In the spacious hall, pure and flawless crystal lamps were adorned with sunstones within, refracting brilliant, dazzling light.
Before a black sandalwood table, old acquaintances and friends shared wine and reminisced about the past. The jade cups glowed with a warm, gentle luster beneath the fiery radiance, and the fragrant wine reflected colorful ripples of light.
Amid cups of wine, conversation, and laughter, they recalled bygone days and spoke of the future. Time flowed like water; their faces remained familiar, yet no longer entirely as they once were.
Youths had grown world-weary and mature; with every toast, worldly sophistication mingled with old stories. Even the once-timid girl of the past had blossomed into an elegant and poised lady.
Slightly tipsy, Qin Ming stepped outside to see off his old acquaintances.
Meng Xinghai also reeked of alcohol, whether sincere or feigned, waving farewell to the crowd of familiar faces.
After returning, Qin Ming's drunkenness gradually receded and his eyes regained their clarity. He prepared to study the Yimu Scripture and the World-Abiding Scripture, eager to improve his strength.
In the world of night mist, one's own power was the bedrock supporting everything.
Meng Xinghai said, "Don't rush to practice them just yet. We need to find an old monster with profound cultivation on the Newborn path to examine them. If there's a flaw in the arts, it could easily cause severe problems."
Qin Ming nodded. "I'll just browse through them briefly."
In fact, he was fairly confident in discerning whether the scriptures were genuine. The handwritten copy, still bearing the scent of ink, retained distinct emotional fluctuations.
Qin Ming quickly realized that this was Cui He's "resentment." Cui the Fourth had not wanted to show his own cultivation art to anyone else, so he had transcribed it by hand.
"This Yimu Scripture does have a few flaws. Though they aren't obvious, cultivating it like this would certainly make reaching perfection impossible." Qin Ming corrected them himself, resonating with the correct lines of the scripture.
Arts of unknown origin truly could not be practiced carelessly. The World-Abiding Scripture also had some issues, which Qin Ming manually rectified. Furthermore, amidst Cui He's "resentment," he managed to resonate with one additional page of scripture, expanding it from six pages to seven.
Unfortunately, Cui the Fourth's negative emotions far outweighed his contemplation of the scripture. As Qin Ming studied the World-Abiding Scripture, he found it profoundly esoteric. His current realm was insufficient, and he truly could not cultivate it yet; mastering the Yimu Scripture was a prerequisite. He could sense that this scripture was extraordinary, possessing unique insights into extending life, prolonging vitality, and maintaining peak condition.
Although it did not cover as many fields as the Life-Altering Classic, there were similarities between them. In the future, he might be able to cross-reference and combine them in his training.
Three days later, Qin Ming discovered a hint of green tinting his raven-black hair. His expression froze slightly. In the future, when circulating his cultivation, would he glow green just like Cui He?
He attempted to harmonize it using the silk book method and found that his unified heavenly light force had no issues, which allowed him to breathe a sigh of relief.
"It's been quite some time since returning from Luofu Immortal Mountain. Once my body has thoroughly recovered, I can consider my seventh Newborn transformation!" Qin Ming looked forward to it immensely. With each bodily metamorphosis, his strength would surge drastically.
He assessed his heavenly light force. Back when he clashed with Cui Chongxuan, who cultivated Six Imperials force, he had just mastered the Departing Fire Classic and the Golden Silkworm Classic.
"When I mastered two wondrous arts, my heavenly light force underwent a qualitative leap, allowing me to suppress Cui Chongxuan, who had only mastered one imperial force. Yet according to him, an extraordinary person of the Six Imperials lineage is only considered qualified once they master two imperial forces in the Newborn realm."
Qin Ming pondered. Looking at it this way, he needed to master at least four wondrous arts during the Newborn stage to avoid falling behind the legendary force technique!
Of course, this was merely the simplest stacking; he had not yet considered issues such as the fusion and clash between various wondrous arts.
He had traded the Departing Fire Classic with the Rulai disciple Xiang Yiwu for the Wuji Classic, and now he had obtained the Yimu Scripture. He had already gathered four wondrous arts.
As for the Life-Altering Classic, it was a wondrous book devoted to extending longevity and enhancing natural talent, so its boosting effect on heavenly light force was likely negligible.
"Ning Siqi truly provided help when I needed it most, traveling thousands of li to bring me the Departing Fire Classic. It was of immense assistance to me," Qin Ming murmured softly. Without the Departing Fire Classic, he would not have acquired the Wuji Classic, nor would his transformation in the Mountains and Rivers Spiritual Nest have been so complete.
