Free Web NovelChapter 303: Chapter 32: Fourth Realm Cultivator
Wang Ping wasn’t the least bit intimidated by Ke Yue’s counter-question. He knew that as a Pacification Envoy, Ren Kong wouldn’t have been ambushed over something trivial.
"Are you going to tell me?"
Still, Wang Ping decided to play along. He was curious how Ke Yue would answer, more curious about her confidence, and most curious of all whether he would, as she implied, actually let her go.
"If you’d like to listen."
A slight smile appeared on the delicate half of Ke Yue’s face.
Wang Ping politely made an inviting gesture.
"To explain this clearly, it will take some time... As they say in the world of cultivation, there are the Five Profound Sects. But among them, why is the True True Yang Sect revered as supreme?"
"I don’t see it that way," Yu Lian interrupted. "I mean, I don’t think the True Yang Sect is supreme among the Five Profound Sects."
"I feel the same way, but it is an undeniable fact..."
"First, there’s the lineage of the Taiyan Sect, which Daoist Changqing belongs to. Although it has a glorious history, its name is rarely even mentioned these days."
"Then there’s the Earth Cave Sect. Although its various branches have many members, they’re all busy with their own affairs, and there’s constant conflict between them."
"Lishui Prefecture is completely the Dragon Monarch’s personal plaything, and the Dragon Monarch himself is nowhere to be seen all year round. Although he’s plotting for Zhongzhou this time, what he really wants is to just secure his corner in the north."
"Finally, there’s Vajra Temple. Ever since the Ascetic faction split off to establish Lingshan Temple, they’ve been reduced to playing in the mud in the Western Continent, occasionally tricking those bald donkeys in the Snowfield."
Ke Yue explained this to Yu Lian with a smile in her voice, then continued without waiting for a response, "But the True Yang Sect occupies the best land in the world, the Zhongzhou Land. Its fame spreads across the four seas, and even the Far East Continent has heard of it!"
At this, she let out a soft laugh. Her Primordial Spirit’s dim, gray eyes fixed on Wang Ping as she smiled. "Daoist, as a Pacification Envoy, you must know there’s a special advancement slot in the Daoist Scripture Hall for Cultivators who’ve made great contributions. So, how do you think the True Yang Sect can tell if their advancement will be successful?"
"Fellow Daoist, are you saying the True Yang Sect can observe a Cultivator’s chances of successful advancement?" Wang Ping glanced at Feng Miao beside him. She was frowning, clearly unaware of this.
The smile on the visible half of Ke Yue’s face widened. She added, "To be precise, it’s for the advancement of Fire Cultivators. The True Yang Sect is powerless with other disciplines. For now, however, it’s limited to the Second Realm and below. The Third Realm has too many uncertain factors. But with enough Second Realm Cultivators, cultivating a Third Realm expert is just a matter of time."
"I’m sure you’re dying to know why, Fellow Daoist."
Ke Yue’s eyes, one bright and one dark, narrowed to slits. "The reason is simple," she said. "The True Yang Sect has control of the Fire Spirit. The true Fire Spirit, the source of the Five Elements!"
"That’s impossible!"
Feng Miao’s voice was urgent. "The source of the Five Elements is just a nebulous consciousness, or even just a concept! It can’t possibly exist in a physical form!"
"Calm down, let me finish..."
"They subdued a part of that uncapturable consciousness. Oh, a very small part. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be limited to observing only the Second Realm!"
Ke Yue merely glanced at Feng Miao before turning back to Wang Ping. "I can’t explain it clearly, because even I don’t know much about it. However, I believe that with Fellow Daoist Changqing’s Primordial Spirit cultivation, you should be able to understand."
"An answer... that... stirs the imagination."
Yu Lian spoke for Wang Ping. "So, there’s no so-called fake spirit or True Spirit? After your True Yang Sect split, you’ve each been cultivating using the portion of the Fire Spirit you subdued?"
"No, we’re all actually cultivating with a fake spirit. The True Spirit can’t be subdued at all..."
