The First Immortal of Destiny

Chapter 574: Chapter 574 Core Candidates_1

However, even under these circumstances, the competition for the core seats was still intense.

Over these years, elite disciples from the Rising Sun, Bright Moon, and Stars, the three Main Peaks, had successively opened their Spirit Sea before the age of forty, obtaining the status of core candidates.

As for Green Cloud Peak, because it was established not long ago, most of its disciples were still in the early and middle stages of the Qi Gathering Realm. It was estimated that they would have to wait many more years before anyone could obtain the qualification to challenge for the lowest core seat!

Among this group, those Shen Mo was acquainted with included Lu Ming, Guo Zhao, and Yao Ting.

Lu Ming possessed the Thunder Spiritual Body and was naturally gifted. Shen Mo was not at all surprised that he could open his Spirit Sea so quickly.

Moreover, although he and Shen Mo were inner disciples of the same batch, Lu Ming was, strictly speaking, younger than Shen Mo when he opened his Spirit Sea. His Spiritual Body Talent was truly not to be underestimated.

As for Guo Zhao, little more needed to be said. He had some history with both Shen Mo and Chen Mengze. However, due to his friends Tian Kang and Shi Xiaoqian, he gradually distanced himself from Shen Mo.

On the other hand, his younger brother Guo Xun had always maintained a friendly attitude towards Shen Mo and had consequently ascended from the sixth core seat to the position of Hall Master!

Shen Mo didn’t harbor strong negative feelings for Guo Zhao; he just felt they were not on the same path.

Over the years, Guo Zhao had come to understand Chen Mengze’s feelings and had long given up his persistent pursuit of her. Somehow, he later got together with Shi Xiaoqian, and they became Dao companions two years ago.

Perhaps after marrying, the obsession in his heart dissipated. He then focused on his cultivation and managed to open his Spirit Sea just before turning forty.

If he had been any later, he wouldn’t even have had the qualification to compete. Even if he had entered the Spirit Sea Realm, he could only have been reappointed as a sect Elder!

If he could successfully secure a core seat, the Guo Clan would have maintained its prestige and made a comeback. With two brothers successively entering the upper echelons of the sect, their family was slightly inferior to the Yuan Family and Zhou family, but they had already surpassed most of the prominent families that had attached themselves to the sect!

It’s worth mentioning that, like other cultivation clans within the sect, the Guo Clan’s ancestral home and most of its members were swallowed by the Soaring Serpent.

Apart from the clan members who were already within the sect’s mountain gate or in other prefectures at the time of the incident and thus survived, not many members of the Guo Clan remained. The situation was largely similar for other clans within the sect.

Furthermore, when Shen Mo led people out of the Dungeon, he ruthlessly killed a group of the most troublesome instigators.

Under such circumstances, the chronic ailment that had plagued the Riverside Sect for nearly a thousand years, and had nearly overthrown it several times—the power struggles between Immortal clans and mundane forces—should subside for several decades.

As for what might happen several decades later, similar situations would likely arise again.

After all, not all cultivators are entirely devoid of emotion and worldly ties. As long as the sect isn’t destroyed, such problems will inevitably resurface with the passage of time.

Take Shen Mo, for example. Even if he didn’t consider his own descendants, but merely wished for those close to him within the sect to live better lives, he couldn’t avoid the practice of ’recommending the worthy without shying away from relatives,’ thinking of promoting Chen Mengze, Jiang Lingfeng, and others to high positions.

Since this is the case, he can’t demand others to act differently. All he can do is to try and nip problems in the bud.

Additionally, Yao Ting had once saved Zhao Lingyin’s life. During her time in the subsidiary courtyard, she helped Shen Mo sell finished Elixirs, talismans, magic artifacts, and other items. She had also accumulated enough resources to purchase High-Grade Spirit Pills and, after being stuck at the peak of the Qi Gathering Realm for many years, successfully opened her Spirit Sea!

These three—Lu Ming, Guo Zhao, and Yao Ting—all came from Stars Peak. Including the other core candidates from the other two Main Peaks, every one of them was an outstanding figure among their peers, possessing considerable strength and methods.

There was also one other person, not from the four Main Peaks: Shen Mo’s longtime close friend, Cao Ren.

