The rain of July arrived in a rush.
In a fleeting instant, a heavy downpour began to fall. Mortals hurried to seek shelter on the streets, opening bamboo rain capes and oil-paper umbrellas to carve out small spaces of refuge, yet rainwater still splashed against the hems of their robes. Some stood and cursed, while others walked with numb expressions, but no one noticed that amidst the stream of people stood a tall and straight figure with a stunning appearance. This person was dressed in a pristine white robe, the cuffs outlined with dark golden auspicious cloud patterns that faintly shimmered with glowing light.
He wove through the crowd.
With every step he took, the people in front of him parted unconsciously, yet those individuals remained entirely oblivious, as if they could not see him at all until he had passed and things gradually returned to normal.
This person was none other than Wei Shengzhen, who had descended the mountain to search for an item.
The heavy downpour continued to fall, but when it reached the vicinity of Wei Shengzhen’s body, it was blocked by an invisible curtain of light. Consequently, he did not hold any rain gear, nor would his body get wet.
This place was a mortal market located within a mystic realm.
At this moment, he held a dark green, compass-like artifact in his hand, searching for direction as he walked. Before long, he stopped at the entrance of a small alley, looking around in all directions without catching sight of the item he desired. He frowned and muttered, “Strange, truly strange. This is already the last rainy day of the month, yet it still refuses to appear?”
“It seems we are fated to have no bond after all. The will of heaven is hard to defy, and this trial that must come, I ultimately cannot escape.”
“To think that even my manner of speaking has become so refined! Over this past century, people really can change quite a bit.”
Wei Shengzhen sighed, a momentary look of absentmindedness flashing through his eyes.
Seeing that the rain curtain had gradually eased, he stood still for a long time until midnight had passed, then reluctantly retrieved the compass. After casting a lingering gaze, he formed a hand seal with the index and middle fingers of his left hand.
Immediately, his figure vanished on the spot.
The mortals by his side continued on their hurried way, completely unaware that such an event had ever taken place here.
Yet what he did not know was that about an hour after his departure, someone gracefully descended upon the very spot where he had recently paused.
The mystic realm rotated, reversing time.
The only difference was that the rainwater Wei Shengzhen had waited for in vain finally fell quietly for a second time as the market approached midnight once again.
That person lowered his gaze, looking toward the object deep within the alley that was finally beginning to glow faintly.
The corners of his lips curved upward slightly.
“Second Senior Brother! Second Senior Brother! Second Senior Brother!” A bright, youthful voice chattered away like a sparrow outside the door. Although no response came from within the room, the person outside was undeterred. While knocking on the door, he continued to shout loudly, giving off the absolute impression that he would shout until the end of time if no reply was given.
Wei Shengzhen had only just fallen asleep and reached out to pull the blanket over his head, hoping to shut out the shouting from outside. However, the person at the door showed no signs of letting up. After a prolonged deadlock, Wei Shengzhen finally propped himself up with difficulty, quietly draped a garment over his shoulders, and rose. With eyes heavy with sleep, he opened the door with lightning speed, swiftly seizing the intruder’s ear and lifting him up by it.
“You little rascal! You should have stopped after calling a few times and getting no response from your senior brother. Why did you keep persisting? Don’t you know your senior brother only just returned a couple of hours ago?”
Being held by the ear, the youth remained entirely cheeky. “Second Senior Brother, it’s not that I insist on disturbing you, but coming to find you this time is a matter of great urgency. Master and the Sect Master are waiting for you in the Yaori Hall right now to discuss an important matter. Besides, counting it all up, Senior Brother has already slept for two whole hours. For a cultivator, that amount of time is more than enough. Are you a pig, Senior Brother? Do you have to sleep a full four hours every day?”
Wei Shengzhen had already released his hold on the youth’s earlobe. Hearing this, he wanted to pinch Wen Yujun’s ear once more, but the youth dodged extremely fast, instantly catching Wei Shengzhen’s wrist. “It’s Senior Brother who always likes pinching other people’s ears. If you ask me, this behavior looks just like a timid little bride, hee hee.”
