This life--
In the 22nd year of the Immortal Calendar, Meng Nan joined Tianlin Cave and befriended He Weiyang.
In the 26th year of the Immortal Calendar, he used a "treasure map" as a pretext to tell He Weiyang where to find a precious herb he had newly discovered in his seventh life.
At that point--
Among Meng Nan, Zhao Xiaoshuang, Qian Yu, and the others, only Meng Nan had reached the fifth level of True Essence. Qian Yu had only just entered the True Essence realm, while Zhao Xiaoshuang's cultivation was still shallow.
That precious herb grew on Xuanwu Mountain, tens of thousands of miles away, and would appear in the 31st year of the Immortal Calendar.
Zhao Xiaoshuang and Qian Yu wouldn't make it in time to use it.
Meng Xingzhe and the other two stood even less of a chance.
Meng Nan himself could try to break through, but it would be rushing things. Besides, with his whole family to look after at the time, he couldn't leave.
But he couldn't let such a precious herb go to waste, so he gave it to his friend of seven lives, He Weiyang.
He hadn't expected He Weiyang to use that very herb to break through successfully and become a Qi Refining Immortal Master.
After He Weiyang returned, Meng Nan had another powerful backer besides Zheng Shanpeng—and one far more reliable than Zheng Shanpeng.
After all, that other immortal master had been "steady" as ever from the third life onward, through all eight lives that followed--
First, he ran away from Tianlin Cave in the 50th year of the Immortal Calendar.
Then, in the 95th year of the Immortal Calendar, he ran away from Cha Mountain.
He was someone you could cling to early on, but you couldn't count on him in the middle or later stages.
They could be fair-weather master and disciple.
But they could never be true to each other.
He Weiyang was still the better choice.
In this life, He Weiyang had given him a fine start.
Then, in the 47th year of the Immortal Calendar, a precious herb appeared on Xuanwu Mountain. This time, Meng Nan was well prepared and didn't want to wait any longer. He tried to break through right away—and, to his surprise, succeeded in one go, advancing to Qi Refining.
The eleventh life!
The first time he'd reached Qi Refining!
This was a good thing!
A cause for celebration across the land!
But after that--
In the 59th year of the Immortal Calendar, Qian Yu failed to break through with the aid of a precious herb.
In the 67th year of the Immortal Calendar, Zhao Xiaoshuang failed to break through with the aid of a precious herb.
In the 70th year of the Immortal Calendar, Meng Santan failed to break through with the aid of a precious herb.
In the 104th year of the Immortal Calendar, Meng Xingzhe failed to break through with the aid of a precious herb.
In the 120th year of the Immortal Calendar, Meng Qingyu failed to break through with the aid of a precious herb.
Over the course of several decades, Meng Nan suffered the pain of losing his wife, daughter, and son, one after another.
His loved ones passed away.
The immortal path was lonely.
A mere threshold to Qi Refining had kept so many people on the other side, separating them from him forever.
But the situation in this life had already improved greatly--
Aside from Meng Nan.
Aside from He Weiyang.
In the 95th year of the Immortal Calendar, his second son, Meng Jian, successfully broke through with the aid of a precious herb, reaching the Qi Refining Stage.
And Meng Jian wasn't the only one.
Over the years, Meng Nan had taken on five more disciples, one after another, from Sky-Scraping Cliff, Ghost Mother Mountain, Shepherd Ridge, Blood Lotus Mountain, and Xuanwu Mountain. He had discovered them in his previous lives, and each had been a promising candidate who went on to reach Qi Refining in one of those lives.
It was true that in this life, Meng Nan had become a Qi Refining Immortal Master before taking them as his disciples--
His eldest disciple, Zhang Xinghe, who could have broken through with the Lower Method in the 88th year of the Immortal Calendar, failed to advance. His Dan Yuan Wandering Veins breakthrough failed, and he died.
His third disciple, Su Bomin, who could have broken through with the Lower Method in the 80th year of the Immortal Calendar, failed to advance. His Dan Yuan Wandering Veins breakthrough failed, and he died.
But the other three--
His second disciple, Jin Tan, had originally advanced with the Lower Method in the 105th year of the Immortal Calendar. In this life, after becoming Meng Nan's disciple, he broke through smoothly in the 122nd year, also with the Lower Method.
His fourth disciple, Huo Yunzi, had originally advanced with the Upper Method in the 128th year of the Immortal Calendar. In this life, after becoming Meng Nan's disciple, he broke through with the Lower Method in the 112th year.
His fifth disciple, Wei Du, had originally advanced with the Upper Method in the 104th year. In this life, after becoming Meng Nan's disciple, he advanced with the Upper Method in the 116th year.
They had all fallen short in some ways, but they themselves had no idea.
From then on,
Meng Nan's sect had five immortal masters. Counting his friend He Weiyang, that made six.
It was a peak of prosperity.
Over the years, Meng Nan had sometimes ventured out and sometimes cultivated in seclusion in the mountains.
Using the locations of the many large spirit-sand deposits in mountain realms that he had discovered over his previous ten lives, Meng Nan, his disciples, his second son Meng Jian, and his friend He Weiyang—six immortal masters in all—had taken control of quite a few. They could mine nearly four hundred catties of spirit sand each year.
Meng Nan alone claimed a hundred catties.
And yet, even with all that, to this day Meng Nan had only reached the third level of Qi Refining. He could still be killed with a curse at any moment.
That was his magical power.
His Dao attainment was even lower.
