space, and began to surge towards the
deepest recesses of it.
Expanding! It was still expanding! Fifty kilograms of liquefied elemental essence. A hundred. A
hundred fifty…Ning didn’t hesitate at all, constantly refining and absorbing it all. His base was solid,
and his comprehension of the Dao was quite high. His divine soul was very strong, and his sword-
heart was lustrous…he absolutely could surge all the way to the early Wanxiang Adept stage if he so
chose.

The Zifu Lake continued to expand. It now covered a truly shocking amount of space, and could
even be said to have expanded from a ‘lake’ to a ‘sea’. A Zifu Sea!

Three hundred kilograms. Three hundred fifty kilograms!

“Last time, I used forty or so kilograms of liquefied elemental essence. This time, if I use another 360
kilograms, it’ll be about enough,” Ning mused to himself. According to the [Flowing Watersource], if
one refined four hundred kilograms of liquefied elemental essence as a Zifu Disciple, then the
foundation that one would establish would be the so-called ‘foundation for a Celestial Immortal’. The
Manifestation one would later have would also be the best of Manifestations.

“Rumble…” 355 kilograms. 360 kilograms. 365 kilograms.

“Why doesn’t my Zifu Lake feel as though it has reached its maximum capacity yet?” Ning was
feeling rather puzzled, and he slowed down the rate at which he was refining liquefied elemental
essence as well. Some of the weaker Ki Refining techniques made it so that the practitioner’s Zifu
Lake would at best be able to withstand fifty kilograms of liquefied elemental essence. But Ning had
already been able to withstand more than four hundred kilograms.

370 kilograms…390 kilograms…400 kilograms! Ning opened his eyes, halting his training.

“Last time, I used forty kilograms, and this time, I used four hundred. And yet, my Violet Palace is
able to continue to accumulate more?” Ning frowned. Although the [Waterstream Source] hadn’t
described an upper limit in detail, and there were small differences in each person’s capacity,
generally speaking, four hundred kilograms should be quite close to the limit.

“I’ll halt for now. In two days, when I meet Master, I’ll ask him.” Ning halted his training.

As Ning was training. In a quite, secluded courtyard within East Stillwater City. Roch was seated in
the lotus position on his bed, quietly nourishing his own Zifu Violet Palace. His Violet Palace had
been damaged; naturally, he had to carefully cultivate it and heal it.
“Rocky, Rocky, come out, quick!” A frantic voice rang out. “Uncle Ming?” Roch came to an
immediate halt, leaving the bed and walking out. “Uncle Ming, what is it?”

Roch pushed the door opened, then saw the bald, middle-aged man, his entire face covered with
urgency. Roch felt extremely grateful towards Uncle Ming; at least Uncle Ming had let him stay here
this entire time.

“Did you cause trouble or offend someone? A guard of Stillwater Commandery has come in search
of you.” The bald-headed, middle-aged Uncle Ming was utterly frantic right now.

“Ah?!” Roch shook his head. “I haven’t.” Uncle Ming hurriedly said, “Enough talk. Hurry, go see him.”
Although he had safely secured this quiet, secluded little residence for himself in Stillwater City,
compared to the exalted Marquisate of Stillwater…he was like an ant in front of a divine dragon. No
– he wasn’t even an ant. He was nothing more than a speck of sand.

Roch, his face covered with puzzlement and unease, quickly appeared before the gates of the
estate. In front of the gates, there were two armored Zifu Disciple guards, and next to them was a
white-robed youth. The two guards were standing behind this white-robed youth.

Upon seeing this, although he felt terror in his heart, Roch also felt a hint of bitterness. “To be able to
have guards of the Marquis of Stillwater stand behind me…how long will it be before I can be at this
level?” Roch felt sourness in his heart. “I’m not even able to join a school right now. Not a single
school wants me. How long will it be before I am able to continue walking down my Immortal path!?”

The tall, skinny, white-robed man, upon seeing Roch, immediately revealed a smile. “Are you
Brother Meng Roch?” “Brother…Meng Roch?” Roch stared. The bald Uncle Ming, by his side, was
astonished as well. He hurriedly said, “Yes, he’s Meng Roch.”

The tall, skinny, white-robed man laughed. “My name is Cloudship. I have come on the orders of my
master, Ji Ning, to invite you, Brother Meng Roch, to the Black-White College.”

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 4 – A Sturdy Base

Meng Roch was completely stunned. Ji Ning? Of course he knew Ji Ning. This was the man who
had saved his life. In the Carefree Caverns, he had watched as Ji Ning and another youth were
welcomed with great splendor.
“Might I ask who your master, Ji Ning, is?” Roch was somewhat hesitant. Was this the same Ji Ning
he knew?

“My master is a formal disciple of the Black-White College.” The tall, skinny, white-robed Cloudship
laughed. “When he entered the Black-White College, he consecutively defeated multiple senior
fellow disciples, and even several Wanxiang Adepts were defeated by him. Brother Meng Roch, my
master has invited you to go; will you go?”

“Go? Of course he’ll go.” The bald Uncle Ming, standing nearby, immediately urged Roch to go. At
the same time, he sent Roch mentally, “Rocky, your stroke of good fortune has arrived! That Ji Ning
is a monstrous talent and has successfully entered the Black-White College as a formal disciple. The
formal disciples of the Black-White College are permitted ten retainer positions, and by the look of
things, this youth is one of them. If Ji Ning is inviting you to go…it’s very possible that you’ve
received one of those ten positions.”

Roch, hearing this mental transmission, was shocked. One of the ten formal retainerships for a
formal disciple? The Black-White College was an incomparably exalted place; it was the most
powerful school of the entire Stillwater Commandery, and a place where peerless geniuses
gathered! Even the retainers of the peerless geniuses, as long as they worked hard and rendered
merits unto the school, would have the chance to learn some truly top-tier Ki Refining techniques.
This was far better than being a formal disciple of the Thousand Rivers School.

It must be understood that those extremely large schools were divided into outer court disciples,
inner court disciples, main disciples, and the most supreme, core disciples. There were multiple
layers of status. In the Black-White College, however, there were only formal disciples and retainers;
two layers. Thus, even retainerships were positions that were deeply coveted.

“I’ll have a chance to enter the Black-White College?” Roch’s heart was filled with all sorts of ideas.
“Uh, Brother Meng Roch?” Cloudship said with a touch of urgency. “Ah?!” Roch frantically nodded.
“Go, go, of course I’ll go.”

The Black-White College. Cloudship and Roch had both transformed into streaks of light and were
flying in the air. “Look. That is Darknorth Peak, the place where my master, Ji Ning, resides.”
Cloudship pointed towards a distant, elegant mountain peak.

Ever since he passed through the formal gates of the Black-White College, Roch’s mind was filled
with all sorts of wild thoughts. He…he had actually entered the Black-White College? The nearby
Cloudship really was one of the ten retainers?
Whoosh. The two charged down into the courtyard, quickly landing outside of its gates. The two
young gate guards outside the gate all saluted respectfully.

“There is such a thick elemental aura here.” After stepping into the courtyard, Roch could sense an
incomparably dense elemental aura presence. “The elemental aura in Stillwater City is already
dense enough as it is, but this estate actually has a ki-gathering formation that is operating at all
times.”

Roch was now growing rather nervous. Cloudship was leading him through a hallway, and they soon
passed through a door, at which point they arrived at a wide, spacious estate. In the center of this
estate, there was a fur-clad youth, who had a peerlessly bewitching beauty by his side, waiting on
him.

It was already very late at night. The figure of the fur-clad youth seemed quite blurry and unclear.

“Brother Ji Ning!” Roch, upon seeing the fur-clad youth, couldn’t help but blurt these words out.
“Rocky!” Ning rose to his feet and walked over.

Roch was rather reserved and nervous right now. This was no longer the same Ji Ning who had
come to this city alongside him in search of a school. This was a formal disciple of the Black-White
College, the number one school of the entire Stillwater Commandery. And, from what Cloudship
said…it seemed as though even in the Black-White College, Ji Ning was quite the standout.

“Don’t be nervous,” Ning laughed, then asked, “Meng Xin and Meng Jun?” “The two of them both
entered schools.” Roch said hurriedly, “Both of them are at the early Zifu Stage, and so it was easy
for them to join a school. They both entered the Thousand Rivers School.”

When saying this, Roch felt a bit of pain in his heart. He had originally wanted to join the same
school as Meng Xin, but unfortunately, his foundation had been damaged and not a single school
wanted him.

“The Thousand Rivers School?” Ning nodded slowly. “After becoming a formal disciple of the Black-
White College, I have ten retainer positions. I don’t know if you’d be willing to become a retainer
under my control?”

Roch’s eyes instantly lit up, and his body began to tremble slightly. “I’m willing!” Roch said hurriedly.
Ning laughed. “You’ll only be a retainer in name. The two of us will still treat each other as brothers.
Oh, right. There’s something you must understand…the Black-White College has quite a few internal
rules.”
“Right.” Roch nodded vigorously. What he was afraid of was that he would have no hope for the
future. Since he had already joined the Black-White College, a wide route for his Immortal path had
just appeared before him. Naturally, he would exert all possible effort to grow increasingly powerful.
He walk would ever-farther along the Immortal path, and in his heart, he murmured to himself: “Little
Xin. Wait for me.”

“I…” Roch looked at Ning. His eyes were somewhat red. With a thud, he suddenly fell down to his
knees, then kowtowed.

“Rocky!” Ning hurriedly went to pull him up. “Brother Ji Ning, you saved my life, and now you’ve
given me my Immortal path back. I, Meng Roch, have nothing to repay you with. So long as you give
the order, even if I must climb a mountain of blades or enter a sea of flames, I will charge forward.”
Roch looked towards Ning.

Ning laughed. “Rise, rise.” Right at this moment, the nearby Cloudjade actually grumbled, “Given
senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning’s talent and power, how can he possibly need your help?”

“Cloudjade.” Ning gave the Cloudjade a glance, then instructed, “Go make the arrangements for
some food. Rocky and I are going to have a good chat.” Compared to his other three retainers, Ning
felt more well-disposed towards Roch.

“Yes.” Cloudjade turned and immediately departed, but while doing so, she was secretly grumbling
to herself. “Yet another hunk of wood!” That Meng Roch fellow, upon entering, had given her just a
single glance. She was beginning to question her own seductiveness.

The morning sun rose, spreading its dim light throughout the entire Black-White College. Everything
appeared so dreamlike and illusory. Ning was atop a flying boat. Transforming into a streak of light,
he flew out of Darknorth Peak. Soon afterwards, he arrived in the air above the mountain of his
master, Immortal Diancai.

“Master.” Ning landed in the courtyard, then called out respectfully. “Come in.” Immortal Diancai’s
voice transmitted to him from outside. Ning immediately entered, and the servants at the gate
naturally did not bar his path.

Within the hall. The black-robed, black-haired Immortal Diancai was seated in the lotus position atop
a ‘bed’ of clouds. He looked at Ning, and he felt as though the more he saw him, the more satisfied
he was with him. Being able to teach an extremely talented disciple made him feel quite successful
as well. Immortal Diancai said in a calm voice, “Ji Ning, how did your three days of meditation go?”
“Your disciple has made considerable gains!” Ning said respectfully. “Mm.” Immortal Diancai nodded
slowly, then narrowed his eyes. “Previously, Headmaster Jadesea has already informed you
regarding the Great Dao of the Sword, yes?”

Ning nodded. “Yes.”

“The sword,” Immortal Diancai said slowly, “Is a killing tool. It is also the tool which we Immortal
cultivators will use in our ascent to the peak, in slaughtering all who would impede our path.”

“The Dao of the Sword is a type of combat-focused Dao. Sword Immortals, in turn, are Immortal
cultivators that are extremely skilled in combat.” Immortal Diancai laughed as he looked at Ning. “Do
you know…what the Dao of the Sword is?”

Ning was speechless. And then, lost, he shook his head. He had just entered the earliest realm of
comprehension regarding this Grand Dao of the Sword, and knew almost nothing at all about it.
What is the Dao of the Sword? He really didn’t know how to respond to such a question.

“Some Daos are Daos involving the mysteries underpinning the way in which the world operates. For
example, your Rainwater Dao. The Dao of Freezing Ice. The Dao of Mystic Ice. And more! All of
them are Daos regarding the profundities of the natural world.”

Ning nodded. These were, indeed, all natural Daos. The techniques one came up with after
comprehending these Daos would all be referred to as ‘arts’.

“Arts are a way to apply the Daos. The ‘sword arts’ are that which you generally use when wielding
the sword. To reach a level in the sword arts which is so high as to be a Dao of its own….that is
what the Dao of the Sword is!” Immortal Diancai looked at Ning. “Thus, the Dao of the Sword is
actually a technical Dao, a Dao of applying certain techniques and knacks.”

Ning now understood.

“Not just the Dao of the Sword; the Dao of Taiji is the same. Taiji also involves the application of
certain skills and techniques. Taiji, in turn, is also a Grand Dao.”

“When, for example, you began to gain insights into water and fire, you might be able to apply the
insights you gained into fire and water through the Dao of Taiji, and the power will exponentially
increase.” Immortal Diancai looked at Ji Ning. “The Dao of the Sword which you have chosen as
your path, in turns, results in you applying and executing the insights you have gained into the Dao
of the Sword.”
Ning nodded his head in understanding. Taiji? Dao of the Sword? The application of a Dao?

“Regardless of whether it is Taiji or the Dao of the Sword, these are all extremely, unfathomably
profound Grand Daos. They are extremely hard to comprehend.” Immortal Diancai sighed. “For
example, the Dao of the Sword requires one to comprehend and develop one’s sword-heart. The
Dao of Taiji also requires one to comprehend and develop one’s Taiji-heart. Both are extremely
difficult tasks. But upon embarking on this Grand Dao, one’s future potential will be limitless.”

Ning nodded as he listened.

“Remember!” Immortal Diancai looked at Ning, then said solemnly, “As a Sword Immortal, you must
have a supremely sincere heart! Sincere to the sword, and sincere to your own heart. Do you
understand?”

Ning nodded solemnly.

“You must always reflect on your actions, and hone your sword-heart. Do not let any dust alight on
your sword-heart. You must know, a truly sincere heart is always lustrous!” Immortal Diancai looked
at Ji Ning. “You must firmly engrave these words of mine into your heart.”

“Yes. Your disciple will memorize them carefully, and will never dare to forget them,” Ning replied.

“Mm.” Immortal Diancai waved his hand, retrieving a leather scroll which he handed to Ning. Ning
accepted it, slightly puzzled. “During these three days,” Immortal Diancai said, “I’ve been carefully
considering your earlier performance during the Dao Debates. In the end, I selected thirty-six sword
arts manuals for you. Afterwards, when you go to the Dao Repository Vault, go trade for the thirty-six
manuals recorded on this leather scroll.”

“Thirty six?” Ning was stunned. “I am to go trade for them?” Although he had just embarked on the
path of the Dao of the Sword and had received two thousand black-white pellets…thirty-six sword
arts manuals?!

“Don’t worry. These are all Earth-ranked or Heaven-ranked sword arts. In addition, I’m only having
you trade for the first scrolls. In total, they will only cost six hundred black-white pellets,” Immortal
Diancai said. Only now did Ning let out a sigh of relief. Six hundred black-white pellets was indeed
not too great a cost for him.

“Although they are only Earth-ranked and Heaven-ranked sword arts, and although you are only
trading for their first scrolls, they will be enough for you to use at the Zifu Disciple level and at the
Wanxiang Adept level,” Immortal Diancai said. “These are all sword arts which, if placed within some
lesser tribes, would be considered peerless sword arts that serve as the foundation for the entire
tribe. Carefully read through these sword arts.”

“The first reason I am having you peruse so many different sword arts is to raise your level of
insights into the Dao of the Sword,” Immortal Diancai said with a a laugh. “Second is, the more you
see and the more you study, the greater your experiences and understanding will be. In the future,
when you are adventuring and battling in the outside world, you’ll be able to advance more quickly
and benefit from this study.”

“Understood,” Ning acknowledged.

“Go, then, to the Dao Repository Vault. After today, one day each month, you may come visit me
and ask me some of the questions which have mystified you in your day-to-day training,” Immortal
Diancai said. “Once I feel your foundation is solid enough, then I’ll permit you to leave the Black-
White College and go temper yourself in wandering the outside world. If you stay forever under the
protection of your elders, there is no way you’ll be able to become a true Immortal. Only when you
live beneath the pounding of the rain and the howling of the wind, when you are tempered by life-
and-death battles, will you be reborn into a mighty Immortal who does not fear the Three Calamities
and Nine Tribulations.

Ning nodded. “Understood.”

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 5 – [Soulshaker Art]

“Master, your disciple has one more issue.” Ji Ning was still thinking about how, even after using four
hundred kilograms of liquefied elemental essence, his Zifu Lake hadn’t reached its limit.

“Speak,” Immortal Diancai said.

Ning hurriedly said, “Your disciple has trained in the [Flowing Watersource]. In total, I’ve used 405
kilograms of liquefied elemental essence. According to the [Flowing Watersource], 400 kilograms is
enough to establish a ‘foundation for a Celestial Immortal’, and if one tries to refine even more, one
will quickly reach a limit. However, my Zifu Violet Palace has not yet reached the limit. Why is this?”
“Oh?” Immortal Diancai laughed. “Hahaha, most Immortal practitioners are vexed by their Violet
Palace’s not being able to absorb enough elemental ki and their foundation not being sufficiently
stable. But you are complaining about your Violet Palace being able to absorb too much?”

“That’s not it,” Ning said hurriedly. “I just am puzzled, and I don’t understand why I am unique.”

Immortal Diancai laughed. “This is because your body is the body of a Fiendgod! It would be one
thing if you had an ordinary Fiendgod body, but yours is one which has been created by the
legendary, number one Fiendgod Body Refining Technique, the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine
Heavens]. It is a truly perfect Fiendgod body, no weaker than that of a mighty Fiendgod who was
born from the natural world. It only makes sense that the Zifu Lake within your Fiendgod body is able
to withstand a tremendous amount of elemental ki.

“Oh.” Ning now understood.

“Actually, the better a Ki Refining technique is, the more stable one’s foundation will be. Perhaps
you’ll spend a bit more time at the Zifu or the Wanxiang levels, but the further you go, the easier your
life will be,” Immortal Diancai said. “Also; there are some other techniques that are also Immortal-
ranked, but are even better than even the [Flowing Watersource], which allows one to use five
hundred kilograms of liquefied elemental essence at the Zifu Disciple stage. The more powerful a
technique, the more elemental ki it is able to control.” Immortal Diancai looked at Ning. “You should
be happy.”

“Your disciple understands,” Ning said. “However, how much liquefied elemental essence does your
disciple need to use before advancing to the Wanxiang level?”

Immortal Diancai pondered for a moment, then said, “Disciples who train in the [Crimsonbright
Diagram of the Nine Heavens] who also train in the [Flowing Watersource] are indeed quite rare…let
me think about it. Mm. Mmm. Yes, I imagine you will need around eight hundred to one thousand
kilograms or so.”

Ning sucked in a cold breath upon hearing this. Immortal Diancai looked at Ning. “The
[Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] is the number one Fiendgod Body Refining Technique
in the world. You must practice it with diligence as well.”

“Alright.” Ning nodded, then added, “Then I’ll go to the Dao Repository Vault now.” Immortal Diancai
nodded. “Go,” he said, then closed his eyes.
Ning depart. As he left the room, he boarded his flying boat and soared into the skies, heading to the
Dao Repository Vault.

……….

The Dao Repository Vault. Ning headed straight for the second floor, that of the ‘arts’. “Originally, I
had 200 black-white pellets left over. From the Dao Debates, I gained 600 black-white pellets. After
embarking on the path of the Sword Immortal, the College bestowed me with two thousand black-
white pellets. I have a total of 2800 black-white pellets.” Ning carefully searched through the
countless books placed on the bookstacks. He was searching for the thirty-six sword arts manuals
which his master had instructed him to find on that leather scroll.

“Quite cheap. This one is only thirty black-white pellets. Mm, this one is just ten. Ouch, this one is
actually a hundred.” Ning moved as fast as the wind, and his eyes scanned the books as fast as
lightning. He moved past large stacks of sword arts manuals, quickly picking out all thirty-six books.

The cheapest of these thirty-six books was just ten black-white pellets, while the most expensive
was a hundred. However, these were all seemingly random, disjointed manuals; there were strange
sword arts, tyrannical sword arts, fast sword arts…

“Out of a sea of sword arts manuals, Master actually chose these thirty-six after considering things
for me. From this, one can imagine how many sword arts manuals Master has read.” Ning sighed to
himself in amazement.

Clearly, to become a truly mighty Sword Immortal, it was also important to read many sword arts
manuals. “Not bad. This sword art is even more suited to me than the [Duality Azureflame Sword].”
As Ning flipped through the books, his eyes instantly began to light up.

……..

After choosing the thirty-six books, Ning came to another table. Atop the table, there were five
abridged books. They were: [Heavenly Transformation], [Divine Thunderbolt Eye], [Myriad
Hibernating Venoms], [Three Heads, Six Arms], and [Eye of the Luminous Heart].

“Divine abilities.” Ning pondered to himself. “I only have 2200 black-white pellets left. Should I
choose a divine ability, or a skill for my divine sense.” Divine sense techniques were even rarer than
divine abilities; the Black-White College only had three books. The [Soulshaker Art], the
[Soulcharmer Art], and the [Soulslayer Art].
Divine abilities and divine sense techniques were equally attractive to Ning. He wanted both. “If only
I could choose whatever I wanted…” Ning gritted his teeth.

He gave one last, regretful glance to those five abridged books, then turned and left, moving directly
towards the other table filled with divine sense techniques. Atop the table, there were a total of three
golden books.

Not hesitating at all, Ning picked up one of the golden books, then straightforwardly departed the
Dao Repository Vault.

…….

Upon Ning leaving the Vault, the tall, muscular, armored Dao-Protector looked at him. “You’ve made
your choice?”

“Yes. Take it.” Ning handed it over, and when he did, he couldn’t help but turn to look back at the
Dao Repository Vault. His divine abilities! He really, really wanted to acquire a few divine abilities.

For example, that [Eye of the Luminous Heart] also had a side-effect pertaining to divine sense, and
was extremely mysterious and profound. But the cost of the first scroll alone was five thousand
black-white pellets. For the [Divine Thunderbolt Eye], one could immediately open a third, divine eye
which was able to draw in and store the lightning and thunder of the world. With but a thought, one
could release thunderbolts from that divine eye! Its power was truly terrifying.

“For now…I can’t have my cake and eat it as well,” Ning sighed to himself. “I already have a divine
ability, the [Starseizing Hand], which is vastly superior to these divine abilities. These divine abilities,
as far as I’m concerned, are just supporting arts that can make up for some of my weaknesses. They
will not, however, noticeably increase my real power.”

“This [Soulshaker Art], however, will allow me to be able to gain yet another killer technique in a
short period of time,” Ning mused to himself.

The [Soulshaker Art]’s power was not related to one’s divine power or elemental ki; it relied on the
strength of one’s divine will! The stronger the divine will, the more powerful the [Soulshaker Art]
would be. His divine will was at the level of a Primal Daoist’s by now, and with the [Nuwa Painting],
his divine soul would only continue to grow in strength. Naturally, he had to learn a divine sense
technique.
“You didn’t choose a divine ability?” The Dao-Protector, after looking at Ning’s choices, was rather
amazed. “Apprentice-Nephew Ji Ning, this [Soulshaker Art] only requires a divine will to be used, but
only other Wanxiang Adepts will have a divine will as well. At most, you’ll be able to slightly impact
other Wanxiang Adepts. You train in the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]; it’s best if
you choose a divine ability.”

Ning laughed. This Dao-Protector had no idea that his divine soul was already at the ‘divine sense’
level. “This is my choice,” Ning said.

“Your decision.” The Dao-Protector had only chosen to say a few extra words for Ning’s benefit.
Since Ning insisted, he naturally wouldn’t say anything else.

“The [Soulshaker Art] requires 2000 black-white pellets, while the others need exactly 600.” The
Dao-Protector looked at Ning. “I’ll destroy the restrictive spells around these sword arts manuals,
and I’ll also go acquire the actual copies of the [Soulshaker Art] and the Heaven-ranked sword
techniques for you.”

…….

Soon, Ning paid the 2600 black-white pellets, then departed with the thirty-six sword arts manuals as
well as the [Soulshaker Art] and returned to his Darknorth Peak.

Upon returning to Darknorth Peak, Ning felt quite the itchy feeling in his heart. He gave a few
instructions, ordering that he was not to be disturbed unless there was something important. And
then, he went directly into his private training room.

“Back to the training room again.” Cloudjade stared at Ning, chewing on her lips. There was a hint of
sadness in her eyes. “He won’t talk to me at all.”

The nearby Roch cast Cloudjade a glance, laughing inwardly. How could he not tell that Cloudjade
had been hoping to seduce Ning? “What a pity. Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning’s Dao-heart is
incomparably firm. How could a vixen like you possibly move him?”

Within the private room. Ning sat down in the lotus position, immediately beginning to flip through the
[Soulshaker Art]’s complete manual. The complete manual to the [Soulshaker Art] wasn’t too thick.
After beginning to carefully read through it, Ning started to understand…the so-called [Soulshaker
Art] was just an extremely unique way of applying the divine will. This was a technical manual, but its
value was comparable to a divine ability.
“The [Soulshaker Art]?” Ning closed his eyes, beginning to ponder on what he had read. Rumble…
Ning’s powerful divine will began to spread out, filling the entire private room, and he began to test it
over and over.

Failure. Failure. Failure. Ning’s repeated failures didn’t cause him to feel the slightest bit dispirited.
Each time, he would realize what his mistake was, and each time, he would perform better than the
last.

……

In the blink of an eye, more than half a month passed with Ning staying within the training room.
Because Ning had ordered his servants long ago that he was not to be disturbed unless there was
something critically important, for this period of time, things were quite calm and quiet.

Within Ning’s sea of consciousness, there was a miniature Ji Ning, seated in the lotus position. This
was Ning’s ‘divine soul’. The divine soul sat there in the lotus position, a runic seal repeatedly
appearing and disappearing over his chest.

“Whoosh!” The azure seal managed to remain alive for a few instants, but then was extinguished
once more.

Ning calmly absorbed the lessons of this failure, then tried again. “Whoosh!” Instantly, a queer azure
seal once more appeared in front of the chest of Ning’s divine soul. This seal, at first glance,
appeared to be some sort of script, but it was neither a Fiendgod character, nor a character from any
language he was aware of. When seeing this azure rune, one felt as though a violent wave was
slamming against the shore.

“Go.” Ning willed his divine soul to release his tremendously powerful divine will, which came out
through that azure runic seal. The divine will which was released wasn’t as dispersed as it was
before; rather, it was a wave that was folded together in layers. His divine sense spread out like
waves in every direction, constantly rolling forth without end. One could imagine how, if Ning
encountered a living creature with a soul, these turbid waves of divine will would instantly smash
down against the enemy’s soul, just like a wave smashing down upon a shore.

“At last, I’ve finally managed to just barely manifest the ‘Soulshaker Rune’.” Ning opened his eyes,
revealing a hint of a smile. “However, I’m still quite far off from the true, perfect Soulshaker Rune as
mentioned in the book.”
Relaxed, Ning left the private room. By the time he arrived in the outer courtyard, he saw that it was
late at night. Outside was a sea of sparkling stars in the night sky. Ning raised his head, staring at
the sea of stars, then laughed. “In the upcoming period of time, what I’ll need to do is spend quite
some time meditating on the Dao and on sword arts here at the Black-White College. Only when
Master nods in approval shall I go out and temper myself through adventuring.”

……….

Time flowed on like water. Ji Ning and Mu Northson, the two new disciples of the Black-White
College, lived lives that were peaceful and yet meaningful. They focused on comprehending the
Dao, on analyzing sword arts and the Dao of Constructs, and unconsciously, their power grew
greater and greater. The two of them had been like two pieces of unpolished jade, but the Black-
White College slowly carved and shaped them, letting them reveal their true luster.

In the blink of an eye, more than three years passed. It was the height of summer now. This year,
Ning turned twenty years old.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 6 – Three Years Later

This midsummer dawn was uncommonly cool. Ji Ning, still clad in his black furs, walked out from the
estate atop Darknorth Peak.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” Meng Roch, who had grown only more muscular and tanned,
immediately greeted him with respect.

“Rocky, prepare some food for me. Same as what we’ve done in the past.” Ning laughed as he gave
some instructions. In the past three years, Northmont Baiwei had delivered two more retainers, and
so he now had a total of six under his control. He was now quite familiar with all six of them, but he
still trusted Roch the most.

Because Roch had damaged his ki foundation in the past, upon entering the Black-White College,
he began to train as a Fiendgod as well, and his skin had darkened as a result. “Yes, senior
apprentice-brother Ji Ning,” Roch said, immediately departing.
“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, you came out.” A beautiful figure walked over from afar. It was
Cloudjade. Behind her was a black-robed youth; this was one of the six retainers under Ning’s
command, Weifang.

Cloudjade’s eyes were as bright as jewels. After having been in the Black-White College for so long,
her aura had improved as well, and she now had an additional hint of otherworldliness about her.
“You were in closed-door meditation for so long this time, senior apprentice-brother. It was almost a
month.”

She stared at Ning with a gaze that was quite scorching. Although her horizons had been expanded
during her time at the Black-White College…in her eyes, Ji Ning was still the most brilliant star of
them all. Three years had passed, and compared to three years ago, Ning’s aura had only grown
more simple and pure; he was like a youth who lived a rustic life in the mountain wilderness.

But Cloudjade understood that her senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning was now far more powerful than
he had been three years ago. There were now extremely few people who were willing to engage in a
discourse on the Dao with Ning at the Dao Debate Palace, and quite a few secretly claimed that
Ning must surely be a reincarnated Immortal. From this, one could tell how monstrous Ning’s
performance had been.

“Each time I come out of seclusion, I’ll see you,” Ning laughed. “Cloudjade, you need to calm your
heart and focus on training as well. Look at Weifang..he arrived after you did, but he’s the most
powerful of the six of you.”

“Senior apprentice-brother, you praise me over-much,” the black-robed youth, Weifang, immediately
said with respect. “Compared to you, senior apprentice-brother, I am countless tens of thousands of
kilometers beneath you.”

“I’ve already worked quite hard,” Cloudjade said. But Ning only shook his head. “Your talent is
excellent, but your Dao-heart is somewhat lacking.” Cloudjade just rolled her eyes.

Ning secretly shook his head. When Cloudjade had first joined the school, she had wanted to
seduce him. After realizing that there was no hope…although she was still very respectful to Ning,
she started to begin to work on seducing the other senior apprentice-brothers of the College.

“She walks the path of Immortal cultivation, but instead of calming her mind and focusing on training,
the only thing on her mind is becoming Dao-Companions with powerful Immortal practitioners.
Jeeze!” Ning felt quite resigned about this as well.
He understood everything quite clearly. Cloudjade, by nature, wasn’t a bad person. Of his six main
retainers, the person Ning trusted the most was Roch, and the person he trusted the second most
was Cloudjade. As for the other four, although they were extremely respectful towards him, Ning
could sense that all four of them were hugely ambitious, and so he had to be careful in the amount of
trust he showed them.

…….

Ning sat there, sipping some stewed rice porridge that contained natural elemental energies within it
while eating some delicacies. His mood was quite good to begin with, and it was improving further
and further. Next to him was the Whitewater Hound who just lay there, looking at Ning. He sent
mentally to Ning, “Ning, son; you seem to be in quite a good mood.”

“Right. I was in closed-door training for nearly a month, but I’ve finally comprehended the second
stance of the [Three-Foot Sword]!” Ning looked at his Uncle White, his face covered in smiles.

“You’ve comprehended it?” The Whitewater Hound instantly revealed a look of surprise and delight
as well. Over the past three years…Ning had an Immortal guiding him, the sword arts manuals of the
Dao Repository Vault to peruse over, and the complete [Three-Foot Sword] in his mind, as well as
the sword-intent which senior Northwalker had transmitted to him.

Ning’s rate of improvement had naturally been astonishingly fast. In the past, he had never had a
truly formidable teacher. Even his father and the others, when faced with Ning’s monstrous talent,
felt that they were not quite good enough to teach him.

With Immortal Diancai guiding Ning, Ning felt incomparable joy, and his rate of improvement had
reached an astonishing level. However, he had never been able to completely comprehend the
second stance of the [Three-Foot Sword].

“Three years. You’ve finally mastered it.” The Whitewater Hound rose to his feet, feeling excited for
Ning.

“With this sword art mastered, I now have the confidence to go spar with Master once again,” Ning
said with a laugh. “Perhaps this time, Master will acknowledge my growth and permit me to go out
wandering.” Without his master’s permission, Ning was not to leave the school.

Logically speaking, given his current level of power, Ning should’ve been able to go out wandering
long ago. However, given how incredible Ning’s talent was, Immortal Diancai’s requirements for Ning
were similarly incredible! By now…Ning had sparred against his master numerous times, and
although he had improved greatly each time, he had never received his master’s permission.

“Go,” the Whitewater Hound mentally sent to him with a laugh. “If you go, I’ll be able to accompany
you in wandering. In the past, I went out adventuring with your father as well. When I think about it,
my blood starts to pump.”

By borrowing from Ning’s liquefied elemental essence, the Whitewater Hound had naturally reached
the peak Zifu stage long ago. Ning had wanted to trade for some powerful secret arts on behalf of
the Whitewater Hound, but the Whitewater Hound didn’t need it. All he accepted was some
formation techniques to analyze, which Ning had spent 200 black-white pellets on. Because it took
quite a long period of time to analyze formation techniques, the price of such techniques was
actually quite low. Ning had spent 600 black-white pellets for his thirty-six sword arts manuals, but as
for the formation manuals…he had spent merely 200 black-white pellets for 91 books.

The [Nine Scrolls on Formations] which that Loose Immortal had left behind was incomparably broad
and profound. This was the complete legacy of a Loose Immortal. As a Godbeast, the Whitewater
Hound had focused on analyzing formations, even when he had been accompanying Ning’s father.
Acquiring the Nine Scrolls was already a case of him being akin to a tiger who had gained wings.
Now that he also gained so many formations manuals from the Black-White College, he naturally
had made enormous improvements. And, every so often, the Whitewater Hound would even go to
the Black-White College to listen to some Primal Daoists or even to some of the Immortals expound
on the Dao.

“I’ll go, then.” Ning rose to his feet. “Go.” The Whitewater Hound watched as Ning left. Ning boarded
his flying boat, then quickly disappeared into the distant horizons.

………

Ning stood there atop his boat in midair, staring downwards. Soon, he arrived at the residence of his
master, Immortal Diancai.

Whoosh. Ning landed in front of the estate, and the gate guards smiled towards Ning. Ning strode
directly inwards without waiting. Immortal Diancai had given the order long ago that Ning was to be
permitted to enter directly, without any need to report his arrival.

Within the hall. The black-haired, black-robed Immortal Diancai was seated in the lotus position on
his jade bed. It seemed as though the passage of three years had not affected Ning’s master at all.
“Today is not the first of the month. Have you come here to spar with me once more?” Immortal
Diancai looked at his beloved disciple. Over the course of the past three years, he had come to love
his sole disciple even more, to the point where his affection for Ning was even greater than his
affection for the descendants of his clan.

“Yes.” Ning looked at his master. A sword-light that seemed almost physical had appeared within
Ning’s eyes, and his entire person slowly began to radiate a terrifying sword-intent. His sword-intent
surged through the heavens!

“It does seem that you’ve improved a bit.” Immortal Diancai nodded. “Come, then. Attack me.”

“Be careful, Master.” A Darknorth Sword appeared out of nowhere, and he gripped it with two hands.
Swish! Ning transformed into a blurry, rapidly moving figure, and the sharp sword in his hand
seemed to have turned into a ghostly image. His speed had reached an extremely high level, and he
instantly pierced the sword towards Immortal Diancai, seated on the jade bed.

Immortal Diancai, seated on the jade bed, leisurely stretched out his fingers, forming a sword-finger.
With a light tap, a streak of sword-light instantly arced out. “Clash.” This solitary streak of sword-light
repeatedly clashed in mid-air multiple times with Ning’s sword-shadow. Ning’s sword moved about
like a ghost, but although this solitary streak of sword-light was in an arc, it’s position also fluctuated
unpredictably.

“Hmph.” Ning’s sword-light changed, becoming domineering and tyrannical. Bang! Instantly, the
surrounding area was submerged into a sea of fire, and Ning’s sword became one of the flames
within it, incomparably valiant as it chopped directly towards Immortal Diancai. This sword attack of
Ji Ning’s…had already vastly surpassed the [Thunderflame Sword]’s level, and most likely even the
person who had originally developed the [Thunderflame Sword] was no match for the current Ning in
terms of the Dao of the Sword.

“Extinguish.” Immortal Diancai revealed a hint of a smile as well. With a gentle tap of the fingers, a
sword-light flew out from his fingertips which instantly transformed into thousands of silken lines.
These silken lines criss-crossed each other, seeming to form a giant net. This giant net of sword-
light howled forward, quickly surrounding and wrapping around Ning’s pyroclasm of sword-light.

“‘Heartless Waterflame’!” Ning revealed a smile as well. Instantly, the surrounding area changed yet
again. One side was filled with blazing flames, while the other side was filled with boundless
rainwater. In one of Ning’s hands was a blazing sword of fire, while in the other was a sword of rain.

Ning’s entire figure radiated an invincible aura as he charged directly towards that net of sword-light,
and the twin swords in his hands spun in a vortex together as he did so.
“Bang!” The sword-lights of fire and water clashed head on with the net of sword-light in a giant
explosion…and both shattered apart.

“This latest ‘Heartless Waterflame’ finally seems to have a bit of flavor to it.” Immortal Diancai
pointed with his sword-finger once more. Swish! A sharp sword-light attacked with incomparably
astonishing speed towards Ning, while at the same time, Immortal Diancai pointed again, and
again…one streak of sword-light after another shot out, all moving at incomprehensible speeds.

“Last time, he was defeated by this technique, and his body was filled with quite a few bloody holes.
I wonder if he’ll be able to block it this time.” Immortal Diancai’s eyes were filled with anticipation.

Ning no longer revealed an incomparably relaxed smile on his face as he had before. Instead, his
eyes lit up, and he seemed to suddenly explode with power.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! The twin swords in Ning’s hands began to move. Suddenly, in the area
around Ning, an enormous millstone of fire and water appeared. Fire and water were contradictory,
opposite types of elemental energy, but they twisted past each other here to form this enormous
millstone. In the very center of the millstone, where the water and fire clashed with each other, a
terrifying wind force arose. This tri-colored millstone revolved around Ning, and where Ning’s sword
light flashed past, an incomparably powerful wind arose as well!

Fast! Faster than fast! Chop! Chop! Chop! Ning consecutively chopped and extinguished the sword-
lights created by his master’s finger-taps. The bedstone of fire and water revolved around him, while
the gale raged around his body. Ning’s sword flashed out like lightning as well, each time striking at
the weaknesses on the side of those flashes of sword-light, rather than taking them head out.

“Faster. Move a little faster.” Immortal Diancai began to tap with his fingers even faster, and the
sword-light which appeared in the air grew increasingly ferocious as they shot towards Ning. Ning,
ensconced within that giant millstone of fire and water, wielded his sword at an inconceivably fast
speed, and continued to chop apart and extinguish those flashes of sword-light.

“Go, then!” Immortal Diancai gently flicked his fingers, and the thousand rays of sword-light that were
in midair suddenly seemed to transform into brilliant stars. They resonated amongst each other,
thundering forth with a unified attack that blasted towards Ning at the same time.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 7 – Master and Disciple, Pre-Departure

“Not good.” Last time, when Ji Ning had sparred with his master, his master hadn’t used this
technique. Faced with the sudden attack of a thousand star-like bursts of sword-light, Ning knew that
his ‘Tripartite Millstone’ wouldn’t be able to withstand the assault.

The sword-intent radiating from Ning’s body compressed itself to the utmost. “Pierce!” Ning’s sword
suddenly shout out. It was as though even if there were infinitely great impediments standing in front
of Ning and wrapping around him, as though ropes were bound about him, causing his sword to
frantically struggle to pierce forward. It moved incomparably slowly…and yet, in reality, that was just
a misperception, as the sword itself had reached an incredibly great speed.

Swish! The sword shot out like a meteor! It tore through the boundless darkness, ripped through all
impediments, and completely shattered the thousand-plus bolts of starry sword-light. With part of it
having been destroyed, all the surrounding bolts of starry sword-light vanished and dispersed.

As for Ning himself, moving like a phantom, he charged towards his master, the sword in his right
hand having stabbed forward and broken those thousand stars of sword-light. At the same time, the
sword in his left hand had already stabbed towards his master, Immortal Diancai.

“Break!” Immortal Diancai revealed a smile as he rapped out this word. A formless sword energy
instantly clashed with Ning’s Darknorth Sword. It was not only powerful, but backed with a seemingly
endless momentum of energy, causing Ning to be pushed back many meters before finding his
footing.

Immortal Diancai, still seated on his jade bed, nodded slowly. “The ‘Manifold Thistlethorns’. You’ve
finally comprehended this technique.”

This was the attack Ning had just demonstrated, the second stance of the [Three-Foot Sword] –
‘Manifold Thistlethorns’. This technique represented the highest level of comprehension regarding
the Dao of the Sword which Ning had ever reached. “Thanks to your guidance, Master,” Ning said
respectfully, “Your foolish disciple was able to finally comprehend this technique today.”

“Hahaha. You only spend three years to comprehend the second stance of the [Three-Foot Sword].
If this performance of yours is to be described as ‘foolish’, then your master would have to be
described with the word ‘idiot’,” Immortal Diancai laughed. “After I comprehended the first stance, it
took me ten years before I comprehended the second one. Your talent is, indeed, far superior to
mine.”

Ning said respectfully, “My talent is at most comparable to those reincarnated Immortals. Our Black-
White College has had reincarnated Immortals in every generation, and even in the current Black-
White College, there are several reincarnated Immortals. You, Master, despite not being a
reincarnated Immortal, are able to surprass those who are in power, and are universally
acknowledged as being the Immortal with the greatest chances of becoming a Celestial Immortal.
Similarly, the Sloppy Daoist is also the undisputed number one figure amongst the third generation
disciples.”

Immortal Diancai nodded in satisfaction. “It is good that you are always humble and vigilant. Now…
you can leave the school and go out wandering.” Immortal Diancai smiled as he looked at Ning.
Finally, he had said these words.

“I can go out adventuring now?” Ning couldn’t help but feel excitement in his heart. Each time he had
made a breakthrough, he felt that he should be able to receive his master’s acknowledgment, but in
reality…he had been disappointed time and time again. For example, when he had reached the Dao
Domain level in the ‘Dao of the Inferno’, or when he had developed increasingly powerful sword arts,
including his own perfected and highly suitable ‘Tripartite Millstone Sword’ attack, he had felt
incomparably proud and vigorous.

However, his master had not nodded in approval. Not until today! After he had mastered the second
stance of the [Three-Foot Sword], he had finally gained his master’s acknowledgment. Finally, he
was going to be able to wander the outside world, filled with both dangers and opportunities. The
vast, endless outside world.

“Ji Ning.” Immortal Diancai looked at Ning. “Master.” Ning tamped down the excitement in his heart.

“Accept these two protective items.” Two items appeared out of nowhere in Immortal Diancai’s
hands. One appeared to be a brooch which was covered with carvings that appeared to be of a
beautiful Immortal palace. As for the other, it was a fiery red jade bottle. “This pendant is something I
personally created. After refining it, carry it with you at all times. With but a thought, you can release
the sword-energy within it to protect yourself. With that sword-energy protecting you…you will be
able to resist the attack of even a Loose Immortal or an Earth Immortal for one breath’s worth of
time.”

“As for this jade bottle…you must be extremely careful within it. Within it there is a single ‘Polar
Aurora Thunderflame Pearl’. It’s power is tremendous. Once you throw it out, it does not distinguish
between friend or foe. Everything within a radius of thirty meters will be reduced into powder. Even
Loose Immortals or Earth Immortals will most likely be heavily wounded, while almost all Primal
Daoists will perish.”

“Of these two items, one is meant for offense, while the other is meant for defense. However, each
can only be used a single time. Thus, you must consider carefully when to use them.” Immortal
Diancai looked at Ning, his eyes filled with anticipation and solemnity.
As the saying went, when a child travelled a thousand kilometers away, the parents would be filled
with worry. He only had a single disciple under his tutelage, and this disciple was about to go
adventuring in distant lands…as his master, how could Immortal Diancai not be worried? After all, no
matter how powerful a peerless genius was, if he didn’t have the chance to grow in power, he still
wouldn’t be able to overcome some older, more powerful figures. For example, if Ning encountered
a Primal Daoist opponent, he would still be crushed without being able to fight back at all.

“You must remember to be cautious in all matters. Think thrice before acting…but once you decide,
act decisively.” Immortal Diancai looked at Ning. Suddenly, Ning felt an aching feeling in his heart.
That look…

In the past, when he had left West Prefecture City to go adventuring, his father and his mother had
looked at him with those exact same eyes. Eyes filled with worry, but also anticipation. Although his
master was powerful, he couldn’t take on all the risks of life for his disciple. Every disciple needed to
truly test themselves…only then would they be successful.’

