Chapter 1178: Volume 7: Dominance over the Human World, Chapter 1174: Trembling Tian Luo

One month later, in the Celestial Black Tortoise Hall of the Sublime Truth Sect, known as the foremost righteous sect in Tian Luo, an elderly Taoist with the appearance of an infant but white hair and beard, was intently examining a pale white jade slip in his hand, his expression wavering.

After a long while, he let out a long sigh and suddenly issued a command towards the outside of the hall:

“Summon someone!”

Following this command, two middle-aged Taoists entered from outside the hall.

“Sect Leader, may I know your instructions?” These two Foundation Establishment Taoists bowed deeply.

“Take this invitation and deliver it to Jin Xia Valley on the back mountain. Tell them that the fourth great cultivator has appeared in the State of Xi, and now the Drifting Cloud Sect has sent a grand ceremony invitation. Ask if the Supreme Elder will personally visit, or which of the several Senior Martial Ancestors will go instead.” The elderly Taoist handed over the jade slip, speaking earnestly.

“Yes, Sect Leader. Disciple will personally deliver it to Senior Martial Ancestor’s hands.” The expressions of the two Taoists changed, and they immediately answered respectfully.

With that, the two took the jade slip and turned into two streaks of light, flying out of the hall heading straight beyond the mountain.

…

Tianyang Pool, famously known as the forbidden area within the Harmonious Bond Sect. It is not large, just several hundred meters across, but it is enshrouded year-round in thick gray fog, and not even the few Nascent Soul elders of the sect dare to step inside. Normally, the area around Tianyang Pool within twenty miles is rarely tread by man.

But at this moment, ten yards away from the mist, stood several cultivators side by side, both men and women, all silently staring at the fog without uttering a word.

“The fourth great cultivator, Han Li cultivated quite swiftly. Although it was anticipated that he would eventually reach this stage, it was unexpected that he would advance again in just a hundred years. However, since he has reached this point, it seems I must personally attend the ceremony this time,” a soft sigh emanated from within the fog.

Outside the mist, the other cultivators stood silently, not daring to utter a word.

…

On a cliff edge on one of the Seven Spirit Islands, an ordinary-looking elderly man in a green robe stood with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing at the boundless sea with an extremely calm expression.

However, in one of the hands clasped behind his back, he gently clutched a white jade slip, which emitted a faint luminescence.

…

In a loft in the Gemcut Mountains of the State of Beiliang, a refined-looking man sat opposite a chubby elder, each on a wooden chair.

The elder carefully asked the woman:

“Senior Wu, will you personally attend the Drifting Cloud Sect’s grand ceremony? That person is so young yet has advanced to the late Nascent Soul Stage. With his lifespan, he can indeed intimidate Tian Luo for seven to eight hundred years. If we can reconcile with him, our six sects can rest without worries.”

“Oh? Sect Master Lei has taken over your sect, and now you wish to invite that person back to your valley?” The man responded indifferently.

“You misunderstand, Senior. With his current status, how could he possibly return to our humble Yellow Maple Valley again? However, our sect and your esteemed palace still have some connections with him. It would be beneficial for our six sects to maintain some relations,” the chubby elder said sheepishly.

“Do not count on me to establish relations. Although Junior Martial Sister Nangong and I get along well, ever since she left with that person, there has been no contact. However, I will represent the Masked Moon Sect in attending the ceremony,” the man stated emotionlessly after a pause.

“Senior Wu’s willingness to make the journey personally is most ideal,” the fat elder replied with joy.

“Humph, no wonder your Yellow Maple Valley is so anxious about this person. It’s no surprise. Since Fellow Daoist Linghu’s passing, your valley has been without a Nascent Soul cultivator to stand guard. If it weren’t for Fellow Daoist Linghu once helping this person and informing our five sects, your Yellow Maple Valley might no longer be able to stand in the State of Beiliang,” the man scoffed, glancing at the fatty elder and laughing.

“My apologies for the oversight,” the elder said, the color of embarrassment spreading across his face.

…

In two months, all of Heavenly South Region was astir.

All the slightly larger sects of the immortal cultivators in the Heavenly South Region were, without exception, invited by the Drifting Cloud Sect for the celebration ceremony of one of their elders advancing to the late Nascent Soul Stage. They invited all major sects to send representatives to witness the event.

Although the invitation did not specify which elder, given Han Li’s fame as the first cultivator in the late Nascent Soul Stage to have stunned Tian Luo years ago, almost everyone could guess without needing to think that it was Han Li.

This indeed caused a stir among the sects, regardless of their size.

Smaller sects, terrified, naturally agreed wholeheartedly to attend the ceremony. Larger sects, despite having numerous reservations, also agreed to send at least one elder of their own to the event.

For a time, the name Han Li once again shocked every corner of Tian Luo. Whether it be hermits hiding in high mountains and deep valleys, or immortal cultivation families and sects clustered around spirit vein locations, “Han Li” was probably the most mentioned name in the last century.

