No One in the World Was Blind

The disciples who were also weak seeds could not help but sigh. Qin Haoxuan seemed to have won Heaven's every favor, even able to stand against purple-seed disciples, while they themselves had to curry favor with these special immortal seeds in every possible way, laying the groundwork for a good path out in the future.

If a special immortal-seed disciple took Rooting within twenty days, the weak seeds considered it only natural. But Qin Haoxuan's Rooting instantly threw their minds out of balance! Feeling the countless varied gazes directed at him, Qin Haoxuan increasingly felt that he was utterly out of place among them.

To cultivate immortality was to cultivate the heart. He indeed had encountered fortuitous opportunities, but his heart... from the very beginning, he had been different from them. This, too, was an indispensable and important reason.

Qin Haoxuan's Rooting not only made the weak-seed disciples burn with envy; even Elder Chu, after his shock, repeatedly pondered what exactly was going on. Could weak seeds now make up for their deficiencies through diligence and hard work? His head was full of questions. In all his decades as an entry-level immortal master, this was the strangest yet most astonishing disciple he had ever encountered. Qin Haoxuan either dozed off or meditated during class, possessed a firm Dao heart yet was excessively stubborn, made enemies everywhere and was confined for seven days immediately after entering the sect, yet had injured Immortal Seedling Realm Third Leaf and Fifth Leaf cultivators with the body of an ordinary mortal.

What kind of fortuitous opportunity does Qin Haoxuan have? Elder Chu speculated for a long while, yet still could not figure out what sort of opportunity it might be. Secretly, he planned to investigate Qin Haoxuan's quarters late at night. If it truly was a major fortuitous opportunity, he would report it to the Sect Master True Lord and await his decision—whether to take the opportunity away and give it to a purple seed, or allow it to remain Qin Haoxuan's.

No one would believe the many things Qin Haoxuan had done if they were told of them, yet he truly existed.

News that a weak-seed disciple had achieved Rooting in twenty days immediately spread like wildfire through Taichu Sect, even reaching the ears of the sect's upper ranks. The heads of all four halls were shaken. Countless rumors arose as well. Some claimed Qin Haoxuan had succeeded through diligence and hard work, while others said he must have practiced some demonic art or sinister technique. For a time, everyone had a different story.

At Hidden Dragon Temple, True Lord Huang Long was breathing in and out spiritual energy. Vast quantities of spiritual energy gathered above his head, condensing into strips that resembled silk and floated in midair as though tangible. With every breath, he absorbed spiritual power as dense as several bolts of silk.

A small paper crane flew in through the window.

The little paper crane was the means by which True Lord Huang Long's informants promptly reported major sect events to him while he was in seclusion. Sensing its arrival, True Lord Huang Long hurriedly ceased his cultivation and unfolded the paper crane that landed beside him. After reading its contents, even he, the Sect Master True Lord of Taichu Sect, wore a grave and contemplative expression.

"A weak seed achieved Rooting in twenty days?" True Lord Huang Long muttered. Having served as sect master for several centuries and knowing Taichu Sect's thousands of years of history inside and out, he racked his brains but could not recall any weak seed he knew of that had achieved Rooting in twenty days. Even he himself, a Gray Seed, had taken twenty days to achieve Rooting back then, while other Gray Seeds generally took twenty-one or twenty-two days.

After reading through the contents of the paper crane once more, True Lord Huang Long kneaded the paper into scraps, which scattered away on the wind.

"Qin Haoxuan—this Qin Hao again?" True Lord Huang Long's expression was strange as he spoke to himself. "A pity you are at odds with Zhang Kuang and also have some grievance with Li Jing. Otherwise, you might have been worth cultivating. It seems you must have encountered some fortuitous opportunity?"

After weighing the gains and losses, True Lord Huang Long formed a certain calculation in his heart and did not dwell further on it. A weak-seed disciple achieving Rooting in twenty days was indeed shocking, but the cultivation world was full of wondrous things. If Qin Haoxuan had encountered a fortuitous opportunity, reaching this point was not impossible. The only question was: what kind of opportunity could it be?

