Spirit Realm

Normally, Tong Jihua appeared to be kind and easygoing. It was rare to find any kind of sharpness in his aura.

However, when he mentioned the Blood Spear, at this very moment, it was as if he had become a sharp sword that struck fear in people’s hearts.

“Netherpassage Realm!”

Qin Lie cried out on the inside as he stared at the current Tong Jihua. There was fearful respect within his eyes.

Jiu Liuye, who had suddenly shown up at Ling Town and took away Ling Yushi and Ling Xuanxuan sisters, was also at the Netherpassage Realm. She was the valley master of Seven Fiends Valley’s Dark Fiend Valley and was someone who was on par with a person such as Dark Asura Hall’s hall master, Yuan Tianya.

Among Black Iron forces, a martial practitioner within the Netherpassage Realm could be counted as a top rank fighter.

Tong Jihua didn’t normally bare his fangs, but the moment he unleashed his aura, he actually revealed himself to be in Netherpassage Realm. This caused Qin Lie to have a clear recognition of Armament Sect—they truly were a Black Iron force!

Tong Jihua’s actions had caused Qin Lie to respect him a little more after knowing that he would not fear Dark Shadow Tower’s tower master and would take down Liang Shaoyang according to Armament Sect’s rules.

“Elder Tong!” The martial practitioner who left earlier abruptly appeared once more with utmost shock brimming in his eyes. He hurriedly yelled, “The plaza! The plaza…”

“What?” Tong Jihua frowned.

“The spirit pattern pillars have changed!” The person’s voice had even shivered slightly. “Liang Shaoyang is right beneath a spirit inscription pilar. It seems that he... he has caused a reaction in a spirit pattern pillar! Elder Tong, I believe you should have a look yourself!”

The moment the words were said, everyone’s expression changed. They rushed out of the cultivation room and towards the plaza almost in unison.

Qin Lie was also extremely shocked.

The twelve spirit pattern pillars in the plaza was the core of the foundation of Armament Sect. It was also the greatest proof of the talent of an Armament Sect disciple.

Any outer sect disciple who could cause a change in the spirit pattern pillars and understand the wonders of the designs of a spirit pattern pillar would immediately step foot into the inner sect and be treated with the utmost care by all sect masters and elders. They would be seen and raised as Armament Sect’s future and could waste Armament Sect’s spirit materials all they want.

For nine hundred years, since Armament Sect was founded, there were only twenty seven people who could cause a change in the spirit pattern pillars and understood the wonders of those designs.

Every one of these twenty seven people were Armament Sect’s pride and the darling of that era!

They were the true cornerstone of Armament Sect!

For the past tens of years, Tang Siqi and Mo Hai were the only ones to have learned the wonders of the spirit pattern pillars’ diagrams, and Mo Hai was now the number one elder in the inner sect and was a publicly acknowledged master artificer. Tang Siqi had also shown incredible talent in artifact forging, and her future was limitless.

Would Liang Shaoyang possibly be the third?

With this question in mind, Qin Lie, Tang Siqi, and Lian Rou followed elder Tong Jihua’s footsteps and swiftly rushed to the plaza at the foot of the hill.

Tong Jihua was extremely anxious and had disappeared in a flash. He did not wait for them.

When the trio had arrived at the plaza, they realized that the entire plaza was bright under the dark night, and many lamps had been hung high in the air. Many inner and outer sect disciples had rushed over when they heard the news and stared, with utmost shock, at that one spirit pattern pillar.

Beneath that spirit pattern pillar, Liang Shaoyang sat straight with his eyes closed as if he was learning something.

Above the spirit pattern pillars, those diagrams etched with demons and monsters came alive. They either had wings behind their backs, had three heads and six arms, or dragged a long tail behind them. Their skins were all greenish purple, and they screamed noiselessly on the spirit pattern pillar as if they would break free of their restraints and escape.

Countless tight webs were entangled on the demons and monsters’ bodies, tightening constantly and preventing them from escaping the shackles of the huge webs no matter how they struggled.

Liang Shaoyang sat right beneath that spirit pattern pillar.

The wondrous and huge complex webs above the spirit pattern pillars shone with many colors onto Liang Shaoyang’s body. It was as if it had built a faint connection with Liang Shaoyang and he had completely figured out the miraculous wonders of the picture where demons and monsters were bound.

“So, so he did figure out its wonders. That is how he managed to cause a bizarre change in the spirit pattern pillar so suddenly.” After Tong Jihua arrived, his expression was filled with shock.

“Dong!” The melodious sound of a bell ringing came from above Flame Volcano.

“It’s the sect master. The sect master has come out of seclusion!”

Many inner and outer Armament Sect disciples cried out after hearing the ringing sound.

It was midnight, and there were countless people who were either asleep, cultivating, or practicing inscribing spirit diagrams. When they heard the bell, every Armament Sect elder, disciple, and reverend’s expressions changed as they realized that a change had happened in Armament Sect. They could not help but walk out to have a look.

Very soon, they realized the plaza beneath Flame Volcano had many sect disciples present.

Therefore the six great elders of inner sect, the three reverends, the sixteen disciples, the three outer sect elders, more than ninety disciples, and the numerous foreign delegates from outside the city...

Anyone who was a part of Armament Sect had gathered beside the plaza the moment they heard the bell.

Just because Liang Shaoyang had caused a change in a single spirit pattern pillar, the entire Armament Sect had come alive in the middle of the night. Every elder or disciple, be it secluding, forging, or cultivating, had come out and joined the fray.

Qin Lie lifted his head and saw many figures flying down from above Flame Volcano under the moonlight. He could not help but be rattled on the inside.

