Spring had arrived, and with it, the revival of all living things. It was once again the season for animals to breed. Upon rooftops and tree branches, one could often see sparrows overlapping, singing harmoniously in pairs, their voices high and clear.
On the streets, a bustling atmosphere thrived. Butchers chopped meat, vendors hawked their wares, martial artists performed for coin, and courtesans beckoned customers, their voices a constant, lively clamor.
Suddenly, whispers began to ripple through the streets and alleyways.
"Quick, look!"
"It's him, the young Taoist priest from the Sanqing Immortal Sect!"
"I heard he spent at least a hundred silver taels in the East Street Market yesterday!"
"It's true! That knife-throwing performer, Master Li, received over fifty silver in tips alone!"
"He's a tycoon—no, he's the God of Wealth himself!"
Countless fervent gazes turned in the direction of the voices. There, at the end of the street, a young man with his hair tied in a topknot strode forward with a gait that suggested he owed the world nothing. His skin was fair and his features were extraordinarily handsome. He wore a Taoist robe, its collar and lapels embroidered with a pattern of Qingyun and white cranes. His very presence was remarkable, as if he transcended the mortal realm. Anyone who saw him couldn't help but sigh in admiration at such a graceful and beautiful young man.
More importantly, pinned to the chest of his robe was a Purple-Gold Badge engraved with the image of three majestic mountains standing side-by-side. This was the emblem of a disciple of the Sanqing Immortal Sect. The color of the badge denoted a disciple's rank. Recorded Disciples wore green, Official Disciples wore silver, and Inner Sect Disciples wore gold.
This Purple-Gold Badge, however, was granted only to the most esteemed True Disciples of the Sanqing Immortal Sect. This meant that the young man, who looked to be only fourteen or fifteen, had already ascended to the rank of True Disciple. His future was truly limitless.
"Shopkeeper!" Wang Xiu called out with a smile, stopping at a pork stall. "Is this meat fresh?"
The butcher grinned. "Young Taoist, what kind of question is that? How could it be anything but fresh! I just slaughtered it this morning; the pig's blood is still warm! It's as fresh as it gets!"
The moment the butcher's words fell, a crisp notification sounded in Wang Xiu's mind.
[DING!]
[Bragging detected. Congratulations to the Host for gaining Mana +1.]
A teasing expression appeared on the young man's face. "Oh? Is that so? I don't believe you."
The butcher's face flushed red as he argued, "Young Taoist, I'm not just boasting! My pigs are all genuine, free-range mountain pigs. They eat wild grasses and berries and scurry through the forest brush, nimbler than rabbits. They're caught, slaughtered, and sold on the same day! The quality of the meat is absolutely top-notch!"
[DING!]
[Bragging detected. Congratulations to the Host for gaining Mana +1.]
Interesting!
Wang Xiu's smile was radiant. "Since the quality is so excellent, this humble Taoist will buy twenty pounds to try. I want ten pounds of lean meat minced, with not a trace of fat! And I want ten pounds of fat minced, with not a trace of lean! How about you handle the knife yourself, shopkeeper?"
Hearing this bizarre request, the butcher's face fell. Mincing twenty pounds of meat like that would likely leave his hand too sore to even hold a bowl for days. But, if he could make the young Taoist priest happy, any future procurement business from the Sanqing Immortal Sect would be more than enough to let him feast until his mouth dripped with grease.
"Rest assured, Taoist priest!" he declared. "I'll get to chopping for you right now, and I guarantee it will be done beautifully!"
Seeing the butcher grunting and puffing as he chopped the meat, Wang Xiu smiled in satisfaction and continued his stroll down the street.
"Shopkeeper, this wood carving of yours isn't half bad!"
"Young Taoist, I'm not just bragging. These are all made of the finest sandalwood, exquisitely carved by a master, and they've even been consecrated and blessed by a Daoist School expert. Look at this Laojun Statue, with the purple qi flowing from the east, brimming with Immortal Qi! It's just like you, Taoist—transcendent and elevated beyond the ordinary. If you take it back with you, you will surely receive the blessings of the Dao Ancestor, and your path to immortality will be limitless!"
[DING!]
[Bragging detected. Congratulations to the Host for gaining Mana +1.]
"A good pitch," Wang Xiu said. "I'll take it. Wrap it up for me."
"Shopkeeper, these griddle cakes look good!"
"Young Taoist, I'm not bragging, but my Dalang griddle cakes are a time-honored brand, famous for decades and known by all to be delicious! When my wife was young, she was known as the greatest beauty for miles around. It was after eating my cakes that she fell deeply in love and became utterly devoted to me. Care to try one?"
[DING!]
[Bragging detected. Congratulations to the Host for gaining Mana +1.]
"Ahem. Give me one to try. And also," Wang Xiu added, "a lot of people agree. Your wife really is something else!"
"Master, doesn't it hurt to break stones on your chest?"
"I'm not just bragging, young Taoist! In my youth, I studied at the Great Vajra Temple and was taught the sect-guarding ultimate skill, Iron Shirt. I'm impervious to blades and spears, immune to fire and water. Breaking a mere stone on my chest is a trifle! Give me a few more years to cultivate this skill to perfection, and forget breaking stones on my chest—I'll be able to shatter them with a golden spear without breaking a sweat!"
[DING!]
[Outrageous bragging detected, triggering a Bragging Critical Hit and reaching a System Climax! Congratulations to the Host for gaining Mana +3 and Mana Quality +3.]
[Congratulations to the Host for obtaining: 'Great Majestic Dragon Subduing Demon Golden Body' Complete Experience Card!]