Wei Shengzhen gave a soft click of his tongue, let out a yawn, and said slowly, “What nonsense is the little brat spouting! Understood. I’ll head over in a quarter of an hour.”
The youth called A-Wen bolted away in a flash, leaving his voice lingering within the room: “Second Senior Brother, don’t you forget! Master said it’s urgent, critical, and of the utmost importance! Make sure you hurry over!”
Wei Shengzhen waved his hand to shut the door, then stripped off his outer robe and collapsed straight onto the bed, falling fast asleep instantly.
The Lingchao Sect had always done things as it pleased. Perhaps because he had something weighing on his mind, Wei Shengzhen woke up with a start less than half an hour later.
Come to think of it, since so much time had passed and no one had come to rush him, it probably wasn’t anything serious.
Besides, today was neither the Lingchao Sect’s meeting day nor any sort of holiday, so what on earth could Master and the Sect Master possibly want him for, calling him over to discuss something at such an ordinary time?
Carrying a hint of doubt, Wei Shengzhen stepped into Yaori Hall.
Yaori Hall was the main hall of the Lingchao Sect, situated atop the highest peak of the Lingchao Mountain Range. The palace architecture was paved with immortal spirit stones. While accelerating the flow of spiritual energy and assisting in faster cultivation, this also caused the entire structure to emit a dazzling radiance, which was where the name Yaori originated.
Its intent was to contend with the heavens for brilliance.
However, if described in the words Wei Shengzhen used when he first arrived here a century ago, simply put, this thing was practically blinding!
Perhaps because everyone’s eyes couldn’t endure this dazzling radiance, Yaori Hall was usually exceptionally quiet. Aside from various monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, and annual meetings, as well as major festivals, typically only the Sect Master and the peak masters of the Lingchao Sect’s five great peaks would gather here to discuss matters.
At this moment, only two people were present in the main hall: his master and the Sect Master.
Wei Shengzhen relaxed slightly.
With only two people, and the sound of their conversation carrying a cheerful tone from afar, it shouldn’t be anything major.
Otherwise, all six should have been present with solemn expressions.
If he finished listening quickly, he could go back and catch some more sleep.
Failing to find that object had already left him extremely upset; if they didn’t even let him sleep well, he would probably be incomparably irritable for the next day or two.
“Greetings, Master, Sect Master.”
Ranking by seniority, his master was the Peak Master of Douxing Peak, holding a lower position than the Sect Master, so the greeting should normally place the Sect Master last. However, the Lingchao Sect did not have strict requirements for these formalities, and the sect valued teachers above all else. Over the years, Wei Shengzhen’s various senior brothers and sisters had all addressed them this way, so he simply followed suit.
“No need for formalities. The Sect Master and I originally did not wish to disturb your rest, cultivation, but the two of us discussed it for a long time, and this matter is perhaps something only you, my disciple, can accomplish. That is why we hurriedly summoned you here.”
Hearing this, Wei Shengzhen’s left hand had already defensively formed a tentative hand seal.
Hah, this kind of phrasing was always the beginning of leaders drawing big pies for their subordinates; he wasn’t going to foolishly fall into that trap!
If things looked bad, he would run away immediately!
While Wei Shengzhen was secretly plotting his escape route, his master sighed and said softly, “The once-in-a-century Newcomer Tournament is about to begin! Anyone under a hundred years old may register. Zhenzhen, you are ninety-nine years and eight months old, right? I am asking you as a favor, you must go and participate! Bring back a first-place finish, and our Lingchao Sect will definitely look glorious for the next hundred years!”
“Revitalizing the Lingchao Sect starts with you and me!” This was the grand aspiration offered by the Sect Master.
“Going back three centuries, that first-place finish also belonged to our Lingchao Sect. Besides, Junior Brother is about to break through to the late stage of Spirit Severing anyway. For this kind of thing, shouldn’t I sit it out and leave the stage for the junior brothers and junior sisters to shine?” Wei Shengzhen wore a dark look.
“A-Wen will definitely go, but this time, what we want isn’t just first place.”
