The Cultivation-Type Deity!

Within the Liang Province of the Great Yan Kingdom, atop Tribulation Sword Mountain.

Jiang Ning'an was dressed in white as pristine as snow, her graceful bearing making her appear like a celestial being descended upon the mortal realm.

At this moment, she held the latest issue of the Heavenly Secret Ranking in her hands. When she saw the name at the top of the Hidden Dragon Rising Dragon Ranking, her expression held not a hint of surprise, for it aligned perfectly with her own expectations.

"The Tiger Fiend Sect in Yun Province? That is quite a distance from Liang Province, but to think he would associate with such bottom-tier trash—no wonder he was unwilling to mention it to me." Jiang Ning'an's features were as beautiful as a painting as she softly murmured to herself.

As she muttered, the young girl's gaze subconsciously drifted toward the "Number One Cauldron" entry in the composition column. A faint blush appeared on her face as she thought of something, and she let out a soft, dismissive huff.

"Is this the genius you spoke of?" Suddenly, a calm voice appeared out of thin air behind Jiang Ning'an. Liu Qingmeng watched the booklet in Jiang Ning'an's hands and spoke slowly.

"Master." Hearing the voice behind her, Jiang Ning'an closed the pages and turned around to pay her respects.

"His natural talent is indeed decent, but I wonder about his mental fortitude. If he possesses only raw talent, he will stop at the Third Turn." Liu Qingmeng evaluated objectively.

After all, once a martial artist reaches the Heaven Ascending Path, they themselves become synonymous with miracles. Innate deficiencies can be compensated for through later efforts; raw aptitude alone cannot dictate everything.

Thinking of this, Liu Qingmeng laughed in spite of herself: "However, a future Third Turn powerhouse is already enough to make those fellows unable to sit still. Very well, I shall personally pay a visit to the sects of those fellows."

"At the very least, I will not let those old fogies at the Heaven Ascending Path realm bully the young."

Having said that, Liu Qingmeng's figure slowly vanished, leaving only the lingering echo of her voice reverberating through the valley.

Inside the main hall of the Blazing Sun Martial Hall, Ye Yonglie sat upright in a grand armchair, his gaze sweeping over his gathered disciples.

All the disciples who had appeared yesterday had been forcibly assembled. Although no one spoke, the shocked expressions they exchanged revealed much.

Within just a few glances, they all understood the purpose of being gathered here.

"I believe you all know why I have called you here today." Ye Yonglie picked up a warm teacup and took a gentle sip.

"The reason I have gathered you all is regarding Young Master Fang." Ye Yonglie said in a calm tone: "I will not waste words; I have officially consecrated Young Master Fang as my deity."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone was startled, but immediately, a sense of inevitability rose from the bottom of their hearts.

This method of "deity-making" was widely circulated; almost every martial artist on the Hidden Dragon Rising Dragon Ranking possessed their own large group of believers.

Regardless of whether the character of those ranked was evil, righteous, greedy, arrogant, lustful, or ugly...

As long as one possessed the power to make a name for themselves, fanatical believers would naturally flock from all over the world, attempting to worship the god.

Legend has it that the first Divine Monarch of Great Yan had been undefeated since his debut, moving from one myth to another. He seemed to have billions of followers, and at one time, every citizen of the Great Yan Kingdom was his fanatic.

The most difficult aspects of this deity-making method are two points.

First, one must maintain the deity's image of invincibility, and second, one must meet the deity and have the deity permit one's service.

Given that Fang Can's combat record was so terrifying and his future prospects were boundless, why hesitate to invest now?

"M-Master..." A disciple to the side stepped forward and said: "I also wish to worship Young Master Fang as my deity. I desire progress too much."

"That's right, Master. I know why you summoned us—isn't it just because you're afraid we might report you?"

One of the disciples said righteously: "Why don't we all keep the secret together, worship Young Master Fang as our deity together, and grow alongside the deity? Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

As he spoke, the other disciples agreed in their hearts.

Just think of the benefits of being among the first followers, the servants of a deity walking the earth...

"Presumptuous! What is your status that you think you are worthy of growing alongside a deity?"

Yan Zhi stood out and directly interrupted their delusions: "Coming with profit in mind and an insincere heart—even if you worship, you will gain nothing."

"You can fool others, but don't fool yourselves. You lot, who are usually half-hearted and lazy in your martial arts practice, treat worship and training as mere lip service. No matter how hard you try, it is nothing more than opportunism."

Yan Zhi's tone was filled with intense contempt; he held these disciples in complete disdain.

Having lived with them for so long, he knew their characters all too well.

Ye Yonglie was stuck at the sixth level of the Mysterious Pass because his innate potential was capped at the sixth level, which was why he needed to rely on other means to improve.

Yet these disciples were usually lazy and cut corners; they hadn't even reached their own innate potential limits, yet they were already attempting to take shortcuts.

People of this caliber were mere small-fry who would be instantly washed away the moment they stepped onto the Counter-Current River.

Worshiping a deity requires abandoning everything and treating the deity's commands as absolute, yet these people couldn't even maintain their own self-discipline—what god could they possibly worship?

If a deity told you to get into a top university, a true fanatic would only study hard; even if they failed, they would give it their all. That is the true essence of worship. As for these disciples...

Under the scolding of their senior brother Yan Zhi, the disciples lowered their heads in unison. Some were unwilling, and for a moment, they did not know how to retort.

But then, they heard Yan Zhi's tone soften: "Although your natures are stubborn and wretched, it is not impossible to change; it just requires us to guide you."

"Innate flaws can be compensated for by later efforts. Although your hearts are currently insincere, you can rely on chanting the name of Heavenly Emperor Fang to become pious step by step."

"Since that is the case, let us start with the first step. Everyone, sit cross-legged with me, and let us all chant the name of our Lord, Heavenly Emperor Fang."

Yan Zhi's words seemed to carry some unknown magic; the disciples on either side subconsciously wanted to follow his words, to act, to worship.

Yuan Dang watched this scene, and a strange feeling rose in his heart, as if...

"No, it's a Heart Manifestation!" In an instant, Yuan Dang bit the tip of his tongue, the intense pain bringing him back to his senses.

Feeling his state of mind wavering in accordance with Yan Zhi's words, he felt a great sense of dread. This was actually an attempt to use a Heart Manifestation to manipulate the minds of the disciples present.

This Heart Manifestation influence was not particularly strong, similar to a psychological suggestion, so none of the ordinary disciples could perceive it.

Sitting down along with all the other disciples and watching them chant the name of Heavenly Emperor Fang in unison, a chill rose from within Yuan Dang's heart.

Something is wrong, completely wrong. The future has been thoroughly altered. In my past life, Heavenly Emperor Fang should have been mired in a bitter struggle by this time, but now...

While maintaining a calm state of mind, the sound of everyone present chanting the name of Fang Can rose in unison, gradually becoming solemn.

But where is Fang Can right now? Yuan Dang wondered to himself.

What he had no way of knowing was that inside the bedchamber of Ye Qingshi, Fang Can was staring at the young woman who had been trussed up like a dumpling by Master Ye, his expression somewhat bewildered.