bookpub A squad joined in Chapter 14.
A squad joined in Chapter 14.
The small airship slowly descended and landed in the old-fashioned airport. Xiong Zhou stood on the altar covered with the five elements patterns and looked around.
On the entire altar, very few true disciples at the first level of Qi Refining had gathered; only a few dozen stood scattered about.
Some of them, like Xiong Zhou, were alone, quietly waiting for the competition to begin.
Some of them formed small groups, clearly having reached some consensus and were going to join forces against the enemy.
Looking at all the true disciples present, Xiong Zhou felt a sudden chill run down his spine.
The auras of these peers were mostly obscure and difficult to discern, appearing unfathomable at first glance. Those whose secrets could be sensed by Xiong Zhou also gathered together.
"The number of true disciples at the first level of Qi Refining in the Tai Li Immortal Sect is much smaller than I imagined, but the depth and weight of their aura are also much stronger than I expected."
Xiong Zhou clicked his tongue in amazement.
"Including myself, there are a total of fifty-seven true disciples at the first level of Qi Refining. Of those, only five are absolutely certain of surpassing me in terms of skill level, breadth of understanding, and depth of principles?"
At this moment, all the disciples of the squad looked at Xiong Zhou. A girl with a purple hairpin and gorgeous clothes, about 1.4 meters tall, walked from the squad to Xiong Zhou.
The girl looked up at Xiong Zhou's stocky build, which was about 1.9 meters tall, and asked hesitantly, "Zi Xuan, have you met this... junior brother?"
"Junior brother, you look unfamiliar. Did you pass the true disciple assessment this year and advance from the inner sect?"
Xiong Zhou scratched his head, a slightly embarrassed smile on his face, and said, "Greetings, Senior Sister Zixuan. My surname is Xiong, and my given name is Zhou. I became a true disciple a year ago, not through the true disciple assessment from the inner disciples."
Upon hearing this, all fifty-six disciples looked at Xiong Zhou, whether alone or in small groups, their eyes filled with obvious astonishment.
Is this a genuine skill acquired through back channels?
Is it possible to advance from an inner disciple to a true disciple in the Tai Li Immortal Sect through back channels?
Zi Xuan, standing in front of Xiong Zhou, gaped open in shock.
However, Zixuan quickly composed herself and coughed lightly.
"Excuse me, I was rude."
"To be able to advance directly from the inner sect to the true disciple without passing the true disciple assessment, Junior Brother Xiong Zhou's background must be very strong."
Xiong Zhou thought carefully about the possible background he might have.
My dad, who often fishes by the river with buckets in his arms, and my mom, who often likes to plant things in the fields, and Uncle Lu, who frequently comes to our house for a private meal...
Xiong Zhou nodded and said, "I know an elder from a sect in my family."
"hiss!"
"hiss!"
"hiss!"
A series of gasps echoed across the altar, and the gazes of the fifty-six disciples toward Xiong Zhou all changed.
Holding a paper fan, a disciple resembling a young master from a wealthy family murmured, "To become a sect elder of the Tai Li Immortal Sect, one must at least reach the seventh level of Qi Refining, which is already considered an attainment of immortality!"
Standing beside this young master, a young man dressed like the son of a wealthy landowner exclaimed in amazement, "No wonder he was able to become a true disciple through connections; this Junior Brother Xiong Zhou's background is incredibly powerful!"
A girl with pigtails, carrying a wooden box and wearing a straw hat, covered her mouth with her hands and exclaimed softly, "This junior brother Xiong Zhou's strength is terrifyingly powerful!"
A plain-looking boy, carrying a long spear with a red tassel and a large bow, who seemed to have little presence, looked at the girl carrying a wooden box and asked, "Our little medicine god, have you seen through some of this junior brother's secrets?"
The girl shook her head, looked at Xiong Zhou with an indescribable light in her eyes, and slowly said, "I can't figure out what's going on with this Junior Brother Xiong Zhou..."
"But think about it, to survive against hundreds of millions of enemies and be born into this kind of background, isn't that an unparalleled and powerful strength?"
"Such abilities, such fortune, are definitely not something a normal living being could possess..."
The young master of the wealthy family was stunned for a moment, the young man who looked like a rich tycoon stopped, and the boy who didn't seem to have much presence at all opened his mouth wide.
Not only were they somewhat stunned, but the other disciples also twitched their lips slightly upon hearing the girl's logic.
They turned to look at the girl carrying the wooden box, wanting to refute her, but unsure where to begin, and ultimately fell silent.
The more they thought about it, the more they felt that this junior brother Xiong Zhou was terrifyingly strong.
These words stunned Xiong Zhou.
From this perspective, he does seem quite strong?
