Chapter 1
Lingxu Sect.
Inner Gate, Little Spring Peak.
“Boom!”
A thunderous roar echoed from the main peak.
Two True Masters stood opposed in the sky, neither holding back.
“Yu Jinghua, do you dare break your promise?” The enraged voice shook the heavens.
Under the might of a Golden Core Master, the freshly trimmed flowers and trees were once again reduced to ruins.
How many times has this happened already this year?
Yu Jinghua was furious. “Ji Wuchou, do you really think Little Spring Peak fears you?”
“Hmph! Faithless and treacherous! What reputation does Little Spring Peak have? I spit on it!”
“You—”
“Boom!”
The two True Masters were about to clash again.
“Stop! Stop! Enough!” The Sect Master arrived in haste, roaring, “Cease!”
Both True Masters withdrew their hands, but their glances still sparked with contained fury.
“Sect Master, you must uphold justice for me.”
“Sect Master, Little Spring Peak has broken faith.”
The Sect Master felt a headache coming on and hurriedly cast a spell to shield the area from prying eyes. They didn’t care about losing face, but he did.
Truth be told, this matter was a muddled account.
Once, the prodigy Ji Yan of Fire Control Peak and the true disciple Bing Ning of Little Spring Peak were truly a match made in heaven, a pair destined by fate.
One possessed a pure fire spiritual root, the other the body of ice marrow—yin and yang in perfect harmony, water and fire blending seamlessly. If they became Dao companions, their cultivation would soar, a win-win for both.
But two years ago, disaster struck. The Lingxu Mystic Realm erupted. Ji Yan, risking himself to rescue fellow disciples, was grievously wounded by a beast. His spiritual root was damaged, his meridians shattered. Given this, Little Spring Peak naturally refused to fulfill the marriage contract.
Damaged meridians could be healed by a single pill, but a wounded spiritual root was incurable. How could a proud daughter of heaven marry a cripple?
Yet, Ji Yan had saved Bing Ning—it was undeniable. A life-saving debt should be repaid with marriage, especially since the contract already existed. Master Ji was not about to let the matter drop.
And so, the issue remained deadlocked. No one knew how many times this had erupted this year.
As the Sect Master and others vanished from sight,
Below Little Spring Peak,
The disciples fumed.
“Master Ji is too much.”
“Exactly! Always causing trouble. Little Spring Peak will have to rebuild again.”
“Senior Sister Bing Ning is truly unlucky, stuck with such a marriage contract.”
“Hey, do you think the negotiations will resolve anything this time?”
“Definitely not. I heard from the main peak that the Sect Master intends to mediate and find another candidate to marry Ji Yan. He’s already a cripple; why bother? It’s nothing but trouble for everyone.”
“So, Senior Brother Ji is actually pretty pitiful.”
“Pitiful? He still has a Golden Core backing him up. Even if father and son are estranged, we can’t compare.”
“Good, at least Senior Sister Bing Ning dodged a bullet.”
“I wonder who the new candidate for the contract is?”
“Haha, at least it won’t be you or me.”
“……”
Having overheard all this gossip, Gu Changqing quietly slipped away.
He felt a moment's pity for the former proud child of destiny, then thought to himself: it’s always safer to keep a low profile; the cultivation world is simply too dangerous.
Two years ago, he too had received a slot for the Mystic Realm, but timid and fearful of death, he sold it for three thousand spirit stones.
Many scolded him for wasting a golden opportunity.
His master nearly expelled him from Little Spring Peak.
Now, he’s alive, and that person is dead.
---
Gu Changqing felt a certain pride—he truly had foresight; survival was the true path.
“Senior Brother Gu.”
“Senior Brother Gu.”
Gu Changqing walked unhurriedly toward his cave dwelling, fellow disciples greeting him along the way.
He wasn’t highly cultivated, nor famous, viewed as cowardly and incapable, but he was indeed the ninth personal disciple of Little Spring Peak.
Sect rules elevated his status. Even if the inner disciples looked down on him, they were obliged to show respect.
“Mm!” Gu Changqing nodded mildly, stepping lightly as he hurried back to his cave.
He activated the wards.
A flash of white light.
The entire cave was instantly wrapped in layers of protection—maze, killing, and illusion formations interlinked tightly. Not just disciples, even a Foundation Establishment senior would struggle to force entry.
He leisurely brewed a bowl of spirit tea, took a sip, savoring the lingering fragrance, and the faint spiritual energy flowed into his body, leaving him refreshed. This was the life of an immortal—what use were prodigies, chosen ones, or sect disputes? None of it concerned him.
After all, who would care about a timid, incapable, low-cultivation, ordinary-rooted disciple who’d entered Lingxu Sect through back channels?
Gu Changqing was exceedingly content with his situation.
Setting down his teacup,
He cleared his scattered thoughts.
He opened his storage pouch and took out a damaged formation diagram he’d collected that day. With a thought, a heavy, ancient token imbued with supreme authority stirred within his sea of consciousness.
This was his golden finger: the Taixu Treasure Mirror.
Yes, Gu Changqing was a transmigrator—born into this world.
This life, he was born into a cultivator clan, guarded by a Golden Core elder—a prestigious background, and genuinely so.
But his branch was sparse; after his parents died unexpectedly, only he and his grandfather remained.
He was just six that year.
