The Modern Martial Immortal

Don't wash your dirty linen in public.

Naturally, the Penglai Immortal Sect would not go around publicizing how Leng Qingqiu, a deputy sect master of the Penglai Immortal Sect, and two palace masters, Zheng Yang and Xuan Yin, all of them great Void-Refining cultivators, had attacked Yaoguang together yet still failed to capture him.

As for the matter of the Heaven-Swallowing Demon King, the Penglai Immortal Sect did not announce it either.

It merely ended its previous strategy and resumed its outward campaigns.

It did not even explain whether the Heaven-Swallowing Demon King had died, much less who had killed him.

Yaoguang paid no attention to this.

The Penglai Immortal Sect had not announced who had killed the Heaven-Swallowing Demon King, which clearly meant they had left themselves some leeway in this matter.

As for what kind of leeway it was, he would probably only find out when he returned to the Penglai Immortal Sect and took out the Heaven-Swallowing Demon King’s corpse.

Yaoguang was too lazy to think about it. His psychic mind was focusing on further comprehending Void Flicker. More precisely, he was absorbing the comprehension of this Dao Technique, something he had obtained from the ancient tree.

However, there were countless complex profundities involved. It was only when the Heavenly Ruin Hall’s warship was about to arrive at the Heavenly Dao Sect that he finally managed to master this life-bound Dao Technique.

The maximum range of movement has increased from the limit of five thousand kilometers to fifteen thousand kilometers. But that isn’t the main point. The main point is that its activation speed has doubled, the void ripples needed during activation have decreased by more than half, and the traces left behind after flickering are far harder to detect...

Yaoguang sensed it briefly and was quite satisfied with the changes in Void Flicker.

With Void Flicker at the mastery stage, ordinary Void-Piercing cultivators would probably find it very difficult to detect the trajectory of his Void Flicker.

In other words, those Void-Piercing cultivators who became his enemies would not even have noticed his position before he had already appeared behind them and directly delivered a fatal strike.

Likewise, even if he was surrounded by many Void-Piercing cultivators, once he flickered away, no one would be able to immediately pursue him based on the traces he left behind.[Editor's note: never really looked like Void-Piercing opponents could do much about his movement ability, but I double-checked the raw and the author is indeed using Void-Piercing Realm cultivators as reference here.]

However, while every aspect has improved comprehensively, the consumption has also increased significantly. In the past, with the stability of my grotto-heaven, I could cast Void Flicker three to four hundred times in one go. Now, if I use it at full power, I’m afraid I can only manage thirty to forty times. Yaoguang calculated inwardly.

Thirty to forty times seemed like quite a lot, but a battle to the death did not only involve instant movement. It also included offensive techniques.

If Void Sword’s consumption also increased drastically after reaching the mastery stage, then thirty to forty times would become only a dozen times, twenty at most.

After a few exchanges, he would have no choice but to withdraw from the battlefield because he could no longer sustain the energy expenditure.

Of course, a battle to the death was not a turn-based game where every skill had a fixed cost. He could reduce Void Flicker’s range according to his needs to reduce the cost and keep his grotto-heaven stable for longer.

Therefore, the sooner he raised all the Dao Techniques he had mastered to the mastery stage, the better.

If I had already practiced Void Flicker to the mastery stage when I fought the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Emperor, even if he had used the power of a demon paragon, he still would not have escaped my pursuit. If the Void Sword’s level had risen as well, even if he could block my first sword, he would not have been able to block the second. He would not even have had the chance to take out the demon paragon’s power and flee.

He had to find a way to push the progress of the Immortal Dao(Void-Shattering Realm) branch further, then advance the Starlight Glass Body, True Spirit Light, Heaven-Devouring Kunpeng Technique, and Supreme Selflessness Dao Techniques.

If he could also advance the Sovereign Human Emperor Dao Technique, that would be even better.

Once these shortcomings were made up for, and he forged high-grade or even top-grade Dao Artifacts tailored to these Dao Techniques, he would not be afraid of directly facing a Void-Shattering cultivator.

