On Qing Mao Mountain, the spring rain fell silently.
It was already late in the night, a slight breeze blowing with the light rain.
Yet Qing Mao Mountain was not completely dark instead, dozens of tiny lights glowed like a bright band from the mountain's side to its base.
Although these lights could not be compared to ten thousand lights, they were still a few thousand in number and shone from tall buildings.
Gu Yue Village was located atop the mountain, giving the vast lonely mountain a rich touch of human civilization.
A splendid pavilion stood in the center of Gu Yue Village. At this moment, a magnificent ceremony was taking place, and the lights were even brighter than ever, radiating with glory.
"Ancestors, please bless us! We pray that this ceremony will bring many young men of outstanding talent and intelligence, bringing their families new blood and hopes!" The head of the Gu Yue clan had a middle-aged appearance, his sideburns were graying and he was clothed in ceremonial white robes, kneeling on the brownish yellow floor. His body was straight with his hands held together, eyes tightly shut as he prayed sincerely.
He was facing a tall black case there were three layers on the case, each contained ancestor memorial tablets. The smoke rose from the copper incense on either side of the tablets.
More than 10 people were kneeling behind him in a similar position. They wore loose white ceremonial garments, and were all the clan's elders, important members, and those who had much authority.
After finishing prayers, the Gu Yue clan head bent his waist with his two hands pressing against the floor and kowtowed. As the forehead knocked against the brownish yellow floor, light thuds could be heard.
Behind him, the elders and important clan members solemnly and quietly followed suit.
The hall was filled with light thuds as the heads knocked against the floor.
When the ceremony was over, the elders rose slowly from the floor and silently walked out of the scared temple.
The atmosphere in the hallway relaxed as sighs of reliefs were heard from the crowd. Slowly, the sound of discussion rose.
"Time flies too quickly, in the blink of an eye, a year has gone by."
"The previous ceremony feels like it just happened yesterday, I can still recall it vividly."
"Tomorrow is the opening of the annual grand ceremony, I wonder what new clan blood will show up this year?"
"Ah, I hope that some highly talented youths will appear. The Gu Yue clan hasn't seen a genius emerge for three years now."
"Agreed. The Bai Village, Xiong Village these few years all had some talented geniuses appear. Especially that Bai Ning Bing from the Bai clan, his natural talent is quite terrifying."
At the mentioned of the name Bai Ning Bing, the elders' faces began to worry.
The boy's qualifications were splendid in just a short period of two years worth of training, he had already reached the level of a rank three Gu Master.
In the younger generation, he could be said as the most outstanding one. It was to the point that even the older generation could feel pressured from the promising youth.
In time, he would inevitably become the pillar of the Bai clan. At the very least he would also be an independently strong warrior. No one ever doubted this fact.
This is also due to the fact that Bai Ning Bing has the Northern Dark Ice Soul Physique, one the Ten Extreme Physique in the Gu World. Individuals with this physique have an easier time cultivating ice path. They generally have a faster primeval essence regeneration rate compared to non-extreme-physiques.
"But for this year's youths that will be participating in the ceremony, not all hope is lost."
"You're right, Fang Zhi's side has appeared a young genius. Able to start talking after three months, able to walk after four. At five years of age he was able to recite poetry, seems exceptionally intelligent, especially talented. What a pity that his parents died early, now he is being raised by his uncle and aunt."
"Yes, this one has wisdom at a young age, also harboring big ambitions. In the recent years I have heard his creations 'Jiang Jing Jiu', 'Yong Mei' and 'Jiang Cheng Zi', what a genius!"
The head of the Gu Yue clan left the ancestral temple last. He listened to the clan elders' conversations in the hallway after carefully shutting the door.
He immediately realized that the elders were talking about the youth known as Gu Yue Fang Yuan at that moment.
As the head of the clan, it is natural to pay attention to the outstanding and prominent young ones. And it so happens that Gu Yue Fang Yuan was the most eye-catching one amongst the juniors.
