From martial arts sects to immortality sects

Chapter 180 The Orthodox Path of Immortal Cultivation
Li Qingqiu and his companions traveled at a leisurely pace, stopping frequently along the way. As the ten-day deadline approached, they finally flew forward on their swords and returned to Qingxiao Mountain in the evening of the tenth day.

Shen Yue's face was slightly flushed, while Mo Jiuhong was panting heavily. His vital energy was being used for long-term sword flight, which was a real test for him.

Upon returning, Li Qingqiu had Yuan Qi ring the bell.

The bell in Lingxiao Courtyard was newly installed to facilitate the quick summoning of the hall masters.

In the Xuanxin Hall, the lowest rank required to participate in council meetings is a hall elder, while in the Lingxiao Academy, only the hall master can attend.

As night fell, one hall master after another entered the courtyard. Seeing that Li Qingqiu and Shen Yue were safe and sound, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

"Did those demonic trees really come from the same demon?"

Yang Jueding sat opposite Li Qingqiu and asked curiously.

Li Qingqiu was busy dealing with Li Dongyue and Li Sijin, so he casually replied, "We'll answer all at once once everyone is here."

Yang Jueding nodded; as long as Li Qingqiu returned, that was a good thing.

To be honest, he was quite uneasy during Li Qingqiu's absence. Even though nothing went wrong in the sect, he still felt uneasy.

He didn't know when it started, but he also began to rely on this kid.

While waiting, Yang Jueding noticed that Shen Yue's breathing was somewhat unstable, so he asked with concern, "Senior Shen, are you injured?"

Shen Yue glanced at him and said, "The sect leader dealt with that tree demon. I was just holding off thousands of Qi clan warriors all by myself. How could I have been injured?"

"Tens of thousands? Really?"

Yang Jueding's eyes widened in surprise, and Li Dongyue, Li Sijin, and Chai Yunshang in the corner all turned their gazes toward Shen Yue.

Shen Yue remained expressionless, stroking his beard, offering no further explanation, keeping his achievements hidden.

Li Qingqiu chuckled. This old scoundrel really knows how to put on an act!

Only after everyone had arrived did Li Qingqiu begin to recount his trip to Cangzhou. He didn't elaborate on the details of the battle, but he did describe the immense size of the ancient god.

Upon hearing that Li Qingqiu had torn apart an ancient god as large as a mountain, everyone looked at him with strange eyes.

Master Qingxiao couldn't help but ask, "Could it be that the Nourishing Essence Realm has dozens of levels?"

He voiced what Jiang Zhaoxia and Xu Ning were thinking. They were both at the eighth level of the Nourishing Yuan Realm, yet they still couldn't imagine what realm Li Qingqiu was at now.

"You're only at the ninth level of the Nourishing Essence Realm, don't overthink it," Li Qingqiu said with a shake of his head and a laugh.

He didn't give anyone a chance to ask further questions and immediately said, "The ancient god was eliminated and the Qi clan was crushed. Although there are still members of the Qi clan outside, and even some feudal lords, as long as the ancient god is destroyed, the Qi clan will no longer pose a threat to us. Qingxiao Sect has completely survived this ordeal."

Upon hearing this, everyone smiled.

The tree demon was too much of a threat; even Xu Ning was seriously injured, plunging the entire Qingxiao Sect into gloom.

"Starting tomorrow, the sect will resume normal operations and will no longer prevent disciples from leaving the mountain. Hall Master Zhang and Hall Master Zhu, use your connections to continue investigating the Lingtian Sect. This will be a long-term mission until the Lingtian Sect is completely eradicated."

Li Qingqiu gave the instructions, and upon hearing this, Zhang Yuchun and Zhu Yan both nodded.

Subsequently, Li Qingqiu instructed Zhang Yuchun to write down the details of the trip to Cangzhou the next day and announce it to all the disciples, both to reassure them and to boost morale.

