"This old Daoist still has some confidence in Fellow Daoist Qi. Even Senior Brother Fang holds him in the highest esteem, praising Fellow Daoist Qi as one of the cultivators on Landou Island most likely to achieve Nascent Soul formation..."
Old Daoist Huayang's gaze swept over the crowd of new disciples before turning toward the cultivator surnamed Chen. With a light cough, he said, "Since Fellow Daoist Qi is absent, this old Daoist can only discuss this matter with you, worthy brother."
"Did Senior Lu leave any instructions before his departure?" the cultivator surnamed Chen asked solemnly.
The Senior Lu he spoke of was none other than Lu Xiaoyun, the current Sect Master of the Landou Sect. After the demon upheaval broke out across the Demon Sea, he had departed to garrison Dahuang Island and had yet to return.
Were this Lu Xiaoyun's command, no matter how unyielding the cultivator surnamed Chen might be, he would never dare disobey.
"Although the sect master did not state it explicitly, he gave his tacit consent," Old Daoist Huayang replied. "Worthy brother, you surely know that our Yin-Yang lineage has never flourished as brightly as the Five Elements lineage. In recent years, each generation has fared worse than the last, deteriorating by the day. During our recent gate-opening ceremony to recruit disciples, the intake was still far from satisfactory, lagging vastly behind the Five Elements lineage. Because of this, we had no choice but to resort to this inferior expedient—casting a wider net to supplement our ranks with new disciples. That said, candidates with fine natural gifts suited for cultivating the true teachings of our Yin-Yang lineage are difficult to find, not to mention that a batch was already selected earlier this year. Hearing that Yanmiao Pavilion happened to be recruiting disciples today, this old Daoist thought to come try his luck..."
Hearing the old Daoist's words, the people in the hall wore varied expressions.
The new disciples were completely dazed, wondering if their ears were deceiving them. Could they truly have a chance to enter the Landou Sect—the paramount sect on Landou Island?
Holding the tokens of Yanmiao Pavilion, they had initially been overjoyed, but now their imaginations began to run wild.
Even Zhao Songqiao, who had just been weeping tears of gratitude, shuddered slightly, his fingers gripping his token so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
At the same time, they gained a newfound appreciation for the overbearing nature of the Landou Sect—daring to barge directly into another sect to snatch disciples.
The incarnation was also secretly astonished.
He had indeed heard before that the Landou Sect was broadly divided into the Five Elements branch and the Yin-Yang branch.
Two of the three great true inheritances, the Water Breath Formula and the Wood Puppet Scripture, belonged to the Five Elements lineage, along with several weaker Five Elements techniques; thus, that lineage possessed numerous disciples and flourished most.
The current Sect Master, Lu Xiaoyun, had emerged from the Five Elements lineage.
By contrast, the Yin-Yang lineage appeared far more decayed, its reputation outstripping its reality.
Supposedly, the requirements of its core manual were too demanding. Not only were suitable candidates difficult to find, but the cultivation difficulty also surpassed that of the other true inheritances.
Now it seemed that where there was smoke, there was fire. The rumors were not unfounded. The Yin-Yang lineage had declined so far that it had resorted to poaching disciples from Yanmiao Pavilion.
The Yin-Yang Heavenly Dipper Secret Art naturally had its strengths, or it could never have ranked among the three great true inheritances, but that did nothing to alleviate the lineage's plight.
The incarnation realized that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The cultivator surnamed Chen clearly held a prejudice against him; remaining here would leave him constrained at every turn, and he might even be cast out entirely.
This was truly a silver lining emerging from gloom. Seizing this chance would spare him from taking circuitous routes—he could directly become a disciple of the Landou Sect.
He only wondered what the Yin-Yang lineage's recruitment requirements were, and whether he could meet them.
The incarnation fell into deep thought, his eyes flickering with contemplation.
In the grand hall, there was only one person who grew angrier with every word.
The face of the cultivator surnamed Chen darkened steadily, turning as black as the bottom of a pot.
Old Daoist Huayang acted as though he saw nothing, rambling on, "This old Daoist has brought the Yin-Yang Plate with him this time. A single test will reveal whether they are suitable, without delaying your esteemed pavilion's business in the slightest. Please accommodate us, worthy brother."