“Don’t worry, Master. Your disciple will definitely be careful,” Ning said hurriedly.

“The only things which Master can give you are these two items.” Immortal Diancai looked towards
Ning. “Remember. Everything else will be up to your own efforts.”

“Alright.” Ning accepted the items respectfully. These two items were both truly priceless items; in
fact, they vastly outstripped the value of the presents which Northmont Blacktiger had given.

The defensive pendant was able to defend against the attack of an Earth Immortal or Loose
Immortal for a full breath’s worth of time. In a life-and-death attack, death would sometimes come in
an instant. To Immortal practitioners, the amount of time one needed to take a breath was enough
for them to fly countless kilometers away.

As for the Polaris Aurora Thunderflame Pearl, it could badly injure Immortals and kill almost all
Primal Daoists. It could be described as a true killer item.

“When next you return to the College, come seek me out. You can go now.” Immortal Diancai waved
his hand as he spoke, then closed his eyes.

“Alright.” Ning bowed, then immediately departed.

……
After leaving his master, Ning boarded his flying boat and flew into the skies. He felt an aching
feeling in his heart. He could sense that his master’s heart was filled with concern for him, and that
concern was not unreasonable; the path of an Immortal practitioner was a path which was against
the heavens, a path that was filled with pitfalls. Even the heavens themselves would, intentionally or
unintentionally, create numerous traps and barriers for Immortal practitioners.

Far too many disciples of the Black-White College had died in the outside world. It must be
understood…so long as the disciples of the Black-White College did not perish, the vast majority
would become Primal Daoists! But there were hundreds of third generation disciples, while only thirty
or so second generation Primal Daoists. Why? The reason was…the rest died!

They died while testing themselves, while roaming the outside world! As the saying goes, if jade isn’t
polished, it cannot be carved, but during the carving process, how many pieces of unpolished jade
would end up being destroyed? The ‘jade-carving knife’ of the ‘tempering’ process was truly a
vicious one. To embark on the path of Immortals…this was embarking on a path that was filled with
countless pitfalls and snares.

“Master. I will definitely return to you alive,” Ning murmured in his heart. And then, his flying boat
went directly to the residence of his junior apprentice-brother, the mountain peak of Mu Northson.

Twinwood Peak. Ning flew into the air above it, then called out directly, “Junior apprentice-brother
Northson.” His voice echoed out in waves, reaching the estate below. Soon, a figure appeared in the
courtyard below, who quickly called back, “Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, quick, come in.”

Ning descended to the ground. Compared to three years ago, although Northson still had the
appearance of a immature youth, in terms of both power and Dao-heart, he had grown considerably.
After all, he had been able to join the Black-White College at the age of fourteen, and had been able
to spend so much time in meditation in front of the Black-White Diagram…his talent was, without
question, extremely high.

The reason why he had lost at the Dao Debates was because he was simply too young, and
because he hadn’t had as great a stroke of karmic luck as Ning had, who had acquired the
underwater estate.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, why did you decide to come here to my place?” Northson
laughed. “Normally, it’s quite rare to see you come out.”

“I was just approved by master to go out adventuring in the outside world.” Ning revealed a smile.
“Really? Wonderful!” Northson instantly began to celebrate. “I’ve waited for this day for over a year
now. Two years after I joined, my master gave me permission to go out adventuring. You are so
strong, senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, but you spent three years in training. Immortal Diancai
really is extremely exacting towards you.”

Ning laughed. After receiving the nod from his master, Daoist Jadefine, Northson had immediately
come to find Ning. But Ning hadn’t been able to leave…and so Northson had tamped down his
impatience. He didn’t want to go out wandering all by his lonely self; he wanted a companion. If two
brothers went out adventuring together, at least they wouldn’t be too lonely.

And so, he had waited…all the way until today.

“Oh, oh, I need to go to my master and bid her farewell,” Northson said hurriedly. “Go, go,” Ning
said. “Your master dotes on you so much, you really should have a good chat with her before
leaving.”

The master of Northson, Daoist Jadefine, did indeed dote on him. First of all, the entire Black-White
College had very, very few people who focused on the Dao of Constructs; it was rare for her to find
such a wonderful disciple. And secondly, Daoist Jadefine had been stuck at the Primal Daoist level
for many years. The assaults of the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations had grown increasingly
difficult for her to withstand, and she was close to her limit. A person close to the end of her years,
upon suddenly taking on such a talented disciple who was so young…Daoist Jadefine naturally
doted fiercely on this disciple of hers.

After he had entered her tutelage, Daoist Jadefine had given Northson five hundred kilograms of
liquefied elemental essence. Thus, Northson had, at one go, trained all the way to the middle
Wanxiang stage. Even in the Black-White College, this was incredibly rare!

The unspoken rule of the Black-White College was that masters would not give their disciples too
many treasures; instead, they would provide guidance to them. The College would place those
special Ki Refining techniques and divine abilities in the vault, and as the disciples rose in power, for
example reaching the ‘Dao Domain’ level, they would then be able to go acquire those techniques.

Even though a mountain of gold or a silver was right there in front of them, the disciples were to go
dig for them themselves. Only then would they acquire them. Divine abilities, secret arts; they were
all there. However, had to train in earnest and make improvements before acquiring them.

If one didn’t have to work hard and didn’t make any improvements, and yet still received everything
one wanted? This would result in a useless, hedonistic son of rich parents. Thus, the unspoken rule.
A master could help, could guide, could lead by the hand. But the disciple had to go out and struggle
for himself! It was extremely rare for someone like Daoist Jadefine to give five hundred kilograms of
liquefied elemental essence to a disciple. However, that was also the limit of Daoist Jadefine’s doting
on Northson; in other aspects, such as in handing out black-white pellets, she didn’t wantonly give
him things.

“Right.” Northson nodded. “Senior apprentice-brother, go back to your own place for now. I’ll go visit
Master, then make some preparations…tomorrow, I’ll come seek you out, senior apprentice-brother.
We’ll head out tomorrow morning and leave the Black-White College.”

“Alright.” Ning nodded. Northson immediately produced the Azure Dragon construct out of nowhere.
Boarding it, he rapidly soared into the skies and disappeared.

“Junior apprentice-brother Northson has gone to visit his master.” Ning boarded his own flying boat,
soaring into the skies. As he did so, he turned to glance towards Immortal Diancai’s residence.

“Master. Your disciple definitely will not let you down.”

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 8 – Entering the Raindragon Guard

The next morning, at dawn. Darknorth Peak.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, I want to go alongside with you. I can pour tea for you and
service you.” Cloudjade looked expectantly at Ning.

“We are going out in the world to adventure and to test ourselves. There will be countless dangers.
This isn’t tourism! You had best just stay here calmly at the Black-White College.” Ning looked
towards his retainers; Meng Roch, Cloudjade, Cloudship, Forgard, Weifang, and Nethersun. “After I
leave the Black-White College, all matters here at Darknorth Peak, great and small, will be managed
by Meng Roch.”

Cloudship and the others, upon hearing this, were all rather amazed. Roch? The weakest amongst
them was most likely Roch. The others had all improved in strength, but because Roch’s ki
foundation had been damaged, he had been forced to divide his attention and also train as a
Fiendgod. For now, at least, he was the weakest of them.

“Yes, senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” Cloudjade and the others all acknowledged the order.
“Rocky. I entrust Darknorth Peak to you.” Ning looked towards Roch. The tall, swarthy Roch nodded
solemnly. “Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, don’t worry at all.”

Ning suddenly raised his head. From afar, a streak of light was flying over. It was Mu Northson,
riding on his Azure Dragon construct. Northson called out towards him from afar, “Senior apprentice-
brother Ji Ning!”

“Let’s go, Uncle White.” The flying boat appeared next to Ning, and the Whitewater Hound ambled
into the boat. The two of them, a man and a large, snowy white hound, immediately soared into the
air, moving to join with the distant Northson, aboard his flying dragon. Soon, they all disappeared
into the distant mountain peaks.

………..

Ning, Northson, and the Whitewater Hound walked out from the main gates of the Black-White
College. “The next time we return,” Northson said, “We will be even more powerful.” Northson turned
to look at the gates of the school, his eyes filled with anticipation and desire. He said softly, “And I’m
going to bring back a pile of techniques and arts which the College doesn’t have…I’ve grown sick of
not having enough black-white pellets, and of the pain of not having enough of them to trade for all
sorts of golem-related arts.”

The Black-White College had a sea of techniques and arts; where did they all come from? Naturally,
they had been accumulated over the years by its disciples, who had brought them back after
adventuring in the outside world. When the disciples offered new techniques and arts, they would
receive corresponding rewards in black-white pellets and liquefied elemental essence!

Ning actually had two extremely powerful techniques which he could offer to the College; the first
was his divine ability, the [Windwing Evasion], while the second was the [Lesser Thousand Swords
Formation]. The entire school only had five divine abilities; from this, one could see how rare they
were. This divine ability, however, had been passed down from generation to generation by the
Yuchi clan, and even his mother had told him that it was not to be given to outsiders. How could he
so casually give it up?

As for the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation], that was something he could make his own
decision on, but he had already left the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] to the Ji clan; in the
future, the Ji clan would rely on it to rise to prominence. His father had given his entire life for the Ji
clan, and Ning had grown up within the clan ever since he was young. He felt a powerful sense of
loyalty to the clan. For now, Ning still needed to seriously consider as to whether or not he was to
give such a powerful, consummate technique to the College.
After all, all schools, sects, tribes, and clans viewed arts and techniques with great importance. It
was entirely possible that an entire tribe might be exterminated for the sake of a divine ability or a
powerful secret art.

“Let’s go,” Ning said.

“Where should we go?” Northson asked.

“First, to the Heavenly Treasures Mountain.” Ning laughed. “The Heavenly Treasures Mountain has
countless treasures within it. If we are going to go adventuring, we’ll need to prepare ourselves. We
can go shopping there.”

“Right. I really do want to go shopping.” Northson nodded. And so, Ning, Northson, and the
Whitewater Hound immediately departed the Black-White College.

……..

A white-haired, young-faced old granny was standing within a courtyard. The water-scrying mirror in
front of her revealed Ning, Northson, and the Whitewater Hound departing from the gates of the
Black-White College.

“Northson…” Daoist Jadefine’s eyes held a hint of both worry and anticipation.

……..

The black-robed, black-haired Immortal Diancai was seated in the lotus position on his bed.
Suddenly, he opened his eyes. They were filled with anticipation. His disciple had gone out to
temper himself.

Some disciples would return in two or three years. Some would only return after decades. Still others
would return only after centuries! But of course, there were also some who would never return,
having died in the outside world.

………

Heavenly Treasures Mountain. This place had the support of the mighty imperial clan of the Xia
Dynasty. They were in every single one of the commandery cities which were stretched across the
vast land.
In the three years since joining the Black-White College, Ning had come out and met with Northmont
Baiwei quite a few times. Naturally, he had gone to the Heavenly Treasures Mountain as well.

“Uncle White, this time when we go adventuring, we shall be beset by dangers. What do you need?”
Ning looked towards the Whitewater Hound by his side and spoke to him mentally.

“You’ve already given me that Lesser Teleportation Dao-seal,” the Whitewater Hound sent back
mentally. “Right now, there is one thing which I wish for the most…the ‘Fuxi Staff Formation’.”

“Fuxi Staff Formation?” Ning nodded. Although he couldn’t compare with his Uncle White in terms of
formations, in his spare time, Ning would also go meditate on them. Naturally, he knew about the
renowned ‘Fuxi Staff Formation’. Fuxi…that was a major power from the legends. Even in his
previous life on Earth, Ning had heard some of the legends of Fuxi.

Fuxi, Houyi, Kuafu…these were all figures out of ancient legends. The Fuxi Staff Formation, in turn,
was supposedly created by Fuxi, formed from eight arrays of eight staffs, for 64 staffs in total. Fuxi
was able to use it to execute all sorts of formations. Those 64 staffs…there were boundless ways in
which they could be used. In the hands of an ordinary Immortal cultivator, they might be useless, but
in the hands of a formations expert, they could unleash astonishing levels of power.

The higher one’s level of insights into formations was, the greater and the more miraculous the
power one would be able to unleash from the Fuxi Staff Formation. According to legends, Fuxi was
able to rely on this Fuxi Staff Formation to set up a grand formation that had the power to annihilate
the heavens and exterminate the earth. In addition, the Fuxi Staff Formation was something which
could be carried about; like the ‘Eight Trigrams Blood Dragon Formation’, it could be unleashed at
any time. Thus, those who were skilled in formations would generally try to procure a set of the Fuxi
Staff Formation.

“Alright. Leave it to me.” Ning nodded.

“Young master Ji. Young master Mu.” A devilishly attractive female Zifu Disciple had come to the
gates of the Heavenly Treasures Mountain early on, and she now came to welcome them. Ning,
Northson, and the Whitewater Hound thus entered the Heavenly Treasures Mountain.

………

There were countless treasures within the Heavenly Treasures Mountain, but the prices were
similarly extravagant. Still, those who the Heavenly Treasures Mountain cared about would generally
be given discounts. For genius disciples of the Black-White College, a 30% discount would be given.
This was essentially as large a discount as was possible, because when the Heavenly Treasures
Mountain purchased treasures, they would usually buy them at a 60% valuation!

But of course, there were stories of some Immortals who both bought and sold items at a cost of
60%; the Heavenly Treasures Mountain wouldn’t try to make any money off them at all. But of
course, for now, Ning’s group couldn’t possibly be treated in this way.

“I’m selling this set of sword formations. This magic treasure as well. Oh, this set of sword formations
as well.” Within the Heavenly Treasures Mountain, Ning quickly began to sell off the many magic
treasures he had accumulated, such as the various magic treasures he had acquired when killing
the Immortal cultivators of Snowdragon Mountain. He had even sold off the sword formations
bestowed upon him by Northmont Blacktiger and senior apprentice-brother Bloodshadow. This was
because, although these sword formations were of high quality, they came from different sources;
some were ice-attribute flying swords, while others were fire-attribute flying swords. Having too many
swords of different types was not beneficial to the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation].

Soon, an hour had passed. Ning, Northson, and the Whitewater Hound all departed from the
Heavenly Treasures Mountain.

Ning acquired a set of 360 high-grade Mortal-ranked water-attribute flying swords, then acquired
another set of 360 high-grade Mortal-ranked fire-attribute flying swords. In total, he had 720 high-
grade flying swords now. Although these were all produced by the Heavenly Treasures Mountain,
and were flying swords of the most common variety, with nothing unique about them, they were still
high-grade Mortal-ranked weapons. If he had to use liquefied elemental essence to purchase them,
he would have spent nearly five hundred kilograms.

Blacktiger had gifted him two sword formations, while Bloodshadow had gifted him with one. He had
managed to sell them off for nearly 450 kilograms of liquefied elemental essence. The magic
treasures of Adept Xu Li, in turn, were sold off for nearly fifty kilograms.

……

In short, in the end, Ning ended up paying an additional hundred kilograms in exchange for 720
high-grade Mortal-ranked flying swords, and a Fuxi Staff Formation. He then spent a bit more to
purchase some necessary adventuring items.

“Ugh!” After exiting the Heavenly Treasures Mountain, Northson let out a sigh. “After entering the
Heavenly Treasures Mountain, I realized how poor I actually am. All I have left right now is around
five kilograms of liquefied elemental essence or so. As for you, senior apprentice-brother, I imagine
you should be a bit better off.”
“In the past three years, although I’ve won a few battles at the Dao Debate Palace…” Ning shook his
head. “After this visit to the Heavenly Treasures Mountain, I’m essentially bankrupt as well. I only
have around fifty or so kilograms left.”

Northson nodded, but then his eyes lit up. “Of course we won’t be able to acquire any treasures
while staying within the College all the time. We are now going to go out adventuring, and we’ll have
plenty of opportunities to acquire them. For example, back in the day, senior apprentice-brother
Bloodshadow managed to effortlessly gift you that precious Mortal-ranked sword formation to you,
senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning. Clearly, to him, it wasn’t worth anything at all. Now that we are
going out adventuring, I trust that soon, we’ll be just like him.”

“Right.” Ning’s eyes were filled with eagerness as well. In the College, they would often hear about
how this senior apprentice-brother found a senior’s legacy and acquired some precious item, or
about how that senior apprentice-sister had killed hundreds of other Immortal practitioners over ten-
plus years of wandering and battling, and had acquired countless treasures. Or…

Well. In short, Ning and Northson had never been out adventuring, and so they naturally felt
itchiness in their hearts.

“Just now, I traded for some treasures. My power has improved a bit, compared to the past. This
time, I’m definitely going to go on a rampage around the world.” Northson was filled with a boundless
heroic aura.

“Hahaha.” Ning just laughed.

His [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] still had, as its core, the Nine Yang Swords Formation
which he had acquired in the underwater estate. The other 360 water-attribute flying swords and 360
fire-attribute flying swords…they both countered and reinforced each other, and extremely well-
suited for controlling within the Dao of formations. Ning trusted that his [Lesser Thousand Swords
Formation] would also have incomparably astonishing combat power.

“My long-distance attacks are now comparable to my close-quarters attacks,” Ning mused to himself.
Ning was now extremely powerful in close combat, because he had reached the ninth stage of the
[Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens], which was comparable to an ordinary early stage
Wanxiang Adept Fiendgod! In addition, after he had reached the Dao Domain level in the Dao of the
Inferno and gained a thousand black-white pellets, Ning had purchased both the divine ability
[Heavenly Transformation] as well as the second scroll of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine
Heavens].
Thus, even if he didn’t use the utterly monstrous [Starseizing Hand] ability, just by relying on his
[Windwing Evasion] and [Heavenly Transformation] divine abilities, Ning could unleash a truly
astonishing amount of power in close combat. In addition, as a Ki Refiner, he had the [Lesser
Thousand Swords Formation], and so he was also extremely strong. Both in close quarters and at
long range…he was extremely powerful.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, where should we go?” Northson looked at the nearby Ning.
“Where should we go adventure?”

“Previously, our senior fellow disciples all recommended that we go join the Raindragon Guard,”
Ning said. “There are many benefits for someone to join the Raindragon Guard, and we can also
take on missions from them, and so have fixed goals when we go out adventuring. In addition, as
Raindragon Guards who are out on official missions…we can also overawe and frighten off some
people, and also avoid some difficulties.”

“Right.” Northson nodded. “I was thinking the same thing.”

The two finished their discussion, and their decision was…to first join the Raindragon Guard!

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 9 – Raindragon Guard, Stillwater Division

Ji Ning, before leaving, paid a visit to Northmont Blacktiger’s Estate as well. He bade farewell to his
good friend, Northmont Baiwei, who upon learning that Ning was leaving, gave him quite a few
pieces of advice. He knew exactly how dangerous adventuring in the outside world was, but in order
to become a truly influential, powerful figure in the greater world, one did have to undergo a brutal,
merciless tempering process.

Within a desolate, wild region outside Stillwater City. “Kakakaka…crunch.” An Azure Dragon
construct, hovering in midair, suddenly transformed, its body beginning to change into the shape of a
wide, dragon-headed ship.

Ning raised his head, staring at the dragon-headed ship, then gave a surprised sigh and glanced
towards the nearby Mu Northson. “Junior apprentice-brother Northson, this construct of yours can
even transform? How formidable.”

“You are an outsider who knows nothing at all about the art of constructs. Transformations are
nothing more than parlour tricks,” Northson said smugly. “Let’s go. The Stillwater division of the
Raindragon Guard is located at the Crimson Dragon Mountains. Although it’s a bit far from here…
flying on magic treasures isn’t quite as comfortable as letting the construct fly for us on its own.”

Laughing, Ning led the Whitewater Hound in boarding the dragon-headed ship. Standing atop the
front of the ship, Northson had an incomparably bold appearance, and the ship quickly soared into
the clouds, moving at high speed. Northson said, “I have an essence-gathering runic formation
placed atop this construct, and so when flying at this speed, it won’t use up any elemental energy at
all. The elemental essence it absorbs while flying will be enough.”

“I often heard aunt-master Jadefine praise you and say that your talents in the Dao of Constructs are
extremely high. In the College, we would at most engage in Dao Debates, and so I’ve never had the
chance to personally witness your power in this regard, junior apprentice-brother Northson. Now that
we are joining the Raindragon Guard…I’ll be able to take a good look,” Ning laughed.

“Make sure you watch with wide eyes.” Northson raised his head proudly, seeming quite delighted
with himself. Ning roared with laughter.

Although they had gotten to know quite a few senior fellow apprentices during the past three years at
the Black-White College, and they were on very good terms with some, such as Ninelotus and
Bloodshadow, in Ning’s heart, the one he was closest to was still Mu Northson, who had joined the
school alongside him. Northson, perhaps because of his young age, had completely focused on the
Dao of Constructs since he was a child, and unlike Ning, didn’t have memories from a former life.
Thus, his behavior was quite juvenile and immature. In short; Northson had the temperament of a
child!

If he liked something, he liked it; if he was mad, he was mad. He wasn’t able to hide anything! When
he first entered the school, he had been defeated twice in Dao Debates, and had been unspeakably
angry. If he had been slightly better at hiding his emotions, he wouldn’t have exposed his anger so
openly. Strictly speaking…he was a bit too earnest and sincere.

In turn, however, Ning found it quite easy to get along with a little junior apprentice-brother like him.

“There we are. We reached the Crimson Dragon Mountains.” Northson’s eyes were gleaming as he
pointed into the distance.

Ning stared into the distance. Past the clouds, he could see a chain of mountains that did indeed
seem to be shaped into the sinuous figure of a dragon. The entire dragon-shaped mountain range
was covered with a fiery red color, and from the distance, it did indeed look like a fiery, divine
dragon! Its aura was quite astonishing as well, and in fact, it was even more terrifying than the grand
formation of the Black-White College, which had been reinforced by countless generations of
Immortals of the College.

“It lives up to its reputation as one of the top two supreme powers within Stillwatery Commandery,”
Ning said with an amazed sigh.

Northson sighed in amazement as well. “The two supreme powers are the Northmont clan of
Stillwater, and the Stillwater division of the Raindragon Guard. In addition, just from looking at the
grand formation, we can see that they definitely far surpass our Black-White College. The
Raindragon Guard really live up to their reputation. This was just a mere commandery division!
When you think about how there is such a division in every single commandery which has been
united under the control of the Xia Dynasty…one can’t help but shudder.”

Ning nodded. “This is true.” The Northmont clan of Stillwater Commandery held, as their
enfeoffment, the entire Stillwater Commandery. They had existed from the Fiendgod era; naturally,
they had accumulated countless valiant powers.

As for the Raindragon Guard? One could see from a superficial look as to how powerful they are. In
addition, they could ask for the support of the other divisions at any time, and could even request
support from the headquarters of the Raindragon Guard in the imperial capital of the Xia Dynasty! To
the Raindragon Guard which oversaw the entire Xia Dynasty, sending out a few hundred or even a
thousand Immortals was a minor matter.

“It’s precisely because they are so powerful, being representatives of the Xia Dynasty, that even we
desire to join the Raindragon Guard,” Ning said. “Come. Let’s move over.”

“Right.” Northson nodded. The dragon-headed boat immediately swooped lower, moving directly
towards the Crimson Dragon Mountains.

The Crimson Dragon Mountains were shaped like an enormous dragon, with the head of the dragon
being the mountain where guests were welcomed. Ning and Northson directed the construct vessel
to swoop downwards, landing directly atop a flat area at the guest-welcoming mountain. After
collecting the Azure Dragon construct, Ning, the Whitewater Hound, and Northson all moved over.
Right at this moment, two Zifu Disciples who wore fiery red armor walked over from afar. A cold look
on their faces, they barked, “Why have you come to our Crimson Dragon Mountains?”

Ning and Northson both felt as though they were being rather overbearing, but this was the local
division of the Raindragon Guard, after all. The two of them couldn’t act too inappropriately.
“We have come to join the Raindragon Guard,” Ning said. “Oh?” The two fiery-armored Zifu
Disciples gave them a glance, and the leader, a tall, skinny cultivator, said in a cold voice, “Then
follow me.”

Ning, Northson, and the Whitewater Hound immediately followed after him. They all moved through
the mountainous as easily as though they were moving through flat land, and these crimson-
armored Zifu Disciples could be seen throughout this guest-welcoming peak.

“The two of you, listen up.” The tall, skinny cultivator leading to them said in a cold voice, “Quite a
few wish to join our Raindragon Guard. However, you have not yet joined and are not yet
Raindragon Guards. And so, you’d best obediently obey the rules here…”

Northson, upon hearing this, frowned. Ning, however, was more or less calm.

“Remember this. First of all, you are not Raindragon Guards; thus, within the Crimson Dragon
Mountains, you are forbidden from fighting. If you violate this, you will be killed with no mercy!”

“Second, the only place within the Crimson Dragon Mountains which you may move about in is this
place, the guest-welcoming mountain. If you barge into other areas, you will be killed with no mercy!”

“Third, you are not to touch or damage the restrictive formations set upon the guest-welcoming
mouontain. Violators will be killed with no mercy.”

The tall, skinny man didn’t even look at Ning or Northson. Northson’s face was now turning rather
ugly. He sent mentally, “Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, the Raindragon Guard have too many
rules, and they are too brash and arrogant. We are disciples of the Black-White College, and yet
they treat us like this?”

“Forget about being disciples of the Black-White College; even if we were members of the
Northmont clan of Stillwater, it wouldn’t mean anything in this place.” Ning had read the intelligence
reports, and knew a few things about the Raindragon Guard.

Ning, Northson, and the Whitewater Hound continued to follow from behind. Soon, they arrived at
the back of the mountain, where there were wooden houses and stone houses scattered
everywhere.

“Take a look.” The tall, skinny cultivator pointed towards the distant stone and wood houses. “Within
those houses are those who wish to join the Raindragon Guard. These houses were built and left
behind by others who came to join us. You can choose an empty one and live there for now. When
we’ve cobbled together enough people, you’ll be sent to the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains.”

After speaking, the tall, skinny cultivator turned and departed, quickly disappearing.

“Who the hell is he? He’s so arrogant,” Northson muttered. “He’s an auxiliary ‘Keeper’ of the
Raindragon Guard,” Ning said. He had met with Baiwei quite a few times, and had learned many
things.

“A ‘Keeper’ of the Raindragon Guard?” Northson said, surprised, “The Raindragon Guard actually
has Keepers?”

Ning nodded. “Of course. Those of us who join the Raindragon Guard are all quite free and
unrestrained; we roam about the world, and only when we come to take on missions will we appear!
However, the Raindragon Guard also needs some people who are permanently stationed here, or
some soldiers who they will be able to trust completely. Thus, the ‘Keepers’ were created!”

“The Keepers of the Raindragon Guard are like soldiers; they are controlled extremely strictly, and
are subject to many rules. They aren’t as free as us,” Ning said. “You should know that the
Raindragon Guard has an auxiliary corps! Generally speaking, the Keepers are selected from the
auxiliary corps.”

“Oh!” Northson now understood.

“Although their freedoms are restricted, they have the highest degree of trust from the Xia Dynasty.
Within the Raindragon Guard, they have access to more divine abilities, secret arts, treasures, etc.
As for us, even after we become Raindragon Guards, we’ll still need to carry out missions in order to
receive such benefits,” Ning said. “To get something, you have to give something.”

Northson hurriedly nodded. “I don’t want to become a Keeper. There are so many rules; how does it
even feel like being an Immortal practitioner? That’s just a form of suffering.”

“Everyone has their own choices,” Ning said with a laugh, then sighed. “Those who are extremely
talented will naturally have the option of choosing to be free and unrestrained. But for those who are
less talented, they naturally might give up these things, so as to be able to acquire some top-class
techniques, secret arts, and whatnot.”

“Mm. That’s true as well.” Northson nodded, seeming to have understood something. As the two
chatted, they continued to move forward. The stone and wooden residences were all very simply
made; generally speaking, they had just a single house and a yard. A number of them already had
Immortal cultivators residing in them.

“This one.” Northson pointed at a grassy area in front of him. As he pointed, instantly, a streak of
light flew out, and the streak of light quickly began to transform and expand atop the ground, quickly
developing into quite an elegant-looking estate.

“An estate made from a construct?” Ning was startled. The Dao of Constructs truly was a remarkable
one. Carriages, warships, people, beasts, estates, or even cities; all these things could be produced
through the Dao of Constructs.

“Who knows how long this adventure of ours shall last? It’s quite unsafe to stay in an empty,
desolate area. Thus, I personally created this ‘Moonwood Estate’, which even a Wanxiang Adept
would need to spend quite a bit of time to break into,” Northson said smugly.

“Not bad, not bad,” Ning laughed as he walked inside. And so, Ning, Northson, and the Whitewater
Hound took up residence within the ‘Moonwood Estate’. One day after another passed, and the
Immortal cultivators living in the nearby stone and wood houses began to discover that a construct-
estate had appeared in their midst. However, none of them commented on it, just waited quietly
together.

Early one dawn, a month after Ning’s group had arrived.

“Everyone!” A sonorous voice thundered out, instantly filling every single stone room and even
wooden room. Even the construct-estate which Northson had created was unable to block out this
sound, which blasted forth next to Ning, Northson, and the Whitewater Hound’s ears.

“It is time to go to the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains.” The voice continued to echo forth.

Ning felt his chest grow tight, and his face changed. “Such terrifying power. This level of power…
makes me feel as though I cannot resist it whatsoever. It must be an Immortal.” Although he didn’t
feel confident in being able to fight a Primal Daoist, he wouldn’t feel as completely powerless as he
did now. Thus, it should be an Immortal.

Ning and Northson both walked out. Northson waved his hand, and the entire construct-estate was
tucked away.

At this moment in time, figures emerged from the stone and wooden houses as well. These were all
people who wished to join the Raindragon Guard.
Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 10 – The Immortals of the Raindragon Guard

Ning stared at his surroundings. During the past month, all of the Immortal cultivators had remained
in their own stone or wooden houses, training quietly. To them…training and waiting for a month was
a very simple matter. Thus, during the past month, he hadn’t really gotten to know any of them!

“A hundred!” Ning’s gaze swept past them, and he realized that the total number of figures who had
emerged numbered exactly a hundred people. Ning then turned his gaze to the front.

Up ahead, there were three figures who were staring at Ning and the other 99 who wished to join the
Raindragon Guard. These three were led by a silver-haired, black-robed elder who carried a
desolate, killing aura about him. When he swept his gaze past the prospective recruits, everyone,
Ning included, felt an invisible pressure bear down upon them. It was as though a black dragon was
staring at a crowd of ants.

“An Immortal!” Ning said silently to himself. The gaze of the silver-haired, black-robed elder flashed
like the gleam of a weapon, causing them all to feel shock in their hearts. He suddenly spoke out.
“Your batch of a hundred Immortal cultivators has been completed. Now, you can go to the wild
marshes of the Gaol Mountains.”

Ning and the rest of the hundred all listened carefully.

“You are not yet Raindragon Guards,” the silver-haired, black-robed elder continued coldly. “Thus,
you were assigned to live in this desolate, backwater part of the mountain. Once you become true
Raindragon Guards…you will naturally be permitted to enter the depths of the Crimson Dragon
Mountains.”

As he spoke, he pointed towards the distance, to a peak of the Crimson Dragon Moungains. “That
place is the place where true Raindragon Guards reside. The Crimson Dragon Mountains aren’t a
place for pleasure, and it isn’t as bustling as Stillwater City. The only thing we have here is the
endless quiet.” The silver-haired elder continued calmly, “Those who focus on training quietly will
generally take over one of the cave estates of the Crimson Dragon Mountains and train within. The
number of Immortals who are currently training within the Crimson Dragon Mountains…is greater
than twenty!”

Once these words came out, Ning and the rest of the hundred Immortal cultivators all felt their hearts
clench tightly. The Raindragon Guard really did live up to its reputation as being one of the two titans
of Stillwater Commandery! More than twenty Immortals?!
Ning and Northson were from the Black-White College, which was ranked as the third greatest
power. And yet, they now understood what a tremendous difference in power there was. Although
the College had quite a few Immortals…just the ones training in at the Raindragon Guard’s base
numbered over twenty, much less the ones out on assignment or in the other branches spread
throughout the Xia Dynasty.

“In fact, some Celestial Immortals will occasionally come from the imperial capital to expound on the
Dao for the Raindragon Guards present.” The silver-haired elder swept his gaze forward. “In terms of
power, our division of the Raindragon Guard is comparable to the Northmont clan of Stillwater. In
terms of our roots and background, however, the Raindragon Guard vastly outstrips them.”

“So long as you can enter the Raindragon Guard, divine abilities, secret arts, and even the chance to
head to the core of the Xia Dynasty, the imperial capital…all these are possible. You might even
have a chance to go to the main headquarters of the Raindragon Guard to learn and be trained.”

“All of this…requires you to first join the Raindragon Guard!” The silver-haired, black-robed elder
stood there, waist as straight as a mountain, his voice reverberating sonorously in each person’s
inner heart. “Now, each of you shall tell me of your history and your power. If you wish to join the
Raindragon Guard…you must meet the minimum requirements of our Raindragon Guard. If you
aren’t even able to fulfill the minimum requirements, then there is no need for you to go to the Gaol
Mountains’s wild marshes; you can just go back right now.”

Whoosh! Instantly, a bronze mirror floated up into the skies, hanging there. “All of you, fully explain
your histories and your level of strength. If you dare to lie at all, you will be killed without mercy.
You.” The silver-haired elder pointed towards a black-bearded youth, and the bronze mirror turned
towards him.

The black-bearded youth immediately said, “Skysplitter Sword Sect, Ki Refiner, middle-stage
Wanxiang Adept, Bu Violetsun!”

“Alright.” The silver-haired elder nodded. “Next.”

“Eastriver Clan, Ki Refiner. Late-stage Wanxiang Adept, Eastriver Cloudsoar!”

……

One practitioner after another began to reveal their histories. The Raindragon Guard would naturally
want to learn about the backgrounds of those who came to join. After learning their backgrounds and
names…given the intelligence networks of the Raindragon Guard, they would quickly be able to
obtain detailed reports.

Not a single person dared to lie. To lie in front of an Immortal of the Raindragon Guard would be
suicidal.

“You.” The silver-haired elder pointed towards Northson. Northson answered, “Black-White College,
Ki Refiner. Middle-stage Wanxiang Adept, Mu Northson.”

“The Black-White College?”

“Someone from the Black-White College came as well.”

Instantly, quite a few Immortal cultivators began to pay attention to Northson. Although they also
came from extremely top-tier schools, sects, and extremely large clans that were on the same tier as
the Black-White College, those tribes and clans had many disciples and descendants. Every single
member of the Black-White College, however, was definitely a peerless genius. Not a single one of
them was easily offended.

“You.” The silver-haired elder looked towards Ning.

“Black-White College, Ki and Fiendgod Body dual refiner. Ninth stage of the [Crimsonbright Diagram
of the Nine Heavens]. Ji Ning.” Ning gave his response.

The silver-haired elder gave Ning a surprised glance. For even an Immortal to be surprised, the
reactions of the other Immortal practitioners went without saying. All of them were filled with
boundless amazement and curiousity. To join the Raindragon Guard…generally speaking, the early
Wanxiang Adept stage was a minimum requirement, but of course, if one trained in the legendary,
number one Fiendgod Body Refining Technique, the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens],
one would be an exception. Being at the Zifu Disciple level would suffice.

This situation, however, was extremely rare. Unexpectedly, today they managed to encounter
someone who had trained to the ninth stage of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens].

“The ninth stage of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] is comparable to an ordinary
early stage Fiendgod Wanxiang Adept. Upon using a divine ability, the power will definitely be
significant; after all, he came from the Black-White College.”
“He’s too rash. No matter what, he’s only an early stage Wanxiang Adept. Since he didn’t discuss his
power as a Ki Refiner, he hasn’t reached the Wanxiang level in it either. He’s a weak Ki Refiner, and
just barely qualifies as a Fiendgod Body Refiner…upon encountering a group of enemies, they will
trample him to death.” The Immortal practitioners were all thinking this to themselves.

Those who dared join the Raindragon Guard were all quite self-confident, and could be considered
elites amongst their peers.

……..

“Mm…” The silver-haired, black-robed elder looked towards Ning’s reflection in the bronze mirror,
then nodded slowly. “You are indeed at the ninth stage. Next.” The silver-haired, black-robed elder
looked towards the next person. But, right at this moment…

A voice suddenly echoed in Ning’s mind. “Your name is Ji Ning? The [Crimsonbright Diagram of the
Nine Heavens] has been publicly acclaimed since the Fiendgod Era as the number one technique,
and it has quite a few special aspects. Once you join the Raindragon Guard, you’ll learn how to
better unleash your battle power as a Fiendgod. You must return from the wild marshes of the Gaol
Mountains alive…and actually, it’d be better if you waited until you reached the tenth stage or the
eleventh stage before going to the wild marshes. Then, you will definitely be incomparably safe.”

The silver-haired, black-robed elder even gave Ning a sidelong glance. Ning understood…this
Immortal of the Raindragon Guard was the one who had mentally sent him this message. Ning
smiled towards this Immortal of the Raindragon Guard, but he didn’t hesitate at all. Clearly, his mind
was set.

“Special?” Ning pondered this statement. “When I was in the underwater estate, the giant yellow
bear also said that my Fiendgod body can be described as ‘perfect’, and capable of learning the
[Starseizing Hand] which Daoist Threelives left behind. In addition, even in the Fiendgod Era, the
[Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] was publicly acclaimed as the number one Fiendgod
Body Refining Technique. It has spread so far…I imagine that it is quite easy to acquire. Even our Ji
clan has a complete copy of the first scroll and the first nine stages of it!”

Ning had the feeling…as though there must be a tremendously powerful force which was
propagating the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]. In addition, this technique had been
publicly acknowledged long ago. The Xia Dynasty itself had only been established during the later
periods of the Fiendgod Era. This technique had existed even before the Xia Dynasty’s founding…
and yet, the Xia Dynasty actively propagated it.
“There must be some reason for this,” Ning mused to himself. “However, without question, this
technique, as one which even the giant yellow bear praised, shouldn’t have any problems. Since the
technique itself has no problems…then for now, a kid like myself has no need to worry about the
other reasons.”

“This Immortal of the Raindragon Guard said that there are some special aspects to it, and that after
joining the Raindragon Guard, I’ll learn how to truly unleash the combat potential of my divine body?”
Ning instantly grew rather eager. The Raindragon Guard was the most powerful military force of the
entire Xia Dynasty. It only made sense that it had some special secret arts.

In terms of its roots and its background…the Raindragon Guard was naturally countless times
superior to the Black-White College. Not even the Marquis of Stillwater could compare to the entire
Raindragon Guard.

“You.” The silver-haired elder pointed to the final Immortal cultivator. This man was dressed in a
beautiful golden robe, and he said with respect, “Snowdragon Mountain, Ki Refiner, peak Wanxiang
Adept, Dong One!”

Ning’s ears twitched. He turned to look over towards him, and that Immortal cultivator just so
happened to be looking at Ning as well. Their gazes intersected.

“He knows me.” Ning instantly realized this, when their gazes cross. The Immortal cultivator named
Dong One had a smile on his face, and he even nodded towards Ning. Ning just gave him a calm
look, not smiling at all. His parents and uncle, in a way, had all died due to the disciples of
Snowdragon Mountain. How could Ning possibly smile when facing a disciple of Snowdragon
Mountain?

Ning began to ponder in his heart. “Why has this Wanxiang Adept of Snowdragon Mountain come
here? Did he accidentally encounter me, or was he chasing after me deliberately?”

Previously, he had remained in Stillwater City this entire time, and so Snowdragon Mountain didn’t
have any chance to take revenge on him. Was Snowdragon Mountain pursuing him as soon as he
had emerged?

“Their intelligence networks shouldn’t be this good,” Ning mused. “In addition, I’m a disciple of the
Black-White College, and the personal disciple of an Immortal. Snowdragon Mountain shouldn’t be
so bold as to act in this way. It’s possible that this is all just a chance meeting.”

……
Each person had finished describing their histories and strengths. The silver-haired, black-robed
elder waved his hand. Instantly, streaks of light flew out towards each person. Ning stretched out his
hand, clasping it; it was a talisman.

“This is a talisman,” the silver-haired, black-robed elder said. “Bind it. Only then will you be able to
enter the inner regions of the Crimson Dragon Mountains. The teleportation array within the inner
region leads to the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains. If you haven’t bound any talismans, the
protective formation around the Crimson Dragon Mountains will not permit you to enter.”

Ning and the others didn’t hesitate at all, as they all immediately bound the talismans. “Go.” The
silver-haired, black-robed elder’s body suddenly became shrouded by clouds which appeared out of
nowhere, and the clouds lifted up and dragged Ning and the others away. However, the spirit-beasts
which some Immortal cultivators had brought were all left behind.

“The test for entering the Raindragon Guard is a personal test. These spirit-beasts are not to enter
the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains,” the silver-haired, black-robed elder said. “Have them stay
here for now. If you come back alive, you can seek them out.”

Ning stood there atop the clouds. He turned to look downwards towards the Whitewater Hound.
“Uncle White, wait for me,” Ning sent mentally. “Be careful,” the Whitewater Hound sent back,
looking towards Ning.

And then, the silver-haired, black-robed elder led the group of Immortal cultivators atop his clouds.
They quickly flew away, moving deeper into the distant inner regions of the Crimson Dragon
Mountains.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 11 – The Wild Marshes of the Gaol Mountains

When standing atop the clouds and staring downwards, one would be vaguely make out the
Immortal residences that lay scattered throughout the winding mouontains. Occasionally, one would
also seem some figures flying about on magic treasures; most likely, those were Raindragon
Guards.

Just as Ji Ning and Mu Northson were staring with curiosity towards those Immortal cultivators,
suddenly…the cloud began to sink downwards.
“That’s…” Ning saw, in the distance, a towering mountain peak, atop which a massive, complicated,
tower-shaped formation had been built.

Boom! The cloud landed, and Ning’s group of Immortal cultivators stared towards the tower-shaped
formation. This tower-shaped formation up ahead faintly glimmered with gray light, and it was 2400
meters high! The base had a diameter of three hundred meters, and was divided into what appeared
to be nine halls. The entire tower-shaped formation’s structure appeared to be made from rare
metals, and it was covered with the carvings of many runes. The densely clustered runes covered
the entire, 2400 meter high tower-shaped formation.

The entire tower-shaped formation emanated a hazy gray light. Only the tip of the tower shone with
a white light. Next to the formation, there were ten old men dressed in plain clothes who were on
guard.

“This is the teleportation array?” Northson’s eyes were shining. “Should be,” Ning said, also
incredibly curious.

They had heard long ago about the legendary ‘teleportation arrays’, but had never used them. In
Stillwater Commandery, only the Raindragon Guards, along with a very few number of others, had
the right to use the teleportation array. But of course, one could bring one’s retainers and spirit-
beasts along. It was only because Ning’s group was here to join the Raindragon Guard that an
exception was made and they were permitted to use it once.

“Teleportation array?”

“A teleportation array that is 2400 meters high? The division stationed in my homeland has a
teleportation array as well, but it is only 300 meters high, much smaller than this one.”

“I’ve never even seen one.”

Although these Immortal practitioners all had seen many things, upon seeing this massive
teleportation array, they all sighed in amazement. As for those ten plainly dressed elders, upon they
all bowed towards that silver-haired, black-robed elder.

“Make your preparations,” the silver-haired, black-robed elder instructed. “These hundred Immortal
cultivators are to be sent directly to the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains!”

“Yes.” The ten elders immediately entered the grand formation, which began to change subtly. As for
the silver-haired elder, he glanced towards Ning’s group of a hundred, then said in a sonorous voice,
“This teleportation array is a top-tier teleportation array. It can even teleport you directly to the
imperial capital of the Grand Xia Dynasty! You can reach any region of this vast world through this
teleportation array and arrive in an instant.”

“Although the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains are two million kilometers away, you will arrive in
an instant,” the silver-haired, black-robed elder said. “Eh?!” Suddenly, the silver-haired elder’s face
changed slightly. Swoosh! He suddenly disappeared fro the spot.

This completely astonished Ning and the others, who were still listening to him speak. “Why did he
vanish?”

“Something important must have occurred.”

“Immortals truly are extraordinary. He vanished in an instant, and it wasn’t some sort of movement
technique.” The Immortal cultivators all began to chat amongst themselves.

The ten plainly dressed elders who were guarding the teleportation array were all puzzled as well.
Why’d he leave? To change the destination and to verify the teleportation was a simple, fast matter.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning,” Northson whispered. “Although I’ve heard of the wild marshes of
the Gaol Mountains long ago, I don’t know how dangerous it is, exactly.”

“It is quite famous…it is ranked as one of the most dangerous locations within the borders of our
Stillwater Commandery. I heard that in that place, there are many areas where space is fractured,
and which might lead directly to some fractured dimensions. There are many monsters lying in wait
there, and according to legend, even Fiendgods lie in hiding there,” Ning said.

The land under the control of the Grand Xia Dynasty was simply too vast. Aside from some safe
areas like Swallow Mountain, there were also countless mysterious, special, dangerous regions!

