Ascension Day

A chill ran down Xu Ying's spine. He calmed himself and pieced together the sequence of events.

Zhou Qiyun had been tracking an Exotic Snake when he mistakenly entered Qinyan Cave. He was incredibly intelligent and followed the aura of the Master of the Mud Mound Palace to a stone chamber within a Stone Wall, where he received the Master's inheritance.

He believed the skeleton in the stone chamber was the Master of the Mud Mound Palace, so he kowtowed to it and accepted it as his master.

The skeleton helped him open his Mud Ball Secret Treasury. Later, Zhou Qiyun discovered this was a trap, so he destroyed his own Grotto Heaven, reopened his Secret Treasury on his own, and broke free.

The second trap set by the Master of the Mud Mound Palace was the Cultivation Technique itself; he had left a flaw within it.

But Zhou Qiyun discovered this trap as well. He spent over eighty years searching for the Hidden Scenery Transformation Lands of seventeen Nuo Immortals. In doing so, he uncovered a conspiracy against Nuo Immortals, perfected his own Cultivation Technique, and finally became a Nuo Immortal himself.

After his Cultivation Technique reached Great Success and he became a Nuo Immortal, Zhou Qiyun was not content with being merely an Immortal in the Human World. He wanted to achieve Ascension, so he began to search for other paths, researching the so-called "Demon Clan Technique."

The invasion of the Naihe River and the Underworld—this series of events led Zhou Qiyun to New Yongzhou. On Wuyang Mountain, he happened to encounter the skeleton of the Master of the Mud Mound Palace riding a behemoth, charging out of Qinyan Cave to hunt down Xu Ying.

In this first clash between master and disciple, neither dared to prolong the fight.

Zhou Qiyun set a trap under the Big Locust Tree, lured out the Master of the Mud Mound Palace, and finally killed him, eliminating the future threat. Only then could he wholeheartedly prepare for Crossing the Tribulation and Ascending.

'But what if the Master of the Mud Mound Palace that Zhou Qiyun killed wasn't the real one?'

Xu Ying was lost in a daze. He suddenly turned to Da Zhong and said, "Lord Zhong, what if Zhou Qiyun never escaped the second trap?"

The second trap was the flaw in the Cultivation Technique.

Zhou Qiyun believed he had perfected the flaw in his Nuo Technique. But what if that was a deliberate misdirection from the Master of the Mud Mound Palace, with the real flaw buried even deeper?

If Zhou Qiyun never discovered the more hidden flaw, and on top of that, he personally killed the "Master of the Mud Mound Palace," he would be brimming with confidence and let his guard down completely.

Then, when he undergoes his Tribulation for Ascension, he will be at his weakest.

Perhaps that would be the moment the Master of the Mud Mound Palace comes to harvest the fruits of his labor!

The stronger Zhou Qiyun becomes, the sweeter his "flavor" will be—truly mouth-watering!

Da Zhong contemplated for a moment before saying, "Ying, you're overthinking things. What a monstrous talent Zhou Qiyun is! How could he not notice a defect in his own Cultivation Technique? Besides, from what I can see, his Hidden Scenery Transformation Land is already complete. His Hidden Scenery is the Divine Land itself. A technique of that caliber is definitely different from what the Master of the Mud Mound Palace passed down. If the Cultivation Technique is different, then the flaw naturally doesn't exist."

Realization dawned on Xu Ying. He smiled and said, "You're right, Lord Zhong. I was overthinking it. The Master of the Mud Mound Palace should be dead."

He glanced down at the teacup and teapot on the table, then at the Female Immortal's corpse that had turned to dust, and still felt a bit dazed.

'A single cup of tea was enough to scheme a Female Immortal to death right after she had passed her Celestial Tribulation but before she could ascend. Is a person capable of that really just the pile of withered bones that died under the Big Locust Tree?'

The Wuyang Mountain Ascension Land was now safe. Xu Ying walked out and had Niu Zhen and Niu Qian go in to clean up. From now on, this would be their Cultivation Holy Land.

Of the Ancient Fierce Weapons in this Ascension Land, only a giant Stone Axe remained. The brothers Niu Zhen and Niu Qian were immensely strong, but the axe possessed an incredibly malevolent nature, making them avoid it at all costs. They refused to use it.

Xu Ying brought the Stone Axe to find Yuan Qi. Yuan Qi was currently engrossed in comprehending the Sword Qi within his Sword Box. Carrying it on his back, he climbed to the broken summit of Wuyang Mountain and leaped off.

Xu Ying looked up and couldn't help but exclaim in admiration, "Lord Qi has such courage and determination! He'll definitely master the Sword Control Technique!"

THUD.

The Big Snake landed not far away, twitched a couple of times, but the Sword Qi in the box remained completely still.

Xu Ying walked over and asked, "Lord Qi, maybe you should give up on the sword and practice with an axe instead. I just got one."

Yuan Qi glanced at the Stone Axe with great disdain and said, "Only a big, dumb brute would use a weapon like that."

Seeing he wasn't interested, Xu Ying let it go. He wasn't particularly fond of the Stone Axe either, so he casually placed it in a corner.

Yuan Qi started climbing the broken mountain again, preparing for another attempt.

A short while later, Yuan Qi fell from the sky, landing with a THUD. He lay there for a moment before starting to climb the mountain again.

Xu Ying settled down in this place. He would usually go to the Ascension Land to cultivate, and when he was bored, he would teach the two Ox Demons their Cultivation Technique and give Yuan Qi pointers on his Swordsmanship.

He would occasionally think of Yuan Weiyang, and his heart would grow restless and agitated.

The two Ox Demons progressed at a rapid pace. They soon opened their Mysterious Domain, regulated their Five Qi, and the yin energy in their bodies gradually receded as their cultivation grew stronger and stronger.

Yuan Qi's daily routine of studying the sword, comprehending the sword, and jumping off cliffs had become a regular spectacle on Wuyang Mountain, attracting many demons and monsters to stop and watch. Even Da Zhong couldn't help but admire his persistence, saying to Xu Ying, "Yuan Qi might really have no aptitude for this. You should have him stop."

Xu Ying shook his head and said, "He spent one hundred and twenty years cultivating the Elephant Power Ox Demon Fist, which was completely unsuited for him. Once he gets stubborn, not even a team of oxen could hold him back."

Yuan Qi endured several days of falls and was covered in bruises. On this day, as he leaped from the mountain, a Flying Sword suddenly shot up from below, nearly severing his neck!

Yuan Qi twisted his body in mid-air, narrowly dodging the Flying Sword, only to see more beams of sword light streaking toward him, determined to slice him into several pieces!

Terror seized Yuan Qi's heart and the scales all over his body stood on end. Yet, he forced himself not to use his Dragon and Snake Awakening Skill, instead focusing with all his might on Contemplation of the Sword Qi, trying to sense it.

Suddenly, a whistling sword light flared up beside him, resonating with the Sword Qi in the Sword Box. With a WHOOSH, the Sword Qi flew out of the box, transforming into a swirling mass of white light that enveloped him.