As he spoke, Old Daoist Huayang cast frequent glances toward Fang Ting behind the cultivator surnamed Chen, showing far more enthusiasm for her than for anyone else.
Wily and experienced, he could tell that Fang Ting enjoyed a special status and was likely the most talented among all the recruits, naturally making his heart leap with interest.
"Enough! You old wretch, you go too far!"
The finger of the cultivator surnamed Chen practically jabbed into Old Daoist Huayang's face as he cursed in a fury.
He seemed to have harbored old grudges against Old Daoist Huayang for a long time. Having endured until now, he could no longer hold back and simply tore away all pretense of civility.
"Why must you fly into such a rage, worthy brother?"
Old Daoist Huayang flicked his horsetail whisk, adopting an air of transcendent daoist composure as he placidly urged the cultivator surnamed Chen, "The sect master once said that Yanmiao Pavilion and the Landou Sect are fundamentally one and the same. It makes no difference where the disciples cultivate..."
The cultivator surnamed Chen grew even more furious, barking, "Nonsense! If Senior Lu were currently presiding over the sect, he would never permit you to act with such wanton disregard!"
Old Daoist Huayang narrowed his eyes slightly and said mildly, "Does worthy brother truly believe that? Could you be unaware that our Yin-Yang lineage is not only the very foundation of the Landou Sect, but also rendered immense meritorious service to the sect, which resulted in the tragic fall of two senior brothers in whom great hopes had been placed? The ramifications persist to this day, and our present decline is not unrelated to that event. Though the sect master hails from Canglan Peak, would he really watch idly as our Yin-Yang lineage continues to decline until we meet the same fate as Douniu Peak?"
Douniu Peak?
The incarnation felt a sudden jolt in his heart.
In all his inquiries, he had never heard anyone mention that the Landou Sect had a Douniu Peak.
The Landou Sect possessed five main peaks in total, known respectively as the Three Canglan Peaks and the Twin Yin-Yang Peaks.
As the name implied, the Twin Yin-Yang Peaks served as the cultivation grounds for the disciples of the Yin-Yang lineage.
The Three Canglan Peaks were reserved for disciples of the Five Elements lineage. The two great true inheritances occupied one peak each, while other disciples resided on the third. The Sect Master Hall was also located among the Three Canglan Peaks.
These matters were no secret; even outsiders beyond the Landou Sect were well aware of them.
Only Douniu Peak remained unknown to the world.
From Old Daoist Huayang's tone, Douniu Peak seemed to have once been a lineage of the Landou Sect as well, its status seemingly not far inferior to the Yin-Yang and Five Elements lineages, yet its end had been grim, likely having died out completely.
Could Qiyunzi have been a disciple of this lineage? Was the reason no information could be found that the Douniu Peak lineage had perished, leaving no one left to cultivate that manual?
Still, a puzzle remained.
Four hundred years ago, Qiyunzi, a Core Formation stage expert, had still been active in the world. Even if the Douniu Peak lineage had truly withered, it should not have vanished so swiftly and thoroughly.
The reasons behind it were probably known only to the higher-ups of the Landou Sect.
Naturally, these were merely conjectures and inferences spun out of thin air by the incarnation, far from certain. Only by investigating the origins and developments thoroughly would he know what had truly happened within the Landou Sect.
Thoughts raced through the incarnation's mind. Intuition told him that Douniu Peak was likely closely tied to what he sought.
This infiltration of Yanmiao Pavilion had proved worthwhile after all. Without lifting a finger, he had overheard a hidden secret and finally gained a direction, ambiguous though the clues might be.
Old Daoist Huayang and the cultivator surnamed Chen were still arguing.
The others were seeing Core Formation seniors quarrel for the first time; terrified of being caught in the crossfire, none dared even breathe loudly.
"Out of the question!"
The cultivator surnamed Chen waved his sleeve dismissively and said with finality, "See our guest out!"
"Is worthy brother truly so obstinate?"
Old Daoist Huayang's face darkened, and he let out a cold snort. "Didn't you want a written order from Sect Master Lu? This old Daoist will write you one right now."
"You..."
The cultivator surnamed Chen was about to burst with rage.
Chapter 881