"My lord, we have arrived at the Heavenly Dao Sect," Qi Sha said.

"Good. Have the warship go straight to Nine Cauldrons Peak," Yaoguang said. "Of course, there is no need to force anyone who is unwilling to follow."

"Everyone is willing to serve at your side," Qi Sha said with a smile.

Having the warship fly directly to the Nine Cauldrons Peak was undoubtedly a public declaration to the rest of the Heavenly Dao Sect that the Heavenly Ruin Hall had joined Yaoguang.

"Then let’s go." As Yaoguang spoke, he directly left the warship’s interior and arrived on the deck.

In the distance, the Heavenly Dao Sect, surrounded by immortal light, had already appeared before them.

When the disciples responsible for patrolling the surroundings saw this warship from afar, they all bowed respectfully to show their reverence.

Seeing this, Yaoguang no longer concealed his aura.

The power of his grotto-heaven and the power of the void intertwined, flowing back and forth as one, indistinguishable from each other.

Ordinary disciples could not understand the profundity in what they were seeing. They only felt that Yaoguang seemed even more unfathomable than before.

However, Jin Yuliu, the Void-Piercing elder who happened to be on duty, looked up from afar at the figure openly passing by on the warship, and his eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

"How is this possible?!" He abruptly stood up, involuntarily chasing a few steps in the direction the warship was flying, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"Master?" The disciples beside him were somewhat confused.

But Jin Yuliu no longer paid them any attention. His eyes remained fixed on the warship without blinking as he sensed how perfectly the figure on the deck had harmonized with the power of the void. For a moment, he almost thought he was hallucinating.

"Is that... Young Sect Master Yaoguang?" One disciple recognized the figure on the warship.

Seeing him ride the warship so ostentatiously through the sky above the sect, and knowing that his master’s relationship with Yaoguang was only average, one disciple hurriedly tried to show loyalty. "How long has Young Sect Master Yaoguang even been in the Void-Piercing Realm for? Yet he is already piloting a warship from a battle hall straight through the sky above the sect. If he stays in this position for another century or two, won’t he be acting like he owns the sect, looking down on everyone..."

Before this clever disciple could finish speaking, Jin Yuliu slapped him away.

"Shut your mouth!" he growled, his psychic thought filled with anger. "Are Young Sect Master Yaoguang’s actions something a junior like you can judge?! If I hear you say something like this again, I will directly cripple your cultivation and expel you from the sect!"

That disciple was completely stunned by the slap.

He had only wanted to say a few flattering words to please his master. How had it reached the point where he might be expelled from the sect?

But Jin Yuliu was too lazy to pay any further attention to them. He immediately rose into the air and flew toward the mountain peak where the heavenly lineage’s leader resided.

As he flew, he muttered, "The Void-Refining Realm... How is this possible? How could it be this fast?"

There was a faint trace of panic in his tone.

Jin Yuliu wasn't the only one feeling that way. There were many Void-Piercing elders in the Heavenly Dao Sect currently.

Yaoguang had piloted a battle hall's warship past them in an extremely high-profile manner, drawing the attention of many people.

And once they looked, all of them were shocked.

Void-Refining Realm! The phenomenon on Yaoguang’s body, where the power of his grotto-heaven and the power of the void have perfectly fused, is clearly a sign that he has reached the Void-Refining Realm.

How long has it been since Yaoguang advanced to the Void-Piercing Realm? And now he has already reached the Void-Refining Realm?!

The news started spreading through the upper circles of the Heavenly Dao Sect like a storm, being shared at unbelievable speed.

***

The Radiant Heaven Hall was reserved exclusively for the sect master of the Heavenly Dao Sect to handle affairs, whether great or small.

Countless array arts within the hall were transmitting information from the Heavenly Dao Sect and every domain under its jurisdiction, gathering all of it for Zong Wenxian.

These reports had already been screened by his assistants and carried no small weight. Otherwise, they would not have required him, the sect master, to handle them personally.