Next, he diligently practiced the Yimu Scripture to prepare for his next Newborn transformation.
Having won twenty consecutive matches, Qin Ming had met the criteria to enter the Six Imperials and could undergo their trial. Meng Xinghai had someone retrieve his "golden letter." Not long ago, he was still running himself ragged deciding where to go, battling the "top figures" of various cities. Now, with two "golden letters" in hand, he was paralyzed by choice.
Meng Xinghai said, "From what I understand, lineages like the Six Imperials, Qingtian, and Yuqing have all relaxed their latest disciple recruitment criteria. Even those who aren't extraordinary persons can compete for core disciple positions.
"Supposedly, it's because individuals with heaven-defying comprehension can display great power later on, or find ways to improve their bone structure and alter their innate talent."
Qin Ming had an epiphany and said, "Each of these great ancestral courts is making its move—either letting top disciples roam freely outside or expanding rapidly. They're all preparing for the Era of Great Pioneering, aren't they?"
Over the past few days, Meng Xinghai had heard plenty of news: factions in the outer realm and the esoteric sects were also aggressively recruiting top geniuses.
He handed some documents to Qin Ming, saying, "Lineages such as Yuqing, Qingtian, and the Six Imperials all require two assessment trials to select their final core disciples. What's more, there are benefits offered each time to attract top talents.
"The conditions across several lineages are similar. They seem to have coordinated with one another to avoid destructive competition."
Qin Ming humbly sought his advice on which dao arena was more suitable. Old Meng also frowned, finding it difficult to judge.
He sighed. "In this era of grand expansion, the major lineages seem to desperately need extraordinary persons and top talents, adopting an attitude of 'the more, the merrier.' My fear is that once the Era of Great Pioneering arrives, some of them will end up as cannon fodder. One has to consider this carefully. Moreover, some great sects have virtually become family domains. Even among core disciples, resource distribution will inevitably show favoritism based on familial ties."
Qin Ming said, "Looking at it that way, a special higher academy doesn't seem like a bad choice either."
Meng Xinghai said, "We still have time anyway. Let's study it further."
The next day, he brought fresh news: the assessments of several powerful lineages were beginning to take shape.
Meng Xinghai laughed. "We can go fleece them first, reap the benefits, and make our final decision later!"
During the initial assessments, Qingtian, Yuqing, and the Six Imperials would each provide some heavenly light force techniques—their exclusive secret manuals—to test whether the applicants were suited to their path.
"Several lineages have stated that their trial grounds contain exceedingly rare spiritual substances. Whether one can obtain them depends entirely on personal strength, serving as a perk for participants."
Qin Ming was about to undergo his seventh Newborn transformation, and hearing this news instantly piqued his interest.
Meng Xinghai chuckled as well. "Spiritual substances from the ancestral courts of great sects are bound to be far superior to those found outside. It's well worth looking forward to. For now, don't risk running off to the Thunder-Fire Gold-Forging Palace."
Qin Ming nodded immediately. Going to legendary lineages to learn heavenly light force techniques and acquire spiritual substances was a win, even if he didn't ultimately choose them. In fact, he was genuinely curious about the ancestral courts of the Six Imperials, Yuqing, and the Qingtian Sect. He wanted to delve inside to see for himself; if his spirit could resonate with parts of their secret classics, he would make an immense profit!
"When does it begin?" Qin Ming asked, eager to set off immediately.
Meng Xinghai informed him that he still had to wait a few days. He took out six small cloth pouches and handed them over, saying, "Here, take these. Inside these bags are fallen fruits."
He knew Qin Ming's foundation far exceeded ordinary people's, and feared that the single bag of fallen fruit won from City Lord Qi Daoming of Light-Chasing City wouldn't be enough for Qin Ming's seventh fusion of heavenly light force.
Recently, Meng Xinghai had made a fortune. Some of these fallen fruits were winnings from wagers, while others were bought with day gold.
"Between you and me, Uncle Meng, there's no need for thanks." Qin Ming accepted them.
He had already thoroughly comprehended the Yimu Scripture and developed Shaoyang Force, Dragon Claw Force, Metal-Severing Force, Wind-Fire Force, and more. He was only waiting for his seventh Newborn transformation to fuse them with the aid of the fallen fruits.
The mother tree of fallen fruits was rooted in a pool of heavenly light, drawing upon the essence of heavenly light from beyond the mortal realm. It had nearly condensed into "liquid," possessing astonishing "medicinal potency."
