There's a Monster Right Under Your Nose, and You Don't Even Know It!

A brief Deathly Stillness fell over the square, followed by a tremendous uproar.

"This... the Qin Clan is too domineering!"

"The Heavenly Stele has no name, so they carved it themselves?!"

"That's Heavenly Step treasure! High Antiquity artifact! How could anyone tolerate such a thing!"

But soon, someone tugged at the sleeve of the person next to them and whispered a reminder: "Shh, that's the Qin Clan."

Just then, a clear but angry voice rang out.

"Hey, you over there, what kind of talk is that? Which eye of yours saw that you can't carve your own rules?"

Qin Zhaoer stood with her hands on her hips, pointing at the discussing crowd, looking every bit the wicked woman, and angrily cursed.

Although she was a woman, her words were even more domineering and rude.

Her shout immediately silenced everyone.

Even so, there was no anger in the crowd's discussions, but rather a kind of... jealousy!

"The Qin Clan is truly lawless, but... they have the power to do so."

"Although there are three Heavenly Emperors, the Qin Clan has so many monstrous Dao Child, and they are particularly protective of their own."

"Judging from this, even if he doesn't become Dao Child, it would be good for him to join the Qin Clan as an ordinary disciple..."

Everyone felt envy, jealousy, and resentment. They could only watch helplessly as Li Qingluan, carrying Qin Wangchuan, with Qin Xuanji and Qin Wudao on either side, led the Qin Clan Disciple away in a grand procession.

But He Xuan, the First Elder of the Xuanyi Academy, was lost in thought as he watched the departing figures of the group.

He didn't look at Qin Wudao, but instead turned his gaze to that person— Qin Xuanji, the second Dao Child of the Qin Clan.

"Elder Liang," He Xuan's voice was low and slow, "Why is his name not on the monument?"

Elder Liang stared blankly at the departing figures for a while before realizing who He Xuan was asking about, and exclaimed in surprise, "Qin Xuanji?"

Elder He nodded.

After pondering for a moment, Elder Liang suddenly realized that this person did indeed seem rather unremarkable.

At least their performance on the Heavenly Ladder was not as stunning as Qin Wudao's or Qin Wangchuan's.

So he asked one of the deacons beside him, "How many steps did he climb last time on the Heavenly Step?"

The deacon immediately replied, "Ninety-ninth Tier."

Elder He nodded, a glint of light flashing in his eyes. "One level below?"

"Someone is hiding their true abilities right under your noses and you don't even know it."

Elder Liang was standing nearby, did not deny the criticism but nodded in agreement.

My gaze shifted to the towering Heaven Ascending Ladder heaven.

"This thing is High Antiquity treasure, polished by powerful figures of later Great Power before being placed here. It's not surprising that Qin Wudao could leave his name on it..." Elder Liang said in a deep voice, "But the problem is the person who shattered that Golden Steps."

He looked in the direction Qin Xuanji had left, his tone unusually solemn:

"Qin Xuanji might even be stronger than Qin Wudao."

"Qin Wudao in the open, Qin Xuanji in the shadows, and Qin Wangchuan in later generations..." Elder He looked at the departing crowd and uttered these three names with profound meaning.

"Unless all three of them perish simultaneously, no one can stop the Qin Clan's progress."

After saying that, he left.

Upon hearing this, Elder Liang sighed deeply, his hand stroking his beard trembling slightly.

As an elder of the Wandao Academy, he had witnessed the rise and fall of Prodigy geniuses, but he had never seen such a terrifying lineup emerge in the same era as the Qin Clan.

'But the key isn't how people defy fate.'

Elder Liang thought to himself, then turned to look at the group of Prodigy.

Chu Wujiu stared at the Heavenly Step, his eyes showing no fear, but rather a burning fighting spirit.

"What Qin Wangchuan can do, I can do too!"

After saying that, he ascended the Heavenly Step again without hesitation.

But this time the target is not the Hundredth Tier, but countless steps, pointing straight to the depths of the sky.

Although he was the first to step forward, someone else did it faster.

"Fool, if this isn't the target, why waste your time?"

Yan Wujin's voice came from high above as he rode the Golden Crow straight into the sky at an astonishing speed.

He wanted to be the first to go up and see what was there.

Zhao Lingyun, watching Yan Wujin from below, shook his head helplessly and said, "Didn't you see the calamity descending upon him when he walked up? Be careful he doesn't get struck down."

