Who Let Him Cultivate Immortality

He glared at his subordinate fiercely. “Go, invite the immortal sect disciples in. There are still a few guest rooms available at the mansion. Go clean them up, set up spirit-gathering arrays where needed, and place the Heart-Nurturing Stones accordingly.”

“Yes, sir!”

Soon, three immortal sect disciples entered the governor’s office—two men and one woman, full of vigor and confidence in their eyes.

The governor nodded in approval. As expected of disciples from immortal sects, they were truly outstanding individuals.

To have reached the Golden Core Stage at such a young age was an incredible talent.

He could tell that all three had just recently formed their cores, and from the information provided by the sects, none of them were even eighteen yet.

Golden Core Stage at eighteen, and all with first-grade cores—this level of cultivation speed was rarely seen in history.

In the upcoming era of great contention, talents like these would surely be the main protagonists.

“Greetings, Governor. I am Lan Ting from Moon Laurel Immortal Palace,” Lan Ting said gracefully, her slim figure clad in flowing white robes. Her eyes sparkled like stars, and her skirts fluttered with her steps.

“I am Bai Ming of the Five Elements Sect,” Bai Ming said, maintaining his usual aloof demeanor.

“Yan Tianzhi of the Prison-Suppressing Sect,” Yan Tianzhi said, sparing with his words.

“I will be counting on the three of you to provide commentary for tomorrow’s battles at the festival,” the governor said with a broad smile. Though the participants were all peers, these three, as disciples of immortal sects, had broad knowledge and were more than capable of evaluating the matches.

“We will do our best.”

“By the way, have any of you seen the disciples from Dao Seeking Sect?”

The three shook their heads. They had traveled separately from their sects and met in Qingzhou, but they hadn’t encountered anyone from Dao Seeking Sect.

“That’s odd. Dao Seeking Sect replied to me saying they would send two people: one named Lu Yang and the other Meng Jingzhou, the most outstanding geniuses of their generation. Judging by the timing, they should have arrived by now,” the governor said, puzzled.

Lan Ting perked up at the familiar names, recalling her time running a barbecue shop in Yanjiang County. She had received a mission from her sect to infiltrate the Undying Sect, but due to a time discrepancy, she missed their recruitment. She then met Lu Yang and his two companions and learned that they had successfully joined the Undying Sect.

At the end of her time in Yanjiang County, she teamed up with Lu Yang and his group to take down the local Helmsman of the Undying Sect.

The three of them earned recognition from the higher-ups of the Undying Sect and were promoted, while she returned to her sect to report on the mission.

She had even considered reaching out to Lu Yang to see if there were any other branch strongholds they could take down together.

But less than two months later, news came of the Undying Sect’s complete destruction.

When she first heard the news, she was stunned for a long time, thinking it was a hoax.

It had only been two months!

Although the official story was that Dao Seeking Sect and the imperial court had joined forces to wipe out the Undying Sect, Lan Ting was certain that Lu Yang must have been involved!

Later, during a Dao Seeking Sect meeting, their Eldest Senior Sister even proposed marriage between herself and Lu Yang, causing Lan Ting’s master to grab her and run, terrified of being left behind.

She still didn’t understand why her master was so afraid of Dao Seeking Sect’s Eldest Senior Sister.

“I see…” The governor was troubled but then shrugged it off. Since Dao Seeking Sect’s reply mentioned that the two would be attending, they were sure to show up eventually. Perhaps they were just enjoying the festivities today and would go straight to the judges’ seats before the competition began tomorrow.

That made sense.

“By the way, the Hanging Temple asked me to pass a message to you, Governor. They originally intended to send Senior Brother Shi Chan, but he ran into some unexpected issues while spreading Buddhist teachings and couldn’t make it. Since the Hanging Temple has very few people, they were unable to send anyone else.”

Shi Chan is the contemporary true successor of the Hanging Temple.

“Is he in danger? Do you need me to send someone to help him?”

“It’s not really about danger. It’s just that he still can’t understand the saying ‘Lay down the butcher’s knife and become a Buddha.’ So, he joined a slaughterhouse to see if he could achieve enlightenment when he put down the knife.”

The Governor held back for a long time, unsure of what to say, and finally said, “It’s getting late. The three of you should rest at the mansion.”

After the Governor left, Lan Ting suddenly asked, “Senior Brother Bai Ming, when the Governor mentioned Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou, your expression changed. Do you know them?”

Bai Ming sighed, “I more than know him—I’ve even fought against him.”

“Sister Lan Ting, you might not know this, but four months ago, my Five Elements Sect went to Dao Seeking Sect for an exchange. During the Foundation Building Stage competition, Lu Yang used various Five Elements spells, including the Three Flavours True Fire and Earth Escape Technique. I consider myself to be unmatched among my peers in Five Elements spells, but Lu Yang countered me at every turn.”

“At the moment of my defeat, I had an epiphany, broke through my bottleneck, and advanced to the late Foundation Building stage. What surprised me was that Lu Yang hadn’t even been serious from the start. When he saw me breaking through, it was like he became a different person—his gaze and movements changed. Before I could even make a move, he defeated me in one strike. If it weren’t for my master’s timely intervention, I would have been either dead or gravely injured.”

The Five Great Immortal Sects share good relations, and peers often address each other as senior brother or sister.

“That strong!” Lan Ting was astonished. She knew Lu Yang had an amazing talent for spells but never imagined he could defeat Bai Ming in one move.

Yan Tianzhi’s eyes widened in shock. He had also fought against Bai Ming, who was proficient in spear techniques and Five Elements spells, making him formidable in both long-range and close combat. How could he be defeated in a single move?

“According to my master, Lu Yang used an ancient and lost great divine ability—the Water Avoidance Technique. Without a special countermeasure, it’s almost impossible to resist; it can drain the water from the enemy’s body, reducing them to a dried husk.” Bai Ming recalled the scene when Lu Yang casually performed the Water Avoidance Technique, sending chills down his spine.

Seeing how effortlessly he wielded such ancient divine powers, Bai Ming feared that even if he could withstand the Water Avoidance Technique, other divine abilities would await him.

“Moreover, the Great Elder of Dao Seeking Sect personally admitted that Lu Yang can challenge beyond his level despite being at the Foundation Building stage.”

Yan Tianzhi smiled, unfazed. All three of them could challenge levels beyond their stage; it wasn’t something worth bragging about.

Bai Ming said gravely, “He surpassed three major stages in a row. When he was in the Foundation Building Stage, he defeated opponents in the Golden Core, Nascent Soul, and even Spirit Transformation stages!”

Lan Ting and Yan Tianzhi were too stunned to speak. Surpassing three levels in succession seemed like pure fantasy.

Lan Ting recalled the battle where she and Lu Yang killed the Helmsman of the Yanjiang Stronghold. Lu Yang had always appeared at ease, and now she realized he hadn’t even used his full strength.

“I suspect that when he challenged higher levels, he relied on environmental advantages, formations, pills, and other conditions,” Bai Ming analyzed. Otherwise, he couldn’t imagine how someone in the Foundation Building stage could defeat a Spirit Transformation stage opponent.

Even so, being able to fight across three major stages was terrifying.

At the very least, the three of them couldn’t achieve that.

“What a pity; who knows where those two have gone.”

“Maybe we’ll see them in the competition tomorrow.”