"I'm not sure about that either."
Zhang Ping shook his head as he spoke. He suddenly felt a faint sensation returning to his legs, which filled him with joy and made him admire Li Qingqiu even more.
As expected of the Sect Master!
"I'll have people investigate Murong Manor. I can sense that your sinews and bones have already undergone a transformation. For the next period of time, stay in the sect and cultivate properly—don't go down the mountain," Li Qingqiu instructed.
He was very much looking forward to the Vermilion Bird blood within Zhang Ping. It should not be as simple as merely altering one's Cultivation Aptitude.
Zhang Ping nodded. After hesitating for a moment, he could not help but ask, "Sect Master, how did you know I was in trouble, and why were you willing to help me?"
If he did not ask this clearly, it would be difficult for his heart to truly settle.
Li Qingqiu looked at him and smiled. "Because the first time I saw you, I felt you were pleasing to the eye. Later, you were diligent in the Spirit Management Hall, which made me even more satisfied with you. Before, when Shen Yue went to Tianxuan Mountain, you reminded him that Tianxuan Mountain was dangerous. That turned out to be true—there was a demonic cultivator hidden there who surpassed the ninth layer of the Nurturing Essence realm. He even attempted to seize Zhao Zhen's body, but was fortunately stopped by Elder Jiang Zhaoxia."
These words made Zhang Ping's eyes widen, cold sweat pouring down his back.
After the Tianxuan Mountain trip ended, he had also hesitated, fearing that he might have passed on incorrect information. This made him uneasy for a long time, restless day and night, afraid that he had delayed sect matters. However, since no one ever came to question him, he gradually let the matter go.
Now that Li Qingqiu mentioned it, fear surged through his heart.
A demonic cultivator surpassing the ninth layer of the Nurturing Essence realm—how terrifying would that be?
This world was truly dangerous!
Li Qingqiu continued, "This matter alone is enough to prove your potential, so I paid even closer attention to you. When I learned you had gone down the mountain for 2 months, I always felt something would happen, so I sent people down the mountain to look for you. You have your intuition, and I have my own premonitions."
He winked at Zhang Ping, deliberately trying to ease his tension.
Zhang Ping snapped back to his senses. Setting aside the demonic cultivator matter, it turned out that the Sect Master had been paying attention to him from the very beginning.
Thinking about it carefully, it really had been too easy for him to enter the Spirit Management Hall. Hall Master Zhang Yuchun had also taken extraordinary care of him, always thinking of him whenever there was something good.
That he had reached the fourth layer of the Nurturing Essence realm was proof enough that he had received a great deal of resources.
Then there was also Jing Gong recruiting him into the Guardian Immortal Guard. Who was Jing Gong? How foolish he had been—when Jing Gong came to find him, wasn't that essentially the Sect Master looking for him?
All his past confusion was suddenly resolved. The unease that had weighed on him for nearly 10 years vanished completely at this moment.
He had never believed that others would treat him well without reason, yet the Sect Master had silently looked after him for so many years. He was deeply moved.
"Sect Master, I—"
Zhang Ping was so emotional that he tried to sit up, but Li Qingqiu pressed him back down.
"I know you're cautious by nature, so I didn't dare do anything too overt. I could only cultivate you in secret. I was afraid you might think I had ulterior motives toward you. You can rest assured—without a prominent background or unique, unparalleled talent, there's no reason for me to scheme against you. In my eyes, you're simply a disciple with potential. I hope that disciples like you can develop better within the sect," Li Qingqiu said earnestly as he looked at Zhang Ping.
Zhang Ping's eyes reddened. He hurriedly said, "Sect Master, I believe you. I've always believed you. In the past, it was only because I couldn't come into contact with you that I overthought things. Actually, the reason I survived and joined Qingxiao Sect was because of you. Back then, my entire family was on the verge of starving to death—it was Qingxiao Sect's relief that allowed us to survive…"
As he spoke of the hardships of the past, his emotions poured out unrestrained.
Li Qingqiu had not expected Zhang Ping to have such a history.
He realized that many talented individuals shared similar experiences. Qingxiao Sect, which had long practiced acts of kindness, was constantly reaping rewards.
