Chapter 105: Xuanyin Pavilion Golden Core
“Haha，Lu Turtle, you said you wouldn't help that talented disciple of yours form a core, yet you're aiding that useless girl instead—aren’t you afraid your disciples will betray you!”
Under the mocking sneer of the Palace of Blazing Fire's Elder Huang, it was clear he intended to disturb Master Lu’s state of mind.
“Idiot!”
Yet as Master Lu’s fingertip revealed a dark, needle-shaped magical artifact, he let out a disdainful chuckle at those words.
“If this old man didn’t even have such ability, would I have survived until now!?”
It wasn’t merely about discernment; more importantly, if he couldn’t even control his own disciples, then his title as the number one rogue cultivator would be laughable.
Besides, those two disciples were both picked up along the way—compared to his own daughter, even a dog would know who to choose.
Once the life-bound magical artifact was summoned, the Golden Core cultivators of both the Palace of Blazing Fire and the Divine Sword Sect were full of apprehension.
So this Lu Turtle had hidden so deeply all these years, and it turned out his life-bound magical artifact was a recognized top-difficulty type—flying needle-type.
And they called this man a rogue cultivator!?
……
Tianxuan Peak.
“Wu Yan, whether in talent or potential, you surpass her by far, yet Master Lu shows favoritism and hands this Golden Core opportunity to his illegitimate daughter with the poorest aptitude—can you really accept that!?”
In desperation, the Palace of Blazing Fire's prodigy Huang Tianxiao attempted to sow discord.
However, the burly Wu Yan, radiating a baleful aura, merely cast him a scornful glance, as if looking at a fool.
“Huang Tianxiao, stop stirring up trouble. If not for Master’s protection, we wouldn’t be where we are today. This family legacy was always Senior Sister’s to begin with.”
Master Lu’s third disciple, Song Tingfeng, coldly rebuked.
Others might not know, but they certainly did.
The identity of these disciples was only established due to their elders' past ties with Master Lu.
Moreover, when they returned to Yue Kingdom, Master Lu had already given them a choice—if they wished to follow him back, before Su Miaoyin formed her core, they must first offer up one-third of their divine soul.
“Fine! Fine! Fine! You rogue cultivators are nothing more than a bunch of third-rate nobodies. It’s only by enduring humiliation and hiding your tails that you managed to build your foundation and form your cores.
You really think you're qualified to tread this path of cultivation? Let us show you what true sect heritage looks like!”
In an instant, halfway up Tianxuan Peak, streaks of blood light appeared, alarming the entire Tianxuan City.
……
“Fellow Daoist Lin, what is that!”
Chen Qing couldn’t suppress his shock. Even from a distance, they could feel the terrifying power within that blood light.
“Unclear, but that blood light gives off an oppressive feeling.”
Even Lin Changan couldn’t help but furrow his brow, his expression turning cautious.
These major sects truly had deep foundations—this seemed to be a formation, and even from afar it induced a sense of dread. One could only imagine the effect on those within.
“Not good, look! The spiritual energy around Tianxuan Peak is being blocked!”
“That’s the Demonic Sect’s Blood Spirit Grand Formation—it can suppress cultivation and cut off spiritual energy!”
Many Foundation Establishment cultivators had gathered atop high buildings to observe the battle.
Among them were knowledgeable rogue cultivators who, upon recognizing the formation, exclaimed in horror.
But before they could think further, the blood-colored barrier atop Tianxuan Peak began to shatter, collapsing to reveal a massive gap.
The spiritual energy that had just been blocked surged out all at once.
“What’s going on!”
The elderly Foundation Establishment cultivator who had just explained the formation widened his eyes in shock—how could the formation break just like that?
And in that direction, Lin Changan, who witnessed the scene, wore a strange expression.
“That direction… and the point where the formation began to collapse… seem to be where Huang Shaohai set up the formation plate earlier.”
Lin Changan muttered inwardly. It seemed this time, Huang Shaohai had truly messed up.
Yet why did it feel so inexplicably satisfying?
……
“Fine, fine, even if you found the formation, so what! I want to see how you’ll stop this!”
Above Tianxuan City, the sect prodigy Huang Tianxiao, now enraged, laughed furiously and directly unleashed a talisman radiating a terrifying aura.
