After John stepped down from the platform, Elder Dom’s voice rang out again, firm and resonant.
"Fifth place, Caros Hellsee."
John smiled as Caros let out a soft chuckle and casually walked up to the stage, hands in his pockets as if he were taking a stroll in a tea garden instead of receiving one of the most coveted rewards in the entire continent.
"That guy really doesn’t care about appearances..." John muttered under his breath.
Caros stepped onto the platform and offered a lazy bow, only slightly less casual than his stride.
Elder Dom handed him a golden token, and Caros smiled politely.
"Thank you, Elder," he said with a respectful nod, surprising many who expected him to speak sothing cheeky.
Elder Dom gave him a long look before nodding back, and Caros made his way off the stage, spinning the token between his fingers like it was a coin.
After that Elder announced more nas and then ca a na that made both John and Caros stiffen.
"Fiftieth place—Riara Greenblade."
There was a beat of silence.
Then both John and Caros turned slowly to look at her, jaws slack and eyebrows raised.
"Fiftieth?" John said with disbelief. "You just... scraped through?"
"Are you serious about being low-key?" Caros added, his brow twitching.
Riara raised her chin proudly and strode toward the stage, as if she had just been declared first place instead of last.
"Hehe... I told you peasants already, this is all part of my divine plan," she said with a smirk that could cause actual injuries. "A goddess never reveals her true power early. This is called strategic underachievent."
Caros looked like he might actually punch her.
"Strategic... Are you seriously trying to make barely passing sound like a divine strategy?" he grumbled under his breath.
"Admit it," John said, raising a brow. "You barely passed the alchemy test. Now you barely scraped by to get a single Grade Five pill formula."
"Pshh..." Riara waved her hand like a noble dismissing beggars. "It’s all about appearances. I’m cultivating in secrecy. When I shine, it will blind you both."
"It already hurts just looking at you," Caros said dryly.
As she took her token and returned to them with the sa confident air, John sighed and chuckled.
Despite her arrogance, it was good to see her uninjured and unchanged.
For a mont, things felt almost normal again.
Once the rewards were distributed, the crowd began to disperse.
Elder Dom gave so final instructions about when they would be transported to the sect grounds, and the disciples began to guide the new recruits back to their assigned rooms on the ship.
That night, as John sat alone in his chamber, the soft hum of the spirit arrays outside the ship filled the silence.
The walls were smooth stone engraved with flowing spiritual runes that pulsed gently with blue light.
The whole room seed alive with Qi circulation, allowing for ditation and rest.
He exhaled deeply and summoned his system.
---
[System Panel]
Na: John Coral
Age: 25
Cultivation: Spirit Seed Realm (1357 / 3200)
Upgrade Slot: Empty
Skills:
• ditation (Level 6 – Max)
• Breathing (Level 5 – Max)
• Spatial Awareness (Level 5)
• Slow Toad Breathing Skill (Level 10 – Max)
• Double Face Lizard Technique (Level 7 – Max)
• Basic Fla Control (Level 3)
• Alchemy (Level 5)
• Twelve Circle Slashes (Level 4)
• Soul Piercing Gaze (Level 4)
---
John stared at the screen, eyes narrowing on his most deadly skill.
"Soul Piercing Gaze... That’s what saved my life again and again. It’s ti to push it further."
He reached out ntally.
"Place Soul Piercing Gaze into auto-upgrade and set level cap to five."
The system gave an instant response:
---
[Upgrade Slot- Soul Piercing Gaze (Level 4)(1 / 1600) (One point per eight minutes.]
---
John leaned back against the wall, his hands clasped behind his head.
"Nine days... That’s manageable."
His gaze then shifted to his cultivation progress bar.
"Still a long way to go, only at 1357 / 3200. At this rate, even with constant ditation, it’ll take at least five months to enter the Spirit Bud Realm."
The thought weighed on him for a mont, but he quickly shook it off.
He had advanced faster than most already, but he knew if he wanted to survive in a place where monsters like the Silentswords road, he couldn’t just rely on ti.
"What I need is a better technique than Slow Toad Breathing Skill," he murmured. "A true high-grade cultivation thod. Hopefully the Blue Cauldron Sect’s library has sothing worth learning."
He dismissed the panel and lay on the bed, staring up at the rune-etched ceiling.
Outside, distant thunder rolled beyond the clouds, and the ship slowly drifted through the night skies like a sovereign beast of the heavens.
In three days, they would arrive at the sect.
And his real journey would begin.
Three Days Later...
A low hum echoed across the sky as the massive spirit ship pierced through the clouds like a divine beast.
