Chapter 152: All-Spells Spiritual Eyes, Tempered a Thousand Times
World-Class Mortal Sect!
Divine Art Legacy?
Li Qingqiu’s attention was immediately caught by the prompt that suddenly appeared before his eyes.
He remembered that when he first opened the Dao Lineage Panel, he had already evaluated the Clear Sky Sect back then—and its rank had been Unranked.
Now, it had risen to World-Class Mortal Sect, which meant that although the Clear Sky Sect had grown strong, it still had not transcended the mortal realm.
Li Qingqiu called up the Dao Lineage Panel and found new text appearing at the bottom: 【Available Divine Art Legacy Attempts: 0】.
So merely unlocking the mechanism didn’t grant him a direct Divine Art reward?
Li Qingqiu felt slightly regretful at that, but he was already used to the Dao Lineage Panel’s rules—having something to look forward to wasn’t so bad either.
Most importantly, he now possessed two Fate Trait Selection opportunities; it was time to use one.
The earlier it was used, the earlier it could be enjoyed.
He only needed to reserve one more opportunity for the future.
Seeing Yuan Li and Ji Ya already beginning their cultivation practice, Li Qingqiu walked aside and sat cross-legged at the cliff’s edge, back facing his three disciples.
He summoned the Dao Lineage Panel again and began reviewing the disciples’ personal panels, searching for a suitable Fate Trait.
……
As the year’s end approached, more and more disciples returned from the mortal world, all preparing to celebrate the New Year.
Li Qingqiu sat meditating within his cave dwelling, once again flipping through the panels of new disciples.
Unfortunately, none of them particularly satisfied him.
His standards had already been raised by traits like 【Human Ghost-God】 and 【Tempered Demon Body】.
Even Fate Traits such as Li Yang’s Dragon Soul Protection or Yang Xuan’s Heart of Heaven and Earth didn’t particularly tempt him.
Just then, Yuan Qi’s voice came from outside the cave.
“Sect Master, a group has arrived at the mountain, saying you summoned them. They come from Pan City, and their leader is named Bo Zhao.”
Li Qingqiu immediately responded, “Bring them to Lingxiao Courtyard.”
“Yes, sir!”
When Yuan Qi’s footsteps faded away, Li Qingqiu regretfully closed the Dao Lineage Panel and stood up.
Today’s new disciples still had no special Fate Traits.
To hold two Fate Trait opportunities but be unable to use them—it left him rather anxious.
He shifted his focus to Bo Zhao while walking out of the cave, recalling his past memories.
Back when he had traveled to Martial God Pass, he had stayed for a while in Pan City, where he wiped out the wicked Cui Residence.
Before leaving, he had promised a young constable that if the children captured by the Cui Family had nowhere to go, they could be sent to the Clear Sky Sect.
That constable’s name was Bo Zhao.
Two years had passed since then—he had nearly forgotten about it, never expecting Bo Zhao to actually come.
It seemed they must have encountered trouble; otherwise, they wouldn’t have arrived only now.
Li Qingqiu went straight to Lingxiao Courtyard and waited.
The courtyard was empty except for himself.
Picking up a broom, he began sweeping the snow.
Though he could have cleared it away using Vital Energy, he preferred sweeping slowly—it calmed his heart.
After a stick of incense’s time, Yuan Qi finally arrived, leading a group.
Li Qingqiu turned to look.
He saw Bo Zhao—taller than before, his frame sturdier, though stubble shadowed his face, adding a trace of weariness.
Beside Bo Zhao stood a female disciple of the Clear Sky Sect, followed by two constables from Pan City in worn uniforms.
Behind them were eight young girls, their clothing dirty and tattered, faces tense with fear.
Upon seeing Li Qingqiu, Bo Zhao’s eyes instantly reddened, and the two constables also grew visibly excited upon recognizing him.
“Sect Master Li, I’ve brought them here to seek refuge under you.” Bo Zhao walked up to Li Qingqiu and knelt heavily, speaking in a low voice.
“What are you doing?” Li Qingqiu looked at him, puzzled.
Bo Zhao clenched his teeth.
“I failed in my duty. Four of the girls died on the road…”
At those words, the two constables hung their heads in shame, and the eight girls’ faces dimmed with grief.
Li Qingqiu turned his gaze toward the accompanying female disciple.
“Your name is Ding Xuan, correct? Since you came with them, do you know what they went through?”
The woman named Ding Xuan looked about twenty, with fair skin, her long hair pinned up behind her head by a hairpin, revealing a delicate, pretty face.
Her brows were cool, her chin slightly pointed, giving her an impression of detached indifference.
When she heard the Sect Master call her by name, her expression flickered with emotion, and she immediately bowed deeply.
“I met them in Eastern Tomb Province. They were stopped by a group of mountain bandits, so I stepped in to help. Bo Zhao saw my skill and asked which sect I belonged to. I didn’t hide it, and when he learned I was from the Clear Sky Sect, he told me about his promise with you. I then escorted them all the way back. Before meeting me, they’d already suffered much hardship. The lands below the mountain are in chaos now—they came all the way from Zhongtian Province’s border. It was no easy journey.”
Ding Xuan spoke swiftly, her tone calm and controlled, without much emotion.
After listening, Li Qingqiu looked toward Bo Zhao.
“Since you’ve come to the Clear Sky Sect, then stay. From now on, you’re all disciples of the Clear Sky Sect. Along the way, did you make any enemies?”
Bo Zhao bit his lip, uncertain whether he should answer.
One of the tall constables stepped forward.
