Chapter 42: Eight Hundred Thousand Cultivators Bring Peace to the Heavens!

Northern Frontier Forum.

“Shocking! A Qi Gathering Realm insect-type beast kills an enemy of the Soaring Realm across realms.”

Many clicked in as soon as they saw the headline.

“Oh, even the great Bing Bing has started using clickbait titles now.”

“Haha, let me see what kind of insect beast is so incredible.”

“Hm? What tribe does this insect beast belong to? Never seen it before. My goodness, this mysterious insect tribe is way too powerful!”

The post begins with a vivid account of an insect beast named Lu Wu, who killed a Peng clan beast of the same realm in a single strike.

At first, no one found it particularly strange—they just read it for amusement.

But upon learning the insect beast was only forty-eight days old at the time, everyone agreed it must be extraordinarily gifted.

Then, the comment section unraveled.

“No way, forty-eight days old and already mastered the Swimming Dragon Sword? I know that technique, it’s one of the signature secret arts of the old Taixu Palace. It’s the peak secret manual for the Qi Gathering Realm. Mastered in forty-eight days? Are you kidding?”

“You didn’t read the intro, did you? The recent border skirmish was between Taixu Palace and the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains. Maybe Taixu Palace, though fallen, still has some special ways to cultivate disciples. After all, they created the Swimming Dragon Sword—it’s not as hard for them as it is for outsiders, right?”

“Come on, if you told me it mastered the Swimming Dragon Sword in forty-eight days, I might accept it. But you say it cultivates its soul, and is practicing the Myriad Beast Diagram? That’s just nonsense!”

“Myriad Beast Diagram? Late Qi Gathering Realm? So this Lu Wu, in forty-eight days, created nine Foundation Realm beast-path secret arts, and then another eight for Qi Gathering Realm?”

“That’s impossible!”

“How could such a genius come from some rural backwater?”

But these silly netizens soon saw the last part of the post.

“Wait, there’s evidence!”

“A video!”

The video starts blurry, shot from afar.

Then the perspective zooms in.

Immersed in the footage, everyone sees a tiny insect, unleashing the Taixu Sword to pierce through the body of the Golden Spear Bream in an instant.

“My god, it’s really a Qi Gathering Realm soul against a Soaring Realm beast!”

“That’s not the Swimming Dragon Sword, that’s the Taixu Sword!”

“Huh? Not the Swimming Dragon Sword? This insect beast less than two months old has mastered two sword techniques?”

“Whoa, the second sword is even stronger! It killed in one strike! What a sharp sword technique!”

“A swordsmanship prodigy!”

The replies to this post are skyrocketing.

Many cultivators, after watching, immediately shared it with their companions.

“I feel like the strongest news of the month in the Northern Frontier has just been born!”

“A swordsmanship genius has appeared, and it’s actually an insect beast! An insect beast can use sword arts to such a degree!”

“This is no longer just swordsmanship. This is technique approaching the Dao. Two sword techniques mastered—at this level of comprehension, any strike could rival another’s ultimate skill.”

“Taixu Palace has already conquered the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains. I guess soon Lu Wu will head to Tianning City to study with other talented disciples of Taixu Palace?”

“How interesting! I wonder if he’ll go to the Beast Class, Spirit Beast Class, or Sword Dao Class.”

…

Taixu Palace, Demon Suppression City—once the edge of Taixu Palace’s territory.

After taking the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains, Demon Suppression City has become the central region under Taixu Palace.

Taixu Palace continues to purge remaining demons, pouring vast resources and manpower into Demon Suppression City.

Further south, more Taixu Palace disciples are sweeping away remnants of the demon army.

Many demons, with nowhere to run, are screened—especially the newborn ones—and absorbed into the newly founded Demon Locking Hall of Taixu Palace.

Those who have taken human form or committed murder can only flee desperately.

Yet escape is nearly impossible. They’re surrounded by human forces, destined to be trapped in deep mountains, becoming future whetstones for Taixu Palace disciples.

Now, the Lu Clan’s vanguard has reached the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains, negotiating with Li Daoyun to establish trade points.

Many merchants from the northern frontier have entered the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains.

This area is now considered the southern foothills of the Taixu Mountains.

The leaders of Taixu Palace naturally wish to restore the glory of their prime. This victory is a tribute to the ancestors.

