Two days later, a piece of news that shocked even the first-rate sects began to circulate within a certain region.
Falling Star Valley, the Green Wind Sect, and the Six Plates Hall had joined forces and, in just over a day, had uprooted the equally powerful Cangyu Sect, Snow Moon Wolf Clan, Wind-Rending Clan, and Night Fox Clan.
Moreover, Lie Changfeng, the Grand Elder of the Wind-Rending Clan, had already reached the Pseudo-Nascent Soul realm but had failed to escape. In his final, desperate struggle, he could only burn the entire origin of his Demonic Core.
Although he heavily injured the Third Elder of the Six Plates Hall and even blew off a small part of the Second Elder's arm, such a Pseudo-Nascent Soul expert had perished just like that.
The reason for all this was that his physical body had been destroyed by Tianxingzi of Falling Star Valley three days prior, preventing him from unleashing the true power of a Pseudo-Nascent Soul cultivator.
The other two Golden Core cultivators from the Wind-Rending Clan and Night Fox Clan were slain by the Grand Elder of the Six Plates Hall and Feng Moru of the Green Wind Sect.
At the same time, the two Late-stage Golden Core cultivators from the Snow Moon Wolf Clan and the Cangyu Sect were slain by Lin Xinghe and Qingyu respectively.
When this news spread, it caused an uproar among many sects. A Golden Core versus Golden Core battle, with seven Golden Core cultivators perishing at once, was an event that shook the region.
These were no small fries. Everyone knew how difficult it was to make a Golden Core cultivator perish; it would likely require several cultivators of the same rank to join forces.
And all of this had happened in just over a day. At first, not many people believed the news, but as the four clans disappeared, and after a few more days, it became shocking news that rocked the Cultivation World.
At the same time, they all learned that Falling Star Valley, the Green Wind Sect, and the Six Plates Hall had a total of eight Golden Core cultivators.
The strongest among them were the two human sects, each possessing a Pseudo-Nascent Soul cultivator. News of these two sects having Pseudo-Nascent Soul cultivators had never been heard before.
These two sects were clearly aiming to secretly charge into the ranks of first-rate sects and make a stunning debut.
This battle instantly changed the power structure of the sects within a sixty-thousand-li radius. After annexing a large amount of cultivation resources, the power of these three sects expanded rapidly.
For a time, they became the target of several first-rate powers outside Sacred Demon City, all vying to win them over.
In the Sacred Demon Palace within Sacred Demon City, in a cave residence as beautiful as a fairyland, Shanggong Changge, dressed in a tight-fitting palace gown that accentuated her curvaceous figure, stood by a fish pond.
Her graceful figure stirred a desire in people to conquer her on the spot. Her face was icy as she casually sprinkled some fish food, watching the fish under the red flowers and green lotuses compete for it, her dark brows slightly raised.
"This is quite a pity. I had just sent someone to infiltrate the Cangyu Sect, and just as I obtained a small clue, it's now completely useless. It's impossible to follow the vine to find the line leading to the Black Demon Clan anymore. Falling Star Valley and the Green Wind Sect, two small human sects, acted quite swiftly. That Six Plates Hall was just a front they pulled in at the end to divert some attention, so that the human cultivators wouldn't be so targeted. Human cultivators are truly full of cunning schemes..."
When she received this news, she saw more than just what was on the surface.
Shanggong Changge knew that the matter of Falling Star Valley being attacked by the other sects had long reached the ears of the Sacred Demon Palace.
It was just that only four elders had voiced their opinion to stop the four Cangyu sects, and their voices were quickly suppressed by the opposition.
As for the elders of her branch, they remained neutral, neither opposing nor advocating for getting closer to the human cultivators.
They preferred to focus their energy on developing their own White Demon Clan members, but due to a certain apprehension, they dared not raise any objections.
Who knew if that person would suddenly appear? Although they all felt that person had long since left the Forsaken Continent, no one could be sure, and no one dared to gamble.
