Sect-Protecting Technique, Holy Son Candidate

Heavenly Mystery Holy Land.

Main Peak.

Sect Master's Grand Hall.

Jiang Li stepped inside, and several gazes within the hall converged on him.

There was a white-haired old woman, an elegant man in a crane-patterned cap, and a tower-like burly man with his upper body bare.

Zhang Song waved. "My precious disciple, come here. Your application has been approved. As long as you display your Sword Aura Manifestation realm of swordsmanship, you can bypass the cultivation requirement and join the Transformation Class as an exception."

Seeing the lingering confusion on Jiang Li's face, Zhang Song laid it all out. "You brat, you either stay silent or astonish the world with a single cry. You comprehended the second great realm of swordsmanship while still in the Qi Refining stage. Even the Dao Child of the Sword Sect would be no better than you at your cultivation level."

As he spoke, Zhang Song could not hide the smile on his face.

When he had first taken a liking to Jiang Li, Jiang Li had not displayed such monstrous talent. He had merely been a minor cultivator determined to slay demons and defend the Dao.

And yet...

No one had expected this inconspicuous Outer Sect Disciple to later reveal such astonishing aptitude for the sword.

Even Zhang Song himself had been stunned for quite a while when he first heard the news.

He had not even formally guided Jiang Li's sword cultivation yet, and Jiang Li had already achieved minor success in the sword.

A monstrous disciple like this even made him feel a little pressure.

Jiang Li triggered his low-profile passive skill and humbly said, "I just got lucky."

As for that claim.

Zhang Song did not agree. Shaking his head, he said, "The sword is not something you can master simply by piling up sword moves. Without even a shred of talent, it is difficult to even enter the gate of swordsmanship, much less achieve minor success. You are simply too modest. But a Sword Cultivator must charge forward without hesitation. No matter what lies ahead, they must have the confidence to cut it down with a single sword."

Jiang Li found this rather strange.

Why did he feel like his master was deliberately singing his praises?

Though he felt it was too high-profile, Jiang Li still condensed his sword aura into a manifestation and displayed the technique of Sword Aura Dragon Transformation.

Then.

His gaze fell upon the white-clad figure on the high platform.

The man wore a dark robe embroidered with muted golden cloud patterns. His face looked youthful, yet his eyes carried the vicissitudes of ages. A green Dao pattern rested between his brows, faintly radiating a halo of light.

Jiang Li knew that this was the head of the Heavenly Mystery Holy Land.

His cultivation had already reached a pinnacle.

He was not inferior to the Myriad Desire Demon Lord in the slightest.

From this man, Jiang Li seemed to see the bearing of the Myriad Desire Demon Lord at the height of his power.

Good thing the Myriad Desire Demon Lord is on his last legs. Otherwise, what counter-killing bullshit would there be?

"Disciple Jiang Li pays respects to the Sect Master."

Jiang Li bowed.

He was not nervous.

He merely found it somewhat poignant that an undercover agent like himself had become an unparalleled genius prized by the Heavenly Mystery Holy Land.

The Heavenly Mystery Holy Master smiled warmly. "No need for formalities. With talent like yours, the Holy Land will naturally focus on nurturing you. In the future, you may even have the chance to contend with the Dao Child of the Sword Sect for the title of foremost Sword Cultivator."

"However, you must also raise your cultivation as quickly as possible. Your swordsmanship realm is a bonus; cultivation is the foundation. If you neglect the root and chase the branches, the loss will outweigh the gain."

"Understood."

Jiang Li indicated that he had taken the lesson to heart.

He had always favored realms, but his cultivation time had simply been too short to make up for his lack of cultivation.

"Mm. I heard that it was your appearance that spared the other disciples of the Transformation Class from the fate of total annihilation. Aside from the contribution points you deserve, what else do you want?"

Jiang Li froze.

There was an additional reward?

He thought carefully about it, but he truly did not have anything he urgently needed.

Unless this Sect Master could help him kill the Myriad Desire Demon Lord.

But that was obviously unlikely.

"I will leave it to the Sect Master's discretion."

Resting his face against his hand, the Heavenly Mystery Holy Master thought for a moment before making a decision. "You cultivate the Returning Heart Art, possess excellent character, and have an Innocent Heart, along with the conviction to slay demons and eliminate monsters. You are quite suited to inherit the mystic art, the Ten Directions Thunderous Exorcism Scripture. Once you reach Foundation Establishment, you may begin attempting to cultivate this technique."

The Ten Directions Thunderous Exorcism Scripture?

He had never heard of it.

It looked like it was a technique that could only be cultivated in the Foundation Establishment Realm.

The name was imposing enough.

He just did not know whether it was another thing like the Dragon Slaying Sword, whose name and actual content were wildly mismatched.

Jiang Li was thinking this.

The next second.

Zhang Song abruptly stood up.

His expression was excited.

"Sect Master, I thank you on behalf of my disciple."