But Li Daoyun has little time to linger.

After defeating the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains, all territory south belongs to the humans. This is the frontier between humans and demons.

Now, the Demon Pit has stationed troops at the border, fearing Taixu Palace might ride the momentum to invade.

Taixu Palace used all its trump cards in this battle. A full fifth of the younger generation perished.

The elders and grand elders, however, suffered little loss.

One reason is that Taixu Palace was always stronger than the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains. Years ago, they retreated from the southern foothills under pressure from the demon alliance, but retained many grand elders, preserving their strength.

Another reason: during the final assault, the Demon King Jiao fled, the Roc King’s old wounds flared up, his soul was severely damaged, and Li Daoyun and others subdued them with little effort.

All in all, this campaign was exceptionally smooth.

Meanwhile, Taixu Palace disciples within the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains began to experience the wider world without leaving their new home.

From the Lu Clan’s direction, many merchants arrived, seeking to buy various spiritual herbs unique to Taixu Palace, and to purchase large amounts of beast meat and materials.

They also brought a wealth of external goods and supplies.

Lu Wu recently became enamored with a drink called Soul-Infusing Wine.

This stuff couldn’t help Lu Wu evolve or mimic new forms.

But it could cleanse the soul.

Though it didn’t aid cultivation much, the sensation was delightful—like drinking ice-cold cola.

Taixu Palace elders, together with traveling merchants, reopened a main road through the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains.

This road connects to the Lu Clan’s territory.

It branches into two paths: one leading to Tianning City, the other to the General’s Mansion.

Lu Wu was sipping his drink when Chu Xu and Zi Yu approached.

Zi Yu held a map. “Uncle! Uncle, look at this!”

Lu Wu’s eyes were hazy with wine. “Hm? What is it?”

Zi Yu spread out the map. “Look, the Northern Frontier map.”

Lu Wu looked at the map and sobered up.

On the map, the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains and Taixu Palace are marked at the northern edge.

Lu Wu said, “Huh, I thought Tianning City’s territory would be about as large as Taixu Palace…”

But Tianning City on the map is at least ten times bigger than Taixu Palace.

“No wonder the road wasn’t built east to Tianning City, but south.”

“So suppressing the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains only blocked the northern town of Tianning City?”

“No way, Taixu Palace has dozens of major cities within its borders, but Tianning City’s domain has only one city and nine towns?”

Chu Xu smiled. “Uncle, I asked some visiting merchants.”

“In the southern core region of humanity, the places marked on this map are where cultivators congregate.”

“This so-called northern town actually has over ten thousand people, but only a few thousand cultivators.”

“As for Tianning City’s domain, there are eighty thousand cultivators alone.”

Lu Wu was shocked by this news.

Tianning City stretches over three thousand miles east-west and four thousand miles north-south, an area comparable to a major nation in his previous life.

Within this vast territory, hundreds of millions live, with tens of thousands of cultivators.

Lu Wu could imagine—the resources distributed among eighty thousand cultivators would be immense.

No wonder Bing Bing had suggested he first attend Windborne Academy in Tianning City, aiming for high marks in the exams to enter the Sacred Capital.

He, honored as a guest elder in Taixu Palace, would be little more than a country bumpkin in Tianning City…

The Lu Clan’s power, about half the size of Taixu Palace, was impressive too.

Rumor had it that half the commoners in the Lu Clan’s domain bore the Lu surname—a true family dynasty in this world of wonders.

Lu Wu asked, “Why are you showing me this?”

Chu Xu replied, “I asked the seniors of our sect—they said we can now attend the cultivator academy in Tianning City!”

Zi Yu chimed in, “Uncle, we’re preparing to leave right away. Many of our brothers and sisters will go. Will you join us?”

Lu Wu laughed, “Are you sure? Once we leave, who knows how many years it’ll be before we return to Taixu Palace.”

Chu Xu grinned, “If I don’t make it big, I won’t come back!”

Zi Yu nodded, “Exactly! Even if it takes hundreds or thousands of years, so what?”

Lu Wu chuckled, “Stop exaggerating—hundreds or thousands of years, the lifespan in the Soaring Realm is only two hundred years.”

“If so many disciples from the sect are heading out, then of course I’ll go too!”

Tianning City, Windborne Academy—here I come!