A Millennium of Coincidence

In the Dharma Ending Era, undergoing Ascension Tribulation Lightning is a very serious matter, almost equivalent to suicide.

In the True Spirit Continent, cultivators are divided into seven levels according to the spiritual pressure of their Dantian:

Qi Refining.

Foundation Establishment.

Golden Core.

Nascent Soul.

Spirit Severing.

Body Integration.

Great Ascension.

Beyond that, one must undergo Ascension Tribulation Lightning to ascend to immortality...

Before the Dharma Ending Era, each realm was further divided into initial, intermediate, late, and peak stages, and there were even things like Great Perfection and Half-Step Nascent Soul, terrifying to behold.

After the Dharma Ending Era, spiritual veins mutated, spiritual energy became scarce, and there were no longer specific subdivisions between realms. Instead, cultivators maintained their spiritual pressure at the initial stage by sealing their Dantian, reducing spiritual energy consumption, and only unsealing it in emergencies to unleash higher spiritual pressure.

Before the Dharma Ending Era, after reaching Great Ascension Perfection, one could undergo Ascension Tribulation Lightning to ascend to immortality.

After the Dharma Ending Era, the gates to the Immortal Realm disappeared, and most who underwent Ascension Tribulation Lightning died in the process. Only a very few who failed the tribulation survived with serious injuries, eking out a miserable existence.

Today, only nine Great Ascension cultivators remain in the True Spirit Continent.

They are known as—

The Dao Alliance Nine Luminaries!

The name sounds impressive, but the Dharma Ending Era is irreversible, and everyone understands that the Dao Alliance Nine Luminaries are the last vestiges of cultivators.

Five thousand years ago, the last nine Great Ascension cultivators agreed not to attempt Ascension Tribulation Lightning anymore. Instead, they united all the sects in the cultivation world to form the Dao Alliance to resist the Wraith invasion, fully investigate the cause of the Dharma Ending Era, and find a sustainable path of cultivation.

Ultimately, the Dao Alliance headquarters, with four of the Nine Luminaries, and the five largest affiliated forces, each with one of the Nine Luminaries, formed a pattern of one superpower and five strong powers, firmly controlling the last forces of the cultivation world.

And Zongzhi Mountain is one of the five major powers.

The Sect Master of Zongzhi Mountain, Qian Junzi, is one of the Dao Alliance Nine Luminaries, and also one of the only nine remaining Great Ascension cultivators in the world.

Qian Junzi is over ten thousand years old and was seriously injured in the last Wraith Extermination War. He has spent most of the last millennium in seclusion to recuperate.

In this state, undergoing Ascension Tribulation Lightning is equivalent to suicide.

Once Qian Junzi undergoes Ascension Tribulation Lightning and falls, the strength and status of Zongzhi Mountain will inevitably decline significantly, and the Dao Alliance will definitely further intervene in the affairs of the sect.

This is the reason why Huangfu Qun slammed the table! In his opinion, the Dao Alliance had already inserted Lingzhou Yue into the sect as early as five hundred years ago. Although she hadn't made any major moves, she held a high position but was lazy and addicted to alcohol, swindling and cheating in the surrounding small countries, and still owed the sect's Crystal Vault ninety thousand Spirit Stones, bringing an extremely bad influence to the disciples in the sect.

If the Sect Master leaves, and no one in the sect has the ability to control her, Zongzhi Mountain will sooner or later become a bandit stronghold under her free and undisciplined squandering.

An even worse outcome is that several Great Ascension cultivators of the Dao Alliance have long been eyeing the fat piece of meat that is Zongzhi Mountain. Once the Sect Master falls, the Dao Alliance is likely to directly send a Great Ascension cultivator to parachute into the position of Sect Master, and Zongzhi Mountain will no longer have the possibility of independently governing the sect.

Thinking like this, Huangfu Qun slammed the table and questioned Master Boyun.

"If he wants to undergo Ascension Tribulation Lightning, let Senior Brother say it himself!"

In fact, Huangfu Qun was the only one present who dared to say that.

In addition to the detached status of the Discipline Elder, Huangfu Qun was also once the Sect Master's most proud Direct Disciple, a descendant of the ancient and famous Huangfu family, and a key figure in maintaining the balance between the Dao Alliance and the sect.

Master Boyun bowed slightly to Huangfu Qun, respectfully, but also with a faint sense of pressure.

"Master's injuries are more serious than expected. Not to mention recovery, he has used all his strength just to maintain his condition. In addition, he is old and his life is nearing its end."

Hearing the words 'life nearing its end', Huangfu Qun's face was like a carved knife, revealing a stern expression.

"How is that possible! Senior Brother still convenes elder meetings every three years. The last time I saw him, he was hale and hearty, talking and laughing, and even gave me guidance on my cultivation!"

Master Boyun shook his head.

"Doesn't Martial Uncle know that Master has been forcibly prolonging his life for the sake of the sect for so many years? He has become so weak that he felt unbearable and unable to get up again after merely being pierced through the great formation once by the Wraith."

Huangfu Qun's round eyes widened.

"Then there's no need to risk undergoing Ascension Tribulation Lightning. Since he has prolonged his life for so many years, just continue to prolong it!"

Master Boyun sighed.

"Even if master doesn't undergo the tribulation, he only has a few decades left to live. Master has been cultivating in seclusion for thousands of years, and his state of mind is almost immortal. Although undergoing the tribulation is a narrow escape from death, there may be a glimmer of hope. This is the only choice."

The others also sighed, their hearts filled with complex emotions.

Although the news that the headmaster was about to undergo the tribulation had been circulating for many years, it was still difficult to hear the date of the tribulation confirmed with their own ears.