Jiang Li swept his gaze around at everyone's reactions. Other than his master, the rest all wore expressions of shock and amazement.

Jiang Li's heart stirred. It seems this is an incredible technique.

Immediately after.

Jiang Li also cupped his hands and offered his thanks.

The Heavenly Mystery Holy Master waved a hand. "All right. I have seen this little fellow already. You can arrange the rest as you see fit."

After saying that.

The leader of the Heavenly Mystery Holy Land vanished from the hall.

The others also rose to their feet and offered their congratulations.

Jiang Li was somewhat unaccustomed to such occasions where he was in the spotlight.

Especially since every person congratulating him was an elder at the Golden Core Realm or above, with some even possessing Nascent Soul Realm cultivation.

Like the old woman walking toward him now.

Her hair was white, her expression kind and benevolent, and she carried a peaceful air about her, like a warm and amiable grandmother next door.

"Jiang Li, thank you for saving my granddaughter's life. If you lack pills, you may come to my Dan Peak to collect them. Little Xi also misses you greatly. When you have time, you should visit Dan Peak more often."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Li immediately understood the old woman's identity.

Li Xi's grandmother.

The peak master of Dan Peak.

A bona fide major figure.

The moment the others heard this, they all shot the old woman looks of gnashing fury.

Everyone was competing fairly, and she was using her granddaughter as bait?

Truly despicable.

Only after a long while were Jiang Li and his master finally able to get away and leave the Main Peak.

On the Flying Skiff.

Jiang Li asked curiously, "Master, is this Ten Directions Thunderous Exorcism Scripture really that special? Your reactions all seemed quite intense."

Zhang Song shook his head, his expression complicated. "More than special. This is one of the Heavenly Mystery Holy Land's sect-protecting techniques, a mystic art with a complete inheritance that points directly to the True Immortal Realm. A disciple chosen for one of these five mystic arts becomes a Holy Son Candidate. At worst, they will become a Grand Elder in the future; they may even contend for the position of Holy Lord."

Jiang Li was startled inwardly.

Wait.

He was a Holy Son Candidate just like that?

Why had no one asked whether he was willing?

Damn it all.

How could an undercover agent become the leader of a Righteous Sect?

He thought that with this label on him, could he still keep a low profile?

Probably not.

No matter how low-profile a Holy Son Candidate was, he would still be like the light of a bright moon. It would be difficult not to draw attention.

Was his grand plan of the Dao of Survival completely finished?

No.

Man could conquer heaven.

If he wanted to keep a low profile, not even Jesus could stop him.

He refused to believe that as long as he restrained himself, anyone could force him into the spotlight.

At that thought.

Jiang Li felt somewhat reassured.

Zhang Song continued, "Good disciple, aside from the Returning Heart Art and the Dragon Slaying Sword, have you not cultivated any other techniques?"

Jiang Li nodded.

He had only one offensive method.

That was the Dragon Slaying Sword.

It was simply that the Dragon Slaying Sword had many variations, so his offensive methods did not appear overly one-dimensional.

As for the Profound Yellow Heart Refining Art, it was purely a cultivation method, with only the effect of purifying Mana.

Shield of Justice had been derived from a trait.

It was not an innate effect of any technique.

"Then I suggest you learn a body-tempering technique."

"Body tempering?"

"That's right. Do you know the three steps of breaking through from Qi Refining to Foundation Establishment? These three steps correspond to our essence, energy, and spirit—the physical body, Mana, and Spiritual Sense. Not one can be missing."

Zhang Song explained:

"The process of Foundation Establishment is Muscle and Marrow Cleansing for the physical body, condensing Mana from qi into liquid, and sending the Spiritual Sense out of the body. If one is blocked at any step, it may cause a cultivator's breakthrough to fail. That is why spiritual materials are needed as assistance. But however good spiritual materials may be, they only increase the chances of Foundation Establishment; they cannot let a cultivator skip these thresholds."

Jiang Li listened attentively.

This concerned his cultivation path and knowledge related to Foundation Establishment. No amount of attention was too much.

"Moreover, you must now begin preparing for the path after Foundation Establishment, especially the Ten Directions Thunderous Exorcism Scripture. It is a pure-yang, lightning-attribute mystic art. Without a powerful physical body, you simply cannot contain its supremely hard and supremely yang power of lightning."

Jiang Li nodded repeatedly.

Only one thought remained in his heart.

He had to go choose another technique.

Technique Pavilion.

Zhang Song personally brought Jiang Li here to select a body-tempering technique.

The elder at the registration desk recognized Jiang Li the moment he saw him.

There was no other reason.

It had been less than two months since Jiang Li selected the Foundation Establishment Realm spell, Dragon Slaying Sword, so naturally he had not forgotten.

"You're here to switch spells, right? I told you long ago not to aim too high. Don't try to show off this time by picking some high-difficulty spell again."