Chapter 1613 – Mystery to All, All to One
Chapter 1613 – Mystery to All, All to One
Zhang Xi was incredibly shocked. After all, Jadefall Palace Lord Wan Tongtian had been extremely well-known among the nine sects for a long time, and had been a grandmaster for many years. On top of that, the middle-aged daoist nun at his side had grandmaster rank cultivation too. Two grandmasters had actually come to this great competition today! So Jadefall Palace was actually this powerful?
The other sects normally either had their sect master or a single elder leading their representatives. Rarely would two grandmasters arrive together. After all, they needed someone to remain back at the sect to oversee things, so as to avoid someone taking advantage of their unprotected home. However, Jadefall Palace had sent two grandmasters at once just like that! That meant there were at least two more grandmasters overseeing things back at their home base.
As expected of Jadefall Palace, one of the most powerful of the nine sects! People had long thought that the sect was in decline, but just how much time had it taken for them to have recovered this much power?
“The Righteous Sun Sect really is regressing!” Wan Tongtian remarked with a snort. If not for the sake of showing respect for Violet Mountain, he would already have retaliated against the disciples’ display.
At the same time, he remembered when Pei Mianman had first entered Jadefall Palace. At the time, the sect’s disciples hadn’t been much better either. If not for the fact that he wasn’t the perverted type, perhaps even he would have been infatuated by her.
On the other hand, she was Huo Ling’s disciple. Wan Tongtian reflexively glanced at the middle-aged daoist nun accompanying the group with an extremely conflicted expression. In the end, he released a deep sigh.
Zhang Xi and the others trembled. Even though they were the best among their peers, what was any of that worth in front of a grandmaster? They couldn't even say the slightest thing in protest.
“I thought that, because the Righteous Sun Sect had Violet Mountain and the court’s resources, their younger generation would be incredibly formidable. However, it seems they aren’t all that special,” a youngster at Wan Tongtian’s side sneered. He had a wild and unruly expression, and he had a resemblance to Wan Tongtian. The two were clearly father and son.
However, while Wan Tongtian was no spring chicken, his son looked quite young. Despite the boy’s youth, he had the air of a sharp sword. His gaze alone delivered a sharp blow to the disciples present.
When he heard the criticism of his sect, Zhang Xi cursed himself for forgetting his manners. He mustered his courage and said, “A disappointing disciple like me is obviously not worth mentioning, but I have several senior brothers who are ten times, or even a hundred times better than me.”
At the same time, he was incredibly shocked. The young boy was clearly far younger than he was, and yet seemed to have far higher cultivation. A few years prior, he had heard that the Jadefall Palace Lord had a genius son named Wan Guiyi. The boy had already dominated the entire younger generation of the sect at an extremely young age. This was probably that very son.
“A hundred times stronger than you?” Wan Guiyi sneered, clearly unconvinced. “The only senior you have who’s worth anything is that Wu Xiaofan, who’s only passable. I’ve come here this time precisely to see whether he’s as formidable as the legends say.”
Zhang Xi’s expression turned serious as he replied, “I believe that senior brother will not disappoint your respected self.”
Wu Xiaofan was Crouching Cloud Peak’s chief disciple, as well as the personal disciple of their Sect Leader Wang Wuxie.
Normally, all of the different peaks competed fiercely against each other. Their relationships weren’t that good. For example, even though the chief disciples of Violet Mountain’s various peaks didn’t normally beat each other up as soon as they met, they were still often compared to each other. That was why their relationship usually wasn’t too great.
However, there was one exception, which was their great senior brother Wu Xiaofan. They had all been convinced by his strength, to the extent that none of them felt even the slightest bit of jealousy. That was because he was just too strong, and his personality was also good.
With only a small gap in strength, one could still chase after an opponent with everything one had, and perhaps even feel a bit jealous. However, if they were way, way stronger, there could only be admiration left. The disciples’ great senior brother Wu Xiaofan was precisely that kind of person. That wasn’t only true in the Righteous Sun Sect; he even seemed to have the potential to be number one among all of the daoist sects’ younger generations.