He too had a ’great opportunity’ and had cultivated the [Transforming Dragon Curse] spread by the master of the Dragon Rearing Pool. He nearly transformed into one of the dragon beasts reared in that unknown entity’s pool.

Fortunately, he was blessed with great luck and strong vitality. Through Shen Mo, he obtained the legacy of Senior Xiang Shengtian, who had had a similar experience. Using the Reverse Dragon Curse and its origin power, he resisted the transformation for a while.

Later, when it seemed he was about to succumb, Shen Mo helped him deduce the Reverse Dragon Curse once more. Currently, he could probably still ’barely hang on’ for several more decades.

Although Cao Ren had nearly transformed into a dragon several times and was almost captured by the Dragon Rearing Pool, he had also obtained great benefits.

Originally, with Cao Ren’s Talent, at best he could only cultivate to the middle or late-stage of the Qi Gathering Realm. Now, however, not only had he opened his Spirit Sea, but his magic and martial arts skills were also extraordinary.

In Shen Mo’s estimation, Cao Ren’s combat power was about a third stronger than Lu Ming and the others, making him a formidable rival for Chen Mengze in the contest for the chief core disciple position.

As for Zhou Ru, the ’survivor’ from the previous batch of core disciples, it went without saying. She had already been the seventh core disciple years ago. Her cultivation level had also increased over these years, making her a strong candidate for the chief core disciple position!

Conversely, Yuan Wenxuan and Feng Kai, who obtained their core disciple status after Shen Mo, were relatively weaker.

They were core candidates during the same period as Shen Mo. However, they had always lacked the confidence to challenge Tian Zhiyu, who was then the lowest-ranking core disciple. Only after Shen Mo defeated Tian Zhiyu, and subsequently both Shen Mo and Yu Yan were promoted to higher positions, did these two finally get an opportunity to join the ranks of the core disciples!

After another intimate interlude with Zhao Lingyin, Shen Mo performed a Spell to cleanse his Dao Body, then dressed in his robes and walked out of the mansion.

”My dear, are you going to find Mengze? Could you pass this bottle of Elixir to her for me?” Zhao Lingyin didn’t get up. With a slight wave of her delicate hand, the Jade Vase containing the Elixir floated to Shen Mo on a gentle breeze.

Shen Mo took it and saw it was indeed the Three Emperors Marrow Pill she had newly refined.

There were five pills in total: one of superior quality and four of ordinary quality.

”Lingyin, you’re very thoughtful. I will pass it on to Senior Sister Chen.” Shen Mo tucked the Jade Vase into his robes, turned back to give Zhao Lingyin a playful bite on the cheek, and then left the bedchamber.

After Shen Mo mastered the refinement method for this Elixir, he also made many pills. He found various excuses to give them to Chen Mengze to aid her cultivation. Zhao Lingyin was aware of this. However, the Elixirs she personally refined were a token of her own affection, and their significance was vastly different from the Elixirs refined and gifted by Shen Mo.

A faint spirit light flickered around Shen Mo. In just a few breaths, he appeared outside Chen Mengze’s cave mansion.

The Formation prohibition at the entrance of her cave mansion wasn’t fully active, indicating she wasn’t in seclusion. Shen Mo’s sense spread out, triggering one of the Prohibitions and conveying the message of his visit inside.

A moment later, the runes of the Formation prohibition at the entrance stopped circulating. The door creaked open, and a graceful figure emerged from the cave mansion.

”Senior Sister Chen, are you going to make me stand here and talk to you?” Shen Mo asked with a wry smile when he saw Chen Mengze had no intention of inviting him in. ”The sect isn’t as sparsely populated as it used to be. Many Sect Disciples come and go nearby. If we’re seen like this, there will inevitably be rumors.”

Ever since he had brought Zhao Lingyin and the other trapped disciples out of the Mountain River Realm, Chen Mengze’s attitude towards him had grown considerably colder. It was as if she had forgotten the intimacy of that day when he had transferred nature Qi to her mouth-to-mouth.

After Shen Mo and Zhao Lingyin became Dao companions, she had become even more distant. If Shen Mo didn’t find excuses to deliver Elixirs to her every so often, they probably wouldn’t see each other more than once every six months!