"This is…?"
Wang Li frowned faintly as he looked around.
Vegetation had run rampant in every direction, devouring what remained of the structures beneath it.
Vines strangled broken pillars. Moss blanketed stone paths. Weeds had long since claimed what should have been a cultivated peak.
This place—
Looked less like a sect peak and more like a forgotten ruin.
If not for Wang Lu standing calmly ahead, as if this were perfectly normal, he might have thought he'd been brought to the wrong location.
He opened his mouth… then closed it again.
Silence lingered.
After a moment, Wang Lu finally spoke.
"You're wondering why I chose you."
Her tone was casual.
Her gaze was not.
Wang Li nodded, though inwardly he was already complaining.
*Is this even a place humans can live?*
Still… her question shifted something in his mind.
This wasn't about joining a peak.
He had been accepted as a **personal disciple**.
That difference—
Was enormous.
A peak disciple had backing.
A personal disciple inherited everything.
Teachings. Resources. Even ideology.
In the cultivation world, true disciples were often treated better than blood descendants.
Which meant—
Such a choice was never made lightly.
Wang Li met her eyes.
"Why?"
No hesitation. No politeness.
Just clarity.
He had no background. No connections. His talent was decent—but far from exceptional.
There was nothing about him that should have stood out.
Wang Lu studied him briefly—
Then smiled.
"Not bad."
With a lazy flick of her hand, the surrounding vegetation instantly withered, turning to dust that scattered into the wind.
In a breath—
The entire peak cleared.
She stepped forward and sat atop a raised stone platform, crossing one leg over the other without the slightest concern.
Smooth, pale skin was revealed.
Wang Li immediately shifted his gaze upward.
Wang Lu noticed.
Her lips curved.
"Disciplined," she said lightly. "Or just pretending to be."
Before he could respond, she continued—
"Your technique. You pieced it together, didn't you? Fragments from different sources."
Wang Li paused for the briefest moment.
Then nodded.
There was no point denying it.
Wang Lu's eyes lit up.
"I knew it."
She leaned back slightly, posture relaxed.
"I walk a similar path. Breaking apart the old… reconstructing what others have lost."
A pause.
Her gaze returned to him.
"But that alone isn't enough for me to accept you."
Wang Li remained silent.
He was waiting.
"You're different from me," she continued. "You don't care about origin. Ancient or modern. Complete or broken."
Her smile deepened.
"As long as it makes you stronger… you'll use it."
Wang Li didn't deny it.
There was nothing to deny.
For a brief moment—
Wang Lu's expression softened.
"In the future," she said, "you might be useful to me."
A beat.
"Others won't be. But you…"
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"…you can."
Blunt.
Self-serving.
Honest.
Wang Li studied her carefully.
Then—
"I have an endless supply of resources," Wang Lu added lazily. "Techniques. Ancient inheritances. Modern systems—"
Thud.
Before she could finish, Wang Li had already dropped to his knees.
"Disciple greets Master."
Three crisp kowtows.
Clean. Decisive. Without hesitation.
Wang Lu blinked.
Once.
Twice.
Then laughed.
"So fast?"
There was genuine amusement in her eyes now.
"You didn't even pretend to hesitate?"
Wang Li rose calmly.
"Resources are persuasive."
His tone was steady, as if this were the most obvious decision in the world.
Wang Lu stared at him for a moment—
Then shook her head, smiling.
"Shameless."
But she was clearly pleased.
With a flick of her sleeve, an invisible force lifted him fully upright.
"Fine. I prefer this over hypocrisy."
Her gaze lingered.
Something felt… off.
Too natural.
Too composed.
"Are you sure you're not just a younger version of me?" she muttered.
Wang Li said nothing.
---
"Tell me," Wang Lu continued, her tone shifting, "you're planning to break into the Martial Arts Realm soon, aren't you?"
Wang Li nodded.
Under her gaze, hiding anything felt pointless.
"Then answer me this," she said. "What do you understand about it?"
