Chapter 182: The Power of the Direct Sect Leader

Yuan Li pioneered the path of a Body Cultivator, sparking curiosity among many Disciples and even the Hall Masters.

Consequently, people constantly approached him, curious about what it meant to be a Body Cultivator.

As Yuan Li showcased his skills time and again, the term ‘Aura’ spread. More and more Disciples began to believe in him, and some even worshipped him.

Yuan Li was only twelve years old, yet he could create the path of a Body Cultivator, which was ample proof of his natural talent. Some Disciples even believed his slow growth in cultivation was simply due to his age.

Some people grow tall quickly as children but stop after sixteen, while others grow slowly but experience a sudden growth spurt after sixteen; this just goes to show that everyone’s growth is different and not fixed.

Yuan Li’s success once again proved the Sect Leader’s extraordinary foresight. Of course, some still harbored conspiracy theories, thinking the Sect Leader was deliberately promoting Yuan Li and that the so-called Aura was actually taught by the Sect Leader himself.

Regardless of whether the Disciples believed it or not, Yuan Li’s achievements were already established on the path of foundation building and would be remembered by future generations of Disciples.

After several months of dissemination, the existence of the Qi Clan’s demons had spread throughout the world, and Li Qingqiu’s feat of slaying the demons was also being discussed by everyone.

Over the years, Li Qingqiu had slain a Devil Emperor, executed demons, and now wiped out these latest monsters. His reputation had reached its peak, and more and more people considered him an Immortal of the human realm and the Qingxiao Sect a place for cultivating immortality.

More and more people came to the Qingxiao Sect seeking to become Disciples.

The Qingxiao Sect moved the location for Disciple examinations to Ziyang Peak, and the construction of the third mountain peak began.

In the current Qingxiao Sect, the busiest people were the Utility Disciples and Named Disciples. The School had also hired tens of thousands of craftsmen, consuming a massive amount of food daily, though fortunately, many Aristocratic Families were providing support.

At the end of April, a steady stream of carriages and horses arrived, escorted by a large number of guards, drawing the attention of many Disciples on the mountain.

“Is another Aristocratic Family here to send money and food?”

“The world is in such chaos, yet these Aristocratic Families can still produce so much food. Tsk tsk, this world is truly unfair.”

“Throughout history, has there ever been a Martial Forest School as prosperous as our Qingxiao Sect?”

“I heard the Sect Leader sent people down the mountain again to distribute grain, and they’re doing it openly. Those Aristocratic Families are watching, but they don’t dare say a word.”

“What could they say? They only need to deliver their offerings to our Qingxiao Sect; as for how we use them, they can’t control it and don’t care.”

On a cliff of Qingxiao Mountain, Zhang Yuchun and Zhu Yan stood side by side, watching the long, dragon-like line of carriages at the foot of the mountain.

Zhu Yan remarked with emotion, “The Li Clan of Linchuan is truly wealthy and powerful.”

Zhang Yuchun said calmly, “The current Qingxiao Sect is not the Qingxiao Sect of the past. No matter how many gifts they send, we don’t need to give them too much Face.”

Zhu Yan glanced at him and asked, “Do you know in which direction the Sect Leader intends to Cultivate Li Yang in the future?”

“I don’t know that, but Li Yang will surely take on important responsibilities in the future. The Li Clan won’t be able to stop it,” Zhang Yuchun replied.

Hearing this, Zhu Yan narrowed her eyes.

She felt the pressure.

Although Zhu Xunyang was strong, there was still a gap compared to Li Yang.

At this moment, it wasn’t just them watching the generous gifts sent by the Li Clan; other Hall Masters, Deputy Hall Masters, Elders, and Disciples were also watching from afar.

With their wealthy and powerful Aura, the Li Clan forced their way into the sight of everyone in the Qingxiao Sect.

Li Qingqiu, however, was not watching.

Elsewhere, in an underground palace on the north side of Qingxiao Mountain, the chamber was not very large and lacked excessive furnishings, with oil lamps lining the walls.

