Mourning of Morning Glow

Xiao Ran felt a softness in his chest, and drops of warm fluid seeped into his blue robe. He could vaguely hear his Master's voice in his ears.

I opened my eyes groggily.

Snowflake's long legs, dripping blood, a white bathrobe, a cloud-like bun adorned with a bamboo branch, a face as beautiful as a fairy yet as pale as snow...

Master?

No, this is a terrible angle! Xiao Ran shielded his eyes with his hand and turned to look east.

The shadow of Morning Dawn Peak had been slashed off at an angle by the sword energy.

Although it is shorter, it has a sharpness that pierces the sky.

Looking inward again at the Dantian, the Qi Sea was in a mess, with the lingering ripples of the tide crashing against the table after a hurricane.

In other words...

"I succeeded?"

Xiao Ran quickly swallowed more than a dozen Blood Recovery Pill and got up fully healed.

With a loud bang, the mountaintop crashed into the valley.

This caused birds to Qi Ming and beasts to gallop, creating a thunderous roar that quickly spread throughout the entire sect.

Eighteen miles away, a single sword strike could cleave a mountain peak in two; even a Nascent Soul cultivator wouldn't possess such power...

This Cultivation Method is awesome!

Although the first attempt had only a one in ten thousand chance of resulting in an African,

However, if the Resonance Power is added, and the Bone of the Blood Moon is forcibly fused with the Master's link, the probability will definitely increase! Xiao Ran was filled with excitement, his face glowing. Before he could turn around, his Master kicked him to the ground again, stepping on his chest, and coldly asked, "I'm asking you a question!"

That awful angle again!

Xiao Ran had a feeling that the Heavenly Dao of this world was like a green dam, protecting him at all times and keeping him with a virtuous perspective, free from the attacks of divine beasts.

Okay, that's not the point. The point is that Master seems to have lost a lot of strength from that sword strike, and he's actually bleeding.

Xiao Ran stood up, draped his Master's green robe over her shoulders, and carefully supported her shoulders.

"This is a long story. The mountain has been split open, and the people from Morning Dawn Peak will be here soon. Your disciple and Master will go to Hot Spring Cliff to discuss this in detail. I will leave this to Chuyan."

Chuyan walked out of the house and saw her Grandmaster's clothes disheveled and bleeding, then she looked at Xiao Ran...

An ominous image flashed into my mind.

Before he could speak, Xiao Ran helped his Grandmaster into the Bamboo Forest, leaving him with a message.

"Chuyan, when the people from Morning Dawn Peak arrive, just say that Master split the mountain with his sword."

"Level off hilltops?"

Was that a sound of a mountain being split open?

Chuyan rushed to the edge of the cliff and saw that Morning Dawn Peak had no head.

Was this cleaved by Xiao Ran?

Can you master divine skills by casually swinging a sword ten thousand times?

Was it cleaved by the Grandmaster?

Chuyan couldn't quite figure out what was going on.

She glanced around and saw that the people from Morning Dawn Peak didn't dare come to Sword-Wielding Mountain; instead, they went to the Discipline Hall in a grand, wailing manner...

So he secretly followed them into the Sword Bamboo.

Xiao Ran helped his Master to the Hot Spring Cliff.

With a wave of his hand, he suspends the pool water in the air, using the Resonance Power to disperse it into mist.

Although the method was a bit clumsy, the quality of the water mist was not bad; it created a hazy, misty effect that remained suspended in the air.

Xiao Ran untied his Master's green robe and removed his Bath Towel in the mist, then helped his Master into the water and lean against the edge of the pool.

He then took out a few Blood Replenishing Red Pill used for brewing wine and gave them directly to his Master.

Massage your back with Resonance palm force to accelerate the absorption of the medicine.

After a long struggle, he finally managed to stop the bleeding for his Master and regain his composure.

However, I didn't see a single Filial Piety Points!

This damn system is really real...

There's no point in trying to make amends for the mistakes Xiao Ran made.

Lingzhou Yue kept her eyes closed while drinking.

He thought to himself that his apprentice's skills had improved a lot.

I've been working so hard lately Fight the Wraith, my mind is constantly on edge and my butt hurts from sitting so much. It's been so long since I've enjoyed my apprentice's service, and it's so relaxing for both my mind and body.

