I Cheated While Cultivating

Five Thunders!

Righteous Method!

Zhou Heng enacted his spell and released golden thunder, which in an instant enshrouded the entire Tongda Inn; the place seemed to transform into a sea of golden thunder.

The bright, dazzling light illuminated the gradually darkening sky, making it shine brightly.

Those terrifying monsters twitched or contorted under the bombardment of the thunder, and most couldn’t even let out a scream before they were struck into ashes by the lightning, ceasing to exist.

Moreover, after exterminating all the monsters inside the inn, the attack of the golden thunder did not cease—it continued downward, piercing through the ground of the inn and revealing a huge cavern below.

This cavern was filled with a dense collection of bizarre corpses, some with seven heads and one foot, others with three arms and eight legs, their heads carried in their hands… all of them exuded an extremely sinister and horrifying aura without exception.

The woman in the yellow shirt sitting on a camel only glanced at this cavern and immediately felt dizzy and almost fainted; the mental shock from these things was just too great.

But the moment the cavern was revealed, the golden lightning surged in like blades that were indestructible yet flexible, moving through the cavern at an incredibly fast pace.

Accompanied by thunderous roars, in the blink of an eye, all the densely packed bizarre corpses in the cavern were blasted into powdery ashes, completely obliterated.

Right after that, the inn also collapsed, turning into charred pieces under the bombardment of the Five Thunder Righteous Method, scattering about, and soon to be swallowed by the sand.

“How weak.”

Zhou Heng slightly frowned as he withdrew the spell. He had just eliminated so many ghost-like monsters and hadn’t received a single Fortune Bag as a reward.

Not even a “didn’t stand a chance.”

It’s way too weak!

“You, you, you’re actually a Great Grandmaster?!” The woman in the yellow shirt looked at Zhou Heng in utter shock, feeling like she was in a dream and somewhat unable to believe the scene before her eyes.

This youth clearly looked only seventeen or eighteen years old, handsome and elegant—there wasn’t a trace of old age, no, not just old age, there wasn’t even the sense of maturity that comes with middle age.

How could there be such a young Great Grandmaster in the world, how could there be such a young “Heavenly and Earthly Realm.”

It was beyond comprehension!

Yet the scene of the young man commanding the thunder and effortlessly destroying ghosts was still vividly imprinted in her mind, unerasable, and incredibly real.

This was clearly the great power that only a Great Grandmaster of the Heavenly and Earthly Realm could possess.

Forging the body, Inner Strength, Gang Qi, Heavenly and Earthly: these are the four realms of cultivation for a martial artist in this world.

If one can cultivate Inner Strength, they become a capable fighter of the rivers and lakes; forging Gang Qi makes one a first-rate figure in the rivers and lakes. Reaching the level where one can sense and manipulate water, fire, wind, and thunder is entering the Heavenly and Earthly Realm, labeled as a Great Grandmaster of this era.

But even a Great Grandmaster can’t rejuvenate themselves back to youth.

It is said that above the Great Grandmaster lies the profound and unfathomable Land Immortal Realm, possessing the ability to bring the dead back to life, reverse time, and rejuvenate.

But over the past thousand years, those who have reached this realm are few and far between, mostly existing in legends; almost no one has actually seen a Land Immortal Realm figure.

How could it be so easy for her to encounter one?

“Great Grandmaster?” Zhou Heng turned his head to look at the woman, smiled faintly, and said, “What is your name?”

“Junior…” The woman started to reply, then felt it was somewhat impolite to be sitting on a camel, so she quickly dismounted and bowed, saying, “Junior, Wu Yan’er of the Clear Sand Sect, has seen the Great Grandmaster.”

In Wu Yan’er’s view, since Zhou Heng did not oppose being called a Great Grandmaster and had just displayed the power of one, this meant that he was undoubtedly a Great Grandmaster of the Heavenly and Earthly Realm.

This was truly too fortunate.

To wander the world and encounter one of the mere twenty Great Grandmasters was something quite unexpected.

“Clear Sand Sect, hmm, not bad.” Zhou Heng nodded slightly and smiled, “Come, take me to see your Clear Sand Sect.”

“Ah?” Wu Yan’er was startled at first, then became a bit nervous.

What could a Great Grandmaster of the Heavenly and Earthly Realm possibly want at her sect?

Could it be detrimental to the sect?

No.

It should not be.

The strongest in the history of Clear Sand Sect was only at the Gang Qi Realm, which was utterly unremarkable to a Great Grandmaster of the Heavenly and Earthly Realm.

And, judging by the attitude of the Great Grandmaster, he didn’t seem to harbor any malice.