It seemed that doing more good deeds truly did bring good results.
Zhang Ping's broken leg was indeed severe, but Li Qingqiu discovered that the Vermilion Bird blood was quietly repairing it all along. Even without Li Qingqiu's intervention, Zhang Ping would be able to heal on his own given enough time.
The two talked for half an hour before Li Qingqiu had Yuan Qi escort him back to his courtyard.
"To transform into Excellent aptitude with just one destiny change—if there are 2 more chances, won't that be terrifying?" Li Qingqiu sat in his chair, thinking silently.
He suddenly felt that Zhang Ping's future was immeasurable. As long as his Fate Selection Opportunities remained, it would be difficult to define how high Zhang Ping could reach. Perhaps Zhang Ping might even become Qingxiao Sect's strongest disciple.
Li Qingqiu decided to begin focusing on cultivating Zhang Ping.
At the very least, Zhang Ping's Excellent Cultivation Aptitude was enough to justify investing more resources in him.
…
The year's end passed, and a new year arrived.
After the festival, Li Qingqiu convened a Mystic Heart Hall meeting to summarize the gains of the past year.
Setting aside Zhao Zhen and Zhang Ping's ordeals, Qingxiao Sect had developed very smoothly over the past year. All halls had achieved notable results, and the sect's various resources were steadily increasing.
The winter snow melted away, and spring arrived.
Not long after the beginning of spring, True Person Qingxiao sent a letter. In it, he stated that the Spirit Copper Mountain Range was now completely under Qingxiao Sect's control, with its power structure fully established, and that he wished to return.
After some deliberation, Li Qingqiu dispatched Yang Xuan of the Spiritual Treasury Hall to take charge of the overall situation.
Yang Xuan, who possessed the Human Dao Patriarch Fate, had reached the fifth layer of the Nurturing Essence realm with dual Excellent aptitudes and was fully capable of standing on his own.
Yang Xuan's master, Li Dongyue, had no objections to this. She did not place much importance on the cultivation strength of the Spiritual Treasury Hall, and in her view, this was also beneficial for Yang Xuan, helping him accumulate merit and experience.
Thus, Yang Xuan departed for the Spirit Copper Mountain Range bearing Li Qingqiu's appointment.
Less than a month later, True Person Qingxiao returned.
It must be said that once this old man returned, Li Qingqiu felt that Qingxiao Sect became much livelier. True Person Qingxiao wandered around the various halls, occasionally taking Li Shouzheng and Li Shoumin along to play. No matter which hall or courtyard he went to, he could always stir up noise and laughter—after all, his voice was loud.
On this day, Jiang Zhaoxia came to find Li Qingqiu and said that he wanted to pass on a divine ability to him. Li Qingqiu was also very interested in this, so the two senior brothers went to an uninhabited mountainous area far away from Qingxiao Mountain.
The divine ability Jiang Zhaoxia was passing on was called the Immortal Severing Three Swords. It was divided into three swords in total, and he demonstrated them to Li Qingqiu one by one.
The Immortal Severing Three Swords were even more powerful than Li Qingqiu had expected.
The first sword could create sword clones, containing the subtleties of formations.
The second sword contained the mysteries of movement and traversal, incomparably sharp.
The third sword was a domineering offensive, vast in momentum.
Relying on this divine ability, Li Qingqiu concluded that Jiang Zhaoxia was already the undisputed second-strongest within the sect.
Divine abilities were not so easy to learn. Shen Yue and Xu Ning had also memorized the cultivation method of the Immortal Severing Three Swords, but they had never managed to practice it successfully.
Jiang Zhaoxia's inheritance process was very similar to Li Qingqiu's own divine ability inheritance—it was directly branded into the soul, mastered rapidly, without even requiring a cultivation process.
"You're this strong—why don't you go spar with Ning'er or Shen Yue?" Li Qingqiu looked at the high-spirited Jiang Zhaoxia and asked with a smile.
Jiang Zhaoxia said calmly, "This inheritance came too easily. Using it to compete with them wouldn't be fair. Besides, I'm the Deputy Sect Master—I need to have a broader outlook."
