Including Yue Chenfeng, all four Nascent Soul True Monarchs were slightly shaken inwardly. Arrogant!
Far too arrogant!
Why did killing Xiao Yu sound so simple when it came from Little Junior Brother’s mouth?
For Xiao Yu to be listed in the Yuqing Sequence Golden Register, his strength was definitely among the very best of True Monarchs at the same realm.
Coupled with the numerous Profound Treasures he carried and the formidable Companion Beast he had contracted, even an ordinary peak Nascent Soul True Monarch of the Immortal Alliance would probably only be able to defeat him, not capture and kill him.
However, from another perspective, Little Junior Brother’s thinking was not wrong either.
What was a Life-and-Death Platform contention?
As the name implied, it was a special contention platform established by the Thirteen Immortal Sects to resolve life-and-death grudges between cultivators and disciples under their command and prevent private deathmatches. The core of such contention lay in settling karma, fighting until one side died.
Once cultivators voluntarily stepped onto the platform, it meant that both sides of the conflict had agreed to abide by the rules of Life-and-Death Platform contention.
At that point, regardless of the result, it would be recognized by sect law and even protected by Immortal Alliance law.
But under normal circumstances, a privileged second-generation cultivator like Xiao Yu would never accept such a deathmatch invitation.
There was no other reason. Once a cultivator stepped onto the Life-and-Death Platform, it meant that family background and authority behind them lost all effect, and the only thing capable of deciding life or death was their own strength.
But Xiao Yu possessed outstanding aptitude, was arrogant and conceited by nature, and valued face extremely highly.
If Little Junior Brother issued a Life-and-Death Platform challenge with an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivation base, Xiao Yu would most likely grit his teeth and accept it for the sake of his own face and the glory of the Tianyuan Xiao Clan, perhaps even agree gladly.
After all, when Nascent Soul True Monarchs contended within the same realm, it was actually very difficult to determine life and death.
But in a deathmatch, the Nascent Soul True Monarch with the realm advantage would most likely be the one standing at the end.
‘So here’s the question, isn’t Little Junior Brother afraid Xiao Yu will beat him to death?’
Jiang Chuan and Su Bathing-Rain exchanged a glance and could faintly sense the concern in each other’s eyes.
“Little Junior Brother, there’s no need to take such a risk.” Yue Chenfeng shook his head and said solemnly.
Even if Chen Beiwu was a prodigy who had forged a Yuanshi Golden Core, wanting to suppress and kill Xiao Yu with an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivation base was still somewhat delusional. Instead, he could easily end up getting himself killed.
If Chen Beiwu died at Xiao Yu’s hands, how was he supposed to explain it to Master afterward?
Seeing the reactions of his Senior Brothers and Senior Sister, Chen Beiwu was somewhat surprised as well.
At peak Golden Core, he had already been able to defeat an unparalleled prodigy like Fairy Moonfirmament. After breaking through to Nascent Soul True Monarch, defeating a mid-stage Nascent Soul True Monarch like Xiao Yu should not be a problem.
“Junior Brother, you must not underestimate the differences between the realms of Nascent Soul True Monarchs.” Jiang Chuan interjected: “The Nascent Soul has five realms, and every step is another heaven. Early-stage and mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators may appear to differ by only a single minor realm, but in reality, the difference between them is like clouds and mud.
“Moreover, Xiao Yu is an unparalleled prodigy listed in the Yuqing Sequence Golden Register. His strength must not be underestimated.”
“Even if Junior Brother forges a Pure Yang Nascent Soul and attains the position of True Monarch, you still may not be Xiao Yu’s match.”
Su Bathing-Rain also nodded in agreement: “Fellow disciples killing one another is a path that invites disaster. Little Junior Brother, how about reconsidering?”
Hearing this, Chen Beiwu frowned slightly. Seeing that his Senior Brothers and Senior Sister were all resolute in their attitudes, he was not worried but instead delighted.
The Life-and-Death Platform contention he had just mentioned was never for the sake of showing off momentary blood courage. It was to meet Xiao Yu and give the latter something ruthless to remember.
A gentleman’s revenge could wait ten years? That only applied when one lacked the ability.
Now that Chen Beiwu possessed some confidence in taking revenge, he naturally wanted to repay enmity on the spot. There was no way he would wait that long.
“What Senior Brothers and Senior Sister said does indeed make some sense.” Chen Beiwu’s tone softened.
Hearing this, Yue Chenfeng and the other three all breathed a sigh of relief.
Even internal sect conflict had to take its impact into account and be kept within a certain scope.