Grandfather, seeking revenge, suffered grave injuries and was nearing the end of his life. Fearing his grandson would be unable to keep the family alive, he begged the elder for a spot as a personal disciple in Lingxu Sect.
From then on, the seventh branch of the Gu clan faded away, and he became a personal disciple of Little Spring Peak.
What transactions were made to secure this, no one knew.
In any case, his position was stable. Master Yu had not expelled him—a testament to that.
The Taixu Treasure Mirror appeared after he began guiding spiritual energy into his body.
It had no other function—it could only appraise all things, once per day.
In other words, only one appraisal a day.
He gazed at the damaged formation diagram.
He activated the token.
Appraise!
In an instant, a line of text appeared before Gu Changqing’s eyes—visible only to him.
[Seven Fiends Killing Array, Grade Two Medium Formation. This is a damaged diagram, severely compromised and unusable. Supplement with Red Flame Stone and Black Fiend Crystal. Engrave a minor killing array at the Kun position, a fiend-guiding array at the Li position. Engraving and repair methods as follows. The diagram may be restored.]
Gu Changqing was satisfied.
Though the Taixu Treasure Mirror only offered auxiliary functions, its knowledge encompassed all things, an invaluable aid.
Cultivation is really about resources.
With his water, wood, and earth triple spiritual roots, he could neither forge nor refine pills. To earn spirit stones, he had to seek other avenues.
It could be said that most of his cultivation knowledge came from the Treasure Mirror; his master paid him little mind.
Having obtained the repair method,
Gu Changqing produced Red Flame Stone and Black Fiend Crystal, following the Treasure Mirror’s instructions, his face solemn as he began restoring the damaged diagram.
As an array master, he had no shortage of materials.
Spiritual energy flowed to his fingertips; he engraved the array lines with utmost care, not daring a single mistake.
Array crafting, like talisman making, suffered from the smallest error—a single misstep could ruin all.
Time flew by.
A few hours later,
The formation diagram was restored.
“Phew!”
Gu Changqing exhaled deeply, a satisfied smile on his lips—another sum of spirit stones earned.
He loved scavenging these useless scraps most of all.
---
The next day.
Sunlight streamed down; the sky was clear and boundless.
Little Spring Peak remained shrouded in immortal mist.
Gu Changqing inhaled the morning purple energy until the sun rose. After finishing, he slowly opened his eyes. His eighth-layer Qi Refining cultivation dropped swiftly, soon only sixth layer.
First rule of survival: never reveal your true cultivation.
He washed up simply.
With the formation diagram in hand, he left the cave.
His destination: the sect’s trading market.
Along the way,
Sect disciples were abuzz.
“What? Master Ji has already compromised?”
“That can’t be! Wasn’t he still making a fuss yesterday?”
“Fuss, what fuss? He has more than one grandson. After venting for a year or so, that’s enough. The Sect Master wouldn’t let him go too far.”
“But…”
The compromise was swift indeed.
Yesterday, he seemed unwilling to let it go; today, he’d changed—too quickly, almost unbelievably so.
Gu Changqing raised his brows, thinking there must have been a deal struck.
Events around the chosen one could never be judged by common sense.
Once…
He too had aspired to respect his master and care for his peers. However, he and Bing Ning entered the sect on the same day. The first time he appraised his senior sister,
Gu Changqing was stunned, and decisively chose to follow his heart.
The rise of the chosen one was inevitably paved with countless cannon fodder—and he would be one of those stones beneath her feet.
Why was he so certain?
A comparison group makes it clear.
Both entered on the same day: one a special spiritual body, beloved by all; the other, a common triple-root, scorned for entering through back doors.
Their treatment differed as heaven and earth.
If not for his strong mentality, any ordinary child living under such conditions would either become a devotee of Bing Ning or turn bitter.
Therefore, after activating the Treasure Mirror and discovering Bing Ning was a chosen one, Gu Changqing decisively chose to surrender—better to be useless than to be cannon fodder.
Arriving at the trading market,
Gu Changqing headed straight for the Four Seas Pavilion, presenting the restored formation diagram.
The shopkeeper glanced at it and said coolly, “Seven hundred spirit stones.”
“Deal.”
Gu Changqing nodded. The price was lower than outside, but fair within the sect. Not wanting to leave the mountain, he had to accept.
“Junior Brother Gu.”
A familiar face approached from outside, marveling at the Seven Fiends Killing Array, smiling as he waved his fan. “Your array skills have improved again.”
“Young Master,” the shopkeeper greeted.
Gu Changqing smiled, humbly praising, “Hardly, hardly. I can’t compare to Senior Brother’s profound abilities—so young and already a third-grade pill master.”
The youth looked pleased. “Junior Brother, you’re too modest.”
Gu Changqing sighed helplessly. “Senior Brother, you must let people speak the truth sometimes.”
“Haha! Talking with you always makes me feel delighted.”
Gu Changqing was generous with praise. “Talking with Senior Brother is always like bathing in spring winds. If only the Nourishing Pills could be sold a bit cheaper.”
“Pfft!” The youth chuckled, magnanimously saying, “Fine, today you get a twenty percent discount.”
Gu Changqing’s eyes brightened. “Thank you, Senior Brother.”
He bowed quickly, asking the shopkeeper to bring out the Four Seas Pavilion’s treasures, including a second-grade superior spirit plant he’d coveted for a long time but could never afford.