Xuanwu War Sovereign

"Sect Leader, esteemed senior brothers, these nine are the Inner Sect Disciples who distinguished themselves this time!"

Lianmo True Monarch cupped his hands slightly. "By the Sect Leader’s decree, I previously set up the Demon Refining Ancient Tower trial to select True Disciples. Today, the True Inheritance Ceremony has concluded successfully. I, Yang Wanli, now report the fulfillment of my orders to you, Senior Brother Sect Leader!"

Master Star Venerable nodded and smiled. "Good. Thank you for your hard work, Junior Brother Yang. Thank you all for your hard work. Please, take your seats to the side for now."

Lianmo True Monarch, Jiang Beichou, the Purple Thunder Heavenly King, Shi Xuan, Ji Qingxuan, and the others bowed and stepped aside.

The Sect Leader exchanged a look with the various Peak Leaders. A moment later, a heroic-looking young man in a silver Star God Robe stepped forward from below the main seat.

"The nine Inner Sect Disciples, step forward!"

"Greetings, Sect Leader and esteemed Elders!"

"Mm, good." Master Star Venerable nodded.

"Esteemed Elders, what are your thoughts on these nine disciples?"

"Excellent. It is rare for a batch of new True Disciples to include five Martial Artists at the Sea of Reincarnation Realm. This is truly a first in the history of the Star Sect. However, their ability to pass through twenty-five gates is proof enough of their capabilities!" the Jiaomu Peak Leader said with a hint of a smile.

"According to the rules of past generations, the nine Inner Sect Disciples who passed the True Inheritance Ceremony—aside from those with established backgrounds or a master’s lineage—may choose to join any of the Twenty-eight Peaks!"

The Weihuo Peak Leader spoke up. "Nine disciples, you need not have any reservations. Some of you may come from the Four Great Holy Palaces, but there is no conflict between the Four Great Holy Palaces and the Twenty-eight Peaks. The Twenty-eight Peaks are the foundational place of True Inheritance. Perhaps you are unaware, but several of the Peak Leaders present are also the Hall Masters of the Four Great Holy Palaces!"

"For example, the Master of the Alchemy Saint Hall is the Yihuo Peak Leader, the Master of the Heavenly Craft Saint Hall is the Canmu Peak Leader, and the Master of the All Stars Sacred Hall is the Nû Tu Peak Leader. As for the Master of the Star Monarch Holy Hall, that is our Master Star Venerable!"

"The lineages of the Four Great Holy Palaces and the Twenty-eight Peaks are not in conflict! Many of the Star Sect’s True Inheritances originate from our Twenty-eight Peaks of Star Constellation!"

The Star Sect’s Twenty-eight Peaks are its twenty-eight main branches.

They are named after the Four Directions Star Domain.

The East is called the Cyan Dragon: Jiaomu Jiao, the Kang Metal Dragon, Ditu He, Fangri Tu, Xinyue Hu, Weihuo Hu, and Jishui Bao;

The South is called the Vermilion Bird: Jingmu An, the Ghost Gold Ram, Liutu Zhang, Xingri Ma, Zhangyue Lu, the Yihuo Snake, and Zhenshui Yin;

The West is called the White Tiger: Kuimu Lang, Loujin Gou, Weitu Zhi, the Pleiades Rooster, Biyue Wu, Zihuo Hou, and Canshui Yuan;

The North is called the Xuanwu: Doumu Xie, Niujin Niu, the Nû Tu Bat, Xuri Shu, Weiyue Yan, Shihuo Zhu, and Bishui Yu.

"However, if you have already performed the master-disciple ceremony and your names have been recorded in the Purple and Cyan Records to formalize the relationship, then that cannot be changed!"

Qin Feng’s heart stirred as he listened. ’Besides the Twenty-eight Peaks and their twenty-eight lineages, there should be another lineage. The Celestial Punishment Hall.

The Celestial Punishment Hall originally belonged to the Star Monarch Holy Hall. However, as the Celestial Punishment Hall developed over time, its successive Hall Masters formulated a new lineage.

But due to its special status, it has never officially established itself as a separate peak, even though it has become independent.

The Celestial Punishment Hall’s representative in the Dao Asking Hall is Lianmo True Monarch.

He is a Supreme Elder from the Celestial Punishment Hall’s faction.

According to the Star Sect’s traditions from its golden age, the core sect had twenty-eight lineages, one for each peak.

But through the vicissitudes of time, some of the peaks’ True Inheritances have been lost.