Even the Earth of Ning’s previous life had, in an area of ten thousand kilometers, countless
mysteries and secret areas. The same was true, naturally, for the vast world ruled over by the Grand
Xia Dynasty. Within Stillwater Commandery, there were quite a few bizarre places, and some had
been created as part of the aftermath of battles that had occurred back in the Fiendgod Era. There
were also Immortal estates, relic sites left behind by major powers, and more.

One of the top ten danger zones of the entire Stillwater Commandery were the wild marshes of the
Gaol Mountains! However, these danger zones were also filled with countless opportunities.
“I, too, have heard that there are Fiendgods here.” Suddenly, a handsome, white-robed man moved
closer to them. Ning and Northson both turned to look.

“Fellow Daoists Ji Ning, Mu Northson,” the handsome, white-robed man immediately said with a
laugh. “I am Eastriver Cloudsoar, and my Daoist title is Cloudsoar as well.”

“My Daoist title is Twinwood,” Northson said quite straightforwardly. At the same time, he glanced at
Ning, then continued, “My senior apprentice-brother is Ji Ning. His Daoist title is Darknorth! Right,
you just spoke of Fiendgods…can it be that there truly are Fiendgods within the wild marshes of the
Gaol Mountains?”

The handsome, white-robed man immediately said, “Can it be that you two have never heard of the
legends of the ‘Gaol Mountains’?” “The legends of the Gaol Mountains?” Ning and Northson
exchanged glances, then shook their heads.

“According to legend, an unfathomably long time ago, just as the Fiendgod Era was drawing to an
end,” Cloudsoar said slowly, “The group of powerful Immortals who had established the Grand Xia
Dynasty used a tremendously powerful magic treasure to imprison and seal a large group of
Fiendgods! This powerful magic treasure is the ‘Gaol Mountains’. It would have been incredibly
difficult to kill all the Fiendgods, and most likely some of the Immortals would have died as well.
Thus, they simply used the Gaol Mountains to seal these Fiendgods away. The Gaol Mountains
sealed them away from the outside world, completely separating them away and preventing them
from absorbing the energy of the outside world. The Fiendgods would only grow weaker and weaker,
and after a million years, they would become incomparably weak.”

Ning and Northson listened and nodded. Immortal cultivators and Fiendgods; at a certain level, they
wouldn’t need to eat or drink, but they would still need to absorb energy from the outside world. Ki
Refiners would absorb natural, elemental ki, while Fiendgods and Fiendgod Body Refiners would
absorb some other types of energy, such as the energy of the Five Elements, the energy of the
stars, the energy of the sun and the moon, etc. If one was unable to absorb energy from the outside
world, one would naturally grow weaker and weaker.

“But afterwards…an extremely powerful Fiendgod who was amongst the group that had been sealed
away actually managed to break through the Gaol Mountains and charge out of the sealed grounds!
A wild, savage battle erupted. The Immortals and the Fiendgods fought viciously, causing the entire
region to shatter and crack. Although no one knows what the results of that battle were, the wild
marshes of the Gaol Mountains ended up the way they currently are,” Cloudsoar said.
Ning laughed. “The Eastriver clan lives up to its reputation. You even know about secrets like this.”
Cloudsoar laughed as well. “I’ve just flipped through some books on myths and legends and heard of
this explanation. I have no idea if it is real or not.”

“I heard that back in the Fiendgod Era, the Fiendgods dominated this world,” Ning said. “Now,
however, it is us humans who dominate the vast world, with monsters being somewhat weaker…and
there are almost no Fiendgods left.”

Northson’s eyes were shining. “I’m quite curious about the Fiendgod Era as well.” Cloudsoar
laughed. “When we grow stronger, we’ll naturally learn more.”

……..

“This must be clearly investigated!” The silver-haired, black-robed man was in midair, and his voice
snapped out icily. Next to him was a black-furred, three-eyed hound who stood in midair. It spoke
out. “Yes! If anyone from the Northmont clan of Stillwater impedes us…”

“Kill them all!” The silver-haired, black-robed elder said in a cold voice. “Don’t act in your capacity as
Raindragon Guards, but kill all those who oppose you. This matter must be investigated.”

“Yes,” the three-eyed, black-furred hound said respectfully.

“These Marquisates have grown too accustomed to ruling over the territory which has been
enfeoffed to them. They all grow restless, and every so often, they need to be given a drubbing,” the
silver-haired, black-robed elder said in a cold voice. “It seems yet another group of people shall die
in the Northmont clan of Stillwater Commandery. Go!”

“Yes.” The body of the black-furred, three-eyed hound flickered, and then it disappeared without a
trace.

Only now did the silver-haired, black-robed elder ride his flying cloud downwards at a leisurely pace.
Soon, he arrived at the mountain peak which contained the teleportation array. Atop the peak was
Ning, Northson, and the rest of the Immortal practitioners, all of whom had been waiting for quite
some time.

Whoosh! The silver-haired, black-robed elder landed. Instantly, the surrounding area fell silent.
Those ten plainly dressed elders all looked towards him respectfully as well.
“All of you, listen clearly,” the silver-haired, black-robed elder said. “Those of you who wish to join
the Raindragon Guard; your testing grounds shall be the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains! This
place is one of the most famous, most dangerous locations of Stillwater Commandery. What you
need to do is to survive in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains for three months, and bring back
the head of a Wanxiang-level monster.”

“If you survive three months and bring back the head of a Wanxiang-level monster, you will join our
Raindragon Guard. If you die in the wild marshes or come back without the corpse or head of a
Wanxiang-level monster, then you will have failed. Understood?”

The silver-robed elder swept them with a gaze. The hundred Immortal cultivators all nodded, not
hesitating in the slightest. There were many who participated in the Raindragon Guard trials, and this
mission they had been assigned could be considered an ordinary one. Since they dared to come…
they naturally had some degree of self-confidence.

“Excellent.” The silver-haired, black-robed elder nodded. “Since that’s the case, then all of you can
head out now. I hope that in three months time, I’ll be able to see you return with the head of a
monster. Remember; don’t underestimate those monsters. You wish to kill them, but they also wish
to kill you. The hatred that has built up between us over countless years means that they won’t show
you any mercy at all.

The hundred Immortal cultivators all agreed. Even the youngest amongst them, Mu Northson, had a
look of resolve in his eyes.

“All of you, come in. Don’t go beyond the limits of the teleportation base.”

The ten plainly dressed elders began to make the arrangements. Ning’s group all moved into the
teleportation array. The entire teleportation array was enormous, capable of transporting thousands
of individuals.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, my master instructed me…that after we go to the wild marshes of
the Gaol Mountains, we must be wary of not only the monsters, but also of other Immortal
cultivators,” Northson sent mentally.

“They all know that we are disciples of the Black-White College. The disciples of the Black-White
College are incomparably few in number, and each of us carry priceless treasures on us. Thus,
sometimes there will be group attacks launched against us disciples of the Black-White College. We
are not yet Raindragon Guards…there are no laws against fighting amongst potential recruits.”
Laughing, Ning glanced at Northson. Indeed, human hearts were hard to fathom. In his previous life,
he had lived during the era of the information explosion…Ning had definitely learned far more things
than most of the people who lived in this comparatively closed, barbarian world.

Despite that, Ning still said, “I know. Junior apprentice-brother, you must be careful as well.”

“Right. If we two disciples join forces, hmph…if one comes, we’ll kill one. If ten come, we’ll kill ten!”
Northson sent back.

Suddenly…

The entire surrounding teleportation formation lit up. The blurry gray light on the surface of the tower
began to brighten, covering the entire teleportation formation. Someone looking in from the outside
would no longer be able to see Ning and the other hundred Immortal cultivators within.

Swish!

The white light emanating from the peak of the tower suddenly increased in luminosity a
thousandfold. Its brilliance made it appear to be a second Golden Crow within the skies.

After the bright light turned dim, the blurry gray light returned to normal as well. Ning and the
hundred Immortal cultivators within the formation had already disappeared. By now, they had
already arrived at the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 12 – Entrance

Ning felt a ripple pass through the area around him. When he had been teleported from Serpentwing
Lake to the underwater estate, it had been a similar feeling.

“Eh?” Everything before him suddenly grew clear. Mu Northson was standing next to him, and other
Immortal cultivators were around them as well. “We made it?” Northson stared, wide-eyed, at the
surrounding area. “That really was fast.”

Ning carefully weighed the surroundings as well. They were currently in a teleportation array that
was three hundred meters tall; clearly, it was a size smaller than the one by the Crimson Dragon
Mountains. Off in the distance…there were wild marshes, mountains, lakes, and wilderness all about
them, as far as the eye cold see.

“Two million kilometers in the blink of an eye.” Ning had known what was going to happen, but after
experiencing it for himself, he couldn’t help but sigh in amazement. “I heard that some Immortals can
instantly teleport a million kilometers. I wonder how long it will be before I have that ability.”

“All of you, come out.” “Hurry up.” Two ancient voices rang out, and two plainly dressed elders
outside the teleportation array waved towards them. Only now did the Immortal practitioners walk out
from the teleportation array.

“All of you, listen closely,” one of the white-haired, slightly-pudgy elders barked. “These are the wild
marshes of the Gaol Mountains. As far as you should be concerned, the only safe spot in the entirety
of the wild marshes is this spot, right here! There are always Raindragon Guards stationed here, and
a grand formation has been laid down which no one dares to trespass through.”

Ning and Northson all looked over carefully. They, too, had discovered that this teleportation
formation was built atop a mountain peak, which was ringed with Immortal cavern estates. Most
likely, quite a few people were stationed here.

“There are a few other things to remind you of,” the fat elder said. “The first is that for three months,
you are not permitted to come here. If you come here to avoid danger, you will have failed.”

“The second is that while you are adventuring in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains, you must
be extremely careful; do not stay in any single place for too long, such as for a month or longer. You
must know that there are far more monsters here in the wild marshes than there are humans, and
they are far more familiar with the Gaol Mountains than you are. If you stay in one place for too
long…you will make it easy for the monsters to join forces against you and attack you en-masse.
However, staying in one place to rest for a day or two every so often is fine.”

Ning and the others were listening carefully. This was all potentially life-saving advice.

“The third is that although the monsters of the wild marshes are dangerous, the natural environment
of the Gaol Mountains is even more dangerous. Some places might be filled with shattered space…if
you aren’t careful, you might exit our world, at which point, given your current level of power, you will
all die.”

“The fourth is that due to environmental issues, getting one’s bearings is quite difficult in the Gaol
Mountains region. Don’t just rely on your senses to judge directions! You need to judge the
directions in accordance with the movement of the sun, the moon, and the stars in the skies.
Otherwise, if you simply rely on your own senses…you will never be able to return, and will forever
be spinning in circles within the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains.”

“Alright. The four most important points have already been provided to you. Go. I hope that in three
months time, I’ll be able to see you all return,” the fat elder said.

Finally, the skinny elder spoke out as well. “If you discover that it is too dangerous and that you are
unable to handle it, you’d best head back in a hurry. Although you will have failed, you will have at
least preserved your life.”

“Go, go.” The fat elder waved his hand. “Go,” the skinny elder said as well. Ning and the rest of the
Immortal disciples all stared towards those hazy outlines of Immortal cavern estates ringing the
mountain. They could all sense the surge of powerful energy surrounding this entire mountain peak.
This was the power of that formation.

And then…swish! Swish! One streak of light after another flew out from the peak at high speed,
flying towards the outside. Some moved alone, while others moved in pairs or triplets.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, where shall we go?” Northson asked. “Every direction is the
same,” Ning said. Sweeping the area with his gaze, he pointed towards the North. “There are many
mountains over there. Let’s go over there.”

“Alright.” Northson nodded. Whoosh! A dragon-headed ship suddenly appeared before them, and
Ning and Northson boarded the ship. This dragon-headed ship was only thirty meters long; clearly, it
was sized appropriately for roaming the wild marshes. If they made it too large…it would just make it
easier for monsters to find them.

Soon, the hundred Immortal cultivators had all spread out in each direction. The two elders
responsible for guarding the formation had very complicated looks in their eyes. The skinny one
sighed, “I really envy them. I can sense the vitality and energy just oozing from them. Clearly, all of
them are very young. Youth is a form of wealth, you know; they have plenty of time to go fight, to
struggle, and to go farther along their Immortal paths. As for us…we won’t have these opportunities.”

“But at least we’ve lived a few hundred years,” the fat elder laughed. The skinny elder stared into the
distance. “I wonder how many of this batch will make it back alive.”

“If half can make it back, that’ll be pretty good,” the fat elder said. “However…this group knew
exactly how dangerous things would be, and they still elected to go adventure. If they can become
Raindragon Guards…they’ll be able to benefit from the vast Dao repositories and magic treasures
which the Guard possesses, and their Immortal paths will become more surefooted ones. The
particularly outstanding ones will even have the chance to go to the imperial capital of the Grand Xia
Dynasty, where they will be trained at our Raindragon Guard’s headquarters!”

…….

The dragon-headed boat flew through the clouds in the sky. “These high clouds are actually the
safest places, here within the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains.” Northson was standing at the
helm of the ship.

Ning nodded. “However, we still need to be careful. Once we discover any spatial ripples, we need
to immediately avoid them.” “I know,” Northson said. “The warship is flying quite slowly, actually.”

“Alright.” Ning nodded. “Look.” Northson stared down through the thin clouds below at a large
mountain. This mountain was particularly majestic in a queer way; it pierced straight through the
clouds. In addition, one could see with the naked eye countless monsters atop the mountain. Some
were monsters that were in human form. They appeared to be moving about in a manner
reminiscent of an army.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, there must be Wanxiang-level monsters in that great mountain,”
Northson said.

“Based on what I know…Wanxiang-level monsters are extremely common in the wild marshes of the
Gaol Mountains, and Zifu-level monsters can be seen everywhere. As for Primal monsters…they are
quite rare,” Ning said. “Some monsters have taken over a mountain and have proclaimed
themselves the local king, while others travel by themselves. Those who have taken over a mountain
are all extremely strong.”

Northson nodded.

“It’s quite hard to run into one of the Wanxiang-level monsters who are wandering about by
themselves,” Ning said reflectively. “So, our target should be the monsters who have crowned
themselves ‘kings’ of a mountain. But from far away, we aren’t able to tell exactly how strong those
‘king’ monsters are. If we are unlucky, we might run into a Primal monster.”

“Then what should we do?” Northson asked. Ning had come up with an idea long ago. However, he
looked at Northson. “Junior apprentice-brother Northson, do you have any ideas?”
“I do have a few,” Northson said with a frown. “The first is to follow other Immortal practitioners about
and let them be the ones to investigate. When the battle begins…after verifying that the target is a
Wanxiang monster, we’ll attack.”

“Not bad.” Ning nodded in praise. Northson continued, “The second method is to search for a
mountain with monsters that don’t seem too strong. Nine out of ten, that mountain would be the
territory of a Wanxiang monster.”

“And the third idea?” Ning prompted. Northson’s eyes lit up. “As Master said, the hearts of men are
difficult to fathom. Since that’s the case, I imagine that there will be cases where Immortal cultivators
will attack other cultivators. Generally speaking, this would involve several of them joining forces. If
several of them join forces against us…I refuse to believe that not a single one of them will have
acquired the corpse or the head of a Wanxiang monster. We can set up a trap…so if anyone comes
to ambush us, we’ll counter-ambush and kill them.”

“However, all three plans have their own flaws. I’m not confident in any of them.” Northson was quite
irritated. “Still, we have three months. That should be enough.”

Ning laughed. “Your methods are good, but I have an even simpler one.” Northson looked
expectantly towards Ning. “What method?”

“Search for a seemingly ordinary-looking mountain of monsters,” Ning said with a laugh. Northson
stared. “Isn’t that my idea?”

“After we find an ordinary mountain…I’ll sweep it with my divine sense!” Ning laughed. “If the
opponent can sense my sweep, then it will most likely be a Primal monster. If they aren’t able to…
then they will be Wanxiang monsters. Even if we are so unlucky as to run into one of the
incomparably rare Primal monsters, we can immediately use our evasive techniques to instantly
flee.”

Northson said, startled, “Divine sense? Senior apprentice-brother, your soul has truly reached the
divine sense level?” Ning nodded. “You really…” Northson was shocked. “When you joined and
defeated senior apprentice-brother Bloodshadow and the others, you demonstrated the ability to use
multiple sword arts. Many of our senior fellow disciples suspected that your soul must be extremely
powerful, perhaps at the divine sense level. Even more of them suspected that you were actually a
reincarnated Immortal. So you actually have reached the divine sense level? In the past three years,
you’ve never mentioned it!”

“You never asked,” Ning grinned.

“Then are you a reincarnated Immortal as well?” Northson’s eyes were shining. “I heard that as
reincarnated Immortals grow older, they will gradually reawaken their memories.”

Ning shook his head. “No clue. I haven’t awakened any Immortal memories, at least.” What a joke.
Ning’s memories of his past life were perfectly clear; he wasn’t an Immortal at all.

“Oh.” Northson nodded, then said excitedly, “This is wonderful. Joining the Raindragon Guards
poses a great test to others, but for you, senior apprentice-brother, it’s far too simple. We can use
your divine sense to run a test from far away…and after verifying things, can immediately act. If we
are so unlucky as to run into a Primal monster, we can immediately flee with evasion techniques.
This really is simple.”

Ning laughed. “If even someone with a divine sense is unable to join the Raindragon Guard, that’d
be quite bizarre, wouldn’t it?”

“Badass,” Northson grinned widely. “Then I, your junior apprentice-brother, shall benefit from your
strength, senior apprentice-brother.”

“Junior apprentice-brother, no need to be so polite.” Ning turned his gaze downwards, beginning to
search for mountains with monsters.

……..

Just one hour later. Ning and Northston were standing within a desolate area, staring towards a
towering mountain before them. Given Ning’s visual acuity, he was able to see that there were some
monstrous figures within this mountain.

“This one. Let me search it,” Ning said. “Alright.” Northson had already taken out a Dao-seal.

Although the two of them were both capable of simple evasion techniques, and were able to move
multiple kilometers away with a single movement, with the aid of a Dao-seal, they would be able to
move a thousand kilometers away. Ning knew that even a Primal monster would find it hard to
search a thousand kilometers with divine sense.

“Whoosh!” With but a thought, Ning instantly sent a surge of power divine sense forward, enveloping
this entire mountain.
Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 13 – Two Humans Battle Three Monsters

Ji Ning’s powerful divine sense thoroughly investigated the entirety of the mountain, inside and out.
“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, what’s the situation?” Mu Northson asked.

Ning cracked a smile, then looked at Northson. “Junior apprentice-brother Northson, need you ask?
This mountain really does have quite a few monsters within it. Based on the aura of these monsters,
there should be a single Wanxiang monster and around ten or so Zifu monsters. There are also
some Xiantian monsters that can transform into human form, as well as a crowd of lesser monsters.”

“Just one?” Northson chewed on his lips. “That’s it? There’s two of us though.”

“Thus, your idea was the right one. We first find a seemingly-ordinary mountain of monsters, with the
expectation that the monsters within won’t be too powerful,” Ning laughed. “A mountain like this, the
two uf us can flatten when we charge in. However, this is the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains.
Let’s be a bit cautious.”

“I’ll listen to you in all things, senior apprentice-brother,” Northson nodded. “Let’s go. Let’s sneak up
the mountain.” Ning pointed upwards.

Northson said, worried, “There should be formations, right?”

“Although there are formations on these monster mountains, with my divine sense spread out, I can
see everything.” Ning had quite some experience in analyzing formations, after all, while his Uncle
White was a Godbeast Whitewater Hound which was legendary for its intelligence and which was a
master of formations. Ning would often chat with Uncle White; naturally, he would gain some
pointers from him. Occasionally, Ning’s own thoughts would cause Uncle White to gain certain
insights as well.

“Let’s go.” Swoosh! Swoosh! The two stealthily slippd upwards through the wild grass, moving closer
and closer to the mountain at high speed.

A black-faced, muscular fellow was seated in the lotus position atop a jade bed, looking quite like an
Immortal practitioner. The black-faced fellow suddenly opened his eyes, and a baleful aura shot out
from his eyes, but then was quickly retracted.

He stared towards the stone door in the distance. With but a thought, he made the stone door
rumble open. Immediately, a small figure charged in from outside. It was a skinny underling, who
knelt down and said, “Congratulations, Majesty, for having finished your meditations!”
“Mm.” The large, black-faced man let out a grunt. “Go. Have the Madame come, and arrange for a
table of food to be prepared.”

“Yes.” The skinny little figure respectfully departed at high speed.

The black-faced man left his jade bed, walking leisurely out of the hall of his cavern estate and
moving outside the stone door. Standing outside, he seemed to be able to see all sorts of sights in
the vast marshes outside, and a killing desire filled his eyes. “Humans often come in batches to
attack these wild marshes of our the Gaol Mountains. the Gaol Mountains’s marshes belong to us
monsters. If a human comes, we will kill him. Mm…it’s been quite a long time since humans have
come to my place.”

The wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains were simply too vast. There were quite a few human
Immortal cultivators who came to this place, but they were all spread out extremely sparsely
throughout the wild marshes. A monster would only occasionally run into a human Immortal
cultivator.

“Thirty years ago, that human monster offered me quite the amount of liquefied elemental essence
and magic treasures, which I traded for liquefied elemental essence as well. It allowed me to shave
two centuries off of my training, while my power increased greatly.” The black-faced man was quite
eager. “I wonder when I’ll met yet another foolish human.”

Those who dared to crown themselves kings of a mountain in the wild marshes of the Gaol
Mountains naturally laid down many traps around their nest, making it so that any humans who
arrived would be unable to leave!

“Your Majesty!” Suddenly, a soft voice rang out. The black-faced man turned to look. A seductive,
green-clothed, devilish woman entered, carrying a jade platter with a beautifully carved beasthead
goblet of wine, as well as a perfectly made bottle of wine.

“Madame.” The black-faced man smiled. “Your Majesty, you’ve been training for many months now.
You’ve worked very hard. This is the wine which I personally brewed, the ‘Immortal Moonspirit
wine’.”

The green-clothed, devilish woman walked over while speaking. Monsters, after becoming Xiantian
lifeforms, would gain intelligence equivalent to a human’s. This green-clothed, alluring woman was a
Zifu monster, while the black-faced man was a Wanxiang monster.
Training took up quite a time…and these monsters knew how to enjoy themselves. They, too, need
companions. Although in this part of the world, the monsters were tremendously powerful, it was still
the Grand Xia Dynasty which had truly unified the world, a dynasty of humans. Many of the major
powers amongst the monsters had official positions within the Grand Xia Dynasty. This was actually
the reason why monsters continued to exist.

However, although the high-level individuals were on fairly good terms with each other, generally
speaking, human Immortal cultivators and monsters fought quite fiercely against each other.

A sumptuous feast of delicacies had been prepared, including meat, fruit, and wine. The black-faced
man picked up a piece of meat and began to chew it, then frowned and barked towards the outside,
“Go, go to rear mountains and to the place where we are raising humans. Catch a tender one and
send it over. This meat is tasteless. Human flesh is much better.”

“Yes.” The monster outside immediately replied in a high-pitched voice.

“Those humans eat the flesh of us monsters, and in fact, some major power even created a ‘spirit-
beast seal’ and other things to forcibly enslave us.” The black-faced man let out a cold snort. “We
monsters naturally can eat humans as well, and in fact, we should enslave them as well! Since
there’s a spirit-beast seal, why can’t there be a ‘human-slave seal’?”

The alluring, green-clothed poured a goblet of wine for her king. “Your Majesty, I heard that beyond
the greater worlds, there is are major powers amongst the monsters, capable of dominating the
Three Realms, who are indeed capable of creating a method for enslaving humans. But
unfortunately…in our greater world, the world is formally ruled over by the Grand Xia Dynasty. How
can they possibly permit a technique allowing monsters to enslave humans be spread out?”

“Madame, is there truly a method by which monsters can enslave humans?” The black-faced man
stared at the alluring, green-clothed woman.

“That’s just a legend.” The alluring woman shook her head. “How would I, a minor Zifu-level monster,
know about such things?”

The black-faced man let out a cold snort. “After I become a monster Immortal one day, I will
definitely…not good!” The black-faced man suddenly rose to his feet, staring outside the stone door.

“Your Majesty?” The alluring woman was shocked. The look on the black-faced man’s face had
changed, and he slapped the table, which with a shudder disintegrated into white dust. He roared
with fury, “Since you dare come, why haven’t you shown yourself?”
“Your Majesty, we caught a delectable human child for you.” A terrified voice rang out from afar. And
then…“AHHH!” A miserable scream, and then the terrified voice was cut off.

The alluring woman in the cavern estate knew that something was amiss. Terrified and restless, she
said, “Your Majesty, what is going on? What is happening? Has a human Immortal cultivator come?
Don’t we have layers of formations and restrictive spells here? How could the human cultivators
made it all the way here?”

The black-faced man just stared fixedly towards the outside. “They are formations experts,” he said,
gritting his teeth. What he didn’t realize was that…

Ning had actually gone around quite a few of his formations while avoiding activating the others.
Ning had thus gone straight through, not setting off any alarms at all. In the end, Ning had been
forced to break through the bewildering formation which was always active and protecting the
caverns; this was why the black-faced man was suddenly shocked into wakefulness.

“Don’t cry, don’t cry. In a short while, Big Brother will help you slaughter that monster.” Three human
figures walked over. Walking in front was a fur-clad human youth, while behind was a white-robed
youth who was holding the hand of and comforting a toddler who was dressed in just leaves.

“Waa, waaaaaa.” The toddler sobbed, tears still cascading down. Just now, the monster had
instantly been chopped into mincement, which had utterly terrified the toddler.

Northson, enraged, pointed straight at the black-faced man. “Monster, the day of your death has
come.”

“Hahaha, it’s been quite some time since I encountered any human Immortal cultivators. You dared
to come to my place? Today shall be the day of your deaths.” The black-faced man suddenly
produced two massive black scimitars, then let out an angry howl. “DIE!”

Bang! Above the hall, one bright star after another, and within this sea of stars, there was even a
brilliant moon.

“Kill!” The black-faced man’s face was savage. As for Northson, he howled in anger, “Senior
apprentice-brother Ning, hand this monster to me.”

Northson was comparatively immature in terms of personality. Upon learning that this child was
about to be eaten by this old monster…his belly had instantly become filled with rage.
“Alright.” Ning nodded, standing to one side, but prepared to attack at any moment.

While Northson howled in range, the skies above him also became filled with stars. Amidst the sea
of stars, both a brilliant moon and a blazing sun appeared. The sun and the moon hung in the
skies…this caused the face of the Wanxiang monster to change. Only extremely talented humans
with significant backgrounds were capable of manifesting such a Manifestation.

“Die.” Northson gnashed his teeth. Swish! Swoosh! Two black lights began to gather in Northson’s
hands. He opened them, and the two rays of black light shot out, forming two massive water-snakes
within the air.

The two Manifestations struggled against each other, but the Wanxiang monster’s was clearly
struggling.

“Bang!” “Bang!” The two giant water-snakes directly clashed in the air with the two giant black
scimitars which the black-faced man had unleashed. The power of the collision was so great that
even the nearby woman’s face changed dramatically. Instantly, she transformed into a white-furred
fox, wanting to flee. However, a cold light flashed through Northson’s eyes, and one of the water-
snakes swept out with its tail, smashing directly against the fleeing white-furred fox’s body. Crunch.
The white-furred fox spirit was crushed into meat paste.

Ning stood there watching. He nodded to himself. “My junior apprentice-brother has the upper hand.
He lives up to his reputation as a genius of the Dao of Constructs who entered the Black-White
College at age fourteen. Formidable.”

He had joined the Black-White College at age fourteen, and had been completely absorbed in his
meditations in the Black-White Diagram. If it hadn’t been for Ning eclipsing everyone else, Northson
would have been a dazzling, eye-catching genius. Only, because he walked the Dao of Constructs,
many of his senior fellow disciples weren’t able to truly comprehend what a monstrous genius
Northson truly was.

“Halt!” The black-faced man immediately bellowed. He had the sense that things were not right at all.
In the past, he had once killed a human Wanxiang Adept. How was this seemingly soft, weak, white-
robed youth so strong? In addition, the fur-clad youth standing behind the white-robed youth seemed
to be even more dangerous.

“Too late to feel regret!” Northson snapped coldly.

“Why haven’t they arrived yet? Why haven’t they arrived?” The black-faced man struggled to endure.
Although his power would increase dramatically once he transformed into his real form, if he truly did
that, this would truly become a battle to the death. What he needed to do, right now, was to delay.

“I shattered the talisman earlier. My Third Brother and Fifth Brother are located the closest; with their
movement techniques, they should have arrived by now.” But suddenly, a hint of joy appeared on
the face of the black-faced man.

He could sense something. Although the formations he had set around the mountain hadn’t been
able to detect these two humans, they had detected the arrival of his two good brothers.

“Just you wait. My Third Brother and Fifth Brother will suddenly ambush you, and with me joining
forces…the two of you will definitely die,” the black-faced man mused to himself. At the same time,
he continued to furiously struggle to resist the attacks.

At this moment, Ning, standing behind Northson, had a changed expression n his face. With a cold
snort, he said, “Old monster, so you actually have reinforcements coming.”

The black-faced man’s heart instantly clenched. How had this Immortal cultivator found out? Could it
be that this Immortal cultivator had also set down a formation in the area, and so had discovered his
allies coming?

No longer considering anything else, he immediately roared loudly, “Third Brother, Fifth Brother,
attack together and kill these two Immortal cultivators!”

Northson also let out a wild howl. “Two more coming? Wonderful! We were complaining about there
not being enough Wanxiang monsters!”

Ning looked towards the stone door outside the cavern estate, a faint sword-light flashing through his
eyes.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 14 – The [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] Reveals
Its Might

Two figures, transformed into streaks of light, were making haste towards the cavern estate of this
monster mountain. One of the two figures was a hawk-nosed, golden-robed man, while the other
was a dark, skinny youth. These were monster kings of two nearby monster mountains. The wild
marshes of the Gaol Mountains were incomparably dangerous, and even monsters had to form
alliances to help each other.

In this surrounding area, a total of eighteen Wanxiang monsters had formed an alliance; if one
encountered any danger, they would immediately shatter their runic talismans, and the other
seventeen would all immediately be aware of it and would come at maximum speed!

The eighteen Wanxiang monsters had all sworn an oath to the Dao of the Heavens. It was precisely
because the eighteen of them had formed a mutual defensive alliance that in this region, it was
extremely rare for a monster to be killed.

“Big Brother shattered his runic talisman. I wonder if he encountered one of those lone wanderer
freaks, or an Immortal cultivator!”

“The two of us are stronger than Big Brother. When we join forces…regardless of whether its
wandering monsters or Immortal cultivators, they will all die!”

The two old monsters were chatting mentally to each other. The original ranking of the eighteen
monsters was based on age and seniority, not strength. Their Big Brother was a Blacktusk Elephant
who had been training for a very long time.

“Third Brother, Fifth Brother, attack together and kill these two Immortal cultivators!” Suddenly, a
loud roar rang out from within the distant cavern estate.

“We’ve been discovered!” The two Wanxiang monsters exchanged glances. They had wanted to
launch sneak attacks, but they no longer had the chance now. “Kill!” They transformed into streaks
of light, charging directly towards the door of the cavern estate.

………

Within the cavern estate, Mu Northson was exerting his strength to deal with the black-faced man,
while Ji Ning was holding onto the child’s hands, looking at the expression of amazement on the
child’s face. He said consolingly, “Don’t worry. Just stay next to me and don’t run around.”

Bang! Bang! Three streaks of light suddenly shot in from outside; it was a sharp knife and two sharp
awls. They were all incredibly sharp and had a shocking aura.
“Hmph.” Ning, seeing the situation, applied his will. Whoosh! A dense cluster of 729 flying swords
suddenly appeared net to Ning. At the very core of those swords was a sword formation that was
noticeably more powerful; these were the ‘Nine Yang Sword Formation’ swords and 36 high-grade
Mortal-ranked water-attribute flying swords.

As for the other eight major sword formations, four were formed from the 324 water-attribute flying
swords, while the other four were formed from fire-attribute flying swords.

Water and fire looped amongst each other, and in the center were the ‘Nine Yang Swords’!

“[Lesser Thousand Swords Formation], level nine!” Ning’s powerful divine will completely filled these
729 flying swords, and they transformed into fire and water, competing against each other and
reinforcing each other. The water was Yin in nature, while the fire was Yang in nature; given Ning’s
accomplishments in the art of formations, he clearly now found it much easier to control the swords.
Operating this sort of exquisite, pure sword formation was actually quite comfortable for Ning.

“Seven hundred flying swords, all of which are high-grade or top-grade,” Ning sighed mentally. “In
addition, half are fire, while the other half are water; controlling them is an utter joy.”

Controlling so many flying swords placed an incomparably shocking amount of pressure on the soul.
Ning, however, was able to withstand it easily.

“Crackle crackle crackle.”

The flying swords rose and fell in an undulating pattern, all of them emitting a hazy white light on
their surfaces. In front of Ning’s chest, an even more brilliant, moving flying sword formed of white
light had began to form! This white flying sword was as pure as jade, and it was covered with a
lustrous layer of light that made it seem incomparably lovely. The entire flying sword emanated this
layer of light, as though it were the treasure of an Immortal.

This was the sword-light of the ninth level of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation]! Now that
Ning was using such high-quality Mortal-ranked swords, and had such a powerful soul to control
them with….it could be said that Ning had already reached the theoretical limit of power a person at
the Zifu Disciple level could reach when using the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation]. Such
power already vastly oustripped even using the likes of divine abilities such as [Heavenly
Transformation] or the [Luminous Eye of the Heart]..
“Go!” Ning smiled. This white, jade-like flying sword shot out, streaking out in an arc and flowing
forward like water. Rumble…those three streaks of light were trapped and blocked by this flowing
stream of water.

“As I thought, the fur-clad youth really is more powerful.” The black-faced man currently battling
against Northson felt shock in his heart. “He’s actually able to simultaneously block the combination
attack of two of my brothers by himself.”

Thud! Thud! The hawk-nosed, golden-robed man and the dark, skinny youth both landed within the
estate, and their gazes towards Ning were filled with caution as well.

“Third Brother, Fifth Brother!” The black-faced man hurriedly sent mentally, “The two of you, deal
with the fur-clad one. Leave the smaller one to me. Use all your strength and kill him.”

“Alright, Big Brother.”

“Done.”

These two newly arrived Wanxiang monsters realized that if they were to maintain human form and
control magic treasures from afar, they probably wouldn’t be able to suppress this fur-clad youth.
“Human Immortal cultivator, accept death!” The two monsters roared with rage, and then began to
transform. The hawk-nosed, golden-robed man instantly transformed into a divinely handsome and
golden-feathered winged eagle! As for the other, the black, skinny youth, he instantly transformed
into a four-legged weirdbeast with coal-black skin and two curved yellow horns on its head.

“Die!” The black-faced man also transformed into mist, then resolidified into a long-trunked elephant
with enormous black tusks.

The three monsters were now all in their true forms! In addition, the power of the magic treasures
they were using to attack Ning and Northson had suddenly increased dramatically!

“Junior apprentice-brother Northson,” Ning sent. “Will you be able to hold?” Northson sent back
confidently, “Don’t worry. I haven’t even started using my abilities.”

Ning laughed. “Excellent.” Right at this moment, the gold-feathered eagle charged forth with a howl,
its pitch-black claws ripping through the air and suddenly expanding tenfold in size to the point
where the air itself seemed to emit an ear-piercing screech. Ripples in the air that could be seen with
the visible eye appeared; the power of this claw definitely surpassed that of the earlier magic
treasure it had used.
Monsters and humans were different; monsters had bodies which were innately powerful and
possessed innate abilities. For example, some monsters had the innate ability to control water; and
even if they didn’t train in a Fiendgod Body Refining Technique, they would still possess enormous
strength! Some of them might even be able to temper parts of their body into magic treasures, such
as their horns, their claws, or their tails. This would result in their very body becoming an intrinsic
magic treasure, and thus possess astonishing power when used.

“Rumble…” The entire cavern estate was beginning to shake. The four-legged weirdbeast had
lowered its head, and its hooves thundered across the ground as it charged towards Ning. The two
curved yellow horns on its head suddenly expanded in size and became even sharper than before,
and its hoofsteps became incomparably weighty, causing the entire cavern estate to begin to shake
and collapse. When these two monsters used all their power, they were truly shocking.

“Hmph.” Ning shook his head. “Die.”

The white sword formed from the ninth level of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] instantly
slashed through the air. In midair, an enormous millstone of fire and water suddenly appeared.
Within the center of this millstone of fire and water, a wild tempest of incomparable, astonishing
power suddenly formed! The white flying sword was in the center of this millstone of fire and water,
and it, too, dissolved into the tempest.

Fast! This was the Ning’s [Tripartite Millstone Sword], the power of which was only inferior to the
second stance of the [Three-Foot Sword]. It could also be referred to as the ‘Waterflame Millstone
Sword’. Although it was named after the slowly-grinding millstone, it was supremely fast.

Wherever the sword light flashed past…fire and water howled as well, and the millstone itself
transformed into a blur! “Not good.” The golden-feathered eagle sensed tremendous danger, but it
still sent its sharp claws over in a savage blow.

Whoosh! It was too fast. The flashing light of the millstone sword easily dodged past the claw, then
slashed past the body of the golden-feathered eagle. The feathers of the golden-feathered eagle
were incomparably tough, as unyielding as a magic treasure…but they weren’t able to defend
against this attack in the slightest. They were immediately broken through, and then the light of the
Waterflame Lotus Sword turned, sweeping directly towards the impending, charging weirdbeast
monster.

“Third Brother!” The four-legged weirdbeast monster was instantly scared silly. His third brother had
actually been killed in a single exchange. Everyone in the region knew how powerful the eagle talons
of his third brother were. Ordinary hawks used their claws to snatch snakes; from this, one can
imagine how fast hawk claws could strike. And yet, the eagle talons of a Wanxiang monster, an
intrinsic magic treasure, still hadn’t been able to block and snatch that sword light.

He had never even heard of swordplay on this level. But this was what a Sword Immortal was! It
must be understood that when Ning first joined the Black-White College, he had been able to shock
everyone just by using the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword]. Now, he had been able to use the
[Lesser Five Elements Sword] manual to develop this Waterflame Millstone Sword, a technique
which vastly surpassed the first stance of the [Three-Foot Sword] in power. What’s more, the
technique was executed through a sword-light that was manifested by the ninth level of the [Lesser
Thousand Swords Formation]. Its speed and power…how could a Wanxiang monster possibly
defeat it?

“Flee.” The four-legged weirdbeast monster instantly slammed the ground with its hooves, causing
the entire cavern estate to tremble. It turned its body, immediately ramming into the nearby stone
wall, intending to charge through.

Rumble! The stone wall was instantly shattered, but the light of the millstone sword followed as fast
as the wind, continuing to chase after it and not intending to halt before it perished. The four-legged
weirdbeast tried to dodge, and it even shot out one of the sharp curved horns on its head, sending it
directly towards the sword light.

The sword light flashed!

Rumble…the four-legged weirdbeast’s body continued to charge out of the cavern estate through
sheer momentum…but soon, it fell apart into two pieces, slamming against the rocks outside the
cave and causing them to shatter and knock the nearby trees down. However, its bisected body
collapsed as well. Blood continued to ooze from its mouth, but moments later, it breathed its last.

“Die.” Northson, seeing that his senior apprentice-brother had shown off his power, let out an angry
roar as well. The two black water-snakes suddenly criss-crossed, connecting to each other at the tail
and instantly forming an enormous black circle which wildly wrapped itself around the black-tusked
elephant monster, which was frantically attempting to flee. As the black circle looped around it, it
then tightened…crunch!

The upper half of the body of the entire black-tusked elephant was instantly crushed into meat paste,
and it died a miserable death.

As for the golden-feathered eagle that lay on the ground, it had died long ago. And so, just like that,
three Wanxiang monsters had perished.
Ning waved his hand, collecting the corpses of the golden-feathered eagle and the four-legged
weirdbeast. As for Northson, he collected the black-tusked elephant’s corpse as well.

“It’s about to collapse.” Northson charged outside. As for Ning, he had already led the child outside
the cave, which was covered with a spiderweb of cracks. With a rumbling sound, it collapsed in on
itself.

“Haha, we instantly acquired three corpses of monsters. All we need to do is wait three months, and
we’ll be Raindragon Guards.” Northson was extremely excited.

“Right.” Ning nodded gently. The power unleashed by his 720 Mortal-ranked flying swords through
the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] had caused Ning to feel delighted as well.

“Hey kid.” Northson looked towards the young child. “Why are you here on this mountain?” The child
stared blankly. Just now, these two people had effortlessly killed those three monsters, who had
appeared to be so incomparably terrifying and savage that his heart trembled from fear! It was
simply inconceivable that they had died.

Upon hearing Northson ask him where he came from, the child stared blankly for a moment, but then
his tears began to roll down. He pointed into the distance. “There.”

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 15 – Azure Skysnake

Mu Northson turned to look towards the direction which the child was pointing at, while Ning went to
hug the child. “Let’s go. I know where it is!” His divine sense covered the entire monster mountain.
How could Ning not know?

Swoosh! Swoosh! The two transformed into streaks of light, vaulting through the mountain. The
many monsters within the mountain had all been utterly terrified and had gone into hiding. Ning’s
group quickly arrived within a deep gorge within the mountain.

“Ah?!” Northson stared downwards, and what he saw made his face changed. Ning stared down
silently as well. Below the gorge, there was an extremely deep crevice that was roughly three
hundred meters long. Within the crevice were humans, their bodies covered just by tree leaves and
bark. All of them were either children or youths; there wasn’t a single old person there. They lived
there in the deep crevice, numb to life. Above the crevice, there was a net made from steel which
completely covered and sealed the crevice.
“They are being…raised here?” Northson’s body began to tremble slightly. Grinding his teeth, he
said, “These monsters truly deserve to die. They deserve to die!”

Swoosh! Northson leapt downwards. There were some lesser monsters standing guard within the
deep crevice; they didn’t know that their king had already perished.

“Who goes there! This is Elephant-King Mountain!” A tall, horned monster with a trident in its hands
roared angrily, while the group of lesser monsters behind him howled in support.

“Hmph!” Northson let out an enraged snort. The area around him instantly transformed into the
darkness of the night. The night sky was filled with dazzling stars, and the sun and the moon hung
there amongst them. From within the dazzling sun, a giant hand suddenly stretched out, seizing the
suddenly-terrified monsters who were trying to flee, pale-faced. Trapped by that giant hand of golden
light, the monsters all felt their hearts shudder.

“Why are they here?” Northson thundered. As for Ning, he just stood to one side, quietly.

“Mighty Immortal, are you referring to these human slaves?” The horned monster, captured by the
hand of golden light, hurriedly explained, “These human slaves were brought here long, long ago by
his Majesty, who found them elsewhere and decided to raise them here. The big ones birth little
ones, and when the little ones grow up, they can birth more! His Majesty delights in eating human
flesh, and so the younger, tender ones are for his Majesty to eat. As for some of the older slaves,
their meat isn’t as delicious, and so we’ll be given some of it to taste.”

Even Ning’s face turned ashen as he heard this.

“You deserve death!” Northson let out a thunderous roar, and his Manifested hand clenched.
Instantly, those monsters, howling in agony, were crushed into meat sludge. Even that horned
monster who had transformed back into his original form was crushed into mincemeat by that
Manifested hand.

“Clank!” The Manifested hand then clawed downwards, ripping apart those locked steel chains. With
a explosive sound, the many chains were instantly shattered into small pieces, and then were tossed
to one side.

The many humans who were living within that deep crevice were trembling. They all moved closer to
each other, staring upwards in terror.
“They’ve been raised as animals for too long; their slave-mentality has been deeply imprinted upon
them.” Ning shook his head and let out a soft sigh, then lowered his head to look at the child next to
him. “Only the smaller, younger children might be able to recover.”

“Senior apprentice-brother.” Northson looked at Ning. “Let’s help them out, okay?”

Ning nodded. “Of course we’ll help them. To us, it’s just a little bit of extra effort, but to them…it
means the changing of their destinies.”

“Right.” Northson nodded, then said with frustration, “But we must stay within the wild marshes of the
Gaol Mountains for three months. We can’t be taking care of them for this entire time. What should
we do?”

“If we encounter any danger, we can’t look after them as well as ourselves. Let’s deliver them
straight to the Raindragon Guard,” Ning said. “That is the only safe place within the wild marshes of
the Gaol Mountains. As for whether or not the Raindragon Guard will accept them…let’s discuss that
if it comes to that. Even if the Raindragon Guard aren’t willing to take care of them, we can give
these humans some food and let them survive for three months.”

“That’s something,” Northson nodded. Rumble! The giant hand of golden light pressed downwards,
and instantly a deep passageway appeared at the margins of the crevice, leading from it to the
outside world.

“From now on, you are no longer slaves!” Northson stared at the humans within the corral as he
called out to them in a loud voice.

These humans had always lived together, and so they had naturally managed to teach each other
and pass down the human language. Naturally, they understood. However, their simple minds made
it so that they remained rather uneasy. They stared, frightened, towards the two youths standing in
the distance; one a fur-clad youth, while the other was a white-robed youth.