The morning sun glimred across its reinforced tal body, illuminating the skies in a cascade of golden brilliance.
John stood at the railing of the upper deck, his robe fluttering in the cold high-altitude wind.
Riara stood to his right, arms crossed smugly.
Caros leaned lazily against the rail on the other side, yawning.
But even their casual deanors faltered as the sea of clouds parted and Blue Cauldron Sect ca into view.
John’s eyes widened.
Below them was a mountain range so vast it looked like a slumbering dragon, its peaks reaching for the sky and valleys dipping into thick forests and shimring rivers.
At the very center stood a colossal peak, the Cauldron Peak, shaped like an upside-down cauldron.
Around it were hundreds of smaller peaks, all connected by floating bridges and spirit-powered platforms.
Palatial buildings, pill towers, pavilions, and training fields sprawled across the land like an imperial capital hidden within the mountains.
Blue Cauldron Sect.
The number one alchemy sect in the entire Southern Wild Continent, known for its unmatched pill masters, mysterious techniques, and untouchable archives.
Many sects bowed before them when it ca to dical and alchemical pursuits.
Even mighty cultivation sects sent their disciples here to learn the way of pills.
"It’s... massive," John whispered, his eyes trying to take in everything at once.
Riara nodded beside him. "My clan has ties with the sect, but even I’ve never seen this place in person. It’s said the central pill tower is tall enough to touch the clouds."
"I wonder how much they charge for just one herb," Caros mused. "Do you think I can sell my shoes and buy enlightennt?"
The ship rumbled as it began descending toward one of the outermost peaks.
Outer Sect Quarters.
The peak they landed on was lush and peaceful, with cobbled paths that wound through flowering trees and bamboo groves.
The air slled sweet with herbs, and the natural Qi density was much higher than anything John had experienced.
The new disciples were escorted by Blue-robed seniors through a series of spiritual walkways that led to their assigned living quarters.
John reached his own cottage soon enough.
It was a quaint, stone-built ho surrounded by a low spirit-engraved wall, with a naplate hanging on the entrance gate.
The cottage itself had two floors.
The first floor held a ditation chamber, a living room, and a pill refining room carved with alchemical arrays that helped maintain perfect temperature, fire control, and Qi flow.
There was even a small furnace placed in the center of the room.
Outside, a herbal garden extended to the right side of the cottage.
It was bursting with various spirit herbs, Redleaf Blossoms, Qi Dandelions, Blue Dew Grasses, carefully arranged by rank and compatibility.
A small clear pond sat behind the cottage, its water glittering faintly.
A water-based spirit formation kept it pure and energized.
"Not bad," John muttered as he walked through the house. "More luxurious than I imagined."
He placed his bag on the ground, walked to the window overlooking the garden, and exhaled deeply.
For the first ti in a while, he felt a mont of peace.
Collapsing into a chair in the living room, he finally let his shoulders drop.
"Finally... ti to rest."
But just as his eyes started to close...
"So... this is where you’re staying."
John’s eyes shot open.
He looked across the room.
There, seated elegantly on one of his wooden chairs, legs crossed and back straight, was Benneca Silentsword.
Her long silver hair cascaded down her shoulders, and her emotionless black eyes stared directly at him.
She looked so still that for a mont, he thought she might be an illusion.
"You... how did you get in?" John stood up, gripping his saber instinctively. His spatial sense didn’t even alert him.
"This place’s barrier is good. But not that good." Her tone was flat, yet there was sothing chilling in it. "If I wanted you dead, you’d already be dead."
John didn’t reply imdiately, calming his breath.
"What do you want?" he asked, eyeing her carefully.
Benneca tilted her head slightly. "The technique you used. That beam... It wasn’t so fla or sword Qi. That was a spirit technique, old and forbidden. I want to know what it is and where you learned it."
Her voice was calm, but the weight behind her words was unmistakable.
John stared at her, then sat back down slowly.
"It’s called Soul Piercing Gaze," he said. "And it’s none of your business."
There was a pause.
The temperature in the room seed to drop.
Benneca stood up without further comnt.
She walked toward the door and placed her hand lightly on the fra.
Then, without turning around, she spoke:
"Secrets are like flas. Keep them close enough, and they protect you. Let them burn too brightly... and eventually, soone will put them out."
The door opened on its own as she stepped outside and vanished into the evening light.
John didn’t move for several monts.
His fingers slowly curled into a fist.
"So... I’ve caught their attention now." He muttered under his breath. "Damn it."
He sat back down, this ti with tension in his jaw.
The Blue Cauldron Sect might have been his chance at power, but now it also ant walking deeper into the lion’s den.
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