Bustle

"Sect Master Yaoguang has arrived!" "We welcome Sect Master Yaoguang back to the sect for inspection!" "Sect Master Yaoguang, our Luo family placed an order for ten Jiuzhou warships in Nandu, and three have been delivered so far. Relying on those three warships, we managed to promptly save several of our family's resource sites from surprise attacks. It is all thanks to your warships! Might I host a banquet for Sect Master Yaoguang to express our gratitude?" As Yaoguang's fleet touched down on Nine Cauldrons Peak, elders of the Void Piercing realm representing various factions came forward one after another to greet him and build connections. Even peak masters who were normally excluded from the inner circles of the four lineages openly declared their support. Peak Masters Qin Shiyue and Chu Gushan were particularly enthusiastic. These two peak masters had visited Nandu back when Yaoguang slew the two Void Shattering and five Void Refining demonic cultivators of the Shadow Moon Sect, and now they showed boundless warmth. Years ago, when Yaoguang had held an auction for the Longxiang Flying Ark Dao artifact on Nine Cauldrons Peak, Zong Wenxian had directed the Immortal Lineage to send these two away under various pretexts, preventing them from bidding. Otherwise, the Longxiang Flying Ark would never have gone for such a low price. Yet this also showed just how difficult their situation had become within the Heavenly Dao Sect. Yaoguang's emergence was a lifeline for them. Whether they could break free from the suppression of Zong Wenxian's faction depended entirely on this powerful contender for the sect master's seat turning the tides. …… In the distance, atop Tianjing Peak, the Void Shattering expert Jing Yuntian gazed silently toward the lively, clamorous scene on Nine Cauldrons Peak. Beside him stood Void Refining peak masters and lineage masters, including Jing Zhengyang, Yuan Miaoyi, and Xiang Zhenlong. "Sect Master Yaoguang has arrived with tremendous momentum this time," Jing Zhengyang remarked, glancing at his ancestor with a trace of worry. He then turned to Yuan Miaoyi. "Has there been any reply from the Sect Master?" "Not yet. There is great commotion on the Light God race's end... It is truly inconvenient for them to return," Yuan Miaoyi replied. "If he delays any longer... the situation will spiral out of control," Supreme Elder Jing Yuntian sighed. Yuan Miaoyi and Xiang Zhenlong remained silent. Neither of them had expected that sending Yaoguang to the Southern Domain would be like releasing a dragon into the ocean, allowing him to grow to such heights in mere decades. Not only had he established a formidable reputation by consecutively slaying two Void Refining, two Void Shattering, and another five Void Refining experts, but he had also leveraged this fame and the publicity of his Dao artifact auction to aggressively promote his warships and flying swords. The warships and flying swords he sold offered exceptional performance for their price, truly embodying high quality at an accessible cost. By now, they had taken the entire human domain by storm. If any Void Piercing power did not possess three to five Jiuzhou warships, they hardly felt respectable enough to greet their peers. Strength! Capability! Wealth! Not to mention immense talent and boldness! He was practically flawless. Even if Sect Master Zong were physically present in the Heavenly Dao Sect, he might not be able to contend with the present Yaoguang—let alone now, when he was pinned down in the extraterrestrial void and unable to return. This predicament threw many factions that had previously aligned with Zong Wenxian into panic, prompting some to wonder whether Sect Master Zong had grown fearful and was deliberately hiding in the extraterrestrial void. Lu Wanshi of the Lu family and Li Baijie of the Li family were prime examples. "Send another message to inquire. Regardless of whether Sect Master Zong can return, he must make his stance clear," Jing Zhengyang urged. Yuan Miaoyi and Xiang Zhenlong exchanged a look and nodded. Just as they were about to transmit a message, however, a wave of divine sense suddenly enveloped the peak. "There is no need to send it." Sensing the familiar aura within the divine sense, Jing Zhengyang, Yuan Miaoyi, and Xiang Zhenlong bowed slightly in unison. "Supreme Elder Gu Li." Jing Yuntian was somewhat surprised. "Gu Li, you say there is no need? Did you receive some news?" "Indeed," Gu Li acknowledged. "Moreover, I have just come from Supreme Elder Zhen Xuanyuan's peak. After our discussion, we agreed that if Yaoguang honestly conducts his Void Shattering Advancement Grand Ceremony, we will let it proceed. But if he tries to use this ceremony to stir up trouble... I, along with Supreme Elder Zhen Xuanyuan, will step in to counsel him and make him understand what it means to prioritize the greater good." He placed unmistakable emphasis on the word "counsel." "Zhen Xuanyuan!?" Jing Yuntian was astonished. "How could Supreme Elder Zhen Xuanyuan..." "There are reasons behind this. Once True Monarch Buzhou returns from the extraterrestrial void, everything will become clear," Gu Li said calmly. "For now, Supreme Elder Zhen Xuanyuan has shifted his stance. With his assurance, plus True Monarch Buzhou's eventual return... given the combined might of our four supreme elders, and considering this is not his Nandu where he can draw upon the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation, he will not be able to stir up any major waves." Jing Yuntian smiled upon hearing this. "Then my mind is at ease." With that, he glanced at the respectful yet curious Void Refining cultivators and explained with a chuckle, "Very well, there is no need for worry. Maintain a