So, what did he want at Clear Sand Sect?

Wu Yan’er’s mind sank into contemplation, one thought surfacing after another.

She was just over twenty years old herself. Although she had some experience in the martial world, it wasn’t extensive—many of her experiences were learned from a storyteller.

“This Great Grandmaster, although he appears young, must be at least sixty or seventy years old, possessing the skill to retain his youthful appearance. Judging from his solitary journey through the desert, he likely wanders alone to this place.

“The world has never heard of such a young Great Grandmaster, which means his fame is not widespread, and few know of his existence.

“But such a Great Grandmaster doesn’t just appear out of nowhere; there must be a story behind him. Obscure and wandering alone, could he be from the legendary Hidden World Sect?

“It is said that many powerful sects appeared in the long ages past, but over time, most of them gradually declined and perished. However, a portion of these ancient sects continued through unique methods of succession.

“Hidden World Sects send out exceptional experts to travel the world after a certain period, often when the world is rife with chaos and heroes rise simultaneously.

“In such turbulent times, the experts from Hidden World Sects can play a role in restoring order from chaos, their formidable strength bringing peace to a troubled world.

“However, even the experts from Hidden World Sects who venture out are still but individuals who can’t bring order from chaos to the entire world alone—they certainly need others to carry out their will.

“Typically, when an expert from a Hidden World Sect emerges, they choose a sect that is not particularly formidable based on fate, then adjust and instruct the chosen sect, enhancing its strength.

“The strongest sect today, ‘Celestial Sun Sect,’ gained this opportunity more than five hundred years ago when the last successor of a Hidden World Sect appeared, and since then it has grown powerful.

“Speaking of which, that was the last time a successor from a Hidden World Sect appeared in this world. Since then, there have been no more sightings of experts from Hidden World Sects.

“Back then, the world was in chaos, heroes contested for supremacy, corpses littered the fields, and people could hardly make a living. A Great Grandmaster clad in golden armor appeared and found Fiery Gate, a sect considered third-rate at the time.

“Afterward, the chaos of the world subsided, and the Great Grandmaster vanished. But after receiving help from that Great Grandmaster, Fiery Gate grew countless times stronger.

“Now, more than five hundred years have passed, and the once Fiery Gate has become ‘Celestial Sun Sect,’ the most formidable and top-ranking sect in the world.

“Now another great grandmaster from a hidden world sect has emerged, and it seems he has chosen the Clear Sand Sect. Could it be that the Clear Sand Sect is about to rise?”

Wu Yan’er considered numerous possibilities in her heart.

And to her, this seemed the most likely, given the precedents already set.

At this thought, she couldn’t help but smile, feeling extremely joyful.

Regardless of whether such a possibility was true or not.

Befriending a great grandmaster is never a mistake.

“Senior, please follow me.” Wu Yan’er nodded and started to lead the way with the camel walking in front, intending to take Zhou Heng to the Clear Sand Sect.

Zhou Heng found Wu Yan’er’s prompt agreement a bit strange.

Could the Clear Sand Sect be that powerful?

Are they not afraid I might have malicious intentions?

He had no idea that Wu Yan’er had concocted so many messy possibilities in her mind in just this short period.

In truth, Zhou Heng simply didn’t want to expose his ignorance, which was why he had Wu Yan’er lead him to the Clear Sand Sect and planned to enquire about the world of Cave Sky on their way.

Wu Yan’er led the camel at the front at a somewhat slow pace.

Her lightweight kung fu was clearly not refined enough; her feet often sank into the sand, which greatly hindered her speed.

“You should ride the camel,” Zhou Heng said.

“No, there’s no need,” Wu Yan’er hurriedly shook her head, saying, “Senior is walking on foot, how can I ride the camel with good conscience? That wouldn’t be right.”

“So that’s what you’re worried about,” Zhou Heng laughed upon hearing this and casually took out a piece of paper from his chest, gave it a gentle shake, and the paper was cut into the size of a palm-shaped camel.

He then tossed this “camel” into the air, where it expanded with the wind, and in the blink of an eye, it turned into the size of a normal camel, even more nimble than Wu Yan’er’s own camel.

Zhou Heng leaped onto it gracefully.

Now, his paper transformation magic had reached the seventh level, and the “paper figurines” were no longer limited to human forms; they could also take on other shapes, and cutting them into camels was certainly possible.

Yet for Wu Yan’er, such a method was unheard of. She stared at the paper-turned-camel, her eyes wide and her face a picture of disbelief.

The shock this sight brought her was not in the least bit less than when she had seen Zhou Heng controlling thunder, annihilating all the ghostly creatures in the inn.