A Life-and-Death Platform contention would undoubtedly mean completely tearing away all pretenses and fighting until one side died, making its repercussions far too severe.
Forget about them disagreeing—even the Yuqing Sect Master could not possibly allow Little Junior Brother to do this. He might even personally step in and promise Chen Beiwu quite a few conditions in exchange for reconciliation between the two sides.
There was no helping it. The child who cried always got milk, especially an unparalleled prodigy like Little Junior Brother.
‘Wait, something’s wrong!’
Yue Chenfeng’s thoughts turned, and he instantly realized that Little Junior Brother’s words had actually been putting pressure on him as well.
If he handled this poorly and the outcome failed to satisfy Chen Beiwu, the latter might truly pull something like this.
‘What a troublesome fellow.’
Yue Chenfeng inwardly shook his head, and the way he looked at Chen Beiwu changed slightly.
“We can put the Life-and-Death Platform contention aside for now, but I still want to meet Xiao Yu.” Chen Beiwu compromised.
There was no helping it. Words like a common man’s fury making blood spill within five steps, mutually assured destruction, were easy to say, but actually carrying them out was exceedingly difficult.
Leaving everything else aside, someone lacking intelligence would not even know where Xiao Yu was.
It was precisely because Chen Beiwu could not determine Xiao Yu’s exact location that he had used the Life-and-Death Platform contention as a pretext to ask his Senior Brothers and Senior Sister.
“No problem, Junior Brother. I can arrange it for you, but I must be present to witness it. How about that?” Yue Chenfeng looked directly at Chen Beiwu.
Better safe than sorry.
If Little Junior Brother would not even agree to this condition, then there was no need to continue, lest further complications arise.
“Of course.” Chen Beiwu readily agreed and took a sip of tea.
……
At the summit of Yuqing Peak, Yuqing Hall.
Green smoke curled upward from the incense burner. The Yuqing Sect Master sat upright upon the cloud bed, his eyes slightly closed.
Below him, Protector Qinghe and Protector Yuyue sat separately on either side.
Just then, Protector Qinghe raised his eyes and looked outside the hall, his voice clear and resonant: “Sect Master, True Venerable Xuanyuan requests an audience.”
“Admit him.”
The Yuqing Sect Master slowly opened his eyes.
The next second, starlight from the great celestial cycle surged within the hall, and a figure resembling a banished immortal silently appeared.
“Greetings, Senior Brother Sect Master.” True Venerable Xuanyuan gave a slight salute while standing.
A cultivation giant whose cultivation had reached the peak of Divine Transformation True Venerable had no need for excessive ceremony even before the Yuqing Sect Master, yet True Venerable Xuanyuan had always observed Immortal Sect rules when paying respects.
“Senior Brother Sect Master summoned me so suddenly. What important matter requires instruction?” True Venerable Xuanyuan asked.
“Xuanyuan, this Venerable has never been inclined to interfere much in the petty clashes of spirit between juniors, but once certain lines are crossed, things stop looking good.” The Yuqing Sect Master slightly turned his head and looked at True Venerable Xuanyuan.
“Oh.” True Venerable Xuanyuan responded indifferently, with nothing further.
The Sect Master directly addressing him by his Dao title showed that the other party was somewhat displeased, but so what?
He had indeed lost to True Venerable Zixiao and failed to obtain the position of Sect Master, but that did not mean the latter had the authority to meddle in the affairs of the Tianyuan Xiao Clan.
Matters between juniors should be resolved by juniors. They were not worth mentioning, and he had no interest in getting involved.
“Xuanyuan, you don’t intend to explain yourself?” The Yuqing Sect Master frowned slightly.
“Explain what? Is such a trivial matter even worth Senior Brother Sect Master deliberately mentioning?” True Venerable Xuanyuan’s tone was indifferent, his expression calm.
As he spoke, he had already stirred the karmic threads that only Divine Transformation True Venerables could touch and instantly ‘saw’ what his son Xiao Yu had recently done.
“A trivial matter?” The Yuqing Sect Master chuckled and looked at True Venerable Xuanyuan: “That depends on what it touches.”
It truly was a trivial matter!
For Yuqing Immortal Sect, cultivation resources came first.
Without sufficient cultivation resources, even if the sect’s prodigies possessed greater talent, it would be useless.
And if there were sufficient resources, then even if second-generation sect cultivators had only average aptitude, enough resources could still pile up a group of Nascent Soul True Monarchs.