Still…even after the passage of many years, they would never be able to forget this life-altering
moment. They would never be able to forget these two youths.

“Junior apprentice-brother Northson, let them board the warship,” Ning said. “Right.” Northson
nodded, then waved his hand. Instantly, the Azure Dragon in the sky quickly transformed into a
dragon-headed warship which landed on the ground.
Ning barked out, “All aboard the ship!” At the same time, he used his divine sense to invisibly
influence them. Although Ning had not learned the [Soulcharmer Art], he had still viewed the
abridged version of the technique and had learnd some of the most basic, elementary secrets of it.
By using his powerful soul to emit the slightest hint of a soul-ripple, he was able to nudge these
numb slaves to all shuffle towards the warship.

“Mommy.” The child next to Ning ran straight towards his mother.

“Let’s go.” Ning raised his head, staring towards the sky. “There are other Wanxiang monsters
coming.”

“Good.” Northson, however, was filled with a surging killing intent. But Ning shook his head. “Don’t
push it. We attacked that elephant monster, and two more Wanxiang monsters suddenly popped up
out of nowhere. And now, four more Wanxiang monsters are attacking…if this continues, who knows
how many Wanxiang monsters will arrive. I imagine that these monsters must have formed an
alliance long ago, and they might even have Primal monsters supporting them.”

Northson instantly came to his senses. “Senior apprentice-brother, your words are correct.” He
nodded his head. “We already have enough Wanxiang monster corpses. There really is no need to
kill any more.”

Swoosh! The dragon-headed warship quickly soared into the skies, flying into the distance.

…….

Right at this moment, an incomparably beautiful woman, along with two men and a second woman,
arrived in sequence outside the demolished ruins of the cave estate. “I can no longer sense the
auras of big brother, third brother, and fifth brother,” the beautiful woman said with a frown.

“Ninth Sister, can it be that that big brother and the others have already died?”

“We already came quite fast. They’ve only fought for a short period of time. The three of them were
all Wanxiang monsters.” The other Wanxiang monsters didn’t dare believe it.

The beautiful woman shook her head. “Look at the bloodstains. Look at the auras left behind. Big
brother and the other two are probably already dead.” But suddenly, she lifted her head. A streak of
light was soaring into the skies, rapidly charging into the clouds. That streak of light was a dragon-
headed warship.
“A warship.”

“The warship of an Immortal cultivator.”

“It must be the one which killed big brother and the others. Ninth Sister, let’s attack and get revenge
for big brother and the others.” The other monsters immediately began to clamor out. Eighteen of
them had joined into an alliance…but in terms of power, their ninth sister, the peacock monster, was
the most powerful of them all.

The beautiful woman remained silent for a moment, then said, “If they were able to kill big brother
and the other two in such a short period of time, even if we charged over to gain revenge, most likely
more than half of us would die. But if we were to wait for the other monsters to come…they will have
fled long ago. Let’s go. We can only blame big brother and the others for having terrible luck.”

The other monsters were only calling out in bravado anyhow. Upon hearing the words of the
peacock monster, they all nodded quite quickly.

“Let’s go.”

“Let’s go.”

They all transformed into streaks of light, departing from Elephant King Mountain.

Three of the eighteen Wanxiang monsters had died; this made the peacock monster and the other
monsters feel as though their forces were not strong enough. Thus, they decided that they were
going to ally with some of the other nearby Wanxiang monsters as well. In fact, they even began to
wonder if they should try to recruit some of the solitary wanderer Wanxiang monsters as well.

…….

Within a deep mountain cave in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains.

“Slither, slither…” A small azure serpent was swimming about in a pool of water within the cave. The
water of this pool emanated an azure light and a freezing aura, and there was a block of ice
emerging from the center of the pool. If an Immortal cultivator saw it…they would instantly recognize
this piece of ice as being a piece of ‘ancient glacial ice’. It would only be formed in places where the
elemental energy was extremely, extremely cold.
“How truly comfortable. The wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains really are wonderful. This
dangerous, mysterious place is filled with many treasures, but I can easily slip past all of them using
my Void Blink.” The little azure snake wriggled about in delight, frantically absorbing the energy from
this freezing pool. “Compared to before, my homeland of Swallow Mountain is an utter wasteland.
There’s almost no treasures there at all.”

“Wheeeeee. Wonderful, wonderful!” The little azure snake was incomparably delighted. “It seems as
though the masters were correct in having me come here to the wild marshes of the Gaol
Mountains.” The little azure snake’s little head swung to wrap around the piece of ancient glacial ice.
Pulses of cold energy flowed into its body. “My power is rising incredibly quickly. When I first arrived
at the Gaol Mountains, I was just at the peak Zifu level. Now, three short years later, I’ve risen to the
middle Wanxiang level.”

“However, I’m still much weaker than the Patriarch. How long will it be before I, too, will become a
monster Immortal? By then, I’ll be able to take up a large reach of land for myself as well and style
myself the Immortal master of the region.” When the little azure snake thought about the Patriarch,
its eyes couldn’t help but be filled with envy.

“No.” The little azure snake’s eyes suddenly radiated a cold light. “After leaving the Gaol Mountains,
I need to make a trip back to Swallow Mountain to take care of some things. In particular, that
Ironwood Zhan who pursued and attacked me…I was in such a miserable state back then. I must kill
him and annihilate the entire Ironwood clan!” When it thought about its hated foe, Ironwood Zhan,
the little azure snake also thought about someone else.

It was the very young human youth, the one who always dressed in fur clothes. That fearless, yet
monstrously talented youth who always addressed it as ‘little snakey-snake’.

“Alas. I only know that you are of the Ji clan. I don’t even know your name.” The little azure snake
muttered to itself, “You and I fought multiple times, and it was only as a result of those fights that I
comprehended the ‘Void Blink’’ technique. However, back then, I wasn’t able to save you. Don’t
worry. When the time comes, I’ll take revenge on behalf of you as well. I’ll annihilate that Ironwood
Zhan.”

“If you are still alive…given your talent, you must be very powerful by now.” The little azure snake
began to mumble to itself again. “But definitely not as powerful as me. I have the Void Blink
technique and have gained many marvelous legacies.”

Right at this moment…a hundred kilometers outside the cave…

There were two Immortal cultivators, moving like streaks of light, who had stealthily landed on the
mountain.

“You aren’t mistaken, are you?” One of them, a gray-robed Immortal cultivator, said in a low voice.

“Absolutely not. When I tortured those Zifu monsters, they definitely wouldn’t have dared to lie to me.
They all said that in recent days, a lone wanderer has appeared in this region; an Azure Skysnake
monster which had even fought multiple times against their king,” the white-robed Immortal cultivator
said.

The gray-robed Immortal cultivator nodded. “After we kill this Azure Skysnake, we’ll have enough
Wanxiang monster corpses. Supposedly, this Azure Skysnake isn’t that powerful, but we need to
beware of its innate ability. Don’t let it use the Void Blink technique to escape.”

“Naturally.” The white-robed Immortal cultivator nodded.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 16 – The Azure Skysnake and Ji Ning

Within the icy pool inside the cave. The small azure snake was ceaselessly absorbing the frigid
energy of the icy pool, using it to nourish the ‘demon-ice’ in its body. Suddenly, its eyes flickered. It
transformed into mist, and then reformed into an azure-robed maiden by the side of the pool. Red
lips, ivory teeth, and dark eyes.

“They actually dare come to my place?” The azure-robed maiden muttered, “All I wanted to do was
spend some extra time nourishing the demon-ice in my body, and yet they still come to cause
trouble. Still, I’m not strong yet. It’s not good for me to fight.” The azure-robed maiden transformed
into mist once more, and a small azure serpent appeared in midair. With a flicker, it disappeared into
thin air.

………

The white-robed cultivator and gray-robed cultivator were currently advancing stealthily through the
cave, searching for any traces of the snake. Suddenly, they saw an azure light flash in the distance.
An azure serpent in midair was roaring with anger, “You two human cultivators dare come to my
place? You are dead meat!”
The voice echoed and thundered. Rumble…the azure serpent flashed in midair, then disappeared.

“That was the Azure Skysnake monster! It found us.” The two Immortal cultivators were instantly
shocked. And then, the white-robed cultivator sent mentally, “This Azure Skysnake seems to be
quite angry; it’s probably going to attack us. Let’s respond to its plots with one of our own; let’s
quietly set down a space-sealing formation in the area! Once it draws near, we will immediately
activate the formation, causing it to be unable to flee through Void Blink. Only then will we attack and
kill it.”

“Alright. Be careful and make sure you set it up stealthily. Don’t let it discover you,” the gray-robed
cultivator sent back.

……….

Thousands of kilometers away.

“Hahaha, I told those two that they were dead meat, so those two buffoons will definitely plan to fight
me there. I’m an Azure Skysnake…my life is quite precious. Why would I fight head on against you
two?” The Azure Skysnake continued to blink forward, disappearing once again.

………

Ji Ning and Mu Northson were currently mounted on their dragon-headed warship, carrying the
many humans towards the place in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains where the Raindragon
Guard were stationed.

Tens of thousands of kilometers away from Ning’s location. Another ship was present here, with two
on this ship as well; one female, the other male. The man was tall, strong, and handsome; it was
Eastriver Cloudsoar. The woman was also as beautiful as a flower; her name was Eastriver Snowite.

“Big Brother, it’s not too hard to kill Wanxiang monsters. With the two of us working together, in but a
single day, we’ve already killed two of them,” Eastriver Snowite said happily.

“Killing two monsters isn’t that big a deal. The two of us were lucky; the first monster mountain we
chose had two Wanxiang monsters present, and that’s exactly the number we needed to kill. By the
time the other Wanxiang monsters arrived, we used the Lesser Teleportation Dao-seals to flee.”
Eastriver Cloudsoar shook his head. “The more important requirement the Raindragon Guard gave
us was to survive in the Gaol Mountains’s wild marshes for three months…three full months! These
marshes are full of danger everywhere. Surviving will be much harder than killing one or two
Wanxiang monsters.”

Eastriver Snowite said, “Big Brother, didn’t you say that the closer we are to the Raindragon Guard,
the safer it will be? The monsters stay far away from that place…although we won’t be able to enter,
we can just find a place close to the encampment and stay for three months.”

“Right. Still, we need to be careful,” Cloudsoar said. “This place isn’t like the clan…”

“I know,” Snowite responded.

Right at this moment, another warship flew over from far away. “Eh?” Eastriver Cloudsoar and
Eastriver Snowite both turned to look.

“Haha, so it is fellow Daoist Cloudsoar, of the Eastriver clan.” Laughter rang out from the distant
warship. Atop the warship was a white-robed man with a graceful bearing. The Eastriver siblings
immediately recognized him…this was one of the hundred testees, Northriver Zhou.

“Fellow Daoist Northriver,” Eastriver Cloudsoar called back.

“It’s quite rare and fortunate that I would be able to encounter you two siblings here, fellow Daoist
Cloudsoar. Would you be willing to board this construct-ship of mine and share some wine?”
Northriver Zhou laughed.

“Yes!” Eastriver Snowite revealed a smile. But Cloudsoar shook his head. “No. No need.” This
caused Snowite to look towards her older brother curiously, but Cloudsoar just gave her a glance.
Snowite didn’t argue.

“If that’s the case, then I won’t force things.” Northriver Zhou was quite straightforward. With a laugh,
he said, “I’ll leave, then.”

But just as his words came out…Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Five streaks of light
suddenly flew out towards every direction, moving lightning-fast. These five streaks of light…were
five Wanxiang Adepts, all of them amongst the testees for joining the Raindragon Guard. The bodies
of the five Wanxiang Adepts all emanated a blurry gray light, and the body of Northriver Zhou, still
standing atop that warship, also shone with that light.

Six of them in total! The gray lights were all connected, surrounding this region. “A spacelock
formation!” The faces of Eastriver Cloudsoar and Eastriver Snowite completely changed.
“You…you…” Cloudsoar’s face was ashen as he stared at the six surrounding Immortal cultivators.
“Dong One of Snowdragon Mountain, Xu Manquan of the Thousand Rivers Sect, Northriver Zhou of
the Skysplitter Sword Sect…you actually prepared a spacelock formation.”

Lesser Teleportation Dao-seals were only useful against Zifu Disciples and ordinary Wanxiang
Adepts. The majority of powerful Wanxiang Adepts would carry a spacelock formation with them.
Once they set it down…there would be no way to teleport within the region with locked space.

“Four peak Wanxiang Adepts, two late Wanxiang Adepts.” Cloudsoar and Snowite exchanged a
glance, despair in their eyes.

“Kill them.” A cold look flashed through Northriver Zhou’s eyes.

“Kill!”

Cloudsoar and Snowite went berserk as well.

……

“I, Eastriver Cloudsoar, will definitely get revenge! Definitely!!!” A desolate, fierce, hate-filled cry rang
out from far away. Eastriver Cloudsoar, who had charged outside of the spacelock formation, his
body covered in blood and missing an arm, immediately used his Lesser Teleportation Dao-seal and
disappeared. As for his little sister, she was already dead.

After all, these two siblings weren’t faced against Wanxiang monsters who didn’t have any legacies
or treasures; they faced human Wanxiang elites who were also from famous tribes and clans!

Four peak Wanxiang Adepts, two late Wanxiang Adepts. Upon joining forces, they were absolutely
able to crush the two of them.

“That Eastriver Cloudsoar managed to escape.” Northriver Zhou shook his head. “He should
consider himself lucky.” The other five flew back to the warship, while Zhou picked up the magic
storage belt of the slain Snowite, beginning to look through it.

“How is it?” The others asked. “Not bad. There’s the corpse of a Wanxiang monster here.” Northriver
Zhou handed the magic storage belt to someone next to him, letting them all look through it.
Although the six of them had joined forces to support each other in killing others, and although they
had sworn an oath to the Dao of the Heavens, they all still wanted to look through the spoils of war.
Northriver Zhou laughed. “Three months. It’ll definitely be quite easy for us to find six Wanxiang
monster corpses.”

“Right..” The golden-robed Dong One smiled and nodded. “Those Immortal cultivators who slew
Wanxiang monsters will most likely all return to move close to the Raindragon Guards. As long as
we patrol this area…we’ll definitely run into more. Any we run into, we kill!”

“We’ll keep doing this, then.” All of them were filled with eagerness. Upon killing cultivators, not only
would they acquire Wanxiang monster corpses, they would also be able to obtain the magic
treasures of those cultivators. This was far more profitable than just killing monsters.

……

“I, Eastriver Cloudswear, swear that I will definitely kill them.” Cloudsoar appeared in midair, covered
in blood. His eyes were filled with hate. “Northriver Zhou. Xu Manquan. Dong One…” Cloudsoar
gritted his name as he recited the names, one after the other, as though he was storing them deep
into his memory.

“Little sister…little sister.” Cloudsoar’s tears began to fall. He had known all along that the path of
Immortals was an incomparably dangerous one, but who would have thought that on his very first
true adventure, his little sister would die? This caused Cloudsoar, who had been excited and eager,
to become filled with boundless pain and hate.

He knew that Wanxiang Adepts often killed each other, and that the seniors of their clans wouldn’t
generally intervene. Only if, say, a Primal Daoist had acted against a Wanxiang Adept, which would
be a case of a senior bullying a junior, would the seniors of the sect intervene. So long as the fights
were amongst those of the same generation…if you died, you could only blame yourself for being
weak!

But of course, if the person who died was a junior who was particularly beloved by a powerful figure,
such as the sole disciple of someone…then the powerful figure might go berserk and ignore protocol
to gain revenge for that junior.

…….

Ning and Northson road atop the warship, constantly advancing towards the Raindragon Guard’s
encampment.
“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning.” Northson stared at those terrified, restless humans, then said
softly, “They are still terrified and uneasy. Even now…they are still afraid of us. Only the children
have a bit more courage.”

“They’ve been enslaved for too long.” Ning shook his head. “Slavery has rooted itself within them. To
change that will be very, very hard. The children have some hope.”

Northson looked at the first child they had saved. Smiling, he walked over to them. Next to the child
was a grimy-looking woman. Terrified, she immediately pulled her son away, but her son was
fearless. He just looked at Northson.

“Kid, what’s your name?” Northson said. “My name is Ironboy!” The child raised his head and said,
“What are your names, Immortals?”

Northson laughed. “My name is Mu Northson. Over there is my senior apprentice-brother, Ji Ning.”

“Mu Northson. Ji Ning…” The child gently murmured the names, as though memorizing them.

Ning laughed and walked over as well. “This Ironboy is quite clever.”

…….

As Ning and Northson were chatting with the kid, a distant ship was beginning to draw close to
theirs.

“Look. That dragon-headed warship.” Northriver Zhou pointed towards the distance. “If memory
serves, that dragon-headed warship belongs to one of the hundred, that Black-White College
disciple, Mu Northson; it’s the construct-warship he displayed. Most likely, Mu Northson and his
senior apprentice-brother are on that ship.”

“The Black-White College?”

“Every member of the Black-White College is a peerless genius. They aren’t easy to deal with.”

“Should we attack?”

These people began to hesitate. But the golden-robed Dong One said, “No need to worry. I
understand this Ji Ning quite well. He should only be twenty years old! Although his talent is
astonishing, he’s trained for too short a period of time. You should all be aware that his
[Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] is only at the ninth stage. He’s a bit dangerous in
close combat, but as long as we can stay away from him, we don’t need to fear him at all. As for that
Mu Northson, since he follows this Ji Ning’s lead, his strength probably isn’t that great either.”

“The two of them are headed back…they probably have the corpses of two Wanxiang monster.”

“Disciples of the Black-White College. Killing them is worth more than killing quite a few Wanxiang
Adepts. In addition, one of them is a middle-stage Wanxiang Adept, while the other is a Fiendgod
Body Refiner who can just barely be considered an early-stage Wanxiang Adept. Us? Four of us are
peak Wanxiang Adepts, while the other two are late-stage, and we can join together in a six-man
formation attack.”

“Given that we’re plotting against them while they aren’t against us, we have excellent chances.”

Soon, the six came to a unified agreement. “Let’s go. Let’s kill these two ‘peerless geniuses’ of the
Black-White College!” Northriver Zhou’s eyes flashed with a savage light.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 17 – Waylaying the Disciples of the Black-White College

A youth with loose, unbound hair said in a low voice, “We are definitely going to kill them, but don’t
forget…earlier, when the six of us joined forces against those two siblings of the Eastriver clan…the
final result was that Eastriver Cloudsoar escaped! These two are of the Black-White College.
Although one is a middle-stage Wanxiang Adept and the other can be considered an early-stage
Fiendgod Wanxiang Adept, they certainly are carrying many protective magic treasures. If we aren’t
careful…the two of them might end up escaping in the end. The final result would be, not only would
they remain alive, we would have created enemies for ourselves.

“Senior apprentice-brother Jihe’s words are correct.” The golden-robed Dong One nodded. “There
exists some enmity between Ji Ning and my Snowdragon Mountain, and I am quite familiar with him.
He is a truly monstrous talent, and his training speed is astonishing. If he were to escape, we would
definitely gain a powerful foe.”

Although they were considering the matter, in reality, none of these six Wanxiang Adepts were truly
afraid of creating enemies. Since they had decided to embark on the path of cultivation, then they
would strive to do anything necessary to become Immortals!
“We need to carefully consider how to go about this,” said the only woman of the group. “If we are
going to attack, we must instantly use the most vicious attacks we have and kill them before they
have a chance to react.”

“My suggestion is…”

The six cultivators chatted amongst themselves. If the enemy was a Wanxiang monster, this would
be very simple, but the enemy were disciples of the Black-White College. Even though they were
just a middle-stage Wanxiang Adept and the equivalent of an early-stage Wanxiang Adept, they
didn’t dare to be the slightest bit overconfident. The disciples of the Black-White College couldn’t be
judged in accordance with normal logic. If these two were both peak Wanxiang Adepts, the six of
them probably wouldn’t choose to attack at all.

“We have higher foundations than them, and we are working together. I refuse to believe we won’t
be able to kill them.” This was what the six cultivators all believed, and the reason why they decided
to act.

………..

Ning didn’t notice any of this at all. He continued to chat with his junior apprentice-brother about the
disciples. But right at this moment…
“Eh?” Ning turned to look. He stared past the railing, to a distant warship flying over from afar. “This
warship…this seems to be the construct-warship which that Northriver Zhou of the Skysplitter Sword
Sect used, when the hundred of us dispersed in different directions.

Immortal cultivators had astonishingly good memories. Ning had clearly memorized all of the names
of the hundred, when they had reported them to the Immortal.

“Senior apprentice-brother, that’s the warship of Northriver Zhou of the Skysplitter Sword Sect,”
Northson said softly as well. “Right.” Ning nodded, staring into the distance. That ship was drawing
closer and closer to them…why?

“Hahaha…” An elegant, refined-looking white-robed man was standing at the helm of the warship,
staring towards them. Laughing, the man said, “I didn’t expect that I’d encounter the two disciples of
the Black-White College here. Northriver Zhou pays his respects.”

“It is quite a coincidence,” Ning said with a laugh. “It seems, fellow Daoist Northriver, that you’ve
already acquired a Wanxiang monster corpse.” If another treated him with courtesy and a smile,
unless there was enmity or grievances between Ning and that person, Ning wouldn’t treat them with
a cold face either.

“It was luck,” Northriver Zhou said warmly. “It’s quite lucky for us to encounter each other here. Why
don’t you come aboard my vessel, and we can drink some wine together?”

“Drink some wine together?” Ning had a sudden thought. If it was just a matter of chatting and
drinking, that was one thing. But inviting them aboard his warship…Ning began to grow nervous.
After all, that was someone else’s territory. With but a thought, he instantly filled the area with his
powerful divine sense. He saw with perfect clarity the insides of that warship. Ning was instantly
shocked. There were five figures hidden within the warship.

“Everyone, be alert. Once this Ji Ning and Mu Northson board the ship, we’ll immediately activate
the grand formation. We need to kill them right away.”

“Right. As time goes on, the situation might change. We have to make it fast.”

“As soon as they board the ship, they’ll be dead.”

All of them were stealthily chatting amongst themselves. This was a construct-ship that was filled
with restrictive spells to begin with, and so those in the outside world couldn’t hear the conversations
going on within at all. Only Ning, capable of a divine sense, was able to discover everything.

“They are going to waylay and kill us!” This instantly came to Ning’s mind. “I didn’t imagine that we’d
encounter this as soon as we arrived at the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains.”

“Senior apprentice-brother, shall we go?” Northson looked towards Ning. He was rather thin-skinned;
he found it hard to refuse someone who had invited him over in such a friendly manner.

“Junior apprentice-brother,” Ning hurriedly sent mentally, “Be careful and don’t reveal anything, but…
that warship has five other Wanxiang Adepts hidden within it. All of them are amongst the testees for
joining the Raindragon Guard. Adding in Northriver Zhou, there are six in total. Four are peak
Wanxiang Adepts, while two are late Wanxiang Adepts.”

“What?” It was a good thing that Ning had warned him; although on the surface, Northson pretended
to remain calm, in his heart, he was shocked. He sent back, “Senior apprentice-brother, six Immortal
cultivators? Why haven’t the other five shown themselves? Can it be that they are…”
“Right. They are going to rob and kill us,” Ning replied. Northson was enraged. “They actually dare to
try to pull that on us? Let’s counter-kill them.”

“Careful,” Ning sent back. “Don’t underestimate them. They aren’t like those Wanxiang monsters;
they are from top-tier clans and tribes as well, and their techniques will definitely be extraordinary.
And, with six of them joining forces…if we aren’t careful, we might perish.”

Ning was quite confident about himself, actually; he was a Fiendgod Body Refiner, and his life force
was incredibly strong. In addition, with his ultimate secret weapon, the divine ability [Starseizing
Hand]…yes, Ning felt quite confident. However, Northson was still just a middle Wanxiang Adept. In
terms of elemental ki, he was far inferior to the others. In addition, Northson was just eighteen, and
in a true, chaotic battle, Ning wouldn’t necessarily be able to take care of this junior apprentice-
brother of his. If his junior apprentice-brother died here, Ning would never be able to forgive himself.

“Understood.” Northson immediately increased his own level of caution as well. “Stay next to me,”
Ning sent to him. “Don’t make any sudden movements. Wait for my commands.”

“Alright,” Northson acknowledged.

……..

While the two fellow disciples decided through their private mental messages as to what they would
do, opposite them, Northriver Zhou continued to smile at them and wait for their response. At the
same time, he even said, “I’ve always been quite filled with admiration towards the many students of
the Black-White College. It is my good fortune to be able to meet you two fellow Daoists today.”

“I’m ashamed to say this,” Ning said apologetically, “But we’re busy. We won’t go over for now. After
we all complete the test to join the Raindragon Guard, we’ll drink together.”

“Oh.” Northriver Zhou cursed in his heart, but on the surface, he put on an ‘understanding’ look. “I
understand. Then let us wait to meet with each other after we join the Raindragon guard.” But at the
same time, he sent mentally, “Attack!”

The five cultivators within the ship, upon hearing this, exchanged glances and nodded. They all
immediately rushed outside. Only…

Ji Ning was even faster than them!

Ning had noticed through his divine sense that the five Immortal cultivators within the ship had
looked at each other and nodded, and were moving to charge outside. He immediately willed his 720
Mortal-ranked flying swords to appear in midair. “Junior apprentice-brother, attack.”

At that moment, two giant black water-snakes appeared around Northson. The bodies of the black
water-snakes constantly flickered in an illusory manner, and began to form into sharp spike sthat
were covered by many runic seals. The auras of the water-snakes immediately began to grow
savage and brutal.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Five figures moved lightning-fast, charging outside of the ship, their bodies already flashing with that
blurry gray light. The spacelock formation was already beginning to take shape. This was a
formation which used six Immortal cultivators as the formation-base, and the area covered by the six
cultivators would be the area locked in by the formation. But of course, there was a maximum size of
just a hundred kilometers or so.

“What’s going on?” Northriver Zhou, Dong One, and the others discovered to their astonishment that
Ji Ning and Mu Northson had actually acted even before they did.

“Kill them.”

“They found us out.”

“Don’t hold anything back.”

Northriver Zhou’s group reacted right away as well, and they immediately unleashed their most
powerful attacks. The six of them shared their elemental ki through the formation, and their power
burst forth.

“Massive Ice Prison.” The golden-robed Dong One pointed towards the distance. Whoosh! A white,
freezing aura that was visible to the naked eye swept towards Ning. Ning and Northson were both
standing in the air above the dragon-headed warship, which was now completely closed off to the
outside world. Clearly, Ning and Northson didn’t wish to cause any disasters to befall these slaves.
Actually, if it wasn’t for these slaves, Ning and Northson could’ve just fled through using Lesser
Teleportation Dao-seals.
Still…the slaves were just one reason. The second was because both of them had just departed
from their schools, and they had proud hearts; why would they flee without even fighting? Thus, the
two didn’t even discuss fleeing. In their minds was a single word – Fight!

“It’s dire-ice! This Dong One of Snowdragon Mountain actually was cultivating demon-ice in his
body.” Ning was startled. The inner Zifu of a practitioner was an incomparably mysterious place. It
could nourish dire-ice, or earthfire, or demonwind…these were all extremely terrifying natural
elemental powers, and after being nourished in the body, they would be able to unleash extremely
great might.

However, to nourish dire-ice, one would first need to find a secret location where naturally-occurring
dire-ice was, and then absorb it into the body. One could only hope for but not count on
encountering such a valuable location. The power of this dire-ice, however, was absolutely not lower
than a divine ability’s.

“Grand Windmill Formation!” The black-clothed Xu Manquan pointed towards the distant Ning and
Northson. Instantly, nine windmills suddenly appeared and began to spin at high speed in the air,
transforming into tornado windmills which crushed the air itself as it smashed towards the two.

“Anatta Sword!” Their leader, Northriver Zhou, made nine flying swords appear before him. They
simultaneously struck out, and as they did, nine rivers of sword light appeared, sweeping towards
Ning and Northson.

“Nirvana Extinction!” Jihe crossed his hands together, and out of nowhere, a gray energy aura
appeared which swept towards Ning and Northson.

“Die.” Adept Nongsan let out a cold laugh, then waved his hand. The horsetail whisk in his hands
immediately transformed into three thousand white strands, filling the skies as they swept forward.

“Haaaa!” The only woman, Meng Liuqing, crushed a Dao-seal and let out a cold roar. Bang!
Countless rays of lightning appeared in midair, striking downwards towards Ning and Northson.

……..

In an instant, the six Wanxiang Adepts had simultaneously used the most vicious techniques
available to them. They weren’t itinerant cultivators with no secret arts at their disposals; they were
mighty Daoists who had some truly ancient, mysterious techniques.

“Waterflame Lotus!”
“[Three-Foot Sword] – Manifold Thistlethorns!”

An utterly beautiful, enormous blooming lotus flower spread open, with Ning and Northson
completely surrounded by it. Ning was holding the Darknorth Swords in his hands, just in case, but
at the same time, he used the ninth level of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] to execute
Ning’s most powerful sword technique – the second stance of the [Three-Foot Sword].

“Serpents Swallow the Skies.” Northson’s two hands moved, and the giant, savage black water-
snakes that had latched onto each other’s tails suddenly transformed into an enormous black circle.
Carrying an inexhaustible, terrifying devouring power, it swept forward.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 18 – Sweeping Through All Opposition

The bolts of lightning struck down at astonishing speed, instantly colliding with the gigantic
Waterflame Lotus surrounding Ning and Northson. The petals of the Waterflame Lotus were
blooming in layers, and after breaking through three layers of petals, the lightning dissipated,
completely unable to harm Ning or Northson at all.

“It actually broke through three layers.” Ning was secretly shocked. In the past three years, Ning had
made the most accomplishments in the Dao of Rainwater and the Dao of the Inferno. Every so often,
he would go meditate before the Black-White Diagram…and he was now capable of instantly
creating and maintaining six layers of petals. If the enemy’s attacks were twice as powerful, they
would’ve broken through.

Although Ning was surprised, he saw that the first attacks arriving from far away were those nine
tornado windmills.

“Manifold Thistlethorns!” The jade-white sword of light flew out at a seemingly slow speed, as though
it was being bound by countless things, which it was just barely able to break through, one layer at a
time.

Wherever the jade-white sword of light flew past…the aura it brought with it was enough to cause
the faces of Northriver Zhou, Jihe, Dong One, and the other Wanxiang Adepts to change, once they
sensed it.
“Who the hell was it that claimed Ji Ning is only skilled in close combat?!” Northriver Zhou and the
others were all cursing in their hearts.

The impending sword-light immediately chopped apart the impending dire-ice. Next, it collided
against the nine tornado windmills that were flying through the air. Rumble…the nine tornado
windmills had aroused an endless tempest, and the nine had immediately formed into a formation
which jointly resisted that single jade-white sword of light, but the sword was simply too fast. They
could clearly sense it and see it, but it’s speed vastly surpassed that of any of the windmills.

A few seconds after a thunderous collision, the nine windmills were all knocked flying away, but the
jade-white sword-light had also grown incomparably dim. “Crunch.” In front of the three thousand
white strands of the horsetail whisk, the jade-white sword light completely vanished.

“Formidable. He was actually able to first break through Dong One’s ‘dire-ice’, then break the ‘Grand
Windmill Formation’ of myself, Xu Manquan.”

“If he’s so powerful when controlling sword-light…we absolutely cannot let him get into close range!”

Northriver Zhou and the others were all shocked. What they didn’t realize was that Ning felt shocked
as well. “My [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] is already essentially as powerful as an attack at
the Zifu level can be, and it executed the second stance of the [Three-Foot Sword]. And yet, it was
only just barely able to defeat two of their attacks? It appears that my power baseis too weak; Xu
Manquan and Dong One are both peak Wanxiang Adepts, after all.”

Of the two, one had used dire-ice, something comparable to a divine ability; the other had used a
grand formation. And both were at the peak Wanxiang Adept level! Despite that, both of their attacks
had been defeated by Ning, a single person. Actually, Ning’s performance was already quite
monstrous.

“Serpents Swallow the Skies!”

“Anatta Sword!”

The two black serpents with linked heads and tails had formed into an enormous circle, and they
swept towards those nine streaks of sword-light. As for the nine rivers of sword-light controlled by
Northriver Zhou, they swept forward like nine mighty floods, wildly attacking that water-snake circle.

For the moment, the battle was actually at a stalemate.

“These two of the Black-White College truly are powerful. They are so much weaker than us in terms
of their base of power, but they are able to resist our attacks nonetheless.” Dong One sent hurriedly
with a shout, “Everyone, work together and annihilate them.”

“Kill.”

“Kill!”

Meng Liuqing, Nongsan, and the others used their full strength, not daring to be the slightest bit
negligent.

“Eh?” Ning suddenly realized that the gray energy flooding towards him actually was capable of
somewhat affecting the soul. Although he didn’t care about it, due to the power of his soul, his junior
apprentice-brother would be affected by it. Indeed, the nearby Northson had a frown on his face, and
the power of the black serpent constructs which he was controlling had begun to drop. Clearly, his
mental equilibrium had been affected.

“Die, then.” Ning’s eyes suddenly exploded with a terrifying killing intent. His divine soul was seated
in the lotus position deep within his sea of consciousness. In front of his chest, an azure runic seal
suddenly formed; the Soulshaker Seal! His powerful divine sense poured out through the Soulshaker
Seal and spread out, thundering out like the waves of the sea in multiple layered waves, surging
rapidly towards every direction.

It completely avoided the nearby Northson, crushing down towards everyone else. The rolling waves
of powerful divine sense instantly crashed against the six Wanxiang Adepts surrounding them. It was
as though mighty, savage waves which had been building up power for a long time had suddenly
crashed against the shore.

BOOM!!!

The powerful divine sense instantly exploded with inconceivable concussive power.

“What is…” The Wanxiang Adept of Snowdragon Mountain, Dong One, only felt a terrifying collisive
power smash towards him. He was instantly terrified, but then…his mind went blank.

“This…”

“I…”
These mighty Wanxiang Adepts, in the face of Ning’s [Soulshaker Art], were instantly stunned and
dazed.

Actually, the [Soulshaker Art] was only a technique capable of shaking the opponent’s soul and
affecting their power. Generally speaking, it wouldn’t cause others to fall into this dazed, stunned
state. The chief reason it did right now was because Ning’s divine soul had already the ‘divine sense’
level. It was comparable to a Primal Daoist using the technique; naturally, it caused them all to enter
a stupor. The six of them even began to slowly sink down from the skies.

“Kill!” Ning willed it, and instantly, the jade-white sword of light of the [Lesser Thousand Swords
Formation] appeared once more, sweeping towards the enemies. “Junior apprentice-brother, hurry
and attack,” Ning sent.

“Understood.” Northson realized that the six Wanxiang Adepts had entered a dazed, stunned state
as well.

The first person to be struck by the jade-white sword light was the leader, Northriver Zhou. “BANG!”
Northriver Zhou’s body suddenly unleashed a barrier of sword-ki. This sword-ki was incomparably
resilient, and it was able to withstand Ning’s jade-white sword attack.

“Protective sword-ki?” Ning was startled. “It must be a protective item which the elders of his school
provide him with.”

In the instant that he was struck, Northriver Zhou came to his senses, and a look of terror appeared
on his face.

“Kill! Kill! Kill!” The jade-white sword-light of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] chopped three
times in a row against that protective sword-ki. Northriver Zhou, who had just come to his senses
and didn’t have the chance to begin controlling his magic treasures, was thus bisected by Ning’s
sword chop.

Crack, crack, crack…Northson’s black serpent-circle immediately crushed down around the one
named ‘Jihe’. This Jihe actually didn’t have a protective item on him.

By now, the other four Wanxiang Adepts came to their senses. They were still late stage Wanxiang
Adepts and peak Wanxiang nAdepts, after all; their souls were extremely strong, and their Dao-
hearts resilient. Even for Primal Daoists who used the [Soulshaker Art], to be able to send them into
a stupor for a moment was already impressive.
“Not good. Jihe and Northriver Zhou are already dead.”

“Quick, flee.”

“They know a powerful divine will technique.”

The four lucky survivors, being Dong One, Meng Liuqing, Nongsan, and Xu Manquan, were all
terrified and immediately fled. Two of them had died in an instant; this extinguished any thoughts
they had of fighting back. They now understand that one of these two disciples of the Black-White
College was in possession of an extremely powerful divine will technique. Still, they were also
incomparably puzzled; although divine will techniques were rare, they weren’t invincible. Only
someone with an extremely strong divine soul would be powerful when using a divine will technique,
and clearly, these two had only trained for a short period of time. How could they be so powerful?”

“Flee?” Ning let out a cold laugh. BANG! His mighty divine will once more spread out in every
direction, like the crushing waves of the sea. Although all of the four fleeing individuals were
prepared this time, they were still dazed by the powerful divine will, and their speed lessened.

“Junior apprentice-brother, kill them.” Ning, his Darknorth Swords in his hands, charged straight
towards Dong One of Snowdragon Mountain. At the same time, he controlled his sword-light of the
[Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] to attack that Xu Manquan.

“Understood.” Northson’s black serpent circle instantly broke apart, transforming back into two giant
water-snakes which attacked Nongsan and Meng Liuqing.

“[Soulshaker Art]!”

Ning used the [Soulshaker Art] yet again, and ripples of endless, ceaseless waves of energy swept
towards those four Wanxiang Adepts.

“Snowdragon Mountain, eh? Die!” The Darknorth Swords in Ning’s hands sliced out as two streaks
of light, bisecting Dong One. “BANG!” Dong One’s body emanated a black energy which formed in
protective layers, protecting him like a cocoon.

“Bang!” Ning launched yet another attack, but still wasn’t able to break through. Dong One gritted his
teeth, still under assault by the clashing waves of Ning’s divine will. He gritted his teeth so hard that
blood came out from them, and his eyes were bloodshot and crazed. He felt like a person who was
drowning in a lake of waves of divine will. However, his powerful Dao-heart caused him to want to
remain alive.
“Ignite!” Dong One, just barely managing to remain conscious, executed the Blood Evasion
technique. Whoosh! A dazzling, bloody scarlet light suddenly appeared in the skies, and then he
disappeared into the distance.

“Swish.” Xu Manquan, pursued by the sword-light of Ning’s [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation],
had barely managed to remain conscious as well, but he hadn’t been able to flee. He was killed by
the sword-light.

“One escaped.” Ning shook his head, collecting the corpses that were falling down from the skies.
Ning turned to look. Northson was flying towards him. Northson said resignedly, “Senior apprentice-
brother, I let that Meng Liuqing get away. However, I did kill that Nongsan.”

“Out of six, we killed four.” Ning laughed. “Not bad.”

“What do you mean, ‘not bad’? We did extremely well!” Northson stared at Ning in astonishment.
“Senior apprentice-brother, what technique did you use just now? I saw them enter a dazed state. It
should’ve been a divine will technique, right? Our Black-White College only has three divine will
techniques; the [Soulshaker Art], the [Soulcharmer Art], and the [Soulslayer Art]. Which one did you
use?”

“The [Soulshaker Art], of course.” Ning didn’t try to hide it. “Formidable,” Northson said, “Formidable.
Senior apprentice-brother, your soul is at the divine sense level! The power of your [Soulshaker Art]
is astonishing; you were able to make them completely unable to fight back. Actually, they were
quite powerful; they were all roughly on par with me.” Northson sighed in amazement. “I really
haven’t trained long enough.”

“Let’s see what they left behind,” Ning said. “Alright.” Northson was filled with eagerness as well.

The two first flew back to the dragon-headed warship. The slaves aboard the dragon-headed
warship were all quite terrified; they had no idea what had just happened outside.

Ning and Northson paid them no heed. Instead, they began to hurriedly bind the storage-type magic
treasures. Although the four they had killed were Wanxiang Adepts, their storage-type magic
treasures weren’t all Earth-ranked. Three were Mortal-ranked, while only one was Earth-ranked. It
actually didn’t make a huge difference if the storage-type treasures were Earth-ranked or not; thus,
not many Immortal cultivators would actively go about upgrading them.

A few moments later…

“Senior apprentice-brother, whose magic treasure was this? It has so much liquefied elemental
essence; this bottle has to have at least 250 kilograms!” Northson was instantly overjoyed upon
discovering this.

Ning, upon hearing this, was delighted as well. 250 kilograms? So much! Ning quickly understood.
“Most likely, after training to the peak of the Wanxiang Adept level, he was preparing to use it to
break through to become a Primal Daoist. To break through to the Primal Daoist level would require
tremendous amounts of liquefied elemental essence. 250 kilograms is just a rounding error.”

“Makes sense.” Northson nodded.

But Ning was quite eager; they had discovered 250 kilograms of liquefied elemental essence in the
storage-type magic treasure of just a single Wanxiang Adept. Perhaps, as a result of othis
encounter, Ning would be able to breakthrough to become a Wanxiang Adept himself!

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 19 – Breakthrough, Wanxiang Adept

Ji Ning and Mu Northson continued to bind the storage treasures to see what items the four
Wanxiang Adepts they had killed had left behind. Immortal cultivators would often carry their most
important treasures with them! This was because it would be safest when they were holding onto
them personally. And, of course, if they were to die, the treasures would become of no value to
them. Thus, cultivators generally carried their treasures with them.

“We’ve bound them all.” Northson let out a long sigh. “All of them were quite ‘fat’,” Ning said with a
laugh. “Killing a single cultivator really is far more rewarding than killing a Wanxiang monster.”
Although Wanxiang monsters also relied on formations and alliances to occasionally killed
cultivators, they would generally trade those magic treasures of the slain cultivators for liquefied
elemental essence and some particular items they needed. Thus, when Ning’s group had killed
those three Wanxiang monsters, they hadn’t acquired that much from them.

“Northriver Zhou, Xu Manquan, Nongsan, Jihe.” Northson sighed. “Most of them had formation-type
treasures. Those nine Earth-ranked flying swords of Northriver Zhou…I imagine those are all Earth-
ranked high-grade flying swords.”
“Right.” Ning nodded. “These were all fairly formidable figures amongst Wanxiang Adepts. Their
magic treasures are extraordinary.” The Adept Xu Li who Ning had killed in the past had carried
quite ordinary Earth-ranked magic treasures. He was merely a low-level figure amongst Wanxiang
Adepts; by contrast, Northriver Zhou and the others were top-level figures.

“In total, 33 Earth-ranked magic treasures. No need to count the Mortal-ranked ones. These
treasures are most likely worth around 1000 or 1500 kilograms of liquefied elemental essence.”
Northson was quite excited. “They also have Dao-seals like these Lesser Teleportation Dao-seals,
and some formations, spirit-pills…and liquefied elemental essence! These four Wanxiang Adepts
have, in total, 900 kilograms of it! Senior apprentice-brother, you are still at the peak Zifu level; the
liquefied elemental essence will be yours. With them, I imagine you will be able to smash through to
the early Wanxiang stage at one blow. By then, your power will increase dramatically.”

Ning said, “No rush. Junior apprentice-brother, you need to increase your power as well.” But
Northson shook his head, then said resignedly, “Even if you gave me all 900 kilograms, it’s hard to
say whether or not I’d be able to break through to the late Wanxiang stage.”

Ning was startled, but after thinking over it, he nodded slightly. Indeed, it would be hard to say.
When Immortal cultivators rose in power to a completely new stage, the amount of elemental ki they
would have to absorb would also increase tenfold, or perhaps even tens of times. Although it might
only take 500 kilograms to go from the early Zifu stage to the early Wanxiang stage, from the early
Wanxiang stage, it might take tens of thousands of kilograms to reach the early Primal Daoist stage!

The early Primal Daoist stage, in turn, would probably need hundreds upon hundreds of thousands
of kilograms in order to reach the early Earth Immortal stage!

Tens of thousands vs hundreds of thousands? How incredible was this? Even major schools or
sects would at most be willing to squander a bit of liquefied elemental essence on powerful Zifu-
stage disciples. Once they reached the Wanxiang Adept or Primal Daoist stages…one had to simply
train slowly. Even some truly supreme, monstrous geniuses would at most be given a bit of help by
their clans. It would be incredible for the clans to be willing to part with a few tens of thousands of
kilograms. Hundreds of thousands of kilograms? Not even Immortals would be able to bring out that
much!

“Senior apprentice-brother, hurry up and make your breakthrough,” Northson urged. “Once you
break through to the early Wanxiang stage, the rate at which you are able to absorb elemental ki will
explosively increase by tens of times. By then, a single year’s worth of training would probably be
equivalent to using hundreds of kilograms of liquefied elemental essence.”
“Fine, then.” Ning nodded. “I’ll accept the liquefied elemental essence, but you take the magic
treasures, junior apprentice-brother.” Northson said, delighted, “Fine, fine, fine. I won’t refuse.”

The two made a simple division; the various magic treasures would go to Northson, while the
liquefied elemental essence went to Ning. As for the Dao-seals, spirit-pills, and other items, the two
divided them equally.

Although it seemed as though Northson was at a bit of advantage in terms of value, these were the
wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains, after all; if he was to trade for liquefied elemental essence, he
would first have to go back to the Crimson Dragon Mountains. Thus…comparatively speaking, Ning
was a bit better off. Ning understood this, and he quietly memorized this event.

“Up ahead is the place where the Raindragon Guard is stationed.” Ning walked to the helm of the
warship, staring through the sparse clouds to the distant lands below. “After we deliver these slaves
to them, we’ll find a place where I can quietly absorb this liquefied elemental essence.”