Over the following days, Qin Ming actively prepared for the upcoming trials. With the slightest circulation of the Yimu Art, his hair would take on a faint green tinge.
In addition, he asked Meng Xinghai for help in forging weapons from jade iron and exotic metal.
The Overlord's lance had been dismantled by Li Qingyue, and its core essence was black jade iron. The total amount wasn't large, but the fragments were enough to forge over a dozen arrowheads.
Qin Ming felt that his mutton-fat jade iron saber, which was slightly shorter than an arm, handled quite well, so he did not incorporate the black jade iron to reforge it.
Afterward, he solemnly retrieved a small piece of exotic metal—flawlessly white and warm as jade. At first glance, it resembled mutton-fat jade iron, but was more restrained, harboring an inexplicable divine charm.
The near-immortal item, the Eight Trigrams Furnace, had been cast from a blend of multiple exotic metals, including this snow-white, jade-like metal.
Back then, Qin Ming had dug out a handful from the bottom of the giant crater. However, after the old monsters collected them, they only gave Li Qingyue two pieces—one purple and one white. Now, he and Li Qingyue each had a piece of exotic metal.
A few days later, Qin Ming possessed twelve jade iron arrows—or rather, arrowheads forged from black jade iron. Pitch-black with a jade luster, they were exceptionally dangerous.
In addition, he had a thumb-length pendant: crystalline white and shaped like a hiltless little sword or cone, tapering to a sharp tip.
Weapons made of exotic metal were priceless; even a tiny piece was exceedingly rare. It could pierce heavenly light force, conscious spiritual light, divine wisdom, and the like. Blocking it required extraordinary measures.
The reason it took several days was primarily that polishing it was extraordinarily difficult. By comparison, the rare black jade iron had been fashioned into arrowheads that very same day.
Meng Xinghai looked at it with envy and reminded him, "This pendant is many times more precious than all the jade iron weapons on you combined. Don't go losing it by accident."
Qin Ming laughed. "If Uncle Meng likes it, you can take it."
Meng Xinghai shook his head. "What nonsense are you talking? A grown man like me, coveting your things?"
Over the past few days, Qin Ming felt his body had fully recovered; undergoing his seventh Newborn transformation right away would pose no problem. He eagerly looked forward to entering the legendary ancestral courts of the great sects.
Finally, latest news arrived: the Six Imperials would be the first to assess disciples.
"What a coincidence. The Cui clan won't think I'm deliberately opposing them, will they?" Qin Ming began packing his belongings.
The Six Imperials held a transcendent status, their mountain gate located within the borders of the Dayu Imperial Dynasty. No one dared cause trouble around it; they were revered and feared by all beings. From Chixia City to the Six Imperials' grounds was roughly fifteen thousand li.
This time, Li Qingyun stepped forward personally, conveying him there on his flying mount.
Ahead, undulating mountains were shrouded in immortal mist, with spiritual radiance faintly visible. Each peak resembled a dragon head extending from beneath the earth. Setting everything else aside, the territory of the Six Imperials' mountain gate alone was truly extraordinary.
Li Qingyun said, "Perform well. I hope you can seize some opportunities. It is said that once the Six Imperials Heart Scripture is cultivated to its final stage, even the prominent figures of the outer realm must tread cautiously."
He had already released Cui the Fifth. Staring at that old face day in and day out had grown tiresome. More importantly, now that he had virtually delivered Qin Ming to the Six Imperials' ancestral court, there was nothing left to worry about.
Qin Ming smiled. "Don't worry, Elder Li. Regardless of whether I end up staying here, I certainly won't disgrace you."
Outside the Six Imperials' mountain gate, a large crowd had already gathered. Many were youthful faces, top geniuses who had rushed here from all corners of the world of night mist.
In recent days, the name Qin Ming had circulated in select circles of the thousand-year-old noble clans, making certain members of the Cui clan especially wary. When they learned that Qin Ming had already arrived at the Six Imperials' ancestral court, several people's expressions shifted.
The next day, a core figure of the Cui clan and one of its actual leaders—the elder brother of Cui the Fifth and second master of the Cui clan, Cui Changqing—personally visited the mountain gate of the Six Imperials.
He was a person beyond the mundane world of tremendous strength. At the same time, he cultivated the World-Abiding Scripture to extend his lifespan. Sporting long, emerald-green hair and a fair, unwrinkled face, he showed not the slightest hint of aging...
Chapter 138