The First Immortal of Destiny

Chapter 546: Chapter 546 Heaven Won’t Destroy Our Riverside Sect_1

Upon Shen Mo’s return to Chong’a Mountain, the entire Riverside Sect’s subsidiary courtyard instantly erupted with excitement. The cause was his terrifying battle record at Golden Light Ridge, news of which had gradually spread throughout the Red Flame Country’s cultivation world!

At that time, Shen Mo had not hidden his true identity; even if he had wanted to, he couldn’t have. Many cultivators from the various cultivation forces at Golden Light Ridge had witnessed him commanding the Ghost Bride and other Demon Soul Generals on the Heavenly Demon battlefield in the past. Furthermore, with his signature Riverside Sect magic and martial arts, along with his unique Sword Path techniques, it would have been difficult for Shen Mo to conceal his identity even if he had altered his appearance using the True Immortal Magic. On the contrary, it might have allowed observant individuals to deduce the characteristics of his True Immortal Magic cultivation method, thereby exposing another of his hidden cards.

Moreover, four of the original Five Great Sects had attended, and Shen Mo also intended to fight on behalf of the Riverside Sect, to preserve the sect’s precarious image and influence as much as possible. As for the Soul Refining Flag’s mystical nature, even if someone caught a glimpse of it, it wouldn’t pose a significant problem. Considering the strength he displayed at that time, likely no cultivator in the entire Red Flame Zone would dare to covet this magic treasure. Besides, most of the Soul Generals within the flag were transformed from mutated Heavenly Demons, so the Immortal Path forces could not hold him accountable for it.

As various pieces of news from the battle at Golden Light Ridge gradually spread, the Riverside Sect disciples in the subsidiary courtyard naturally learned of these events, causing a great sensation at the time. First, he had slain a Ten Thousand Eyes Great Demon, and then he fought alone against eight Class IV Demons, remaining undefeated. Such combat prowess... was truly terrifying! Shen Mo alone was comparable to the contribution of any other major immortal sect in this battle, such as the Heaven Sword Sect.

At a time when the Riverside Sect was in jeopardy, Shen Mo’s achievements, and indeed his very existence, served to stabilize the sect. Even though the majority of its disciples and powerful cultivators were trapped and presumed to have perished in the Mountain River Realm, the peak fighting power within the sect’s subsidiary courtyard would still be on par with the other Four Great Sects. The Red Flame Zone was becoming increasingly perilous, with creatures from the Outer Zone descending and forbidden lands spreading. In such an environment, the Chong’a Mountain subsidiary courtyard possessed formidable self-preservation capabilities!

And the surprises Shen Mo brought to the people in the subsidiary courtyard did not end there. He also brought back a large quantity of spiritual medicines and spiritual materials from the long-lost Jade Pool Realm. This alleviated the scarcity of resources in the subsidiary courtyard and the embarrassing situation where even the monthly stipends for Elders and disciples could not be issued!

Even more crucially, Shen Mo had achieved the Golden Core Realm...

Possessing combat power comparable to the Golden Core Realm and actually stepping into the Golden Core Realm held entirely different significances. The former could be attributed to him possessing a powerful magic treasure of tremendous might. However, relying on external items is ultimately quite restrictive, especially since the Soul Refining Flag was, in essence, a magic artifact of evil cultivators. The latter, however, was a true testament to his own strength—his Talent, Path Heart, opportunities, and more—something far beyond what external items could compare to!

Of the sect’s four patriarchs, Yuan Heming was trapped in the Mountain River Realm, while Gongsun Jiuru and Feng Daogu were lost to the upheavals in the Heavenly Demon Realm and the Ghost Nation Ruins respectively. This left only Zhou Zhiwei to oversee the Chong’a Mountain subsidiary courtyard. Now, finally, there was another: Shen Mo!

He was the only Riverside Sect cultivator to successfully reach the Golden Core Realm in nearly a hundred years, and also the youngest in the sect’s history to achieve this Cultivation Realm. His personal Cultivation Realm, coupled with the terrifying power displayed by the Soul Refining Flag... it could be said that in terms of peak combat power at the Golden Core Realm level, the Chong’a Mountain subsidiary courtyard now even surpassed the Riverside Sect at its zenith several years ago!

How could this not electrify and elate everyone in the subsidiary courtyard?

