Chapter 26: A Different Daughter of Destiny

The path of cultivation is one of braving thorns and thistles, forging ahead through storm and sand, battling against heaven, earth, and man alike. Only by breaking through every obstacle may one truly step onto the road of cultivation. If one’s temperament is lacking, even upon entering this path, their journey may be cut short, ending in untimely failure. In that case, it would be better never to begin at all.

The Supreme Profound Dao Sect, being one of the most powerful forces in Sword Province, seeks only elites—not a repository for refuse, not a place that accepts any and all disciples. Of course, those who pass both the aptitude and temperament assessments may enter the sect as outer disciples. Upon joining the outer sect, one may embark upon cultivation, and even the path to immortality and ancestorhood is not beyond reach.

Chu Feng himself had walked this very road. Through relentless cultivation, he achieved the accomplishments he enjoys today. Yet another test awaited: the third trial, the assessment of fortune.

This is the trial of luck. Those blessed with abundant fortune may proceed directly into the inner sect, while those less fortunate must remain in the outer sect. Chu Feng had once passed this trial of luck, earning his place as an inner disciple. Fortune and luck are as much a part of cultivation as aptitude and temperament. Indeed, at times, when one’s aptitude and temperament are sufficient, it is fortune that determines their future.

Outside the mountain gate stood a Stairway to Heaven, symbolizing the idea of ascending to the heavens in a single step. It consisted of forty-nine steps, seven times seven; while the Dao grants fifty, the Grand Calculation offers forty-nine. Anyone who could pass the first six steps and reach the seventh was deemed barely qualified, possessing a supreme mortal body.

Those who reached the eighth step were considered to possess the spiritual body. The fifteenth step signified the king body, the twenty-first the divine body, and the thirty-sixth the saint body. Chu Feng himself had possessed the saint body—the limitless saint body—and had climbed to the forty-second step, causing a sensation. He had not needed to pass the temperament or fortune trials to become an inner disciple.

With the command from the sect steward, the trial officially commenced. Countless candidates moved in groups toward the Stairway to Heaven. Each step was a test: the stairway exerted a tremendous pressure, challenging soul, body, and inner mana. With every step, the pressure intensified.

Chu Feng’s appearance immediately sparked unrest. The foundation-stage disciple in charge of the entrance examination happened to recognize him and hurried forward to pay his respects.

“Disciple greets the Immortal Lord.”

An Immortal Lord in the Nascent Soul stage. Not only was the disciple responsible for recruitment startled, but even those participating in the trial were shaken.

“This time, the Immortal Lord himself has come to the recruitment ceremony!”

“I must perform my best. If I am chosen by the Immortal Lord as his disciple, wouldn’t that be a step into the heavens?”

This thought arose in countless hearts. The recruitment ceremony, graced by the presence of the Immortal Lord—even in the history of the Supreme Profound Dao Sect, this was a first.

Xiang Yutian merely wished to test Chu Feng, thus he sent Xiao Yi. Who could have guessed that Chu Feng would readily agree and truly arrive at the recruitment ceremony?

Amidst the crowd, a young man clenched his fists, his eyes shining with an unusual light, his entire being emanating confidence. His name was Fang Yun, born a lowly stable hand in the Governor’s Mansion of the Grand Qian Dynasty. Naturally, the Governor’s Mansion was well-versed in the ways of cultivation.

Fang Yun, determined to change his fate and not remain a stable hand forever, began cultivating in secret. Not long ago, he encountered a stroke of fortune: a demonic cultivator in the foundation stage, pursued and on the verge of death, planned to seize Fang Yun’s body. However, because Fang Yun’s will was strong and the demonic cultivator’s soul severely wounded, Fang Yun managed to seize him instead.

From the soul of this demonic foundation-stage cultivator, Fang Yun obtained a secret art: the method of harvesting yin and supplementing yang. By absorbing the cultivation of female practitioners, he could acquire their powers, but the women would perish as a result.

After gaining this technique, Fang Yun indeed absorbed several female cultivators, elevating his own cultivation from entry-level to the sixth layer of the Qi refining stage. Yet these women’s cultivation was too meager, barely just begun.

Recently, he heard that the Supreme Profound Dao Sect was recruiting disciples. His heart stirred, and he resolved to join the sect. As one of the top three Daoist sects in Sword Province, it naturally boasted many female cultivators—not only highly skilled, but also beautiful. Especially upon hearing there was a female Nascent Soul Immortal Lord, reputed as the sect’s greatest beauty, Fang Yun’s ambition soared. If he could absorb her, perhaps even the Nascent Soul stage would be within reach.

With such thoughts, Fang Yun arrived at the Supreme Profound Dao Sect. Just seeing the female candidates eager to join the sect made his heart race. Yet when the actual trial began, he was filled with frustration.

In the first trial, he managed only to reach the seventh step, marking him as a supreme mortal body—the lowest qualification. The only consolation was that he barely passed. Now, he need only pass the temperament trial to enter the sect.

As Fang Yun descended the Stairway to Heaven, a commotion erupted among the crowd.

“Look! Someone has climbed past the twenty-second step!”

The twenty-second step signified the divine body. Anyone discovered to possess the divine body could enter the sect without further trials. It was the first appearance of a divine body at this recruitment ceremony. Though tens of thousands participated each time, fewer than one percent were accepted, and those with the divine body were one in ten thousand.

“And it’s a female cultivator!”

A female cultivator. Fang Yun immediately looked past the crowd toward the Stairway to Heaven, his eyes flashing with a terrifying gleam.

She wore a long violet gown, her hair cascading over her shoulders, her face peerless like a celestial maiden. As she stepped onto the twenty-second stair, divine radiance enveloped her, eclipsing all others and captivating countless hearts.

“She is mine. If I can absorb her, her divine body will become mine.”

“Haha, I’ve truly come to the right place at the Supreme Profound Dao Sect.”

The extraordinary nature of this woman also caught Chu Feng’s attention.

“Interesting. Another woman of fortune appears.”

[Beep beep beep. Detection: Woman of Fortune has appeared. She is extraordinary. Host, please conquer her as soon as possible.]

Woman of Fortune.

Chu Feng recalled that when he encountered Lu Linglong, Shen Qianxue, or Nangong Yanran, the system never remarked that they were extraordinary.

“System, is there a system panel for this woman?” Chu Feng asked.

[Yes.]

[Woman of Fortune: Wanwan.]

[From the Heavenly Demon Holy Land in Eastern Wilderness, the current Saintess. Cultivation: late stage of Great Ascension. Pursued by enemies, gravely injured, cultivation sealed. Now is the best time for host to capture her.]

[Age: 1423 years.]

This left Chu Feng momentarily at a loss.

If the imperial clans of Eastern Wilderness were formidable, the Heavenly Demon Holy Land was even more so. In Eastern Wilderness, the Supreme Profound Dao Sect was but a second-rate Daoist sect, while the Heavenly Demon Holy Land stood atop the pyramid, the most powerful force in the entire region.