Wan Guiyi looked toward Violet Mountain’s tallest peak, and a strong fighting spirit arose within him. He exclaimed, “I hope so!”
…
Then, Zhang Xi arranged for some disciples to bring the guests to their palace. When they left, all of the Righteous Sun disciples sighed in relief. They discovered that all of their backs were dripping with cold sweat. The pressure of a grandmaster was actually so terrifying!
Soon afterward, several of them began to quietly discuss things among themselves. “That female elder was way too terrifying! We only gave her disciple a few looks, and yet it felt as if, if this weren’t Violet Mountain, she would have killed all of us!”
Zhang Xi said, “That’s Jadefall Palace’s Elder Huo Ling. She has always been known for her irritable temper. Furthermore, because of her great strength, when she was Senior Wan’s fellow disciple, the two ended up fighting. They even fought over the Jadefall Palace Lord position. In the end, Senior Wan ended up being a bit stronger and became the Palace Lord, while she took the second peak of Jadefall Palace, Haze Peak. Whether in terms of status or power, it isn’t beneath the Palace Lord’s Jadefall Peak at all.”
He was the chief disciple of Watchful Heart Peak, so he knew much more about the daoist sects than ordinary disciples.
“So that was it. No wonder she was so fierce.”
“I feel as if that disciple of hers is even fiercer.”
“Right, right! She is fierce!”
…
Meanwhile, Jadefall Palace’s representatives continued up the mountain. The Palace Lord and his son walked at the forefront, while Elder Huo Ling and her disciples followed far behind them. The Righteous Sun Sect disciples who saw that clicked their tongues. Jadefall Palace’s internal relationships didn’t seem to be that good.
Wan Tongtian looked behind him. When he saw Elder Huo Ling walking that far behind him, he couldn't help but frown slightly, but there was nothing he could do. He waved his hand, and an energy barrier appeared around him. Then, he asked the youngster next to him, “Guiyi, do you know why your father gave you this name?”[1]
The youngster nodded and replied, “It is recorded in our sacred texts: ‘Profound mystery birthed all things; all things of the world return to one’. I understand the high hopes father has placed onto me clearly.”
Wan Tongtian nodded in gratification, saying, “I gave you your name according to the ancient texts, so I hope you can represent our sect in the future. Our Jadefall Palace used to be at the very top of the nine sects, but by the time your father took over, it was already in decline. I cannot allow Jadefall Palace to continue to decline under my rule. I have done my best to expand our foundation, but even though Jadefall Palace has shown signs of recovery, it is still far from when we were at our peak.
“I was already starting to be discouraged, but you simply brought me too great of a pleasant surprise. The revival of our Jadefall Palace might have to fall to you,” Wan Tongtian said, beginning to look excited. “With your aptitude and your current cultivation, none of the other so-called chief disciples of the other sects can compare to you. What Heavenly Sorrow’s Zhi Yin, or the White Jade Sect’s Lou Wucheng… Even though those people all have great reputations, they are actually nothing at all. The only one among all of the nine sects’ younger generations who could be a match for you is Wu Xiaofan.”
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Even though Wu Xiaofan’s name meant ‘little ordinary’, he wasn’t little or ordinary at all.
No, perhaps he had been pretty ordinary in his youth, and he had only been able to do odd jobs in the Righteous Sun Sect at first. His aptitude hadn’t been anything special, and he had learned all of the sect’s teachings very slowly. He had been mocked and bullied quite often by the others.
However, he was honest and considerate, and he hadn’t let it bother him. On the contrary, he had admitted that he was slow and often sincerely asked the other senior brothers and sisters for guidance. That made it so the others were too embarrassed to make fun of him.
Apart from that, Wu Xiaofan was also extremely hardworking. He had always believed that, if his aptitude wasn’t good enough, he would just make up for it with hard work. Thus, he had gradually begun to catch up to the other people around him. The others were soon shocked to discover that he even began to learn things more quickly than he did. That was especially true when he practiced mental cultivation, which he learned much more quickly than any powerful fighting skills.