Li Qingqiu and Mo Jiuhong stood side by side. Mo Jiuhong’s expression was quite excited as he looked at the twenty Disciples standing before them, his eyes full of anticipation.

“From this day forward, the Dark Hall is established, with Mo Jiuhong as the Hall Master. You are the first batch of Disciples for the Dark Hall. This identity is to be known only by me; you must not reveal your existence to anyone, including other Hall Masters and your friends or family.”

Li Qingqiu scanned the twenty Disciples and spoke seriously.

These Disciples had extremely high loyalty to Li Qingqiu, all above 95, making them worthy of his trust.

Hearing Li Qingqiu’s words, the Disciples were equally excited.

The Dark Hall!

Directly under the Sect Leader’s control—no matter how you looked at it, they were his inner circle!

Li Qingqiu continued, “Hall Master Mo will train you. In the future, your duty will be to infiltrate various factions. Your compensation will be double that of the eight halls’ Disciples, and there will be extra rewards based on the intelligence you provide. However, if anyone reports false information, they will be severely punished. In the future, I may send you into Martial Forest Schools, or I might have you placed next to the Emperor; I may even need you to monitor the Hall Masters within our own sect.”

“From today on, each of you will think of a code name for yourselves, which Hall Master Mo will record in a ledger. This ledger will be kept personally by me.”

The twenty Disciples listened intently to Li Qingqiu’s speech, sensing the weight of the responsibility placed on the Dark Hall Disciples.

Mo Jiuhong also gradually became solemn.

He had been given a position of great importance, but this job would not be easy and would certainly involve danger.

However, he did not back down. He had spent months serving tea and water to True Man Qingxiao, doing all sorts of dirty and tiring work, yet True Man Qingxiao never promoted him, which allowed him to see things clearly.

In the Qingxiao Sect, the most secure way was to pledge loyalty to one person, and that was to serve the Sect Leader.

Li Qingqiu had high hopes for the Dark Hall. He planned to build two sets of intelligence Systems: one for the sect, handled by Zhang Yuchun, and his personal intelligence System, the Dark Hall, which would serve him alone.

It wasn’t that he was suspicious of the Hall Masters, but rather that he was taking precautions.

As more mountain peaks were constructed for the sect, the establishment of branches for the eight halls was inevitable. As the various levels of power became more refined, future power struggles would only become more intense. As the Sect Leader, he couldn’t mediate everyone’s conflicts; what he needed to do was balance the various factions while ensuring his own eyes could see further.

He didn’t find it annoying or tiring; it even felt a bit like playing a game from his previous life.

After staying in the Dark Hall for an hour, Li Qingqiu finally left, leaving the remaining matters to Mo Jiuhong… On the practice field of the Spiritual Wealth Hall, Yang Xuan sat under a tree, holding a Spiritual Plant, lost in thought.

After arriving at the Qingxiao Sect, Li Dongyue had skewed cultivation resources in his favor, causing his cultivation to advance rapidly. His double-excellent talent had already allowed him to reach the Nourishing Origin Realm Fourth Layer.

Although the Nourishing Origin Realm Fourth Layer was no longer considered top-tier within the current Qingxiao Sect, Yang Xuan’s potential made everyone in the Spiritual Wealth Hall look forward to his future.

A young man entered the courtyard and walked quickly toward Yang Xuan.

It was Ye Nan, who possessed the ‘Natural Great Hero’ and ‘Epiphany’ destinies.

The Qi Clan had sent Ye Nan’s Master, the Tyrant Blade Mo Li, to Qingxiao Mountain to capture the Qilin. After being discovered, Mo Li committed suicide in front of Li Qingqiu. Later, Ye Nan was invited up the mountain and eventually decided to join the Qingxiao Sect.

Initially, Ye Nan had misgivings, fearing Li Qingqiu was just deceiving him. But after staying at the Qingxiao Sect for a long time, he found that no one was monitoring him and he wasn’t being neglected, which made his sense of belonging to the Qingxiao Sect grow stronger.