Everyone was enthusiastically discussing the young Nascent Soul cultivator who had recently advanced to the Deity Transformation stage, becoming the fourth great cultivator in the Heavenly South Region.

Thus, three months later, the Drifting Cloud Sect held its ceremonial observance.

Over a hundred Nascent Soul cultivators attended the event, along with several times more Core Formation experts who came to Dreamcloud Mountains to witness the ceremony.

As for Han Li, the main character of the ceremony, he only made a brief appearance on the first day, spoke a few words, and then invited over a dozen elders of various sects, all mid Nascent Soul Stage or above, to a private gathering in a secluded hall of the Drifting Cloud Sect. Astoundingly, this included two late-stage great cultivators from the Harmonious Bond Sect and the Flowing Mind Sect, namely Old Devil Cloud Dew and Wei Wuya.

Three days and nights later, when these Nascent Soul eccentrics emerged from the grand hall, they all looked pale, showing signs of fear in their expressions, and even Wei Wuya and Old Devil Cloud Dew’s eyes lacked their usual luster, looking extremely unsightly.

Curious ceremonial attendees, naturally, stepped forward to inquire about the happenings inside the hall. However, those questioned either smiled bitterly without speaking or shook their heads repeatedly, still in shock, all hesitant to reveal anything.

This naturally made other cultivators even more curious.

The ceremony continued for half a month, but Han Li never appeared in public again, and not a single one of those top Nascent Soul eccentrics showed any sign of meeting with others. Furthermore, the moment the ceremony ended, they left the Drifting Cloud Sect, restless, not staying even for a moment longer.

Given such circumstances, the other cultivators grew increasingly curious about what had happened inside that hall, something that could change even two great cultivators and others to such a degree.

Although the elders who attended that gathering in the hall did not wish to discuss what occurred, they each had a few close friends and especially dear acquaintances, leading to the eventual leaking of some information after not much time had passed.

The content of these rumors once again shook the world of immortal cultivation in the Heavenly South Region.

It was revealed that the newly advanced fourth great cultivator of the Drifting Cloud Sect had boldly proposed a spar with Wei Wuya and Old Devil Cloud Dew. Normally, that would be a common affair, as Han Li, finishing his cultivation, took the opportunity of the ceremony to benchmark his divine skills against other great cultivators and assert his presence before other mid-stage cultivators. This was only natural.

However, what Senior Han proposed was to simultaneously take on both Wei Wuya and Old Devil Cloud Dew by himself, which was unprecedented and shocking.

Nobody knows what Wei Wuya and Old Devil Cloud Dew were thinking, but after pondering for only a moment, they actually agreed.

The result of the spar left the dozen or so elders dumbfounded.

Han Li alone, deploying several unimaginable divine skills and using a few unimaginably powerful treasures, easily defeated the two great cultivators.

Wei Wuya and Old Devil Cloud Dew, two cultivators who had dominated the Heavenly South for hundreds of years, were completely no match for Han Li; even resisting him, they both ended up slightly draining their vital Qi.

The observing elders were further stunned to discover that Senior Han, with his effortless performance, seemed not even to have used all his divine skills.

Everyone present was left speechless in shock.

The remaining time was merely filled with exchanges of cultivation experiences under Han Li’s lead among the Nascent Soul eccentrics, though the usual highly valued discussions made all present elders restless, as if sitting on pins and needles.

After three days, these elders exited the secluded hall, and the odd expressions on their faces immediately caught the attention of other cultivators.

Such astonishing news spread quickly, naturally making most people utterly disbelieving, even deeming it a complete fabrication. However, as the news spread wider and wider, not a single one of the dozen elders who attended the gathering in the hall spoke out to refute the rumors.

People then began to realize that this might actually be true, causing the entire Heavenly South Region to suddenly fall into silence.

Whenever Han Li was mentioned again or when discussing matters related to him, even if one was in a secluded room or in a remote wilderness, they would invariably speak in a lowered voice, careful not to show any disrespect or casualness.

And thus, the title of the number one cultivator quietly spread through the Heavenly South Region’s world of immortal cultivation.

…

In the sky above the sea near the Seven Spirit Islands, a middle-aged Taoist with crystal-clear white skin and an elder in a green robe stood opposite each other, both looking unusually somber, without speaking.

After a lengthy silence, the elder in the green robe finally spoke with a change in expression:

“Brother Yang type treasure suddenly visiting me here and summoning me out with a voice transmission, you surely don’t intend just to exchange riddles with Brother Wei?”

The elder in green was none other than the great cultivator Wei Wuya, one of the three major cultivators.

“Brother Wei is either feigning ignorance or playing the fool. You know very well why I sought you out,” the middle-aged Taoist replied indifferently.

“Hehe, seems like Brother Yang type treasure, after hearing the rumors, couldn’t sit still either!” Wei Wuya let out a chuckle, a hint of sarcasm curling at his lips.

“This means there is some truth to the rumors then, that you and Old Devil Cloud Dew did indeed suffer a minor disadvantage at his hands!” The Taoist’s face grew solemn as he slowly asked.

(First update!)