Chapter Thirty-One: Return to Xuanwu Peak

  Outside the forbidden area, it was still gloomy and lifeless. At this time, in a separate courtyard on the mountain waist, Lin Qi wore a joyful expression, while a young disciple wearing a Qinglong Peak long gown opposite him had an unwilling look on his face.

  "Senior brother, I'm leaving everything here in your care. The things to note are what I just mentioned earlier. If you have nothing to do, there are many books in this courtyard that can help pass the time."

  At this time, Wang Ke was handing over the matters of the forbidden land to this young disciple of Qinglong Peak. This young disciple was also in the middle stage of Nascent Soul, and his talent was not outstanding.

  Half an hour later, Wang Ke stood on a huge rock several kilometers away from the forbidden land, looking back at the direction of the forbidden land. At this time, the black fog was still floating in the distance of the forbidden land, but it no longer belonged to Wang Ke.

  "It's been a year already, and it's about time for Qingmu Zong to leave." Wang Ke said to himself.

  Then he turned around and walked quickly outside, in a year's time Wang Ke had gained a lot.

  First, his cultivation had reached the mid-stage peak of Nascent Soul, and with the mysterious Congyuan Decree, Wang Ke's spiritual energy was now far beyond that of a typical mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator. On the surface, however, he didn't seem to have anything special about him.

  A year of cultivation, the Phantom Sword Manual is the most basic attack sword manual, but Wang Ke's display is surprisingly powerful, absolutely not inferior to some powerful spells. At the same time, in just one year, Wang Ke has accumulated a considerable amount of wealth, with over 200 mid-grade spirit stones and thousands of low-grade spirit pills. His wealth would make even some foundation-building experts jealous.

  But another secret in his mind, "Oven Body", was exceptionally profound. He had studied it for so long but still hadn't made any progress, and reluctantly put the secret aside.

  One year is very long for ordinary people, but for cultivators it's just a snap of the fingers. The biggest change in Wang Ke over the past year was that he was no longer the young and inexperienced newcomer to the cultivation world. His mindset had undergone tremendous changes, and he now understood the law of the jungle in the cultivation world where the weak were preyed upon by the strong. He had read all the books he brought with him to the forbidden land and had gained a much deeper understanding of the cultivation world.

  The surrounding air is fresh and the grass and trees are lush everywhere, with a spiritual atmosphere. Wang Ke raised his head to look at the towering mountain peaks in front of him.

  "It's been a year since I came to this place, I don't know if the master of Xuanwu Peak will agree to let me go out and gain experience." After an unknown amount of time, Wang Ke appeared at the foot of Xuanwu Peak, looked up at the towering Xuanwu Peak, and thought with a solemn expression.

  "No matter what, I must leave Qingmu Peak immediately. Thinking of the conspiracy between Qingmu Zhenren and Hei Mu Zhenren, Wang Ke felt a chill in his heart. At the same time, he had encountered a bottleneck in his cultivation and had to quickly refine the Bodhi Pill, but the materials needed for refining the Bodhi Pill could only be collected outside."

  Taking a deep breath, calming his mind, and unfolding his body technique, Wang Ke instantly rushed up the mountain. After entering the mid-term of Naqi, his speed was several times faster than before. As he walked, he felt as if he were floating in the air.

  "Huh? Junior brother, how come I've never seen you before?" Suddenly, a surprised "huh" came from the left side of the mountain waist.

  There was a small platform there, and a black-robed Confucian scholar in his thirties looked at Wang Ke with a surprised expression as he stepped onto the platform, his eyes sizing him up.

  Just before Wang Ke came up, he had already sensed that someone was here. After coming up, his eyes scanned the person's body and then respectfully clasped his fists: "Hello, senior brother. I just entered the sect and went to guard the forbidden land, so it's normal that you haven't seen me."

  "So that's how it is, my junior brother has already reached the middle stage of Nascent Soul at such a young age, truly talented. I see you're also tired from hurrying on the road, why not sit down and rest for a while?" The black-robed scholar sheathed his long sword and said with a gentle tone, pointing to the stone bench beside him.

  "Please, elder brother first." Wang Ke hesitated for a moment before agreeing. The two of them sat down on the stone bench, and saw that the black-robed scholar used his sleeve to wipe the stone table in front of him, instantly producing two cups and a steaming pot of fragrant tea. The scholar poured a cup for Wang Ke and himself with a casual gesture, and suddenly a strong aroma of tea wafted over.

  "Come, young master, this is fresh Yunwu tea, please have some. By the way, my name is Xuán Mù and I haven't asked for your Daoist name yet." Xuán Mù said with a slight smile.

  "It's actually Brother Xuanmu, I'm Wang Ke. I hope you can give me more guidance in the future." Wang Ke picked up his cup and took a sip of hot tea, then praised: "Good tea!"

  "Haha, it seems that Wang Ke is also a tea connoisseur. If you have any questions in the future, just ask me." Xuanmu said with a smile.

  Wang Ke could see at a glance that the Xuanmu in front of him was in the late stage of Nascent Soul, with great strength and should have been cultivating on Xuanwu Peak for a very long time. He didn't know much about Xuanwu Peak, but he could take this opportunity to ask.

  "Since Master Xuanmu is so enthusiastic, then I won't be polite. Although I am a disciple of Xuanwu Peak, I don't understand Xuanwu Peak at all. Some things still need Master's explanation."

  Xuanmu smiled slightly and took a sip of tea, putting down the cup before speaking: "I've been cultivating at Xuanwu Peak for over twenty years now, so go ahead and ask your questions, younger brother."