Later, the Sect Leader killed the Qi Clan’s demons. When the tree demon’s corpse was delivered to the Qingxiao Sect by Xiao Ba, Ye Nan completely believed Li Qingqiu’s words, and his last shred of resentment toward the Qingxiao Sect vanished.

Now, Ye Nan had let go of his grudges and only wanted to Cultivate hard.

“Senior Brother Yang, the sect is planning to open a Body Cultivator academy for Senior Brother Yuan Li. Do you want to go listen?” Ye Nan asked curiously as he approached Yang Xuan.

On normal days, he had the best relationship with Yang Xuan, partly because they were the same age and partly because they were of like mind.

Yang Xuan looked up at him and said, “I won’t go. I’m not interested in Body Cultivation. You go ahead.”

Ye Nan squatted down and asked curiously, “Senior Brother Yang, what are you thinking about?”

Yang Xuan replied, “As you know, I can feel the emotions of plants and flowers. I’ve been pondering lately whether I can use this trait to create a cultivation path similar to that of a Body Cultivator or a Sword Cultivator.”

“Really? Senior Brother Yang, if you succeed, our Spiritual Wealth Hall will share in the glory,” Ye Nan said excitedly, even happier than Yang Xuan.

Yang Xuan shook his head and smiled, “It’s just a hypothesis. It won’t be that easy.”

Ye Nan chuckled and said, “It’s fine if you don’t go listen to the path of Body Cultivation, but I’m having a duel tomorrow. You have to come to the Martial Arts Stage to watch and boost my Aura.”

“Who is the opponent?”

“Ning Shu.”

“What level of cultivation?”

“Nourishing Origin Realm, Second Layer. Don’t worry, the opponents I can challenge are definitely around the same level as me. However, this Ning Shu is from the Ning Clan of Nanchu Prefecture; he’s a child of an Aristocratic Family and has many lackeys around him.”

“Alright, I’ll go with you tomorrow.”

“I knew Senior Brother would look out for me.”

Ye Nan was very happy and sat down beside Yang Xuan, starting to recount some sect news he had heard that day.

The Qingxiao Sect was undergoing massive construction, changing with each passing day. New things appeared every day, and new people joined; there was never a shortage of stories here… With the threat of the Qi Clan gone, Li Qingqiu’s days became leisurely. Busy with his practice, he felt time passing very quickly.

Before he knew it, it was early July.

On this day, after noon, Zhu Yan came to Li Qingqiu’s Immortal Cave.

“Sect Leader, Hall Master Li Sifeng has broken ties with the Pei Clan,” Zhu Yan said as she approached Li Qingqiu.

Li Qingqiu opened his eyes and asked, “For what reason?”

“It seems to be over a power struggle. The Pei Clan appointed a legitimate son as the Grand Marshal of the Three Armies, which angered Hall Master Li Sifeng. In a fit of rage, he took Pei Miao and left the Pei Clan, heading north.”

“Heading north?”

“Yes. It’s said that Hall Master Li Sifeng claimed he would raise his own army and contend for the world against the Pei Clan.”

Hearing this, Li Qingqiu understood Zhu Yan’s purpose. He asked, “Does the Zhu Clan have some ideas?”

Zhu Yan replied, “The world is currently divided among warlords. If Hall Master Li Sifeng wants to rise, he will certainly need assistance. If the Zhu Clan doesn’t act, others will surely help him. After all, he has our Qingxiao Sect behind him. Rather than letting other unknown Aristocratic Families influence Hall Master Li Sifeng, why not let our Zhu Clan assist him?”

Li Qingqiu looked at her without answering.

Zhu Yan was frightened by his gaze and lowered her head, her heart racing with unease.

Had she overstepped her bounds?

“Do as you see fit. Remember, you are not to mobilize Qingxiao Sect Disciples to assist him, including Disciples of the Zhu surname,” Li Qingqiu’s voice rang out.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yan looked up in surprise and quickly promised that they would only use secular forces to assist Li Sifeng.