"Next, the focus of the sect's development will be on the Heavenly Craft Hall. I need the Heavenly Craft Hall to specialize in formations and magical artifacts. I will allow you to recruit another one hundred people specifically to study formations and magical artifacts. Every disciple can learn the basic texts of formations. In addition, I will also establish a reward system to encourage the Heavenly Craft Hall disciples to create. The demonic wood will also belong to the Heavenly Craft Hall."

Li Qingqiu looked at Zhu Yan seriously and said this. As soon as he said this, the other hall masters' expressions changed slightly, and they also stared at the demon wood.

That demonic wood could withstand attacks from the eighth level of the Qi Nourishing Realm. It was highly valuable for making weapons or armor. Before they could even ask for it, Li Qingqiu directly allocated it to the Heavenly Craft Hall.

Zhu Yan was naturally overjoyed and quickly thanked Li Qingqiu.

Li Qingqiu glanced at everyone and said, "I know what you're thinking, but instead of turning them into weapons, it's better to have Tiangong Hall forge them into magical artifacts. You need to understand one thing: the creations of Tiangong Hall will eventually flow into all halls and benefit the entire sect."

After hearing this, the hall masters felt it made sense and quickly explained that they agreed with it.

Li Qingqiu didn't take their petty thoughts to heart, and then brought up other development plans.

After the end of the year, the Demon Control Hall will be officially established, and Li Qingqiu will personally impart his demon control knowledge. At the same time, the Source Iron Blessed Land will also be opened to his disciples, and he plans to build a small city around the port.

Li Qingqiu had many plans, which everyone memorized. They didn't find them troublesome; on the contrary, they felt highly motivated.

Developing their sect was a very reassuring thing for them. They had originally worried that Li Qingqiu would become arrogant after destroying the Qi clan, but now they realized that they had worried too much.

Unbeknownst to them, the hall masters also began to look forward to the future described by Li Qingqiu, hoping that Qingxiao Sect would become a true immortal cultivation sect.

As the moon set and the sun rose, the next morning, disciples of the Imperial Spirit Hall went to various courtyards on both peaks to post notices exposing the crimes of the Qi Clan and the Ancient God.

The news quickly spread throughout the Qingxiao Sect, causing all the disciples to curse the Qi family and marvel at the power of the sect leader and the Sword God.

Li Qingqiu instructed Zhang Yuchun to specifically point out Shen Yue's achievements. Of course, in the end, he still criticized Shen Yue, saying that Shen Yue had failed to fully implement the sect's orders.

Even so, Shen Yue still stole the show. He was quite satisfied after reading the notice, and he didn't care about the sect's criticism of him.

After Qingxiao Sect resolved the crisis, a large number of disciples began to go down the mountain to carry out missions. Some of these disciples wanted to go to the martial arts world to spread the sect leader's achievements, fearing that the matter had not been known to the world.

Inside the cave, Li Qingqiu sat on a stone bed, holding the Soul Refining Flag, as he read the memories of an ancient god.

The ancient god had lived for over a thousand years, and its memories were incredibly vast, making it difficult for Li Qingqiu to fully grasp them in a short period of time.

Li Qingqiu withdrew his spiritual sense and breathed a sigh of relief.

Since the Qi clan came into contact with the ancient gods, they have not been involved with any more powerful forces.

Back then, the Qi family fell into decline, and the ancient god was trapped in the deep mountains. The two sides helped each other.

Seeing Li Qingqiu open her eyes, Nangong E leaned closer and asked, "Master, that tree demon might still have other tricks up its sleeve, right?"

That day, after Li Qingqiu killed the ancient god, the ground shook. Nangong E and Lin Chuan secretly investigated and found many underground passages, as if they had been drilled out by some huge creature. They suspected that it was the work of the ancient god's roots.

After most of the day's investigation, they discovered that the ancient god did indeed have several broken roots that had disappeared.

“Indeed, but there’s no need to worry. It’s like giving birth to offspring, not a means of resurrection. Moreover, for those roots to grow to the size and strength of an ancient god, they would have to wait a thousand years,” Li Qingqiu replied.