Nice performance! Wang Xiu thought. Worthy of a reward!
He pulled out a Large Sycee weighing over twenty taels and stuffed it into the martial artist's hands. Instantly, the other merchants' eyes turned red with envy. The already boisterous atmosphere grew even more frenzied.
"Lady," Wang Xiu said to a courtesan, "why are your pectoral muscles more developed than that master who breaks stones?"
"You're a naughty one, little Taoist. I'm far more entertaining than those brutish men. Would you like to experience it for yourself, sir?"
"Oh? So you're good at blowing?"
"I'm not just bragging. The girls in our Warm Fragrance Pavilion are all masters of every art and talent. As the poem goes: In the capital are those skilled with their mouths; hence the king forgoes his morning court."
[DING!]
[Bragging detected. Congratulations to the Host for gaining Mana +1.]
BOOM!
As surges of vast, pure Mana flooded his Dantian, Wang Xiu felt an invisible barrier inside him shatter. His Cultivation Level ascended to a new stage.
Exhaling a turbid breath, Wang Xiu's eyes filled with satisfaction. "Finally broke through to the second level of Foundation Establishment."
Indeed, he thought. Ascetic practice is useless. Using cheats is the only way to go.
Fifteen years ago, Wang Xiu had transmigrated into this world of cultivation. As a newborn orphan, he was taken in by his "cheap" master and brought back to the Sanqing Immortal Sect, where he became the head True Disciple of Spirit Turtle Peak's Divination Sect.
Hmm... To say he was the head True Disciple was a bit of a stretch, seeing as the entire Spirit Turtle Peak's Divination Sect consisted of only its leader, Luo Binglan, and its head True Disciple, Wang Xiu.
Beyond that, not a single soul remained.
As for why a major branch of the illustrious Sanqing Immortal Sect had dwindled to next to nothing, that is a long story that dates back eight hundred years.
Nine hundred years ago, the Sanqing Immortal Sect was the mightiest Immortal Sect in the Divine Province. It held the reins of the Immortal Alliance and commanded the world. With 360 immortal peaks came 360 distinct Daoist lineages. No matter what top-tier cultivation system you wished to study, you could almost certainly find it within the Sanqing Immortal Sect.
And the Divination Sect, which specialized in the art of divination and was said to be able to discern the secrets of heaven, held a transcendent status among the branches. At its zenith, it was even ranked first among all the peaks, commanding the other lineages with unparalleled glory.
But all of that changed completely 860 years ago.
That year, the seals on Demon Sea Island in the East Sea were shattered. A million-strong Demon Race army burst forth, invading the Central Continent of the Divine Province. The Immortal Alliance issued a decree, and the various factions of the Divine Province mobilized their experts, gathering at the East Sea to jointly resist the Demon Race.
Before their departure, the Sect Leader of Sanqing at the time asked the head of the Divination Peak to perform a divination: Would this expedition to the East Sea bring fortune or disaster? That night, the Divination Peak's head nearly exhausted his life force. His black hair turned to white snow, but he finally produced a result: This battle will be a great victory. The Sanqing Immortal Sect will sweep away the demons, establish supreme authority, and be revered by ten thousand immortals.
The Sanqing Sect Leader was overjoyed. He led nearly eighty percent of the Sanqing Immortal Sect's elite forces to the East Sea to confront the Demon Race. They marched with such bravado and high spirits that their arrogance surpassed even that of the demons.
The ideal was beautiful, but reality was brutal.
The entire army of one hundred thousand elite Disciples was annihilated. The Sect Leader of Sanqing and sixty-nine Earth Immortals at the Transcendence Tribulation Stage were all sacrificed. The Sanqing Immortal Sect plummeted from the strongest Sect in the Immortal Alliance to a second-rate power.
Several years later, they suffered a retaliatory strike from the Demon Race. One hundred thousand demons launched a surprise attack on the Sanqing Immortal Sect, shattering its mountain gates in an instant. Its Cave Heavens and minor worlds were banished into the endless void, and 324 of its 360 main peaks were destroyed. Hundreds of Spirit Stone Veins were almost completely obliterated. Blood flowed like rivers, and the land was plunged into misery. If not for the aid of other Immortal Sects, they would have been utterly wiped out.
Even to this day, after more than eight hundred years of lying low and biding its time, the Sanqing Immortal Sect has still not recovered. It hasn't even restored half of the strength and foundation it possessed at its peak.
Almost everyone believed that the one incorrect divination by the head of the Divination Peak was the root cause of the Sect's devastating losses and the subsequent retaliation from the Demon Race. Over a hundred thousand disciples had died in battle, and hundreds of lineages were severed. For eight hundred years, an endless torrent of fury was directed at the Divination Sect, causing its gradual decline. It went from a bustling hub with guests as numerous as the clouds to a desolate place where one could catch sparrows at the door. Today, only Luo Binglan and Wang Xiu remained.
Originally, as the granddaughter of the previous head of the Divination Sect, Luo Binglan was determined to revitalize it. However, the girl was cursed with a look of perpetual world-weariness. She was cold and aloof to everyone she met, either remaining silent or opening her mouth only to say, "I see a darkness on your brow. I fear a bloody disaster awaits you."
Disciples from every branch of the Sanqing Immortal Sect felt it was bad luck just to see her, and more than a few had drawn their sabers on her. When a real fight broke out, however, they were instantly slashed to the ground by the girl, blood spraying everywhere.
And after beating them, she would righteously proclaim: "See? Didn't I tell you a bloody disaster was coming?"
Her resentment meter maxed out on the spot.