Thinking this way, she calmed down a little.

Just now, the Bone of the Blood Moon suddenly heated up, and a strange dragging force pulled away its power from its Qi Sea Dantian. Although it was insignificant, it caused its old problem to flare up again.

Without a doubt, it was that precious disciple's all-night sword practice that caused this! Seeing that Xiao Ran had stopped massaging her back, Lingzhou Yue Zhouyue slowly opened her eyes, stretched lazily, and spoke in a voice as Hanging Moon.

"Tell me, what exactly happened?"

Xiao Ran didn't hide anything, and said casually:

"This disciple has recently been practicing a Cultivation Method that allows me to fuse with the Bone of the Blood Moon and draw upon my Master's power."

Lingzhou Yue didn't believe it was that simple.

"With your Resonance Power, combined with some strange secret techniques, it might be possible to draw my power from the Bone of the Blood Moon. But even so, no matter how much Spiritual Power you draw from me, your Spiritual Pressure is limited by your Cultivation Level; it's only at the Qi Refining Realm, and it can't possibly have the power it had just displayed!"

"You can't hide it from your Master."

Xiao Ran had nothing to hide, and had already imprinted the technique of "Serendipitous Critical Strike" on Jade Slip, which he then handed to his Master.

"This is Cultivation Method that I found at a roadside stall in East Floating City. It was said to be a dusty Heavenly Merit technique. The old man saw that I was a prodigy of the Dao Alliance and only charged me 666 Spirit Stone."

"Six hundred and sixty-six? That sounds like a scam! You're still too naive!"

Lingzhou Yue took the Jade Slip and glanced at it, then suddenly frowned slightly.

"Serendipitous Critical Strike... I've never even heard of it. This broken Cultivation Method is supposed to be Heaven Tier? Not only does it require a massive amount of Spiritual Energy, but whether you can even execute it depends on the heavens. If you're unlucky and make a mistake, you'll die instantly."

Xiao Ran hurriedly said:

"Don't I have Master?"

Lingzhou Yue's eyebrows twitched slightly, and she angrily cursed:

"Is this how Master instructed you to use it?!"

How else can it be used? Xiao Ran then massaged his Master's shoulders, since massaging shoulders could earn him some Filial Piety Points.

"I'm just afraid of encountering danger and needing Master to take action personally. With Master's power, my body can still continue to Divine Dragon Tail Swing. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

"I'll shake your head!"

If Xiao Ran hadn't made her feel so comfortable, Lingzhou Yue would have already punched him in anger.

"The Blood Moon Bone, the Five Elements, and the Dragon Core and Elixir Wall—if any one of these three is missing, you are already dead."

"He won't die."

Xiao Ran was absolutely certain, and then took out the incomplete copy of "Qi Refining Ten Thousand Layers" that Li Wuxie had given him.

"Chief Li withheld my personal reward. As compensation, he applied for a suitable Earth-tier cultivation Cultivation Method for me at the Academy."

"Oh?"

Lingzhou Yue took the tattered bamboo slip and glanced at it. Her brows furrowed slightly, and she pondered for a moment.

"This Earth-tier Cultivation Method is somewhat useful and suits your physique. It works well with the Cultivation Method you just practiced... but the Qi Refining Ten Thousand Layers is described as extremely difficult to master. Even if I practiced it myself, it would take hundreds of years to achieve mastery."

Lingzhou Yue is right. Without the system, Xiao Ran would never have been able to master it.

"It's alright. I'm sure I'll succeed before the Heaven's Chosen Assembly, so as not to embarrass the sect at the tournament."

"You can master it in twenty days?" Lingzhou Yue felt that Xiao Ran might be talking nonsense.

"What level do you mean by 'mastering' it?"

Xiao Ran leaned over from behind and pointed to the five large characters on the outer seal of the bamboo slip.

"Doesn't it say here... Qi Refining Ten Thousand Layers? Are there other levels as well?"

"..."

Lingzhou Yue's face was extremely pale, but fortunately, the thick fog covered it.

This was the first time in her life that she had been outshone in terms of talent.

Fortunately, this person was her very filial and good apprentice.

Thinking about it this way, I felt a little more at ease.

He said in a commanding tone, "Take off your clothes."

Xiao Ran was taken aback.

