Leaving the Sect

The moment Su Cheng spoke, Ning Fengzhi's smile froze on his face.

He turned to look at Chen Xin, only to find him equally calm, and immediately understood that there might be some hidden matter involved.

"Cheng'er wants to join Spirit Hall," Chen Xin said.

At this point, he had nothing left to oppose.

Seeing Ning Fengzhi's confusion, Su Cheng did not beat around the bush. "Spirit Hall bears a Father-Killing Vendetta against me, but relying on my own strength to take revenge is likely hopeless. I can only find another path and start from within."

Over the years, Spirit Hall's reputation had indeed declined under Qian Xunji's management, but there was no need to wave the banner of some grand cause.

Everyone present was intelligent. He only needed to make the stakes clear and show that there was absolutely no possibility of coexistence between him and them.

Although Ning Fengzhi was not particularly strong, his ambitions had never been small. Spirit Hall was a mountain weighing down on everyone's heads.

Moreover, with Tang Chen having disappeared for many years and Qian Daoliu invincible across the world, Spirit Hall's momentum had only grown fiercer in recent years.

So long as Spirit Hall existed, it would be extremely difficult for the Upper Three Sects not only to advance further, but even to maintain their current power. Otherwise, Ning Fengzhi would not have constantly kept the phrase "the Upper Three Sects are bound by a shared spirit" on his lips in the original story.

"What is your plan?" After a long silence, Ning Fengzhi finally asked.

Before today, he would never have cared so much about Su Cheng's fate. Though Su Cheng was Chen Xin's adopted son, he lacked talent for cultivation and had little value at all.

But after today, Su Cheng's strategic significance in his eyes was even greater than Chen Xin's, who was still only a Soul Douluo.

Ning Fengzhi himself was an auxiliary-type Soul Master, so he naturally did not judge people solely by their combat strength. Developing a method to directly achieve Cross-level Absorption of Spirit Rings through external means alone marked Su Cheng as a peerless talent, and his willingness to think and act was even rarer.

If possible, Ning Fengzhi naturally hoped Su Cheng could serve the sect. But if Su Cheng was truly determined, and genuinely had a chance to severely damage Spirit Hall, then giving it a try was not impossible.

"Sect Master, there is no need to rush. The time is not right yet. Once I absorb a Second Soul Ring over a thousand years old, we can put on a show for the entire world. But you will have to endure for a while. This method is not suitable for promotion within the sect for now."

To be honest, people like Ning Fengzhi were the easiest for Su Cheng to handle.

He was clear-minded, knew when to advance and retreat, and possessed foresight. Yet he placed profit above all else, had a bit of cleverness but lacked great wisdom, and his resolve was far inferior to Chen Xin's and the others'.

Ning Fengzhi looked at the boy before him, not yet nine years old, then nodded with a complicated expression. "Once you release this research to the entire continent for free, your reputation will probably far surpass that so-called Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang's."

Su Cheng smiled disdainfully. "Sect Master. I have read Yu Xiaogang's so-called Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul as well. It is nothing more than a summary of others' experience, parroting what came before, and it contains many errors besides. Comparing me to him is truly looking down on me."

He lowered his head and gazed at the Broken Sword Martial Soul in his hand, covered in cracks. "Without value beyond ordinary people, why would Spirit Hall accept someone with only 0.5 Innate Soul Power? And not only will I enter Spirit Hall, I will make them beg me to join."

After absorbing your First Soul Ring across the age limit, you spent more than four years reaching level 20. Your cultivation speed had fallen far behind others of your generation in the sect, and no one held any expectations for you anymore. Aside from the occasional mockery, most people ignored you completely. Naturally, that suited you just fine. However, with Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin's support, you never lacked cultivation resources of any kind, and your research into the Medical Dao never ceased.

With Chen Xin's help, at the age of thirteen, you successfully killed an 1,100-year-old Netherworld Wolf and attached an unprecedented purple Second Soul Ring to your Martial Soul. Your Soul Power also broke through to level 22 in one stroke. Perhaps you had some chance of breaking past level 30 before the age of twenty. However, you believed that even if you failed, it did not matter. With your current understanding of the Medical Dao and the human body, the so-called level 30 bottleneck was nothing.

Over the years, Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin's unconditional allocation of resources to you gradually sparked intense dissatisfaction among the sect's elders and disciples. All sorts of rumors grew increasingly rampant. During this time, Chen Xin also broke through to the realm of Titled Douluo, yet he did not suppress the attacks against you within the sect. Instead, he allowed them to develop, and this was interpreted as a sign that your adoptive father had abandoned you.

In truth, this was precisely what you had intended, and it was also part of a plan you had discussed long ago with Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin.

"You are leaving the sect now?" Chen Xin seemed as though he wanted to say something but held back.

Though this had been decided long ago, how could the bond between father and son be so easily severed?

"Yes, Father. We have laid the groundwork for so long. It is time to cut it off decisively."

Su Cheng was far calmer than Chen Xin.

It was not that he had no feelings for this adoptive father.

Although most of the time in the Life Simulation had passed rapidly in the form of text, everything that had happened was real and had settled into his memories. His feelings could not have been false.

But destroying Spirit Hall was simply too difficult. One wrong step could lead to eternal ruin, so he naturally could not allow those feelings to sway him.

"My theories are nearly complete now. Absorbing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring requires Mental Suppression. This needs not only temporary stimulation, but also a solid foundation. I have left the sect the Potion Formula that can gradually raise Spiritual Power through long-term use, the Acupoints capable of stimulating Spiritual Power, and the relevant training methods."

He then looked at Ning Fengzhi, who stood nearby. "Sect Master, if I fail, then at least I have left a foundation for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Consider it a meeting gift for my future nephew. Do not worry. Until I am confident of success, I will not reveal all of this to Spirit Hall."

After saying that, he sighed. "It is a pity that my research on 100,000 Year Spirit Rings has yet to yield results. There is simply too little information in that area."

Ning Fengzhi stared at Su Cheng. After deeply bowing, he said solemnly, "As the Sect Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, I thank you for everything you have done for the sect."

He then turned and left, leaving the father and son alone for their final moments together.

Seeing Chen Xin's somewhat sorrowful expression, Su Cheng suddenly laughed. "You are a Titled Douluo now. Though you are a little old, you can still have a child. Have one soon to inherit your legacy. Unfortunately, my talent is lacking, and I truly cannot learn your Seven Kill Sword."

"You brat!" Chen Xin's eyes widened.

"I'm leaving! The next time you hear news of me, I expect I'll already be famous throughout the world."

Watching Su Cheng's carefree figure wave and depart, Chen Xin fell into a slight daze.

This year, he had just turned eighteen.

Before long, news spread that Sword Douluo Chen Xin's adopted son had angrily left the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect due to prejudice within the sect.

Yet the continent clearly did not pay much attention to the matter. At most, they treated it as idle conversation after a meal, believing he was merely another Yu Xiaogang—a Waste with only 0.5 Innate Soul Power.

But two months later, everything changed.

The situation across the continent shifted abruptly, and Su Cheng's name spread throughout the world.