"Qi Refining is divided into nine levels and four realms."
"Magical power has nine levels; Dao attainment has four realms."
"By the time I died in this life, I'd only cultivated my magical power to the third level. As for my Dao attainment, I'd stopped at the first realm, 'Ming Qi.'"
Meng Nan examined things more deeply and couldn't help shaking his head.
What was "Ming Qi"?
When spiritual energy manifested and one's aura flowed naturally, one could condense the qi of clouds and rain. With it, one could ride the clouds and mist, soaring back and forth without relying on a flying artifact.
That was "Ming Qi"!
An immortal master wreathed in clouds and mist—that was "Immortal Qi."
A great demon shrouded in dark winds—that was "Yao Wind."
These were all signs of someone who had just entered the Qi Refining Stage.
Magical power.
Dao attainment.
The two weren't closely related.
Someone might reach the ninth level of magical power while their Dao attainment remained in the first realm.
Someone might reach the fourth realm of Dao attainment while their magical power had yet to catch up, leaving them at only the third or fourth level.
Neither affected the other.
Either was possible.
Add "techniques" and "artifacts" to those two, and you could get a rough measure of a Qi Refining Immortal Master's strength.
Excelling in any one area could earn someone a place in the Qi Refining Stage.
For example, many people had barely—and fortunately—advanced to Qi Refining with the Lower Method. Granted a lifespan of three hundred years, they knew their immortal path was hopeless, so they simply devoted themselves to studying techniques, taking up the Left Path and pursuing unorthodox ways.
They didn't cultivate magical power or seek Dao attainment. They only pursued mighty techniques and sharp artifacts, seeking strength in battle.
Their prospects were bleak, but their methods were truly formidable. Those with better talent, who focused on secluded cultivation to build their magical power and improve their Dao attainment, might not necessarily be able to defeat them.
But this was all the Left Path.
One could be formidable for a time, but never attain Longevity or prove one's place on the immortal path.
If a Qi Refining Immortal Master aspired to more and sought a breakthrough, they had only one choice: bring both their magical power and Dao attainment to the absolute peak before they could hope to reach a higher level.
At Meng Nan's current pace, even if the Red Robe General didn't kill him with a curse, he probably wouldn't make it in this life.
But the immortal path was unpredictable. Anything was possible.
Whether he succeeded was his own affair.
You're cursing me to death?
That wasn't right!
"But why use a 'death curse'?"
"Was it because he couldn't beat me?"
"Or because he couldn't make a move against me openly?"
With these questions on his mind, Meng Nan continued reading the jade slip.
Gradually,
he gained an understanding of his current situation.
Cang Mountain was no less impressive than Tianlin Cave. It had forty-four major peaks in all. After reaching the Qi Refining Stage in his earlier years, Meng Nan had come here to build a foothold, carving out mountains, building cities, and protecting the mountain tribes.
Nearly a century later,
Cang Mountain had twenty-four cities and a population of nine million.
On this day,
at the foot of Bi Luo Peak, Cang Mountain.
"Ha!"
"Hi-yah!"
Three great camps stood in formation. Thousands of soldiers trained together, their shouts ringing out across the grounds.
The lowest-ranking soldiers in the camps had reached True Qi. The captains were all at True Essence, while the generals were Qi Refining Immortal Masters appointed in person.
Their momentum was fierce.
Killing intent surged around them.
The threat and intimidation they gave off were nearly on par with Qi Refining Immortal Masters.
"Star Picking Sect."
"The six great sects of the Central Plains."
Meng Nan had read the records and knew what was happening.
Five years earlier,
Star Picking Sect, one of the six great sects of the Central Plains, had come south into the South Frontier alongside Mountain Quelling Divine Palace.
The thirty mountain realms in the northwest of the South Frontier—including Undercurrent Mountain, Ten Thousand Horns Cave, Three Bays Mountain, Talisman Show Mountain, Taishan East Mountain, Cha Mountain, Sky-Scraping Cliff, Shepherd Ridge, Ghost Mother Mountain, Xuanwu Mountain, Blood Lotus Mountain, Jade Ring Mountain, Dragon Ridge Mountain, Guangming Mountain, and Bone Chasing Mountain—were all under the control of Star Picking Sect.
Thirty peak Qi Refining cultivators, along with over a hundred ordinary Qi Refining cultivators, had poured into the thirty mountain realms. They recruited some, drove others out, and killed the rest. In a short time, they had brought all thirty realms under their control and purged them completely.
Meng Nan had been among those they "recruited."
From then on, he served under Star Picking Sect as a guest elder in the Qi Refining Stage.
He wasn't the only one.
His three disciples, Jin Tan, Huo Yunzi, and Wei Du, had all joined as well.
The three camps of Cang Mountain now had those three as their commanding generals, responsible for training the troops and coordinating military affairs.
"The Art of War. Battle Array Technique."
Cultivation flourished in the Central Plains, with a hundred flowers in bloom. Among its many branches were the Art of War and Battle Array Technique. These could link hundreds or thousands of True Qi and True Essence cultivators into one formation, with Qi Refining cultivators leading the troops. Though cumbersome, a well-practiced battle array, equipped with fine armor and weapons, could stand against a Qi Refining Immortal Master when its soldiers were arranged in formation.
The killing aura of their weapons and armor was no weaker than an immortal master's magical power.
The three Cang Mountain camps were drilling with the training method passed down by Star Picking Sect. They trained now so that they could fight and kill for Star Picking Sect in the future.
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