baseline level of vigilance, and otherwise carry on as usual." "Is the Sect Master returning?" Yuan Miaoyi's eyes lit up. Jing Yuntian waved his hand dismissively. "The Sect Master is not returning. Still... a single Yaoguang is not enough to send us all into high alert. Dismissed." Seeing this, the others suppressed their lingering doubts and dispersed. With Jing Yuntian's reassurance, their uneasy hearts finally settled. …… Visitors arrived at Nine Cauldrons Peak in an unbroken stream. Aside from a few Void Refining experts and a handful of exceptional Void Piercing cultivators whom Yaoguang briefly met, the rest were received by Li Hanqiu, Li Qingshan, and others, leaving him relatively unoccupied. At that moment, he stood atop his peak, observing the rank-twelve formation that enveloped Nine Cauldrons Peak. "The builder's skill... was middling, roughly standard for a rank-twelve formation master," Yaoguang murmured. A textbook rank-twelve formation master. The resulting formation lacked any standout brilliance, but it had no glaring defects either. Naturally, with Yaoguang's current eye, reshaping it to elevate its grade to rank thirteen would be trivial. As for raising it to rank fourteen... Many of the base materials, including the formation cores, would have to undergo a complete overhaul. The cost in labor and time would hardly be less than setting up a rank-fourteen formation from scratch. Thus, after observing it for a moment, he shifted his gaze toward the grand protective array of the Heavenly Dao Sect. "The Twelve God-Demon Sky Sealing Formation," Yaoguang murmured. This formation was clearly the handiwork of a Dao Lord. Yet compared to the setup in Nandu... While constructed with a degree of skill, it was not exceptionally refined. Perhaps Dao Lords operated on a different wavelength, often preferring to solve problems through brute force. For instance, while mortals constructing a reservoir required mobilizing immense manpower and materials, surveying land, and drafting blueprints, an immortal cultivator could simply unleash a single spell. Crude as the method was, the end result was not far off. "Thanks to the Dao Lord's approach, the materials used for this formation are all top-notch, leaving tremendous room for improvement. Upgrading this formation to rank fifteen... with my formation attainment and current cultivation, ten years would suffice," Yaoguang estimated. Ten years! A rank-fifteen formation! What did a rank-fifteen formation signify? It meant that under a Dao Lord's control, even three to five Dao Lords joining forces could not shake the formation in the slightest. It meant that even if an artifact spirit of a semi-immortal artifact like Venerable Golden Book channeled the formation's power, it could rival a Dao Lord. It likewise meant... If Yaoguang secured the assistance of the Heavenly Dao Sect's other Void Piercing, Void Refining, and Void Shattering cultivators, even an existence as formidable as a Dao Lord could be barred outside. "Sect Master." As Yaoguang examined the Twelve God-Demon Sky Sealing Formation, Xu Nianhua appeared behind him. Yaoguang glanced at the man, who had arguably been the most talented disciple of the Nine Cauldrons Sect... Well, to this day, he had only reached the Incandescent White Golden Core, and in terms of accumulation within this realm, he had already been overtaken by a few others such as Su Yaoxue and Lin Xia. There was no helping it. Although Yaoguang had left behind abundant resources for Xu Nianhua upon departing Nine Cauldrons Peak, those resources were clearly inferior in quality to what Yaoguang had later channeled to the Nine Cauldrons Sect. And with the absurd efficacy of pills like the Pure Yang Great Pill, the proportion of progress dictated purely by resources across the nine layers of the Golden Core was simply overwhelming. "How has life been in the Heavenly Dao Sect?" Yaoguang asked with genuine care. "Very good. Especially after Sect Master displayed your divine might in the Southern Domain and slew the Void Shattering demonic cultivators, the surrounding disciples have treated me with immense respect," Xu Nianhua replied deferentially. "That is well," Yaoguang nodded. "Going forward, you may choose to remain in the Heavenly Dao Sect, or you may head to the Southern Domain." "I think I should stay in the Heavenly Dao Sect. If not a single person from our Nine Cauldrons Sect lineage remains here, gossip will inevitably spread that we intend to break away and establish our own faction." "Heh, every major faction within the Heavenly Dao Sect does the same. There is no need for concern," Yaoguang said with a chuckle. "Besides, before long..." Before he could finish, Li Hanqiu hurried over. "Sect Master, Supreme Elder Chiyun has arrived. Judging by his demeanor... he seems to have urgent business." Sweeping his divine sense outward, Yaoguang indeed sensed the Supreme Elder's urgency. Wasting no time, he waved his hand, guiding the elder straight to the peak's summit. Li Hanqiu promptly took Xu Nianhua and withdrew. "Sect Master Yaoguang, do you plan to use this Void Shattering Advancement Grand Ceremony to amass prestige and force Zong Wenxian to abdicate? You had better put that matter on hold," Supreme Elder Chiyun blurted out the moment they met. "What happened?" "I paid a visit to Zhen Xuanyuan not long ago." Taking a deep breath, the supreme elder spoke rapidly. "I told you before that due to divergent interests, this Chief Supreme Elder generally stands opposed to Sect Master Zong Wenxian. Yet this time... his attitude has noticeably changed. Both in his words and tone, he even hoped I would warn you not to act rashly before Sect Master Zong Wenxian returns... In other words, his stance has flipped!"