In the bamboo courtyard of the Qingyun Sect, an autumn snow fell.
A thin layer of white dust settled on the branches of the old locust tree. Lin Zhou lay on a bamboo chair, covered with a thick cotton robe, still fiddling with the old notebook in his hand, as if the turmoil of the past year had nothing to do with him.
Lin Zhou didn't use his spiritual energy to dispel the cold. He always considered himself an ordinary person and insisted on eating three meals a day, etc.
However, the peace of the past is no longer present in the four regions.
Since the "White Robe's Wrath" in the Endless Forest, no force has dared to provoke the Azure Cloud Sect.
The image of Lin Zhou instantly killing several cultivators at the Dao Inquiry Realm with a single cold snort became a shadow in the hearts of all cultivators—it was a power that was incomprehensible and could only be looked up to, enough to cool down any ambition.
But what has truly stirred up the world is the rumor that has been quietly circulating for the past year.
"Have you heard? People from the upper realm are coming down!"
"They're not just coming down; they're here to seize our spiritual veins, mines, and those ancient treasures!"
"My second maternal uncle's disciple heard this in the Western Regions. He said that the people of the Upper Realm don't treat us like human beings at all. They can slaughter an entire city of cultivators with a flick of their wrist, like crushing ants!"
Rumors, though their origins are unknown, grow wildly like weeds, becoming increasingly bizarre with each passing mile.
Some say the beings of the Upper Realm have three heads and six arms, feeding on the souls of cultivators; others say they can manipulate objects from afar and raze an entire sect with a wave of their hand.
Even worse, some described the people of the upper realm as demons with blue faces and fangs, leaving nothing but desolation in their wake.
No one knew that the person who started all of this was sitting leisurely in the bamboo courtyard of the Qingyun Sect, watching the snow.
When Lin Zhou first released the news, he merely wanted to warn these "greenhouse cultivators" and, incidentally, stir up some trouble—those guys from the Upper Realm would come down sooner or later.
Rather than being caught off guard and scrambling at the last minute, it's better to put them on high alert beforehand.
As for the rumors spreading increasingly distortedly? He was happy to see it happen. Fear, sometimes, can unite people more than reason.
As a result, the forces in all four regions were mobilized.
The Pan Shi family of the Southern Region activated their ancestral earth vein array, refining their Xuan Iron Armor day and night.
The Three Saints Sect of the Central Region invited their patriarch from the forbidden area to oversee the sect.
The Eastern Greenwood Alliance, in conjunction with all local forces, set up nine killing formations at the edge of the Endless Forest.
Even the most Buddhist sects in the Western Regions have begun to gather ascetic monks to refine the Buddhist essence within their prayer beads.
It's better to believe it exists than to believe it doesn't.
This old saying became a consensus among all forces. Those ancestors who had lived for hundreds of years, in particular, sensed danger even in the slightest hints of the rumors.
The ability to spread rumors so systematically and so deeply is no ordinary person; there must be a powerful figure behind it, which often means that the story is true.
Within the Qingyun Sect, there was a peaceful atmosphere, yet a sense of diligent progress was subtly present.
A loud bang came from the open space behind the mountain.
Shi Tou, shirtless, smashed a ten-thousand-pound black iron meteorite to pieces with a single punch. His bronze skin was steaming, and the sweat that had just seeped out was immediately evaporated.
His physical body is now several times stronger than it was a year ago. The muscles on his bare arms are like the gnarled roots of an old tree, full of explosive power.
"Senior brother, what do you think of my punch?"
Stone grinned, revealing two rows of white teeth, and held in his hand half a roasted, golden-brown animal leg—the "Armored Wild Boar" he had caught that morning in the Endless Forest.
Demonic beasts at the Tribulation Transcending Realm have thick hides and flesh, perfect for practicing fist techniques. After killing them, we can roast them for a snack.