Turning paper into a camel seemed far too inconceivable, truly beyond one’s wildest thoughts!

Could the martial path really be cultivated to such an extent?

This was practically like the magic of immortals!

“Now I also have a mount, so you can ride the camel,” Zhou Heng said with a smile.

“Ah? Okay, okay,” Wu Yan’er nodded absently, her whole person somewhat dazed, for she was utterly astonished beyond measure.

Turning paper into a camel, a method that completely surpassed the understanding of the people of this world, was far too shocking for a young woman just over twenty years old.

“`

However, the shock to Wu Yan’er’s spirit made it much easier for Zhou Heng to continue probing her with questions, and he quickly learned the general situation of this world from her lips.

Similar to Da Qi, Yang Fan’s Cave Sky world is also ruled by an imperial court, with martial arts sects scattered among the common folk and various martial artists wandering the Jianghu.

The strongest among them are the so-called Grandmasters, which according to Wu Yan’er’s description, correspond roughly to the level from Seventh Rank to the Peak of the Seventh Rank.

By this logic, Gang Qi is almost at the Eighth Rank, Inner Strength is at the Ninth Grade, and the body tempering stage is when one has not reached Entry Rank and is practicing body conditioning and learning moves.

The three strongest sects in the world are Wuji Gate, Celestial Sun Sect, and Mount Wanxuan, and the birth of these three top Great Sects is all related to the so-called hidden world sect strong individuals.

Zhou Heng suspected that these so-called hidden world strong individuals were likely disciples of the Solar Divine Palace who had entered the Cave Sky world for training or were directly manifestations of Yang Fan’s will descending.

The heritage left by these hidden world sect strong individuals, who appeared every once in a while, made the Jianghu of this world colorful and full of continually emerging experts.

However, compared to the martial world of the Jianghu, the power of the Imperial Court seemed rather ordinary.

Since its establishment three thousand years ago, the Imperial Court has been stable and peaceful, rarely experiencing any turmoil or producing any famous experts.

It also lacked the ability to manage the martial world effectively, often resulting in scenarios where martial artists killed in the streets while the authorities were helpless, and in more extreme cases, disciples of Great Sects killing officials in the street and going unpunished.

Strangely enough, such an imperial court had continued to exist for three thousand years without anyone rebelling, which Zhou Heng guessed was probably related to the so-called hidden world sect strong individuals.

Now, more than five hundred years had passed since the last appearance of a strong individual from a hidden world sect, and according to some descriptions by Wu Yan’er, chaos had already started to emerge in the world.

“The time Yang Fan took to become a Celestial Man definitely wasn’t three thousand years, and he withdrew into the rock walls to hide himself over a hundred years ago, could it be that time flows five times faster here, or even more?”

Zhou Heng had some speculations in his mind, and he was also wondering where the most significant object of fortune in this world could be.

Is it in the three Great Sects?

Or within the secular Imperial Court?

If the Imperial Court held strong authority over the world, then it would undoubtedly be located within the court, but given the current state of the Imperial Court in this world, this possibility seemed not so high.

It is more likely to be among the three Great Sects.

“No matter what, I still need to follow Wu Yan’er to the Clear Sand Sect first, and then leave this desert,” Zhou Heng thought to himself.

He had also inquired about the situation of those inn ghosts from Wu Yan’er earlier.

Actually, Zhou Heng had some doubts when he was previously eliminating those “ghosts.”

These “ghosts” were very weak in strength, not even reaching the Eighth Rank, but their undying trait seemed exceptionally strong, and if he hadn’t used the Five Thunder Righteous Method, which specializes in killing ghosts, he might not have been able to kill them with one blow.

Furthermore, these ghosts did not seem to be possessing human bodies, but existed by merging with corpses, which was a bit different from the ghost situations in Da Qi.

Unfortunately, Wu Yan’er didn’t know much about these ghosts, only that they were almost impossible to kill, but since their numbers were limited and they only appeared in the desert, not many people paid attention to them.

However, this made Zhou Heng even more curious, and he decided that if he couldn’t find the reason in this world, he would ask Yan Shouyi after leaving or see if he could find an answer from the Zhou Tian Boundary Officer.

After Wu Yan’er mounted her camel, their speed indeed increased significantly, and in less than two hours, they had left the desert and arrived at a large city made of yellow earth.

The Clear Sand Sect’s headquarters were located in this large city.

It was only when Zhou Heng arrived at their destination with Wu Yan’er that he learned that this so-called “Sect headquarters” was actually just a large courtyard, and the entire sect consisted only of her and her master.

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