There were a total of seven great elders in the inner sect, and other than Mo Hai, who had gone out and not returned yet, all six elders of the sect had come down from the mountain!

The three elderly inner sect reverends were so old that every hair on their body was white. Under the six elders’ care and accompaniment, they too trembled on their way from the top of the mountain.

The reverends of the inner sect were all elders from a generation earlier. Because they were older and that they had run into a problem with their realms, they could not continue to forge artifacts. That was why they cultivated their bodies and minds for years on top of the mountain with the status of a Reverend. Every one of them was older than the sect master himself, and the Chief Reverend was even the master of the current sect master.

It was only when a huge change had happened to the sect that the three reverends would appear and assist the sect master in making a decision.

Tonight, the three reverends who had not gone down the mountain for a few years appeared together with the sect master, Ying Xingran, on the plaza as they stood together beside Liang Shaoyang.

“Greetings, Sect Master!”

“Greetings, Reverends!”

“Greetings, Elders!”

The inner and outer sect disciples hurriedly bowed and saluted.

Ying Xingran’s eyes were shining as he swept his gaze across the crowd, nodded to Tong Jihua, and smiled lightly at Tang Siqi before looking to Liang Shaoyang with an excited expression. “Good, very good! To think that yet another genius has appeared in our sect! Very good!”

While speaking, the demons and monsters on the spirit pattern pillar above Liang Shaoyang slowly stopped struggling and turned into an inanimate object once more.

The huge webs that trapped the demons and monsters continued to shine with multiple colors. It took a while before it slowly stopped, finally faded into the spirit pattern pillar and lost its wonders completely.

Ying Xingran glowed red at his cheeks as he raised his hands for everyone to keep silent while patiently waiting to the side.

When the outer sect disciples had entered, he did not exit seclusion. When Cloud Sky Mountain’s Mountain Master passed by Armament City, he did not come out to meet him either.

But when he heard that someone had caused a change in the spirit pattern pillars, he came out of seclusion in the middle of the night even though he had arrived at a critical juncture in the process of artifact forging. Hence, one could see exactly how much importance he had attached to this matter.

The sect master, the three great reverends, and every outer and inner sect elder had gathered as one in the middle of the night. This was yet another grand occasion in Armament Sect!

Everyone’s eyes were focused on Liang Shaoyang. The envy in their eyes could not be hidden at all. At this very moment, Liang Shaoyang was without a doubt the focus of everyone’s eyes, and from now onwards, his path in Armament Sect would be a straight gallop across the plains.

No one would be able to stop Liang Shaoyang’s footsteps.

Countless envious gazes fell upon Liang Shaoyang. After a long while, Liang Shaoyang slowly opened his eyes. At first he was still a little dazed. Then, he came to shocked realization. He was surprised by the scene of the surging crowd all around him and that the sect master, the three great reverends, and every elder in the sect had gathered as one.

“Quickly, greet the sect master, the three reverends, and every elder!” An outer sect elder, Cheng Ping, reminded him in a soft tone.

“Greetings, elders. Greetings…” Liang Shaoyang said respectfully.

“You may forego the formalities. Ying Xinran waved a hand before walking over with kindness in his eyes and high spirits. He smiled and asked, “What have you learned from the spirit pattern pillar?”

“A diagram, the Celestial Sealing Demon Diagram. But my understanding is not that deep yet…” After recalling for a moment, Liang Shaoyang answered respectfully.

“The Celestial Sealing Demon Diagram!” Ying Xingran’s eyes brightened as he laughed cheerfully and looked towards Liang Shaoyang with satisfaction. He nodded and said, “From today onwards, you are an inner sect disciple of Armament Sect. I have heard that Yin Hao had died recently. Hmm, you may borrow Yin Hao’s cave for the moment while I arrange a new cave to be prepared for you.”

Once finished, he smiled towards the three great reverends and all inner and outer sect elders while laughing aloud, “The heavens bless our Armament Sect! In just ten years, two geniuses have appeared in Armament Sect in a row! This is a sign that our sect is about to thrive! Inform every force and tell them that a genius has appeared again in Armament Sect, haha!”

The three great reverends and every outer and inner sect elder was filled with smiles and looks of excitement.

“Follow me up the mountain immediately. We would like to clear up some things and help you analyze your learnings,” Ying Xingran said again.

Liang Shaoyang nodded, “I shall follow Sect Master’s orders. I thank Sect Master for the guidance.”

“You deserve this, haha, this is what you deserve.” Ying Xingran’s smile never faltered as he looked towards every disciples and said loudly, “Any disciple who can learn the wonders of any one of the twelve spirit pattern pillars shall be appointed as an inner sect disciple immediately! The sect shall do everything in its power to raise them!”

Many outer sect disciples’ gazes turned hot when they heard him as they looked yet again at the spirit pattern pillars.

Not even Qin Lie was an exception as he looked towards the twelve spirit pattern pillars with actual seriousness this time. A thought was also faintly forming in his heart.

Today’s grand parade had given him a true recognition of Armament Sect’s attitude towards those who could understand the miracles of the spirit pattern pillar. The sect master had came out of seclusion in advance, the great reverends who were gone for several years descended the mountains in unison, and every elder of the sect had arrived together!

This treatment was practically better than even the arrival of Cloud Sky Mountain’s Mountain Master, Dark Asura Hall’s Grand Hall Master, and Seven Fiends Valley’s Valley Master to the sect!

Sect Master Ying Xingran and the three great reverends had personally led Liang Shaoyang up the mountains to help him comb through his learnings. Everyone in the plaza was heatedly discussing Liang Shaoyang’s treatment. They were all envious.

“Qin Bing, Tang Siqi, Lian Rou, come with me,” Tong Jihua suddenly said in a low tone.