Chapter 246 - 156: Hundred-Mile Fire, Feng Moyuan’s Shock

Chapter 246: Chapter 156: Hundred-Mile Fire, Feng Moyuan’s Shock

At the exact moment Mu Yunshang and the others soared into the sky, Jiang Hao was already descending toward the Beardless Sect’s Scripture Peak under Jiang Huaiyu’s guidance.

It was an incomparably massive Spirit Peak. Although it was noticeably shorter than Jiang Hao’s Great Ming Peak, it covered a much broader expanse of land.

The summit of Scripture Peak looked as though half of it had been sheared off by a single sword strike. From this flattened peak, several Immortal Pavilion Platforms rose from the ground, looking absolutely majestic. These structures were the Beardless Sect’s Scripture Repositories, which housed everything the sect possessed outside of its Spirit Veins. Among them were the Hidden Pill Pavilion, the Pill Technique Pavilion, the Cultivation Technique Tower, the Martial Arts Tower, and the Hundred Treasures Pavilion.

Right now, a steady stream of people bustled in front of Scripture Peak. Every day, no fewer than eight hundred—perhaps even three thousand—Beardless Sect Cultivators entered these places for the first time.

As the figure in white descended, everyone’s gaze snapped over in unison.

"S—Senior Brother?"

"Greetings, Senior Brother."

After a brief moment of shock, countless disciples quickly came to their senses. Whether they were truly convinced of his status or not, they all bowed respectfully toward the figure. Seeing this, Jiang Hao felt a bit unaccustomed to the attention, but he gave a symbolic nod in return.

Jiang Huaiyu hurried to introduce the area. "Senior Brother, that building over there is the Pill Technique Pavilion where we store our Alchemist Secret Techniques. Do you intend to select an Alchemist Secret Technique to study?"

Even now, her heart was still pounding with uncertainty. So far, she knew very little about this new Senior Brother. However, since he had explicitly stated his intention to visit the Pill Technique Pavilion, she wondered, "Could it be that the Senior Brother is an Alchemy Master?"

Pill Masters were an incredibly rare existence, even within a Holy Sect. It wasn’t that the Holy Sect was lacking in talent, but rather that the Pill Master profession itself was exceedingly scarce. They were one in ten thousand in the outside world, and among those who managed to enter a Holy Sect, they were one in a hundred thousand.

"I’ll take a look first," Jiang Hao replied. Instead of giving a direct answer to Jiang Huaiyu’s inquiry, he took the lead and began walking toward the Pill Technique Pavilion.

Countless Cultivators of the Beardless Sect watched this scene with bewilderment. It wasn’t until his figure was far away that the crowd dared to discuss him in hushed voices.

"He’s only been in the sect for a day, and he’s already here to pick out our cultivation techniques and martial arts?"

"How many days has it been since he was appointed? Is he really already placing himself on the pedestal of Senior Brother?"

"The conferment ceremony hasn’t even been held yet, but he can’t wait to use the sect’s resources. Is he really not here just to secretly learn our techniques?"

"It’s strange. Why can’t I feel even a shred of coercion from him? I can only sense the cultivation base of Early-stage Transcendence."

"How did the Sect Leader even take a liking to someone like this? Why did he specifically choose him to be the sect’s Senior Brother?"

"The Sect Leader must have his reasons for doing this."

"What reasons? This is a world where the strong are revered. For him to inexplicably become our Senior Brother—who would ever be convinced?"

"Could it be just as those senior brothers and sisters said? This guy got in through connections. Is he a Cultivator from a top-tier first-rate sect who was deliberately sent down to borrow our sect’s quota to participate in the Thousand Sects Secret Mirror because his own sect ran out of spots?"

"If that’s really the case, doesn’t that mean he’s just some bottom-ranking genius from another sect, and they’re treating our Beardless Sect like a massive sucker?"

"The position of Senior Brother should have belonged to Senior Sister Yun Shang or Senior Brother Yichen. Giving it to a young man with a completely unknown background is truly unjust."

"He’s an outsider Cultivator. What right does he have to be the Senior Brother of our Beardless Sect?"

For a time, low whispers rose and fell continuously across the entirety of Scripture Peak.

It wasn’t that the crowd was unwilling to let a nominal disciple become the Senior Brother; rather, they refused to be led by someone whose strengths and weaknesses were entirely unknown. Moreover, judging by the fluctuation of his aura, he didn’t seem at all like a terrifying existence capable of suppressing an entire era.

Some Sect Elders had even speculated that Master Beardless must have made a deal with a certain super Holy Sect. The Beardless Sect would use its full strength to nurture this young man for them, and in exchange, the faction backing him would ensure that the Beardless Sect’s legacy would never fall in the future. But even if that were true, everyone still looked down on a Cultivator who relied on his background to ascend Great Ming Peak from the bottom of their hearts.

This was a world that worshiped the strong, a place where experts preferred to let their strength do the talking.

Faced with the unabashed comments from the disciples behind him, Jiang Hao paid them no mind. He had heard this kind of talk far too many times and had long since become completely immune to it. He was waiting—waiting for an opportunity. An opportunity to establish his dominance. It was just that this opportunity was not now.

The best way to shut people up was with strength profound enough to make everyone yield in sincere submission.

Following Jiang Hao to the front of the Pill Technique Pavilion, Jiang Huaiyu introduced the elder to him. "Senior Brother, this is Elder Feng, the Pill Hall Elder who guards the Pill Technique Pavilion."

Sitting cross-legged in front of the Pill Technique Pavilion was an Elder of the Beardless Sect. The Elder’s aura was incredibly thick and vigorous. A faint, scorching heat emanated from the area around him, indicating that he was likely a mighty figure of the Alchemy Dao.

Just as Jiang Huaiyu finished speaking, and before Jiang Hao could open his mouth, the elder opened his eyes. He cast a faint glance at Jiang Hao and sneered. "If it isn’t our Beardless Sect’s Senior Brother Qin. Could it be that you came to my Pill Technique Pavilion so early in the morning just to visit this old man?"

Hearing this, Jiang Hao could only offer a bitter smile. The hostility in the other party’s words was a bit too obvious. However, out of respect as a junior, Jiang Hao didn’t put on airs as the sect’s Senior Brother. Instead, he bowed slightly and cupped his fists in a polite salute toward Feng Moyuan.

"Elder Feng."

Seeing this, a cold smirk curled the corners of Feng Moyuan’s lips. With eyes full of disdain, he said, "It seems the sect’s Senior Brother didn’t come to visit this old man after all, but rather to select Alchemist Secret Techniques from our Beardless Sect’s Pill Technique Pavilion. What? Could it be that our sect’s Senior Brother is also an almighty Alchemy Master?"

"I wouldn’t dare call myself an almighty figure. This junior merely understands a little bit about Alchemy Technique, that’s all. I hope Elder Feng won’t laugh at my meager skills," Jiang Hao replied.