This is why the ancient gods cannot be completely eradicated; once they die, their roots automatically detach and burrow deep into the earth.

Li Qingqiu learned this from the memories of the ancient god, something that even the ancient god could not control.

It is worth mentioning that the ancient god's soul took human form because it was very close to the next major realm. It was equivalent to the ninth level of the Nourishing Essence Realm, just one step away from the Spiritual Consciousness Realm.

But it was this one step away that caused it to stagnate for many years.

Li Qingqiu guessed that the reason it could not break through was because it lacked a method to do so.

He was different; the Taiqing Hunyuan Scripture recorded the method for breakthrough, but it only required a suitable opportunity.

Hearing Li Qingqiu say this, Nangong E was completely relieved.

Chu Jing suddenly appeared and said, "Master, could you create a spell so that I can also become your fighting tool, just like Shen Yue uses his sword spirit?"

As a sword spirit, he was unable to participate in the battle, which made him feel somewhat aggrieved when he thought about it afterwards.

Li Qingqiu glanced at him and said, "You should start cultivating first. I'll make sure you get what you need later."

"Thank you, Master!" Chu Jing quickly bowed in gratitude.

Nangong E and Lin Chuan also floated over and asked Li Qingqiu for help, as they also wanted to share more of the combat duties. He could only agree to both of them, saying that he would think about creating suitable spells later.

……

A thousand-year-old tree demon has appeared in the Qi family, and the Qingxiao Sect Master heads north to slay the demon!

This news alarmed Cangzhou and then spread to Weizhou, Beiliangzhou, and Zhongtianzhou. Because the news involved the Qi family and Li Qingqiu, it aroused strong curiosity among those who heard it, and the word spread like wildfire, reaching the whole world.

As the year draws to a close.

Han Lang and other disciples of the Sword Sect brought Zhou Ya back. Facing Li Qingqiu, Zhou Ya knelt down and tearfully recounted his actions.

Upon hearing that Zhou Ya was not passing on the Hunyuan Scripture, but rather a self-created cultivation technique, Li Qingqiu's expression softened.

No wonder the hint said that this matter had profound significance for the sect; Qingxiao Sect was essentially playing the role of Yang Xuan, the Dao Ancestor of the Human World.

Li Qingqiu was also seriously considering this matter.

He felt that such things could not be stopped, and that one day other cultivation sects and families would rise up, making it difficult for them to threaten the status of Qingxiao Sect.

Even if it cannot be completely eliminated, Li Qingqiu hopes to delay the pace of this trend as much as possible.

"Considering your good intentions, you may be spared the death penalty, but you will not escape punishment. For the next three years, you will be demoted to a menial disciple and will not be allowed to leave the sect," Li Qingqiu said, staring at Zhou Ya.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Ya was overjoyed and quickly thanked Li Qingqiu.

After expressing his gratitude, Zhou Ya cautiously asked, "What about my disciples who are outside?"

Li Qingqiu glared at him and said irritably, "Do you think I'm a bloodthirsty person who insists on exterminating everyone?"

Zhou Ya breathed a sigh of relief and was deeply moved. He thanked Li Qingqiu again on behalf of his disciple.

Han Lang, standing to the side, also felt admiration for Li Qingqiu. If he were the sect leader, he felt he might not be able to be so magnanimous.

"I will have someone write this down and post it in each academy as a warning to the disciples: you may face criticism in the future, so be prepared."

Li Qingqiu stared at Zhou Ya and continued, explaining that he did this for two reasons: first, to warn him, and second, to plant a seed so that if the Qingxia Sect were to truly develop in the future, the disciples would remember this incident and know that the Qingxia Sect's cultivation methods originated from the Qingxiao Sect.

No matter how the world develops in the future, Qingxiao Sect must remain the orthodox path of cultivation!

No sect or family in the world is allowed to cultivate the Hunyuan Scripture. If discovered, they will be exterminated.

Of course, it would be even better if Qingxiao Sect were the only cultivation sect in the entire Nine Provinces.

(End of this chapter)