If he truly had a fortuitous opportunity, how should it be handled? Strip it away and give it to a purple seed? Huang Long suddenly found himself rather ridiculous. If Qin Haoxuan truly had such an opportunity, it was his good fortune. Why take it from him? Having someone like him was not bad either. At the lower levels, he could temper the temperaments of the purple seeds. If an opportunity that might not even be that great were stripped away and given to a purple seed instead, it would cause the purple seeds' temperaments to go astray.

The more Huang Long considered it, the more convinced he became. Compared to the purple seeds who achieved Rooting in seven or eight days, and Zhang Yang, the Gray Seed who had done so in eight, this shocking feat seemed so insignificant. The only blame lay in Qin Haoxuan's poor timing—he had entered Taichu Sect during a period when three purple seeds had appeared in succession, when even Gray Seeds were not worth much. Otherwise, with his performance, he absolutely would have received focused cultivation. But the sect could barely manage to cultivate three purple-seed disciples; how could it have time for a mere weak seed like him?

Gu Yunzi, who had stationed informants in Spirit Field Valley all along, learned of Qin Haoxuan's Rooting at once. He was overjoyed but also filled with astonishment. When he heard the various rumors about Qin Haoxuan being spread until they became almost divine legends, he feared that his feeding Qin Haoxuan the Corrosion Pill would be exposed. The grave crime of harming a sect disciple and secretly keeping heretical cult techniques was not something even one of the four hall masters could bear. Thus, he personally hurried to Spirit Field Valley and told Elder Chu and the other elders, "Qin Haoxuan is a disciple I have privately instructed. I ask that you all take greater care of him in ordinary times."

As the master of Gu Yun Hall, one of the four great halls, Gu Yunzi was unquestionably among the sect's upper ranks. Yet he had personally come to clarify Qin Haoxuan's standing. Elder Chu and the others immediately looked at Qin Haoxuan differently. With Gu Yunzi privately teaching and fully nurturing him, a weak seed achieving Rooting in twenty days was still a miracle, but at least it could be explained. Yet Taichu Sect had countless people with aptitude far superior to Qin Haoxuan's. Why had Gu Yunzi singled him out?

Elder Chu quickly learned Gu Yunzi's message and immediately abandoned his plan to investigate Qin Haoxuan.

Amid the sky-filling rumors and everyone's envy and hatred, only Xu Yu and Murong Chao sincerely offered Qin Haoxuan their congratulations.

Qin Haoxuan, who had set the fastest record in history for a weak seed to achieve Rooting, was not the least bit arrogant. After meditating and refining energy throughout the previous night, he discovered that his immortal seed was still relatively weak. In the future, he would need to clear and nourish it more, strengthening these immortal roots. That would also greatly benefit the progress of his future cultivation.

After achieving Rooting, what made Qin Haoxuan happiest was still the subsidy the sect gave his family. It had increased from two hundred taels of silver per year to three hundred. Thinking of the extra hundred taels his parents would receive because of his diligent improvement, he knew they would smile brilliantly.

While Qin Haoxuan silently planned his future, he did not know that because of him, the core members of Zhang Kuang's and Li Jing's two camps had met several times, discussing strategies to deal with Qin Haoxuan's rise.

The moment Li Jing learned that Qin Haoxuan had achieved Rooting, he immediately gathered several core members of his camp in his room for a meeting.

As soon as the discussion began, every remark immediately turned into a barb aimed at Qin Haoxuan!

"I think there is definitely something strange about this Qin Haoxuan!"

"Of course there is! A weak seed achieved Rooting in twenty days—how could that not be strange? If it were not strange, why have you not achieved Rooting?"

"Why do I feel that his ambitions are not small? On one hand, he has drawn Xu Yu over and made him follow his lead with utter devotion. He calls out 'Brother Haoxuan, Brother Haoxuan' all day long—so sickeningly sweet it makes one's flesh crawl. He even brought Murong Chao into his fold. Among the five special immortal-seed disciples of our generation, Zhang Kuang, Zhang Yang, and you have each formed your own faction, while Xu Yu and Murong Chao alone have become his people! I think he wants to control Xu Yu and Murong Chao, gradually expand his power, and ultimately have either Xu Yu or Murong Chao become sect master, so he can indulge in being a sect master behind the curtain!"