  "What's the difference between our Xuanwu Peak and the other three peaks, Qinglong Peak, Baihu Peak, and Zhuque Peak? We're all inner disciples, why do we have to be divided into four peaks?" This question had been lingering in Wang Ke's mind for a long time.

  "Hehe, this is simple. The four peaks each have their own unique skills, and in order to give the inner disciples a sense of competition, they were divided into four peaks. The disciples of the four peaks often compete with each other, and there are great differences in strength between them." Xuanmu explained.

  "But our Xuanwu Peak has been at the bottom in terms of strength all these years, and the stronger one is, the more cultivation resources they get each year. Our Xuanwu Peak always gets the least amount of cultivation resources, and the peak master is not happy about it." Finally, Xuemu let out a sigh and said.

  "Originally, the strength of Xuanwu Peak was at the bottom, with few resources for cultivation. No wonder the peak master would send me to the forbidden land. But what is this Xuanwu Peak's unique skill?" Wang Ke's heart moved, and he turned around to ask: "Xuanmu brother, I just arrived at Xuanwu Peak, I don't know what our peak's unique skill is."

  "What? Don't you even know this?" Xuanmu looked at Wang Ke with a puzzled expression. He saw that Wang Ke had already cultivated to the middle stage of Nascent Soul, and it was impossible for him not to know this.

  Seeing Xuanmu's expression, Wang Ke instantly guessed what he was thinking and shook his head helplessly: "I just arrived at Qingmu Sect and didn't stay long on Xuanwu Peak. In this year, I've been guarding the forbidden land and only learned Naqi Jue and Huansword Jue."

  "Guarding the forbidden land, it's like this after all." Xuanmu nodded and continued: "Our Xuanwu Peak has several great secret techniques, among which 'Xuanwu Shield Armor' and 'Lingxi Secret' are the most important."

  Xuanmu carefully explained, Wang Ke immediately concentrated his mind and began to listen patiently. Such an opportunity may not be encountered again next time.

  "Xuanwu Shield Armor" is a spiritual energy technique that can condense into a shield armor defense after cultivation, the higher the cultivation level, the stronger the defensive power of the shield armor, and some powerful spiritual energy shields are even more powerful than some master-crafted defensive artifacts.

  As for the "Ling Xi Jue", it is a type of qigong practice similar to Na Qi Jue. Practicing this method can lead to the Golden Elixir stage, but the progress is extremely slow. The only advantage is that it is stable and generally won't go off track.

  "Then where can I learn these two secrets?" Wang Ke asked hastily, his face flushing with excitement upon hearing about the two secrets.

  "Heh heh, on the mountain waist there is a Dian Cang Ge, mid-term disciples who hand in a certain amount of Ling Shi can go there to learn, I see your spiritual power is stable, when you have time you can go there to take a look around."

  "Thank you, Senior Brother Xuanmu, for your guidance. I was thinking of going out to gain some experience. I've heard that leaving the sect will have some restrictions, so please enlighten me, Senior Brother." Wang Ke wanted to understand some of the rules of Qingmu Sect.

  New inner disciples who want to go out and gain experience have certain requirements. Their cultivation must be at least mid-Nascent Soul stage. Additionally, disciples who wish to venture out must gather together for a sparring match, only the winners with higher rankings are allowed to go out and gain experience, thus avoiding some weaker disciples from going out and encountering danger they cannot handle.

  "You want to go out and gain experience, hehe, although you're already in the middle of Nascent Soul stage, I advise you to cultivate for a while longer. Moreover, in principle, inner sect disciples who have just entered the sect within five years are not allowed to go out. This matter still requires you to ask Peak Master for permission, and now he should be cultivating."

  "Thanks for the tip, Senior Brother Xuanmu. I just finished my forbidden land mission and was about to go report to him." Wang Ke stood up.

  "In that case, I won't keep you here. This is my transmission token; if you encounter anyone inside the peak who gives you trouble, you can show it to them. Cultivating alone within the sect is not easy," Xuanmu said, stretching out his hand and sending a white light flashing towards Wang Ke.

  Wang Ke rolled up his right sleeve and put the white light into it, then cupped his hands and turned around to hurry upwards. In the blink of an eye, his figure disappeared from sight.

  "At such a young age, he's already at the mid-stage of Nascent Soul, and with a mixed spirit root, it seems that this junior brother is not simple. Ling Mu, that little kid, his influence in the sect is getting bigger and bigger, as if we don't exist." Xuan Mu muttered to himself, his face sinking down.

  "This Xuanmu brother is indeed enthusiastic, but I'm afraid he also has an ulterior motive." Wang Ke thought to himself as he flew upwards. Just now, Xuanmu seemed very enthusiastic, but this made Wang Ke feel somewhat uneasy. After all, the people he had met in Qingmu Sect were mostly cold and unfeeling, so suddenly encountering such a passionate brother was unusual, and not feeling surprised would be even more surprising.

  The main peak of Xuanwu Peak is extremely high, and the middle of the mountain is surrounded by dense fog. The higher you go, the lower the temperature, and gradually, ice crystals can be seen hanging from the branches, and a cold air strikes.

  Wang Ke's body emitted a faint aura of spiritual energy, repelling the cold air outside. After an unknown period of time, Wang Ke suddenly appeared on the peak platform. The platform was square in shape, and the exquisite courtyard had not changed much. Wang Ke's gaze swept past it, vaguely seeing a thick spiritual energy rising from the courtyard, condensing into a massive spiritual vortex above it. An invisible pressure emanated from deep within the courtyard.

  Looking at the spiritual vortex in the sky of the other courtyard, Wang Ke's expression solidified, took a deep breath, and stepped towards the gate.