Sword Rises in Caomiao Village

Across the vast lands of the Central Plains lay a mountain range known as Qingyun.

Mists and clouds wreathed the range, Rainbow Bridges rose everywhere, waterfalls streamed down like the Milky Way across the nine heavens, and mountains, rivers, sun, and moon reflected radiant clouds. Immortal cranes and azure beasts roamed freely within it. It was truly a place blessed by nature, displaying the grandeur of an immortal abode in every way.

Yet what made this mountain range famous throughout the realm was the cultivation sect within it—the Qingyun Sect, one of the Leading Sects of the Righteous Path in the present age.

At this moment, dawn had only begun to brighten the sky. A figure rode a sword through the mountain winds with a piercing whistle before landing before a grand and majestic Daoist hall. After giving the gatekeeping disciples a slight nod, he strode quickly inside.

Beyond the hall doors, spiritual energy shimmered. Several ancestral statues of Qingyun Sect patriarchs were enshrined above, while seven people in Daoist robes sat within the main hall. The man seated at the center was Dao Xuan Zhenren, Sect Leader of the Qingyun Sect, while the six beside him were the Peak Lords of its various peaks. Among them was a female Daoist master.

"Disciple Song Daren greets the Sect Leader, Master, and all the masters!"

Song Daren stepped forward and respectfully bowed to the Sect Leader and the gathered Peak Lords.

"No need for formalities."

Dao Xuan Zhenren lightly raised a hand, virtually helping him back to his feet. Then, with a grave expression, he asked, "We have already learned of the matter at Caomiao Village. Were you able to determine what happened?"

"Reporting to the Sect Leader, this disciple rushed to Caomiao Village as quickly as possible, but I was still one step too late. By the time I arrived, only a horrific scene remained. Of the several hundred villagers, apart from three children and one mad villager, no one else survived."

With bitterness on his face, Song Daren truthfully reported the situation in Caomiao Village.

"Alas!"

Dao Xuan Zhenren sighed softly. He then swept his gaze over those present and said with regret, "As members of the righteous path, we should bring aid to all living beings. Yet such a brutal slaughter of mortals occurred within Qingyun Sect territory. It truly leaves us deeply ashamed!"

The Peak Lords all showed guilty, somber expressions upon hearing this. Song Daren, who had been directly involved, felt even more remorseful. He had rushed to Caomiao Village the moment he received the news, yet he had still failed to save those innocent lives. What use was his Cultivation Level? It was tragic indeed.

"Senior Brother, no one can escape fate. The villagers of Caomiao Village were destined to face this calamity. We need not blame ourselves too harshly."

Cang Song, seated to Dao Xuan Zhenren's left, spoke up to comfort him.

"Enough. What is done is done. Daren, you did your best. The dead are gone, but the living must carry on. Where are the survivors now?"

After composing himself, Dao Xuan Zhenren looked at Song Daren and asked.

"This disciple has already brought them back. Aside from the villager who has gone mad, two of the three children remain unconscious. The other child is awake. They have all been arranged in the side hall."

Song Daren replied.

"One child is still awake?"

Dao Xuan Zhenren was somewhat surprised. After considering it, he continued, "Have him brought over. Let us first see what we can do to make amends to him."

At a signal, a Daoist Follower left to bring the awake child to the main hall.

Not long after, the Daoist Follower led a young boy inside.

Everyone looked toward him. The boy was handsome and refined, with an inexplicable calmness beneath his childish features.

While the others examined him, the boy stood calmly below the hall. He blinked his curious eyes as he studied them in turn, seemingly pondering their identities. Within this grand and solemn hall, he showed not the slightest hint of fear.

That alone astonished the gathered cultivators.

Ordinarily, mortals and cultivators were separated by a gulf as vast as heaven and earth.

Whenever mortals encountered cultivators, they would invariably treat them with reverence and utmost respect. Much less would they dare enter a cultivator's hall alone—they would have long since fallen to the ground and kowtowed beneath such pressure.

Yet this child had entered the hall and faced all of them, these cultivators, while remaining perfectly calm. There was not a trace of fear in him.

He looked back at them all without the slightest pressure, calmly assessing them. Such composure already surpassed that of countless people.

"This child seems rather extraordinary."

After studying the boy for a while, Dao Xuan Zhenren glanced at the Peak Lords beside him.

"I saw it as well."

Tian Buyi, Peak Lord of Great Bamboo Peak, nodded, fully agreeing with Dao Xuan Zhenren's assessment. Looking at the boy, he said, "His heart is as still as a calm lake, and fear does not show on his face. He truly has the temperament of an excellent cultivation prospect."

"Child, what is your name? Which family in Caomiao Village do you belong to?"

Master Shui Yue, the only woman among the Peak Lords, asked the boy. Her usually cool voice carried an uncommon gentleness at that moment.

"Immortal Elder Sister, my name is Su Changqing. I have been an orphan since childhood and had no home in Caomiao Village. I lived in the ruined temple at the end of the village. The old village physician pitied me and took me in as a medicine-gathering boy. I usually went into the mountains to gather herbs, exchanging them with him for food and clothing."

"Yesterday, I went up the mountain to gather herbs. I never expected to return and find disaster had struck the village. I wanted to flee, but I ran into Immortal Elder Daren head-on, and then I came here."

Su Changqing lowered his head slightly and truthfully explained his circumstances to them.

What Su Changqing did not say was that the original owner of this body had already died in the calamity at Caomiao Village. He was now a transmigrator. He had come from another world and, after waking from sleep, had somehow transmigrated into this one.

The moment he opened his eyes, he saw the miserable aftermath in Caomiao Village. Then he encountered Song Daren, who brought him back to the Qingyun Sect.

Through this information, Su Changqing finally realized that he had transmigrated into the world of a novel—one that happened to be a cultivation novel he had read before.

As soon as Su Changqing finished speaking, everyone became even more astonished, though their surprise was mixed with pity.

It was already difficult enough for an orphan to grow up. To survive such a terrible disaster afterward—should it be said that he was born unfortunate, or that he possessed the good fortune to preserve his life?

Perhaps because he had grown up alone, the dangers and hardships he had encountered had tempered his character, forging his calm, lake-like heart.

"Chang Qing, we already know about what happened in Caomiao Village. Such a calamity occurred within Qingyun Sect territory, and we immortal masters cannot evade responsibility."

"So, we wish to make amends to you. Tell us, what do you want?"

After weighing the matter, Dao Xuan Zhenren fixed his gaze on Su Changqing and continued, "If you wish to return to the mortal world, the Qingyun Sect can ensure you enjoy wealth and honor for a Lifetime. If you wish to remain here, the Qingyun Sect can accept you as a disciple and allow you to seek the Dao and cultivate immortality, or—"

Once Dao Xuan Zhenren spoke, the Peak Lords instantly understood the Sect Leader's meaning. They all turned toward Su Changqing, curious to see what he would choose.

At that moment, a voice rang out in Su Changqing's mind.

Ding!

Congratulations, Host, on successfully transmigrating into a xianxia world. Successfully joining the Qingyun Sect will activate the Myriad Dao Heaven-Defying Comprehension System. With Unrivaled Insight, comprehend all methods and attain the supreme Great Dao!

A system?!

Having devoured countless web novels in his previous life, Su Changqing naturally knew what this meant. The essential cheat ability for transmigrators had arrived—and judging by the sound of it, this Unrivaled Insight System was anything but ordinary.

Unrivaled Insight, comprehend all methods, attain the supreme Great Dao!

What was there to hesitate over? Of course he would choose to join the Qingyun Sect and activate the system.