Song He sat in a corner of the audience area, his expression as still as an ancient well.
Ever since being directly pierced through by Qiu Changtian in the last Western Queen Motherâs secret realm, he had to lie low for quite some time.
In fact, he often asked himself in moments of solitude:
Could he really contend with Qiu Changtian?
A mere Marrow Cleansing Rank could counter-kill two Refining Mansion Rank disciples, and a Refining Mansion Rank was able to break through a Golden Core Realm secret realm, so what could he do now?
Could it be that he had to find a Nascent Soul Cultivator to kill him?
If I could find a Nascent Soul Cultivator to help me, I wouldnât be vying with that Qiu Changtian for the position of Chief Disciple of the Foundation Establishment Realm!
In fact, Song He hadnât completely given up on competing for the position.
For instance, the recent wanted notice issued by the Demon Cult was actually the result of him passing on all the information he had collected about Qiu Changtian to Wen Yang, the Foundation Establishment Realm Judge of the Nether Ghost Path.
The Nether Ghost Path practiced an elite disciple system. Ordinary disciples were called âGhost Envoys,â and the elite disciples were known as âJudges.â Their selection system was much more brutal than that of the Orthodox SectâGhost Envoys and Judges could be demoted or promoted amongst each other.
Wen Yang was the most ruthless and most favored Judge in the Foundation Establishment Realm by the elders.
After Song He handed over the information to him, as expected, the Demon Cult issued an immediate wanted notice of the highest level, which might even attract the intervention of a Nascent Soul Cultivator.
However, it was all in vain because Qiu Changtian had already received the tip-off and planned to stay within Kunlun without venturing out.
He wouldnât go out!
He must be made to go out.
Song He had carefully studied Qiu Changtianâs past life since his admission and finally found a suspected breakthrough:
It seemed that Qiu Changtian quite enjoyed the limelight!
From the moment he was admitted, when he was still at the Qi Refining Rank, he took the initiative to go out and do experience tasks.
Even for the simplest tasks, there would always be external disciples accompanying him; he never acted alone.
In other words, there was a high probability that Qiu Changtian revelled in the attention and adoration of others!
Since he was so fond of reputation, Song He would help him elevate his fame until he became conceited and arrogant, exposing his flaws in the process.
Let him be proud for a while⦠Song He watched Qiu Changtian, who descended into the center of the venue, squinting his eyes slightly.
Qiu Changtian came to the center of the venue and bowed to the surrounding disciples, laughing and saying,
âI originally planned to meet up with just a handful of friends for a casual chat, but I never expected so many people to comeâ¦â
A wave of friendly laughter rose from the crowd, and some disciples even joked,
âAlthough Senior Brother Qiu didnât invite us, we can still come over and eavesdrop!â
And so the laughter became even louder.
Of course, besides the disciples who really planned to eavesdrop, many were âattracted by his fameââdue to Song Heâs continuous behind-the-scenes efforts, many Refining Mansion Rank brothers and sisters had heard the name âQiu Changtianâ to varying degrees.
To these people, some came out of curiosity to see what he was really made of, while others harbored skepticism and disbelief, intending to give him a hard time later on.
Even without any grudges, the saying âthe bigger the tree, the stronger the wind blowsâ applied.
âIf thatâs the case, what does everyone want to hear?â Qiu Changtian asked with a hearty laugh.
âNine Heavens Clear Entrance True Mantra!â a disciple shouted out as a jest.
Qiu Changtianâs heart was immediately drenched in sweat, thinking, Can I casually transmit this technique? Even if I dare to speak it, would they dare to listen? Are they not afraid of hearing only part and not the rest, risking deviation in their cultivation?
Fortunately, everyone seemed to sense the improbability of it, and they began suggesting a wealth of other ideas.
âDonât rush, everyone!â Qiu Changtian hastily signaled for everyone to pause, thinking that this was the exact result he had wanted.
If he started with a particular topic, those not interested in the audience might protest and cause a disturbance.
Instead, by symbolically asking the audience âwhat do you want to hear,â there would naturally be a variety of responses.
Then he just needed to choose those topics he wanted to talk about and could rightfully claim that he had âconsidered the audienceâs opinions.â He definitely had a clear plan.
Next, Qiu Changtian took the opportunity of âthe majority wanting to hear about breathing and Qi Refinementâ to lecture on knowledge of breathing and Qi Refining.
Of course, speaking the Nine Heavens Clear Entrance True Mantra was out of the question, but after all, he was an expert in several Qi Refining Techniques, such as the tenacious and strong âSupreme Primordial True Record,â or the impurity-transforming âDemon Quelling Upper Spirit Split Purification Scripture,â among others.
The more he knew and the more he delved into the subject, all he had to do was explain some of the profound mysteries and essentials of these techniques, and he immediately piqued the interest of his fellow Kunlun disciples, who listened attentively.
After he finished his lecture, most Kunlun disciples still maintained a thoughtful posture, as if they had gained some insights.
However, several senior brothers who had initially intended to make things difficult for him had already pinpointed a few vague points in his speech, and they immediately started clamoring:
âJunior Brother Qiu, I am puzzled by three points you mentioned just now, please enlighten meâ¦â
Qiu Changtian calmly addressed each question they raised, instantly brightening the eyes of the onlooking disciples.
The senior brother who had posed the questions originally thought that Qiu Changtian was merely well-read and had extensive knowledge, but had not expected his research on these topics to also be quite profound. For a moment, he was at a loss for how to respond, only able to stiffly nod his head in agreement.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Qiu Changtian, moreover, was receiving notifications of an increase in his Synchronization Value inside his Sea of Consciousness. Feeling pleased, he once again looked around at the audience and said:
âDo any of you have more topics of interest? Whether itâs about breathing and Qi Refining, Sword Control Technique, or any esoteric and unorthodox methods, nothing is taboo. Feel free to speak up.â
His tone was indeed a bit grand, causing some attendees to become restless. One stood up and said:
âJunior Brother Qiu, please be generous and comment on the various schools of the Kunlun Sword Techniqueâ¦â
â¦â¦
Xu Yinglian was in her cave, following the Body Refining Secret Technique from the jade slip and trying to perform Grand Circulation for the first time.
This Body Refining Secret Technique was quite profound and intricate upon first encounter, with an extremely complicated and detailed route of circulation. But after one cycle of Grand Circulation, coupled with the effects of the Pure Yuan Qi Pill, she was pleasantly surprised to find a significant reduction in the residual turbid qi within her marrow that had yet to be cleansed.
The only downside was that the route was overcomplicated and performing one cycle of Grand Circulation was simply too slow.
No wonder Senior Brother Qiu had said that this Body Refining Secret Technique was only suitable for practitioners at the Foundation Establishment stage, and that its efficiency for advancing oneâs cultivation would be too slow after reaching the Core Formation stage. The crux of the matter lies here!
However, for her, a cultivator with a particularly strong character, as long as the technique was truly helpful for Marrow Cleansing, she was naturally willing to devote time and energy to it.
After all, Xu Yinglian was a Kunlun Cultivator with a quite mature psychological age.
Just as she was about to start the second cycle of Grand Circulation, Jian Qingnan burst in hastily:
âItâs bad, Second Senior Sister! Senior Brother and the others have started arguing!â
Xu Yinglian: ?
âWhat?â she exclaimed, quickly standing up, âTheyâve started arguing?â
âItâs at the peak of Dry Cloud Peak!â Jian Qingnan said anxiously, âThe fight is fierce, and itâs said that many elders have rushed over there!â