Miles away, in a desolate Gobi desert.
Chu Yang stepped out of the distorted Gate of Light, his aura becoming increasingly profound and restrained, as if he had undergone a baptism of time and space. Although the ancient Reincarnation Trial Ground was dilapidated, it allowed him to gain a deeper understanding of the true meaning of "Reincarnation," and his Chaos Heaven Opening Art had also advanced further.
He sensed the direction of the Sect, a slight smile playing on his lips. During his absence, the Sect Destiny seemed to have grown much stronger.
With one step, space folded, and the next moment, he appeared silently above the valley of the Reincarnation Sect, looking down.
The Spirit Gathering Array Disk operated ceaselessly, Spiritual Rain sprinkled down. Dao Rhyme flowed within the Scripture Conveying Hall. Vitality flourished in the Spirit Herb Garden. But the most eye-catching sight was the newly completed Jade Pill Pavilion, where medicinal fragrance curled upwards, connected to the Qi Mechanism of the Spirit Herb Garden, forming its own cycle.
"Not bad," Chu Yang nodded slightly, his gaze immediately falling before the Pill Pavilion.
Yu Yin was seen sitting cross-legged before a specially made Alchemy Platform, her expression focused, controlling the Wood Spirit Heart Fire to warm the Pill Furnace. Qing Xue stood guard beside her; her aura was even more condensed and icy than before, clearly indicating another advancement in her Cultivation Level. Meanwhile, in the empty space of the Separate Courtyard on the outskirts of the valley, a tall, fire-red-haired girl was gritting her teeth while carrying an exaggerated giant axe, performing some extremely difficult physical tempering movements. Her Qi and Blood surged unstably around her body, yet she possessed an astonishing tenacity.
"Oh? A new seedling? Ancient Desolate Battle Body?" Chu Yang saw through Song Jiaojiao's background at a glance, a flicker of interest crossing his eyes. This girl's perseverance was commendable.
His appearance was not deliberately concealed.
"Master!" Qing Xue was the first to sense him, looking up sharply, the icy expression on her face instantly blooming with surprised delight.
"Master! You've returned!" Yu Yin also immediately stopped warming the furnace and stood up joyfully.
Song Jiaojiao in the Separate Courtyard felt that vast, abyss-like aura that was nonetheless integrated with the valley. She jolted, nearly losing her footing, hastily putting down the giant axe and looking over with a mixture of curiosity and awe.
Leng Wei's figure quietly appeared beside Chu Yang, bowing slightly, "Sect Master."
Chu Yang nodded to Leng Wei, his gaze falling gently on Qing Xue and Yu Yin: "While I was away, neither of you slacked off. Very good." His gaze lingered on Yu Yin for a moment: "Your Wood Spirit Sacred Body is stable, and you have glimpsed the threshold of the Pill Dao. Not bad."
He then looked towards Song Jiaojiao, who seemed somewhat flustered in the distance: "Who is this girl?"
Qing Xue quickly reported: "Master, her name is Song Jiaojiao. She possesses a Special Physique, her strength is violent and hard to control, but her heart is sincere, and she wishes to join our Sect. I am currently teaching her basic physical tempering methods to solidify her foundation." She briefly explained how she met Song Jiaojiao.
Hearing herself mentioned, Song Jiaojiao rushed over, clumsily performing a bow like Qing Xue and the others, her voice loud: "Disciple... Disciple Song Jiaojiao, greets the Sect Master!" She secretly glanced up, observing the legendary Master, feeling that although he appeared Mundane, he seemed to contain the entire world, inspiring in her infinite reverence and worship.
Chu Yang looked at the undisguised longing and stubbornness in her eyes, sensing the volcanic, dormant power within her, and smiled slightly: "The Ancient Desolate Battle Body is the aptitude of a War God. Since you wish to join my Reincarnation Sect, are you willing to endure the suffering of having your skin flayed and tendons pulled, undergoing a Complete Metamorphosis, to truly control this power, rather than being enslaved by it?"
His voice traveled directly into the Depth of Song Jiaojiao's Divine Soul.
Song Jiaojiao's delicate body trembled. Sensing the unquestionable power and promise in his words, she knelt down heavily without hesitation: "Disciple is willing! As long as I can become stronger, I can endure any hardship! I beg Master to grant my wish!"
"Good." Chu Yang nodded. "From this day forward, you are the third direct disciple under me, Chu Yang. When your foundation is stable, I will teach you the 《Xingtian Battle Art》!"
Xingtian Battle Art! Just the name made Song Jiaojiao's blood boil! Her eyes reddened with excitement, and she kowtowed again: "Thank you, Master! Disciple will certainly not fail Master's high expectations!"
【Ding! Target matching the 'Hidden Dragon in the Abyss' destiny, 'Song Jiaojiao,' has officially become a disciple!】
【Task: Recruiting the Third Disciple is complete!】
【Potential Assessment: S-Rank!】
【Rewards Issued: Integral Points! Special Lottery Chance × 1! Great Emperor Realm Cultivation Level Exchange Card × 5!】
【Sect Destiny +120!】
The System notification sounded, and the rewards arrived as scheduled.
Chu Yang's gaze swept over the nascent Sect, his mind already making plans. He looked at Yu Yin: "Since the Pill Pavilion is complete, its utility must be maximized. Since you can already refine the Azure Wood Marrow Cleansing Pill, try refining the more difficult 'Foundation Establishment Pill.' The main ingredients required, 'Jade Marrow Ganoderma' and 'Heavenly Heart Flower,' I will fetch for you shortly."
