In recent days, Master Baiyun had been cultivating with the vast resources Ling Xiao had gathered, along with the miraculous pills and entry-level golden-grade martial arts obtained from the deceased disciples of the Sword King Sect. His cultivation, stagnant for many years, finally broke through! Perhaps due to years of accumulation, once he broke through, his progress was unstoppable, advancing directly from the peak of the First Mortal Realm to the early stage of the Third Mortal Realm before finally stabilising.
At this point, he could have returned to the Yuehua Sect, but he didn’t. He knew full well that everything he had gained was thanks to Ling Xiao, and he was determined to protect the Divine Sword Sect for him. There was another reason too: Ling Xiao was simply extraordinary. He had brought entry-level and rare golden-grade martial arts to the Divine Sword Sect as if they cost nothing, along with vast amounts of gold and silver to purchase cultivation materials. Whether Baiyun returned to the Yuehua Sect or not made little difference, as long as he held the status of an inner sect disciple, he was content.
The other disciples of the Divine Sword Sect also reaped significant benefits during this time. Ling Xiaotian, Ling Wuhen, and Ling Yihang successively broke through to the First Mortal Realm, becoming martial artists admired in the secular world. Ling Shuang, Ling Zhan, Ling Chen, and Ling Yin also reached the peak of the Ninth Martial Vein Realm. Ling Xiao’s younger brother, Ling Luo, was now a Martial Vein Eighth Realm martial artist, no longer the vulnerable child who could be bullied at will. The strength of the Divine Sword Sect’s disciples had improved to varying degrees. At this moment, aside from the twelve major sects, the Divine Sword Sect faintly felt like the foremost sect in the secular world.
All of this was Ling Xiao’s doing. A golden statue of him, over ten metres tall, was erected in the sect’s plaza, an imposing sight. Every disciple joining the Divine Sword Sect was instilled with tales of Ling Xiao’s legendary deeds.
Of course, these matters were handled by Master Baiyun and others, so Ling Xiao didn’t need to concern himself with them. His focus now was to continuously improve his cultivation and status, which would, in turn, strengthen the Divine Sword Sect.
Master Baiyun gained the status of an inner sect disciple of the Yuehua Sect, and Yuan Zun was successfully released from the Yuehua Pagoda. When master and disciple reunited, it was an emotional moment. Yuan Zun never imagined that his disciple would manage to free him through such means, and he was filled with gratitude. Regarding Ling Xiao’s decision to take Yue Nü as his master, Yuan Zun not only held no grudge but fully supported it. After all, he wasn’t part of the Yuehua Sect, nor was he its enemy, so there was no conflict of interest with Yue Nü. More importantly, he simply wanted his disciple to grow stronger, achieve more, and learn as much as possible, free from sectarian biases.
After meeting Yuan Zun, Ling Xiao planned to seclude himself for cultivation using the rewards he had earned. His current cultivation was only at the early stage of the Third Mortal Realm, and with such strength, participating in the Yue Lin Festival’s Tower Climbing Ceremony would likely yield poor results. Strength was always the top priority, whether for sect missions or trials.
However, as he prepared to leave, Yuan Zun stopped him, “Wait, your master has something to say!”
…
While Ling Xiao spoke with Yuan Zun, a bizarre incident occurred in Green Valley. In the days since his return to the sect, Green Valley had become a gathering place for disciples of the twelve sects, all seeking the treasures left behind by the Plague Demon King. Yet, after days of searching, they found nothing. Today, something terrifying happened: over a hundred disciples from the twelve sects and smaller factions mysteriously vanished in a forest deep within Green Valley.
This forest, known as the Thousand Ghost Forest, was connected to the Fulong Mountains, technically part of it. Its name stemmed from a past incident where a hundred Green Valley residents entered, but only one returned alive, claiming to have seen countless ghosts. Thus, the forest was named and declared a forbidden zone, off-limits to Green Valley’s martial artists and hunters. However, the disciples of the twelve sects paid no heed, leading to this calamity. After the incident, the major sects banned their disciples from entering the Thousand Ghost Forest, but it was too late.
Deep within the forest, eerie cries echoed, like vengeful spirits demanding lives. If anyone entered, they would see the corpses of the sect disciples arranged in a tower-like formation, with faint, strange patterns flickering on the ground. As these patterns glowed, the true essence and blood from the disciples’ bodies flowed toward a single point. There lay a massive, pitch-black beast with three heads, a monstrous tiger standing five to six metres tall and seven to eight metres long, exuding an aura of extreme danger—stronger even than that of the Yuehua Sect’s leader.
These hundred-plus disciples, the weakest among them at the First Mortal Realm, had become nourishment for this three-headed tiger beast.
“Heh, that fool Plague Demon King, with his cultivation barely recovered, dared to cause such a stir. It’s made things easy for this king,” the beast spoke in a human voice. If the Plague Demon King were alive, he would recognise this creature as the Beast Demon King, one of the nine demon kings, despite its changed appearance.
“Rest assured, once this king’s strength is restored, I’ll kill that Ling Xiao to avenge you,” the Beast Demon King licked its lips, its three tiger heads grinning menacingly. Though it didn’t care about the Plague Demon King’s death, as a former ally killed by a Yuehua Sect outer disciple, it wouldn’t let Ling Xiao off for the sake of pride.
According to Green Valley’s legends, the Thousand Ghost Forest had been haunted for a thousand years. If true, the Beast Demon King had likely been there for that long. These mysterious creatures had lifespans far exceeding humans’, so living for a thousand or even tens of thousands of years was unremarkable.
…
Unaware of the Beast Demon King, Ling Xiao was considering Yuan Zun’s advice. “Go to the Thousand Ghost Forest. The Yue Lin Festival is near, and staying in the sect to cultivate will only yield limited progress. I suggest you leave the Yuehua Sect and head to the Thousand Ghost Forest to seek greater opportunities.”
This was Yuan Zun’s advice to Ling Xiao.