The Twenty-eight Peaks of today are not the same as they were ten thousand years ago.’

Just then, the Ghost Gold Peak Leader said, "Alright, you two Senior Brothers, stop your scheming. Just have our junior bring out the registers. Let the nine disciples choose for themselves from the twenty-eight lineages of the Twenty-eight Peaks. If they feel a certain peak’s lineage suits them, they can join that peak. The nine of them are of comparable aptitude. We, as fellow sect members, shouldn’t bicker and squabble over nine disciples, revealing our unseemly side to them!"

As soon as he said this, the various Peak Leaders exchanged glances and cursed inwardly.

’Everyone knows your Ghost Gold Peak has begun to decline!’

’You pull this stunt because you don’t have the resources to attract disciples!’

What did the lineages of the Twenty-eight Peaks rely on? They relied on disciples, especially the support of outstanding ones.

This batch of nine disciples were all individuals of exceptional talent and astonishing Qi Fortune. Which of the Twenty-eight Peak Leaders wouldn’t want a few more geniuses under their command to bolster their peak’s prestige and share their burdens?

But now, with a single sentence from the Ghost Gold Peak Leader, no one could compete for them anymore!

Master Star Venerable swept his gaze over them and chuckled softly. "So be it. Those among you who already have a master may step forward. The rest of you may choose a peak for yourselves. I trust that with your aptitude, talent, and Qi Fortune, none of the Peak Leaders will fail you."

With that, Master Star Venerable changed the subject. "Of course, you can also choose to join my Sect Leader Peak, Yingyue Peak. My Yingyue Peak is powerful and has produced many experts over the generations. It possesses two True Inheritances. One is the Heavenly River True Method, famed for ’a single breath transforms into the Celestial River, as myriad stars rush the heavens.’ It is a renowned Supreme True Inheritance with a profound energy circulation that leads directly to the path of the Star River."

"There is also the Great Zhou Celestial Stars Godslaying Sword Technique. Its swordsmanship is all-encompassing. Once you reach Great Success in your cultivation, a single longsword can manifest a boundless star domain. Attaining the Dao as a Star God will be far from just a dream!"

He then added, "Furthermore, as the Sect Leader of the Star Sect, I dare say I have a knack for teaching disciples and will not let down anyone who joins my peak!"

The Twenty-eight Peak Leaders were speechless. "..."

In truth, the Star Sect’s Sect Leader Peak was quite unique.

Whichever of the Twenty-eight Peaks’ lineages took charge of Yingyue Peak would automatically move into it.

The previous Sect Leader was from Xinyue Peak, so the Xinyue Peak lineage automatically became the Sect Leader Peak.

This generation’s Sect Leader comes from Pleiades Peak, so the Pleiades Peak lineage has automatically moved into Yingyue Peak. Correspondingly, the Xinyue Peak lineage, which had previously occupied the Sect Leader Peak, has withdrawn from Yingyue Peak.

The expressions of the nine disciples flickered.

In the eyes of the nine, Yingyue Peak was indeed a great temptation.

As the current Sect Leader Peak, the Pleiades lineage certainly had advantages over the other peaks.

Qin Feng, however, was the first to rule out this option.

’Gong Ao, Long Jun Nian, and Yu Huatian—the ones who previously tried to suppress me—all came from the Sect Leader Peak. And they are True Disciples with immense influence there.’

Before the Twenty-eight Peak Leaders could react, Master Star Venerable waved his wide sleeve, and a disciple from below his seat approached Qin Feng and the other eight, carrying a jade disc.

On it were nine jade scrolls!

The nine disciples’ expressions shifted. Starting with Panwu, each took one. Qin Feng casually picked one up and swept it with his Divine Thought. A flood of information appeared in his mind.

It was basic information about the Star Sect.

This included specific details about the lineages of the Star Sect’s various peaks.

It covered Yingyue Peak’s Heavenly River True Method and Great Zhou Celestial Stars Godslaying Sword Technique; Jiaomu Peak’s lineage, the Blue Sky Starfall Returning Origin Technique; Kangjin Peak’s Golden Yuan Formless Star Scripture; and so on for all twenty-eight True Inheritances of the peaks. Information on one technique after another filled the minds of Qin Feng and the other eight disciples.

"We are willing to enter Yingyue Peak!"

With barely a moment’s thought, Pangu, Ye Ding, and Dongfang Qingyun all stepped forward together.

Qin Feng’s eyes flickered. ’Those three obviously planned this all along!’