Mysterious mirror hanging high

"At that time, if a casual cultivator wanted to ascend to the immortal path, they could either risk their dantian exploding and their own death by forcefully building their foundation, or become a servant of those large sects!"

"If it weren't for Master Baoding who suddenly appeared and gathered a group of independent cultivators to establish the Xiaoyao Alliance, breaking the monopoly of the major sects on the foundation-building pills, the independent cultivators in the Yunchuan region would still be a loose group!"

Yuwen Xiaoyan sneered, "Those 'mountain dwellers' would never have imagined that in just a few hundred years, the Xiaoyao Alliance, which was once just a few small groups of people, would have grown into a behemoth with over ten real masters in charge, and its influence radiating throughout the entire Yunchuan Region!"

"On the other hand, those sects are so conservative and self-contained!"

"The Huanhuo Sect's excessive use of spiritual money has ruined their reputation, causing unrest within the sect and jeopardizing the foundations of the sect."

"The Immortal Master of the Bishui Sect has lost his moral integrity, causing the disciples to become alienated. The sect's top priority is all about nepotism, and it's only one step away from decline."

"The Houtu Sect is experiencing a lack of successors. The sect's Grand Master only has a few decades left to live, yet there's no rising star to take the helm. If that Grand Master can't cultivate a late-stage Jindan cultivator before his life ends, I'm afraid the Houtu Sect will be the first to be expelled from the Four Great Sects."

"The only place that's still worth mentioning is Xiaolei Temple. The newly promoted Jindan Master Leiyun has gained quite a reputation in recent years, but I think if they don't change their old, rigid system, it'll be nothing more than a flourishing flower and a scorching fire!"

Yuwen Xiaoyan took a sip of wine and said disdainfully, "Originally, sects that only needed to sit on the immortal mountain and discuss profound theories are now coming to Xiaoyao Immortal City to study. These large sects are declining, while my Xiaoyao Alliance is thriving. As one rises and the other falls..."

"The offensive and defensive momentum is different!"

Wan Lingjun, holding a wine bottle in his hand, half-lay on the table, his chin propped up on the table, raised his eyebrows and stared at Yu Wen Xiaoyan, stammering for a long while: "What the hell are you talking about... I don't understand a word you said."

Yuwen Xiaoyan rolled his eyes. "Brother, I'm not saying anything wrong, but if you marry a stupid woman, it will inevitably affect the intelligence of your offspring. I'm afraid you'll lose the battle for the position of Patriarch directly."

Yuwen Xiaojin had a dark face and could only cover his face with his sleeves and drink to hide his embarrassment.

What's more, apart from the Houtu Sect, which has almost all male disciples, he has emotional entanglements with the true disciples of several other major sects, and his identity is awkward. Yuwen Xiaoyan severely criticized the sect's shortcomings during the banquet, and also scolded several of his confidantes. Unfortunately, Yuwen Xiaojin was on the side of the Xiaoyao League, and was caught in the middle, and didn't know what to say.

"If it is as what Fellow Daoist Yuwen said, the sect has been plagued by problems for a long time, and my Xiaoyao League is making reforms, then the Yunchuan Region will be in the hands of the Immortal League." Jing Yu said with a smile.

"That day won't be far away." Yuwen Xiaoyan said, "When the Immortal has formed his Nascent Soul, and then this Xiaoyao Immortal City has been upgraded to a Nascent Soul Dojo, then those few withered bones in the tomb... will be nothing to them!"

"Fellow Daoist Xuan Jing, at this time of change, it is the time for our generation of geniuses to shine." Yuwen Xiaoyan looked at Jing Yu meaningfully.

"Xuan Jing is seventy-six years old and has just established his foundation. I'm afraid he has wasted his life in the early stages of foundation building. How dare he be called a genius together with the two young masters of the Yuwen family..." Jing Yu was puzzled, thinking that Yuwen Xiaoyan had seen through something, and said modestly.

"Hehe..." Yu Wen Xiaoyan said nothing more, just smiled and drank.

----

When the Foundation Establishment celebration was over and the guests had returned, a tipsy Yuwen Xiaoyan put his arm around Han Ping's shoulder and said with a thick tongue, "Guest Han, it's been a while since we last met. Why don't we go to Xiaoyan's house and have another drink..."

Looking at the two people walking away arm in arm, Jing Yu narrowed his eyes and flicked his sleeves: "Yuan Xi, this discussion of the profound principles has benefited my uncle a lot. He needs to go into seclusion immediately. I'll trouble you and Yuan Chen to clean up here."

Although he was a little surprised that his uncle was in such a hurry to go into seclusion, Zhao Yuanxi just looked at him strangely and agreed without saying much.

Jing Yu returned to the quiet room and summoned the mysterious mirror. Looking at the majority of immortal energy still remaining in it, he probed his spiritual thoughts into the white spiritual light that pointed to Han Ping.

Changing the perspective, he saw Han Ping and Yuwen Xiaoyan sitting opposite each other. How could Yuwen Xiaoyan still be drunk at all at this time?

"Brother Han, is your secret method of testing fate accurate?"

Yuwen Xiaoyan's words were earth-shattering as soon as he opened his mouth. Jing Yu was so frightened that he almost couldn't hold the mysterious mirror in his hand firmly. He almost wanted to cut off the connection and escape by burrowing into the ground!

"Brother Yuwen, why are you questioning this? This secret method was created personally by Linglong, the owner of Tianming Tower. It's flawless. While it can't accurately detect the specific type and level of a person's fate... it can still be used to determine if something exists or not, without any problem."

Han Ping said slowly, "Just now, during the banquet, I secretly used this secret method to test. Fellow Daoist Xuan Jing is no different from you and me. He definitely has some kind of destiny... I just don't know what it is."

A trace of fear flashed across Yuwen Xiaoyan's eyes: "I naturally admire the ability of the Linglong Tower Master..."

"But in this vast Xiaoyao Immortal City, there are many people with destiny. Why are you so concerned about this old Taoist Xuanjing? He only built his immortal foundation when he was approaching his eightieth birthday. Logically, his potential should have been exhausted."

Han Ping flipped his hand, and a puppet energy core appeared in his palm, which he kept playing with:

"This person is no ordinary person. The fact that he has received such a puppet inheritance is enough to show that he has a certain destiny. He might be an extraordinary person with a destiny... I suspect his fate is also related to the puppet system."

"Most importantly, when I first met him, I felt he had a good personality and a good character... He's a person worth developing."

"[Tianming Tower] has only been established for over twenty years, but it has already caused a huge stir in the major immortal continents, stirring up countless storms. However, its membership has always been small, and it is indeed time for expansion."

Yuwen Xiaoyan pondered and said, "Why not observe for a few more years? If this Taoist Xuanjing is truly trustworthy, we can definitely absorb him into our team. When our destinies intersect, perhaps even greater opportunities will be waiting for us."

Han Ping tilted his head noncommittally and changed the subject: "How is the progress of the Xiaoyao League's spiritual vein?"

Yuwen Xiaoyan smiled and said, "With several Immortals personally guiding us, in ten years at the fastest, or twenty at the slowest, the secret cave realm containing a spiritual vein will be located near Xiaoyao Immortal City. By then, Brother Han will need to lend a helping hand to my Yuwen family."

"With the three great masters of the Immortal Alliance in front of me, how could I, Han, show off my skills?"

"If it's an ordinary secret realm, it's fine. But I'm afraid it's a kind of inheritance secret realm that restricts the cultivators' entry realm. That's something that a real person can't control."

Yuwen Xiaoyan frowned and said, "This matter concerns the Nascent Soul path of my Yuwen ancestor. We must not be careless."