Chapter 373: Who Controls the Rise and Fall?

Chapter 373 -199: Who Controls the Rise and Fall?

In the utter silence, a soul lamp suddenly went out.

“Oh?” A frivolous voice suddenly echoed through the vast, empty space. “Didn’t the sect’s true disciples receive the decree from the Hundred Eyes True Man to all remain in seclusion? Which one of them has suddenly fallen?”

A black-robed figure, face hidden within a hood, emerged from the shadows. Taking a long hook, he reached into the rows of alcoves and retrieved the extinguished lamp. He examined it closely, his voice coming out as a hoarse rasp. “Wu Hengguang…”

“Hm?” the frivolous voice asked. “Wu Hengguang? Isn’t that Wu Xingyun’s younger brother, the one whose fate was prophesied by True Man Yan Tian?”

‘To think that before we even officially clash with the Xuan Sect, our Manifestation Sect would lose a prodigy whose fate was foretold by True Man Yan Tian…’ the black-robed man muttered to himself, ignoring the other voice.

“Heh,” the frivolous voice scoffed. “Do you old fossils really believe you can find the so-called savior of the sect just by relying on True Man Yan Tian’s divinations?”

“I, Qiu Qinghai, was never given a second glance by True Man Yan Tian, yet didn’t I still reach the Primordial Spirit realm? Wu Xingyun received True Man Yan Tian’s favor, who prophesied that he and his brother were like a dragon and tiger born of the same womb. And in the end—”

“One’s Dao heart was weak, and he ended up refining a True Form Treasure instead. The other died an early, unremarkable death!”

“HAHAHAHAHA!”

「The East Sea Coast.」

A thousand-zhang-tall hand, clenched into a fist, hung in the air. The fist trembled continuously for a full quarter of an hour before it stopped. Then, the five fingers unfurled, releasing a dense cloud of primordial qi from within. The clear qi rose and the turbid sank, and in moments, it dispersed into two plumes of smoke.

With a thought, Xuzhuang retracted the Innate Tai Su Qi Grand Capture back into his Gangyun.

Wu Hengguang was only at the second stage of the Nascent Soul realm, and his combat prowess wasn’t particularly impressive. He really couldn’t have stirred up much of a storm.

Xuzhuang had intended to capture him alive. But he figured Wu Hengguang knew that being captured might be a worse fate than death, so he chose to perish along with his enemy.

However, trapped within the Innate Tai Su Qi Grand Capture, all he managed to do was force Xuzhuang to expend a little Magical Power to suppress him before he was turned to dust and scattered to the winds.

Xuzhuang silently drew Magical Power from the Moon in the Well. By the time his Dharma Body’s Magical Power was replenished, the strange primordial essence within the Moon in the Well had shrunk by another fraction, returning almost to the state it was in when Xuzhuang first obtained it.

After all, he hadn’t had the Moon in the Well for long, and his true self had left in too much of a hurry to fully charge it with Magical Power. It was originally enough to sustain his Dharma Body in the world, but with his daily refining of Magical Artifacts and his recent series of battles, the expenditure had become a bit too heavy.

‘It seems I shouldn’t wantonly squander Magical Power before my true self returns.’ As Xuzhuang was pondering this, Qin Dengxiao rose on the wind from the mountain forest below. He presented a swatch of plain gauze with both hands and said, “Master, I have not failed my mission. Your disciple has found the item.”

Xuzhuang nodded slightly and glanced down. The item was a thin, translucent, and breathable layer. Yet when he swept it with his Spiritual Sense, it was as if nothing was there. No wonder when Wu Hengguang had slashed his way out of the bone carriage and this item had fallen into the mountains, Xuzhuang hadn’t been able to detect it.

In fact, Xuzhuang had arrived on Gem Island long before Qin Dengxiao’s battle with Hou Shengyun. However, he was a master of transforming his physical form and had cultivated the Tai Su True Form Scripture. When he concealed himself, not only did Qin Dengxiao and Hou Shengyun fail to notice him, but even Wu Hengguang and Ji Qingyan were unaware of his presence.

To be honest, Xuzhuang hadn’t discovered Wu Hengguang and Ji Qingyan at first either. It was only when Yang Huai Venerable was chasing Qin Dengxiao that the two of them revealed their auras by using a Magical Artifact for a Flying Escape, allowing Xuzhuang to see through their concealment.

It seemed those Demon Sect scoundrels had used this very item to hide right under his nose. It was truly a rare treasure. After a moment’s thought, Xuzhuang didn’t take the Invisibility Gauze. Instead, he said, “You should keep it.”

