The End of the Immortal Path

A brilliant light descended, and everyone around involuntarily fixed their eyes on it.

The Student Cultivators who had just entered the Inner Sect might not have thought much of it, but those who had seen the stele before all frowned.

This was because a rainbow-hued light had never appeared before.

The timing of its appearance was also wrong.

Normally, one had to go through a great deal inside before any of the more outstanding Student Cultivators could make the rankings.

The scoring system wasn’t supposed to be random.

It had only been half a day; it was nearly impossible for a result to be produced.

Unless someone had performed exceptionally well.

But everyone was still baffled. Just how outstanding did someone have to be to receive a score so quickly?

Most people were discussing which Primordial Spirit-level prodigy it could be.

They especially focused on the three teams that had entered in the first batch.

Without exception, all of them were Student Cultivators who had already been accepted as Direct Disciples.

If anyone could make it onto the rankings within half a day, it was almost certainly one of them.

Xia Jin and Senior Brother Lu thought so as well.

Their eyes were fixed on the very top of the stone stele, where it looked as if flames were burning.

As the flames died down, words began to materialize.

First Place: Jiang Man, Cloud Mist Peak, Wuyun Sect.

The instant the name appeared, everyone was stunned.

An unfamiliar name, an unfamiliar peak.

They all searched their memories for the various peaks of the Inner Sect, and for the name Jiang Man.

The Evergreen Sect and Celestial Water Sect had also done their homework.

But it seemed they had never heard of a Cloud Mist Peak within the Wuyun Sect’s Inner Sect.

The name Jiang Man had also never appeared on their watchlists.

The crowd immediately burst into an uproar, everyone trying to figure out what kind of place Cloud Mist Peak was and just who this Jiang Man could be.

They wondered which Primordial Spirit Level genius he was.

Even some members of the Wuyun Sect were dumbfounded, subconsciously wondering if there had been a mistake.

There was no such place as Cloud Mist Peak in the Wuyun Sect’s Inner Sect.

In contrast to the others, Xia Jin and Senior Brother Lu, who had been watching intently, were frozen on the spot.

They stared in disbelief at the first name on the stele.

Those four words—Cloud Mist Peak, Jiang Man—exploded in their minds like a clap of thunder.

It made them forget how to think.

A moment later, Senior Brother Lu’s hand fell limply to his side. He stared blankly at the two words "Jiang Man" and muttered to himself, "How is this possible?"

Even Xia Jin couldn’t comprehend what she was seeing.

Jiang Man was on the board.

She had originally thought that even if he managed to get on the board, it would be at the last moment, barely squeezing in at the bottom. She had never imagined he would be first.

As she watched in astonishment, new flames began to burn after his name, signaling that a comment was about to appear.

No matter the context, it was never a common occurrence for a comment to appear on a ranking list.

The text appeared again, and Xia Jin stared at it, not daring to miss a single word: "Broke through the Heart Demon Lake single-handedly, obtaining a spot."

The appearance of the three words "obtaining a spot" stunned everyone.

Senior Brother Lu stumbled and took two steps back.

Xia Jin’s breathing grew heavy.

’He didn’t just make the rankings—he directly obtained a spot.’

She quickly composed herself, turned to Senior Brother Lu, and feigned surprise. "Senior Brother Lu, are you all right?"

After steadying himself, Senior Brother Lu forced a smile. "It’s nothing. I’m just happy for Junior Sister Yu."

"Is that so," Xia Jin said with a faint smile. "You shouldn’t overthink it, Senior Brother. Fate is just like that sometimes; you can’t force it."

"Though you may have missed your chance, Senior Brother, you still got to witness his growth."

Senior Brother Lu’s Heart Spirit was in turmoil. He shook his head slightly and said, "I just remembered I have something else to do, so I won’t keep you company any longer, Junior Sister Xia."

With that, he immediately departed. His unstable Heart Spirit made him look rather pathetic as he went.

Xia Jin stood quietly on the spot, only turning to leave after a long time.

’My own Heart Spirit is also unsteady.’

’It took me this long just to calm down.’

Before she left, she gazed at Jiang Man’s name, her heart swelling with complex emotions.

’Back then, I just thought Jiang Man had some value and was worth cultivating. Now, it seems he’s going to bring Junior Sister Yu even more surprises.’

’Even if his Golden Core doesn’t show outstanding Talent, after this achievement, I’m afraid far more people will start paying attention to him.’

Meanwhile, Ye Xiaoshuang still hadn’t snapped out of her daze.

’Whose name was that up there?’

’Jiang Man’s?’

’The person I recommended?’

In that instant, all the familiar faces around her turned to look.

Their gazes were filled with a mix of admiration and shock.

Immediately, people began to come forward and congratulate her.

"Junior Sister Ye, you have a truly discerning eye to have recommended such a prodigy."

"If it weren’t for you, Junior Sister Ye, the legend of Jiang Man might never have begun."

One compliment after another made Ye Xiaoshuang feel giddy with delight.

She completely forgot why she was even here.

Ms. Yan, however, let out a heavy sigh.

’I’m a little glad I didn’t question him when I arrived.’

’To be honest, a small part of me did think Jiang Man could pull it off.’

’But I never imagined it would happen so quickly.’

’Succeeding at the very last second and barely securing a spot—that would have seemed normal to me.’

’But this...’

’It’s too dazzling.’

’He really doesn’t need to hide his brilliance from anyone.’

’He’s done what no one else could.’

While Jiang Man’s outstanding performance was a good thing for her, she felt no reluctance at all about him leaving for the Inner Sect.

’In fact, I even feel a sense of relief.’

’He’s just too much to handle.’

Matters related to the Evil God and all sorts of bizarre situations had kept her in a constant state of uncertainty.

One moment she might be showered with praise, and the next she could be summoned for questioning by the Law Enforcement Hall.

As a humble Instructor in the Outer Sect, she couldn’t handle that kind of pressure.

—

At that moment, Jiang Man had already left the Heart Demon Lake.

He made his way forward.

’I thought I’d see an endless ocean when I came out.’

But what he found was a mountain.

It was as if two separate spaces were layered on top of each other; exiting one led directly onto a mountain.

Jiang Man leaped lightly, landing on the shore.

Emerging from the lake had taken a significant toll on him, and he had sustained some injuries.