“Alright.” Northson nodded.

……

The Raindragon Guard encampment within the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains. This was a
towering mountain, and there were estates erected throughout it. Quite a few Raindragon Guards
were present here.

The dragon-headed warship hovered there in midair, slowly drawing closer to the mountain peak.

“Hurry and depart.” A black-robed elder stood there in midair, appearing in front of the dragon-
headed warship. He said furiously, “The two of you have come here to participate in the trial to join
the Raindragon Guard. You are forbidden from entering. After you enter this encampment, you will
have failed the test.”

Ning and Northson immediately saluted with respect. They could sense that this black-robed elder’s
aura…seemed quite similar to the aura the Primal Daoists of the Black-White College possessed.

“Ji Ning [Mu Northson] greets you, senior,” the two said respectfully.

“No point in being respectful. Hurry up and depart.” The black-robed elder waved his arm.
Ning persisted in saying, “Senior, we haven’t come here to enter the encampment. We’ve come
because earlier, when we two brothers went to deal with Wanxiang monsters atop a monster
mountain, we discovered a group of pitiable humans who were being raised as livestock. Thus, we
delivered them here in the hopes that the Raindragon Guard will take pity on and care of them.”

The black-robed elder was startled. A look of rage appeared on his face. “These monsters…they
never learn the error of their ways.” He looked towards Ning and Northson with a slightly kinder look
in his eyes now. “Bring these slaves out. Release them and let me look at them.”

“Yes,” Ning and Northson said respectfully. Instantly, they opened the doors to the warship, and the
group of slaves that had been eating and drinking within the warm cabins stared outwards in terror.

The look on the black-robed elder’s face grew even uglier to behold, upon seeing those human
slaves clad in leaves and in bark, who had terrified looks in their eyes. He let out a soft sigh. “There
is no hope for most of these slaves. Some of the children, perhaps. These humans who were treated
as meat by the monsters…their lives are incomparably terrible, generation after generation. Now that
they have escaped their tribulations, the Raindragon Guard will naturally take care of them. Hand
them over to me. The two of you shall continue within the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains. After
three months time, you may return.”

“Yes.” Ning and Northson were both overjoyed. Previously, they were afraid that the Raindragon
Guard wouldn’t take care of them, but now, it seemed, the Raindragon Guard was quite benevolent
towards these human slaves who had been reared as livestock by the monsters.

A short time later. The black-robed Primal Daoist elder had led away all the human slaves. The child
who Ning and Northson was the most familiar with, the one called ‘Ironboy’, had stared at the two of
them the entire time, as though wanting to completely memorize their faces.

“I wonder what will happen to him in the future,” Northson said softly, a complicated look in his eyes.
“Everyone has their own destiny,” Ning said. “Let’s go.”

“Alright.” Northson nodded.

The two disciples once more boarded the dragon-headed warship, quickly departing the
encampment region and beginning to once more head deep into the wild marshes of the Gaol
Mountains.

………
Half a day later. It was already night.

Ning and Northson had chosen a desolate mountain with no monsters present. Ning’s divine sense
had inspected the entire mountain, but hadn’t found any monsters at all. Thus, they entered a cave
which was deep within the mountain.

Within the cave, there was a flowing underground river. The two set up a grand alarm formation, and
Northson also arranged for some constructs to stand guard alongside himself.

“Senior apprentice-brother, focus on your training. Leave everything here to me. I won’t even let an
ant crawl in,” Northson chortled. Ning laughed. “Sorry for the trouble, junior apprentice-brother.”

Then, no longer thinking about anything else, Ning immediately sat down into the lotus position atop
a flat rock he had chopped apart with his Darknorth Sword. A jade bottle appeared next to him.
Within this jade bottle was the liquefied elemental essence of all four Wanxiang Adepts; a total of
900 kilograms of it.

“Whew!” Ning opened his mouth, and the liquefied elemental essence began to flow out, directly
entering Ning’s mouth.

Within Ning’s Zifu Violet Palace region. The liquefied elemental essence began to frantically
transform. His entire Zifu Sea was swiveling slightly, because at the very base of the Zifu Sea large
amount of pure elemental ki was flowing out from the Watersource. The Zifu Sea…it continuously
expanded in each direction, taking up more and more of the space in this region.

50 kilograms. 150 kilograms. 250 kilograms. 300 kilograms!

Ning continued to absorb more and more.

“Eh? Previously, in the Black-White College, I absorbed 405 kilograms. Afterwards, I spent three
years in training. Those three years should be roughly equivalent to fifty or a hundred kilograms as
well. In other words, my body should’ve had nearly 500 kilograms.” Ning pondered to himself. “And
now, I’ve absorbed 300 more, but I still haven’t reached my limit.”

“Let’s wait and see. I want to see exactly how much my Zifu Lake can expand to.” Ning didn’t
hesitate at all, continuing to ceaselessly absorb liquefied elemental essence. The Zifu Sea within his
body was constantly expanding, taking up more of the space of the void. The entire Zifu Violet
Palace region was growing sturdier and sturdier as well.
350 kilograms. 400 kilograms. 450 kilograms…

“Master’s previous guess was that I would roughly need to absorb around 800 to 850 kilograms or
so, but I’ve already…wow, a thousand kilograms.” Ning’s former Zifu Sea had held roughly 500
kilograms worth of liquefied elemental essence, but now he had absorbed 500 more. And yet, Ning
still didn’t feel as though he had reached his limit.

“Come. Continue.”

Slowly, the rate at which his Zifu Sea expanded began to slow down, as though it was beginning to
reach its limits. The surrounding void had begun to generate a shocking resistive power, preventing
the Zifu Sea from expanding much more.

Rumble…

The entire Violet Palace was beginning to tremble. The Zifu Lake was no longer able to expand by
another inch. The entire Violet Palace region was now incomparably sturdy.

Ning understood that his Zifu Sea had finally reached its limits. Factoring in his previous
accumulated energy and this time’s absorption…he had actually taken in the equivalent of 1250
kilograms of liquefied elemental essence!

“No matter what, my peak Zifu stage is definitely at a true peak now,” Ning mused silently to himself.
“I can now break through to the early Wanxiang stage.” Actually, he could’ve broken through three
years ago, but his base wasn’t stable and solid enough. Ning was a person of great ambition;
naturally, he had insisted on waiting until today.

Ning began to mentally recite the words from the [Flowing Watersource] describing the process of
breaking through to the Wanxiang Adept stage.

With but a thought…his entire Zifu Sea began to change…

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 20 – Manifestation

Within Ji Ning’s Zifu Violet Palace. The boundless sea of elemental ki was vast and endless. With
but a thought from Ning, the surface of the entire sea of elemental ki began to sink downwards.
Deep within the sea of elemental ki. A large amount of elemental ki essence was quickly,
continuously condensing. One enormous star after another was constantly being born.

After an indeterminate period of time.

Rumble…the surface of the sea of elemental ki had already sank downwards considerably.
Suddenly, it began to roil, and one enormous star after another slowly rose up from above it,
breaking through the surface and floating upwards. Countless giant, tightly packed stars emerged
from the surface of the sea, flying higher and higher into the void, each of them gleaming with faint
light.

Rising. Rising. Finally, the countless stars came to a halt, high in the vast, infinite ‘sky’. In this
moment, true darkness came to the Zifu. Those countless, brilliant stars hung there in the night sky,
and beneath the night sky was the vast, endless sea.

This was the very first Manifestation after one broke through to the Wanxiang level – a sea of stars
in the sky.

Rumble…the sea of elemental ki continued to sink downwards. In the center of the sea, where a
countless amount of elemental ki essence had condensed, an even more astonishingly large ‘star’
was being formed. After another indeterminate period of time, this unfathomably larger ‘star’ slowly
began to rise upwards as well. Eventually, it broke through the waves and slowly floated into the sky.

This rose in a manner which was different from the countless stars which had just soared upwards.
In this moment, it was as though the only thing thing which existed in the night sky was this
incomparably vast ‘star’. It emanated a soft, gentle light which illuminated the entire night sky, and
which shone down on the entire sea of elemental ki. In this moment, it was the most brilliant part of
the entire Zifu region.

This was evidence of a breakthrough to the second Manifestation of the Wanxiang level – the bright
moon ascending from the sea!

Finally, this enormous, brilliant moon came to a halt, high in the sky. In this moment, there was a sea
of stars in the sky, along with a luminous moon.

Rumble…the sea of elemental ki continued to sink. If the sea of elemental ki had been too small,
perhaps even the creation of a sea of thousands of stars would be impossible. If even that was
impossible…then that symbolized that there was no hope for a breakthrough to the Wanxiang level.
Since the likes of Adept Mu Xiao and Adept Xu Li trained in what could only be considered decent
techniques, when they made their breakthroughs, they were only able to reach this second
Manifestation.

But Ning’s sea of elemental ki was now incomparably vast. Although it had continuously sank
downwards for a long period of time, less than 30% of the sea had been drained.

In this moment…an even more incomparably enormous ‘star’ was forming, deep in the bottom of the
sea. Even before being truly born, this ‘star’ was already beginning to emit an astonishing, blinding
brilliance, to the point where even the entire sea of elemental ki was beginning to glow. Finally, it too
began to rise, and this titanic ‘star’ rose upwards.

Finally, it broke through the surface of the water. In that instant, the scorching, blazing light of this
star instantly spread out, covering the entirety of the Zifu with its light. The Zifu space instantly
transformed from night into day.

This great sun slowly, unhurriedly rose into the heights of the sky. This was proof that one had
broken through to the third Manifestation of the Wanxiang level – the dawn sun rising from the east!

The sea of stars, the bright moon rising from the sea, the dawn sun rising from the east…the
appearance of these three Manifestations symbolized that this breakthrough to the Wanxiang level
had been a perfect one.

When the sun flew to the highest part of the entire region, it became surrounded by stars. It was
located directly opposite to the nearby moon. One Yang, the other Yin. Because it had flown so high,
the light of the sun was no longer as scorchingly powerful as it had been before. The bright moon,
the blazing sun; one cool, the other blazing. Two different types of light filled the sea below.

“Condense!” Ning willed it. The entire sea of elemental ki, which had only sunk by less than half,
began to frantically sink at an even faster rate. As it did, spots of light began to float up from the sea
of elemental ki. These countless spots of light broke through the surface and floated upwards…and
as the sea of elemental ki continued to sink, more and more spots of light emerged. They were so
densely packed and numerous as to be countless; there were hundreds, no, thousands more spots
of light than there were stars in the sky. They all flew up into the sky.

These spots of light flew towards the stars, the moon, and the sun, then merged into them. The
moon, the sun, and the countless stars began to increase in size. And, as they absorbed those spots
of light, the moon, the sun, and the stars also began to evolve.
By the time the sea of elemental ki had sank down to 10% of its original size, everything finally came
to a halt. The moon, sun, and stars in the sky had increased by a full size.

“Success.” Ning finally relaxed. The stars in the sky began to slowly move about. At first, they moved
about in a very slow, sluggish manner. Soon, however, they began to move in a very natural, easy
way, and they began to revolve around the two larger stellar bodies, the sun and the moon. The
movement of the countless stars was natural and innate. These stars and the sun and the moon
were naturally linked with the countless true stellar bodies in the outside world, and thus they began
to move in this manner.

Within the deep cave.

Northson turned his head to look at Ning. Ning still sat there in the lotus position, but he had stopped
absorbing liquefied elemental essence. “Senior apprentice-brother should have made his
breakthrough.”

Right at this moment, suddenly, a large amount of natural elemental ki from the surrounding area
began to wildly surge towards Ning at an incomparably shocking speed. Moments later, this
elemental ki ripple came to a halt. Ning opened his eyes. Laughing loudly, he rose to his feet.

“Congratulations, senior apprentice-brother. You have stepped into the Wanxiang level,” Northson
said in delight.

“I made some tests just now. Indeed, it is as you said, junior apprentice-brother; upon breaking
through to the Wanxiang level, the stars within the Zifu in my body truly do resonate with the
countless real stars of the outside world. Once I begin to absorb the elemental ki of the outside
world, the rate at which that happens has increased by many tens of times.” Ning laughed, but at the
same time, he sighed in his heart.

If one wanted to create liquefied elemental essence, it would be far more difficult. If one wanted to
do that, then one would need to do what Immortal Firedragon had done; set down a grand formation,
then spend a long period of time converting the elemental ki of the natural world and distill it into
liquefied elemental essence!

Thus, liquefied elemental essence was naturally, incomparably precious. Wanxiang Adepts and
Primal Daoists would rather spend a bit of extra time in training than use it; extremely few were able
to wantonly use vast amounts of liquefied elemental essence to rise in power quickly.
“Senior apprentice-brother, you broke through to the Wanxiang level; you should be lacking in
suitable Earth-ranked magic treasures.” Northson laughed. “Earlier, we acquired a set of flying
swords from that Northriver Zhou. It should suit you very well. This set of flying swords shall be your
junior apprentice-brother’s gift to you for making your breakthrough, senior apprentice-brother.”

Ning was startled. “No, I can’t!”

Northriver Zhou’s set of flying swords? Indeed, it really was a set of nine Earth-ranked flying swords,
and they were quite good as well, most likely high-grade Earth-ranked swords. Although the current
core of his [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation], the ‘Nine Yang Sword Formation’, was comprised
of top-grade Mortal-ranked swords, for a Wanxiang Adept…they were still vastly inferior to a set of
nine quality Earth-ranked flying swords. The comparative price of these items testified to this as well.

Top-grade Mortal-ranked flyinig swords would generally go for a hundred taels of liquefied elemental
essence, which was to say, around five kilograms. This set of Earth-ranked flying swords of
Northriver Zhou, however, would probably see each sword going for nearly fifty kilograms. Since the
nine came in a set, most likely if sold as a set, a price of five hundred kilograms or so could be
fetched.

“Senior apprentice-brother. These flying swords are useless to me.” Northson shook his head. “This
is my congratulatory gift…can it be that you are going to refuse, senior apprentice-brother?”

Ning looked at Northson, then smiled. “Fine, then. I’ll accept this set of flying swords.” The two were
fellow disciples, and they were engaged in a life-and-death adventure together. Ning wasn’t going to
be wishy-washy about it; only, he firmly engraved this moment into his heart.

Time slowly passed. In the blink of an eye, it had been half a month.

The clouds drifted forward in the sky. A dragon-headed warship was leisurely advancing. Up ahead,
a spatial distortion could be seen, as well as cracks and tears in space. Beyond those cracks was a
gray, blurry void. Although Ning and Northson had seen these things many times now, they still felt
their hearts beat in fear.

The dragon-headed warship naturally stayed far, far away from these things. If they were
accidentally trapped within these spatial distortions…Ning understood that given their current level of
power, they would definitely die.

“This set of flying swords truly is sharp and dominating. It has an extremely strong murderous intent
about it.” Ning stood at the helm of the ship. He stretched his right hand out, and around his right
hand were nine finger-sized flying swords. These nine flying swords swirled around Ning’s right
hand, constantly spinning…and occasionally spitting out sword-light. Ning was still familiarizing
himself with this set of nine Earth-ranked flying swords.

Because he didn’t know the name of these swords, Ning described them as the ‘Northriver Sword
Formation’. Both because it had belonged to Northriver Zhou, and also to constantly remind himself
to be warry of other Immortal cultivators.

“Senior apprentice-brother, look.” Northson pointed towards the distance. Ning took a careful look. In
the foggy distance, a warship was currently flying towards them. Upon seeing the shape of the
warship, Ning immediately said, “This is one of the hundred who took part in the Raindragon Guard
trial. This is the ship of the peak Wanxiang Adept named ‘Formless’.”

“Formless?” Northson turned to look as well. “It’s not going to be like when we met Northriver Zhou
and the others, is it? There aren’t other Wanxiang Adepts hiding on his ship, are there?”

“Let me take a look.” Ning willed his divine sense to sweep forward, thoroughly surrounding the
distant warship. Ning thoroughly investigate all the activities going on inside that ship. After doing so,
Ning relaxed. “It’s not bad. Including Adept Formless, there are only two individuals…eh?” Ning’s
face suddenly changed.

In that distant warship. The white-robed ‘Daoist Eastdawn’ and the gray-robed ‘Daoist Formless’
were also staring towards Ning’s distant dragon-headed warship.

“That dragon-headed warship should belong to that disciple of the Black-White College, Mu
Northson,” the gray-robed Daoist Formless said.

“Judging from how leisurely they are acting, and how slow they are flying…I imagine they must have
acquired the corpse of a Wanxiang monster long ago,” Daoist Eastdawn said.

“They are members of the Black-White College, after all.” Daoist Formless frowned, then shook his
head. “It’s unfortunate. When we first entered the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains, our luck
wasn’t bad. We even killed a Wanxiang monster! But afterwards, ever since we acted against that
Azure Skysnake, our luck has taken a turn for the worse. We failed numerous times. Three days
ago, we were played for idiots by that Azure Skysnake, and the two of us nearly died there.”

Adept Eastdawn gritted his teeth. “The first time, we let her escape. The second time, after she
discovered us, she actually played us for fools and let us fall into a trap. If we run into her again, I’ll
definitely kill her.”
“Azure Skysnake?” Ning had a sudden thought. In the past, shortly after he had left the protection of
his parents, he had gone adventuring in a region within ten thousand kilometers of West Prefecture
City. He had battled numerous times with an Azure Skysnake.

After Ning had killed Ironwood Zhan, he had been unable to discover the corpse of the Azure
Skysnake. Back then, he had suspected that it must have suddenly comprehended the ‘Void Blink’
technique and fled.

“Azure Skysnakes are still quite rare. In addition, due to their innate gifts, they generally grow quite
quickly,” Ning mused to himself. “I wonder if the Azure Skysnake they met…is the same one I met in
the Swallow Mountain region.”

“Junior apprentice-brother, let’s move towards them,” Ning said.

“Move towards them?” Northson looked towards Ning, who nodded. Northson no longer asked
anything, instead moving the dragon-headed warship closer.

Ning stared into the distance. He wanted to learn more information about this Azure Skysnake from
these two men. Since he had nothing to do during the next two-plus months in the wild marshes, he
might as well go investigate and see if this Azure Skysnake was the same one he knew.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 21 – Meeting Again After Many Years

“Fellow Daoist Mu Northson.” Adept Formless, on the other warship, clasped his hands, then said
with a laugh, “Oh, fellow Daoist Ji Ning is here as well. For us to be able to meet here in the wild
marshes is truly a karmic sign. After we return to the Raindragon Guard encampment, we must have
a good reunion.”

“Naturally! Fellow Daoist Formless, fellow Daoist Eastdawn,” Ning said, clasping his hands, “Judging
from how relaxed you see, I imagine that you must have already acquired enough Wanxiang
monster corpses.”

“Relaxed?” The two Wanxiang Adepts on the warship opposite from them stared at each other.
Daoist Eastdawn couldn’t help but laugh bitterly. “Fellow Daoist Ji Ning, what makes you feel we are
relaxed? Just a short while ago, we nearly died. We are just taking a short rest, and then we’ll go
hunting for Wanxiang monsters again. After all, the time limit is three months; we have a bit of time.”
“Oh, you haven’t collected enough either?” Ning was ‘surprised’. “Either?” Daoist Eastdawn was truly
surprised. “Can it be that the two you have yet to collect enough either?”

Although Northson was puzzled by why Ning had said this, he nodded and said in support, “Right,
not yet.” Ning sighed. “Actually, this time, we nearly killed an Azure Skysnake. Only, that Azure
Skysnake was too slippery; she managed to escape.”

“Azure Skysnake? You also encountered an Azure Skysnake?” Daoist Eastdawn was shocked. Ning
instantly looked towards him, ‘puzzled’.

Daoist Eastdawn said hurriedly, “We met her as well, a total of two times. This Azure Skysnake truly
is sly and slippery; to kill her won’t be easy.”

“Where did you meet her?” Ning asked. Daoist Eastdawn didn’t try to hide anything. “The first time
was in the north, roughly two hundred thousand kilometers from here. Three days ago, we met her
again, roughly a hundred thousand kilometers northeast of here, at the ‘Mount Demonlotus’ region.

Ning shook his head and sighed. “We really are linked by karmic. We both encountered the Azure
Skysnake. However, I don’t know if it was the same one. Well. We two brothers need to continue to
search for Wanxiang monsters, so we won’t dally. Once we return to the encampment, we can meet
again.”

“Alright.” Daoist Formless and Daoist Eastdawn clasped their hands in salute. Soon, the two
warships separated.

…….

Daoist Formless, aboard his ship, laughed. “That was such a coincidence. They encountered the
Azure Skysnake as well.”

“I was actually worried that there might be other Wanxiang Adepts hiding within that dragon-headed
warship, preparing for an ambush,” Daoist Eastdawn said. “But now, it seems, disciples of the Black-
White College really are different. They are quite proud, and they won’t stoop to doing such things.”

“Right. It’s the Black-White College, after all,” Daoist Formless agreed, nodding. They actually had
been vigilant this entire time. However, chatting about the Azure Skysnake didn’t impact them at all;
naturally, they didn’t mind discussing it.

…….
Aboard the dragon-headed warship. “We’re going to the Mount Demonlotus region?” Northson
looked towards Ning, puzzled. “Senior apprentice-brother, why are we going to Mount Demonlotus?”

“In my homeland, I once battled numerous times against a Xiantian-level Azure Skysnake monster.
After having fought so many times, we actually ended up with something of a friendship.” Ning
sighed. “Only, afterwards, it most likely left the Swallow Mountain region, heading to unknown
places. Now that I heard of an Azure Skysnake appearing here…I want to go and see if it’s the one I
knew.”

“Oh.” Northson now understood. “Azure Skysnakes are Godbeasts, and very rare Godbeasts at that.
Given how rare they are, it just might be the same one you met in your homeland.”

“It also might not be,” Ning said. “But since we have nothing to do, we might as well go there to take
a look.” Northson nodded. “Alright.” He immediately controlled the dragon-headed warship to fly
towards the north, then pursed his lips and said, “Come, senior apprentice-brother. Tell me the story
about you and that Azure Skysnake.”

“Very well, I’ll tell you about it.” Ning began to slowly narrate that tale from many years ago.

…….

Mount Demonlotus. This was a mountain that took up tens of kilometers of the surrounding region,
and was shaped like a blooming lotus flower. Supposedly, this peak was a very mysterious one…no
one who entered was able to leave. The monsters of this region, at least, did not dare to enter Mount
Demonlotus at all.

The Mount Demonlotus region took up an enormous amount of space. Because the natural
elemental aura of this location was exceptionally dense and nourishing, it attracted quite a few
monsters, who took up residence in the various mountain peaks of the region.

This was a place of many monsters, much elemental energy, and many treasures! Naturally, the
Azure Skysnake had prepared to make this place her home as well.

In a desolate part of the Mount Demonlotus region, one enormous formation-flag after another
began to appear in multiple places, covering a region of over a hundred kilometers.

“Not good!” A small azure snake hung there in midair, staring about. Its tail flashed, and it
transformed into a streak of light, wanting to flee.
“Azure Skysnake! Even now, you want to try and flee?” This voice boomed like thunder. From far
away, in front of one of the formation flags, a ten-meter tall, azure-skinned man had appeared. This
muscular man’s eyes glowed with a dark green light, and he had a heaven-shaking aura around him.

“Azure Skysnake, surrender and allow yourself to be captured.”

“Stop struggling.”

“If you resist, you will die an even more miserable death.”

One voice after another rang out. In each of the formation flag locations, figures began to appear, all
of them with monstrous auras that filled the heavens. There was an alluring, white-furred woman, a
shockingly savage black monster, a tall, skinny, evil-looking man…more than ten Wanxiang
monsters had appeared.

The little azure snake swept the surrounding area with her gaze, and then her body blurred before
transforming into a ruby-lipped, ivory-toothed, azure-robed maiden. Worry on her face, she hurriedly
said, “You should be King Dragonwhale.”

“I am indeed.” The ten-meter tall, azure-skinned man’s voice rumbled like thunder. This monster,
Dragonwhale, was extremely famous in the Mount Demonlotus region. This was a monster who
trained as a Fiendgod Body Refiner, and who even had a divine ability. There were dozens of
Wanxiang monsters who served him. Not even human Immortal cultivators would be so foolish as to
try and act against this Dragonwhale.

“I don’t know how a humble monster like myself offended you, your Majesty, for you to come deal
with me in such an awe-inspiring manner,” the azure-robed maiden said, panicked.

“Just yesterday, you killed my lifelong friend.” The Dragonwhale monster’s eyes glowed with a
shockingly powerful light. The azure-robed maiden was stunned.

“Right. That Zifu-level panther-headed monster was my lifelong friend.” The Dragonwhale monster’s
eyes were filled with a savage, killing intent. “The two of us knew each other back when we were
both ordinary little monsters. It has been countless years…I didn’t expect he’d fall to your hands.”

“I, I…” the azure-robed maiden said, panicked, “I didn’t…”

“Stop dissembling,” the Dragonwhale said coldly. “You killed my lifelong friend. I will definitely let you
know what it means to be in such agony that you would wish to die. Everyone…capture her alive. I
will use ki-sealing chains to bind her, then viciously torture her for ten or a hundred years. Only in
this way can I give vent to my hatred.”

“Very well.”

“Big Brother, don’t worry at all.”

“Leave it to us.”

The ten-plus Wanxiang monsters began to surround her.

“You want to kill me? In your dreams!” That azure-robed maiden, a look of panic still on her face,
suddenly roared in rage. With a swoosh, she transformed into a small azure snake once more, then
immediately fled at high speed.

“Fleeing?” The Dragonwhale watched emotionlessly. The ten-plus Wanxiang monsters surrounded
her, moving towards her in an enveloping manner.

“This Dragonwhale really is insidious. It actually set up a spacelock formation in this region, making
me unable to Void Blink.” The little azure serpent cursed to itself. “It seems this time, I’m really in
danger. The wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains truly are a dangerous place; my senior fellow
disciples spoke the truth.”

Although she had apprenticed herself to a monster Immortal, that monster Immortal accepted many
monsters; virtually no monsters would be refused. Although she, an Azure Skysnake, was viewed
with comparative importance, if she were to be attacked or killed in the outside world while
adventuring, no one would help make an appearance on her behalf. Amongst monsters…life was far
more savage and ruthless than life was amongst humans.

“This Azure Skysnake really is slippery.”

“Although she cannot Void Blink, her speed is still astonishingly fast.”

“Dire-ice! She actually was nourishing dire-ice. Everyone, be careful.”

The small azure snake, while fleeing, would immediately belch forth a blast of dire-ice when any
Wanxiang monsters moved to gang up on her! Dire-ice, for Wanxiang Daoists, was not at all inferior
to divine abilities; they were extremely powerful supportive techniques. Against weaker opponents,
this dire-ice was capable of freezing them to death.
Even against strong opponents, the incomparable cold of ‘dire-ice’ would cause them to be affected
by the chilling cold. Their speed would be dramatically lessened, and their power would fall as well.

“It won’t be able to continue emitting dire-ice for much longer. Soon, there will be none left in her
body.” The Dragonwhale watched from far away. As the saying goes, spectators view things with the
greatest clarity. “All you need to do is continue to shrink the zone in which she can flee towards. That
will guarantee that she will die.”

“What should I do. What should I do. What should I do!” The Azure Skysnake, suffering the
combined attacks of so many, had to rely on the dire-ice to impact them and slow them down, as
well as her own innate nimbleness and speed to escape them time and time again. However, clearly,
under the combined attacks of more than ten monsters, the region in which she could flee about was
rapidly shrinking. If this continued…she would definitely be captured alive.

“Bang!” The little azure snake’s tail flickered as fast as lightning, striking against the sharp claws of
an enormous white fox. The two were both knocked backwards by the collision. The little azure
snake’s tail flickered once again, sending her into a solitary arc and fleeing in another direction.

“Still running?” The giant white fox’s slanted eyes were filled with ridicule. “You won’t be able to
escape.”

“Bang!” “Boom!” “Wham!”

The Azure Skysnake was forced to exchange multiple blows with these monsters. As a Godbeast,
the Azure Skysnake had incredible tools at her disposal, and in a one-on-one fight, she would be
able to withstand them. However, the enemies comprised more than ten Wanxiang monsters,
several of which were stronger than her. And there was also that Dragonwhale monster who had yet
to join in; he vastly outstripped her in strength.

“It seems as though this time, I really am going to die.” The Azure Skysnake had this sudden thought
spring to her mind; today, perhaps, she really wouldn’t be able to escape. She looked at the distant
Dragonwhale, who was still staring at her coldly. She gritted her teeth. “I’d rather die than allow
myself to be taken alive. Even if I die, I’ll pull a few of them down with me to pad my grave.”

“Kill.”

The Azure Skysnake went berserk.

……
In the clouds above the Mount Demonlotus region. A dragon-headed warship was slowly advancing.
Ning had already spent roughly half a month in this region, but he had yet to locate the Azure
Skysnake.

“Given how large the Mount Demonlotus region is, it is simply too hard to find an Azure Skysnake. In
addition, it might have left this region long ago,” Northson said. Ning nodded. “Perhaps it really has.”

“Eh?” Suddenly, Ning frowned and stared downwards. “A ripple.” Northson sensed it as well. When
Wanxiang monsters battled against each other, the elemental ki ripples they created were extremely
strong. Ning was able to vaguely sense it.

“Let’s go take a look,” Ning said. “Alright.” Northson immediately commanded the warship to quickly
draw closer. As they moved closer, the ripples grew more and more intense.

“Right there.” Northson pointed downward, through the faint fog. Through it, they could see that a
massive battle was going on in the wilderness, with the auras of that battle surging towards the
skies.

Ning glanced downwards. “They should be Wanxiang-level monsters. I’ll take a look.”

With but a thought, Ning sent his divine sense to cover the region, sweeping towards the battle going
on in that desolate wilderness.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 22 – Lil Snakey-Snake, Don’t You Recognize Me?

“How is it?” Mu Northson stood next to Ji Ning. Ning’s divine sense enveloped the lower area. He
was naturally able to see with perfect clarity the little azure snake struggling for her life. The
enraged, desperate, despairing look in the eyes of the little azure serpent…upon seeing it, Ning was
instantly certain. “That’s the one!”

There were differences in the appearance of every snake, in terms of scale pattern, coloration,
eyes…there were minute differences in many areas. It was much like how, although humans all had
two eyes, a nose, and a mouth, because of certain micro-differences, every single person was
unique and different from others.
“But those formation flags…” Ning’s divine sense sweep discovered that there were formation flags
fixed into the ground in an area of a hundred kilometers. Ning could be considered to be quite skilled
in formations now. “These are sealing formations; they should be used to lock space.”

“These Wanxiang monsters really set up a watertight scheme; even if the Azure Skysnake escapes
their assaults, the formation flags can also form an enormous sealing formation, preventing it from
charging out.”

Thoughts were flashing through Ning’s mind at lightning speed. “Junior apprentice-brother,” Ning
sent mentally. “Senior apprentice-brother.” Northson looked at Ning. “That Azure Skysnake below us
is the one I am looking for. I’m planning to save it. Want to come with me?” Ning asked.

“Need you ask?” Northson laughed. “Then let’s charge down right now,” Ning said. “Let’s charge into
that grand sealing formation. Otherwise, once it activates, because of its spacelock function…we
won’t even be able to enter with a Lesser Teleportation Dao-seal.”

Northson nodded as well. Swoosh! The dragon-headed warship suddenly shrank, and its coloration
changed as well, becoming the same color as the skies. And then, it transformed into a blurry streak
of light, shooting directly towards the battle in the wilderness.

“Bang!” A golden metal rod slammed directly onto the Azure Skysnake’s body. The Azure Skysnake
rolled away from it, dodging far away, but at the same time it vomited out a mouthful of jade-green
blood.

“This time, I’m really going to die here.”

“I really want to go back to Swallow Mountain…” This thought suddenly flashed through the little
azure snake’s mind. But then, it transformed into a streak of light, pouncing towards the white-furred
fox, sending a mighty surge of dire-ice straight towards the white-furred fox.

“F*ck off!”

A sudden, explosive roar rang out. The Dragonwhale monster, who had only been watching this
entire time, without intervening, suddenly stared into the distance and let out a mighty roar. And
then, with a thought, the formation flags that had been placed in the four directions all instantly lit up.
An enormous glowing barrier appeared out of nowhere, completely covering this region for a
hundred kilometers.
However, an extremely small, dragon-headed warship had already charged into the sealed-off
region.

“Eh?” The little azure snake glanced sideways as well, seeing the the distant warship fly in, and the
grand sealing formation suddenly appear. “Who barged in? For the sake of capturing me alive, this
Dragonwhale has truly made meticulous preparations. These formation flags have actually sealed
this region in. Even if I throw off these monsters, I still won’t be able to escape.”

“A human Immortal cultivator.”

“A human.”

The Wanxiang monsters all noticed the warship that had charged in. By now, it had disappeared,
with two human youths flying out of it. Although they appeared to be young, these monsters didn’t
lessen their caution. The younger an Immortal cultivator appeared to be, the more worthy of caution
they were.

“Qushan, block them.” The Dragonwhale ordered one of the Wanxiang monsters under his
command with the most formidable life-preserving techniques to go out.

“Alright.” Bowing, an ugly man covered in armor strode forward, his steps causing the earth to shake
as it charged towards Ning and Northson.

As Ning flew forward, he mentally summoned 720 flying swords out of nowhere, with the core being
the nine Earth-ranked flying swords of the ‘Northriver Sword Formation’. At the same time, the sun,
moon, and countless stars of the Zifu region within his body began to resonate with the outside
world.

Rumble…the surrounding skies suddenly transformed into a sea of glittering stars, with a brilliant
sun and a moon within them. This was a Wanxiang Adept’s Manifestation!

In front of Ji Ning’s chest, a jade-white sword of light had already appeared. When Ning had faced
the combined attacks of Northriver Zhou and the others, he had dared to use the ninth level of the
[Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] to deal with the attacks of two peak Wanxiang Adepts at once.
Now that his elemental ki had also reached the early Wanxiang stage, and the core of the [Lesser
Thousand Swords Formation] had the ‘Nine Yang Sword Formation’ had been replaced with the
‘Northriver Sword Formation’, it could be said that the sword formation Ning was using today
could’ve defeated all six members of Northriver Zhou’s party!
“Hurry up and flee, and I’ll spare your life.” Ning flew forward, as fast as lightning, while calling out in
a loud voice.

“Puny human child, you really know how to waggle your tongue.” The hoarse voice of the ugly man
rang out as he lifted up two golden metal rods, transforming into a shadow as he charged straight
towards Ning.

Ning shook his head. “You sought out your own death! Go!” With but a thought, Ning instantly
transformed the jade-white sword of light in front of his chest into an enormous Waterflame Millstone
which moved as fast as the wind, spinning towards the ugly man. With the support of his Wanxiang
Manifestation…this sword became even more unpredictable.

“Gotta block.” The ugly man was badly frightened. This human kid’s flying sword was incredibly fast!
“Double block!” The ugly man twirled his two metal rods, struggling to block, but in terms of skill
alone, how could the monster be a match for Ning, who had already embarked on the path of the
Sword Immortal? Even the likes of Northriver Zhou would be capable of completely suppressing this
ugly monster, much less the current Ji Ning. This ugly monster was only skilled in preserving his life.

Crunch!

The sword-light flashed past the defense of the two golden metal rods, chopping directly onto the
body of the ugly man. With a slashing sound, his body was instantly bisected.

The ugly man’s body, upon being chopped in half, instantly dissolved into mist, then reformed into an
enormous black-shelled turtle. It hurriedly retreated far away. This sight caused the other Wanxiang
monsters to all be shocked. Even the Dragonwhale, who had been standing apart from the battle this
entire time, to frown as he looked towards the two human youths.

The Dragonwhale waved his hand and said, “Halt!” The other Wanxiang monsters all immediately
halted, moving backwards.

“Big Brother, it seems those two human youths are fairly powerful. That slightly taller one was
actually able to chop second brother Qushan in half.”

“What do you mean, chopped in half? That’s because I was in human form, which was why he was
able to easily chop me in half. In my true form…how could he be able to chop through?” The giant,
black-shelled turtle flew over, snapping irritably.
“You couldn’t even block a single sword. You really are useless,” a tall, skinny monster said with a
cold snicker.

“Why don’t you try!” The black-shelled turtle was furious.

“All of you, shut your mouths.” The Dragonwhale swept them with his gaze, and the ten-plus
Wanxiang monsters no longer dared to say anything. All of them stared towards the distant Ji Ning
and Mu Northson, who were flying towards them.

The Dragonwhale said in a clear voice, “Human, it’s best if you don’t interfere in the matters of us
monsters. You had best leave right away. I will release the grand sealing formation and let you
leave. If you don’t leave…” The green light in the Dragonwhale monster’s eyes appeared quite
insidious.

Ning and Northson just glanced at the monsters, then turned their gazes towards the rather
bedraggled little azure serpent. The little azure serpent’s body was torn open, but it was rapidly
healing.

She, too, looked towards these two humans who had temporarily rescued her from disaster. As she
did…she was instantly dazed.

That fur-clad youth?

His appearance…it was identical to that arrogant youth of the Ji clan who had challenged her to do
battle countless times, back in Eastmount Marsh.

“Little snakey-snake!” Ning stared towards that distant, somewhat stupefied azure snake. He began
to roar with laughter. “Don’t you recognize me anymore?”

Little snakey-snake?

The little azure snake was stupefied. That nickname…it was so familiar. Back then, that arrogant
youth of the Ji clan had addressed her in this manner.

“It really is you!” The little azure snake instantly shouted back in shock, “You are that arrogant kid of
the Ji clan?”

Ning laughed. “Listen up! My name is Ji Ning!”

With a flash, the little azure snake moved next towards Ning. It even transformed into human form,
into an azure-robed maiden. Her face was rather ashen, but the azure-robed maiden inspected Ning
closely, as though she wanted to carefully inspect even the pores on Ning’s face. Completely
flabbergasted, she said, “You really are that kid of the Ji clan? You weren’t killed by Ironwood
Zhan?”

“I killed Ironwood Zhan,” Ning said with a pursed smile. “I didn’t expect that in human form, you’d
assume the form of a woman.”

The azure-robed maiden stared back at him. “I was a female to begin with.”

It had been many years since they had met. One had only been at the Houtian level, while the other
was an ordinary Xiantian monster. Back then, they had battled many times, but now, when they saw
each other, they felt so very close, very familiar with each other…perhaps this was the effect of
running into a familiar face in an unfamiliar place. This naturally made them feel all the closer to
each other.

“You two!” The distant Dragonwhale frowned. He naturally could tell that this human youth seemed
to be familiar with the Azure Skysnake. He immediately barked, “Stop acting so friendly with each
other. This is my turf, and you are currently within the grand formation I am controlling.”

The azure-robed maiden’s earlier joy instantly evaporated. She hurriedly sent mentally to the nearby
Ning, “Kid of the Ji clan, it seems as though you are now quite powerful. However, don’t think that
just because you were able to overcome the human form of that Wanxiang monster, that you are
capable of defeating that group of monsters. There are sixteen Wanxiang monsters present, and
when they are in their true forms, their power will increase explosively. And that Dragonwhale…by
himself, he’s more powerful than the rest of them joined together. It not only is a Dragonwhale with
tremendous talent and incomparably great strength, it also trains as a Fiendgod Body Refiner, and
has a divine ability. Its power is tremendous.”

Ning was startled. A Fiendgod Body Refiner, with a divine ability?

“This Dragonwhale monster is the leader of the Mount Demonlotus region,” the azure-robed maiden
sent. “He has tens of Wanxiang monsters under his control. This time, to attack me, he only brought
fifteen of them. He has long ago reached the peak of the Wanxiang level as a Fiendgod Body
Refiner. With his divine ability and his innate talent…you cannot take him on as an enemy. Hurry up
and flee. Don’t worry about me.”
The distant Dragonwhale shouted calmly, “I will give you two choices. The first choice is to
immediately leave. The two of you will be able to live. The second choice is to die, both of you, right
here.”

Northson stood there, grinning, seeming quite relaxed.

Ning was similarly relaxed.

“Kid of the Ji clan, don’t be stupid. Hurry up and leave. If you are willing to do so, in the future, get
revenge for me,” the azure-robed maiden sent to him. “For I, Qingqing, to be able to see you before I
die is already enough. It can be said that the heavens were not unkind to me.”

Ning glanced towards the distant Dragonwhale and the fifteen other monsters next to him. Their
auras were surging towards the heavens. Ning said in a clear voice, “Dragonwhale, I’ll give you two
choices as well. The first choice is, I’ll leave with this little snakey-snake, and you can live. The
second choice is, I’ll kill all of you, and then I’ll take this little snakey-snake away.”

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 23 –Monsters Executed By The Sword

The azure-robed maiden stared, astonished, towards the nearby Ji Ning. This Ji Ning actually dared
say something like this? These words were too…too dominating!

The distant Wanxiang monsters were startled as well. Instantly, a Wanxiang monster howled in rage,
“Human punk, kill us all? Just you?”

“You are looking to die!”

“A little human punk like you dares to be so arrogant?”

“Kill him!”

The Wanxiang monsters were all enraged, but they didn’t dare to act rashly. The nearby
Dragonwhale stretched his hand out, and instantly, the other monsters all fell silent.
The Dragonwhale looked weighingly at this human youth. Ning’s calm appearance caused him to be
puzzled…what abilities did this human youth have, for him to dare to act so confidently? But just
now, the Wanxiang Manifestation had indicated clearly…that this youth was indeed merely a
Wanxiang Adept.

Many thoughts flashed through the Dragonwhale monster’s mind. In the end, he said in a growling
voice, “I’ll give you a final chance to live. Leave, immediately!” Given his fame and prestige, how
could he possibly be scared off by a few words from Ning?

“Haha…” Ning began to laugh. He looked at the nearby Mu Northson. “Junior apprentice-brother, tell
me, are they or aren’t they seeking a path to death for themselves?”

“They are, indeed, seeking a path to death for themselves.” Northson laughed as well. He knew
exactly what this senior apprentice-brother of his was capable of. His [Soulshaker Art] was
comparable to a Primal Daoist’s, and even the majority of those six elite Wanxiang Adepts in
Northriver Zhou’s group had died due to it, despite having protective treasures which their seniors
had bestowed upon them. If it hadn’t been for those treasures, most likely all of them would have
died.

These Wanxiang monsters? At most, Ning would spend a little extra time on them.

“Hurry up and depart. Don’t charge straight into the path of death.” Ning’s 729 flying swords hovered
about him, forming that jade-white sword of light in front of him. Ning stretched out a finger, gently
tapping the jade-white sword. It actually emitted a clear, ringing sound; this jade-white sword of light
had actually condensed so much that it was like a real flying sword.

“If you don’t leave, I’m going to start a massacre,” Ning said calmly.

The pupils of the distant Dragonwhale monster shrank, but the light from his abyssal, green eyes
brightened significantly. His savage aura began to fill the heavens, and he roared out an order: “Use
all methods available to you at full strength and kill these two humans.”

“We were waiting for these words.”

“Big Brother, leave it to us.”

“Let’s go!”

“Slaughter him.”
One Wanxiang monster after another immediately transformed into their true forms. They were
avians, they were hooved beasts, they were aquatic beasts…they had jade eyes, they had three
eyes…in short, they were all sorts of strange creatures. After transforming into their true forms, all of
them emanated a heaven-filling monstrous aura. And then, with savage howls, they charged towards
Ning and Northson.

This sight caused tremendous shock to the azure-robed maiden by Ning’s side. She looked towards
the nearby Ning, then sent hurriedly, “Are you just bluffing them, or are you really that capable? Nine
years ago, you weren’t even at the Xiantian level. It’s only been nine years…these are all Wanxiang
monsters. If you aren’t able to beat them, hurry up and run.”

“Little snakey-snake…” Ning pursed his lips into a grin. “You just watch and see.”

Ning gently flicked at the jade-white sword in front of him. Hearing the clear ringing sound, he
beamed. “They are nothing more than birds made of mud and toy mutts made from bricks. Junior
apprentice-brother, let’s do it!”

Swish!

The jade-white sword in front of him immediately transformed into a gleaming Waterflame Millstone.
Moving as fast as the wind, it howled forth.

“Excellent.” Northson’s hands swept out with two rays of black light which transformed into two giant
black snakes in the air, which flew over with a howl as well.

A fierce look flashed through Ning’s eyes. The Soulshaker Seal in front of his divine soul, seated
within his sea of consciousness, suddenly brightened dramatically. A large amount of divine will
surged forth from the Soulshaker Seal. Under Ning’s control, it crushed outwards towards every
direction. Savage, turbid waves of divine will roared forth, and everything within its path was struck
by the waves of divine will.

The divine will moved at an incredible speed, faster than even the flying swords and constructs.
Even before the sword-light had arrived, Ning’s waves of divine will had collided with the souls of
those fifteen Wanxiang monsters.

BANG!!! The fifteen Wanxiang monsters were all filled with boundless self-confidence and killing
intent, but suddenly, the invisible, formless wave of divine will struck them, causing them to feel as
though their souls had been viciously smashed down upon by an iron warhammer.
“How can this…”

“This…”

Even as terror appeared in their minds, they all became dazed.

