Chapter 65 - The Grand Meeting
The silence in the courtyard of White Lotus Peak was absolute, heavy with the lingering scent of lightning and scorched earth. Above, the sky was slowly clearing of the purple tribulation clouds, but the ambient spiritual pressure of the grand Peak Masters still hung thick in the air. Sect Master Jun Tianya stood on the stone veranda, his silver-and-azure robes catching the first light of dawn. He looked up at the figures hovering in the air, their expressions a mix of awe, calculations, and intense reluctance.
"Return to your peaks," the Sect Master commanded, his voice carrying the deep resonance of his cultivation, spreading across the mountains like rolling thunder. "Calm your disciples. Address the sword hum. Do not allow wild rumors to spread outside our borders."
Yan Qinghai, the Peak Master of Azure Dragon Peak, let out a soft huff, his battle-hungry eyes tracing the silent, sleeping boy on the wooden table one last time before he bowed. Huo Lianyi, her vermilion flame-colored robes flickering with heat, narrowed her eyes in frustration. One by one, streaks of brilliant light flickered across the sky as the grand Peak Masters departed, leaving the courtyard empty.
Once they were gone, the Sect Master turned his gaze back to the veranda.
Space itself seemed to buckle. A heavy, twisting pressure wrapped around Su Ming’s senses, folding the light and air into a dark, folding vortex. Su Ming felt a sudden, crushing wave of disorientation. The world spun, his stomach dropping as if he were falling through an endless chasm. Cold sweat broke out across his forehead, and his eyes struggled to focus as the spatial force squeezed his chest. Beside him, Bai Qingxian’s legs trembled from the warp, but she kept a steady, firm grip on her medical robes, standing upright.
When his feet touched solid stone again, the cold, dark wooden pillars of the Heavenly Dao Hall rose around them. The towering, grand arches of the main sect hall were quiet, illuminated only by a few shafts of morning light cutting through the high windows. Beside them, Wang Tian stood in silent wonder, his eyes wide as he looked at the massive scale of the main hall. Sect Master Jun Tianya and the quiet elder stood before them.
Su Ming did not hesitate despite his leaden limbs. He stepped forward and bowed deeply, his hands folded. "This disciple Su Ming greets the Sect Master."
Behind him, Wang Tian hurriedly followed his master’s lead, bowing low with absolute respect. "Wang Tian greets the Sect Master."
Bai Qingxian offered a graceful, composed medical bow. "Junior Bai Qingxian greets the Sect Master."
"Are you truly the Su Ming from my sect?" the Sect Master asked, his voice low and echoing with absolute authority. "When your late master, Elder Xuan, was alive, you were a handyman disciple, performing menial tasks and struggling with a thinned, low-potential foundation. Yet, within months, you have reached the peak of the Golden Core realm, taken disciples and guests with enormous potential and mysterious background, and even caught the attention of the Grand Elder of our sect. Explain yourself."
Su Ming kept his head low, his voice calm and steady as he spoke of his journey. "This disciple is indeed Su Ming. My journey began when I was a handyman, sweeping the paths and realizing how unremarkable my potential was. After Elder Xuan passed, I knew I had to find a way. During my recent outing, I stumbled upon an ancient secret realm. I did not fully understand what it was, but inside lay an ancient inheritance that helped me gain better insights into my own cultivation and the matters of the body and advance my cultivation base."
Standing slightly behind him, Bai Qingxian listened to his words, her face a mask of polite professionalism. Internally, however, her thoughts were in complete disarray.
’Oh, so that’s how he got it,’ she thought at first, her mind trying to process the simple explanation. But she immediately caught herself, her internal voice turning skeptical. ’Wait. Is it really that simple? Stumbling into a random secret realm and magically resolving a bad foundation? Knowing Su Ming..., there is absolutely no way it is that simple. He is probably lying through his teeth.’
She bit the inside of her cheek to keep her expression neutral, highly hesitant to believe a single word of his story, though she kept her mouth shut.
Su Ming continued, addressing the boy’s status. "As for Wang Tian... he was simply a victim of the demonic cultivator in Greenwall City. When I met his clan, I took him in as a disciple purely because of his indomitable will, without any knowledge of his potential or physique. It was a stroke of pure good fortune that he unlocked such a physique during the surgery. As his master, I only wanted to save his life. Using the insights from my inheritance and by consulting Miss Bai, we designed the pathway stitches to connect his meridians."
Su Ming paused, then turned his head slightly, shooting Bai Qingxian with a silent eye signal.