Zi Xuan coughed lightly again, and with a hint of anticipation, she said to Xiong Zhou, "I am the captain of one of the teams, and I would like to invite Junior Brother Xiong Zhou to join us in preparing for the upcoming True Disciple Ranking Competition."
Zixuan pointed to the young master from a wealthy family, the boy who looked just like a rich magistrate, the boy who didn't have much presence, and the girl carrying a wooden box.
Xiong Zhou's eyes lit up. Was someone teaming up to help him score points?
Without much thought, he immediately agreed to the request of the 1.4-meter-tall girl in front of him.
"Of course, I'd be very happy to join Senior Sister Zixuan's team!"
Xiong Zhou's tone was filled with obvious joy.
Xiong Zhou's quick agreement surprised Zi Xuan and left the other teams that were preparing to invite him feeling a little disappointed.
"To be able to invite Junior Brother Xiong Zhou, who has such a powerful background, Senior Sister Zi Xuan's luck has really turned around. It seems that in this True Disciple Ranking Competition, Senior Sister Zi Xuan is likely to get a higher ranking and win more sect resources."
"I have already participated in two sessions of the True Disciple Competition for the first level of Qi Refining. This is the last session of the True Disciple Competition for the first level of Qi Refining. I originally wanted to invite this Junior Brother Xiong Zhou to get a good result so that he could become a True Disciple for the second level of Qi Refining. I was a step too late."
"The addition of a true disciple with a strong background is definitely a powerful ally, even if this junior brother Xiong Zhou has no experience in the ranking competition of true disciples."
The disciples, who had formed small teams, whispered among themselves, looking at the team led by Zixuan with a hint of envy in their eyes.
The disciple, standing alone on the altar, looked at Xiong Zhou with a hint of wariness and apprehension.
Zixuan pulled Xiong Zhou into the team's room and set up a soundproof array.
She gestured to one of the team members and introduced him, "This guy, who looks like a young master from a wealthy family, is named Li Tianqing. Like Junior Brother Xiong Zhou, he is a third-generation cultivator. His parents and grandfather have all reached the fourth level of Qi Refining."
Li Tianqing put away the paper fan painted with ink landscape and cupped her hands in a respectful gesture towards Xiong Zhou.
He smiled and said, "Li Tianqing greets Junior Brother Xiong Zhou."
"My innate supernatural power involves the Dao of Void and has strong practicality. I possess the Dao of Ink Painting, and have a certain affinity and blessing for the Dao of Water, the Dao of Painting, the Dao of Void, and the Dao of Ink Painting. Currently, my understanding of the laws of heaven and earth mainly focuses on 'Ink Painting,' and I have not yet delved into the others. My accompanying artifact is the Ink Painting Landscape Fan in my hand."
Zi Xuan reached out and took the hand of the young man who looked like a wealthy landowner, and introduced him with a smile: "This guy who looks like an ordinary rich kid is called Wu Kang, and he's the husband my family has arranged for me."
"Similarly, he was also a third-generation cultivator, with a grandfather who was at the fourth level of Qi Refining. He and I were betrothed since birth, and he was also my childhood sweetheart."
"In the squad, the main responsibility is to attack first. They possess two accompanying weapons: the Dragon Bow and the Dragon Spear. They have innate abilities that enhance their offensive power. They also have a special physique that excels in prolonged battles, further boosting their combat strength."
Wu Kang, somewhat nonchalantly, nodded to Xiong Zhou.
Before Zixuan could introduce herself, the girl carrying the wooden box introduced herself: "My name is Duanmu Ning. I come from a family of doctors. In the team, I am mainly responsible for treating injuries, identifying medicinal herbs, and refining pills on the spot."
She patted the wooden box behind her and gave a thumbs up. "The herbal medicine box, my companion artifact, is a small world with incomplete laws and principles, which can provide me with ample herbal resources for the first level of Qi Refining."
"Possessing a body that embodies the Dao of Medicine, I am naturally compatible with the Dao of Wood, the Dao of Elixir, and the Dao of Herbs. My innate supernatural power is a Dao of Medicine and Elixir with a certain growth potential, which can currently assist me in refining medicine, making elixirs, and identifying the medicinal properties of herbs."
Zi Xuan pointed to herself and said, "Let me reintroduce myself to Junior Brother Xiong Zhou. I come from a family specializing in array formations. My main responsibilities include surveying the earth's veins, establishing large arrays, constructing defensive lines, setting up arrays within the team, and commanding and making judgments."
"Possessing the Earth Array Dao Body provides a certain boost to the formation of arrays utilizing earth veins. My accompanying artifact is the Earth Array Dao Flag, which enhances my array-setting ability. My innate supernatural power belongs to the category of Heavenly Calculation, which I generally use for geological deductions such as earth veins, earth energy, and dragon veins, but it can also be used for tasks such as command, decision-making, and judgment."