"Um?"

Lingzhou Yue said:

"Just take it off when I tell you to, what are you 'hmm'ing about?"

"Oh."

Xiao Ran recalled that in the Wraith Barrier Space, he quickly got separated from his master because he couldn't hold onto his Master's waist, and it took a lot of effort to find his Master in the end.

The last time, he was kicked into the water by his Master and his clothes were ripped open with a sword.

This time, I didn't dare hesitate any longer and took off my clothes directly.

Lingzhou Yue then said, "Sit cross-legged opposite me and raise your hands."

Xiao Ran slowly entered the water, sat cross-legged, raised his palms, and joined them with his Master's.

Lingzhou Yue channeled her Spiritual Power, forcefully washing over Xiao Ran's Dantian like a tidal wave.

"I'll try to clear your Qi Sea and see if it can help you complete the training sooner."

Xiao Ran closed his eyes and breathed deeply, enduring the pressure.

"Master, does this count as Dual Cultivation?"

"Are you a pig? Of course you are!"

In the Sword Bamboo, Chuyan seemed to have heard some terrible words. She immediately covered her mouth, her eyes fixed on the ground, afraid of making a sound.

Chaos City.

On a bustling street.

Lu Pingtian withdrew his divine sense, his handsome and elegant face clouded with gloom.

After searching the entire city for three days, focusing on a thorough search around the location of the Heaven's Chosen Assembly and asking nearby shopkeepers, no trace of Xiao Ran having ever been to Chaos City could be found.

No trace!

Not a single one!

Only now did he begin to realize that he had been deceived.

Logically speaking, a Qi Refining cultivator should not be able to withstand his soul technique, and even an ordinary Golden Core cultivator would not be able to withstand it.

But he overlooked one possibility.

What if this Qi Refining cultivator is actually Xiao Ran himself?

What if Xiao Ran wasn't just a figurehead, but was actually hiding his age and Cultivation Level? Lu Pingtian had acquaintances within the Dao Alliance, so he used his connections to investigate Xiao Ran's achievements in Flamefree City.

Her most significant achievement was killing the Golden Core Realm True Person Baoguo, and thwarting the Apostle's plot, but it seems that the victory was not easy.

All indications suggest that Xiao Ran may have concealed his Golden Core Realm Cultivation Level through a secret technique.

According to the records left by the Dao Alliance at the Zongzhi Mountain Sword Inheritance Assembly, Xiao Ran did not set foot on any of the Heaven, Profound, Earth, or Yellow Sword Tomb. Instead, he remained in the Sword Fence Layer and only inherited two Broken Swords from the same blade, creating quite a spectacle.

His talent may be average, but he concealed his Cultivation Level and age, and stole the Dao Alliance's prodigy.

After all, without Xiao Ran, Zongzhi Mountain wouldn't have had a spot in this year's Heaven's Chosen Assembly, which would be a greater loss of face for a prestigious sect than for the Saint Demon Sect.

Got it!

Thinking about this, Lu Pingtian.

Zongzhi Mountain's actions were truly masterful! Lu Pingtian.

He couldn't wait to rush to Zongzhi Mountain and expose Xiao Ran's true colors.

However, he had already been deceived by Xiao Ran once, and it would be unwise to launch another attack rashly. He needed to plan carefully.

He planned to return to his sect first, confess Zongzhi Mountain's conspiracy to his Master, and be granted special permission to enter the Demon Cave to break through to the Nascent Soul. He would then leave seclusion when he reached the critical state of almost breaking through, but he would remain stable and not break through.

Then, take a few more people from the Dao Alliance to visit Zongzhi Mountain. Be polite and seek opportunities to spar with the new prodigy.

He forcefully suppressed Xiao Ran during the battle, and Xiao Ran must have had a trump card Cultivation Method given to him by Lingzhou Yue, but who would have thought that he would advance to the Nascent Soul in the face of battle?

The Dao Alliance members all witnessed this. What is true talent, and what is cheating through Cultivation Method? It's crystal clear! Perhaps the Dao Alliance will replace the chosen prodigy because of this. Even if the Dao Alliance can't reverse its decision, at least the dignity of the Saint Demon Sect has been preserved through this battle.

This time, the Saint Demon Sect tacitly approved his plan.