"No need for formalities."
To Xu Taiping's surprise, the mirror spirit actually answered him, though its tone was cold and stiff.
"Profound Mirror, I am ready."
Just then, a deeply authoritative voice came from the bronze mirror.
Xu Taiping immediately turned his gaze toward it.
The surface that had reflected Xu Taiping's own face suddenly revealed a mountain peak wreathed in drifting clouds and mist the moment the old man's voice sounded. Atop the peak, he could faintly make out an old man with the bearing of an immortal.
"Purple Sun Dao Lord, three hundred and ninety-six disciples are attending this lecture, including two hundred and eighteen newly admitted disciples and two hundred with no cultivation."
The mirror spirit's voice sounded from the bronze mirror again.
As it spoke, the image in the bronze mirror kept drawing closer until Xu Taiping could clearly see Purple Sun Dao Lord seated upon a stone platform.
"Four hundred will suffice. Admit no more."
Purple Sun Dao Lord's eyes were half closed, his rosy lips barely parting.
"Yes."
The mirror spirit answered in a cool voice.
So Purple Sun Dao Lord limits attendance at his scripture lectures. Luckily, I came early today.
After hearing the exchange between Purple Sun Dao Lord and the mirror spirit, Xu Taiping silently counted his blessings.
"Whether this is your first time hearing This Lord expound upon the Remnant Sunset Scripture or you have attended many times before, This Lord shall treat you all alike and begin from the beginning."
After a brief pause, Purple Sun Dao Lord's voice sounded again.
Knowing that Purple Sun True Lord had formally begun his lecture, Xu Taiping immediately sat upright, his eyes fixed unblinkingly on the bronze mirror before him.
"Many among you had never cultivated before joining the sect. Thus, before expounding upon the Remnant Sunset Scripture, This Lord shall first explain what cultivation practice is, and what cultivation attainment is."
"Cultivation practice consists of tempering the physique through body-refining arts and refining essence into qi through gate-opening arts. Our Azure Profound Sect has always placed greater emphasis on opening the gate.
"Only by first nurturing a breath of innate true qi can you wield spells and divine abilities, prolong your life and increase your lifespan, and glimpse the path to ascension, attainment of the Dao, and undying longevity."
"The Remnant Sunset Scripture that This Lord shall expound upon today is one of our sect's most important gate-opening cultivation methods."
At this, Xu Taiping nodded inwardly.
Purple Sun True Lord's words closely resembled the opening of the Remnant Sunset Scripture, which was also the only part Xu Taiping understood. The specific steps for cultivating that followed had left him lost in a fog.
"Having explained cultivation practice, This Lord shall now explain cultivation attainment."
"Simply put, cultivation attainment refers to the different stages of cultivation practice."
"In the cultivation world, attainment is generally divided into five realms according to the lifespan gained and the strength of one's power."
"From weakest to strongest, the first is the Gate Opening Realm, also known as the Entering the Sea Realm. At this stage, you have only just found your way onto the path of cultivation. Your blood and qi far surpass those of your peers, and your lifespan can reach two sixty-year cycles, exceeding one hundred and twenty years."
Xu Taiping's eyelids involuntarily twitched.
He had never imagined that the Gate Opening Realm his grandfather had spoken of was merely the lowest realm in the cultivation world.
Alongside his surprise, he felt some relief. Had the Gate Opening Realm been the second or third realm, he doubted he could have broken through within six months. His forgery of the Immortal Register would inevitably have been exposed then.
But these thoughts merely flashed through his mind. He soon gathered his focus again and continued listening to Purple Sun True Lord's lecture.
"The second is called the Nether Gazing Realm, and one's lifespan can reach three sixty-year cycles. Only upon reaching this realm can one truly be called a cultivator. Among the disciples This Lord has encountered over the years, at least sixty percent have remained trapped at this realm, some of them even Personal Disciples of the Seven Peaks."
"The third is called the Mystic Understanding Realm. After breaking through to this realm, one's lifespan can reach six sixty-year cycles. One may be honored as a True Lord and possess a cultivation sanctuary of one's own on Cloud Cottage Mountain."
"As for the fourth and fifth realms, you need not concern yourselves with them yet. Do not reach for lofty heights beyond your grasp."
At this point, Purple Sun True Lord accepted a cup of tea from a disciple beside him and slowly savored it, seemingly giving everyone time to digest his words.
So breaking through to Mystic Understanding is this difficult. No wonder Purple Sun True Lord is honored as an elder.
Xu Taiping marveled inwardly.
I wonder what realm Sister Fairy Lingyue has reached.
He suddenly grew curious about Fairy Lingyue's cultivation.
"Very well. Next, This Lord shall explain the Remnant Sunset Scripture to you in detail."
Just as Xu Taiping's attention began to wander, Purple Sun True Lord's voice from the bronze mirror pulled his thoughts back.
Next, Purple Sun True Lord began referring to the text of the Remnant Sunset Scripture, explaining the key points of its cultivation step by step to the disciples attending his lecture.
Having already read the Remnant Sunset Scripture thoroughly, Xu Taiping had no trouble following along. Indeed, his face often lit up as though the tangled brush blocking his understanding had suddenly been cleared away. At especially marvelous passages, he could not help waving his arms and stamping his feet, feeling that Purple Sun True Lord was unraveling his earlier confusion bit by bit.
Although he lacked a spirit bone, Xu Taiping had shown a gift for studying since childhood. Thus, when it came to comprehending cultivation methods, he was not merely the equal of some disciples who possessed spirit bones, but far better than them.
The very lecture that he now found so wonderfully illuminating had eighty percent of the other disciples facing their bronze mirrors scratching their heads and ears in utter misery.
Purple Sun True Lord saw all of this.
Apart from a handful of disciples, most of them, including Xu Taiping, had no idea that a bronze mirror also stood before Purple Sun True Lord-a huge bronze mirror.
The image displayed within that bronze mirror showed the three hundred-odd disciples attending the lecture.
"Profound Mirror, who brought Xu Taiping of the Green Bamboo Abode into the Azure Profound Sect?"
After the lecture ended, Purple Sun True Lord suddenly addressed the mirror spirit.
"Xu Taiping was originally a disciple chosen by the Spirit Bone Stele and was to be sent to the Seventh Peak. However, while testing his spirit bone, Elder Black Dragon discovered that he had only a white bone and was unqualified to enter the Seventh Peak. He was therefore placed at the foot of the mountain to cultivate on his own and await the Seven Peaks Selection three years from now."
The mirror spirit answered Purple Sun True Lord.
"What a pity."
After hearing Profound Mirror's account, Purple Sun True Lord shook his head with some resignation.
He could tell that Xu Taiping's comprehension of cultivation methods was extraordinary, and had entertained the thought of taking him as a disciple. He had never expected the boy to possess only a white bone.
"With only a white bone, even the finest understanding of cultivation methods is useless. Not everyone is Su Chan."
Purple Sun True Lord sighed.
"True Lord, you should refrain from mentioning Su Chan's name. The sect master will be displeased if he hears of it."
Profound Mirror reminded Purple Sun True Lord.
Before you continue