The sword-light of the ninth level of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] was incomparably soft
and slick. It howled drearily like the wind as it moved forward, first chopping directly through the body
of the golden-furred ape. The golden-furred ape didn’t try to resist in the slightest, allowing the
sword-light to easily chop through it from head to tail, slicing it in half. And then, still howling forward,
it chopped towards the white-furred fox, which was similarly split in half in an instant…

“Kill.” On the other side, the two black water-snakes under Northson’s control also savagely attacked
their targets. The tail of one serpent viciously lashed out, instantly disintegrating the body of one
Wanxiang monster. The tail of the other serpent tightened around the bodies of another monster,
crushing it to smithereens.

…..

Fast!

It was too fast!

How fast was the sword-light? How fast was the flight of the constructs? The Dragonwhale monster
in the distance had been watching calmly as Ning and Northson had unleashed their sword-light and
constructs, and he had paid them no heed. He believed that the fifteen Wanxiang monsters under
his command would definitely be able to resist, and should even have the advantage. “I imagine,
these two humans will be killed without needing me to intervene.”

Just as this thought flashed past his mind, he saw, to his astonishment, that in the face of Ning’s
sword-light and Northson’s constructs, his fifteen Wanxiang monsters didn’t fight back at all, allowing
the attacks to strike them.

Yes, these were monsters. However, it must be understood that if they weren’t using any defenses
at all, even Primal Daoists wouldn’t dare to use their bodies to block the sword-light of a Sword
Immortal, even if the Sword Immortal was only at the Wanxiang Adept stage.

“Swish!” The sword-light danced, and the constructs danced as well. In but the blink of an eye, the
sword-light had consecutively executed nine monsters. The other monsters were all finished with a
single chop; only the giant, black-shelled turtle had required two chops. The first chop hadn’t been
able to crack its shell; the second time, Ning’s sword-light had shot forward like ‘Chef Ding carving
the ox’ 1; he carved in through the seams and the slits, thus executing the black-shelled turtle.

As for the other six monsters, they were crushed into mincemeat by Northson’s constructs. In but the
blink of an eye, the fifteen monsters had all been killed!

“No!” The white-furred fox, after being chopped into two pieces, actually reformed, then frantically
retreated in terror.

“A Fiendgod Body Refiner?” Ning laughed softly. “You won’t be able to escape.” The rolling waves of
divine will once more struck the white-furred fox, and the fleeing fox was once more stunned. The
sword-light once more flashed towards it through the air in an incomparably graceful manner, easily
chopping her apart. At the same time, a beautiful Waterflame Lotus bloomed next to her, completely
surrounding her within. Soon, it ground the flesh and blood of the white-furred fox into dust. Soon,
the divine power within the flesh and the blood was used up, and the fox became deader-than-dead.

The fifteen Wanxiang monsters were now all dead!

“Killing Wanxiang monsters really is much easier than killing Wanxiang Adepts,” Ning murmured to
himself. “Not a single one of them had any protective treasures bestowed by seniors.”

Complete silence!

The entire wilderness had fallen silent. Ning and Northson smiled in a relaxed fashion, but the
nearby azure-robed maiden was completely stupefied. “Fifteen Wanxiang monsters, all of them
extremely powerful and at the middle, late, or even peak Wanxiang level. Why is it that when faced
with this kid of the Ji clan, none of them resisted at all, resulting in them instantly being killed?”

Because Ning’s divine will had bypassed her, she didn’t realize that Ning had used it to attack at all.

“It’s only been nine years.” The azure-robed maiden looked towards Ning, somewhat dazed. “I’m an
Azure Skysnake. I’ve gone to many places and have encountered repeated strokes of good fortune,
and have even apprentice myself to a monster Immortal. Only thus did I reach the Wanxiang level.
How is it that this kid of the Ji clan…was able to kill Wanxiang monsters as easily as killing a
chicken? How could he have become even more powerful than me?”
When the two had battled at Eastmount Marsh countless times, their power had always been
roughly equal. The Azure Skysnake had felt quite confident that her power had risen very quickly,
but now, it seemed….

……

The distant Dragonwhale monster was both stunned and incomparably enraged. Immediately
afterward, however, he calmed down. He stared at the distant Ning and Northson, then said in a low
voice, “No wonder you are so confident. You actually have a divine will technique. And you have
such a powerful divine soul; when using the divine will technique, you were actually able to affect
fifteen Wanxiang monsters with it.”

Ning laughed. Even before joining the Black-White College, his soul had already reached the ‘divine
sense’ level. Now that more than three years had passed, he had increased his comprehension of
the Dao, his sword-heart had been honed, and he had spent every day of the past three years
visualizing the [Nuwa Painting], and enjoying the soul-improving benefits it brought…by now, Ning’s
soul would be considered powerful even amongst Primal Daoists. Affecting fifteen Wanxiang
monsters at the same time was nothing.

The pressure these fifteen Wanxiang monsters had given him was even less than the pressure
those six Wanxiang Adepts of Northriver Zhou’s group had brought! However, this Dragonwhale
monster…

Ning felt confident in his ability to handle it, and also completely confident in his ability to flee.
However, Ning didn’t feel completely confident in being able to actually defeat or kill it. After all, the
opponent was extraordinarily talented, and a Fiendgod Body Refiner with a divine ability. To kill it
would definitely be incomparably difficult.

“Hurry up and depart. I’ll spare your life.” Ning stared towards the Dragonwhale monster and spoke
in a cold voice.

A cold light flashed through the eyes of the Dragonwhale. After having consecutively killed fifteen
monsters in such an awe-inspiring manner, Ning’s words did indeed have a rather frightening effect.

“Do you think you can scare me off by killing those monsters?” The Dragonwhale said hoarsely, “I
was born in the Darknorth Sea and have wandered many places. I then entered this region, then
arrived in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains…I’ve already dominated this region for ten
thousand years, and I’ve even battled Primal Daoists on several occasions. You, a puny Wanxiang
Adept, want to scare me away? You are dreaming!”
Ning stared into the distance. “Then let’s stop wasting words. Accept your death.”

“Accept death?” The Dragonwhale monster began to roar with wild laughter. His laughter was like
the thunder, echoing out to a distance of a hundred kilometers.

BOOM! Suddenly, he disappeared, his body dissolving into mist, then reforming in midair to become
an incomparably massive, bizarre beast. This bizarre beast had the head of a dragon, but the body
of a whale. The dragon’s whiskers were more than three hundred meters long, and the length of the
body of the entire Dragonwhale was more than three thousand meters. And then, the green light
emanating from its body suddenly increased dramatically in brightness, and its body actually began
to slowly increase to a size of ten thousand meters.

This massive, ten thousand meter long Dragonwhale hovered there in the air, completely covering
the skies and casting the land below it into darkness. The vast, endless savage aura from it filled
every part of the area, causing one’s heart to shudder.

Ning, Northson, and the azure-robed woman all raised their heads, staring towards it.

“Wow, that’s big.” Northson stared.

“Kid of the Ji clan, are you really…able to handle it?” The azure-robed woman’s face turned even
whiter than before.

Ning stared into the distance. “Little snakey-snake…”

“You just watch and see!”

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 24 –Ji Ning Explodes With His Full Power!

Suddenly, Ji Ning frowned. “Why are the Darknorth Swords in my Zifu region trembling?”

He immediately sent in his divine sense to investigate his Zifu region in detail. Many magic treasures
were hovering with his Zifu region, and amongst them were three Darknorth Swords. The
investigation of his divine sense…instantly discovered that streaks of blood red baleful energy and
gray, evil energy were coming in from the outside world, constantly flowing towards the Darknorth
Swords and being absorbed by them.
The Darknorth Swords had undergone the Fiendgod Rites of Bloodforging. They were so happy
when absorbing the evil, baleful auras that they were beginning to tremble.

“It seems as though this time, I really killed too many Wanxiang monsters. The evil, baleful, energies
from them were also very strong. The evil, baleful energies generated when I killed those two
Wanxiang Adepts last time were nowhere as strong,” Ning mused to himself. Only when one
personally killed monsters would the evil, baleful auras from them swirl around one’s self, and then
be absorbed by the Darknorth Swords. If he didn’t have the Darknorth Swords to absorb them…the
evil, baleful auras would continuously swirl around him. As time went on, they would slowly grow
faint, but in the end, a few remnants would be left behind.

Although Ning did have the Darknorth Swords to absorb the auras, there were still residual baleful
auras and evil auras! This was why those who had committed countless killings would still emanate
an incomparable, shockingly baleful aura.

……….

The massive Dragonwhale, ten thousand meters long, covered the skies with its massive bulk. It
hung there in the air, staring downwards, a cold look in its glowing green eyes. Its voice once more
rumbled out like thunder. “Human, accept death!”

Ning raised his head, sword-light flashing in his eyes. “Hmph.” Ning’s voice turned cold as well.
Bang! His divine will surged forth from his Soulshaker Seal, exploding forth and flooding upwards in
a crushing series of waves, instantly colliding against the massive Dragonwhale’s soul.

Although the Dragonwhale had prepared itself, it still felt its soul tremble. Even its massive airborne
body suddenly sank downwards for a moment, but soon afterwards, it regained its stability.

“Eh?” Ning was surprised. “He actually shook it off in an instant?”

Bang! Ning willed it again, and his divine will once more surged forth. The Dragonwhale in midair
was struck once more by Ning’s divine will, but its eyes were only filled with savagery; clearly, it
remained perfectly lucid.

“What a powerful divine will technique!” The Dragonwhale stared downwards, its voice rumbling.
“Human, your divine will technique is comparable to a Primal Daoists! However, I am a Godbeast
with exceptional talents, and have lived for more than ten thousand years. The passage of countless
years has tempered my Dao-heart and strengthened my soul. Don’t think you can do anything to me
just through your divine will technique.”
Ning was secretly surprised as well. This Dragonwhale really was quite extraordinary; it was actually
able to remain awake after being struck by Ning’s divine will attack. Still, Ning had somewhat
expected this.

This was because this Dragonwhale had claimed to have fought against Primal Daoists. Someone
who could battle against Primal Daoists would generally be able to defend against the divine will
attacks of them. For example, Ning’s senior apprentice-brother, Bloodshadow; Bloodshadow was a
Fiendgod Body Refiner with a divine ability, and a two-clawed Raindragon Guard!

He trained in the most painful of all techniques, the [Indestructible Bloodshadow Body]; one could
imagine how resilient Bloodshadow’s Dao-heart was, for him to be capable of training in this
technique to such a high level. And precisely because of this, Bloodshadow didn’t have to be afraid
of the divine will attacks of Primal Daoists.

In addition…previously, when Ning dealt with ‘Dong One’ of Snowdragon Mountain, Dong One had
been able to escape in front of Ning, precisely because he was able to just barely remain conscious.

Primal Daoists were simply a level higher than Wanxiang Adepts in power, after all. Although they
were much stronger, if they wanted to dominate just through using their divine will…against truly
peerless, elite Wanxiang Adepts, it wouldn’t be enough. Wanxiang monsters like this Dragonwhale,
in turn, clearly had extremely powerful Dao-hearts.

“Hahaha, don’t grow too arrogant, just because you were able to receive my divine will technique,”
Ning barked. “Now, receive my sword.”

The 700+ flying swords in the surrounding area instantly began to radiate light. In front of Ning’s
chest, a jade-white sword of light instantly appeared. As though chopping through countless barriers
and moving with incomparable difficulty, it appeared to ‘slowly’ flew up…but this was a
misperception, as in reality, it was ridiculously fast!

The second stance of the [Three-Foot Sword] – Manifold Thistlethorns!

“Hmph!” The Dragonwhale in midair let out a cold snort. Its two extremely long dragon-whiskers
instantly grew even lower, moving to entangle Ning’s attacking sword-light.

The jade-white sword was so beautiful as to move one’s heart. In midair, it slashed out in what could
only be described as a flawless arc, easily avoiding the entangling strikes of those two dragon-
whiskers, chopping directly towards the head of the Dragonwhale.
“What a fast sword…what a frightening sword.” The Dragonwhale was secretly surprised. His
dragon-whiskers were an ‘intrinsic magic treasure’ that were used to constrict and defend against
opponents. They weren’t even able to touch the opponent’s sword-ligiht?

“Bang!”

The Dragonwhale let out an angry roar. The nostrils of his draconic head suddenly emitted two
streams of dire-ice which could be seen with the naked eye. The dire-ice instantly swept towards
Ning’s ray of sword-light.

The sword-light moved like a ghost. In midair, it once more moved in an enormous, solitary arc,
managing to evade the dire-ice and then plunge directly towards the Dragonwhale’s giant head.

“Slash!” It was simply too fast. The Dragonwhale wasn’t able to dodge in time; the sword-light
plunged directly into its head.

This sword attack was filled with early-stage Wanxiang energy, formed by the ninth level of the
[Lesser Thousand Swords Formation], and executed in accordance with Ning’s most powerful sword
art…the power of it was unimaginable! Crackle crackle crackle!!! It pierced through one layer of
armor after another, but the massive body of the Dragonwhale was simply too dominatingly vast. Its
entire body was akin to a magic treasure. After chopping through to a depth of thirty meters, the light
of the jade-white sword finally vanished.

“The hell?” Ning cursed to himself. “Its carapace is actually this thick?” It must be understood that
the body of the Dragonwhale was ten thousand meters long, and the draconic head was many
hundreds of meters long as well. Stab in a mere thirty meters? This was nothing more than stabbing
into its skin!

“Puny human, even if I stood here and permitted you to strike at me, you still wouldn’t be able to
harm me. That sword-light of yours…that’s just tickling me.” The Dragonwhale instantly began to
laugh wildly, and its laughter echoed within a hundred kilometers.

Ning was finally understanding exactly how difficult it was to deal against a peak Wanxiang
Godbeast with a divine ability. Its body alone was so powerful…no wonder it was able to survive,
even when facing a Primal Daoist.

“Just tickling?” The nearby Northson’s face had changed as well. “Senior apprentice-brother’s
[Soulshaker Art] was useless, and even his sword-formation was only able to tickle it. This Wanxiang
monster really is terrifying.”
“Kid of the Ji clan. If you aren’t able to beat him, we need to immediately flee. If too much time
passes, we won’t be able to escape,” the azure-robed maiden sent frantically.

“Senior apprentice-brother, should we flee?” Northson sent a mental message to Ning as well.

Ning gave the two each a glance, confidence in his eyes. He said in a clear voice, “Dragonwhale, I
was just playing around with you just now.”

“Playing around?” The Dragonwhale’s massive, lake-sized eyes stared downwards. “If you have
anything else, show me what you have. Otherwise, you’ll never have the chance to do so ever
again.”

“Such ignorance. You are a frog seated in a well, staring at the skies.” Two Darknorth swords
appeared in Ning’s hands.

“Oh?” The Dragonwhale stared downwards at the longsword-wielding human youth, as though
seeing something that was completely inconceivable. “You…can it be that you are actually dreaming
of fighting me in close combat? Hahaha, are you sure you haven’t made a mistake? Human kid, if
you immediately flee, then due to your divine will technique, I’m not confident in being able to catch
you. But if you move close to me and battle me, you really will be throwing your life away.”

As a monster with a mighty Fiendgod-like body, the Dragonwhale was naturally the most skilled at
close combat.

“Kid of the Ji clan, this is a peak Wanxiang monster with a Fiendgod-like body, and with a divine
ability. And it is a Dragonwhale!” The azure-robed maiden was shocked.

At this moment, Ning leapt forward, soaring into the skies and transforming into a streak of light,
instantly moving thousands of meters and charging towards the Dragonwhale above him. While
charging towards the skies, Ning’s eyes were filled with coldness. He wielded two of the Darknorth
Swords, and while flying in midair, his body became covered with crimson light. His body was quickly
increasing in size; he actually transformed into a ten meter tall giant. This was a ‘magnified’ Ji Ning!

“A Fiendgod body! Heavenly Transformation?” The azure-robed maiden called out in shock, then
hurriedly sent a mental message to Northson, whose face was similarly filled with concern. “This kid
from the Ji clan is going to fight head on against the Dragonwhale…does he have a chance?”

“I don’t know.” Northson stared fixedly towards the skies. He sent back, “However, I heard that in the
past, before joining the Black-White College, my senior apprentice-brother was able to rely on his
close combat skills to become famous. I hear that he is most skilled in close combat and is very
formidable…but I’ve never seen him truly fight in close combat.”

“He is most skilled in close combat?” The azure-robed maiden no longer asked any further
questions, because the battle occurring in the skies was making her incomparably nervous.

…….

When Ning soared into the heavens, as he was executing the Heavenly Transformation technique,
the two dragon-whiskers of the Dragonwhale in the sky once more swooped towards him, trying to
entangle him. In addition, the Dragonwhale once more let out an angered snort. Rumble…two
streaks of dire-ice belched forth from its nostrils, spreading out and freezing the air itself as it swept
towards Ning.

The sword-light was able to dodge, but although Ning had the Windwing Evasion technique, he
couldn’t possibly compete with sword-light in terms of speed.

He couldn’t dodge? Then…he would chop it apart!

“BREAK!” Ning violently swung the Darknorth Swords in his hands, executing the second stance of
the [Three-Foot Sword], the ‘Manifold Thistlethorns’. Where his swords flashed past, the layers of
dire-ice were all chopped apart, and even the dragon-whiskers that sought to entangle him were split
apart and sent flying. Ning’s speed dropped as a result, but he had already reached the head of the
Dragonwhale.

“Die.” The Dragonwhale’s massive body suddenly twisted, and its massive tail swept towards Ning in
a whipping motion, covering the earth and blocking out the skies as it did so.

But Ning leapt directly atop the Dragonwhale’s massive tail, utilizing his Windwing Evasion technique
to charge directly towards the Dragonwhale’s head. The divine ability, ‘Heavenly Transformation’,
was something which allowed Ning’s speed to increase dramatically to begin with. Now, with the
Windwing Evasion supporting him as well, Ning was astonishingly agile and quick.

Still…this Dragonwhale’s massive, monster body was still ten thousand meters long. It was quite
accustomed to enemies climbing atop its body in a battle, and it actually didn’t care about it, because
it had its methods for dealing with this. In addition, generally speaking, most of its enemies weren’t
even able to break through its first carapace layer.
In an instant, Ning had moved from the tail of the Dragonwhale to its draconic head. “Kill!” Ning’s
eyes exploded with an incomparably savage intent for battle. After three years, he was finally going
to once more unleash his most powerful divine technique, one of the top ten most terrifying divine
techniques which had existed ever since Pangu had established the universe…the [Starseizing
Hand]! In this instant, Ning felt his blood was boiling, was bellowing!

It had been so long. Too long! He hadn’t met an opponent who could truly make him battle wildly in
far too long. Even when he had been very weak, he had still been able to kill Adept Xu Li in a single
exchange with the [Starseizing Hand]. He had never before used the [Starseizing Hand] to engage in
a truly heart-pumping battle.

“COME, THEN!” Ning’s aura was as magnificent as a dragon’s.

“Not good.” The Dragonwhale suddenly felt as though the aura of this ‘ant-like’ human on its body
had suddenly exploded and become incomparably terrifying. It even felt a sense of tremendous
danger, the likes of which it usually only felt when facing Primal Daoists.

“Go.” A thick dire-ice aura suddenly emanated from the body of the Dragonwhale, and the vast
amounts of dire-ice frantically tried to freeze Ning.

BANG!

Ning’s twin swords instantly transformed into two sword-rivers. In an invincible, irresistible manner, it
blasted past the blocking dire-ice as though the dire-ice was nothing more than rotting wood, and
then, with a crackle, charged directly into the body of the Dragonwhale.

In the face of Ji Ning’s sword light, that incomparably tough body of the Dragonwhale, comparable to
a magic treasure…finally began to crack.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 25 –A Suggestion

“How did he become this powerful? My Fiendgod body isn’t able stop his attack at all?!” The
Dragonwhale could feel the ant-like man easily burrowing through his head. The Dragonwhale
instantly panicked. “Force him out!”
Ning had instantly burrowed more than three hundred meters deep into the draconic head of the
Dragonwhale. Right at this moment, a flood of watery green light suddenly surged towards him from
every direction.

“Divine power!” Ning instantly understood; this was the divine power of the Dragonwhale. Divine
power was stored in every single part of a Fiendgod’s body. At this moment, with but a thought, the
Dragonwhale had sent the tremendous amount of divine power that resided in its head in a flood
towards Ning. It was simply too ferocious! Endless amounts of divine power surged out, causing
even Ning to shrink back.

“It actually has this much divine power?!” Suddenly, Ning understood that his chances of actually
killing this Dragonwhale probably weren’t very high. This was because the amount of divine power
contained within this massive body was unfathomably greater than his own. To kill such an
enormous creature…one had to have power that was far greater than it, as otherwise, one would
only be able to harm it.

“Break!” Ning, after executing the [Starseizing Hand], was incomparably valiant. He burst through the
flood-like waters of divine power, charging straight towards the weak spots of the Dragonwhale’s
head.

Rumble…

Wherever Ning moved, those two streaks of sword-light accompanied him, wildly hacking and
chopping away throughout the insides of the Dragonwhale’s head.

The head was the most central, core part of the body. If an ordinary Xiantian Fiendgod’s head was
severely damaged, it would immediately perish. Upon reaching the Blood-Drop Rebirth level (the
Zifu level), although they wouldn’t die…they would lose control over their bodies, and would only feel
an innate instinct to reform and repair their bodies. After reaching the Wanxiang level, Fiendgods
could rely on their control over their bodies to easily change their appearances and shape, but upon
the head being damaged, they would still find their control over their bodies being dramatically
weakened, albeit they wouldn’t lose complete control. They would only be barely capable of a few
simple techniques. After reaching the Primal level, however…they could even separate off a part of
their flesh to create a clone!

Fiendgods at the Zifu level were capable of Blood-Drop Rebirth. At the Wanxiang level, they were
capable of changing their appearances and form. At the Primal level, they were capable of creating
clones.

……
For powerful Fiendgods, pulling out a hair and forming a clone with it was simplicity itself. 1

To Primal-level Fiendgods, the head was no longer important or special at all. At the Wanxiang level,
however…the head was still important. At this level, the divine soul primarily resided within the sea
of consciousness; once the head was damaged, the divine soul’s control over the body would
naturally be greatly lowered.

“Rumble…” As Ning’s sword-light pierced through the vital points of the head, the entire
Dragonwhale’s body began to tremble in mid-air, and then it began to fall towards the ground. While
falling, the entire, massive body of the Dragonhead was twisting and twitching.

Northson and the azure-robed maiden watched this below, incomparably nervous. The azure-robed
maiden, seeing this, sent mentally to Northson in disbelieving joy, “Can it be that he’s won? Your
senior apprentice-brother really is so formidable that he can even defeat the Dragonwhale?”

“Seems so.” Northson was watching as well.

“However, this Dragonwhale is a Fiendgod. He won’t be destroyed so easily.” The azure-robed

woman continued to watch, nervous.

……

Within the Dragonwhale’s head. Ning had slashed through multiple vital points; instantly, the
resistance ability of the entire Dragonwhale began to drop dramatically. Ning understood that his
opponent’s control over it’s body had already become extremely weak.

“Excellent.” Ning’s eyes flashed. “Waterflame Lotus.” Instantly, one enormous Waterflame Lotus
after another began to bloom in the surrounding area, beginning to grind and strike at the
Dragonwhale’s body. These Waterflame Lotuses were all many tens of meters long, and appeared
at the chest of the Dragonwhale, beginning to grind away wildly at parts of its body.

But…

Grind, grind, grind. It wasn’t able to grind through! “Eh?!” Ning stared. They weren’t able to grind
through? “Smaller, smaller, smaller.” Ning willed the Waterflame Lotuses to instantly shrink in size,
and their power continuously increased as they did so. Six Waterflame Lotuses, each of them thirty
meters in diameter, once more began to grind against the Dragonwhale’s body.
“What a freak.” Ning was truly stunned. “The power of my Waterflame Lotuses is now incomparably
greater than in the past, but when their power is dispersed too widely, they aren’t able to grind down
its body at all. Its flesh and its muscles are simply too tough!”

At a diameter of thirty meters, Ning was able to keep the Waterflame Lotuses at the peak of their
power. Clearly, only when the Waterflame Lotuses were at maximum power would they be able to
grind and damage this creature.

However…they were only able to grind a little bit of flesh away. How long would it take to grind away
a ten thousand meter body? Most likely, the speed of the grinding wouldn’t even be able to match up
to the rate at which the divine power of the Dragonwhale would naturally regenerate.

“BOOM!” The head of the Dragonwhale suddenly exploded, and Ning was thrown aside as well.

“What a fellow. He actually discarded his head.” As Ning was sent flying back by the explosion, he
felt stunned by the Dragonwhale’s decisiveness. Although the Dragonwhale’s control over its body
was very weak, it was still capable of a few simple techniques. A self-detonation of its head was
simplicity itself.

The head had completely detonated, and the massive body of the Dragonwhale was sent flying as
well. In the process, the head of the Dragonwhale once more grew out.

The Dragonwhale released a furious howl. “RAAAAAAWR!” Accompanying this heaven-shaking roar
was its massive, sky-covering tail, which swung directly towards Ning. It was too fast! In addition,
this massive, fan-shaped tail, in terms of width, was nearly three thousand meters. Ning was in
midair, unable to borrow strength from anything else and not as nimble as he was on the ground. For
a moment, he was completely unable to dodge.

If he couldn’t dodge…then he wouldn’t!

“You shall…BREAK!” Ning’s twin Darknorth Swords transformed into two rivers of sword-energy. He
let out an explosive roar, chopping directly towards the massive tail sweeping towards him.

The massive tail was like a giant fan, blocking out the entire sky. The two streaks of sword-light,
however, were like arrows that were going to pierce through the firmament. The two collided!

BANG!!!
It was as though the heavens had shattered and the earth had collapsed. The air itself seemed to
blow apart. Fresh, scarlet blood instantly spewed out, seeming to dye the skies themselves red. Ning
was knocked downwards like a meteor, smashing into the wilderness below. The desolate land, with
a massive thudding sound, instantly shattered apart, with massive, deep crevices appearing in a
turtle-shell pattern. As for Ning himself, he was knocked deep underground.

“Human.” The massive tail of the midair Dragonwhale now had an astonishing wound in it. The
massive wound, many hundreds of meters deep, had nearly split the tail in half. This wound was
currently healing at high speed.

It stared downwards, clearly sensing that the aura of this human, deep underground, was still as
powerful and as wild as ever. It didn’t seem to have weakened at all. The Dragonwhale now
understood…the enemy was also a Fiendgod Body Refiner. A single blow would at most be able to
wound the foe, but the foe could also heal perfectly at high speed.

“I didn’t expect that you are even more powerful as a Fiendgod Body Refiner than as a Ki Refiner.
You truly hide your power well.” The Dragonwhale’s voice rumbled forth, and then it transformed into
a streak of light, flying far away at high speed. As it left, its formation flags also flew into the air,
soaring towards it.

Swoosh! Ning leapt out from the underground crevice, landing on the surface of the ground once
more. “He’s gone?” Ning continued to hold the Darknorth Swords in his hands, staring towards the
distant, departing Dragonwhale.

“Senior apprentice-brother, you actually beat the Dragonwhale monster into a retreat?” Northson
was quite excited. The nearby azure-robed maiden, in turn, was completely stupefied. She stared at
the Dragonwhale, which disappeared into the distance, then towards that young, seemingly fragile
youth, who looked just like he had in the past.

“You…you beat the Dragonwhale into retreating? Is it possible that you actually have a younger twin
brother?”

Ning laughed, then replied back, “What’s going on in that mind of yours?”

“How can you be so powerful? I had countless lucky encounters, you know.” The azure-robed
maiden stared at Ning blankly. “That was the Dragonwhale…I heard that it was even able to stay
alive when facing Primal Daoists. It was extremely powerful.”
“It is indeed strong,” Ning said. “In particular, its body is so massive that the amount of divine power
within it has reached an inconceivable level. To kill it? I don’t have that ability at all. Even Primal
Daoists…I imagine that only Primal Daoists that were capable of completely dominating it would be
able to kill it. Otherwise…ordinary Primal Daoists wouldn’t be able to do anything to it.”

Much like how Wanxiang Adepts could have differing levels of power, the same was true for Primal
Daoists. Primal Daoists of the Black-White College, for example, had all comprehended a complete
Dao Path before entering the Primal level! Or, for example, Northmont Blacktiger; who was a
candidate to be the next Marquis of Stillwater; he gave Ning a sense of incomparably great danger.
These could all be considered exceptional figures amongst Primal Daoists.

“If you aren’t able to do anything to it, why did it flee?” The azure-robed maiden asked. “Because
he’s not able to do anything to me either,” Ning laughed. “In addition, after I slashed through the vital
points in his head, his control over his body weakened dramatically…any Fiendgod who tasted that
once would never want to taste it a second time.”

The divine soul could clearly sense the body, but because of the damage to the head, its control
over the body was incomparably weak. This sort of feeling was an absolute nightmare.

“In addition, each time we exchanged blows, it came out the worse. Most likely, it felt nervousness in
its heart and was afraid that I had something else up my sleeve,” Ning said. “And so…it naturally
decided to hurry up and flee.”

“Oh.” The azure-robed maiden nodded. At the same time, she couldn’t help but feel admiration for
Ning. Her eyes flashed as she stared towards Ning; he was too powerful. When he had fough
against her, he had merely been at the Houtian level. But now, he was actually as powerful as this;
even the Dragonwhale who she thought was invincible had been beaten off by him. The other ten-
plus Wanxiang monsters had been killed as easily as chickens.

“Actually, if we kept on fighting, I would’ve left if he didn’t,” Ning said with a sigh. Although by relying
on the [Starseizing Hand], he could unleash shockingly great power, this divine ability…it used up far
too much divine power. Its power vastly surpassed divine abilities like ‘Heavenly Transformation’,
and by multiple levels, at that! This was why Ning could explode with such strength, but the amount
of divine power it consumed was also incomparably astonishing. Ning was unable to fight for long
periods of time with it.

“Senior apprentice-brother, enough of that,” Northson smirked. “I can’t stand to hear you keep talking
with such modesty. Just now, it was a peak Wanxiang-level Fiendgod cultivator, and a Dragonwhale
Godbeast with a divine ability at that.”
Ning blinked.

“Hey, kid of the Ji clan!” The azure-robed maiden suddenly called out to him. “Eh?” Ning turned to
look. “Little snakey-snake, what is it?”

“Do you have any spirit-beasts by your side? How about I join you?” The azure-robed maiden came
up with this suggestion. “I’m an Azure Skysnake; we grow extremely quickly, and I’m skilled in
discovering precious treasure troves…when you want to teleport, you have to use Lesser
Teleportation Dao-seals, but for me, it is as simple as breathing. In addition, when I’m at a higher
level of comprehension in the future, those large, spacelock formations will be unable to affect me.”

Ning blinked.

“Uh, actually, I already have a spirit-beast.”

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 26 – Dire-Ice, Earthfire

“You have a spirit-beast? Who? Why haven’t I seen it?” The azure-robed maiden looked about, but
she began to feel a vague anger in her heart. She was a Wanxiang monster, but because she had
been wandering the world by herself for so long, she was truly beginning to grow tired. This was why
she had decided to establish a home for herself, here at Mount Demonlotus..

Earlier, she had suffered the pursuit and attack of the forces of the Dragonwhale. Ji Ning’s sudden
appearance, and also the relationship which existed between them in the past, caused her to desire
to journey through the world alongside Ning.

Unexpectedly, this kid of the Ji clan wasn’t willing to accept her good will!

“It’s my Uncle White,” Ning explained. “Uncle White previously followed my father. After my father
died, he followed me. The reason why he didn’t come was because I am undergoing the Raindragon
Guard trials, and I am not permitted to bring spirit-beasts to the wild marshes of the Gaol
Mountains.”

“Oh.” The azure-robed maiden nodded, but she didn’t say anything else. Ning revealed a smile.
“However, although I already have a spirit-beast, since you desire so badly to accompany me, I
suppose I can force myself to accept you.”
“The hell do you mean, ‘force yourself to accept me’?!” The azure-robed maiden stared at him,
furious.

“Alright, let’s leave this place first.” Ning stared at the cracked, shattered wilderness about them.
“The ripples from the earlier battle might have attracted the attention of some other monsters.” Mu
Northson and Qingqing both nodded.

A dragon-headed warship appeared out of nowhere. The three of them all stepped aboard the
warship.

At their level of power, they were actually able to fly through the air by themselves. However, that
speed of flight was vastly inferior to riding on a magic treasure…and in turn, riding on a magic
treasure wasn’t as comfortable as riding on a construct-warship.

…..

Swoosh! The dragon-headed warship soared forward through the clouds, while Ning used a spirit-
beast talisman. Maiden Qingqing, in turn, was willing to become his spirit-beast.

Aboard the warship, Ning stared at this azure-robed maiden. “I’ll call you Little Qing.” “Fine.” The
azure-robed woman nodded. “From today onwards, my name shall be Ji Qingqing. What do you
say?”

Ning was stunned. The nearby Northson jested, “When I lived in the tribes in my youth, when women
without clan surnames married a man, they would generally take the names of the men they
married.”

“Ji Ning, this junior apprentice-brother of yours is actually so very naughty! I’m even older than your
grandmother!” Qingqing stared.

Ning laughed as well. “Fine, fine. You shall be Ji Qingqing. From today onwards, you shall follow
me…and if the day comes when you no longer wish to follow me, just let me know, and I will restore
you to freedom.”

Thanks to the influence of his father, Ji Yichuan, Ning treated his spirit-beasts as he might his other
brothers or sisters. He couldn’t force his spirit-beasts to their deaths, or treat them as his slaves.
“Since you saved my life, in the future, I’ll definitely follow you.” Qingqing pursed her lips. “In
addition, since you have grown in power even more quickly than I have…I want to see what will
happen to you in the future.”

“Little Qing. What exactly happened to you in the past, after you left Eastmount Marsh? Why did you
end up here?” Ning asked. The nearby Northson perked his ears up to listen as well.

Qingqing said, “That year, when I comprehended the Void Blink technique, I escaped Ironwood
Zhan. I soon left Swallow Mountain and began to roam the world. By relying on this innate ability,
‘Void Blink’, I discovered quite a few marvelous fruits and holy elixirs, and quickly grew to the Zifu
level. Afterwards, I headed towards the famous Whitedragon Mountain.”

“Whitedragon Mountain?” Ning was stunned. “Are you referring to the monster Immortal,
Whitedragon?”

Amongst humans of this region, aside from the two most powerful forces of the Raindragon Guard
and the Northmont clan of Stillwater, the next most powerful forces were the Black-White College,
the Skysplitter Sword Sect, the Hundred Flowers Fairyland, the Eastriver clan, the Dragonhunter
clan, the Bluewood clan, the Heavenly Saint Church, and the Blood God Church, these eight
supreme powers.

That, however, was just amongst humans.

The monsters had their own great powers, such as monster Immortals. Immortal Whitedragon was
one of the extremely famous monster Immortals. This Immortal Whitedragon’s true form was that of
a female dragon, but she possessed heaven-defying power. She was willing to teach anyone who
wished to learn; so long as one went to her, she would almost never refuse them. However, she was
still capable of training some truly formidable monster cultivators, and had even produced Earth
Immortals and Loose Immortals.

“At Whitedragon Mountain, I was highly valued, and was bestowed with quite a few techniques,”
Qingqing said. “After spending a few years training at Whitedragon Mountain, I reached the peak
Zifu level, and the school instructed me to go out adventuring. They said that Azure Skysnakes
would only be able to grow fast when constantly journeying and adventuring. The school instructed
me to come to the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains, and I’ve spent three years here and broken
through from the peak Zifu level to the middle Wanxiang level.”

Ning immediately asked, “What level is your Manifestation at?”

Qingqing said confidently, “I was highly valued by the school. Naturally, my Manifestation is that of
the bright moon shining in the sky.” Ning and Northson exchanged a glance, both rather speechless.

Three years…Ning and Northson knew exactly how much elemental ki was needed to advance from
the peak Zifu level to the middle Wanxiang level. Ning had spent over a thousand kilograms of
liquefied elemental essence to reach the early Wanxiang level.

“How many fortunate events happened to you here at the wild marshes of Gaol Mountains?” Ning
asked.” “Seven, I suppose.” Qingqing spoke casually, but then her eyes lit up. “Oh, right. I’ve used
up everything that can be eaten or drunk. However, there are two places that will be very useful to
you two.”

“Which two places?” Ning and Northson instantly grew eager. A fortunate event? Aside from him
barely surviving the test of the underwater estate, Ning really hadn’t had any fortunate events
happen to him.

“I discovered a vein of dire-ice, and a vein of earthfire,” Qingqing said. “A vein of dire-ice? And
earthfire?” Northson and Ning’s eyes began to blaze with excitement. In unison, they spoke out,
“Where is it?”

Why was dire-ice called dire-ice? Why was earthfire called earthfire? After Pangu established the
universe, the natural world had given birth to many times of natural, elemental energy, such as
water, fire, lightning, light, etc.

For example, Ning’s Fiendgod body was formed from a wisp of the Lunar Truewater and Solar
Truefire that had been sent down by the two most exalted of heavenly bodies, the Lunar Star and
the Solar Star. That wisp of Lunar Truewater and Solar Truefire…if one was capable of controlling
them in battle, then even an Earth Immortal who was brushed by them would most likely perish.

This was because these types of power came from the energy of the most exalted of stellar bodies.
This was why, when one broke through to become a Xiantian lifeform, even Immortals were unable
to disrupt it.

Fire, from low to high, could be ranked as human fire, earthfire, skyfire, and truefire. Human fire was
the mortal fire which naturally occurred in the world, the most ordinary of fires. As for earthfire…

This was an extremely unique sort of fire which was created by the earth itself. Theoretically
speaking, Zifu Disciples should be capable of absorbing a wisp of earthfire into their Zifu and
nourishing it, but this was extremely dangerous. Generally speaking, only one at the Wanxiang level
would go absorb earthfire and nourish it in their Zifu.

Earthfire was divided into nine grades. One could start with earthfire of the ninth grade, then nourish
it until it reached the first grade! The ninth, eighth, and seventh grades were the low-grades; the
sixth, fifth, and fourth grades were middle-grades; the third, second, and first grades were high-
grades!

Earthfire of the first grade…this represented earthfire taken to its limits. Actually, as long as one
reached the third grade…then one would be able to go absorb a wisp of skyfire and allow the
earthfire in one’s body advance to the ‘skyfire’ level.

…..

The same was true for water as was true for fire. Water was also divided into human water,
earthwater, skywater, and truewater. Human water, as went without saying, was the most ordinary,
commonly seen type of water. Earthwater was what the so-called ‘dire-ice’ was.

Cultivating earthfire and earthwater was the same process. It required one to first find a place which
naturally had a vein of earthfire or earthwater! After absorbing enough of the earthfire or earthwater
into one’s body, if the ‘planting’ processs was a success, there would be seeds of fire or water which
could then be nourished into earthfire or earthwater. If one wasn’ able to find those veins of earthfire
or dire-ice…then there was nothing that could be done. This was a sort of natural, precious treasure;
one could hope to encounter it, but not expect to.

“It’s right here in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains. The vein of dire-ice is a bit closer, while
the vein of earthfire is a bit farther away,” Qingqing said.

“Qingqing. You are absolutely amazing.” Northson was incomparably excited, and he also felt awe.
“We weren’t able to find even one of them, but you easily found two.”

“Heh heh. Those places that you normally won’t visit? I’ll often use my Void Blink to enter and
carefully investigate them. After having investigated many places, I naturally discovered these two,”
Qingqing said smugly. “Given how rarely humans go there, after a great deal of time passes, some
precious treasures will naturally be born.”

Ning hurriedly asked, “What sort of dire-ice is that dire-ice? What sort of earthfire is that earthfire?”
Dire-ice and earthfire were both just terms. There were a hundred types of earthfire, such as
moonflame earthfire, azurethunder earthfire, and what not. Even skyfire was divided into many
different types, and the awe-inspiring truefire which caused even Immortals to tremble in fear was
divided in several types as well.

“While I was at Whitedragon Mountain, I procured a book, ‘Records of the World’s Treasures’. They
had records of various spirit-fruits, spirit-grasses, and other things. There was no record regarding
these types of earthfire and dire-ice. When you go, you’ll know.” Qingqing added hurriedly, “As for
the dire-ice…I imagine that it can be used anywhere from three to five more times. As for the
earthfire, that’s harder to say; perhaps it can only be used one or two more times.”

Absorbing earthfire into the body was a form of harvesting; a single vein of earthfire or dire-ice
couldn’t be harvested indefinitely. After being harvested enough times, it would be used up.

“I’m more aligned towards water and wood. I choose the dire-ice,” Northson said. “I train in the
[Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens],” Ning laughed. “My body was born from Lunar
Truewater and Solar Truefire. Dire-ice, earthfire…I need to harvest each once.”

“Good. Let’s hurry out.” Qingqing stood by the side of the boat, staring downwards, then pointed
towards the north. “Move towards there.”

“Alright,” Northson replied. The dragon-headed warship immediately began to move towards the
direction where Qingqing was pointing.

Ning was quite excited. His divine tattoos were what allowed him to control fire and water. If he were
to then nourish earthfire and dire-ice in his body, when he combined them together, at very least, the
power of his Waterflame Lotus would increase dramatically. In addition, he had many other ways he
could use them. When earthfire and dire-ice were strengthened to a sufficient level, they were
definitely not inferior to any divine ability.

……..

Just as Ning’s group was headed towards the vein of dire-ice. Within a distant, short, desolate
mountain.

“Whew.” A golden-robed Dong One slowly opened his eyes. “Finally, I’m safe.”

“I joined forces with those other five in Northriver Zhou’s group, but in the end, we lost everything. I
was fortunate in that six years ago, I acquired a protective magic treasure thanks to that fortunate
event, and so was lucky enough to survive and escape. I wonder if the others are alive or dead.”
Dong One thought back quietly. When he recollected that fight, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of
fear, shock, and anger.

He had heard long ago of Ji Ning, and knew that Ning was a monstrous talent, but he didn’t expect
that even six truly elite Wanxiang Adepts would fail so catastrophically. “That divine will technique…I
wonder if it was Ji Ning or Mu Northson who used it.” Till this very moment, Dong One still had no
idea which of the two had used the divine will technique.

“This mountain is an extremely mysterious place; it can be said to be the most mysterious mountain I
have located. I’ve spent so much time healing here, but no one has discovered me.” Dong One
secretly rejoiced at this. “And it seems as though there is an underground river below here.”

Dong One’s body flickered, and he moved through the winding caverns, going deeper and deeper
within. He continued to investigate this underground river. Soon, he felt the temperature rise to an
increasingly high level, and he slowly saw, off in the distance, a wisp of golden fire within the
cracked earth. The fire blazed with scorching heat.

“A vein of earthfire!” Dong One called out in shock

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 27 – Harvesting Dire-Ice

Dong One had been training for hundreds of years now, and had adventured in many places. He
had his own share of fortuitous encounters, and even had the chance to cultivate dire-ice in his
body. Previously, when he had battled Ji Ning, he had put that dire-ice on display.

“This is…” Done One looked carefully towards that wisp of golden fire that was swirling in the crack
in the ground up ahead. This crack was roughly six meters wide, and if one looked down into it…one
would able to barely make out the frothing lava below.

“This earthfire…has some gold mixed into it? And it is both pure and dazzling…” Dong One nodded
slightly as he noted all these things. “Given that it was born atop a river of lava, this earthfire should
be the ‘goldflame earthfire’.”
There were more than a hundred types of earthfire. Some were actually insidiously, bone-piercingly
cold, while others exploded with uncontrollable wildness. As for goldflame earthfire…it was famous
for being ‘scorching’, and was an extremely fine type of earthfire.

“What a pity. I train in freezing-attribute arts.” Dong One shook his head. “In addition, my body is
already nourishing dire-ice, and is completely unsuited for nourishing earthfire as well. Once the
dire-ice and earthfire clash…most likely, I’ll transform into dust.”

It was extremely rare for one to be able to simultaneously nourish both earthfire and dire-ice. Doing
so was extremely difficult, and one had to meet extremely exacting standards in terms of talent and
technique. Ning, however, clearly fulfilled these requirements.

“I can’t use it, but others can.” Dong One had a sudden thought, a natural thought; he could trade
this goldflame earthfire to another Wanxiang Adept. This sort of naturally occurring earthfire vein
was something one could only dream of; naturally, he had to sell it for a high price.

“I’ll leave for now.” With a flash, Dong One quietly slipped away.

……..

The dragon-headed warship was rapidly advancing towards the north through the clouds. Mu
Northson was constantly scanning the ground through the sparse clouds. “Qingqing, are we there
yet?”

Ning sat there to the side, a small azure snake wrapped around his wrist. The little azure snake
suddenly raised its head, staring downwards, then spoke out in the human tongue. “Not yet. I’ll tell
you when we get there. We’ll definitely arrive today, so stop worrying.”

“That’s dire-ice! How can I not be impatient?” Northson mumbled, “If we’re too slow, someone else
might end up seizing it.”

“If that really happens, you’ll just have to consider yourself unlucky.” After saying a few things, the
little azure snake once more wrapped itself around Ning’s arm, leisurely closing its eyes and falling
asleep.