"Nothing," Wang Li replied.
Wang Lu raised an eyebrow—
Then laughed softly.
"At least you're honest."
She straightened slightly.
"To step into the Martial Arts Realm, you must open the Genesis Gate within your body."
"That is the true bottleneck."
"Once it opens… your body sheds its mortal limits."
Wang Li listened carefully.
Then asked the only question that mattered.
"How do I find it?"
Wang Lu looked at him as if the answer were obvious.
"You don't."
A pause.
"Not by yourself."
She leaned forward slightly, her tone sharpening.
"If you rely purely on your own efforts—even if you succeed…"
Her gaze deepened.
"…your path ends there."
Wang Li's eyes narrowed.
"What's the alternative?"
A faint smile appeared on her lips.
"External aid."
"Specifically—Essence Blood."
"From powerful cultivators… or Divine Beasts."
Wang Li fell silent.
That wasn't difficult.
That was impossible.
Seeing his expression, Wang Lu flicked his forehead.
"What kind of face is that?"
Her tone turned mildly impatient.
"Did I tell you to find it yourself?"
A brief pause.
"When the time comes, come to me."
"I'll prepare it."
Wang Li smiled faintly.
"Then I'll trouble Master."
Wang Lu snorted.
"Now you sound obedient."
She tossed him a token.
"With this, you can access seven Earth-grade techniques. Not three like the others."
Then she added—
"If I were you, I'd focus on breaking through first. Most real opportunities in the sect begin at that level."
Wang Li's gaze sharpened slightly.
A thought surfaced.
*The timeline is starting…*
*The protagonist should appear soon.*
A flicker of urgency passed through his eyes.
"I understand."
---
"Oh, and one more thing."
Wang Lu's voice turned lazy again.
"Earth-grade techniques aren't simple."
"They contain intent."
Her lips curved faintly.
"If you're not careful…"
"…you might cripple yourself trying to comprehend them."
Wang Li nodded.
That decided it.
He would perfect the *Mountains and Seas Art* first—
Then use higher techniques to elevate it.
There was no need to rush.
The sect allowed five years.
He had time.
---
After Wang Lu disappeared, Wang Li looked around the now-cleared peak.
Still empty.
Still silent.
"No place to stay…"
He chose a nearby structure and began cleaning.
Three hours later—
The peak finally resembled something livable.
He exhaled slowly.
"Time to begin."
---
Days passed.
Then months.
Half a year slipped by.
Wang Li cultivated relentlessly.
Refining.
Simplifying.
Repeating.
His movements evolved—
From complex to precise.
From rigid to fluid.
Until—
One morning—
At the edge of the cliff—
His eyes opened.
A low rumble echoed within his body.
Light flashed across his pupils.
"I've reached it…"
"The peak of the Transformation Realm."
A faint smile formed.
Behind him—
A phantom rose.
Mountains surged.
Seas roared.
The rising sun cast golden light across the illusion.
Within a hundred meters—
Everything was engulfed.
---
High above—
Wang Lu's eyes snapped open.
Her gaze locked onto the phenomenon below.
"Intent…"
For the first time—
Her expression shifted.
"He actually grasped intent… from fused Yellow-grade techniques?"
Shock.
Genuine.
Then—
A slow smile spread across her face.
"I didn't choose wrong."
---
The vision faded.
Wang Li stood quietly.
No aura.
No pressure.
As if he had merged with the world itself.
Returning to simplicity.
---
Later—
He arrived at the sect library.
The moment he stepped inside—
The space shifted.
Pressure descended onto his token.
Second floor.
He looked up—
And his pupils shrank.
Wang Lu stood ahead, leaning lazily against a bookshelf.
Smiling.
As if she had been waiting all along.
"You're slower than I expected," she said softly.
Then her gaze sharpened.
"And yet…"
Her voice dropped.
"…you've already attracted something you shouldn't have."
Wang Li's heart tightened.
Before he could respond—
The entire library trembled.
And a cold, unfamiliar presence—
Descended..