Daoist Competition

True Master Qin flicked her jade fingers, sending out a few sparkling jade flowers, which entered into her brow. After a moment, she nodded slightly and said, "You all come to listen to my lecture another day."

These female disciples were overjoyed and hurriedly knelt down to kowtow.

True Master Qin sighed inwardly. As she observed these female disciples, she found their talents barely acceptable, but their disposition left something to be desired.

Although she had the heart to cultivate to immortality, the celestial will is unpredictable, and the Great Dao difficult to seek. Since the Mingcang Sect was established, only a handful have ascended to another realm, showing the extreme difficulty involved.

If one were to die of old age, they would have to be reincarnated to cultivate anew.

Thus, it was necessary to properly teach the disciples, so that after their cultivation was successful, they could reconnect with her reincarnated self to re-enter the Daoist path.

Under her tutelage were originally twelve direct disciples, of which five reached the Nascent Soul Realm. However, three have already died of old age, and although there are two left, their life expectancy is also running short.

As for these female disciples in the hall, they are all of the granddisciple generation. Though many have already solidified their pill, only two or three have reached the top three grades of Elixir Formation, and most have no more than one or two hundred years of life left, unable to inherit her Divine Power Skill.

Among the lowest generation, there were a few promising students, but their cultivation was still shallow, and with the Demon Tribulation looming, it was uncertain how many could be preserved.

She couldn’t help but think of Zhou Chongju, who had only taken Zhang Yan as an apprentice, but that alone surpassed the hundreds in front of her. Thinking of this, she couldn’t help but feel a bit dispirited, and waved her hand saying, "All of you may leave, Mu Qing, you stay."

The disciples dared not disobey and, after paying their respects, withdrew one by one.

Senior Sister Yue couldn’t help but feel bitter. She had cultivated diligently for decades, feeling her cultivation had made great progress. Today, she came eagerly to pay respects to True Master Qin, hoping for a few words and some encouragement. However, True Master Qin didn’t even glance at her and instead, left only Zhong Muqing behind.

Disappointed, she couldn’t help but feel a tinge of jealousy. After casting a cold glance at Zhong Muqing, she snorted and bowed her head to leave.

With Zhong Muqing’s cultivation, he naturally heard this clearly and understood why this Daoist nun was dissatisfied with him, but as one of the Top Ten Disciples, how could he care about this Daoist nun?

Once everyone had left, he tidied his robe sleeves and stepped forward, saluting and saying, "Disciple greets True Master."

True Master Qin said to him: "Recently, during my meditation, I suddenly had a premonition and perceived that a significant matter was approaching; calculating in meditation, I discovered that from today, sixty-four years later, there is a matter related to our Xuanmen’s fate..."

It seemed that this matter was of great importance, as her voice grew lower towards the end. Even with Zhong Muqing’s focus, his expression changed several times, his heart and spirit stirred.

After hearing it all, he let out a long breath, saying: "According to True Master’s words, the determination of the ownership of this item should be at the Sixteen Sects Sword Competition?"

True Master Qin nodded in approval, "Indeed, but to venture onto the Heavenly Extreme Gang Wind requires one to be at the Nascent Soul realm at the very least."

Zhong Muqing bowed deeply and said, "As True Master intends, this disciple understands. My cultivation is gradually nearing the Perfect Realm; within thirty to forty years, I will undoubtedly achieve the Nascent Soul."

True Master Qin glanced at him and sighed, "Mu Qing, I have great confidence in you; you and Qi Yuntian are of a similar age. If I hadn’t taken you as my disciple back then, delaying much of your cultivation, you probably would have achieved the Nascent Soul already."

Zhong Muqing hurriedly knelt down, loudly proclaiming, "True Master’s tremendous kindness and a century of diligent nurturing, this disciple will never forget, even through a hundred lifetimes I could not repay it, how could I harbor any resentment?"

True Master Qin gently smiled and raised her fair arm, "You may rise."

Zhong Muqing dared not disobey and stood up as instructed.

True Master Qin gently said to him, "If this time you can return from that place with that item, the position of Hall Master of Du Zhen Hall will surely be yours in the future."

Though she said it casually, Zhong Muqing couldn’t help but feel a surge of joy upon hearing it.

The position of the Three Hall Masters was only certain for the Upper Extreme Hall, which was destined for Qi Yuntian in the future.

As for the Day Sky Hall, it seemed most likely that Huo Xuan would take charge.

But the Chen Family seemed dissatisfied with him, and he was just a son-in-law, so they might not completely trust him, and the future remains uncertain.

Though barring any accidents, it would likely belong to a noble family.

As for the position of Hall Master of Du Zhen Hall, True Master Qin intended it for Zhong Muqing.

In her view, in terms of cultivation, lifespan, seniority, and mentorship, he was the most suitable choice.

As long as he held this position, even if Sect Leader intended to use True Master Peng to balance her, she would still stand invincible.

Therefore, this matter must not be mishandled.

True Master Qin cast a sidelong glance at him, noticing the joy on Zhong Muqing’s face, but did not reprimand him, only reminded him: "Do not be careless; this time you won’t be without competition. Zhuang Bufan, Luo Qingyu, Ning Chongxuan are all exceptionally talented, and there is also Zhang Yan; I suspect he will contest with you, so you must be extra cautious."

Zhong Muqing, however, was puzzled, "True Master, the three junior brothers Zhuang, Luo, Ning might be stiff competition, but that Zhang Yan is currently only in the Second Realm of Hua Dan. How could he possibly enter the Nascent Soul Realm in a mere sixty years?"

True Master Qin said coolly, "If Sect Leader intervenes, that wouldn’t be too difficult."

Zhong Muqing was startled, "True Master, are you saying that Sect Leader intends to support Zhang Yan to replace me?"

True Master Qin’s expression showed a hint of coldness as she said, "The deeper Sect Leader’s cultivation becomes, the more inscrutable his intentions. If he chooses to remain on the sidelines this time, so be it. But if he insists on opposing me, I won’t sit idly by; I will have to ask my uncle to step in and uphold justice."

Upon hearing this, Zhong Muqing was first startled, then overjoyed, for if they could have the Supreme Elder step in, it would indeed be foolproof!

...

...(To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to vote for recommendations or monthly tickets on qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)