Zixuan looked at Xiong Zhou with anticipation in her eyes.
"I wonder which aspect Junior Brother Xiong Zhou excels at, given his innate supernatural abilities, special physique, or innate artifact?"
"The True Disciple Competition has changed this time; it involves entering the outer realms. I need Junior Brother Xiong Zhou's basic information to make corresponding plans."
Xiong Zhou's expression faltered slightly.
They possess innate supernatural powers, special physiques, and innate special abilities—and most of them are among the best in these categories!
Is this the true value of Tai Li's teachings?
After a moment of silence, Xiong Zhou said, "My innate divine ability is unprecedented in the Tai Li Immortal Sect, and I have named it 'Pixel Cube'."
"It enhances my cultivation speed to a certain extent, allowing me to ignore the numerous minor bottlenecks that I might encounter within a major realm, and it can improve my efficiency in utilizing resources."
"Currently, I can assimilate soil and magma into pixels, transforming them into matter and energy that I control."
Zi Xuan, Wu Kang, Li Tianqing, and Duanmu Ning pondered for a moment and nodded slightly.
According to this junior brother Xiong Zhou, this innate supernatural power called "Pixel Cube" does not seem outstanding in terms of attack or defense, but its practicality in cultivation is exceptionally high.
With their exceptional talent as disciples of the Tai Li lineage, they wouldn't encounter any bottlenecks at the first or second level of Qi Refining.
However, starting from the third level of Qi Refining, if one is unlucky, there is a chance of encountering some intractable bottlenecks, and it is common to be stuck in them for hundreds or thousands of years without being able to break through.
At this point, one must either cultivate oneself in quiet meditation to gradually break through the bottleneck over time, or utilize resources for enlightenment to forcefully overcome the corresponding bottleneck.
Whether it's the time cost or other costs, it's a significant issue.
This is especially true after entering the fourth level of Qi Refining.
Therefore, it is best to conserve resources for spiritual practice whenever possible.
If what Junior Brother Xiong Zhou said is true, that innate divine ability allows him to ignore numerous minor bottlenecks within a major realm, and among all the innate divine abilities recorded by the Tai Li Immortal Sect, it has a certain chance of ranking at the "upper-middle" level.
This will save a lot of cultivation resources and time, and the future path of cultivation will definitely be much smoother.
Zixuan's eyes held a hint of expectation.
She looked at her sturdy junior brother in front of her and asked with a smile, "Junior Brother Xiong Zhou's innate supernatural power is already so great. Compared to his special physique, his accompanying artifacts must also be extraordinary, right?"
Xiong Zhou scratched his head, a slightly embarrassed smile appearing on his face. "Well, actually I don't have any special physical abilities, nor do I have any accompanying devices..."
Xiong Zhou's voice grew softer and softer, and the more Zi Xuan, Wu Kang, Li Tianqing, and Duanmu Ning listened, the wider their eyes became.
"hiss!"
"He only has one innate supernatural ability, no special physique, and no accompanying artifacts?"
"Junior Brother Xiong Zhou must be joking, right?"
"That's amazing!"
Zi Xuan, Wu Kang, and Li Tianqing immediately turned their gazes to Duanmu Ning, causing her cheeks to flush slightly.
Duanmu Ning stuck out her tongue and said softly, "I don't think you're wrong."
"Think about it, we all have innate supernatural powers, special physiques, and innate artifacts. Our families had to do almost everything to support us in order to pass the true disciple assessment and advance from inner disciples to Tai Li true disciples."
"Junior Brother Xiong Zhou has no special physique, no innate artifacts, and yet he became a true disciple solely through an innate divine ability. Doesn't this mean he's even more powerful than we imagined?"
Zi Xuan, Wu Kang, and Li Tianqing, the three true disciples, paused slightly.
From this particular perspective, it seems to better prove the "value" of this junior brother Xiong Zhou.
Moreover, this special "value" is something that they combined cannot achieve.
Upon hearing this, Xiong Zhou's mouth opened slightly, his pupils dilated, and a bright smile appeared on his face.
To praise him from this angle... Senior Sister Duanmu, you're truly talented!
Praise him more, he loves to hear it!
When he truly attains immortality in the future, he will never forget Senior Sister Duanmu's praise!
Wu Kang looked slightly dazed. "Is...that's how it is..."
Li Tianqing opened the paper fan in her hand, fanning herself gently. After a moment of contemplation, she slowly nodded, "Yes, that should be the case. Junior Sister Duanmu is right."
Zixuan's eyelids twitched, and her lips trembled, but in the end she said nothing.
She took a deep breath. This "extremely powerful" junior brother Xiong Zhou, since she had invited him, must naturally be a member of their team.
Just make a plan and get things arranged.