Foundation Establishment Pill! A top-tier Second Grade Pill, crucial for Qi Refining Stage cultivators to break through to Foundation Establishment! Its refinement difficulty far surpasses the Azure Wood Marrow Cleansing Pill! Upon hearing this, Yu Yin felt pressure yet was also excited, quickly responding: "Yes, Master! Disciple will certainly do her best!"
Just then, Chu Yang's expression shifted slightly, his gaze piercing through layers of Formation Arrays to look outside the valley. Leng Wei sensed it simultaneously.
"Someone else is coming," Leng Wei said coolly. "It's Murong Bai, bringing a... very strange girl."
Chu Yang's Divine Sense swept over them, and a meaningful arc curved on his lips: "Innate Sword Bone, yet Spirit Root completely destroyed, Sword Intent devouring the body... Interesting. This girl is destined to enter my Reincarnation Sect."
He took one step, and his figure appeared outside the valley.
Murong Bai was respectfully waiting there with a girl. The girl was wearing a faded, coarse cloth dress, head bowed, her frame thin and frail, as if a gust of wind could blow her over. She was enveloped in an aura of deathly stillness and despair. Her exposed neck and wrists were covered in dense, fine sword marks, both new and old, a shocking sight.
Sensing Chu Yang's arrival, Murong Bai quickly bowed: "Junior Murong Bai pays respects to Sect Master Chu!" His demeanor was even more humble than before.
Chu Yang ignored him, his gaze fixed on the girl.
【Ding! Target matching the 'Hidden Dragon in the Abyss' destiny detected!】
【Name: Jian Jiu】
【Physique: Defective Innate Sword Embryo （Originally Innate Sword Bone, destroyed by external force, Sword Intent undying, undergoing Nirvana in the throes of death, transforming into an even rarer Innate Sword Embryo Nascent Form ）】
【Status: Spirit Root lost, Meridians completely shattered, sustained only by a wisp of undying Sword Intent. Physical Body and Divine Soul constantly endure the torment of the Sword Intent's cutting.】
【Potential Assessment: Unknown （Surpasses S-Rank. If foundation can be rebuilt, future prospects are limitless, but accompanied by immense risk ）】
Innate Sword Embryo! Nirvana born from destruction! Brilliant light shot from Chu Yang's eyes! Such aptitude, such resolve, rarely seen across the ages!
"Raise your head." Chu Yang's voice was calm, yet carried a power that reached directly into the Soul.
The girl's body trembled, and she slowly raised her head.
It was a small, pale face, almost transparent. Her features were exquisite but lifeless. Only her eyes were like two dry wells, bottomless, filled with numbness and deathly stillness. Yet, deep within that stillness, there was a faint, candle-in-the-wind-like—but never extinguished—sword gleam!
Her gaze fell blankly upon Chu Yang, showing no reaction, like a soulless shell.
Murong Bai quickly explained: "Sect Master Chu, I found this girl by chance in a mass grave outside the city. She was on the verge of death, with only a broken sword beside her. She seems to have lost most of her memories, only knowing her name is 'Jian Jiu,' nothing else, and she cannot speak. I felt pity for her, and sensed a strange Sword Intent within her. Perhaps... perhaps only your Sect can save her."
Chu Yang looked into Jian Jiu's dead eyes, feeling as if he saw the horrific torment she had once endured, the despair of having everything forcibly stripped away, even her memories nearly erased. But he also saw, beneath that abyss of despair, the undying Sword Intent representing a soul that would never yield!
"Spirit Root stolen, Meridians shattered, memory lost, Sword Intent corroding the body, life worse than death," Chu Yang spoke slowly, every word like a heavy hammer striking Jian Jiu's numb mind. "Do you still remember 'pain'? Do you still remember 'hatred'? Do you still remember... who you are?"
Jian Jiu's vacant gaze flickered slightly, then returned to stillness. Only her body instinctively trembled due to the agitation of the Sword Intent within her.
Chu Yang extended a finger, and a wisp of Chaos Spiritual Power, containing creation and destruction, embracing everything, slowly touched her brow.
"Forgetting might be another kind of beginning."
"Suffering is the Cornerstone for forging the Supreme Sword Dao."
"From this day forward, your name is 'Mo Li,' and you are my fourth direct disciple, Chu Yang!"
"Enter my Reincarnation Sect, and I will rebuild your Sword Bone and reforge your Sword Heart! In the future, I will let you wield the sword in your hand, cut through the fog of the past, and make those who owe a debt pay it back, one by one!"
The words "Mo Li" exploded like thunder in Jian Jiu's （now Mo Li） soul! That wisp of Chaos Spiritual Power surged into her shattered Meridians, domineering yet gently smoothing the rampaging Sword Intent, bringing a trace of long-lost, almost unfamiliar warmth.
The faint sword gleam in her dead eyes suddenly flickered, like a spark landing in oil!
A drop of turbid tear, mixed with bloodstains, silently slid from the corner of her eye.
She did not speak, but used all her strength to slightly lower the head that she had never bowed to anyone before, towards Chu Yang.
Silence, yet it was the greatest vow.
Chu Yang reached out, gently brushing her dry, yellowing hair, and a soft power lifted her up.
"Follow me into the Sect."
He turned and stepped into the Formation Array, bringing his newly accepted fourth female disciple, Mo Li.
Inside the valley, Qing Xue, Yu Yin, and Song Jiaojiao were all shaken as they watched their Master bring back this girl, covered in scars, with dead eyes that now held a glimmer of new life.
The fourth disciple of the Reincarnation Sect welcomed her rebirth through Reincarnation in the cruelest manner.
With Chu Yang's return and the acceptance of two new female disciples, Song Jiaojiao and Mo Li, both Hidden Dragons in the Abyss, the Sect's atmosphere underwent a massive transformation!
（Chapter Twenty-Two End）