Free Web NovelChapter 503: Chapter 217: A Cultivation Sect, One in Ten Thousand
"My master also said that experts of the True Martial Realm are one in ten thousand. Countless practitioners at Qi Sea Perfection get stuck at this threshold, unable to break through even after a lifetime of effort. My four sworn brothers are all stuck at this bottleneck. They’ve tried countless methods but haven’t been able to advance for years."
Chu Lingguang nodded in deep agreement.
When he reached Qi Sea Perfection, he had asked Guo Wei how to cross into the True Martial Realm. Guo Wei had described the difficulty as immense, using the phrase "one in ten thousand" to illustrate it.
Even people like Yan Zhen and Tuoba Yunhong, who seemed to be just one step away, were in reality stuck at a critical bottleneck. Perhaps even prodigies like them had no absolute certainty of when they might break through to the True Martial Realm.
And yet, in Eunuch Liu’s eyes, the practitioners of Yuanchu Mountain actually had the power to easily help others break through into the True Martial Realm.
"The cultivation techniques you practice now, even my own Soft and Flexible Technique, are all second-rate martial arts compared to what the experts of Yuanchu Mountain have. Yuanchu Mountain is like another world; everyone wants to go and see it. But looking across the entire Great Yuan, very few can achieve this wish. Even some members of the Royal Family and Relatives must pass difficult assessments and possess sufficient strength just to enter. As for how powerful they truly are, not even I or your master can imagine."
"But no matter what, the greatest opportunity at the Imperial City Academy isn’t obtaining some Treasures of Heaven and Earth, or even things like Bone Marrow Cleansing Liquid or Rebirth Liquid. The thing that truly drives people mad is receiving even a few words of guidance from a Yuanchu Mountain practitioner. If you could obtain a cultivation skill from them, even a single page, it would change your destiny and greatly increase your chances of one day earning the opportunity to enter Yuanchu Mountain to cultivate," Eunuch Liu added.
"Eunuch, my master has also explained things about Yuanchu Mountain, but he didn’t know much. He only helped me understand that Yuanchu Mountain is incredibly powerful, even capable of manipulating the entire Great Yuan from behind the scenes. But I truly don’t understand—what kind of sect could possess the power to control a dynasty? Please tell me, Eunuch, what kind of existence is Yuanchu Mountain, and why is it shrouded in such a mythical aura?"
Chu Lingguang asked humbly.
Eunuch Liu pondered for a long time before saying, "Yuanchu Mountain is a sect of cultivators. According to legend, the leader of Yuanchu Mountain is still alive. Based on the timeline, he would be over a thousand years old now."
"Huh?"
"Cultivators?"
This time, it took a long while for Chu Lingguang and Xuanyuan Jinkang to snap out of their shock.
’Ever since I came to this world, I knew the Great Yuan was a world of cultivation. I even wondered if cultivators who seek immortality actually existed. But Master Guo Wei never mentioned them, and the strongest experts I’ve met so far are only on the level of Eunuch Liu and him.’
’I’ve speculated about Yuanchu Mountain before, thinking it must be a powerful sect of cultivators to be able to control a dynasty.’
But to have it confirmed by Eunuch Liu still sent a shock through his heart.
’I can extend my lifespan through martial arts cultivation techniques, but the limit is closely tied to the technique’s level. If I could enter Yuanchu Mountain and obtain a cultivator’s technique, wouldn’t my lifespan become endless? I could truly live forever.’
No one is free from the desire for long life; no one does not cling to life and fear death. Chu Lingguang was no exception.
It was clear how great a temptation Yuanchu Mountain presented to him.
’However, based on what Eunuch Liu said, getting into Yuanchu Mountain is as difficult as ascending to heaven, even for someone like Yan Zhen. I’ve already guessed that Yan Zhen’s goal in aiming for the title of Triple Champion Scholar is to enter Yuanchu Mountain to cultivate.’
’But according to Da Yuan Law and past precedents, even if Yan Zhen becomes the Triple Champion Scholar, he can’t just easily enter Yuanchu Mountain. He would need to perform great meritorious service and exchange those merits for the opportunity.’
’So, talent is only secondary.’
’You also need enough merits to get a recommendation from the royal family. And even then, whether or not you can actually enter Yuanchu Mountain might still depend on passing some kind of assessment.’
"Master, in all your time in the Imperial City, have you ever seen someone from the Academy be taken directly to Yuanchu Mountain by one of its practitioners?" Xuanyuan Jinkang asked, his imagination running wild.
"Never. Even the Holy Emperor’s own children must undergo strict screening and assessments to be able to cultivate at Yuanchu Mountain.
I’m telling you all this not so you can beat your heads against a wall trying to get into Yuanchu Mountain. That’s something that, let alone you, even many prodigies more outstanding than you, like Yan Zhen and Tuoba Yunhong, can’t achieve. Very few can.
Don’t even think about cultivating at Yuanchu Mountain.
I just want you to find a way to pass the mental realm examination and receive some guidance from a Yuanchu Mountain expert. Even just a word or two from them is far better than the all-out, no-holds-barred training from the Court’s many Martial Artists. Do you understand?"
Eunuch Liu could see that even Chu Lingguang’s imagination was running wild. While Chu Lingguang’s mental realm was considered quite good among the younger generation of the Great Yuan Dynasty, in the eyes of a Yuanchu Mountain expert, if he couldn’t even resist this little bit of temptation, his mental realm would never pass muster.
He was worried that Chu Lingguang would also be led astray by the temptation, so he issued the reminder with a serious expression.
Hearing this, Chu Lingguang and Xuanyuan Jinkang both nodded sensibly.
Chu Lingguang then said, "Eunuch, cultivation is about gaining power from a ’response,’ then fusing that power together to help the body break through its shackles. The cultivation methods of Yuanchu Mountain’s practitioners should also fall within this same system, right?"
"Of course."
Eunuch Liu nodded.
"If that’s the case, then don’t tell me the practitioners of Yuanchu Mountain have mastered a cultivation skill that allows them to quickly gain a ’response’ from within the body and fuse all that power together?"
