Starting with warding off evil and disaster, one can ascend to immortality after countless tribulati

Seeing Zheng Xin fast asleep, Jiang Ming calmly went over and woke him up.

She looked at Jiang Ming with a somewhat bewildered expression.

Zheng Xin was stunned. He looked around and saw that Wei Xingxiu had disappeared. His expression turned slightly ugly. After regaining his senses, he said incredulously.

"You defeated Wei Xingxiu? Well, that's nothing. Where is she? Why hasn't she come back to pack her things?"

"Could you help her out? She has something to do and can't come back for the time being."

Hearing Jiang Ming calmly say these words...

Even though Zheng Xin was slow to react, he realized what had happened.

If it weren't for the fact that they were currently within the sect and couldn't go too far, Zheng Xin would have preferred to take this opportunity to eliminate Jiang Ming.

However, what cannot be done is simply not possible.

Even though Zheng Xin was at the late stage of the eighth rank, he would not dare to violate the rules of the Myriad Laws Sect and attack Jiang Ming without a reason.

Otherwise, no one would care about his late-stage eighth-tier status, and his only fate would be death.

"You've got guts to mess with my people, but I wonder if you're really that strong."

Don't think that just because I'm not as strong as you, I can't directly challenge you and therefore can't cause you trouble. You just wait and see.

You won't have any peace for a while.

I will make you truly regret what you did today!

I'll make sure you never dare to leave the Ten Thousand Laws Sect for the rest of your life!

I will make you live the rest of your life in fear of me!!!

With a menacing snarl, Zheng Xin packed up the resources in the cave and took them away. He then went to the arena to check on the situation.

At this moment, Elder Duan frowned as he tried to heal Wei Xingxiu, but Jiang Ming's methods were very straightforward, leaving no possibility of recovery.

Without a doubt, this disciple is ruined, and his path of cultivation is cut off from now on.

"You should go down the mountain..." Elder Duan sighed and gave Wei Xingxiu a suggestion before turning away without saying anything more.

"Why didn't you stop him sooner? You're in cahoots with him, conspiring to frame me!"

"I hate you! You're unworthy of being a sect elder!" The voice roared sharply, and the sudden accusation left Elder Duan somewhat helpless.

From beginning to end, he followed the rules.

Unfortunately, Jiang Ming acted against the rules of the sect, and even if he wanted to stop him, he had no suitable reason. Now, he was facing Wei Xingxiu's questioning.

He didn't say anything, but a hint of annoyance flashed through his mind.

He didn't appreciate the kindness in Wei Xingxiu's heart. If I hadn't been there, Wei Xingxiu would already be a corpse.

After all, life-or-death battles are allowed on the dueling stage.

From a great distance, one could hear Wei Xingxiu crying and shouting, yelling loudly.

Upon closer inspection, Zheng Xin discovered that she was frantically cursing Elder Duan. Startled, he quickly stepped forward and covered her mouth.

She apologized hastily, "I'm so sorry for offending Elder Duan. Please forgive her this time, as you are a magnanimous person."

Elder Duan raised an eyebrow and nodded, looking indifferent. "Take her away. I won't waste my breath on someone with the mind of a child."

She's gone mad now, you should take good care of her...

Clenching his fists and looking into Wei Xingxiu's empty, lifeless eyes, Zheng Xin felt a pang of heartache, and his resentment towards Jiang Ming instantly filled his heart.

"Zheng Xin, you useless jerk, stay away from me."

"If it weren't for the Zheng family's elixir, you wouldn't be worthy of me..." Now, she had lost the restraint of reason.

Wei Xingxiu had gone mad, saying whatever came to mind.

Mentioning his sore spot inevitably caused Zheng Xin's expression to change.

He angrily slapped her, a hint of coldness flashing in his eyes, and after subduing her, immediately took her down the mountain to "deal with her properly."

I stepped on the still-moving soil.

With a wave of his hand, Zheng Xin unleashed a torrent of spiritual energy that instantly robbed Wei Xingxiu of her last chance of life. She looked back at the ninth-rank guest elder behind her.

Zheng Xin's face was full of respect. He gently rubbed his temples and said in a serious tone, "Senior, if you have the chance, you must kill this disciple named Jiang Ming for me."

I can't sleep until this man dies!

"Sure, as long as he comes down the mountain, I'll make sure he never returns."

"Without the protection of the Myriad Laws Sect, this person has absolutely no chance of survival against me."

After listening to the black-clad guest's explanation, Zheng Xin nodded emphatically, clearly having great confidence in his abilities.

"In that case, we'll leave this matter to Uncle Geng..."

"Young Master, please rest assured, this boy will not live for long. However, if he continues to hide in the sect, I'm afraid I won't have any good solutions."

Therefore, the young master also needs to use his connections within the sect to constantly put pressure on him. He seemed to have anticipated that Jiang Ming would not come down the mountain easily.

The black-robed guest elder took the initiative to remind Zheng Xin.

