The Modern Martial Immortal

Chapter 240: First

Li Qingshan did not answer the crowd. Instead, he turned his gaze toward Yaoguang, who was seated below, showing that he was waiting for him to step forward and explain in person.

Seeing that the sect master seemed just as eager as Li Hanqiu, unable to wait for him to take the stage, Yaoguang had no choice but to stand. Under the watchful eyes of everyone present, he walked onto the platform and stood beside Li Qingshan.

"I’ll explain," Yaoguang said, pointing to the information about the Dharma Form that Li Qingshan had displayed.

"First... Our Nine Cauldrons Sect does not possess the spirit treasure called 'Origin World'. The Artifact Sect never finished creating it," Yaoguang said.

The moment these words fell, a wave of discussion erupted among the crowd. Dozens of strands of spiritual consciousness and psychic thought intertwined, filled with disbelief.

"No Origin World? Then where are we right now? Isn’t this Void Psychic World created by the Origin World?"

"Hasn’t the outside world already acknowledged that we possess Dharma Form–level power? What is there left to argue?"

"Wait, no Origin World, yet the sect master’s data clearly states we have Dharma Form Realm power... and now Hall Master Yaoguang has been invited to explain personally. Could it be..."

Amid the murmurs, many cultivators quickly reached a conclusion. In less than ten seconds, the debate subsided, and all eyes instinctively turned toward Yaoguang.

"Could it be..."

"Yes. It’s me." Yaoguang nodded calmly. "Back when we were still competing with the Xuanming Sect for the East Sea's islands, I had already become a Dharma Form cultivator. However, at that time, our Nine Cauldrons Sect was still weak. If other sects in Cangwu found out, they would have done everything possible to eliminate me, considering me a destabilizing factor. Therefore, after discussing things with the sect master and the perfected master, we unanimously decided to hide the truth and instead claim that we had obtained the Dharma Form spirit treasure, 'Origin World.'"

Hearing him admit it so openly, countless domain lords, branch sect masters, and elders gasped.

"Dharma Form!"

"Our Nine Cauldrons Sect has a real Dharma Form cultivator!? Not a spirit treasure like the Origin World, but a genuine Dharma Form cultivator!"

"Heavens... This is unbelievable! More than ten years ago, we had already become the fourth force in the world to possess a Dharma Form cultivator?!"

Shocked voices continued to rise from the crowd.

The hall masters, on the other hand, though surprised, had already suspected as much. They quickly regained their composure, but the way they looked at Yaoguang had changed, and their eyes showed a hint of excitement.

At the same time, they finally understood why Li Hanqiu had placed Yaoguang only below himself in importance.

A Dharma Form cultivator! A figure of this level could occupy such a position in any major power without question.

"Next... let’s talk about the Crimson Golden Core." Yaoguang continued. "You should all remember that ten years ago, the Immortal Alliance’s Immortal-Proving Tower was attacked. Not only was Dharma Form cultivator Feng Ao injured, but a Crimson Golden Core forced the star god Barton of the Immortal Alliance to flee in panic... At that time, the Immortal Alliance accused our Nine Cauldrons Sect of being behind it. After all, aside from the Thousand-Beast Sect and the Infinite Star Palace, we were the only faction that had displayed Dharma Form Realm power."

He smiled slightly. "They weren’t wrong. We were indeed responsible."

The moment these words fell, You Qianshan, the domain lord of the Nine Heavens Domain, stood up abruptly. "Do we really have another Crimson Golden Core expert?!"

Others were equally shocked, looking toward Yaoguang, Li Qingshan, and Li Hanqiu with anticipation and longing.

The Nine Cauldrons Sect desperately needed another pillar capable of stabilizing the situation.

"That’s right. Although it differs somewhat from other Crimson Golden Cores... It is indeed a Crimson Golden Core." Yaoguang nodded.

"And that Crimson Golden Core cultivator..." He paused. "...is also me."

"You?!" You Qianshan, Zhao Siliang, and the other high-ranking members most familiar with Yaoguang widened their eyes in shock.

Yaoguang?! Crimson Golden Core?! They could believe that Yaoguang had reached the Dharma Form Realm. Even if he were to claim he could one day become a star god, they would not find it strange. But a Crimson Golden Core...

"How is that possible..."

Yaoguang continued calmly, "You should all have practiced the Primordial Creation Art issued by the sect more than ten years ago. Although one can access higher levels of the art only upon reaching the corresponding realm, this cultivation art allows the essence, qi, and psyche to be cultivated simultaneously and to advance together.

"Upon reaching the Unity Realm, where the three merge into one, the cultivator gains a body strong enough to contain all true origin, a primordial psyche powerful enough to command all true origin artifacts, and a foundation of true origin comparable to, or even more comprehensive than, an immortal foundation.

"I focused primarily on psyche refinement, forming a Dharma Form, while guiding the qi cultivation path into the Fission Realm. At the same time, I refined a Crimson Golden Core as an outer core, granting me the true origin foundation of a Crimson Golden Core. Finally, through body cultivation, I became a Primary Star-level star god..."

