Watching the Mountain

At this very moment, Xu Ran felt this intensely. ’Senior Sister Yue sees things far too clearly.’

Seeing Xu Ran staring at her blankly, Yue Qingyu chuckled and asked, "Junior Brother, why are you looking at me like that?"

Xu Ran snapped out of his daze and said with a sigh, "I was just thinking how lucky the disciples of our Sect are to have a Senior Sister with such a gentle heart."

Yue Qingyu studied him for a moment, then broke into a smile. "Junior Brother, you seem to be very fond of praising me lately."

Xu Ran paused, then said, slightly taken aback, "Have I?"

He hadn’t noticed. ’After all, in my heart, Senior Sister Yue has always been the most perfect Seeker.’

*

*

*

Ever since Ye Shu broke through to the Foundation Establishment Stage, he and his uncle, Xu Ran, were now in the same Realm. Both of them were striving to break through to the Purple Mansion.

Xu Ran wasn’t worried about his own breakthrough. He was already close to the Purple Mansion Stage; his Dao Seed was condensing, and his Cultivation was improving at a steady, methodical pace. This small, daily progress gave him a great sense of peace.

With enough time and accumulation, a breakthrough was practically a certainty.

They all say cultivation is hard. Yet, since embarking on this path, the only time Xu Ran had ever felt truly helpless and desperate was when he faced the barrier to the Qi Cultivation Fourth Layer.

Back then, he had observed the ceaseless flow of streams, the vitality of ancient trees, the surging of fierce flames, the weight of mountain rock, and more, all in an attempt to comprehend the Heaven and Earth Dao Rhyme. Yet, for decades, he had gained nothing.

He had truly felt a sense of despair back then, wondering if it was just as Yue Qingyu had said—that he would never reach the Qi Cultivation Fourth Layer in his lifetime.

In the end, it was the Wooden Token that Senior Sister Yue had left him that finally gave him the opportunity to break through.

After entering the Foundation Establishment Stage, Ye Shu’s cultivation remained slow and unhurried. His progress was incredibly slow. Xu Ran was genuinely worried that at this rate, he might never have a chance to reach the Purple Mansion Stage.

But that was just Ye Shu’s nature. Not even the Little Witch could change him, let alone Xu Ran himself.

Xu Ran sighed to himself. ’I just hope he can successfully go further.’ He set aside his concerns about Ye Shu and walked to the main gate of the Profound Pure Sect, gazing up into the distant sky.

At that moment, Shen Wuchen had just defeated an opponent. He stared expressionlessly at the man he had just bested and said coldly,

"You couldn’t even last two hours against me. You are not fit to be counted among the ranks of prodigies."

The young man opposite him looked dejected. He bowed respectfully to Shen Wuchen. "Thank you for your guidance, Wuchen True Monarch. I will return and redouble my efforts in cultivation. I hope to one day earn your acknowledgment."

Shen Wuchen nodded slightly. "I will await your challenge."

After the man withdrew, Shen Wuchen tilted his head slightly, looked toward the crowd, and called out in a cold voice, "Next."

Another young man then stepped forward, formed a hand seal in salute to Shen Wuchen, and announced his name.

As he took the stage, Xu Ran could hear a heated discussion break out among the crowd.

"I wonder how long he’ll last. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen anyone who could last a full day against Wuchen True Monarch and qualify as a B Level prodigy."

"Forget B Level. Lately, it’s rare to even see someone who can last half a day and reach C Level."

"Indeed. Sigh... the Cultivation Realm these days... each generation is worse than the last."

Listening to the crowd’s discussion, Xu Ran clicked his tongue in amazement. Ever since Shen Wuchen appeared, people’s perception of a Nascent Soul True Monarch’s combat power had become skewed, and their standards had grown ridiculously high.

In the past, if a Golden Core Cultivator could manage to last even a dozen rounds against a Nascent Soul True Monarch, they would become famous throughout the Cultivation Realm, their renown unmatched, praised to the high heavens.

And now? Just listen to them. Failing to last even half a day against a Nascent Soul True Monarch like Shen Wuchen was now grounds for being called ’a generation worse than the last.’

What’s more, no one even objected to this sentiment. Everyone wore expressions of agreement, showing that it had become the common consensus.

’Then again, it makes sense,’ he thought. ’After all, two people have already defeated Wuchen True Monarch while only at the Golden Core Realm. Compared to that, someone who can’t even last half a day, or even two hours, can only be considered a failure.’

Before the match began, both Shen Wuchen and his opponent turned and bowed respectfully to the statues of Sword Dao Ye Shan and Master Vermilion Bird behind them before commencing their battle.

Xu Ran watched the scene from a distance, a wave of emotion washing over him.

He remembered how, just a few decades after Ye Shan’s decline, no one in the Sect discussed him anymore. He recalled the scene in the Outer Sect Cafeteria, where everyone simply ignored his memory.

’Now, something like that shouldn’t happen again. I believe that even after a great many years have passed, people will still remember that this era produced an incomparably brilliant Sword Dao prodigy and a master of Arrays.’

’Even if future generations forget their deeds, they will still remember the names Sword Dao Ye Shan and Master Vermilion Bird, Ning Xiyue.’

’For Ye Shan, this is probably a blessing. At least he won’t be forgotten so quickly, like he was before.’

’For a Sword Dao prodigy like him, failing to leave his name in the river of history would be a truly cruel fate.’

’As for Little Xiyue, it matters less. My disciple is destined to live a second life. Master Vermilion Bird is just her beginning, not her peak.’