Because he wasn’t good at those fighting skills, he often still lost to the people around him during the clan’s internal competitions. One day, however, he had stumbled upon an opportunity. Wang Wuxie had noticed him, discovering that the boy had already reached a level of mental cultivation far above that of his peers.
After secretly observing Wu Xiaofan, Wang Wuxie had discovered that the boy had one great strength, which was his ability to remain focused. He could achieve a state in which, whenever he did something, he could remain completely undistracted by anything else.
Many people were stunning and extraordinary in this world. However, the smarter one was, the quicker their thoughts would change, making it difficult for them to focus on one thing. As a result, it was easy for them to develop all kinds of inner demons.
However, Wu Xiaofan was exactly the opposite. His thoughts were sluggish, but that meant he could concentrate on something for a long time. Wang Wuxie didn’t even think he himself could reach that level. Apart from that, Wu Xiaofan’s best trait was his pure and innocent heart.
As such, Wang Wuxie had made an exception and taken him as his disciple. That had caused quite the disturbance in the Righteous Sun Sect. Many people had been unconvinced and couldn't understand why their sect master would choose such an ordinary person as his disciple, especially someone who was often defeated by the other disciples. They had even suspected that Wu Xiaofan was the sect master’s illegitimate son.
Wang Wuxie hadn’t tried to explain anything. He simply gave Wu Xiaofan a specialized cultivation plan, teaching him in line with his aptitude. After half a year, Wu Xiaofan’s cultivation shot through the roof, and he shocked the entire sect with his abilities.
The disciples of the other peaks had remained unconvinced and thought that it was only because the sect master had personally taught Wu Xiaofan. However, Wang Wuxie didn’t say anything and quietly left the sect for some time. Meanwhile, Wu Xiaofan remained at Crouching Cloud Peak and cultivated alone.
Just like that, half a year passed. The disciples of the other peaks worked hard the entire time, believing that without his master’s instruction, they would be able to surpass Wu Xiaofan again. However, when they faced each other, the disciples of the other peaks all suffered miserable defeats. The gap between them was even greater than the first time they had fought.
Only then did Wang Wuxie explain how Wu Xiaofan was special. All the members of the Righteous Sun Sect finally accepted the explanation wholeheartedly.
Many people wanted to imitate Wu Xiaofan, but they couldn't copy this freakish single-minded devotion at all. In the end, they could only helplessly give up.
…
Wan Guiyi had heard all of those things before. A look of excitement appeared in his eyes as he said, “Only someone like that is worthy of being my rival.”
Meanwhile, Elder Huo Ling, who was following far behind them, said to the young lady beside her, “Manman, you need to make your master look good this time and surprise everyone with your abilities during this competition.”
The fierce woman who had left all the men present captivated was naturally Pei Mianman. When she heard that, she replied with a helpless smile, “Master, just how long has it been since I joined the sect? Even though I’ve improved quickly, I’m still far from those chief disciples.”
“There’s no need to undervalue yourself. I understand your aptitude best, and you aren’t inferior to any of the chief disciples. The only weakness you have is a lack of time.” Elder Huo Ling harrumphed. “But your strength is special. It can’t be evaluated purely by your cultivation rank.”
Pei Mianman stuck out her tongue and said, “It seems I can’t fool master after all.”
A proud expression appeared on Elder Huo Ling’s face as she said, “Let’s not talk about other things for now. Either way, your achievements definitely can’t be inferior to that Wan Guiyi’s. Of course, if you could beat him, that would be even better. I hate seeing Wan Tongtian praising his son like that the most.”
“If I could win against him that quickly, would I even need to find a master?” Pei Mianman replied, rolling her eyes. “Sigh, master, why are you going through all of this trouble? If you had backed down a bit back then… Wan Guiyi would definitely have been born to you and the Palace Lord.”
1. Gui = return, yi = one. ☜