Xuandu sat cross-legged on his cushion, Dao Rhyme flowing around him, golden lotuses rising and sinking as immortal music drifted through the air.
Sect Leader Tongtian's Great Dao's Resonant Voice flowed into the minds of every disciple.
The Myriad Immortals listened, enthralled, each gaining something from it.
But Xuandu sat frozen in place.
"What's going on?"
"I have a Chaos God Demon Pedigree, and I'm at the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal Peak. My Spiritual Sense is unmatched."
"Why... why can't I understand a single word?"
After his initial bewilderment, a thought came to him.
"Right! Pedigree is pedigree, and comprehension is comprehension!"
Once he grasped that, Xuandu's mind cleared, though a trace of helplessness welled up inside him.
He possessed a mountain of treasures, but lacked the key to unlock it.
The feeling was truly frustrating.
He stopped trying to force himself to grasp and understand the obscure Great Dao's Resonant Voice. Doing so would only exhaust his mind and achieve nothing.
His consciousness sank into his sea of awareness, and he tried to rouse the dormant system.
"System, could the next feature you unlock be Comprehension Sum Feedback?"
[Beep! Host's request detected.]
[The next feature to be unlocked is: Skill Sum Feedback.]
[The Host can receive, in real time, the insights and experience of all Interception Sect disciples in the cultivation techniques they have mastered.]
Xuandu was taken aback. Then a glint flashed in his eyes.
Cultivation Technique Divine Ability Sum?
That feature... sounded like it might be no worse than Comprehension Sum!
Especially for him, who had a high cultivation level and abundant magical power but lacked the Divine Abilities to match. It was exactly the help he needed!
"What task do I need to complete to unlock Cultivation Technique Divine Ability Sum Feedback?"
Xuandu pressed eagerly.
[Beep! Special mission issued: Stop the Demon Race from forging the Witch-Slaying Sword.]
[Mission reward: Unlock the Skill Sum Feedback feature.]
[Mission description: Stop the Demon Race from forging the Witch-Slaying Sword.]
Stop the Demon Race from forging the Witch-Slaying Sword?
Xuandu's mind reeled, and incredulous delight burst into his eyes!
This mission... it actually aligned perfectly with the plan he'd been considering!
He had already planned to get involved in the conflict between the Wu and Yao and do all he could to protect the Human Race from being slaughtered.
Part of it came from the kinship he felt as a member of the Human Race, and his inability to stand by and do nothing.
The other part was that he'd set his sights on the terrifying feedback the system might provide from the Human Race's vast population!
He'd been worried that the mission to unlock Skill Sum would be like the one for Pedigree Sum: he might have to find a being who'd created a top-tier cultivation technique and invite them into the sect. That would be like searching for a needle in a haystack all over again, wasting time and effort.
After all, creating a cultivation technique was incredibly difficult.
Besides, most beings joined a sect and had no reason to put so much effort into creating their own techniques.
But he'd never expected the system to give him a goal he'd already resolved to pursue!
"Good! Good! Good!"
Xuandu repeated the word three times in his heart, too excited to put it into words.
It was like finding a pillow just as sleepiness struck. He'd gotten exactly what he wanted!
Since the system couldn't yet help him improve his comprehension, and forcing himself to listen to the Dao would be pointless, there was no reason to waste any more time.
His top priority was figuring out how to complete the mission to stop the Witch-Slaying Sword from being forged!
With his mind made up, Xuandu withdrew his consciousness from his sea of awareness and turned his attention back to the world around him.
He no longer tried to understand the profound Dao sounds. Instead, he began carefully observing his fellow disciples as they listened to the sermon.
Watching them listen in rapt attention as their auras slowly grew stronger, Xuandu felt no envy at all.
"If I can't understand it, then I can't understand it."
"You all listen well, comprehend well, and grow stronger."
"What's yours is mine!"
The stronger the Interception Sect Myriad Immortals became, the greater his Cultivation Feedback would be!
And the deeper their insights into cultivation techniques and Divine Abilities, the more he'd gain once he unlocked the new feature!
No matter how he looked at it, it was a good deal!
Having thought it through, Xuandu relaxed completely.
He stopped sitting ramrod straight with his mind wound tight and shifted slightly in his seat.
He gazed with mild curiosity at his fellow disciples, all immersed in the Dao Realm.