Perhaps because she knew Ning from in the past…

Perhaps because they were from the same homeland…

Perhaps because Ning saved her life…

But for some reason, she very much liked to snuggle up to Ning. She felt quite comfortable when
doing so.

“Senior apprentice-brother, she’s not even looking outside. Is it possible that we might’ve flown past
without her even knowing about it?” Northson said, worried. “Well, we’ll just fly back if that’s the
case,” Ning said with a smirk.

“Right. I wonder what sort of dire-ice it is,” Northson mumbled. “I’ve never had a stroke of luck like
this before.” And in truth, Ning was very curious as well. What sort of dire-ice was this? Was it
suitable for him? His divine body was formed from Lunar Truewater and Solar Truefire; thus, this
dire-ice would hopefully, ideally be able to connect with Lunar Truewater. Some types of dire-ice
actually weren’t able to really merge with Lunar Truewater, such as the ‘sinblood dire-ice’. But of
course, aside from those extremely rare cases, the vast majority would be suitable for him.

“Eh?” The little azure snake suddenly transformed into a mist, then reformed into human shape.
“Almost there.” Qingqing stood at the ship’s rails, staring downward. “Hey, Woody, hurry up and
change directions. Curve towards the east a bit.”

“My Daoist title is Twinwood, not Woody.” Northson gave her a glare. “Not even my senior
apprentice-brother addresses me as ‘Woody’.”

Qingqing stared back at him. “So what if I call you Woody? Ji Ning is my master, but you aren’t…
you’ve gotten such a great benefit from me in the form of dire-ice, and you are going to get upset at
me just because I call you ‘Woody’?”

Northson said, resigned, “Fine, call away.”

Ning had to laugh. This junior apprentice-brother of his really was easy to pick on; even Qingqing
was able to effortless pick on him.

“Uh, we’re there.” Qingqing pointed downwards. “It’s that giant lake, down there.”

……

The dragon-headed warship quickly shrank in size, and as it did so, the surface of the warship
quickly changed to become one with the color of the sky as well, so as to avoid attracting attention.
Soon, the warship arrived in the air above this vast lake. And then, after storing the warship away,
Ning, Northson, and Qingqing moved to stand atop the lake’s surface.

“Where is it?” Northson looked around. “This lake is thousands of kilometers wide.” “At the bottom,”
Qingqing quietly sent mentally to them. “I have an innate affinity for water, and I entered this lake
and accidentally discovered that a secret, hidden area at the bottom. Don’t worry…there are quite a
few dangerous zones in the bottom of this lake, so there are few monsters present, and no
Wanxiang monsters. Follow me and don’t worry.”

“Let’s go, into the water.” Qingqing led the way, immediately entering the water. The elemental ki
surrounding their body kept the water away, allowing them to effortlessly dive deeper.

“It really is deep,” Northson sent mentally. Ning nodded as well. “It’s many kilometers deep.” They
were now able to see the bottom of the lake. At this depth, despite their visual acuity, even they
could just barely make out the sights around here. Although they occasionally encountered some
lesser monsters, the powerful aura which Qingqing intentionally spread out instantly terrified them
into staying far away.

Qingqing pointed towards a dark abyss below. “Follow that underwater gorge and keep going down!”

…….

After entering the underwater gorge, the temperature of the water began to fall more and more, and
pieces of ice began to appear around them. And then, at the very bottom of this lake gorge, an
extremely thick layer of sturdy ice appeared. Ning, Northson, and Qingqing came to a halt, standing
atop this layer of sturdy ice.

“Previously, I relied on the ‘Void Blink’ technique to pass through this wall of ice to go play around,”
Qingqing sent mentally. “Roughly three thousand meters beneath this layer of ice, there’s a hidden
dire-ice vein. Without me guiding you, you wouldn’t have been able to find this place at all, just
barging around randomly.”

“Three thousand meters?” With but a thought, Ning sent his divine sense sweeping downwards.
Deep within this incomparably enormous piece of ice, there was indeed a vein of dire-ice; just a
single one.

“Let’s move.”
To be cautious, Ning and Northson both used agility techniques to charge forward by three hundred
meters each time. As they charged forcefully in, they effortlessly smashed a tunnel through the ice.
Although this ice was as tough as a rock, to a Wanxiang Adept…it was naturally easily parted. The
coldness of the ice, in turn, was nothing to them at all.

Moments later…Ning’s group arrived at the location of the dire-ice vein. “This is…?” Ning and
Northson both stared at the vein of dire-ice. This vein of dire-ice was completely formed from various
pieces of dire-ice. It was tens of meters long, and the pieces of dire-ice even had human-shaped
elemental spirits playing around in them, causing the dire-ice to be filled with something akin to
sentience.

“Snowspirit dire-ice?” Ning revealed a look of delight. “It really is snowspirit dire-ice!” Northson was
overjoyed as well. As for the nearby Qingqing, she immediately asked, “Well, how is this dire-ice? I
swallowed a piece of it as well and am cultivating it inside my body.”

“This is known as snowspirit dire-ice,” Ning said. After having spent three years at the Black-White
College, he naturally knew far more now than he had in the past. “Even amongst dire-ice, this is a
top-grade type; it is innately filled with sentience. You should know that dire-ice can be divided into
nine grades, right?”

“Yes, I know, I know.” Qingqing nodded. “I know this much. I hear that if one absorbs in a first grade
piece of dire-ice, one will possess incomparably astonishing power.”

“Right. But some types of dire-ice are almost impossible to nourish to the first grade,” Ning said.
“Dire-ice is divided into nine grades; the ninth, eight, and seventh are the ‘low-grades’, the sixth, fifth,
and fourth are the ‘middle-grades’, while the third, second, and first are the ‘high-grades’. Generally
speaking, it’s quite impressive for dire-ice to be nurtured to the third grade; dire-ice of the second
grade is extremely rare, and the first grade is even less common.”

“Snowspirit dire-ice is extremely fine dire-ice, with tremendous potential. It can be nourished to the
first grade,” Ning said.

“Looks like my luck isn’t bad,” Qingqing called out in delight. The nearby Northson said, “And it looks
as though quite a few people can use this vein of dire-ice. Let’s immediately begin the harvesting.”

“Qingqing, I’ll leave the protecting to you.” Ning waved his hand, producing six formation flags. “This
is a bewildering formation that is extremely strong. Unless one is skilled in formations, there is no
chance of being able to break through. While my junior apprentice-brother and I are implanting the
dire-ice into our bodies, help us stand watch. This process is extremely dangerous, and we cannot
stop it midway. You must be very vigilant..”
“Alright,” Qingqing nodded. “Don’t worry, Master.” Of course she understood. Dire-ice was,
intrinsically, an extremely damaging, harmful thing; otherwise, Immortal cultivators wouldn’t value it
so much. This sort of natural dire-ice was even more savage. During the implanting process, one
had to absorb the dire-ice into the Zifu of one’s own body; if one was interrupted midway, the dire-ice
might rupture within the Zifu, and could even damage it. It was even possible that this might result in
death.

Ning possessed the body of a Fiendgod, so he wouldn’t actually die, but he still was worried about
his Zifu being damaged.

……

Deep within the freezing gorge at the bottom of the lake. Ning’s group had quickly dug out a room of
freezing ice, which became merged with this vein of dire-ice. Outside, the bewildering formation had
been set, with Qingqing managing it!

As for Ning and Northson, they sat down in the lotus position atop the ice, facing the vein of dire-ice.
“Junior apprentice-brother, you must be careful,” Ning warned solemnly. Harvesting dire-ice…at
most, Ning might damage his Zifu and would need to spend several years healing. His junior
apprentice-brother, however…if things went badly, he might die.

Ning had already come to a decision that if something truly amiss happened during this process…
even if he had to injure himself and halt his implanting process to protect his junior apprentice-
brother, he would do so.

“Don’t worry,” Northson laughed. “The Dao of Constructs is a Dao of using countless strange
materials to begin with. Harvesting dire-ice…as long as I’m careful about it, it’ll be simplicity itself.”

Ning laughed. Then, he turned his head to look towards his piece of dire-ice, filled with sentience. He
immediately opened his mouth lightly, and began to absorb! A pincer of elemental ki surged out, and
a wisp of the dire-ice in front of him began to be absorbed into Ning’s body.

“So cold.” As soon as the dire-ice entered his body, he instantly felt his entire body grow cold. As a
Fiendgod Body Refiner, Ning naturally didn’t mind. However, the nearby Northson was suffering
quite a bit.

Within Ning’s mind began to float the memories of how to use the [Flowing Watersource] technique
to harvest dire-ice, earthfire, direwind, direlight, and other materials.
“Condense!”

Within the skies of the Zifu region, there were thousands of stars, a luminous moon, and a blazing
sun. They simultaneously shone down rays of light. This was all pure Wanxiang elemental ki, and
they quickly formed a small, rather nondescript island atop the boundless sea of elemental energy.

As Ning absorbed that wisp of dire-ice into his body, it departed from the outside world and emerged
here, within the Zifu region. And, as it did…Ning felt his entire Zifu turn cold, almost stabbingly so.
Not hesitating at all, Ning instantly guided that piece of dire-ice to fly towards that small island.

Whoosh!

Like a tree being driven into the ground, the piece of dire-ice was driven straight through this small
island.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 28 – Primal Monster

As Ji Ning and Mu Northson were absorbing wisps of dire-ice from within the glacial ice, trying to
implant it into their Zifu region…

The winds were stirring and the clouds were gathering in the skies above ‘Dragonwhale Peak’, of the
Mount Demonlotus region. A vast amount of elemental ki was gathering here, and in the skies, the
vague manifestation of an enormous turtle with a serpent coiled around it could be seen 1.

“That’s…”

“The Turtle-Snake. The Turtle-Snake!”

The many monsters on Dragonwhale Peak all raised their heads, staring in astonishment at what
had appeared in the skies. The gathering of the elemental ki, the manifestation of the Turtle-Snake…
these monstrous Immortal cultivators naturally all knew what this represented.

“A Primal!”

“A Wanxiang monster, here on Dragonwhale Peak, has broken through to the Primal level.”
“It must be the Primal level.”

All of them were astonished and excited. When Ki Refiners reached the Primal level, regardless of
whether they were Fiendgods, humans, or monsters, the ‘Primal Turtle-Snake’ would appear. The
appearance of the Primal Turtle-Snake would naturally generate a constant flow of ‘primal fire’. The
Primal Turtle-Snake embodied the most supreme of the mysteries of the universe.

“Who broke through to the Primal level? Our Dragonwhale Peak has quite a few Wanxiang
monsters, and several of them are at the peak-stage.”

“I hear that last time, when his Majesty led a group of Wanxiang monsters out, he returned by
himself. I heard that all the other Wanxiang monsters that went with him died.”

“They all died?”

“Right. The Wanxiang monsters of Dragonwhale Peak, including his Majesty, number just two or
three in total. This time, it should be his Majesty who is making the breakthrough.”

……

As the monsters chatted amongst themselves, the most powerful leader of the Mount Demonlotus
region, the Dragonwhale monster, walked out of his closed meditation room.

“Hahaha…hahahaha….” The massive, enormous Dragonwhale laughed with jubilation. His laughter
crashed out in waves like the thunder, shaking the entire Dragonwhale Peak. Upon hearing this
laughter, how could these monsters not understand? Their king had made a breakthrough.

“Congratulations, your Majesty! Felicitations, your Majesty!” The monsters in front of the
Dragonwhale all fell to their knees and called out in unison.

“Congratulations, your Majesty! Felicitations, your Majesty!” The distant monsters began to call this
out as well, and then even more distant monsters…in short, all of the monsters of the entire
Dragonwhale Peak began to cry out, “Congratulations, your Majesty! Felicitations, your Majesty!”

Their voices rumbled through the skies and the clouds.

Primal? Upon reaching the Primal stage, one would be considered a mover and shaker of the entire
Stillwater Commandery region. In addition, given the Dragonwhale’s innate gifts, even though he
had just made a breakthrough, his combat power would still be incomparably astonishing.
“Your Majesty, you have painstakingly trained for so long, but today, you have broken through to
become a Primal. You have gained eternal life, and in the future, not even Immortals can compare to
you.” A sharp-mouthed simian monster was calling out flattery next to him.

Upon becoming a Primal, one’s lifespan did indeed become infinite. However, the increasingly
powerful ‘Three Calamities, Nine Tribulations’ would cause Primal Daoists to eventually die at some
point. Thus, only becoming a Celestial Immortal would one truly gain eternal life.

Still, the flattery was quite pleasing to hear.

“His Majesty’s innate talents are incredible, and he is a Dragonwhale with a Fiendgod’s body…even
Immortals will most likely be unable to do anything to his Majesty,” another nearby monster, a
devilishly alluring one, flattered.

“His Majesty…” One person after another began to flatter him.

The Dragonwhale glanced at the surrounding lesser monsters. He sighed in his heart. In the past,
his Dragonwhale Peak had been the leading mountain peak of the Mount Demonlotus region, and
he always had ten-plus Wanxiang monsters present. However, after that massacre by that human
brat, Ji Ning, only two Wanxiang monsters were left, and they lived in two separate regions of
Dragonwhale Peak. These little Zifu monsters in front of him were only able to engage in flattery.

“Immortals?” The Dragonwhale secretly shook his head. He knew exactly how powerful he was. “I’ve
only made a breakthrough as a Ki Refiner; I didn’t make a breakthrough as a Fiendgod. After
becoming a Primal…although my power has indeed increased significantly, I’m still far from being
able to compete with Immortals. Still, in the future, if I encounter that human punk, Ji Ning, I’ll
definitely execute him.” The Dragonwhale monster’s dark green eyes flashed with a savage light.

“Big Brother!”

“Congratulations on your breakthrough, Big Brother.”

From far away, two streaks of light flew over. It was the other two Wanxiang monsters who lived on
Dragonwhale Peak. The Dragonwhale looked towards them, then said in a clear voice, “It is good
that you have come, my brothers. I just made my breakthrough. When I think about how our other
brothers and sisters were massacred by that human brat…my heart aches, and I feel endless regret.
I was just about to give an order for some of the other monster of the wild marshes of the Gaol
Mountains who are on good terms with us to help me search for him. We must find those two human
brats.”
“Well spoken, Big Brother.”

“Right. We should indeed take revenge.”

Those two monsters both landed. Their bodies were massive and pitch-black, with curved horns on
their heads. They were a pair of bison-type monsters, and they were the two who the Dragonwhale
trusted in the most. Even when he went out to do battle, he would have these two stay behind to
protect his lair.

The Dragonwhale nodded. “I’ll send someone to deliver the letters now to the various monster kings
and have them help investigate.”

“Now that you’ve made this breakthrough, the various monster kings will all have to give you face,
your Majesty.”

“I trust that we’ll quickly be able to find them.”

The two bison-type monsters spoke in unison. As for the Dragonwhale, he took out a sheet of
leather parchment. Atop it, he wrote a description of Ning, Northson, and Qingqing, as well as
provided drawings of them that were almost lifelike in their accuracy. In addition, he also described
the dragon-headed warship and a few other unique aspects. He also filled this parchment with his
powerful Primal aura.

It was the water-imprinting technique. As a water-type monster, the Dragonwhale naturally found it
quite easy to utilize this technique. It used it dozens of times, making tens of copies of the leather
parchment. And then, he instructed his many Zifu monsters to go deliver the letters.

Soon, the Zifu monsters all transformed into streaks of light, moving towards the various bases of
power amongst the monsters.

“When I think of that human brat, I can’t help but want to eat his flesh and drink his blood.” The
Dragonwhale ground his teeth. “I haven’t even avenged the death of my lifelong brother. And now,
so many brothers and sisters who have accompanied me for so many years have died as well. The
more I think about it…detestable!”

“Big Brother, don’t be angry for now. I trust that in a few days, you will hear some news.”

“Once we find those human brats, we’ll go kill them.”

Both of the bison-type monsters tried to placate him.

“True.” The Dragonwhale nodded. “I’ll endure it for a few more days, and then I’ll go kill them.”

………..

The peacock king was seated on its throne. It glanced at the leather scroll, and as it did so, its face
instantly changed. It looked down from the throne. “Your king…he broke through to the Primal
level?”

“Our king made the breakthrough just today,” the Zifu-level simian said with a touch of delight. The
peacock king nodded. “Understood. I will instruct the monsters under my command to help search
for these two humans and that Azure Skysnake. Go and make the report.”

………

One group of powerful monsters after another received letters from the Dragonwhale. From the
letter, they could sense that the Dragonwhale had broken through to the Primal level. Those
powerful monsters who had previously been equals with the Dragonwhale now no longer dared to
treat him with any discourtesy at all. All of them gave the order to begin the search for those two
humans and the Azure Skysnake.

………

Meanwhile, Ning and Northson had no idea as to what had just happened in the outside world.

Within the room of ice. Ning and Northson were seated in the lotus position in front of the dire-ice.
The vein of dire-ice, previously many tens of meters in size, was now less than thirty meters. Clearly,
it was now a full size smaller.

“Absorb.”

One wisp after another of dire-ice continuously flew towards the mouths of Ning and Northson.
Clearly, however, Ning’s absorption rate was much faster.

“That’s about it.” Ning’s complete attention was on his Zifu region. He didn’t dare to be the slightest
bit rash. The dire-ice within the little island atop the sea of elemental ki in the Zifu region was
beginning to solidify and taken shape.
At this point in time, the dire-ice within the Zifu region was like a poisonous pustule that could
explode at any moment, causing the entire Zifu to be damaged! This was an extremely dangerous
moment! This was because the dire-ice had yet to completely solidify and take shape. The more
Ning absorbed, the greater the danger would be. Only after the implanting process was complete
would things be safe.

“I’ve absorbed enough of the dire-ice. I should be able to begin condensing it into a ‘seed’, now.”
Ning spent a few moments in preparation, and then, with a thought, caused the thousands of stars,
the Jade Rabbit, and the Golden Crow within the skies of his Zifu region to begin to shoot down rays
of light towards that dire-ice island. These rays of light contained incomparably pure elemental ki,
and as they appeared in the air above the dire-ice island, they began to gather together there. They
formed an incomparably transparent seal over the dire-ice.

BOOM!

It was like an earthen rampart or barrier that had been erected over it, completely sealing it in. The
entire dire-ice island appeared almost crystalline in its transparency. Above it, multiple runic symbols
began to appear, and the dire-ice began to appear and condense atop each of the runes. It was as
though the runes were the countless branches of a large tree.

A short period of time later…

“Crackle!” A sound akin to the wild grass growing out from the earth. An extremely thin layer of dire-
ice emerged from the surface of the mountain, trembling and shaking, but continuing to grow. And
so, a vein of dire-iice appeared in Ning’s Zifu, just like that.

“Success!” Ning instantly opened his eyes, overjoyed. He instantly saw the distant Qingqing, who
was standing guard carefully while staring at the nearby Northson, who was still seated, absorbing
the dire-ice.

“Master, you succeeded?” Qingqing asked excitedly. Ning nodded. “Right. Has anything happened
to my junior apprentice-brother?” Qingqing shook her head. “Nothing. Only, he clearly absorbs dire-
ice much more slowly than you do. You succeed in the implanation in just a day. Given his speed,
he’ll probably need three days to fully complete the process.”

Ning nodded. His Zifu was even more stable than his junior apprentice-brother’s, and his divine will
was powerful as well. He was also able to control dire-ice more easily as well. These were the
reasons why Ning had expected his implantation process to be quick.
“Master. I have a present to serve as your congratulatory gift for success in implanating the dire-ice,”
Qingqing laughed.

“Congratulatory gift? There’s no need for such things between the two us,” Ning said with an
involuntary laugh.

“You’ll definitely like it, Master.” Qingqing let out a mysterious smile. Then, with the wave of her
hand, she produced an enormous wooden chest that was completely gray and emanated a fragrant
scent. Ning said, puzzled, “Something within the chest?”

“Look.” Qingqing smugly opened the lid to this wooden chest. Within it, there was a chunk of ice that
was two feet long and one foot wide, and which glowed with a hint of green light. When this piece of
ice was fully revealed, the surrounding temperature began to fall. It must be understood that this was
a room of ice to begin with; and yet, this piece of ice was capable of causing the temperature to drop
even more?

“This is ancient glacial ice,” Qingqing said smugly. “I discovered this, too, in the wild marshes of the
Gaol Mountains. That place even has a freezing pool of liquid. I was enjoying myself immensely,
lying down in that freezing pool and absorbing the frigid aura from it to nourish my dire-ice, when
some Immortal cultivators suddenly came. Thus, I dug out this piece of ancient glacial ice.”

Ning did indeed feel exceptionally delighted and surprised. Qingqing truly was a little treasure trove.
That piece of dire-ice in his body was nothing but a mere ‘seedling’, dire-ice of the ninth grade. It
needed constant nourishing. Although elemental ki could be used to nourish it, the speed would be
too slow. It would be much faster to use certain types of precious, rare treasures, and ancient glacial
ice was one of them.

“Don’t you need it for yourself?” Ning asked. “Use it for yourself. I’m in no rush.”

A slightly awkward look appeared on Qingqing’s face, “Eh heh heh, I dug out quite a bit. I just gave
you a small chunk.” “How big is your piece of ancient glacial ice?” Ning asked.

“Ten meters tall.” Qingqing lowered her head, then stretched out her dainty little hand. An enormous
chunk of ice suddenly appeared out of nowhere; it looked like a miniature iceberg. And then, it
vanished away as Qingqing stored it away again.

Ning blinked. It really was ten meters tall. He then turned to look at his congratulatory gift, the six
foot tall chunk of ancient glacial ice.
Ning shook his head and laughed. He immediately accepted it, then immediately began to utilize the
power of this ancient glacial ice to nourish the dire-ice within his body.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 29 – The Gathering

Ji Ning sat there, his right hand extended. A hazy elemental ki enveloped the chunk of ancient
glacial ice within the heavy wooden chest. The cold energy of the ancient glacial ice was absorbed
by Ning steadily, all the way into his Zifu region. Within his Zifu region, the dire-ice, upon coming into
contact with the cold energy, instantly began to excitedly, wildly absorb it.

“Master.” Qingqing, who had hesitated for quite some time, suddenly spoke out. “Eh?” Ning turned
his head to look at her. “Master, after you use up your piece of ancient glacial ice, I can give you
more.” Qingqing looked carefully towards Ji Ning. “I’ll give you another six foot chunk.”

Ning instantly started to laugh. He could tell that this Little Qing was a bit of a miser. As he looked
towards Little Qing…another woman’s figure suddenly appeared within his mind.

“Elder sister Autumn Leaf,” Ning murmured to himself. “It’s been more than three years since I left
Swallow Mountain. Three years since I’ve seen her. I wonder how elder sister Autumn Leaf is doing.”

That woman who had accompanied him since he was a child, who was like an older sister to him;
Ning felt deep emotions for her. “After I become a Raindragon Guard, I need to begin investigating
those three culprits who, many years ago, harmed father, mother, and uncle so catastrophically,”
Ning mused to himself. “And…I also need to go back to Swallow Mountain to go visit elder sister
Autumn Leaf, Bluestone, and Serpentwing Lake…”

Ning suddenly had a strong desire to return to Serpentwing Lake. It had been so long since he had
lain within that small boat atop Serpentwing Lake and just floated on the surface of it.

“Serpentwing Lake!” As Ning thought of this, a faint, fierce light began to flash in his eyes. “Sooner or
later, there will come the day when I will be able to ensure that those I love will always live joyful
lives. Tragedies will never befall those by my side. Never!” Ning’s heart was filled with an
incomparably powerful desire, and his Dao-heart was extremely pure. “As for Snowdragon
Mountain? They are nothing more than my first stepping stone on my Immortal path.”
In his heart, Ning’s target had always been to become a major power who could dominate the Three
Realms; a figure who could completely control his own destiny. Snowdragon Mountain? Ning had
never treated them as his number one priority.

………

In the blink of an eye, three days passed within that room of ice. The dire-ice in Ning’s body, after
having been nourished by the ancient glacial ice, was now significantly larger, and had reached the
eighth grade. However, only the early grades would progress this quickly; the farther along it went,
the slower it would become. Some types of dire-ice with weaker potential would have no hope at all
of reaching the first grade.

“Eh?” Ning stared towards the nearby Northson. Northson was opening his eyes. “Ah, success,”
Ning said. “Right.” Northson’s eyes were filled with delight as well.

“Woody,” Qingqing said, “I’ve prepared a gift for you. Consider it a congratulatory gift for implanting
that dire-ice.” “A gift? For me?” Northson was instantly astonished.

“Yep,” Qingqing nodded smugly. Within her dainty hand, a fairly small wooden box appeared. Upon
seeing the size of the wooden box, Ning instantly clapped his hand to his forehead.

“Look.” Qingqing opened the wooden box up.

“Ancient glacial ice!” Northson instantly called out in surprise. Earlier, he had focused all of his
attention on implanting the dire-ice, and hadn’t been able to divide his attention at all. Naturally, he
had paid no attention to the conversations going on outside.

Ning glanced out of the corner of his eyes at the chest. That piece of ancient glacial ice within the
‘small’ chest was merely half a foot long. Qingqing hurriedly looked towards Ning, winking at him.

“How can I accept…” Northson began, but Ning rose and interjected, “Just take it. After you take it,
we’ll head out immediately and go to the earthfire vein.”

Slightly more than half of the nearby dire-ice vein was left. Ning could go find other Wanxiang
Adepts and engage in a trade…but the two group battles in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains,
one against those six Wanxiang Adepts, the other against those ten-plus Wanxiang monsters, had
quickly taught Ning something. Given his current level of power, when adventuring in the outside
world, it wouldn’t be too hard for him to acquire treasures. He really didn’t need to waste his time
conniving and scheming on potential trades with one or two Wanxiang Adepts.
…….

Atop a desolate mountain. A Xiantian monster was standing guard here.

“His Majesty ordered me to go patrol and investigate the various mountains for that human cultivator.
The wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains have so many mountains. Who knows which one the
human cultivator has gone to? How could I possibly be so lucky as to run into them while patrolling
this mountain?” A yellow-haired monster was leaning against a giant rock. As a Xiantian monster, he
would’ve been a minor figure even in the Swallow Mountain region. Here, in the wild marshes of the
Gaol Mountains, he was an even more minor figure.

“Two human youths actually caused King Dragonwhale to suffer such a loss.” The yellow-haired
monster still clearly remembered the contents of the letter. The water-imprinting technique had been
used to duplicate thousands of copies of the leather parchment scrolls which the Dragonwhale had
sent out. All of the Xiantian monsters had seen the contents, and they had all memorized it.

Swish!

A streak of light suddenly flew through the clouds, charging towards a nearby mountain. “Is that…?!”
The yellow-haired monster was instantly startled. Upon taking a closer look, it revealed a look of
shock and delight. “No mistaking it. That’s a dragon-headed warship.”

After seeing the dragon-headed warship fly to the mountain, it saw three figures disembarking; Ning,
Northson, and Qingqing. And then, the three of them disappeared into thin air.

…….

“It’s that mountain over there. There are no monsters nearby, just a few minor monsters who aren’t
worthy of concern,” Qingqing said. The dragon-headed warship instantly dove downwards.

Ning spread out his divine sense to encompass a range of three hundred kilometers. This was the
maximum range Ning could currently search at. Upon doing so…indeed, he saw that for hundreds of
kilometers around, only minor monsters were present; there was one that was possibly just barely at
the Zifu level, and who was painstakingly training within a private room.

“Let’s go.” They executed their movement techniques, entering the heart of the mountain.

Qingqing led the way as they moved through the mountain. “If we follow this tunnel, we’ll quickly
arrive at the river. If we follow the river, we’ll soon be able to see the earthfire vein.”
Indeed. Moments later, a subterranean river appeared within the gloomy, dark underground. The
end of the river had a six meter wide crack, and within the crack, there was a tendril of golden fire.

“The earthfire vein.” Ning’s eyes lit up. “That should be…goldflame earthfire!” Ning immediately
recognized it. “This is an excellent type of earthfire as well.” Ning felt great joy in his heart, and he
stared downwards. Beneath the deep crack was a roiling river of scorching hot lava. It made sense
for the goldflame earthfire to appear here, above a river of lava. But when Ning looked at the lava…
for some reason, he suddenly felt his heart clench!

It was a vague sense of danger which something within the deep, dark regions of his soul could
sense. It was a warning.

Ning turned his head, no longer looking at the river of lava, and the sense of danger instantly
disappeared. “Can it be that there is a region of shattered space below?” Ning mused to himself.

When Ning normally looked at some twisted areas of shattered space, he would also feel his heart
clench slightly. In a place like the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains…situations like this were
extremely common.

“Don’t go into the lava. You in particular, Little Qing. Don’t charge into it rashly,” Ning instructed.
“Don’t enter the lava?” Qingqing looked at Ning.

Ning nodded. “There should be a spatial distortion or rift below. Be careful. Right; I’m probably going
to take much longer for the harvesting of earthfire, because my body already has dire-ice in it. I need
to be even more careful in harvesting earthfire. I imagine that I’ll need anywhere from three to six
days.” Ning then sat down in the lotus position next to the goldflame earthfire.

“Leave it to us,” Qingqing said. Northson added, “Don’t worry at all; relax. I’ll go set up the formation
right away.” The two of them had already set up an alarm formation outside the mountain, and then
within a few kilometers of the goldflame earthfire vein, they set up a second bewildering formation.

Ning was seated in the lotus position. He opened his mouth, and with ‘pincers’ of elemental ki, he
guided the goldflame earthfire directly into his mouth and into his body.

Earthfire and dire-ice were polar opposites. Because Ning already had dire-ice in his body, he had to
be incomparably careful when absorbing earthfire into his body…if any of it leaked out and if the
earthfire and dire-ice interacted with each other, there would be an explosion. Even if Ning was able
to survive, thanks to his Fiendgod body, his Zifu region would still probably be completely ruined.
Even if he was lucky and it wasn’t destroyed, it would still be badly damaged to the point where he
would be like his father, never able to advance at all as a Ki Refiner.

However, Ning couldn’t possibly give up this opportunity because of such a minute risk. The path of
Immortals was always one in which one would fight for any chance to become an Immortal.

…..

In the blink of an eye, three days passed. The Xiantian monster had painstakingly run back to report,
and then the Zifu monster had personally gone to Dragonwhale Peak to make the report. “King
Dragonwhale, this is the map.. Three days ago, those humans you are chasing after, your Majesty,
appeared in this area.” A black-furred bear monster was speaking with great respect.

“Over here?” The Dragonwhale sat on his throne, staring at the map in his hands. He quickly
understood the location. “Very good. Go back and tell old Wolf that he helped me this time, and I’ll
remember it.” The Dragonwhale’s voice boomed out.

“Yes.” The black-furred bear monster bowed respectfully, then immediately departed.

The Dragonwhale’s shadowy green eyes were filled with a murderous intent, and the aura from his
body was more than ten times as violent as it was in the past. After becoming a Primal
Diremonster…his power had naturally increased dramatically.

“Big Brother.” The two bison-type Diremonsters standing nearby both looked towards their king. “I’m
going to kill that human brat. My two brothers, for now, look after Dragonwhale Peak,” the
Dragonwhale instructed.

“Don’t worry, Big Brother. Leave everything here to us,” the two bison-type Diremonsters replied.
“Then just wait for me to return and drink celebratory wine.” The Dragonwhale let out a savage
laugh, and then its body disappeared from the cavern estate with a flash. Soon, an azure streak of
light appeared in the skies, streaking towards and disappearing into the horizons.

……….

Atop a green leaf, there were three Wanxiang Adepts who were soaring through the clouds.

“Fellow Daoist Dong One, have we reached that place where you said you found the earthfire vein?”
A bald, black-robed woman was speaking in a pressing manner. Her face was covered with red
tattoos, and she looked quite devilish.
“The two of you, don’t worry. I’ve sworn an oath to the Dao of the Heavens. What have you to fear?”
The golden-robed Dong One smiled as he spoke. “The earthfire vein is in an extremely secretive
place…even that cave within the mountain is extremely remote and hard to find. I only encountered
it through luck; I trust that within such a short period of time, no one else should have been able to
find it.”

Dong One was in a splendid mood, because he had traded the location of this earthfire vein for quite
a few treasures. But of course, this was just an agreement; both sides had sworn an oath to the Dao
of the Heavens. Only when they actually reached the earthfire vein would they give him the items.

“Here we are. It’s that short mountain below us.” Dong One pointed downwards through the clouds,
where a short, squat mountain could vaguely be seen. “That desolate, short mountain over there.
Not even monsters can be bothered with taking over that place. It’s quite unremarkable.”

The eyes of the two Wanxiang Adepts next to him, one male and one female, were filled with
excitement.

“Follow me,” Dong One said confidently, and then he controlled the flying treasure to descend
rapidly.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 30 – Hunted

Deep within the subterranean region.

Ji Ning was seated in the lotus position. Wisps of earthfire were unceasingly being absorbed into his
Zifu region. The glow of the goldflame earthfire within the crack in the ground was now much weaker
than before.

“Eh?” Northson’s face suddenly changed. “What is it?” Qingqing hurriedly looked towards him. “A
person has arrived!” Northson’s face was now quite solemn. “It could also be a monster. Either way,
some form of lifeform has barged into the mountain.”

Earlier, they had set down an alarm formation within the mountain. Since alarm formations were
meant to warn the user, they naturally were hidden extremely well, to the point where they didn’t
cause any elemental ki ripples at all. Anyone who barged into the region would unconsciously
activate the alarm formation. However, there was no way for Northson to know exactly who had
arrived.

“Activate the bewildering formation,” Northson instructed. “Even if it is a Wanxiang Adept or

Diremonster who has come…even if they enter the underground river region, from a distance, they
will be baffled and affected by the bewildering formation.”

“Alright.” Qingqing hurriedly activated the formation which Ning had given her.

………

The Wanxiang Adept of Snowdragon Mountain, Dong One, was currently in an excellent mood, and
he led these two other Adepts down towards the underground river in a very practiced manner.

“This really is quite hidden,” the nearby, bald, black-robed woman laughed. The bald, white-robed
man by her side nodded. “One can only enter this mountain through movement arts…if one didn’t
have a divine sense, one really wouldn’t be able to find this place and enter. Fellow Daoist Dong,
how did you enter this place?”

“You are mistaken.” Dong One shook his head. “There is an extremely well-hidden entrance to the
insides of this mountain from the outside world. I found it by accident, but I’ve already destroyed that
entrance.”

“Ah, so that’s the situation.” The two bald Adepts both nodded. Soon, the three of them reached the
river. “Look.” Dong One pointed towards the distance. If we follow that river and constantly advance,
we will shortly be able to see the earthfire vein.”

“After we discover the earthfire vein, we two fellow disciples will carry out our promise.” The bald,
white-robed man smiled. “Good.” Dong One nodded.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

The three advanced at high speed along the river. A short while later, Dong One suddenly stretched
his hand out and barked, “Halt.” The man and woman looked towards him. “What is it?”

“Something’s wrong.” Dong One frowned as he stared forward. “Logically speaking, by now, we
should be able to see the earthfire in the distance. But I can’t see it.”
“What?!” The two Adepts were both shocked. The female one barked fiercely, “You are playing us!”
But her white-robed senior apprentice-brother shook his head. “Don’t be hasty. Fellow Daoisti Dong
has already sworn an oath to the Dao of the Heavens. He shouldn’t have lied to us…and I can
vaguely sense elemental ki ripples from up ahead.”

“Ripples?” Dong One and the black-robed woman both looked towards him. “Yes.” The white-robed
man nodded. “Let’s continue to move forward. You’ll be able to sense it soon as well.”

“Redleaf [Hongye] lives up to his reputation,” Dong One sighed in amazement to himself. “The
genius disciple of the Bloodlotus Monastery! The power and sensitivity of his soul is far superior to
mine.” The reason why he had chosen these two was precisely because he knew that Redleaf was
extremely powerful; if he hadn’t been delayed by other matters, he probably would’ve become a
Raindragon Guard long ago. Redleaf definitely had many magic treasures; knowing this, Dong One
chose to trade with him.

They advanced by another half-kilometer. By now, both Dong One and the woman could sense the
elemental ki ripples as well. “That’s a bewildering formation,” the white-robed Redleaf said softly. “In
addition, it is an extremely complicated one. It seems, fellow Daoist Dong, that another Immortal
cultivator came after you left.”

“What!? What were the chances of that!?” Dong One gritted his teeth. But of course, he had no idea
that even before he came, the Azure Skysnake had already discovered this place.

“This bewildering formation is an Earth-ranked magic treasure, and the user should be at the
Wanxiang level,” Redleaf sent mentally to them. “In addition…generally speaking, only Wanxiang
Adepts will go harvest this type of earthfire. If my guess is correct, they’ve already discovered our
arrival. However, since they haven’t moved to attack, they probably aren’t confident in being able to
beat us.”

“Right.” Dong One and the black-robed woman both nodded.

“Let’s wait a bit. Let me break this formation,” Redleaf said. “The two of you stay outside. You are
not to enter.”

“Don’t worry, senior apprentice-brother,” the black-robed woman said hurriedly.

“Don’t worry.”
Redleaf’s eyes were filled with complete confidence. And then, he walked to enter the bewildering
formation.

……

Within the bewildering formation. “That’s Dong One, Redbud [Hongrui], and Redleaf!” Through the
bewildering formation, Northson quietly peered towards the three figures who were flying down
through the distant river. Upon seeing this, he was shocked.

“Who are they?” Qingqing hurriedly asked. “Dong One is of Snowdragon Mountain. Redbud and
Redleaf are two disciples from the Bloodlotus Monastery,” Northson said.

As the two were chatting amongst each other, the nearby Ning, who was in the middle of harvesting
the earthfire while seated in the lotus position, began to grow anxious. Because of how incomparably
strong his soul was, even stronger than those of many Primal Daoists, he didn’t have to completely
block off his six senses while implanting earthfire.

“Dong One? Redbud? Redleaf?” A thought came to Ning’s mind. “These three…when we all
reported our names and titles at the Crimson Dragon Mountains, when Redleaf reported his name,
all the Wanxiang Adepts were shocked. Clearly, this Adept Redleaf is an extraordinary figure. I have
to speed it up.”

Previously, Ning had been extremely cautious, making safety his top priority. However, in reality, he
was capable of going a good deal faster, while just increasing the level of danger very slightly.

“Absorb!” One wisp of earthfire after another entered Ning’s mouth and his Zifu region. Within his
Zifu region, the amount of earthfire within the ‘earthfire island’, which was far away from the ‘dire-ice
island’, was beginning to grow.

…….

Outside the formation, Redleaf walked forward while calling out in a high voice, “I don’t know which
fellow Daoist is within this formation, but I would like to ask you to collect it. We can negotiate things
peacefully. But if you aren’t willing to do so and force me to break this formation, then we’ll have to
shed all pretense of cordiality.”

“Redleaf.” An icy voice rang out from within the formation. “Leave obediently. If you really break this
formation, then we’ll fight to the death!”
“Whose voice is that?” Adept Redleaf frowned. The distant Dong One and Redbud frowned as well,
because they were very familiar with the voices of every single member of the hundred who had
joined this Raindragon Guard trial, but they couldn’t tell whose voice this was.

“Since he can call me out by name, he definitely is one of the hundred,” Redleaf mused to himself.
“Since he intentionally disguised his voice, and tried to frighten me off by saying we would fight to
the death…hmph, if he was actually powerful, why would he have to use these techniques?”

Adept Redleaf calmly stepped directly into the bewildering formation. Upon doing so, the
surrounding space instantly grew chaotic. A bewildering fog drifted everywhere, and it became
difficult to even tell the directions. Adept Redleaf stood there within the formation, taking a few
casual steps forward. After attuning himself to the transformations of the formation, he instantly
began to laugh.

“Junior apprentice-sister, fellow Daoist Dong, I’ll definitely break this formation within two hours.”
Adept Redleaf’s voice rang out.

One minute after another passed. Murderous auras began to emite from Northson and Qingqing.
“Three in total,” Northson said with a growl. “Qingqing, you take care of that woman, who seems to
be the weakest. Leave the other two to me.”

“Can you handle it?” Qingqing looked at him. “Don’t worry. I also have some things which Master
bestowed upon me which I’ve never used. When the time comes, I’ll definitely annihilate both of
them with one blow. Do you think that we disciples of the Black-White College are so easily
antagonized?” A cold light was flashing in Northson’s eyes.

“Right, right. Even I’ve heard of the famous reputation of the Black-White College. Supposedly,
every single member is a supreme genius.” Qingqing nodded. “Leave that woman to me, then…”

Northson and Qingqing were incomparably cautious, preparing to battle at any moment.

……..

“Absorb!” Ning began to absorb the earthfire at an even more rapid pace.

……..

The massive body of the Dragonwhale King had appeared in the air above this squat mountain. It
stared down towards the mountain, its dark green eyes filled with a heaven-shaking killing intent.
“Right here? Human brat, Ji Ning, I hope you are still here!” The Dragonwhale King sent out his will.
Boom! A vast, rolling wave of divine sense instantly spread out in every direction. It had trained for
more than ten thousand years, after all; its soul was incomparably powerful, and its Dao-heart was
also very resilient. Thus, upon becoming a Primal Diremonster…after but a single day, he had
acquired divine sense!

Some Primal Daoists would need six months or a year to acquire their divine sense after their
breakthrough. If one’s foundation was insufficiently stable, then the rate at which one would acquire
divine sense would naturally be slower. Someone like Ji Ning, who possessed a divine sense at the
Zifu level…could only be described as an utter monster. It was no wonder that so many believed him
to be a reincarnated Immortal!

The Dragonwhale’s divine sense spread out to a range of a hundred kilometers, completely covering
the short mountain below. “Eh? Nobody?” The Dragonwhale King frowned. “Wait; that mountain
actually has an alarm formation within it.” The divine sense could see everything within its range with
perfect clarity. Although not even Redleaf or Dong One had been able to discover the alarm
formation, the Dragonwhale King had effortlessly discovered it.

“There must be someone there.” The Dragonwhale King instantly charged tens of kilometers
downward, towards the short mountain below. And then, with a single blinking movement, moved
deeper inside the mountain.

Within the mountain. The Dragonwhale once more spread its divine sense. “Hahaha…” A look of
savage joy instantly appeared on the Dragonwhale’s face. This time, he effortless detected that less
than a hundred kilometers away, close to an underground river, there were several human
cultivators.

“That human brat, Ji Ning, is harvesting earthfire? And there is a human cultivator who is outside a
formation, trying to break it?” The Dragonwhale laughed coldly. “These humans are actually fighting
amongst themselves…how laughable. Unfortunately…all of them shall die.”

“I will set down a massive spacelock sealing formation outside, and then kill them all.” The
Dragonwhale immediately began to carry out his plan.

……..

None of the humans had detected the arrival of the Dragonwhale. The Dragonwhale had
intentionally avoided the alarm formation. The only person who was aware of his arrival…was Ji
Ning!
When the Dragonwhale’s divine sense had swept out towards him, Ning’s own divine sense had
naturally detected it. After all, in terms of just divine sense, Ning was even more formidable than the
Dragonwhale.

“Divine sense?” Ning was shocked. “A Primal Daoist? Or a Primal Diremonster?” Ning was truly
stunned. Ning slowed down his absorption of the earthfire, and with a single thought, instantly
spread his divine sense out towards every direction. He instantly discovered the Dragonwhale King,
who had already moved to the skies above the short mountain. The Dragonwhale King was currently
planting formation flags everywhere, preparing a spacelock sealing formation.

“Hahaha…human brat?” The Dragonwhale sensed Ning’s divine sense. Instantly, he sent through
divine sense, “I have to thank you. If it hadn’t been for you, how could I have broken through to
become a Primal so easily? Hahaha, to thank you, I will annihilate all of those humans who are
planning to act against you. But of course, all of you will die as well. Hahaha…”

Swoosh!

The Dragonwhale instantly used his blinking movement technique to go inside the mountain once
more. He soon arrived at the underground river, then charged forward.

Right at this moment, Dong One and Redbud were outside the formation, watching as Adept Redleaf
was striving to defeat the formation from within it. “The Wanxiang Adept within the formation is dead
for sure.” Redbud’s eyes were filled with eagerness. “Right.” Dong One was eager as well.

Dong One had no idea…that within the formation were the two people he feared the most; Ji Ning
and Mu Northson. And, at this moment, a Dragonwhale King was charging straight towards him!

Most importantly of all…the surrounding area was completely sealed by a spacelock sealing
formation. There was no way to flee at all.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 31 – Vengeance in the Next Life

Dong One and Redbud were both outside the formation, waiting. “Eh?” The two of them, as though
having sensed something, turned to look behind them, only to see in the gloomy darkness a
massive, muscular figure surging towards them.
This was a giant figure that was two stories high. Clearly, this wasn’t a body which a normal human
being could possess, and it wasn’t attempting to hide whatsoever the savage, monstrous aura which
poured out wantonly from it. Its two sinister green eyes seemed to carry a lofty, arrogant look within
them.

“Who are you?” Redbud barked. But Dong One said cautiously, “Monster, hurry up and leave. We
don’t want to kill any monsters right now.”

“You don’t want to kill monsters, but I want to kill humans right now.” The Dragonwhale King was
incomparably relaxed right now; a sort of relaxation that came only when one had an absolute
advantage in power.