Over the past year, Stone has become a "regular" in the Endless Forest, going in every few days to fight monsters. His physical body has become increasingly terrifying through repeated head-on clashes, and even Lin Zhou jokingly says that he is about to become a "monster butcher".
Xiao Chen stood in the training ground not far away, his rusty iron spear twirling in his hand, creating a series of spear flowers. The spear light, as it flickered, carried a restrained weight.
After a year of secluded cultivation, he has steadily reached the peak of the Mahayana stage, only one step away from the Tribulation Transcending stage.
Although slightly slower than Jiang Li, he had a solid foundation, and his spear technique became more and more harmonious in terms of "breaking" and "defending," losing some of its sharpness and gaining more of a light touch.
"Not bad, your strength has become more consistent." Xiao Chen sheathed his spear, looking at the stone with a smile in his eyes. Although this junior brother was simple-minded, his tenacity in cultivation was unmatched.
Jiang Li practiced her sword on the sword platform, her red clothes standing out against the white snow.
Her sword intent had reached the peak of the Tribulation Transcending stage. Her rusty iron sword could cut through the air without making a sound. Only when it landed would the snow on the ground silently crack open.
Over the past year, she has not only improved her cultivation, but also gained some insights from Lin Zhou's occasional guidance on "Heart Sword". Her swordplay has become more and more agile, but also more and more deadly.
In a corner of the bamboo courtyard, Su She was engrossed in reading a book.
It was something Lin Zhou casually tossed to him a year ago. There was no name on the cover, but the inside was filled with densely written characters—Chinese poetry.
"'A waterfall plunges three thousand feet, as if the Milky Way were falling from the ninth heaven'..."
"How come I've never seen such magnificent sentences before?"
Su She muttered to himself, his fingers lightly tracing the pages of the book, occasionally shaking his head and reciting a few lines, completely forgetting everything around him.
These days, he always talks about "poetry expressing one's aspirations" and "lyrics expressing one's feelings." Even when you call him to eat, sometimes he will recite "Who knows that every grain on the plate is the result of hard work" before he picks up his chopsticks.
Lin Zhou shook his head helplessly as he watched this scene.
He originally wanted Su She to learn more about "the outside world," but he never expected that the book would become his obsession.
But that's alright, there are countless paths for cultivators. Some seek immortality, some seek power, and some seek poetry and songs. It's quite interesting.
"Xiao Chen has become the slowest one." Lin Zhou glanced at Xiao Chen in the training ground and a faint smile appeared on his lips.
Xiao Chen was one of the first to enter the sect and his talent was top-notch, yet he never sought advancement through merit and remained the most stable.
While the peak of Mahayana might seem slightly inferior to Jiang Li's peak of Tribulation Transcending, Lin Zhou knew that this kid's spiritual strength and spear intent had already surpassed the realm itself; all he lacked was an opportunity.
The snow stopped in the afternoon.
From the directions of the four regions, faint fluctuations of spiritual energy could be heard—the aura of various major forces intensifying their cultivation and setting up formations.
The light of the earth's veins in the Southern Region soared into the sky, the righteous energy of the Central Region condensed into clouds, the aura of green wood in the Eastern Region spread for thousands of miles, and the light of Buddha appeared and disappeared in the Western Region...
The patriarchs stood at the highest point of the sect, gazing at the sky with solemn expressions.
"The more believable the rumor, the closer it is to the beings of the upper realm."
"Prepare for battle. Whether they are gods or demons, if they come, we must meet them."
An invisible pressure enveloped the four regions.
In the bamboo courtyard of the Qingyun Sect, Lin Zhou put down his notes and looked up at the sky.
"It'll be soon," he muttered to himself, as if speaking to someone. "It's time for our 'friends' from the upper realm to come down and take a stroll."
The wind blew through the old locust tree, and the accumulated snow fell softly, covering the footprints in the courtyard, but it could not conceal the impending storm that would sweep across the world.
Xiao Chen, Jiang Li, Shi Tou, Su She... these young people who are quietly growing up in peace have no idea what role they will play in this storm.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com