“Thank you, Master!” Qin Dengxiao didn’t refuse. In his heart, his master was an invincible figure who could go anywhere in the world and before whom all the world’s geniuses had to bow their heads. Why would he ever need such an item?

Seeing him happily put away the Invisibility Gauze, Xuzhuang smiled slightly and praised him, “I saw your performance just now.”

“I saw that you handled the situation with measure and fought with composure, so I didn’t rush to intervene. But that caused you to lose a rare External Pill, so I should compensate you. Is there anything you need?”

Qin Dengxiao hurriedly replied, “Thank you for your praise, Master. It was just a mere worldly possession, nothing of consequence. This disciple has no extravagant requests.”

Seeing him act this way, Xuzhuang thought for a moment. An idea formed in his mind, but he didn’t say more on the matter. Instead, he asked, “Now that this is settled, I will be returning to the sect immediately. Will you come with me, or will you continue your travels?”

Qin Dengxiao didn’t hesitate. “This disciple has already gained a great deal from this trip and was just about to return to the sect to consolidate my gains. I’ll have to ask Master to take me along.”

Xuzhuang smiled. “I can see that your cultivation has indeed progressed by leaps and bounds.”

Qin Dengxiao said frankly, “On this trip beyond the East Sea, your disciple discovered and opened a separate estate of the Ancient Dan Ding Sect. The harvest was plentiful. In particular, I obtained a Treasure Foundation Establishment Pill that had been preserved inside a ‘Pill Cauldron.’ It will be of great benefit for me to solidify my foundation.”

“The Ancient Dan Ding Sect.” Xuzhuang nodded thoughtfully. The Pill Cauldron Sect was recorded in the Tai Su Daoist Scripture. It seemed to have been a famous major Xuan Sect in the Divine Continent. Rumor had it that among the current Three Sects and Six Schools, the Danxia Sect, which resided in the Jianxia Mountain Range, was a successor to the Ancient Dan Ding Sect.

As Xuzhuang’s cultivation grew and his status rose, he gradually came to learn of certain secrets. In truth, among the major sects of the Divine Continent, many did not have particularly long histories. Aside from the Three Sects, several of the Six Schools had only risen to prominence in the last ten thousand years, and some had even experienced decline and replacement.

One must understand that tens of thousands of years ago was an era when the Demon Sects flourished. The Eight Great Demon Sects, much like the Three Sects and Six Schools of today, dominated the land at the zenith of their power.

Even the Upper Profound Sect and the Spirit Treasure Sect, as leaders of the Xuan Sect, could not sweep away the demonic flames and could only hold their own territories. It was precisely at that time that the Tai Su Orthodox Sect showed signs of a great revival. Geniuses emerged in droves, and successive generations of patriarchs built upon the foundations of their predecessors, forging a new path forward. Ultimately, during the era of the Xuan Sect’s rise, the Tai Su Orthodox Sect reached its peak, joining the Upper Profound Sect and the Spirit Treasure Sect as one of the Three Sects and a leader of the Xuan Sect.

‘But now, an era of conflict and tribulation is upon us once again. I wonder who will rise and who will fall in the next age?’

Xuzhuang raised his head slightly, gazing at the clear blue sky that stretched for thousands of miles. He suddenly smiled. “Dengxiao, geniuses are emerging from every sect and school, and the Four Great Demon Sects are stirring restlessly. The reputation of the thirteen generations of true disciples of our Tai Su Orthodox Sect still needs many people to uphold it.”

In the past, Xuzhuang had taken Qin Dengxiao as his disciple because he saw his superior disposition and firm Dao heart. That alone was enough. But he never expected that after coming to the Profound Yellow Realm, Qin Dengxiao would repeatedly encounter fortuitous opportunities and even shore up his weakest aspect—his foundation.

Xuzhuang suddenly felt that this disciple of his had reached the moment when a hidden dragon soars from the abyss, its scales and claws flashing.

Qin Dengxiao followed Xuzhuang’s gaze into the distance. His spirits suddenly soared, and he replied, “To be honest, Master, it is not that I am complacent. I already have a premonition. The day my foundation is perfected will be the day my opportunity arrives.”

Xuzhuang laughed heartily. Wasn’t this just like the time when he himself had returned to the sect after traveling the Divine Continent?

“Arrogant and complacent! After we return to the sect, you are sentenced to ten years of seclusion in the Beiji Pavilion!”

Xuzhuang feigned a stern rebuke, then with a flick of his sleeve, he took Qin Dengxiao with him and vanished into the clouds.