“Kill humans?” The faces of Dong One and Redbud changed.

“If you want to blame someone, blame that brat, Ji Ning.” After finishing his words, a giant black
sword, wreathed by a river of golden flames, stabbed directly towards Redbud and Dong One.

“Ji Ning?” The two of them were completely baffled, but in the face of this attack from the giant black
sword, they didn’t have any time to ponder; they hurriedly prepared to battle the enemy.

“Hmph.” The black-robed woman, Redbud, suddenly waved her hand, and two blood-red silk ribbons
slashed through the air. While flying, they appeared to be two dragons of blood, and emitting
draconic roars, they swept towards that giant black sword.

“Freeze.” Dong One pointed towards the distance, and his dire-ice swept forward, preparing to
freeze and lock that giant sword.

“BANG!” Like a hot knife going through butter, the giant black sword easily dispersed both of the
blood dragons. The golden flames on the surface of the giant black sword appeared incomparably
brilliant…they effortlessly dissipated the dire-ice, and in an instant, appeared in front of the body of
the bald, black-robed Rosebud.

“How can this be?!” Redbud hurriedly leapt backwards, transforming into a streak of light and about
to retreat as an azure bell suddenly appeared in her hands. However, the golden flames on that
giant black sword suddenly expanded, and with a boom, it instantly enveloped Redbud. “No!!!” A
miserable, agonized scream. Bathed in golden flames, Redbud howled in agony, and then her body
was instantly charred to ash. Even her divine soul was burnt into nothingness.

“What sort of earthfire is this?!” Dong One was so terrified, his face changed.
“Junior apprentice-sister!” Adept Redleaf, within the formation, heard that miserable scream coming
from the outside. He grew frantic. “Dong One, what happened to my junior apprentice-sister?”

“Haha, earthfire?” The Dragonwhale King let out a cold laugh. “This is Primal Fire!” Dong One’s face
completely changed, and the face of Adept Redleaf, within the formation, changed as well. Primal
Fire?

Just from looking at the surface of the flames, it was hard to tell; after all, there were more than a
hundred types of earthfire, including gold, white, green, and all sorts of other flames. It was quite
hard to differentiate them. Primal Fire, however…was the flame which the Primal Turtle-Snake
naturally generated. Its power was tremendous; most likely, earthfire would have to be cultivated to
the third grade before being able to compete against it.

“She’s dead. Now, you can die as well.” With but a thought, the Dragonwhale King sent his flying
sword chopping towards Dong One. This was a Heaven-ranked flying sword, which it had acquired
by luck. Given its power, acquiring an ordinary Heaven-ranked flying sword wasn’t too difficult.
Although it wasn’t very skilled at using flying swords, since it had become a Primal Daoist, it was
able to fill this flying sword with his Primal-level elemental ki, and also fill it with his Primal Fire. Thus,
the power of this attack was absolutely comparable to the power of his Fiendgod divine ability
attacks.

“Last time, I ran into a disciple of the Black-White College who could use a divine will attack. This
time, I ran into a Primal Diremonster. Why am I so unlucky?!” Dong One’s face was ashen. Gritting
his teeth, he instantly transformed into a streak of bloody light. Swoosh! He quickly moved far away
with an evasion technique, moving so fast that even the Dragonwhale was slightly surprised.

“Unfortunately, I prepared a spacelock sealing formation long ago.” The Dragonwhale King shook its
head and laughed coldly. With but a single step, it moved tens of kilometers.

………..

As the Dragonwhale King went chasing after Dong One, Adept Redleaf, within the formation, had an
ugly look on his face. “Junior apprentice-sister died? A Primal Diremonster appeared?”

Within the fog, Adept Redleaf gritted his teeth, then produced a long, black weaver’s shuttle in his
hands. This black shuttle emanated an evil, ancient aura; this was a treasure for escape which
Adept Redleaf had discovered when adventuring, which had been passed down from the Fiendgod
Era. Its name was the ‘Lightspeed Shuttle of the Nine Heavens and Ten Hells’. Upon using it, one’s
speed would become incredibly fast, and the tips of the shuttle itself were extremely, shockingly
strong as well, capable of effortless piercing through even a towering mountain.
However, after using it a single time, the shuttle’s power would be exhausted, and he would have to
wait ten more years before the power would regenerate.

“No other choices.” Adept Redleaf immediately willed it to activate. Swoosh! The evil black shuttle
suddenly increased massively in size, while the Adept himself hid himself within it. Swish! The long
black shuttle instantly transformed into a streak of light, moving with such astonishing speed that the
tiny bewildering formation wasn’t able to impede it in the slightest. It easily passed through the
formation…and then, moving like a streak of black lightning, it effortless pierced through the rocky
mountain, then stabbed against the edges of the sealing formation.

Crunch! It pierced directly through…and then, moving at high speed, disappeared into the distant
wilderness.

……

Dong One, who had been hoping to flee, stared at the grand sealing formation. Instantly, he
despaired; he had already tried to attack it twice, but hadn’t been able to do anything to it at all.

“You won’t be able to escape.” The Dragonwhale King suddenly appeared. Its two dragon-whiskers
suddenly appeared, wreathed in blazing embers of Primal Fire as they swept towards Dong One.

A look of utter despair was on Dong One’s face. Although he had protective treasures, they would
only be able to endure for a brief moment. If he wasn’t able to escape this formation, the end result
was still a single word; death!

“If you have to blame someone, blame that brat, Ji Ning,” the Dragonwhale King said with a cold
laugh. “You are just the starting courses…eh? One of you actually fled? What sort of a treasure was
that long shuttle? It was so fast.”

Despite his extensive experience, even he had never heard of this ancient treasure which had been
passed down since the Fiendgod Era, the ‘Lightspeed Shuttle of the Nine Heavens and Ten Hells’.

“Why should I blame Ji Ning?” Dong One roared in fury, “If I have to die, let me die knowing why.”

The Dragonwhale King stared in astonishment at the human cultivator before him. “Can it be that
you don’t know that the person within the formation is that brat, Ji Ning?”

“Ji Ning is inside the formation?” Dong One stared. But…but but…
If he had known that it was Ji Ning inside the formation, he would have immediately fled without
saying a second word. Last time, the six of them, despite joining forces, had all fallen to Ji Ning and
his fellow disciple. Why would he try to act against Ji Ning yet again? But Ji Ning hadn’t said a single
word…

“You damnable, detestable Ji Ning! In this life, you doomed me, but in the next life, I’ll take my
revenge!” A wild, berserk look appeared on Dong One’s face. BOOM! As the dragon-whiskers swept
forward, his entire body instantly blew apart.

He knew that the opponent was a Primal Daoist, and had no intentions of allowing the Primal Fire to
burn him to death, because if it did, even his divine soul would be burnt to ashes. That meant his
soul would be destroyed! If he committed suicide, at least he would be able to rejoin the cycle of
reincarnation!

“A straightforward death.” The Dragonwhale King actually didn’t care at all. With a wave of its hand,
it collected the treasures which Dong One had left behind, but it couldn’t be bothered to actually flip
through them. With a leap, it once more charged towards Ning.

Ning was seated there in the lotus position, one wisp of earthfire after another being absorbed into
his Zifu. His absorption speed was so fast that the nearby Qingqing and Northson both felt their
hearts race.

“How is my senior apprentice-brother doing? Is he alright?” Northson was worried. Qingqing looked
towards Ning as well. “Master wishes to finish implanting the earthfire as quickly as possible.” And
indeed, Ning was going all out.

Previously, during the last three days, he had already absorbed quite a bit of the earthfire. Just now,
when Adept Redleaf and the others had come to break the formation, Ning had immediately begun
to accelerate the absorption process.

“I finally have enough earthfire.” Ning could no longer be bothered with anything else. “Condense!”
The thousands of stars, the Jade Rabbit, and the Golden Crow within his Zifu region all emanated
countless rays of light which descended upon the earthfire island, as though creating a giant barrier
which completely covered all of it. The earthfire quickly began to swirl and merge into the runes atop
it, causing them to transform into gold. Crackle! Atop the earthfire island, a tiny little golden flame
was suddenly born.

“Success.” Ning let out a sigh of relief. Opening his eyes, he glanced at his junior apprentice-brother
and Little Qing. Ning’s forehead and back were all covered with cold sweat. Towards the very end,
he really was going all out in absorbing earthfire. That sort of absorption speed was truly deadly; it
was as though he had been dancing atop a steel wire. The slightest mistake, and he’d fall off.
However, with a Primal Diremonster outside, Ning had no other choices.

“Senior apprentice-brother, what’s going on outside?” Northson hurriedly asked, “I saw that Adept
Redleaf, who had been in our bewildering formation, has already escaped, and there was a battle
outside.”

“It’s the Dragonwhale,” Ning said grimly. “Dragonwhale?” Qingqing said, shocked, “The
Dragonwhale Diremonster we ran into last time? But just now, I heard the words ‘Primal Fire’ coming
from outside; can it be that the Dragonwhale has already broken through to become a Primal
Direfiend?” Ning nodded.

Qingqing and Northson’s hearts instantly turned cold.

Unlike Adept Redleaf, Ning and Northson had just left their schools; they had spent very little time
adventuring outside, and the treasures they had on them were limited to what their schools had
given them. They didn’t have any strange treasures, like the ‘Lightspeed Shuttle of the Nine
Heavens and Ten Hells’.

“The grand sealing formation is still just an Earth-ranked magic treasure,” Ning sent mentally.
“Although it is now a Primal Diremonster and has activated it with Primal-level elemental ki…there is
a limit to the power of the seals. If I strike it at full power, I might be able to break through.”

“Senior apprentice-brother, I have a guardian construct which Master gave me; it can burst forth with
the power of a Primal Daoist for a short period of time. It should be able to break through the
formation. However, this guardian construct can only battle for ten breaths, after which it will instantly
disintegrate, because the materials it was made out of were ordinary,” Northson said.

Ning felt relieved. It made sense; his own master, Immortal Diancai, had also given him two
protective items. Daoist Jadefine doted even more dearly on her apprentice, Northson. In addition,
she specialized in the Dao of Constructs…some truly monstrous constructs were capable of battling
opponents at a higher level. It was only natural for his junior apprentice-brother to have some
protective treasures as well.

“Hahaha…” A deep voice laughed out. “Ji Ning, brat, you were so smug and brash last time; did you
think that a day like this would come? Ten thousand years of training…it all came to a head, and I
broke through to the Primal level. Now, killing you will be much easier.”
“Kill me? When we battled, you survived because of how fast you fled,” Ning said coldly. “Although
you have become a Primal, you’ve only recently broken through; I imagine your power isn’t too
ridiculously great yet. I still am capable of killing you! We disciples of the Black-White College
specialize in battling those at a higher level than us.”

“The Black-White College?” The Dragonwhale King was slightly startled, but then it sneered. It had a
Fiendgod’s body, a divine ability, and was a Primal Diremonster that had exceptionally superlative
talents. Why would it worry about a Wanxiang Adept?

“If you leave now, you can keep your life. Otherwise…” Ning stared towards the outside; the
Dragonwhale King was standing right outside the formation. To the two of them, both of whom
possessed the divine sense, bewildering formations were completely useless.

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 32 – Awoken

“Little Qing, pack up the bewildering formation,” Ji Ning instructed. This bewildering formation was of
no use at all against the Dragonwhale King; it would only baffle themselves.

The formation vanished. The massive, bulky body of the Dragonwhale King could now be seen,
standing off in the distance. The aura of the Dragonwhale King was now clearly far more savage and
explosive than it had been in the past. In his subconscious…Ning felt a sense of danger. This was a
warning from his divine soul.

“I have to thank you for helping me break through to become a Primal. Thus, I helped you kill those
two humans. They should be your enemies, yes?” The Dragonwhale looked at Ning disdainfully,
then said, “My brothers and sisters all died in the hands of you three. And you, Ji Ning…you deserve
death more than anyone else.”

“Go.” The Dragonwhale’s eyes flashed with cold light. Swoosh! A giant black sword, thirty meters
long, almost the size of a warship, chopped directly towards Ji Ning, the surface of the sword
covered with the swirling flames of Primal Fire.

“Hmph.” Seeing this, Ning let out a cold snort, while at the same time, his own divine sense sent out
the [Soulshaker Art]. The rolling waves of divine will swept forward like a flood, viciously striking
against the Dragonwhale’s Primal soul! Rumble…the Dragonwhale felt its Primal soul shudder, and
the power of its magic treasures was noticeably lowered.
This caused the Dragonwhale to be secretly shocked; how did this Ji Ning have such a powerful
soul? Could he be a reincarnated Immortal? But even if he was, he still had to die!

“Haaaargh!” The giant black sword, carrying Primal Fire, howled as it flew towards Ning. Ning let out
an angry roar, and his body instantly expanded as he transformed into a ten meter high giant. The
Darknorth Swords in his hands transformed into a blur as they moved to engage.

BOOM! Sword-light and the giant black sword collided in midair. Ji Ning, after using the [Starseizing
Hand], had released incredibly great power with this sword attack, and was able to forcibly knock the
giant black sword backwards, while he himself took two steps back. At the same time, the
Waterflame Lotus appeared around his body. The petals of this breathtakingly beautiful lotus now
contained both snowy dire-ice and golden earthfire…causing its power to increase dramatically.

“Dragonwhale, you want to rely on magic treasures alone to kill me? You are looking down on me a
bit too much,” Ning laughed loudly.

The Dragonwhale noticed this as well. This Ji Ning’s power was far beyond that of those other two
Wanxiang Adepts, especially in close quarters combat; he was exceedingly strong.

“As you wish, then.” The Dragonwhale King let out a massive howl, and instantly, its entire body
transformed into a heaven-filling fog, but then, next to that underground river, its body began to
transform into its true form.

Ning hurriedly sent to the nearby Northson and Qingqing, “Junior apprentice-brother, Little Qing,
once this Dragonwhale takes its true form, it’ll cause the heavens to collapse and the earth to
shatter; the surrounding parts of the mountain will definitely be shattered. I’ll battle against him and
hold him off; you two, hurry up and go break out of this sealing formation. Junior apprentice-brother,
use whatever means you must in order to break through the formation and uproot the formation
flags. Once the formation is gone, I’ll have plenty of ways to escape.”

Northson hesitated momentarily, then nodded. “Fine. Senior apprentice-brother, be careful.”

“Don’t worry.” Ning lowered his head, glancing sideways his junior apprentice-brother and Qingqing.
After having transformed into a giant due to the ‘Heavenly Transformation’ divine ability, it really did
feel a bit odd interacting with them.

“Rumble…”
The true form of the Dragonwhale was beginning to take shape in this subterranean cavern. Its body
was simply too vast, while the caverns were too small. After having used its divine ability, it was ten
thousand meters in length, while its body was many hundreds of meters wide. For such an
enormous body to be squeezed into a mountain cavern meant that the surrounding mountain itself
would begin to split apart.

“Break apart!” The Dragonwhale felt too confined and cramped as well. When it was young, it had
lived in the Darknorth Seas. After coming to this vast region, it normally battled in the wide, spacious
skies. Naturally, it preferred wide spaces, and wasn’t very comfortable when underground.

Its enormous, ponderous body began to shake violently and wriggle about, its tail slapping about as
well. Slash! It was like an earthworm flipping over, and in the process, the mountain peak above that
had taken up ten kilometers suddenly fell over and collapsed. Many stones were knocked flying into
the skies as well. Even the earth itself was ripped apart, while the underground river ceased to floor.
The underground passage, previously thirty meters wide, was instantly, forcibly expanded to three
thousand meters wide.

“Rumble…” Even the boiling lava beneath them began to soar towards the skies, belching forth in a
paroxysm of fire as the river of lava itself reversed course. The Dragonwhale’s revealing of his true
form nad truly caused the heavens to split and the earth to shatter. As for Ning, he held his twin
swords in his hands, watching this as the Waterflame Lotus bloomed about him.

“Hurry up and leave,” Ning immediately transmitted and shouted to them, “If we get separated, we’ll
reunite at the dire-ice location.”

“Senior apprentice-brother, be careful.”

“Master, be careful.”

Qingqing instantly transformed into a small snake, wrapping herself around Northson’s arm. As for
Northson, he transformed into a streak of light, breaking through the crumbling rocks and charging
outside, moving as fast as lightning.

“Hahaha, fleeing? Do you really think you’ll escape?” The Dragonwhale’s massive draconic head
released a wild, savage laugh. The sky was now visible from their location, and the lava around
them bubbled and hissed. It was a picture of utter chaos.

“Die.” The two dragon-whiskers of the Dragonwhale descended in a sweeping movement towards
Ning, surrounded by Primal Fire and moving as fast as lightning.
“Break!” Ning’s sword-light was especially dazzling. “BANG!” Ning’s twin swords clashed against
them, and with the collision, Ning was knocked flying backwards.

“Its power increased by quite a bit.” Ning was sent smashing through tens of meters of the mountain
rocks, and his face changed. “Ah, right. Those dragon-whiskers are its ‘intrinsic magic treasures’
which it spent many years cultivating. Now that it has become a Primal, in its true form…the power
of its intrinsic magic treasures have naturally improved dramatically.”

After having reverted to its true form, the Dragonwhale’s power had increased significantly. Even
despite using the [Starseizing Hand], Ning still felt as though he couldn’t be able to withstand it.

“It seems as though my power, now, is still quite a bit weaker than a Primal Daoists.” Ning faced the
Dragonwhale King, not knowing how to battle him and trying to think of a way to delay. But
suddenly…

The world went silent.

The river of lava, previously flowing in the opposite direction, came to a halt.

The spraying water of the underground river froze in midair.

The stones that had been blasted into the skies froze there.

Ning was still in the pose of executing the Windwing Evasion and retreating frantically…

Northson was standing in front of the grand sealing barrier, unmoving…

Even the incomparably massive Dragonwhale Diremonster that was floating in the air had come to a
halt. Its dragon-whiskers that had been dancing in the air were now frozen there.

In this instant, it was as though everything in this region had gone still. But Ning, Northson, the Azure
Skysnake, and the Dragonwhale King, these four living creatures, knew very well that this wasn’t the
case!

“This is…” Ning could feel an incomparably powerful force instantly descend, so powerful as to
completely suppress him. He felt like an ant atop of an iceberg, completely unable to move. He even
felt as though he couldn’t change his facial expressions. That surge of power was simply too
massive.
“What…what is going on?” Ning was completely stunned and uneasy. His soul was pulsing at him,
screaming of a terrifyingly great danger. Ning had the feeling that whatever threat had appeared was
capable of instantly annihilating him.

……

“What…what’s this??!” Northson, who had just reached the grand sealing formation, was
incomparably frantic as well. In his heart, he was also completely stunned. He felt as though he had
been completely suppressed and sealed away; he couldn’t even move a single finger. He could also
see that even the rocks in midair weren’t moving at all, causing him to feel all the more horrified.

…….

The Dragonwhale was stunned as well. It was a Primal Diremonster, and a Dragonwhale at that;
how incredibly great was its power? With but a single flip of its body, it could shatter the heavens
and break the earth. And yet, in this instant, its massive body hung there in midair, completely
unable to move.

“I’ve already reached the Primal stage. What power is this, which is capable of preventing me from
even fighting back? Even Immortals shouldn’t be this powerful. Can it be a Celestial Immortal? Or a
Loose Immortal who has lived for hundreds of thousands or millions of years?” The Dragonwhale’s
heart was filled with many thoughts as well, and it too was both terrified and restless.

…….

Although Ning didn’t move at all, he could still see. “Is that…?!” Ning suddenly stared in
astonishment as the distant, bubbling river of lava began to part. The entire earth began to crack
open, as a massive, fiery red hand, wreathed in lava, emerged from it. This hand…just staring at it,
Ning became filled with despair.

This was something which occurred only when the disparity in power had reached an unbelievable
level.

This palm of this titanic hand was more than three thousand meters long, and the palm lines were all
clearly visible. These ancient, criss-crossing palm lines appeared to be carved or sculpted. As this
titanic, fiery hand stretched out from the lava, it seized the head of the Dragonwhale in midair.

CRUNCH.
Like crushing an egg, the titanic, fiery hand easily pinched and squished the skull of the
Dragonwhale. Although the Dragonwhale was a Fiendgod Body Refiner, during the instant in which
its head was pinched, even its soul was crushed and dispersed. It wouldn’t even have the chance to
reincarnate.

An exalted Primal Diremonster had just died!

“This…” Ning’s heart was filled with incomparable shock, but his facial expressions remained
completely unchanged from earlier. Even his facial muscles couldn’t budge.

“Rumble…”

An even more titanically massive, fiery red head suddently emerged from the splitting lava. Right; a
head! He had a single eye, a nose, and a mouth. The size of his head alone was more than three
thousand meters tall. His entire, massive body slowly emerged from the deep abysses of the earth.
Only after half of his body was revealed did he come to a halt. His body seemed to be formed from
solidified magma, and it emanated an incomparable, scorching aura. He glanced at the corpse of the
Dragonwhale, which now lay amongst the shattered rocks. His single, fiery red pupil had a cold look
in them.

“A puny earthworm actually dared to destroy my residence and disturb my slumber. He deserved to
die,” this titan rumbled.

Ning was unable to reveal any expressions on his face. But in his heart, he was screaming in shock,
“Fiendgod, this is definitely a true Fiendgod!”

In this instant, Ning could think of no other possibilities. Neither Immortals nor Diremonsters matched
this creature’s appearance. This incomparably ancient, terrifying presence…in terms of appearance,
aura, or power, the only type of creature which matched it was a Fiendgod! Fiendgods were born
from the heavens themselves, and thus most had incomparably vast bodies.

They were incredibly powerful, and they had been born unfathomable ages ago, during the Fiendgod
Era!

“And two humans, along with a little snake.” This ancient Fiendgod, who had been slumbering for
who knows how long, swept his single eye to glance towards Ning, Northson, and the Azure
Skysnake, as though he were looking at ants.
Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 33 – Fiendgods and Humans

Ji Ning, Mu Northson, and the Azure Skysnake could feel the hint of killing intent wafting towards
them from this ancient Fiendgod. The three of them truly were like ants before him; whether or not
he killed them was truly a trifling matter. After all, he had been sleeping happily deep beneath the
river of lava. After having been woken up, it was rather irritated, and so the main culprit, that
Dragonwhale, was the first to die. Ning and the others were just unlucky enough to be caught up by
it all.

“No.” Northson, upon feeling that killing intent, couldn’t help but feel despair in his heart. Was he
going to die?

“I can’t die. I can’t die! I just entered the Black-White College. I swore an oath in front of Mother’s
grave…that I would make the Bluewood clan regret what they did! I haven’t, I haven’t done anything
yet. I can’t accept this, I can’t!” Northson’s eyes were filled with boundless panic and regret, but
under that boundless pressuring power, he couldn’t even change his facial expressions.

……….

“Am I going to die?” The Azure Skysnake was coiled around Northson’s arms. She was able to see
the towering, vast, ancient Fiendgod from the corner of her eyes. The feeling that ancient Fiendgod
gave her was that of the vast universe itself; she couldn’t even bring herself to want to try to resist.

“It’s sad that I’m going to die along with Woody. If I have to die, I should die alongside Master,” the
Azure Skysnake murmured to herself. She looked towards Ning as well, but because the mountain
was blocking her vision, she wasn’t able to see him at all.

……….

Ning also felt as though death was coming towards him. He had never had a strong a feeling of
impending death before; not even when he was progressing through the three trials of the
underwater estate had he felt so powerless! He couldn’t fight back at all…this sensation of
impending death was something Ning couldn’t resign himself to.

“I haven’t destroyed Snowdragon Mountain yet.”

“I haven’t even come close to being a major power in the Three Realms.”
“Father. Mother…I want to see if they are living good lives after their reincarnation.”

“And Autumn Leaf…she must be waiting for me still.”

Ning felt powerless. Although he still had that protective brooch in front of his chest that had been
given to him by Immortal Diancai, which would release a protective sword-ki with but a thought…it
would only be able to resist the power of a Loose Immortal or an Earth Immortal for a single breath’s
worth of time. In the face of a Fiendgod who had killed a Primal Diremonster as easily as stepping
on an ant, what could it possibly do?

“Activate.” Ning had bound the brooch long ago. With but a thought, Ning instantly attempted to
activate the brooch, and the protective sword-ki within it tried to surge outside. Although it was
probably useless, he had to at least give it a shot.

“Eh?” The ancient Fiendgod’s single eye turned to stare at Ning. That seemingly omnipresent power
seemed to completely focus on Ning as well, also pushing down towards Ning’s brooch. The
protective sword-ki within the brooch tried to charge out, but it was pressed down upon by an
invisible, formless strength, preventing it from emerging.

It was pushed back inside!

Ning willed it to activate again.

But yet again, it was pushed back inside!

“How can this be?” Ning now felt truly powerless.

But a hint of surprise was in the ancient Fiendgod’s single eye. He looked at Ning, murmuring to
himself, “A Sword Immortal? A Loose Immortal or an Earth Immortal? The sword-ki is both
condensed and sharp; although it’s a bit different from that of Immortal Northwalker, who chased me
around in the past, it’s still quite astonishing. This human brat most assuredly has a powerful Sword
Immortal behind him.”

“That Sword Immortal…most likely has other colleagues and seniors who stand behind him as well.”
The ancient Fiendgod mused to himself, “I had best leave. I suffered miserably enough, the last time
I was chased around.”

As someone who had existed from the Fiendgod Era to the present era, he knew exactly how
terrifying the humans were.
You kill a puny one, a strong one comes. You kill the strong one, an entire host of strong ones would
come!

Humans simply had far too many experts, and they could send out entire groups of Immortals to
attack him, a single person. The countless times he had suffered in this manner had caused him to
become incomparably cautious. It was precisely this caution which had allowed him to survive to the
present day. Otherwise, he would’ve been killed or sealed away by the humans long ago!

And, most importantly of all, humans trained far too quickly! Fiendgods were the favored children of
the heavens. They were born with tremendous power, and didn’t even suffer from the Three
Calamities and Nine Tribulations as they naturally increased in power. Only human cultivators had to
deal with the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations! However, in turn, Fiendgods were far slower in
learning and comprehending. They generally would spend tens or hundreds of thousands of years in
training, or even millions of years. Training, to them, took an incomparably long period of time.

But humans? A single human could become an Immortal in just a few centuries! A few centuries?
This was an extremely short period of time for Fiendgods.

They had terrifying reproductive abilities, powerful learning abilities, and a rapid rate of
advancement…this was why humans became the true leader of the countless races of this world,
and indeed, of the entirety of the Three Realms. They were the true overlords! Even Fiendgods had
to avoid them.

“Eh? And a Loose Immortal has come.”

The ancient Fiendgod glanced towards the distant skies. It would be extremely easy for him to kill
this Loose Immortal, but did he dare? He did not, because he knew that this Loose Immortal should
be a member of the Raindragon Guard. If he killed one of them, very soon, the Guard would send
tens or even hundreds of Loose Immortals…and perhaps even the imperial capital of the Grand Xia
Dynasty would send some of its ancient, nigh-unkillable figures.

“Time to leave.” The ancient Fiendgod’s entire body instantly emerged from the ground. With but a
single step….whoosh. Space itself twisted, and the ancient Fiendgod entered the twisting void,
disappearing without a trace.

The spraying water and flying rocks that had previously been locked in midair finally collapsed. For a
moment, there was utter chaos.
“He left?” Ning gawked in astonishment. And then, from the corner of his eyes, he stared at the
massive corpse of the Dragonwhale. He immediately waved his hand, collecting the entire, massive,
three thousand meter long corpse of the Dragonwhale into his storage-type magic treasure.

After having reached the early Wanxiang level, Ning had switched to using an Earth-ranked storage
belt. This was a spoil of war he had acquired from killing the Wanxiang Diremonsters earlier. This
belt had an enormous space within it; however, the massive body of the Dragonwhale still took up
more than half of the space within.

“Senior apprentice-brother.” Northson ran over, excited.

“Master.” The Azure Skysnake transformed into an azure shadow, moving forward and coiling
herself around Ning’s arm.

After having just escaped from certain death, they all had somewhat changed feelings in their hearts.

“Senior apprentice-brother, why did that Fiendgod leave?” Northson hurriedly asked, “And why didn’t
he kill us?”

“I don’t know either.” Ning shook his head. Although the Fiendgod had been mumbling to himself,
the surrounding space had been completely locked; not even sound waves were able to move.
Naturally, Ning hadn’t heard anything. But right at this moment…

A blood-robed elder suddenly appeared in the skies. This blood-robed elder had a crown on his
head, and the blood-red robes were incomparably beautiful. However, a hint of resentment was
within his gaze. “I actually let it escape. It ran quite quickly. It can consider itself lucky.” As soon as
he had sensed the local ripples, he had immediately hurried over here, but on the way, he had
noticed that the Fiendgod had begun to flee. He had wanted to pursue it, but unfortunately, he hadn’t
been able to.

“You three.” The blood-robed elder, after appearing in midair, stared downwards towards Ning,
Northson, and the Azure Skysnake. As he did, the three of them felt their hearts grow numb.

“You should’ve seen that Fiendgod emerge, just now.” The blood-robed elder’s voice was icy cold,
and slowly, the world itself around them seemed to begin to freeze. Ning, Northson, and the Azure
Skysnake all felt an invisible pressure crush down towards them, quite similar to the technique which
the Fiendgod had previously used. However, this pressure was far weaker than that of the
Fiendgod’s. Despite that, however, Ning’s group knew that this Immortal in front of them was still
invincible, as far as they were concerned.
“Tell me, what did it look like?” The blood-robed elder pointed towards the Azure Skysnake. “You,
monster. You speak first.” A look of terror appeared on the Azure Skysnake’s face, and she
immediately said, “It was an extremely massive Fiendgod, with a palm of more than three thousand
meters long. As for its body, it was thirty thousand meters tall! Its body appeared to be formed from
lava stones. It had a single eye, a single nose, and a single mouth. It didn’t have hair, and lava
seemed to be flowing from its head as well.”

A look of shock appeared in the eyes of the blood-robed elder. Him? Only now did the elder know
which Fiendgod it was, and cold sweat trickled down his back. That was too close; fortunately, he
hadn’t caught the Fiendgod, as if he had, he probably would’ve died.

Next, he pointed towards Northson. “You. Speak.” As soon as his words came out, Northson felt an
invisible power command his soul. Although he remained conscious, his mouth began to speak by
itself. “He emerged from the lava beneath us. His entire body was fiery red, he bound us with an
invisible pressure that we weren’t able to resist at all. He had a single eye, a single nose, a single
mouth…”

“You. Speak.” The blood-robed elder pointed at Ning. Ning, too, sensed an invisible divine will
instantly invade his sea of consciousness. However, Ning’s powerful divine will pushed back against
it.

BOOM! A soundless, invisible collision of divine wills. Although the blood-robed elder held an
absolute advantage, he was unable to control Ning like a puppet.

“Eh? Your divine soul is this powerful?” The blood-robed elder looked towards Ji Ning. “Which
school are you from?”

“This junior is Ji Ning, disciple of the Black-White College. My master is Immortal Diancai.” Ning
continued respectfully, “Next to me is my junior apprentice-brother, Mu Northson. This Azure
Skysnake is a spirit-beast I have recently tamed while wandering the wild marshes of the Gaol
Mountains.”

“Immortal Diancai? The Black-White College?” The blood-robed elder nodded calmly, then said in a
still-cold voice, “I ask you this; when the Fiendgod appeared…why didn’t he kill the three of you?”

“I don’t know.” Ning shook his head.

I don’t know..” Northson said the same thing.

Qingqing just shook her head, not even daring to speak.

The blood-robed elder knew very well that this particular, ancient Fiendgod had a strange temper.
When angered, it would occasionally kill humans. However, because that ancient Fiendgod had
always been cautious and low-key, and had never acted to kill human Loose Immortals with powerful
backgrounds, the Grand Xia Dynasty had never put too much effort into chasing after and capturing
him.

If he had engaged in wanton massacres and killed many influential figures, the Grand Xia Dynasty,
in its rage, might send its full might against him. In that situation, it probably would be caught alive
after just a few days!

“The three of you can consider yourself lucky to have survived a meeting with a Fiendgod,” the
blood-robed elder barked. “However, you absolutely must not reveal the details of this meeting. If I
find out that you have, then the Raindragon Guard will hold you accountable for it!”

“Yes.” Ning, Northson, and the Azure Skysnake all acknowledged this order. The blood-robed elder
calmly waved his hand. “Then hurry up and leave.”

Ning’s group didn’t dare to tarry; they immediately boarded the dragon-headed warship, transforming
into a streak of light and leaving at high speed.

……

Whoosh!

Shortly after they left, yet another person appeared. This was a silver-haired youth with loose,
unbound hair, and who also had a crown on his head. Immediately afterwards, a muscular, armored
old man appeared as well.

“A Fiendgod emerged?” The silver-haired youth laughed calmly.

“Which Fiendgod was it?”

……..

Ning had guessed that the emergence of this ancient Fiendgod would cause quite a stir. Still, for
now, these were problems for Immortals to deal with; they were far from being something he could
intervene in.
“Senior apprentice-brother, this time, that was far too close. We nearly died there.” Northson let out a
sigh, staring towards the clouds nearby, then down towards the vast wilderness. “It’s so good to be
alive.”

“It’s so good to be alive.” Ning nodded as well.

If he had truly died like this, then that would be far too unfair. There were many things he had yet to
do!

Book 8, Raindragon Guard, Chapter 34 – Entering the Raindragon Guard

The dragon-headed warship was flying through the clouds. Ji Ning and Mu Northson, faces full of
joy, were going through and binding the assorted magic treasures.

“Senior apprentice-brother, this Dragonwhale’s wealth was far greater than the wealth of those four
Wanxiang Adepts we killed,” Northson said, incomparably excited. “Previously, we killed more than
ten Wanxiang Diremonsters, but all their wealth combined…can’t match up to this single
Dragonwhale.”

“Of course. The Dragonwhale King had roamed the world for ten millennia, and had even escaped
from Primal Daoists on numerous occasions, then had advanced to the Primal stage itself,” Ning
said. “And it just broke through to the Primal level. If it had spent a thousand years training at the
Primal level, its wealth would be even more astonishing. However, a Primal Diremonster who had
been training at the Primal level for a thousand years…I probably wouldn’t be able to block it at all.”

Northson immediately shook his head. “Even a Primal who had trained for a thousand years would
perish upon encountering that ancient Fiendgod! And you were quite fast with your hands, senior
apprentice-brother; as soon as the Fiendgod left, you immediately collected this massive corpse of
the Dragonwhale. The Loose Immortal who came afterwards didn’t notice anything; if he had, he
probably would’ve taken it with him.”

Ning laughed as well. He, too, felt that he had been quite clever. Still…this Dragonwhale King truly
did possess an astonishing amount of wealth. There had been eight magic treasures stored in its
Zifu region, and upon the Dragonwhale’s death, they had fallen to the ground alongside its corpse.
Two were Earth-ranked storage treasures, four were Earth-ranked magic treasures, while two were
Heaven-ranked magic treasures. Those two Heaven-ranked magic treasures alone were worth
thousands of kilograms of liquefied elemental essence! Ning and Northson were currently binding
the storage-type treasures.

“So many magic treasures.”

“What treasure is this?”

“And here are other storage-type treasures. These should have belonged to Adept Dong One and
Adept Redleaf. Keep searching!”

“Here’s a bottle of liquefied elemental essence. Wow, three hundred kilograms.”

“I imagine this one must be quite excellent. It should be the protective magic treasure of Adept Dong
One. He previously relied on it to escape from my attacks; I didn’t expect that he would end up dying
in the hands of this Dragonwhale, and his treasure would fall into my hands…”

Ning and Northson sorted through one magic treasure after another, appraising their value. The
nearby Qingqing, in turn, picked up a few in curiosity. She was a Diremonster, after all…and one
who hadn’t been training for too long. She naturally wasn’t able to assess the value of many unique,
peculiar magic treasures. Thus, all she could do was stand next to them and celebrate with them.

“We’ve finished searching them.” Ning let out a long sigh of relief. “That was awesome.” Northson’s
eyes were glowing with delight, and he chortled, “Senior apprentice-brother, I really am beginning to
admire you more and more. This Dragonwhale corpse you picked up…I admire you so much, I could
prostrate myself before you.”

Ning laughed as well. “Anything you need?” Northson took a careful glance, then shook his head
and said, “None of them are on the Dao of Constructs. There really isn’t anything I need in
particular.” Ning shook his head as well. “Nothing for I need either.”

Dong One’s protective treasure wasn’t bad, but its power was only ordinary; in the face of a Primal
Daoist, it wouldn’t be able to hold for too long. Ning, by relying on his own power, was already able
to flee for his life in the face of a Primal Daoist’s attacks; naturally, he wouldn’t care too much about
it. His protective sword-ki treasure was something which could block the attacks of even a Loose
Immortal or Earth Immortal for a full breath’s worth of time.

“Let’s split the liquefied elemental essence in half,” Ning said. “As for the magic treasures, let us
send them to the Heavenly Treasures Mountain and sell them, then we’ll split the revenue.”
“But you collected them, senior apprentice-brother.” Northson stared at him, but Ning just laughed
and ‘barked’ at him, “Stop kidding around, all I did was grab it.”

“What about me, what about me?” The nearby Qingqing said. Ning gave her a sideways glance.
“You miser! For you, finding treasures is as easy as eating food or drinking water. Stop fighting with
impoverished cultivators like us over treasure.” Qingqing’s hill-sized chunk of ancient glacial ice
alone was worth more than five thousand kilograms of liquefied elemental essence.

Qingqing instantly pouted. “Stingy!”

……..

Time flowed on. In the days after this, Ning’s group returned to the dire-ice room to continue their
training. That place was quite secretive and hidden. After the three months came to an end, Ning’s
group began their return journey to the Raindragon Guard encampment.

“Here we are.” The dragon-headed warship soared there through the clouds. Ning stood atop the
ship, staring towards the distant earth. Soon, he saw, off in the distance, a mountain peak. It was the
Raindragon Guard’s encampment.

“Hahaha, we’re back. We are about to become Raindragon Guards!” Northson whooped in delight
as the warship hastened downwards.

This time, no one came to block Ning’s group. They flew directly towards the peak of the mountain
encampment, the place next to the teleportation array. Ning instantly saw those two plainly dressed
elders who stood next to the teleportation array; it was the same two Ning had seen last time, that
skinny old man and the fat old man.

“Two more made it back alive,” the fat elder laughed, and then his gaze fell upon the little snake
wrapped around Ning’s wrists. “A monster?”

“This is a spirit-beast which I tamed in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains,” Ning said.

“You are quite formidable, young fellow. The wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains are incomparably
dangerous…it’s one thing for you to come back alive, but you actually brought a spirit-beast back as
well?” The fat elder shook his head and sighed. “The two of you can go rest over there and wait a
while. There are still thirty or so who haven’t arrived yet.”
Ning glanced towards the distance in surprise. A total of just sixteen Immortal cultivators were there,
either seated or standing and chatting with each other. Including Ning’s group, there were only
eighteen present.

“Senior, how do you know that there are thirty who have yet to arrive?” Ning asked curiously.
Northson was puzzled as well. “Right. A hundred of us headed out; how do you know how many
have died?”

Both the fat elder and the skinny elder laughed. “Have you forgotten the talisman which each of you
bound upon entering the Crimson Dragon Mountains?” The fat elder asked.

Ning and Northson instantly remembered; only after binding the talismans had they been permitted
to enter the Crimson Dragon Mountains, as otherwise, they wouldn’t have been allowed in.

“When one of you dies, the talisman becomes an ownerless object. Thus, we Raindragon Guards
would immediately become aware of it,” the fat elder said. “Right now, fifty two of the talismans are
in good shape, while the others are ownerless.”

Ning and Northson now both understood. So that tiny little talisman they had received…actually had
this secret hidden with it. The Raindragon Guard’s methods really were unpredictable.

“Senior,” Northson asked, “A while ago, my senior apprentice-brother and I came back to send some
ordinary mortals here. Those ordinary mortals who had been corralled and raised as livestock by the
monsters…how are they doing?”

“Yes, are they doing alright?” Ning asked.

The fat elder said, somewhat surprised, “Oh, it was you two who sent them over? Don’t worry; of
course they are doing alright. We Raindragon Guards will naturally take care of those pitiable
tribesmen; however, they were teleported away long ago and left the Gaol Mountains long ago. We
Raindragon Guards will take good care of them.”

Ning nodded slightly. That was good. Only, he didn’t know…what that little kid called ‘Ironboy’ would
end up like.

“Let’s go.” Ning immediately moved with Northson to one side. With but a flick of their fingers, they
each pointed towards a boulder that had been chopped flat. Crackle…frost appeared, instantly
covering the stones with a layer of ice. These boulders were used for the Raindragon Guards who
had come here to rest on, but with so much wind and dust swirling about, they had naturally been
quite dirty. After Ning and Northson revealed this ability, quite a few nearby cultivators looked
towards them.

Dire-ice?

Soon, cultivators came over to chat with the two of them. Ning and Northson chatted with them,
making quite a few friends amongst them.

……..

One surviving cultivator after another hurried back from locations throughout the wild marshes of the
Gaol Mountains. Eastriver Cloudsoar, who both Ning and Northson recognized, returned as well.
However, Cloudsoar returned with only one arm, and the baleful aura around him was much
stronger than it had been in the past. This caused quite a bit of silent discussion amongst the various
cultivators.

“What happened?” Northson sent mentally, “In the past, Eastriver Cloudsoar was quite the talker;
why is it that he’s grown so much colder? And he’s lost an arm…but it’s just an arm. All he needs to
do is eat a spirit-pill that allows the regeneration of limbs. In addition, Wanxiang Adepts can also
slowly regrow their arms by using their elemental ki. Why hasn’t he done so at all?”

Ning shook his head. He, too, had noticed…that after this tempering experience, Cloudsoar seemed
to have changed dramatically.

In the blink of an eye, half a day passed. More cultivators returned. “Look, Meng Liuqing!” Northson
sent mentally to Ning, “She’s the only survivor of those six Immortal cultivators who tried to gang up
on us.”

“Meng Liuqing?” Ning saw this female cultivator of the Meng clan arrive as well. She descended
from the skies. Upon seeing Ning and Northson, her face changed slightly. She immediately turned
and was about to walk to one side, when…

“Meng Liuqing!”

A fierce voice rang out.

Meng Liuqing turned her head, only to see a one-armed, white-robed youth, filled with a baleful aura
that reached the heavens, and whose eyes were filled with an icy light. “I, Eastriver Cloudsoar, will
definitely avenge my slain younger sister. Meng Liuqing…prepare for your death! And the other
five…I won’t spare any of you!” As the disciple of the Eastriver clan, he dared to say these words
openly and directly!

“The other five?” Meng Liuqing shook her head. “I don’t know about Dong One, but the other four…
Northriver Zhou, Xu Manquan, Nongsan, and Jihe…are already dead.”

Cloudsoar was stunned. “Dead?”

All the surrounding cultivators looked towards them as well. Dead? Four Wanxiang Adepts had
died? These cultivators all grew curious…what exactly had happened?

“They died in the hands of the two disciples of the Black-White College.” Meng Liuqing glanced
sideways towards Ning and Northson. Enmity had been created between her and the two of them;
naturally, she didn’t mind giving the two of them a bit of extra trouble. Earlier, she had intentionally
reported the names of those four, so that the friends and family members of the four would know
who had done the deed.

“You b*tch!” Northson instantly rose to his feet and roared with fury, “Previously, the six of you tried
to ambush and sneak attack the two of us. Four of you died, and now, you are still trying to plot
against us? Listen up, you b*tch! In the future, you’d best never run into me. If I do, I’ll take your life!”

“Right.” Ning stared coldly towards her as well. Unfortunately, this was the encampment of the
Raindragon Guards; no one dared to fight here. As for Meng Liuqing, she just gave Ning and
Northson a cold glance; since there was already enmity between them, why fear this additional
threat?

“Fellow Daoists Ji Ning and Mu Northson.” Eastriver Cloudsoar turned to look towards Ning and
Northson, then bowed deeply. “Those six didn’t go kill Diremonsters; instead, they came to ambush
and kill us, fellow cultivators. They deserved to die in your hands, fellow Daoists. In the future, if
either of you need anything, fellow Daoists, just let me know; I, Eastriver Cloudsoar, will definitely
comply, even if I have to go through water or climb past fire.”

“You are too courteous. We, too, were ambushed and attacked, so we simply dealt with them.” Ning
and Northson hurriedly went over to raise Cloudsoar from his bow.

………

Soon, all of the remaining, surviving cultivators had returned. Adept Redleaf returned as well! Only,
Adept Redleaf had no idea that it had been Ji Ning and Mu Northson within that formation! Still, he
had heard the Dragonwhale King say something about ‘blame Ji Ning’, and so he naturally gave
Ning a deep look.

“You fifty two survived. If you have brought back the corpse or the head of a Wanxiang Diremonster,
then you will naturally become Raindragon Guards,” the skinny elder said. “Go. Go into the
teleportation array and return to the Crimson Dragon Mountains.”

The fifty two cultivators all entered the teleportation array. Soon, the array lit up, and Ning’s group of
fifty two were once more teleported back to the Crimson Dragon Mountains, more than two million
kilometers away.