He even had time to glance at Chang Er Ding Guang Xian, seated among the Seven Attendant Immortals in the distance.
Chang Er Ding Guang Xian's face was still pale, and his aura weak. Clearly, he hadn't recovered from his injuries.
Meanwhile, the disciples at the Heavenly Immortal, Profound Immortal, and Golden Immortal levels were finding it increasingly difficult to keep up.
Clearly, Sect Leader Tongtian's sermon was growing more profound.
Xuandu sat there at ease, utterly out of place among the Myriad Immortals, who were all immersed in the Dao Realm.
Naturally, the scene caught the eye of Sect Leader Tongtian, who was preaching from the high platform.
Sect Leader Tongtian sat cross-legged on his cloud couch, speaking the True Words of the Great Dao and conjuring Heaven and Earth Anomalies as the laws of all things took form.
His gaze seemed to pass calmly over the countless disciples below, taking in every expression.
Duobao was immersed in brilliant light, Jin Ling resonated with the stars, Wu Dang grew ever more ethereal, Zhao Gongming's aura hinted at wind and thunder, San Xiao's Dao Rhymes intertwined, and Kong Xuan's Five Elements evolved...
Even the outer disciples and Registered Disciples listened with utmost focus, each striving to comprehend.
Yet when his gaze passed over the front row and landed on Xuandu, the Sage's placid Saint Heart gave the slightest pause.
Xuandu sat there calmly, his aura steady and his Chaos Dao Rhyme restrained, seemingly no different from the other Personal Disciples.
But his eyes weren't closed as he immersed himself in the Dao Realm. Instead, they seemed to hold a trace of... leisure and curiosity.
He was gazing with interest at the various expressions of his fellow disciples as they sought to comprehend the sermon.
He even had the time to glance at Chang Er Ding Guang Xian in the distance, whose aura was weak, his eyes indifferent.
Sect Leader Tongtian's sermon continued without the slightest pause, the Great Dao's Resonant Voice still echoing through Heaven and Earth.
Yet a faint trace of surprise and displeasure passed through his mind.
Xuandu possessed a Chaos God Demon Pedigree and had reached the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal Peak. His foundations were firm, his potential immense, and he was unquestionably a future pillar of the Interception Sect.
For that very reason, he should cherish this opportunity to hear the sermon, carefully contemplate the Sage's Great Dao, strengthen his foundations, and clarify his path, in the hope of glimpsing the Great Dao sooner.
But what was he doing now?
Letting his mind wander? Observing his fellow disciples?
Cultivation was like rowing upstream: if you didn't advance, you fell behind!
No matter how extraordinary one's pedigree and cultivation were, if one grew lax and neglected one's cultivation, one's future achievements would be limited.
Wouldn't that be a waste of his incredible fortune? A betrayal of the hopes and expectations Sect Leader Tongtian had placed in him?
This couldn't be allowed to continue!
Sect Leader Tongtian's thoughts turned, and he immediately made up his mind.
All the disciples below were immersed in the Dao Realm, at a crucial moment in their comprehension. It wouldn't do to interrupt them.
But singling out Xuandu for a reminder would be easy enough.
From the high platform, Sect Leader Tongtian continued preaching without pausing for a moment.
Heaven and Earth Anomalies filled the scene, golden lotuses rising from the ground as ethereal immortal music drifted through the air.
Yet an intangible, precisely directed thought crossed the void in an instant and resounded directly in the depths of Xuandu's mind!
"Xuandu."
The two calm syllables held no trace of worldly clamor, yet contained supreme authority!
Xuandu had been mulling over how to complete the system mission and plan his next moves. His whole body suddenly stiffened!
All his thoughts were interrupted in an instant!
He instinctively looked up, following the source of that thought.
His eyes met Sect Leader Tongtian's, from where he sat on the cloud couch—calm, yet unfathomable as an abyss.
That gaze seemed to pierce through all his thoughts and see how he'd been slacking off.
Xuandu's heart jolted, and he nearly broke into a cold sweat.
"M-Master?"
He hurriedly replied in his heart, unable to hide his panic.
This was bad!
He'd been so caught up thinking about the mission and observing everyone that he'd forgotten how conspicuous it was to sit around at ease during a Sage's sermon!
His Master had caught him red-handed!
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