Ke Yue’s words came to an abrupt halt. She stared at Wang Ping and said with a smile, "I don’t think it’s appropriate to discuss this any further. Don’t you agree, Daoist Changqing?"
’Hearing all this, Wang Ping’s thoughts turned to the True Yang Sect ancestor Zi Luan had mentioned before.’
’Judging by the look on Zi Luan’s face when he spoke, he didn’t seem to know about this. That means not many people are aware of it. But then again, this kind of secret doesn’t seem like one that could be kept for long.’
Wang Ping’s first thought was that Ke Yue was lying. Then, he said with a hint of doubt, "My original question, I believe, was about what Ren Kong found out that made you go to such lengths to silence him, destroying the lineage of White Crane Mountain in the process!"
"Ren Kong secretly absorbed a part of the Fire Spirit’s consciousness from within the True Yang Sect," Ke Yue answered directly. "He thought he did it in absolute secrecy, but in reality, the upper echelons of the True Yang Sect found out immediately. It’s precisely because he absorbed that part of its consciousness that we were able to defeat him so easily."
"That part of the consciousness is a temptation for us; we need it. The True Yang Sect also wanted to eliminate Ren Kong. Xiao Shan Lord seems to have had a problem with White Crane Mountain’s lineage, Senior Wu Ma wanted to cause a scene in Mozhou Road to prove his existence, and our friends from the Demon Race were just a coincidence."
The final answer seemed simple, even a little absurd. Feng Miao looked like she didn’t believe a word of it, but Wang Ping believed half. With these reasons, all tied together by Xiu Yu, everything fell into place logically.
’So the world is finally descending into chaos.’
Wang Ping stood up. Before Ke Yue could react, he sealed her in the Blue Crystal again, then walked to the window to gaze in the direction of Mozhou Road.
"Aren’t you going to ask anything else?" Feng Miao asked, confused.
"She probably won’t say anything else." Wang Ping let out a breath and gently stroked Yu Lian’s head as he spoke. "Don’t be in a hurry to return to the north. Let’s wait for the wager she mentioned. Perhaps your chance for advancement lies within it!"
Feng Miao was stunned for a moment, then it dawned on her. She stood rooted to the spot for a few breaths before asking, "What about the things she said?"
Wang Ping turned back to Feng Miao and smiled. "I expect you won’t remember any of it after you advance."
Feng Miao was stunned for another few breaths, then asked, "What about you?"
"I don’t know, but I have a feeling nothing will happen to me." As Wang Ping answered, he took out a pair of divination blocks and cast a trigram in the center of the hall.
A Holy Trigram!
「Two days later.」
Agents from the Daoist Scripture Hall headquarters finally arrived. They were two Cultivators in orange Daoist Robes, led by a Second Realm Star God. Both were very polite to Wang Ping. They just asked about the events in Mozhou Road as a matter of routine before taking their leave.
"For something this huge, they only sent one Second Realm Star God?" Yu Lian complained after they left.
Wang Ping just smiled and said nothing.
The next day, Zuo Xuan came to report that the two investigators from the Major Case Department sent by headquarters had only recorded the damages in Changwen Prefecture City and listened to some eyewitness accounts before hastily returning to Shangjing City.
「Another half a month passed.」
During that time, Wang Ping sorted through the rare treasures he had acquired, studied the Puppetry Technique, and used the rest of his time to refine the ’Pocket World Mirror’ and perform his daily cultivation exercises. All in all, it was a fulfilling period.
This day, just as Wang Ping finished his daily exercises, his heart suddenly skipped a beat. He quickly cast a trigram as he walked to the attic window and looked out at the garden in the central courtyard. At that very moment, the various plants and trees in the garden began to grow wildly, turning the courtyard into a primeval forest in the blink of an eye.
Then the entire city began to face the same situation. Countless plants shot up from the ground, generating a dense Wood Spirit Qi!
Wang Ping quickly activated the Daoist Scripture Hall’s barrier, enveloping the entire city. Just then, the early morning glow in the sky suddenly turned scorching, and the high temperature sent a wave of heat that even Wang Ping could feel.
"It’s the Fourth Realm!"
