In Wu Xiang’s view, the Saint Child’s strength and talent were plain to see.
But Ling Xiao, he couldn’t quite figure out.
Many times, he had tried to gauge the extent of Ling Xiao’s abilities, yet all he saw was a hazy blur, as if nothing was clear.
What secrets did Ling Xiao hold?
Even he was somewhat curious.
But it was merely curiosity. He believed that with his relationship with Ling Xiao, when the time came, Ling Xiao would surely tell him.
After leaving Wu Xiang, Ling Xiao went to see Yue Nü.
When he arrived, he found Yue Nü holding an ancient-looking book, reading it.
“Sister Yue, when did you become so studious?”
Ling Xiao asked with a smile.
“This is a book I recently acquired. It provides a fairly detailed definition of the Three Religions and Nine Streams. Want to know more?”
Yue Nü said.
“You mean the sect ranking system, right? Wasn’t that used in ancient times? Is it still relevant today?”
Ling Xiao asked, puzzled.
“Of course it’s still used. It’s just that the sects on the Heavenly Dragon Continent are too weak, so you might not be aware.”
Yue Nü replied.
“Too weak? Sister Yue, don’t tell me there isn’t even a single Ninth Stream sect on the Heavenly Dragon Continent?”
Ling Xiao asked with a laugh.
He seemed to recall someone saying that although the Moonlight Sect was considered unranked, it could barely qualify as a Ninth Stream sect. Why was Yue Nü saying otherwise?
“There might be some. I reckon the Heavenly King Sect could just about qualify as a Ninth Stream sect, and the Jade Water Divine Palace might reach that level too. As for the other ten sects, they have no chance.”
Yue Nü answered.
“That’s shocking!”
Ling Xiao was stunned.
Three Religions and Nine Streams, yet on the Heavenly Dragon Continent, only two sects might qualify as Ninth Stream. That was pitiful.
“I’ve been asleep for so many years, and so much has happened. The Heavenly Dragon Continent is truly declining. Fortunately, the emergence of the Mountain and River Martial Soul has reawakened this continent. Hopefully, things will get better.”
Yue Nü sighed.
“Sister Yue, how exactly are the Three Religions and Nine Streams classified? Isn’t it recorded in the book?”
Ling Xiao grew deeply interested.
“The book isn’t very clear, but based on the text, I can infer the rough requirements for a Ninth Stream sect.”
Yue Nü thought for a moment and said, “First, there must be at least one Cave Heaven Realm expert. Additionally, there must be at least three Half-Step Cave Heaven Realm experts. Finally, there must be at least one hundred Heavenly Realm warriors.
These are the basic requirements. There are also conditions related to martial arts and economics, but I’m not entirely clear on those.”
“Tch, if we don’t count you, Sister Yue, the Moonlight Sect is indeed far off. We have one Cave Heaven Realm expert, but not a single Half-Step Cave Heaven Realm expert, and only about twenty Heavenly Realm warriors. We’re nowhere near Ninth Stream.”
Ling Xiao clicked his tongue.
“Exactly, and that’s just military strength. Other factors aren’t even considered.”
Yue Nü nodded.
“Sigh, if the Moonlight Sect is unranked, my Divine Sword Sect is even less worth mentioning.”
Ling Xiao sighed inwardly, took the book from Yue Nü, and glanced at it. Besides the sect rankings, it also contained some mythological stories.
These stories might not be true, but they likely had some basis.
According to the book, the Mysterious Realm was one of countless worlds under divine rule.
In the eyes of the gods, the Mysterious Realm might be just a speck of dust, a drop of water, or an insignificant single-celled creature.
A speck of dust is a world; a drop of water is a heaven!
The book also said that when the Mysterious Realm was first born, it was a chaotic void with no living beings.
Later, a god arrived, found it too desolate, and created primordial beasts.
The most successful were the Dragon Clan.
The Dragon Emperor and the Nine Dragon Kings were initially created to guard this god’s home.
After doing so, the god left, referred to in the book as the “Beast God.”
Later, a pair of siblings arrived.
They found the primordial beasts of the Mysterious Realm too ferocious and unfriendly. The brother used divine power to create plants, earning the title “Nature God.”
The sister saved a weak tribe and taught them martial arts. This tribe became humanity, and she was called the “Human God.”
However, the Mysterious Realm was merely a stopover on their journey, and they soon left.
Afterwards, the Mysterious Realm began its own development. Humanity was pushed to the brink of extinction by the primordial beasts.
At this time, the Human King appeared.
The book stated that the Human King wasn’t a god but came from another world. He created the Martial Soul cultivation method and, with his followers, established a systematic foundation for martial arts.
This made humanity stronger.
Under his leadership, humans defeated the primordial beasts.
Later, an extraterrestrial tribe invaded, and both humans and primordial beasts faced extinction again.
The losses were immense. Though the extraterrestrial tribe was driven out, the Human King mysteriously vanished, the Twelve Human Immortals perished in battle, and the Nine Dragon Kings were killed by the invaders.
Human martial arts fell into a fragmented state.
The primordial beasts went into slumber.
The Mysterious Realm split into thirteen continents due to a catastrophic earthquake caused by the accumulated energy of that war, leading to massive shifts in the oceanic plates.
Ling Xiao was familiar with the subsequent history. For the most part, the people of the thirteen continents had little contact with each other.
The emergence of the True Demon Empire changed everything.
The later records in the book were more detailed and credible, while the ancient ones contained speculative and mythical elements.
But they couldn’t be dismissed as false, as some explorers and archaeologists in the Mysterious Realm had found evidence supporting the book’s accounts.
If true, what was the Heavenly Dragon Continent?
What was the Mysterious Realm?
A speck among countless dust particles?
A drop among countless water droplets?
A world the gods could destroy at will?
That was terrifying!
Ling Xiao shook his head. Though these thoughts were frightening, they seemed irrelevant to him at this stage.
The only thing he could do now was to grow stronger!
Keep growing stronger!
First, he needed to leave the Heavenly Dragon Continent. Perhaps on the Divine Phoenix Continent, he could uncover more secrets.
“So, the so-called Nine Ancient Dragon King Martial Souls are just the souls of pets raised by a god. But the Mountain and River Martial Soul has a mysterious origin. The Human King likely came from beyond the Mysterious Realm, not belonging to it.”
No wonder the Mountain and River Martial Soul could easily devour and transform even the Ancient Hell Dragon Martial Soul.
As Ling Xiao pondered, the small butterfly within his Mountain and River Martial Soul gently fluttered its wings.
