Daqian Martial Saint

The latest rankings from the Rising Star Chart naturally found their way to the desks of Weishui County City’s major powers. Unsurprisingly, Chen Ping’an’s change in rank caught everyone’s attention.

"Mang Blade Chen Ping’an, ranked twenty-first on the Rising Star Chart? Soul-Breaking Spear Gu Wu is only ranked twenty-eighth! How did they rate him so high?"

"Rank twenty-one on the Rising Star Chart... in terms of combat power, he’s probably on par with veteran Profound Light Realm masters! If I remember correctly, he’s only twenty-one, isn’t he? A twenty-one-year-old with the power of a veteran Profound Light expert! But the most critical part is, his Martial Arts Realm hasn’t even reached the Profound Light Realm, yet he’s judged to be this strong. If he actually broke through to the Profound Light Realm, just how powerful would he become?"

"He may not have reached the Profound Light Realm yet, but based on past prodigies, anyone who ranks this high on the Rising Star Chart has an over eighty percent chance of advancing to the Profound Light High Realm and becoming an Absolute Master, as long as they don’t perish prematurely. From this, it’s practically a sure thing he’ll reach the Profound Light Realm. In time, he could even reach the realms of Profound Light Penetrating Objects and Armor Unlost! This Chen Ping’an... his future is boundless!"

"Chen Ping’an comes from a common background; his father is just a constable in some alley in the Outer City. He’s gotten this far entirely on his own effort! Compared to the scions of us Noble Families, his Heart Nature is likely far more resilient. With that Heart Nature and talent, if he’s given proper Cultivation Resources... I’m afraid that in less than fifty years, our Weishui will have another Absolute Master!"

"In fifty years, Chen Ping’an will only be in his early seventies. An Absolute Master lives for one hundred and eighty years. At that age, he’d still be in his prime among them. He might even be able to advance further in the future!"

"It’s not just his talent. The terrifying part is his aptitude for Magical Combat—fighting a Profound Light expert while only at the Celestial Rain Descending Realm Perfection! It’s unbelievable!"

"..."

Weishui County City, the Liu Family.

Liu Mingyu, Patriarch of the Liu Family, stared at the Rising Star Chart on his desk, the booklet open to Chen Ping’an’s page.

He looked down, silent for a long time, before finally sighing. "Such a prodigy, and the Liu Family let him slip through our fingers! We’re both from Weishui County City; with the Liu Family’s power and influence, we should have had every opportunity. If we had paid attention to him and offered our aid when he was still unknown, if we had invested heavily in recruiting him then... today, he would be one of our own! Instead, a single misstep has led to this stalemate. How tragic, how regrettable!"

...

Liu Ziming sat cross-legged in his room, a Treasure Sword resting across his lap—a Genuine Treasure Artifact, the Abyssal Rainbow Sword.

Though he was cultivating as usual, Liu Ziming couldn’t quiet his mind today. Every time he was about to enter Meditation and sink into a deeper state of cultivation, various thoughts would surface in his mind, wrenching him from his practice.

He had been training relentlessly for three months, not daring to slacken for a moment. But when the new Rising Star Chart was released, his rank hadn’t improved; it had actually dropped. Even with the advantage of his Abyssal Rainbow Sword, he had fallen to seventy-fifth!

In stark contrast, Mang Blade Chen Ping’an had stormed the ranks like a rising star, claiming the twenty-first spot on the Chart!

Although his Martial Arts Realm had yet to reach Profound Light, his rank proved that he undoubtedly possessed the combat power of a veteran Profound Light Realm master.

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Liu Ziming."

"Liu Ziming? What is it?"

"The family wants to give you another chance. So, they had me make a trip to find you. To see if meeting me would make you change your mind."

"So, you came all this way to recruit me?"

"Yes. But that’s the family’s idea. I don’t think it’s necessary. Geniuses like us don’t easily change our minds once a decision is made. Besides, even if the family did recruit you, it would be pointless."

"Oh?"

"Because you’re not as good as me! It’s not just that your rank is lower than mine. It’s that regardless of whether you ever reach the Profound Light Realm, I will break through to it before you. The Liu Family has me, and that is enough!"

"You came here in the middle of the night, losing sleep, just to say this?"

"Mhm."

"Are you finished now?"

"I am."

"Then you can go now."

"Fine."

The memory of that day surfaced in Liu Ziming’s mind, leaving him deeply unsettled.

His arrogant words from back then were now a stinging slap in the face.

Ever since he began his Cultivation, he had been a prodigy in everyone’s eyes. His realm advanced by leaps and bounds, and he eventually became known as the number one talent in Weishui County City. He had always possessed absolute confidence in himself.

But today... that confidence had been shattered.

The last time, Mang Blade was ranked ninety-first on the Rising Star Chart. This time, he had ascended to twenty-first. Mang Blade Chen Ping’an’s meteoric rise left him in the dust. Seventy-fifth and twenty-first... the gap between them wasn’t just fifty-odd prodigies. The difference was immense, far beyond a simple measure.

This was Mang Blade’s most powerful rebuttal to his past words—a silent declaration.

Without so much as a word, he had been left far, far behind.

Liu Ziming sat cross-legged on his bed, his expression grim, his eyes glinting.

’Liu Ziming, are you just going to keep wallowing in the rotten title of ’Weishui’s Number One Talent’ and never move on? If you keep immersing yourself in past glory, becoming shortsighted and complacent, you won’t just stagnate—you’ll hit insurmountable bottlenecks in the future. You’ll never be able to take another firm step forward on the path of the Martial Dao!

’On the Martial Dao, some start early, some start late; some are fast, some are slow. Who is ahead and who is behind is never set in stone!

’A prodigy today might be a tragic failure tomorrow! One who struggles today might shine brilliantly and earn the admiration of all in the future!

’Which one are you going to be!?’

’A Martial Artist is one who forges ahead, undeterred by praise or shame.

’As a Sword Master, this is even more true!

’Liu Ziming! You may have fallen behind today, but falling behind once doesn’t mean you’ll be behind forever! Chen Ping’an’s combat power is formidable, but in the end, his cultivation realm has not yet reached the Profound Light Realm.

’As long as he hasn’t broken through, it’s still unknown which of you will be the first to step into the Profound Light Realm!

’The bold proclamations you made that day might still come true in the future!’

’A momentary gain or loss means nothing. One must always take the long view!’

Liu Ziming did his best to stabilize his mind, feeding himself these positive affirmations.

But he understood the logic of it all. Putting it into practice, however, was incredibly difficult.

...

"Zi Ming is ranked seventy-fifth, and Mang Blade Chen Ping’an is ranked twenty-first!"

"Twenty-first..."

Inside the Weishui Garrison, Liu Yuanhua slowly lowered the booklet in his hand.

Who would have thought that Chen Ping’an, who was previously ranked at the very bottom of the Rising Star Chart, could come this far in just three months?

With such a high rank on the Rising Star Chart, combined with his age, his chances of becoming an Absolute Master in the future were all but guaranteed.

Liu Yuanhua tilted his head back, closed his eyes, and leaned back in his chair.

At that moment, no one knew what he was thinking.

...

PS: A friend of the author started a "check-in" thread in the comments, boldly promising to pay 200 coins per post, to be paid out at 10,000 coins. If any of you Lord Governors have a spare moment, feel free to stop by and post. Let’s see if we can get an Alliance Leader out of it—I’ve never had one in my writing career.