If not for Shen Mo’s restraint, all the disciples in the subsidiary courtyard would likely have been banging gongs and beating drums to announce this joyous news, planning a grand celebration and inviting various forces to attend and offer congratulations!

Despite this, word had reached all the neighboring powers, large and small, in Yu State. Various forces, including the Seven Stars Altar, sent high-ranking figures to pay their respects, hoping to connect with Shen Mo, this newly advanced Golden Core Realm powerhouse renowned for his formidable combat strength.

...

”Good, good, good! The heavens have not abandoned our Riverside Sect!” Patriarch Zhou Zhiwei exclaimed, a rare show of emotion. He grasped Shen Mo’s arm and continued at length, ”For a peerless talent like Junior Brother Shen to emerge at this perilous juncture, with our sect hanging by a thread—it is truly our fortune, the sect’s fortune...”

His words clearly treated Shen Mo as a peer. This was understandable. In the cultivation world, the accomplished are revered. Thus, even if a child of four or five years old achieved the Golden Core Realm, their seniority would skyrocket. Other disciples, even those in their seventies or eighties, would have to greet such a child with utmost respect and address them as ’Patriarch’!

Shen Mo, whose status had risen sharply several times before, was already accustomed to such changes and quickly adapted to his new standing as a sect Patriarch.

Subsequently, unperturbed by honor or disgrace, he calmly recounted to Zhou Zhiwei what he had seen and heard on his journey. This included details about the great battle between immortals and demons at Golden Light Ridge, the Evil Spirit in the Dragon Fall Abyss, and Elder Li’s transformation into longevity flesh.

”Creatures from the Outer Zone and Evil Spirits are descending upon the world one after another. Our situation is becoming increasingly dire!” Zhou Zhiwei lamented. ”And then there’s Elder Li... He was the most senior member of our sect, the one with the greatest Lifespan, a man who had witnessed the sect’s rise and fall multiple times. To think that the great opportunity he obtained in his early years concealed such a disaster... One can only say that fortune often harbors misfortune, and the ways of the world are truly unpredictable!”

Shen Mo nodded slightly and then took out two low-class Universe Bags. One contained the ashes remaining from the cremation of Elder Li’s longevity flesh, along with his robes, magic artifacts, and other personal effects. The other held the belongings of Li Zhong, an Elite Disciple from Stars Peak. Furthermore, the Demon Soul General that had been refined into the blood flag was shattered by Shen Mo using his Soul-annihilation Spell, and the soul mark on the flag had been erased.

Arranging the burials for the two men did not require Shen Mo’s attention, as other sect disciples would handle it.

On his way back, he had also honored his promise, making a special trip to the city where over a hundred thousand creatures had been resettled. He brought Yan Zhuang, Zhou Ping’er, and a few other outer disciples back to the subsidiary courtyard with him. He also visited several immortal markets, selling off a large assortment of miscellaneous resources and earning a substantial profit of 700,000 Spirit Stones.

Additionally, Flower Fairy Mi had returned to Fairy Flower Valley. Besides completing the final step of their agreement—transplanting the exotic flowers, rare herbs, spiritual medicines, and spiritual plants obtained from the Jade Pool Realm into Fairy Flower Valley—Mi also bore the task of relaying Shen Mo’s request to the Big Moro of the Flower Fairies: to borrow their Golden Flowery Realm.

”You mean to say,” Zhou Zhiwei exclaimed, shooting up from his seat, his face a mixture of astonishment and delight, ”you have a way to resist the Soaring Serpent’s radiation-induced mutations and rescue the trapped disciples?”

Even though he had cultivated for hundreds of years and ordinary matters could scarcely stir his Path Heart, Shen Mo’s successive pieces of good news genuinely made it impossible for him to remain unfazed!

”I can only say I have some confidence; we’ll have to actually try it to know for sure,” Shen Mo replied, lifting his teacup, taking a sip, and exhaling the fragrant aroma of the tea.

For now, he just had to wait for news from Flower Fairy Mi.

He wondered if the terms he had offered would be enough to persuade the Big Moro of the Flower Fairies to lend him their tribe’s ultimate treasure, the Golden Flowery Realm.

As they were speaking, a disciple suddenly came to report that a Flower Fairy had arrived outside the subsidiary courtyard, asking to see ’Patriarch Shen’ by name!