This person's analysis was coherent and well-supported. Though Li Jing could not entirely agree, he felt there was some truth to it. Still, Qin Haoxuan was merely a weak seed, with neither backing nor potential. Even if he had ambitions, he had no ground on which to use them.

Just as Li Jing silently analyzed the matter, a junior brother burst in, flustered and panicked.

"Senior Brother... Senior Brother, we have just received news that Gu Yunzi, the master of Gu Yun Hall, personally went to Spirit Field Valley and told Elder Chu and the others that Qin Haoxuan is a disciple he privately instructed."

Upon hearing this, Li Jing sprang up from his chair in shock, instantly unable to sit or stand at ease.

The former Qin Haoxuan had merely been a weak seed, and no one had valued or cared about him. Even if Xu Yu was close to him, and Murong Chao later joined them, it would have made no difference.

But Qin Haoxuan was different now. Leaving aside how many immortal roots of his perfectly matched—something no one knew—by speed alone, he had equaled the Rooting record of the current Sect Master True Lord as a weak seed. Moreover, he had won the favor of Gu Yunzi, the master of Gu Yun Hall. To establish Qin Haoxuan's standing, Gu Yunzi had even lowered himself to personally visit Spirit Field Valley and explain the matter to several elders, openly declaring that Qin Haoxuan was a disciple he privately instructed.

To be privately instructed by the master of Gu Yun Hall made one's status worth pondering. With Gu Yunzi's support, if this weak seed helped Xu Yu compete for the position of sect master, with Murong Chao assisting from the side, could he not truly become a threat to Li Jing?

When Gu Yunzi came to Spirit Field Valley and stated that Qin Haoxuan was a disciple he had privately instructed, even Zhang Yang, who had likewise been privately instructed by Gu Yunzi, felt resentment arise in his heart. Qin Haoxuan was only a weak-seed disciple—what made him worthy of his master lowering himself to privately instruct him? But Gu Yunzi had previously said Qin Haoxuan's matter was in his hands. Could this be one of his master's moves? Zhang Yang seemed to vaguely guess something. Beyond his shock, he felt a faint trace of anticipation.

But Zhang Yang was not someone content to sit still and watch events unfold. After turning the matter over in his mind for a long time, he suddenly remembered Gu Xiaoyun, whose face Qin Haoxuan had thoroughly disgraced. An idea immediately flashed through his mind, and he went straight to find him.

"Senior Brother Gu, do you still remember Qin Haoxuan?"

The instant Zhang Yang mentioned Qin Haoxuan, Gu Xiaoyun's face darkened. After Qin Haoxuan had refused him that time, he had sought Qin Haoxuan several more times to demand an exchange of plots, only to be refused every single time.

"Senior Brother Gu, you have been busy cultivating lately, so perhaps you do not know that Qin Haoxuan has achieved Rooting?"

"Rooting? A weak-seed disciple like him achieved Rooting twenty days after entering the sect?" Gu Xiaoyun stared at Zhang Yang in astonishment, his face full of disbelief.

Zhang Yang gave a cold laugh. "What Senior Brother Gu surely cannot imagine is that the person who helped Qin Haoxuan achieve Rooting was your own uncle, my master, Hall Master Gu Yunzi."

Gu Xiaoyun was once more shocked by Zhang Yang's news. He leapt to his feet and roared, "Is what you say true?"

"Absolutely true!"

"Good, Qin Haoxuan! He achieved Rooting under my uncle's guidance, yet he would not even agree when I wanted to exchange a plot with him. Come on, let us go settle accounts with him!"

Learning that Qin Haoxuan had received such a great benefit from his own uncle, Gu Xiaoyun's confidence swelled again. He led several lackeys and aggressively went to confront him. He had originally thought some senior expert in the sect was helping Qin Haoxuan, but it turned out to be his own uncle. That made things much easier!