Putting on quite the act—did you learn that from Shen Yue?
Li Qingqiu could not tell whether he was telling the truth or lying, but it was good enough that the three of them could stop fighting.
In fact, Li Qingqiu did not want the three of them to determine a clear winner. That way, the sect would have three second-strongest figures, which would inspire a different kind of confidence in the disciples.
"Then you'd better hurry up and strive to become the second person to reach the Awakening Spirit realm. The Tribulation Platform has already been built—now it's just a matter of who gets there first."
Li Qingqiu raised his brows and smiled. The Tribulation Platform had just been constructed, made from Spirit Copper to prevent the platform from being blasted apart. Restrictions had also been laid upon it to guide the spiritual energy of heaven and earth into the platform.
Hearing this, Jiang Zhaoxia frowned. He really wanted to ask about Xu Ning's progress, but felt that asking would make him seem lacking in confidence.
His intuition told him that Xu Ning would undergo tribulation earlier than he would.
And indeed, that was the case.
In mid-March, Xu Ning came to find Li Qingqiu and said that she felt signs of a breakthrough. Li Qingqiu immediately brought her to the Tribulation Platform.
The Tribulation Platform was located on Lixue Peak to the west. The peak was over 1,000 zhang tall, standing straight like a sword. It was nearly impossible to reach the summit on foot.
After Xu Ning entered the Tribulation Platform, Li Qingqiu ordered the disciples to seal off Lixue Peak, forbidding any disciple from approaching it, and even forbidding anyone from flying over it.
He himself stood on a neighboring mountain peak, watching Xu Ning from afar.
Xu Ning sat cross-legged on the platform, focusing on circulating her cultivation. The lightning tribulation did not arrive immediately.
News of Xu Ning's imminent tribulation spread rapidly.
Jiang Zhaoxia and Shen Yue could no longer sit still.
They did not go to watch Xu Ning undergo tribulation, but they had disciples keep close watch on news of her tribulation.
Seven days later, thunderclouds gathered above Lixue Peak. The rumbling of thunder echoed across heaven and earth, drawing the attention of many disciples.
Relying on the Heavenly Thunder Spiritual Root, Xu Ning passed the tribulation with ease.
However, Li Qingqiu discovered that Xu Ning only endured 27 bolts of heavenly lightning. Compared to his own 99 bolts, the difference was enormous.
His mood became slightly gloomy.
Was the heavens targeting him?
Or was it related to his own foundation?
Li Qingqiu's foundation was certainly far stronger than Xu Ning's. He possessed five powerful Fates: Born Sword Maniac, Heavenly Thunder Spiritual Root, Hundred-Refined Demon Body, Mortal God and Ghost, and Hundredfold Tempering. If heavenly tribulations were determined by one's strength, then this made sense.
After breaking through successfully, Xu Ning spent another 5 days consolidating her cultivation, while Li Qingqiu remained on the neighboring peak to guard her the entire time.
After finishing her consolidation, she came before Li Qingqiu and said, "Master, this lightning tribulation felt a bit easy for me, and the lightning attribute within my vital energy has become stronger. Is this the case for everyone, or am I special?"
Li Qingqiu smiled and said, "Of course it's because your talent is extraordinary. Just watch—when your Third Martial Uncle, Shen Yue, and Zhao Zhen undergo tribulation, they'll be half-dead."
Hearing this, the corners of Xu Ning's mouth lifted. Her temperament was cold, but the competitive spirit deep in her bones did not allow her to lose to anyone except her master. Hearing her master's praise made her the happiest, as it meant her efforts had been rewarded.
She hooked her arm around her master's arm, just like when she was younger.
"Master, you endured more heavenly lightning than I did—that means you're stronger than me. From now on, I'll take you as my goal," Xu Ning said with a playful smile. If other disciples saw her like this, they would surely think she had been possessed.
Li Qingqiu said irritably, "Don't think I don't know you. You've long taken me as your goal. Your rate of growth is putting quite a bit of pressure on me."
"Is that so? Why do I feel like the gap between me and you is only getting bigger, Master?"
"That's just me pretending to be calm and composed. Maybe in a few years, you'll be even stronger than me."