"So be it. In any case, it was originally because the Cangyu Sect was becoming more and more audacious in Mingdu City that I wanted to use them before taking action. Now that the Cangyu Sect is gone, I suppose it's a bargain for them."
Shanggong Changge waved her hand again, sprinkling another patch of fish food. Her mood had been very good recently. Zhao Min's cultivation was advancing by leaps and bounds.
And she had finally "unintentionally" leaked the matter after Zhao Min's Heavenly Demon White Jade Plate cultivation broke through a layer.
Afterward, many elders soon came to her door to verify it. When Zhao Min's constitution was finally confirmed, the matter caused a sensation among the high-level cultivators of the Sacred Demon Palace.
Then, Shanggong Changge and Zhao Min were summoned into the inner palace by the Supreme Elder at the fastest speed. What happened next went exactly as Shanggong Changge had planned.
She expressed with great "grievance" that she had only suspected that Zhao Min possessed the Ice Soul Blue Jade Body, but she couldn't be truly certain.
She couldn't report this matter to the palace without confirmation, so she could only take her in as a disciple first, so she could openly teach her the Heavenly Demon White Jade Plate to confirm it. It was not that she, Shanggong Changge, had deliberately concealed it.
Under such circumstances, even the two Supreme Elders of the clan could only wring their hands in regret. They couldn't just snatch someone else's disciple to be their own.
How would Shanggong Changge face Zhao Min after that? Was Shanggong Changge to meet Zhao Min in the future and have her status change from "disciple" to "little junior sister"?
A mere Foundation Establishment cultivator she had once lowered herself to accept had suddenly become her peer. The face of a Nascent Soul cultivator would be completely lost.
In the end, they could only request that Zhao Min enter the inner palace to cultivate. If she encountered any problems in her cultivation, she could come and ask them at any time.
At the same time, in recognition of Shanggong Changge finding such a talent for the Sacred Demon Palace, she was allowed to enter the Sacred Merit Hall to choose a high-grade cultivation method.
This was an extremely high reward. Even with the rich heritage of the Sacred Demon Palace, the entire White Demon Clan only had seven high-grade cultivation methods.
This excluded the unique Heavenly Demon White Jade Plate, which required a special constitution to cultivate. Although this cultivation method was the most mysterious of the seven, any cultivator who reached the Nascent Soul stage could read the first two layers. This was a helpless measure taken by the Sacred Demon Palace in its desperate search for a successor.
So, high-level cultivators were all familiar with the opening manuals of this method, leaving only six that could be chosen.
Since ancient times in the Demon Clan, only great cultivators who had reached the Late-stage Nascent Soul had the qualification to choose one of these advanced cultivation methods.
Moreover, it could only be cultivated by that person. Even their direct descendants could not inherit it in the future. The requirements were extremely strict.
In addition to this condition, there was another way to obtain one: a disciple who had made a significant contribution to the clan could also obtain it through this special channel.
Shanggong Changge knew that since ancient times, only four people had received this reward through this channel, and now she would be the fifth. This honor alone was enough to make countless disciples die of jealousy.
After repeated verifications and confirmations, the date for Shanggong Changge to enter the Sacred Merit Hall to choose a cultivation method was set for three days later.
Thinking of these things, the small matter concerning the Cangyu Sect was long since ignored by Shanggong Changge.
Now, although she and Zhao Min were still master and disciple in name, they had long since moved out of this place and settled down in the area with the best Spirit Qi in the inner palace of the Sacred Demon Palace.
That is, in a small palace specially built on a mountain peak not far from the two Supreme Elders.
Shanggong Changge didn't care about these things. As long as she was Zhao Min's master for a day, what did it matter where she cultivated?
When she had Zhao Min cultivate the Heavenly Demon White Jade Plate, she had long anticipated this result. The clan would never let her be the one to transmit the teachings of the Heavenly Demon White Jade Plate in the end.
All of this would be personally guided by the two Supreme Elders, lest her own understanding be lacking and she ended up harming Zhao Min instead.