He paused, meeting the gaze of everyone present, including Li Hanqiu and Li Qingshan. "I have now reached the level of a Crimson Golden Core. Although I rely on an outer core, and I can't recover at the same rate of a true Crimson Golden Core, my powerful psychic thought and physical body allow me to fully unleash its strength. Even against one or two Radiant Sun Golden Core experts, I can hold them off until their Golden Cores collapse, and ultimately claim victory!"

"One or two Radiant Sun Golden Cores?!" At these words, even Li Hanqiu was shocked and overjoyed.

He had known that since Yaoguang chose to reveal this now, he must have reached the peak of the world. But he had not expected that Yaoguang would be standing at the very top of it.

"Deputy Hall Master Yaoguang... If I heard correctly, you’re saying that you can take on one or two Radiant Sun Golden Core experts? Then does that mean our Nine Cauldrons Sect now effectively possesses the combat strength of two or even three Radiant Sun Golden Core experts?!" Lou Yuyu could not help but stand and ask the question everyone was desperate to hear.

"I’m afraid you’ve misunderstood something." Murong Hui interjected. "Lord Yaoguang said that even when facing one or two Radiant Sun Golden Cores, he can drag the battle out until their Golden Cores collapse and win in the end. That implies that his deterrence power alone can be regarded as equivalent to three, or even four Radiant Sun Golden Core experts!"

After speaking, Murong Hui looked at Yaoguang with eager anticipation. "Deputy Hall Master Yaoguang, am I correct?"

Yaoguang considered briefly, then nodded. He gave a clear affirmation.

In an instant, whether it was the incredulous Lou Yuyu or the expectant Murong Hui, everyone present revealed expressions of extreme joy.

This was truly an immense surprise! They now had one person whose deterrence equaled that of three to four Radiant Sun Golden Core experts!

This meant that from now on, even at the Golden Core Realm, the Nine Cauldrons Sect had completely surpassed top-tier immortal sects like the Lunar Sect, the Dharma Heaven Pavilion, and the Golden Temple, second only to the Infinite Star Palace with its eleven Radiant Sun Golden Cores, the Immortal Alliance with eight, and the Thousand-Beast Sect with five.

"This is a wonderful surprise... truly wonderful." Li Hanqiu’s eyes shone with unrestrained joy. Never in his life had he felt as satisfied as today.

The others were just as delighted. They sincerely rejoiced at the sect’s current strength and prosperity.

Seeing this, Yaoguang smiled lightly. "As long as the perfected master is satisfied."

"Satisfied? I am more than satisfied! With this, our Nine Cauldrons Sect now truly has the strength to face any upheaval or challenge in the next twenty years!" Li Hanqiu said firmly.

The others all nodded in agreement.

"Alright, I’ll return the stage to Sect Master Li." Yaoguang nodded to Li Qingshan and stepped down.

In truth, he had been somewhat conservative.

Although his qi cultivation had only reached the Fission Realm, in terms of realm, he had already stepped into the Void-Piercing Realm. This realm stood above all Radiant Sun Golden Cores.

With such an overwhelming advantage in comprehension, he could drag down a Crimson Golden Core cultivator even without relying on the outer core.

And with the support of the outer core, the number of Radiant Sun Golden Core experts he could wear down was not limited to one or two. Even five would not be a problem.

It was only because the Crimson Golden Core was an outer core, requiring external means such as arrays to recover its energy, that he could not simultaneously face five Radiant Sun Golden Cores working together.

On the stage, the smile on Li Qingshan’s face lingered for a long time. He could not compose himself, and in the end, he simply stopped pretending and burst into laughter. "Let me laugh for a moment first."

The hall masters, deputy hall masters, branch sect masters, domain lords, and elders all followed suit, unable to restrain themselves as laughter echoed throughout the otherwise solemn meeting hall.

"Together, let us laugh together! I couldn’t hold it in either. This is the best news I’ve heard in my entire life!"

"With Deputy Hall Master Yaoguang and the perfected master as our two pillars, from now on, our Nine Cauldrons Sect can truly stand on any stage in the world and laugh freely!"

"Still calling him Deputy Hall Master Yaoguang? He should be called Perfected Master Yaoguang now! The great rise of our Nine Cauldrons Sect is just around the corner!"

"Unify Cangwu? If the Infinite Star Palace can do it, so can our Nine Cauldrons Sect!"

Laughter and excitement filled every corner of the higher-ups' meeting.

Li Qingshan looked at the crowd and did not stop them. Instead, he smiled and continued, "Since everyone is so happy, let me share our current combat strength to make you even happier! Our Nine Cauldrons Sect now possesses..."

With a wave of his hand, the names of all battle institutes appeared.

"Thirty-three elite battle institutes!" Li Qingshan declared emphatically, while displaying their respective evaluations. "All thirty-three battle institutes have reached top-tier standards within Cangwu! They are not merely first-rate like those of the Great Sun Sword Sect, but truly top-tier!"

He stressed again. "Even if compared to the battle institutes of the Infinite Star Palace equipped with third- and fourth-generation flying swords, they are not inferior at all! In fact, they may even surpass them! If not for the lack of real combat data, many of these battle institutes, based on our evaluations alone, could be considered the best in the world!"