He was currently reviewing the eastern domain’s financial report.

"An extraterritorial fiend disaster? A group of fiends came from beyond the heavens, fell into the eastern domain, and caused massive destruction there, resulting in reduced production of the eastern domain’s most important resource, the Blood Spirit Fruit? They request a reduction in this year’s tribute quota? A reduction of fifty million Pure Yang Grand Pills?" Zong Wenxian sneered. "It looks like Shen Junyan is scheming again. I remember that last time, he used internal unrest in the eastern domain as an excuse to delay the quota of forty million Pure Yang Grand Pills. This time, he wants to cut another fifty million?"

After saying this, he called out, "Lang Ya."

"Master." Below, a refined and elegant-looking man with Void-Piercing Realm cultivation stood up, awaiting instructions.

"Tell Yuan Miaoyi and Zhou Xingdou to each have the immortal lineage and the battle lineage send one peak master, then lead three battle halls to the eastern domain. Say that we are helping them suppress the extraterritorial fiend disaster," Zong Wenxian said indifferently. "The eastern domain is also part of my Heavenly Dao Sect’s territory. Since it is in trouble, our sect naturally cannot stand by and do nothing."

"Yes." Lang Ya gave a fist-and-palm salute. As he transmitted the order with psychic thought, he took out a jade talisman. "Sect Master, these are the disciple records sent from the northern domain not long ago. Among three hundred and sixty people, only one qualified and became a true disciple."

"You want to say that he intercepted the talents and intends to nurture them himself?" Zong Wenxian said.

"Jiang Guike of the northern domain has always been respectful toward you, Master. Besides, the northern domain’s environment is slightly worse than the other three domains, and its population is also low. Perhaps there really were not enough talents. But..."

Lang Ya paused slightly. "Every deputy sect master is equivalent to a local ruler, beneath one person and above countless others. After staying in a local domain for too long, surrounded everywhere by people offering praise and flattery, it is inevitable that they may develop disloyal thoughts. Therefore, I suggest that you send an envoy there. This would not only show concern for this deputy sect master, but also serve as a warning, making him more obedient."

Zong Wenxian looked at his disciple and smiled faintly. He was satisfied with Lang Ya in every aspect.

Not only was he mature and steady in handling people and affairs, but he had only cultivated for a little over three hundred years and was already at the peak of the Void-Piercing Realm. He had even planted his Dao Seed and was making his final push toward the Void-Refining Realm.

At the fastest, it would take a few decades. At the slowest, a hundred years. He would certainly be able to successfully reach the Void-Refining Realm.

By then, a Void-Refining cultivator who was less than four hundred years old could be promoted to deputy sect master, take over the southern domain from him, and go there to assume command. No one would have a reason to object.

"You are right. In that case, you will go to the northern domain as my envoy. I will have a peak master accompany you," Zong Wenxian said.

"Thank you for your trust, Master. I will not disappoint you," Lang Ya replied politely.

Zong Wenxian nodded slightly. "I have reserved the southern domain for you. When you go to the northern domain, observe it properly and learn from it as preparation for taking over the southern domain when the time comes. Once you—"

Before he could finish, he sensed Yuan Miaoyi’s aura rapidly approaching.

Before the person arrived, his psychic thought came first. "Sect Master, something has happened. Young Sect Master Yaoguang has broken through to the Void-Refining Realm!"

Hearing Yuan Miaoyi’s hurried transmission, Zong Wenxian was slightly stunned and failed to react for a moment.

Only when Xiang Zhenlong’s psychic thought reached him a moment later, bringing the same news, did he abruptly rise to his feet. "What did you say?! Void-Refining Realm?!"

Yuan Miaoyi and Xiang Zhenlong arrived on their travel lights, appearing inside the hall. Their expressions were rather grave. "Yes."

Yuan Miaoyi, the leader of the immortal lineage, drew in a deep breath and said, "He displayed perfect harmony with void power and swaggered through the sky above our sect. Every Void-Piercing cultivator knows that he has already reached the Void-Refining Realm."

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