They were watching the cultivation world being gradually devoured by the Wraith, watching Zongzhi Mountain decline step by step, and watching the headmaster's life slowly burn out...

Xiao Ran, however, didn't feel much at the moment.

Before entering the sect, he had lived in the mortal world for three years.

He had personally witnessed villages being ravaged by Wraith Beasts, towns being destroyed by the Wraith, and humanity's living space being squeezed to its limit.

Ghost cities stood in rows, starving people were everywhere, and in the end, only the major towns protected by the Dao Alliance, the surrounding small countries protected by the major sects, and the wild villages inhabited by people too poor to fear death... survived.

This world was not so beautiful.

That was why Xiao Ran repeatedly failed but never gave up seeking immortality.

It was also why he was overjoyed to the point of questioning his master's intelligence when he was accepted as a Direct Disciple, so much so that he forgot his master was asking him a question...

Cultivation was the only way out.

Or rather, only cultivation could find a way out.

Only through cultivation could one firmly grasp one's destiny in one's own hands, live long enough, and become strong enough to find the answers to all questions.

Xiao Ran only discovered after entering the sect that cultivation itself was also declining day by day.

The entire cultivation world seemed to be waiting for a hero to turn the tide.

The wind was rising, and the situation was turbulent! Xiao Ran had a feeling of being in a chaotic world, ready to make a move...

But, that was a matter for the future.

Right now, he hadn't even reached Qi Refining yet. He should focus on fulfilling his filial duties to his master, licking his way to a future, and becoming a strong person as soon as possible.

Huangfu Qun's figure was unsteady, his temples were turning white, and his fierce eyes were slightly red.

"I don't believe it! Someone must be playing tricks behind the scenes, trying to undermine my Zongzhi Mountain!"

He had also been a Direct Disciple of the headmaster, but his talent was not high, and his personality was strange.

It was thanks to the headmaster tailoring a Cultivation Method for him and formulating a suitable cultivation plan that he had reached his current position step by step.

He would not stand by and watch his master fall during the tribulation!

"Besides, a few decades is still a long time. What if things take a turn for the better?"

Master Boyun shook his head and said nothing more.

The others also sighed in regret.

After a long time.

A low, ancient, yet weak voice entered the main hall.

"I... am very old."

Xiao Ran was shocked, realizing that this was the headmaster's voice transmission.

The state of mind contained in this voice was like a celestial being.

It could be said that the headmaster's state of mind had already ascended to immortality, but his physical body was limited by the concentration of Spirit Qi, and his life was burning out, unable to go any further...

Hearing his master's voice, which sounded like withered wood and falling leaves, Huangfu Qun's stern expression finally couldn't hold back. Tears streamed down his face, and he no longer cared about his status as an elder, shouting heart-wrenchingly—

"Master!"

"You can also stand on your own now."

The ethereal voice was no longer ancient, only weak.

"Zongzhi Mountain, I leave it to you all."

After Qian Junzi's voice transmission, he quickly fell into slumbering meditation.

Master Boyun never expected that his master, in such a weakened state, would still transmit his voice here. He was probably prepared to fall.

"The Elder Council begins, the first topic is—"

"Hold on!"

Huangfu Qun rudely interrupted Master Boyun's words.

He immediately sat upright, his face regaining its sternness, his eyes suppressing turbulent waves as he stared directly at Lingzhou Yue across from him.

Before the meeting, he had to find the culprit behind this Wraith incident! With a composed face, he didn't immediately explode, but calmly asked:

"Elder Lingzhou Yue, what exactly happened with the Wraith matter just now?"

Lingzhou Yue crossed her arms, not taking it seriously at all.

After all, with her strength, she could take down everyone present by herself.

"The Wraith came, I chased it away, consider it a meritorious service, that's all there is to it."

Huangfu Qun said in a deep voice:

"Our sect's mountain protection array is maintained every month, always new, not something ordinary Wraith beings can break through. Since the last Wraith Extermination War, there hasn't been a single Wraith invasion. How do you explain this?"

Lingzhou Yue took another swig of wine, and curled her lips, saying:

"I am the Sword-Wielding Elder, only responsible for killing enemies, not for explaining. Who knows how it came?"

Huangfu Qun's old eyes narrowed slightly, and he slowly asked back: "Then did you kill any enemies?"

Lingzhou Yue didn't care at all.

"The Wraith ran away."

"A humanoid Wraith being, rarely seen in a thousand years, actually ran away on its own?"

"I had to protect my disciple at the time, otherwise, would it have been able to escape?"

Huangfu Qun's old eyes were calculating, and he paced back and forth, stroking his beard as he analyzed: "You haven't taken a disciple in thousands of years, and now you suddenly take a Direct Disciple; Zongzhi Mountain hasn't been invaded by the Wraith in thousands of years, and today it suddenly is; and the one invading is a humanoid Wraith being, rarely seen in a thousand years… Don't you think all of this is too coincidental?"

Ah, this… Lingzhou Yue was immediately speechless.

Everyone's eyes were focused on her.

It made her scalp tingle, as if she were sitting on pins and needles. She wanted to take a sip of wine, but felt embarrassed. She alternately put her hands on her hips and propped up her face, pondering this strange question.

It really is too coincidental! Just then, a firm voice came from behind her.

"This Wraith being has nothing to do with my master, it came for the disciple."

I hope everyone doesn't see the supporting characters opposing the protagonist and their group and immediately regard them as villains, clamoring about cliché face-slapping trash novels and refusing to read them. Everyone is an adult, and everyone has a different sense of justice. Especially in the Dharma Ending Era, personal individualism like Lingzhou Yue, who is free, lazy, and does nothing, is wrong. Of course, she has her reasons, which will be discussed later.