After all, once the number of Nascent Soul True Monarchs became large enough, the sect would always produce several prodigies capable of breaking through to Divine Transformation True Venerable.
Of course, this did not mean prodigies were useless. Quite the opposite!
For Yuqing Immortal Sect, cultivating cultivation prodigies was undoubtedly far more cost-effective. It could save vast quantities of cultivation resources, or use the same amount of resources to cultivate prodigies with much greater combat power who could fight across realms!
Especially when it came to Void-Refining Dao Venerables? Existences at that level not only consumed unimaginably vast quantities of cultivation resources, but also depended upon fate, fortune, and innate foundation before there was even a chance of success.
Therefore, to sect leaders such as True Venerable Xuanyuan, one or two unparalleled prodigies were simply not worth mentioning, which was why he called it a trivial matter. This remained true even though Chen Beiwu had forged a Yuanshi Golden Core.
What once-in-ten-thousand-years prodigy? No matter how high its grade or how powerful the Golden Core was, it could not conceal the fact that Chen Beiwu was merely a Golden Core cultivator.
Although the unparalleled prodigy of the previous generation of Yuqing Immortal Sect who had forged a Yuanshi Golden Core had managed to become nearly unrivaled among Nascent Soul True Monarchs, had he not ultimately died after failing to break through to Divine Transformation True Venerable?
To put it unpleasantly, no matter how strong one’s talent was, anyone who had not entered Divine Transformation was still an ant before a cultivation giant like True Venerable Xuanyuan.
It was precisely because of this that True Venerable Zixiao, as Yuqing Sect Master, often had to consider not merely one unparalleled prodigy, but the stability and controllability of the entire sect, its resources and balance, and even make exceptions, such as taking True Venerable Xuanyuan’s son Xiao Yu as a disciple for his sake.
But this time, that brat Xiao Yu had tried to repeat his old trick and eliminate a competitor in advance, only to kick an iron plate.
“What, did that old undying Changqing successfully break through to Void-Refining Dao Venerable?” True Venerable Xuanyuan chuckled.
Although he looked down on his son’s personality, he would not easily yield either.
If the True Venerable Changqing of Dongming lineage had the ability, then they could produce evidence and send his son away, or repay tooth for tooth and remove Xiao Yu’s name from the Yuqing Sequence Golden Register.
“That he did not.” The Yuqing Sect Master shook his head slightly.
If breaking through to Void-Refining Dao Venerable were that easy, he would have resigned from the position of Sect Master long ago and entered seclusion instead of laboring tirelessly, preparing to accumulate a full three thousand years of seniority before stepping down.
True Venerable Xuanyuan shook his head. With a movement of his Divine Sense, he prepared to leave.
“But Chen Beiwu is no ordinary prodigy. He has already caught Dao Venerable Guangcheng’s eye.”
The Yuqing Sect Master changed the subject and said with interest: “The Dao Venerable deliberately manifested a wisp of Divine Sense and observed Chen Beiwu for a short while, then gave him an evaluation of ten characters.”
Hearing this, True Venerable Xuanyuan’s gaze fell on the Yuqing Sect Master for the first time.
He could disregard True Venerable Zixiao, and he could disregard True Venerable Changqing of Dongming, but he could not ignore the words of Dao Venerable Guangcheng.
Although the Tianyuan Xiao Clan also possessed a Void-Refining Dao Venerable Patriarch, how could such a lofty existence like their Patriarch care about descendants within the clan? He simply allowed the juniors to do as they pleased.
To put it plainly, that brat Xiao Yu was not even worthy of entering a Void-Refining Dao Venerable’s eyes.
Seeing the change in True Venerable Xuanyuan’s gaze, the Yuqing Sect Master smiled calmly and repeated the ten characters: “This child resembles me and can bear the sect’s fortune.”
True Venerable Xuanyuan’s heart sank slightly.
This child resembles me and can bear the sect’s fortune!
For a Void-Refining Dao Venerable, such an evaluation could hardly be called light!
After all, when he had personally gone to meet his own Patriarch in the past, he had merely received the evaluation “his talent is acceptable.”
But the words resembles me were far too exaggerated!
What breadth of vision did Dao Venerable Guangcheng possess? Even among the Immortal Alliance’s Void-Refining Dao Venerables, he was outstanding. How could True Venerable Xuanyuan, merely a Divine Transformation True Venerable, compare with what his eyes could perceive?
In an instant, an exceedingly absurd thought surged into True Venerable Xuanyuan’s mind.