Bai Qingxian caught the signal. She realized instantly that Su Ming wanted her to play along with the story. She stepped forward, bowing politely to the Sect Master.
"This physician apologizes for my forwardness," Bai Qingxian said, her voice clear. "I am Bai Qingxian of the Medicine Valley from the Spirit Jade World. I can confirm Peak Master Su’s words. I had previously studied ancient, restricted records regarding meridian reconstruction logic in my clan’s library. By combining those old medical blueprints with the Peak Master’s inheritance insights, we tried to connect the boy’s pathways. We had no idea it would bring forth such a reaction."
Jun Tianya looked at her, his brow arching slightly. "Medicine Valley. I have read about your world in the sect archives. You fell into our territory through a spatial crack, correct?"
"Yes," Bai Qingxian replied. "Our home was destroyed, and we were caught in a spatial storm before the Peak Master rescued us."
"The space surrounding our world is highly unstable, and we rarely receive guests from other worlds," Jun Tianya noted, his voice turning solemn. He turned his focus back to Wang Tian. "The child has awakened an Immortal Sword Physique. It is a legendary talent, but in our current world, it is also a fatal death sentence. Because the path to Immortal ascension is broken and immortal essence is missing, an active immortal physique has nothing to nourish it. It will starve, clawing at his marrow and draining his vital Qi. The physique will slowly consume his own life force."
The Sect Master reached into his sleeve, producing an ancient, glowing jade slip, and handed it to Su Ming.
"This slip contains some information about bloodline and physiques. You must personally apply a seal to his physique. It must not block them entirely, but rather limit the active hunger of the physique, slowly unsealing itself as his cultivation grows and his physique strengthens."
Su Ming took the slip, bowing. "This disciple understands."
The quiet elder, who had stood silently in the shadows behind the Sect Master throughout the entire conversation, finally stepped forward.
Jun Tianya turned slightly, gesturing toward the elder. His stern expression carried a deep, rare touch of reverence. "Su Ming, this is Ancestor Sky Sovereign. He is the one who gifted you the Saint-rank Sword Technique. Bow to the Ancestor."
Su Ming complied instantly, ignoring the fatigue that threatened to buckle his knees. He bowed deeply, his head low. "This junior, Su Ming, greets the Ancestor"
The Sky Sovereign nodded slightly, his ordinary, old-man appearance belied by the sharp, terrifying sword intent that seemed to hum around his robes like a thousand invisible blades. With a swift, casual motion of his hand, he tossed a dark jade slip directly toward Su Ming.
"This is the complete Sky Sovereign Sword Technique," the Sky Sovereign declared, his gaze sweeping over Su Ming like a cold blade. "A sovereign’s sword does not rust in dark vaults. Your disciples are worthy of its weight. Teach them well, and do not disgrace this senior’s name."
Su Ming caught the slip, momentarily stunned.
Beside them, Sect Master Jun Tianya was completely dumbfounded. His jaw tightened as he stared at the Sky Sovereign. He could not believe how quickly and easily his mysterious uncle had folded, throwing his ultimate legacy at Su Ming under such a flimsy pretext.
Jun Tianya recalled Jian Wushen, remembering how the Ancestor had refused to cave in, making the peerless Jian Wushen grind and prove himself for years before granting him even a fraction of the technique. Yet here he was, eagerly tossing the full legacy slip like a common scripture from the sect library.
The old man’s eyes held a hidden greed to ensure his sword legacy was passed down to these rare sword geniuses, using the current situation as a convenient excuse.
Jun Tianya coughed slightly to clear the awkward silence. "As for the boy’s status... the Peak Masters fought bitterly to recruit him, but as per our Grand Elder’s wishes, he will remain on White Lotus Peak under your guidance. To support this, White Lotus Peak’s resource allocation will be increased tenfold."
Su Ming’s eyes widened slightly, quickly calculating the massive logistics of a tenfold resource increase.
"In addition," Jun Tianya continued, "White Lotus Peak will be granted more contribution points. As part of this deal, White Lotus Peak is granted permission to cultivate in and access the sect-controlled secret realms. Wang Tian is also granted free, unrestricted access to the Sword Pool on Heavenly Sword Peak to temper his Sword Path."
Su Ming bowed deeply, his exhaustion temporarily forgotten. "This disciple thanks the Sect Master and the Sky Sovereign."
"Go," Jun Tianya commanded. "Seal the boy’s physique first."
With a flick of the Sect Master’s finger, space warped once more. The dark wooden pillars of the Heavenly Dao Hall vanished, and the fresh morning air of White Lotus Peak rushed back to greet them as they materialized in their own courtyard.