“It would be best if we sweep the top three to fully display the style of our Lingchao Sect!” The Sect Master gave Wei Shengzhen a thumbs-up.
“You can add a grand entry to next year’s enrollment brochure. Don’t you want more cute junior brothers and sisters to come in and cultivate?”
Wei Shengzhen endured and endured, until he could endure no longer.
“Does it not feel a bit excessive? Asking me, someone at the early stage of Void Return, to compete with a bunch of younger brothers and sisters whose talent is good enough only to reach the middle stage of Spirit Severing? There is a whole major realm between us! It is simply bullying the weak with strength, an unmerited victory! If word of this gets out, what will my group of good-for-nothing friends think of me, and where will I put my face?”
In the end, Wei Shengzhen still boarded the jade boat heading toward the Newcomer Tournament.
Don’t ask; asking means that the registration process for the Newcomer Tournament proclaimed the news across heaven and earth, and his good master had already registered him before consulting him.
The matter was set in stone, impossible to alter, and impossible to withdraw from.
Wei Shengzhen rolled over on his bed, blocking out the exclamations of the junior brothers and junior sisters admiring the scenery in the jade boat cabin. After feeling embarrassed for a brief moment, he drifted right back to sleep.
Never mind. At worst, he would lose a tiny bit of face in front of his friends. His skin was thick enough, and he could turn around and mock that bunch of old fogies of his own generation for not being qualified to register.
Even though the oldest of those old fogies in his mouth was no more than a hundred and thirty-odd years old.
The fact that he could successfully register meant he fell within the eligibility range of the Newcomer Tournament. If those younger brothers and sisters couldn’t beat him, they could just consider it their own fault for not cultivating as diligently as he did.
Wei Shengzhen comforted himself this way.
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
There were thirty-six people from the Lingchao Sect participating in the competition this time. Wei Shengzhen had the oldest seniority, the highest generation, and a cultivation level sufficient for leading a team, so the Sect Master had made a grand gesture. Sending only a single steward to handle everything, the Sect Master instructed Wei Shengzhen that if they encountered any trial grounds along the way, he could let the junior brothers and sisters test themselves, but he must remember to protect them well.
In short, he was being treated like a half-captain of the delegation.
Wei Shengzhen had previously led teams down the mountain to subdue demons, but simply leading a team versus leading a team while also having to compete were two entirely different states of mind.
For instance, he was currently lying on a recliner, watching the sky slowly drift past as a flurry of thoughts flew through his mind.
“Junior Brother Weisheng.” A voice broke Wei Shengzhen’s reverie.
The steward accompanying them was surnamed Wu. Everyone in the sect usually called him Uncle-Master Wu, and he belonged to the same peak as Wei Shengzhen. Currently, his strength was roughly on par with Wei Shengzhen, the early stage of Void Return.
It was just that he had never had any real drive for cultivation; instead, he preferred to pick out promising seedlings in the outer sect and cultivate them, to the point where he was already over three thousand five hundred years old, and even the first of the Five Decays of Heaven and Man had passed, yet he had no thoughts of breaking through further.
His biggest hobbies on ordinary days were teaching lessons and guiding outer sect disciples, making him a truly diligent and dedicated pillar of the sect.
Among the thirty-five people brought along besides Wei Shengzhen, at least thirty had received his guidance and enlightenment, and four of them were even pearls in the dust that he had discerned with a discerning eye and brought up from the outer sect.
Now, those four individuals were indeed living up to expectations and had achieved small successes.
“Uncle-Master Wu.” Wei Shengzhen still held a very high opinion of him. He stood up, gazed into the distance, and asked, “Do you think it is feasible?”
Uncle-Master Wu pondered for a moment. “For the junior disciples, it might be slightly tricky, but with the two of us keeping watch from the sidelines, there should not be any major problems at least.”
“It will still take five days of travel from here to Xinghai Terrace, and the Newcomer Tournament doesn’t start for another month. Even if we arrive early, we will just be carrying out demon-subduing activities in the surrounding areas. As I see it, we can just take care of it along the way.”
The two looked at each other and reached a tacit agreement. The direction in which the jade boat sailed shifted slightly.