‘Could it be that in the eyes of an existence like Dao Venerable Guangcheng, Chen Beiwu possesses the potential for Void Refinement, with hope of advancing from Divine Transformation to Void Refinement in the future and attaining the realm of Void-Refining Dao Venerable!’
At this thought, True Venerable Xuanyuan was rather surprised inwardly.
There were countless prodigies within the sect. Although prodigies possessing the potential for Divine Transformation were rare, they were not important enough for True Venerable Xuanyuan to pay too much attention to.
But if a prodigy possessed the potential for Void Refinement, then what that represented was completely different.
Unless there was absolute certainty of killing such a prodigy in a single strike, the Xiao Clan had absolutely no reason to casually offend one.
“How does Senior Brother Sect Master intend to handle this?”
True Venerable Xuanyuan’s expression remained unchanged, without the slightest ripple in his eyes.
“The sect needs peace and quiet. I do not want any rumors or slander concerning Chen Beiwu to appear,”
At this point, the Yuqing Sect Master paused slightly and looked at True Venerable Xuanyuan: “Whether openly or in private.”
“Agreed.”
True Venerable Xuanyuan nodded slightly, and the avatar condensed from Divine Sense silently dissipated within the great hall.
“For the sake of one junior, was there really a need to go this far?”
Protector Yuyue tilted her little head, expressing her incomprehension.
“Protector Yuyue, small things reveal the greater whole.” The Yuqing Sect Master chuckled, his gaze profound.
Some Immortal Alliance prodigies were often unruly and untamed. Even when the sect gave them sufficient resources, they still took it for granted, believing the sect should naturally select solely by talent, otherwise it was an enemy rather than a benefactor.
This was a classic case of being grateful for a small favor but becoming resentful over a greater one.
Although Chen Beiwu was not such a fool and understood gratitude and the distinction between friend and foe, everything required comparison.
Without that overly arrogant little fellow Xiao Yu stepping in to suppress him somewhat and grind down Chen Beiwu’s edge, how could it highlight how wise and mighty he, the Sect Master, was, how much he valued the sect’s future, make Chen Beiwu owe him a karmic bond, and strengthen Chen Beiwu’s sense of belonging toward the sect?
After all, Chen Beiwu was someone Dao Venerable Guangcheng had personally praised as possessing the potential for Void Refinement!
……
Meanwhile, within Yuqing Immortal Sect.
At the luxurious headquarters of the Feather Immortal Society, Feather Immortal Pavilion.
Xiao Yu was sitting cross-legged in cultivation when he suddenly discovered that the Spiritual Mechanism of Heaven and Earth around him had abruptly solidified.
His heart jolted. The moment he opened his eyes, he saw that a figure was already standing before him.
“Father, why have you come?”
Xiao Yu hurriedly stood up and bent forward to salute.
“Kneel!”
An indescribable True Venerable pressure suddenly descended.
“Boom!”
“Boom!”
“Boom!”
Xiao Yu’s knees slammed into the ground, causing the entire floor of Feather Immortal Pavilion to tremble slightly. Immediately afterward, an ear-grating series of sounds came from the bones throughout his body.
A dignified mid-stage Nascent Soul True Monarch had absolutely no power to resist before this Divine Sense avatar of True Venerable Xuanyuan. He could not even move a finger or open his mouth to ask a question.
“Unfilial son, do you know your mistake?”
Only after a long while did True Venerable Xuanyuan lower his gaze, looking down at his son kneeling on the ground with a stubborn expression. With a thought, he removed the confinement of the True Venerable pressure.
“This True Monarch has always handled matters comprehensively. What mistake have I made?”
Xiao Yu laboriously raised his head and spoke one word at a time.
“You have disappointed this Venerable greatly.”
True Venerable Xuanyuan shook his head slightly, his tone calm, revealing not the slightest emotion.
Compete, yes.
Cultivation itself required struggling to cross!
Xiao Yu had two choices. One was to borrow the overwhelming power of the Tianyuan Xiao Clan and openly crush Chen Beiwu in a manner that left others with nothing to say.
The other was to act decisively and cleanly. Either do not offend him at all, or use evidence to nail him down completely, uproot him entirely, and leave no trace for anyone to investigate.
At that point, even if True Venerable Changqing became enraged, he could personally step forward and fight him.
Yet this disappointing son of his had chosen precisely the pettiest and, at the same time, most arrogantly self-confident method.
“Oh, and then?” Xiao Yu retorted without yielding an inch: “Could it be that True Venerable Xuanyuan is afraid, frightened of a mere Golden Core cultivator?”
Chapter 381: Potential for Void Refinement
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