“Not good! That’s a quasi-third-rank Restriction-Breaking Talisman!”
The moment the talisman appeared, both Wu Yan and Song Tingfeng’s expressions turned to shock.
However, the talisman had already been activated.
"Now's the time! Break the formation!"
The Quasi-third-rank Restriction-Breaking Talisman turned into a beam of light, emanating a strange power that disrupted structures, striking the grand formation atop Tianxuan Peak.
Boom!
A breach several zhang long exploded open, immediately triggering a chain reaction as the formation began to collapse from the front.
"The formation is broken!"
Upon seeing this scene, Huang Tianxiao couldn't help but show joy on his face.
At the same time, the Golden Core Phenomenon in the sky above seemed to have been interrupted, starting to become unstable.
This sight shocked countless people. Some were furious, while others burst into wild laughter.
Seeing the interrupted Golden Core Phenomenon, Huang Tianxiao laughed recklessly.
Wu Yan and Song Tingfeng both showed anger on their faces. Regardless of their relationship with her, just from a simple interest-based analysis—
As long as Su Miaoyin successfully formed her core, she could continue to shelter Tianxuan City, allowing the two of them to cultivate in peace. In the future, there might still be a chance for them to seek Golden Core themselves.
At the moment the Golden Core Phenomenon broke above Tianxuan City, countless rogue cultivators within the city looked dazed.
“How... how could this be? Everything was fine just now…”
“Impossible!”
Chen Qing, who had his entire family living in Tianxuan City, revealed sorrow upon witnessing this and couldn’t stop his eyes from welling up with tears.
For countless rogue cultivators, the one peaceful and stable place in their hearts at this moment seemed to have vanished.
“Haha, Lu Turtle, looks like your disciple’s aptitude is too poor. Just breaking the formation was enough to interrupt her Golden Core.”
Just as the Golden Core cultivators of Divine Sword Sect and Palace of Blazing Fire were smiling, Master Lu, wearing a calm expression, instead gave them a bad premonition.
...
“No! Something’s not right!”
Lin Changan seemed to have sensed something. His eyes widened instantly as he looked in shock toward Tianxuan Peak.
This was merely the formation being broken. The Golden Core Phenomenon hadn’t been affected at all.
Or rather, the Golden Core Phenomenon from earlier was all caused by the formation.
“How could that be!”
On Tianxuan Peak, Huang Tianxiao’s shocked voice rang out. As the formation dissipated, a thunder-imbued giant hammer struck down with a thunderous boom, blasting him away.
“Su Miaoyin!”
“Senior Sister!”
“Junior Sister!”
Amid the countless shocked expressions, Su Miaoyin stepped out, her entire body flickering with lightning. At this moment, her expression was cold, and in one hand she held a shattered formation plate.
“This…”
Wu Yan and Song Tingfeng were both dumbfounded. The earlier Golden Core Phenomenon wasn’t from their junior or senior sister after all.
Looking again at the shattered formation plate in Su Miaoyin’s hand and the broken formation around, it seemed everyone understood something in that instant.
Boom!
The Golden Core Phenomenon rose again, this time coming from Xuanyin Peak.
“Damn it! So it wasn’t you forming your core inside— it’s that slut from Xuanyin Pavilion!”
From afar, the blasted-away Huang Tianxiao looked toward another spiritual-vein mountain and roared in a frenzy.
“The Transposition Formation. Although it was broken a bit early, it still bought us enough time.”
With a raise of her hand, recalling the lightning-infused giant hammer, Su Miaoyin glanced calmly at the neighboring Xuanyin Peak.
So the one truly forming her core was the cultivator of Xuanyin Pavilion. She had only used a formation to draw spiritual energy from Tianxuan Peak, making everyone mistakenly believe that the Golden Core was happening there.
“The prodigy of Xuanyin Pavilion, the Celestial Maiden of Rainbow Skirt!”
At this moment, everyone present finally recalled that among the top talents of the three major sects of Yue Kingdom, she had once been the brightest star. But in the decades that followed, she had remained low-key and unheard of.
Who would have thought she had been holding back for such a grand feat.
Ahem ahem, the author will post the update first and then check for typos. Busy writing today, didn’t get a chance to proofread.