Nodding, a ruthless glint in his eyes, Zheng Xin exuded confidence in every move he made, and replied in a low voice.

"Don't worry, Uncle Geng. The world is bustling with people, all for profit. In this small corner of the inner sect, not many disciples dare to disobey my wishes."

I will drive him down the mountain as soon as possible. You can stay here and wait for a while.

After bidding farewell to the black-robed guest, he returned to the central courtyard.

Zheng Xin immediately began selecting personnel from the list.

Jiang Ming's strength is among the top in the mid-stage, but Zheng Xin doesn't believe that every one of these geniuses can subdue him.

He raised an eyebrow and pondered patiently for a moment.

Zheng Xin quickly decided on a candidate: a sword cultivator who was known for his swift and decisive actions. He believed that if he could persuade the sword cultivator to teach Jiang Ming a lesson, he would be able to get him to do so.

By severely injuring Jiang Ming, things will be much easier from here on out.

To stay in the Intermediate Court, one must maintain their ranking. Even if they lose, they must fight for a seat in order to remain in the Intermediate Court.

Once Jiang Ming is injured and his strength drops drastically, we can then use some methods to drive him away.

After spending a large sum of money to reach an agreement, Zheng Xin looked at the departing figure of the sword cultivator.

I'm already eagerly awaiting good news.

Meanwhile, in the cave, Jiang Ming, with Jin Xing's help, completely mastered the imagery of the ocean.

The imagery he grasped was one of the ocean's all-encompassing nature and its magnificent grandeur.

With the enhancement of the imagery, Jiang Ming can unleash twice his usual strength. Combined with the imagery of the Great Forest Tree, at his current level, even if he were to directly confront a late-stage eighth-level opponent, he could probably withstand over a hundred moves.

The disciple's jade pendant hanging from his waist moved slightly.

When Zheng Xin began to make his move, Jiang Ming was not afraid at all. He immediately walked to the arena, intending to see who was challenging him.

Upon arriving at the arena, Jiang Ming saw a young man standing with his hands behind his back, holding a sword, and instantly understood.

In order to force himself to leave the mountain, Zheng Xin spared no expense in hiring a sword cultivator with extremely high combat skills.

Although this person was only ranked eightyth, he was ranked after Jiang Ming.

But judging from his aura alone, Jiang Ming realized that this ranking was most likely the result of deliberate manipulation by the other party.

If the other party is willing, getting into the top 50 shouldn't be a problem.

Unfortunately, you're frying fish, and so am I.

Showing no fear whatsoever, the swordsman stepped onto the arena, gripped his longsword tightly, and instantly isolated himself from the influence of the Great Forest Wood imagery.

"Hmph, you didn't expect that, did you? This sword has the wonderful ability to dispel illusions. You can't influence me with your imagination."

Today, you are destined to lose.

Without commenting, Jiang Ming coughed lightly at the same time.

The atmosphere subtly shifted, and the original rich imagery of wood was replaced by a vast and boundless blue.

Sensing this boundless and all-encompassing imagery, the sword cultivator immediately felt something was amiss!

That beast Zheng Xin, the information he provided was completely fake!

You promised you'd only know how to use Great Wood and Hearth Fire.

What's going on with this ocean? It's really messed up for me.

Sensing the massive boost Jiang Ming received, the sword cultivator's expression turned grim. He concentrated all his thoughts and spiritual power and unleashed a fierce sword strike!

This move seems unremarkable.

However, it put considerable pressure on Jiang Ming. Although he was powerless to retaliate after the attack, the ability to use all of his spiritual power in an instant was extremely rare.

The clash of swords gradually subsided. Looking at Jiang Ming, who was unharmed, the sword cultivator looked somewhat helpless and lay motionless on the ground.

Although this opportunity could have completely crippled him, Jiang Ming clearly had no such intention. He simply tossed over a healing pill and sincerely praised him.

"This spell is quite impressive. Where did you obtain it? Would you be willing to make a deal with me?"

He swallowed the pill and stood up, somewhat surprised.

The swordsman didn't speak, but after a long silence, he tossed down a roll of parchment. "Thank you for showing mercy. There's no need for a deal."

This spell is one I created myself. If I can't kill someone with one sword strike, I will lose all my spiritual power...

"Good idea, does it have a name?"

"I call it Heaven and Earth Sword..." The sword cultivator calmly gave his answer, then went back to report the situation to Zheng Xin.

"What? You messed it up! Damn it, do you even deserve my sword? You can't even handle this little thing, what use are you?"

Upon hearing that the sword cultivators had suffered a defeat in their first battle, Zheng Xin immediately felt that something was amiss.

Right now, the strongest person he could find was this sword cultivator. If it were anyone else, it would probably be a waste of money and resources.

Could it be that we have to find a genius from the lower academy, train them to a higher level of cultivation, and then have them defeat Jiang Ming through a challenge?

Frowning, Zheng Xin felt somewhat constrained by the ranking system of the Intermediate People's Court.

Those who can defeat Jiang Ming cannot bully the weak and go to teach him a lesson.