Yun Zexuan stood beside him, but had a different opinion. "In my opinion, only the first person to receive the greatest blessing from this kind of fortuitous opportunity."

"As latecomers, we may not suffer as terrible calamities, but our fortuitous opportunity won't be much better."

Ye Lingchuan and Ji Wuchen followed behind the group.

Ye Lingchuan replied, "Even so, I still want to go up and take a look."

He wanted to go up and see if it was the view he was looking for.

Ji Wuchen gazed in the direction where Qin Wangchuan had disappeared, his eyes filled with complex yet resolute emotions. "It has nothing to do with fortuitous opportunity. I want to stand at the same level as him and see the splendor he has witnessed."

"That's Qin Wangchuan, who revived the Celestial Being Realm. I... want to walk the path he walked as well," a voice said softly.

He was not Prodigy, but merely a cultivator who barely passed the entrance exam to enter the Wandao Academy, yet he spoke the minds of many.

"I didn't dare try the Celestial Being Realm, but I've practiced quite a bit of the techniques he passed down."

"Did you go to the Chuanliu Pavilion too? The Qin Clan is too far away. I went to the Ji Clan's place; it's really big."

"Some say he will sweep away Alien Race. If that day ever comes, I will join him."

Beneath the Heavenly Ladder, a silent pilgrimage spontaneously formed.

There were no rewards, no fortuitous opportunity, yet countless people still spontaneously embarked on the Heaven Ascending Ladder once again.

Because they wanted to see just how dangerous the path Qin Wangchuan had taken really was.

What kind of splendor did the places he stood in possess?

Although Qin Wangchuan himself has departed, he has become a Dao Beacon in the hearts of all cultivators.

The "Tao" and "Dharma" he spread have transformed into countless seeds, falling into the hearts of all beings, quietly waiting to sprout, and subtly altering the trajectory of countless destinies.

Elder Liang was utterly shocked by what he saw.

"A false Prodigy, detached from the world."

"True Prodigy become Dao Beacon."

"Qin Wangchuan, this person might bring about changes to the Myriad Ages unchanged Academy," Elder Liang thought to himself.

The Wandao Academy is just the beginning. In the distant future, it might even change the entire Ten Directions Immortal Court.

Of course, many people also disapprove of this situation.

Tan Lingfei, one of the top students in the Inner Academy of the Wandao Academy, along with several others, was observing this "pilgrimage" with a detached eye.

He stood with his hands behind his back, tall and imposing. The long robe he wore, the standard uniform of the Wandao Academy, always seemed to have an indescribable tightness about him, as if it couldn't contain the sharp edges and unruliness beneath.

He coldly surveyed the pilgrimage scene on the Heavenly Ladder below, his eyes filled with an unyielding gloom.

"Dao Beacon?" Tan Lingfei scoffed, his voice low and hoarse, laced with obvious mockery. "A mere Half-Venerable, nothing more than another paper tiger hyped up to the heavens. Does he even deserve to have a monument erected to establish his authority?"

Liu Yunqi, standing beside him, slightly raised his head, his words sharp and cutting to the heart of the matter. "Qin Wangchuan's reopening of the Celestial Being Realm and his spreading of the Dharma throughout the world, seemingly to benefit all living beings, is in reality using all living beings as fuel to solidify his Qin Clan's right to interpret the 'Great Dao'."

"The world is full of fools, willingly becoming pawns without realizing it."

Before the two could finish speaking...

"Oh."

A clear, mocking laugh came from my side.

A Purple Robe Youth robes leaned lazily against a pillar, his hands behind his head. He glanced at Tan Lingfei, his tone carrying undisguised disdain:

"You summoned us here just for this?"

Without waiting for Tan Lingfei's reply, he straightened up listlessly, turned and left, leaving only a sarcastic remark echoing in the air. "Boring."

Another Cold-faced Woman turned around, her clear voice full of disdain. "Just a mere mixed-race person, she really thinks she's something."

Although none of them thought highly of Qin Wangchuan, they did not give Tan Lingfei any face.

Clearly, the circles of these top students in the Academy were not harmonious.

Tan Lingfei remained silent, offering no response to the departing mockery.

Only the word "mixed-race" pierced his bones like a needle, deepening the gloom in his eyes, which he forcibly suppressed, like a lurking beast temporarily falling silent.