Experience has shown that those who have photographic memory at a young age, or those who possess strength that could rival an adult, or had other great inborn talents, all had outstanding cultivation qualifications.
"If this child shows A-grade potential, with great care he could even compete against Bai Ning Bing. Even if it is B-grade, in future he could also become a banner of the Gu Yue Clan. But with this sort of early intelligence, the percentage of B-grade is not that big, but highly possible to be an A-grade." With this thought, the Gu Yue clan head curled up his lips slowly into a smile.
At once, with a cough he faced the clan elders and said, "Everyone, the hour is late, for tomorrow's opening ceremony you should all rest well tonight and take care of your energy levels."
Although the clan head meant well, everyone understood what he was trying to say.
Every year to compete for these young geniuses, the elders would fight among themselves to the point of reddened ears and bleeding heads.
They should stay well rested and replenish themselves until tomorrow comes where the competition begins.
Particularly with Gu Yue Fang Yuan, who had a very high potential for an A-grade. Not to mention that he was one of the two surviving descendants of Fang Zhi's bloodline and that both of his parents had passed away. With careful handling and training, one could secure a hundred years of prosperity if they could capture him and bring him into their own family line.
"However, I'm going to go ahead and say what needs to be said first. When you compete, do it fair and square; no tricks and conspiracies are allowed, or damage to the clan's unity. Please keep this in mind, all of you!" The clan head strictly instructed.
"We wouldn't dare, we wouldn't dare."
"We'll keep it in mind."
"Then this is good night, please take care."
The clan elders slowly dispersed with deep thoughts.
Soon after, there was silence in the lengthy hallway. The wind from the spring rain breezed through the window, and the clan head lightly walked towards the window.
Immediately, he breathed in the fresh moist air of the mountain, how refreshing it felt.
This was the third floor of the garret; the clan head looked out of the window. He could see half of the entire Gu Yue Village.
Even if it was late in the night, most of the homes in the village still had lights on, which was unusual.
Tomorrow is the opening ceremony, and it affects everyone's best interests. A kind of excited yet tense atmosphere had enveloped the hearts of the people of the clan, and thus naturally many people could not sleep well.
"This is the hopes for the clan's future." With the many lights dancing in his eyes, the clan head sighed.
At the very same moment, a pair of clear eyes quietly looked at the same lights sparkling in the night, full of complex feelings inside.
"Gu Yue Village, this is 500 years ago?! Looks like the Spring Autumn Cicada really worked…" Fang Yuan quietly gazed, standing by the window, letting the rain from the wind hit his body.
He is Fang Yuan, formerly a scholar from Earth, he mysteriously transmigrated into the Gu World which is also known as an otherworldly demon in the Gu World. He started as a common clan member before growing into a Gu Immortal and Sect Master of the Demonic Path. At the very end of this 500 Year Life, Fang Yuan was cornered by his foes and forced to use the power of his newly refined Spring Autumn Cicada to travel back in time to the days of his youth which is currently now.
"With the use of the Spring Autumn Cicada I have been reborn, going ba-"Suddenly in the middle of his sentence Fang Yuan's body shook and an immensely shocked expression appeared on his face, which was quickly calmed down and shifted into a cold expression. His eyes which were already dark and depthless like the abyss become somewhat more unfathomable, sharp and intense.
"Hmm, the Gu Yue Clan, huh? Looks like I've been reborn once again." The will of the Heaven Refining Demon Venerable has been reborn.
Closing his eyes while the sound of the drizzling rain softly hitting against the window sill filling his ears, opening them shortly after, Fang Yuan's eyes revealed a smile, but it was filled with coldness and mania. "I failed again." Fang Yuan sighed in his heart emotionally, yet there were no regrets.
Clearly he had failed in the last attack against Heavenly Court and the two Venerable, but so what?
Even if he failed ten thousand times, a million times, or hundreds of billions of times, as long as there was a chance, Fang Yuan would never give up! His resolve, forged through countless lifetimes, was unbreakable. There was no force in the world strong enough to shackle his will.
And now he is doing it all over again.