Those who are weaker than Jiang Ming may be qualified to challenge him, but they cannot defeat him or even injure him.

Slightly dejected, Zheng Xin scratched his hair, his eyebrows furrowed, unable to think of a good solution for the moment.

If Jiang Ming really refuses to come down the mountain, then we can only start by targeting the people around him.

Find his weakness and use it to threaten him; you'll most likely succeed!

Gritting his teeth, Zheng Xin didn't dare to hesitate and immediately took action.

After several months, he was slightly stunned when he learned about Jiang Ming's interpersonal relationships.

For a moment, I felt like an ant on a hot pan, anxiously pacing around in circles.

Jiang Ming does have weaknesses; Zhou Yi, Ye Tao, and even Cheng Ya and Tuoba Youyou might all be considered weaknesses.

But these people all have very powerful backgrounds. Zhou Yi is the manager of the outer sect of the Wanfa Sect, but he is too old to leave.

Making a move against him would be about as difficult as attacking the outer gate.

Although the outer sect is much weaker than the inner sect, it still has elders at the ninth or even the perfect Qi Refining stage.

Sending a guest advisor to ambush Zhou Yi and force Jiang Ming to come down the mountain is nothing short of a fantasy.

As for attacking Ye Tao, Cheng Ya, and Tuoba Youyou, that would be even less feasible.

Although these three people had a good relationship with Jiang Ming, they all had powerful backgrounds. One of them was the Tongzhou Ye Family Chamber of Commerce, which seemed ordinary and was not a century-old family.

But the eldest son of the Ye family is now serving as a celestial official in Tongzhou!

Ye Tao is the elder sister of that celestial official. To harm her would be tantamount to courting death, since celestial officials have other celestial officers behind them. For someone like her, there are no bottlenecks in cultivation, and breakthroughs depend entirely on official rank.

Even the Zheng family wouldn't dare to offend them easily.

After all, no one can say for sure whether a minor official today will become a powerful figure in the future.

As for Cheng Ya, that's also a difficult situation.

Although the Zheng family is one of the four great families, its heritage far surpasses that of the Cheng family.

However, without a valid reason, targeting the most outstanding disciple of the Cheng family in this generation would be a price Zheng Xin could not afford.

Although he is the son of the family head, he has gone against the family's interests, and his father will definitely make him suffer without any mercy.

Finally, there's Tuoba Youyou, a member of the former imperial family. It sounds like they've fallen from grace, but even a starved camel is bigger than a horse.

The Tuoba family possesses the complete soul of a True Lord!

Although each revival comes at a huge cost, it is equivalent to a strategic nuclear weapon. If the Tuoba family is completely angered, they will explode.

The Zheng family may be at risk of being wiped out.

Turning his gaze to Jiang Ming, Zheng Xin was both angry and amused. He helplessly threw the documents on the ground, on the verge of tears.

Jiang Ming was a lonely man; he had no family.

Threatening him with the lives of his loved ones would make it even less likely that he would be allowed to leave the mountain.

After careful consideration, Zheng Xin was surprised to find that as long as Jiang Ming sincerely did not want to leave the mountain, even if he laid a trap, it would be in vain.

Scratching his hair, Zheng Xin swept all the clutter off the table and slammed it to the ground, still not satisfied.

This feeling of punching cotton was driving him crazy, but he was helpless and had no way to stop it!

They could only silently remember this grudge.

Unaware that Zheng Xin had gone to such great lengths to target him, Jiang Ming simply remained quietly cultivating in his cave.

I used the contribution points I earned each month to train and replenish resources like crazy.

Under the tutelage of the little black snake, the maid Qing'er has mastered a fifth-grade magic array, which can easily kill a late-stage eighth-level Qi Refining Realm cultivator.

If used properly, even a ninth-level cultivator would suffer a significant loss. However, the power of this formation is naturally tied to its energy consumption.

Even after numerous improvements.

The magic array still consumes a lot of spirit stones; ten thousand spirit stones are only enough to cover the cost of one incense stick.

This thing can be used to save one's life, but it shouldn't be used indiscriminately at other times. Otherwise, even with Jiang Ming's wealth, he wouldn't be able to afford the expenses of maintaining the magic array.

After three years of gradual progress, Jiang Ming finally broke through to the late stage of the eighth rank.

The reason for such a slow progress is the limited source of resources. Under Zheng Xin's threat, Jiang Ming dared not go down the mountain, and some precious resources were simply unavailable.

However, there was some good news during his seclusion.

Tuoba Youyou successfully entered the Central Academy and reached the mid-stage of the eighth rank, and is now Jiang Ming's neighbor.

If there's anything Jiang Ming needs, he can ask her to go out and buy it for him, which relieves some of the pressure.

If one's cultivation level is inferior to others, one is ultimately powerless to control one's own destiny.

Even a casual ninth-level cultivator could force him to stay away from the mountain for three years.

Damn it, once I break through to the ninth rank, I'll make sure your blood flows like a river!