“We ran into too much trouble along the road. The worst of them was the Fang Residence in Zhu Lu County, Eastern Tomb Province. They pretended to pity us and took us in, but the second young master of the Fang Family, drunk one night, defiled one of our girls. She threw herself into a well in despair. When we went to confront them, we were thrown out of the estate. Bo Zhao was nearly beaten to death. We had to kneel and beg before they’d let us go…”
As he recounted it, fury twisted the constables’ faces, and hatred burned in the eyes of the eight girls.
Li Qingqiu said quietly, “I understand. The Fang Family will pay for their blood debt in blood. Back then, when I didn’t bring you all myself, did you resent me?”
At that, the two constables and eight girls hastily replied,
“How could we resent you? Without you, we’d have died at the Cui Residence!”
“That’s right, Sect Master Li. We’ve heard your deeds—you struck down the Emperor himself to rid the world of evil. Following you would only have hindered your great cause.”
“You are our savior. How could we dare to hope for more? Before leaving Pan City, we were ready for anything. Better to seek you than rot away there.”
“Why would we hate you? If there’s blame, it’s on us three for lacking martial skill…”
Hearing them, Li Qingqiu sighed softly.
Indeed, he had been capable of bringing the girls back then, but he had been preoccupied with Wu Man’er—and besides, he had found it troublesome, believing he was not obligated to do so.
Now, hearing what they had endured, guilt stirred faintly within him.
With his strength, he could have saved countless people—but doing so would have taken time from his cultivation.
He had long since adjusted his mindset; he would not burden himself too heavily.
“Qi’er, take them down to settle in. All of them will become Outer Disciples.” Li Qingqiu ordered calmly.
Yuan Qi immediately acknowledged the order and led Bo Zhao and the others down the mountain.
Since kneeling, Bo Zhao had said little else, his mood visibly heavy.
Ding Xuan turned to follow them, but Li Qingqiu called out for her to stay.
He expressed his approval of Ding Xuan’s chivalrous spirit, praised her, and permitted her to go to the fourth floor of the Scripture Repository to choose one Secret Manual—Yuan Qi would personally escort her there.
“Sect Master, you really don’t have to do this. Before I joined the mountain, I wandered with my parents. Once, a local tyrant tried to abduct me—it was Elder Li Sifeng who led people to save us. I only acted according to the chivalrous spirit of the Clear Sky Sect. It’s what I should have done.”
Ding Xuan spoke earnestly, her gaze firm.
Though a woman, she carried a heroic aura no less than a man’s.
Li Qingqiu smiled.
“Just go. The stronger you become, the more people you’ll be able to save.”
Ding Xuan wanted to reply, but Li Qingqiu had already turned and walked toward the cave dwelling.
Seeing this, she drew a deep breath, bowed respectfully, and departed.
Returning to his cave, Li Qingqiu began cultivating once again.
After sitting a short while, he couldn’t help wondering—might someone among Bo Zhao’s group possess a special Fate Trait?
As the saying went: Those who survive great tribulations are destined for great fortune.
Their journey from Pan City to Clear Sky Mountain had been like a pilgrimage through peril.
Perhaps one among them was blessed by destiny.
He waited for Bo Zhao and the others to be formally entered into the sect.
Yuan Qi was efficient—as expected, within half an hour, Bo Zhao and the rest appeared in the Dao Lineage Panel.
Bo Zhao’s cultivation aptitude was Average, comprehension Unranked, and his Fate Trait was merely 【Courageous】—of little help to cultivation.
Li Qingqiu felt a twinge of disappointment and looked further down the list.
The other two constables had nothing special either.
Then came the eight girls.
At first glance—none with special Fate Traits; even their aptitude and comprehension barely reached Average.
But when Li Qingqiu reached the seventh girl’s profile, his eyes suddenly lit up.
【Name: Yun Cai】
【Gender: Female】
【Age: 16】
【Loyalty (to Sect Master/Sect): 92/65 (Max 100)】
【Cultivation Aptitude: Excellent】
【Comprehension: Average】
【Fate Traits: All-Spells Spiritual Eyes, Tempered a Thousand Times】
【All-Spells Spiritual Eyes: An ancient mystical eye capable of perceiving the bones, meridians, and soul of cultivators. It can discern flaws in opponents’ spells, and upon reaching a certain cultivation level, may nurture a unique innate Divine Art.】
【Tempered a Thousand Times: Whatever spell, Divine Art, or secret technique is cultivated, perseverance will lead to full mastery and even greater realms of proficiency.】
……
Dual special Fate Traits!
And both were cultivation and combat-oriented!
A true prodigy!
Li Qingqiu’s expectations for Yun Cai soared.
He believed both Fate Traits were worth copying—【All-Spells Spiritual Eyes】 could enhance combat, while 【Tempered a Thousand Times】 could strengthen his mastery of spells.
So far, the only technique Li Qingqiu had fully mastered was the Supreme Sword Controlling Technique.
But he wasn’t the only one—Jiang Zhaoxia also knew it, and her attainment was no lesser than his.
If he obtained the 【Tempered a Thousand Times】 Fate Trait, wouldn’t that allow him to refine any spell to its highest level—to become a true grandmaster?
He decided to use one of his Fate Trait Selections on Yun Cai.
As for which one—he would think more on it.
Yun Cai’s cultivation aptitude was Excellent, making her a disciple worth special attention.
Which Hall should she be assigned to?
Forget it—better to keep her by his side.
With such a prodigy, she would surely dazzle in the next Grand Dao Tournament, perhaps even take first place and astonish the entire sect.
Yes, that would do!
He would nurture her quietly—and when she finally emerged, it would display both his teaching skill and his discerning vision!