What's more, Shanggong Changge herself only knew the first two layers of the cultivation method. Even if she wanted to guide her in the future, she didn't have the ability.
Zhao Min, dressed in white, emerged from the Sacred Merit Hall. Amidst the kind smiles of the guarding elders, she nodded lightly and flew towards the sky.
Other disciples who were also entering and leaving the Sacred Merit Hall had various expressions. Some had gloomy faces, others had strange lights in their eyes, a mixture of jealousy and envy.
More than seventy percent of them could only access the first four floors of the Sacred Merit Hall, but among them were not only Foundation Establishment cultivators but also a large number of Golden Core cultivators.
But this Zhao Min, who was only at the Pseudo-Core realm of the Foundation Establishment stage, was allowed by the Supreme Elder to enter the fifth floor of the Sacred Merit Hall.
The Sacred Merit Hall had a total of seven floors. Apart from the seventh floor, where only the two Supreme Elders of the clan knew what was stored, the sixth floor housed the seven most top-tier cultivation methods of the White Demon Clan. The fifth floor housed various rare classics passed down from ancient times, as well as various high-level immortal arts and cultivation methods.
Zhao Min had the opportunity to enter once a month. It seemed like a small number, but this was a privilege that only Nascent Soul cultivators could enjoy.
No, even Nascent Soul cultivators would have to pay an astonishing amount of Spirit Stones if they wanted to take out rubbings of these classics or immortal arts.
But Zhao Min, after finding something she liked, could have the guarding elder send a voice transmission to the Supreme Elder. Once the Supreme Elder agreed, Zhao Min could make a copy and take it away without paying any fee.
Although the conditions were very harsh, requiring the approval of the Supreme Elder, this was a privilege among privileges, making many people green with envy.
'Apart from one known ultra-long-distance teleportation formation that crosses two realms, there are no other records of cross-realm teleportation formations. Could it be that the Forsaken Continent only connects to the Verdant Continent?'
Zhao Min mused in mid-air. Ever since her cultivation of the Heavenly Demon White Jade Plate broke through to the second layer, she had faintly felt a certain trigger for condensing a Golden Core.
No one could know for sure when this trigger would come, but every time she circulated her cultivation, she would experience a strange sensation—an enlightenment towards the Great Dao.
This feeling could not be perceived unless one was undergoing Core Formation or Nascent Soul Formation. Now, every time Zhao Min cultivated, at a certain moment, she would faintly feel a trace of a strange power lingering around her body, yet she could not grasp it.
Zhao Min knew that the day she could truly grasp that strange trace of power would be the day her Heavenly Tribulation arrived, the day she formed her core.
Cultivating the Heavenly Demon White Jade Plate was a choice made out of desperation.
But once she started cultivating it, she found that a meridian that would have taken her years to open could now be completely cleared in a few days or half a month.
This caused her magical power to increase greatly at regular intervals. In just about two years, she had gone from the initial Pseudo-Core stage to the peak of the Pseudo-Core stage, on the verge of facing her Heavenly Tribulation at any moment.
Not only did she benefit greatly, but she also gained the appreciation of the two Supreme Elders of the Sacred Demon Palace.
Not only did they personally guide her cultivation, but they also allowed her to enter any floor below the sixth of the Sacred Merit Hall to consult the classics.
And for any cultivation methods or techniques she took a fancy to, after the two Supreme Elders confirmed that they would not affect her cultivation, she could make a copy for free to cultivate.
All of this made Zhao Min seem incomparably glorious. But after visiting the Sacred Merit Hall just once, she knew that the benefits to her were not as great as they seemed to outsiders.
None of the cultivation methods below the sixth floor of the Sacred Merit Hall were as good as the Heavenly Demon White Jade Plate, so the only thing Zhao Min could choose were techniques. Given Zhao Min's magical power, there were very few top-tier techniques she could cultivate before reaching the Golden Core stage.