Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations

A new city was being constructed at the foot of Mount Lan, which would be the capital of the re-established Arctic State.

On one side at the top of Mount Lun, there was a cultivation hall that was being set up too.

The person setting up this cultivation hall was a lady who wore a purple robe. Beside her, there was a youth with a medium build who was conversing leisurely with a few people beside him.

These few people weren’t comrades, but representatives from different camps – Great Zhou Empire, Great Qin Empire and Royal House of the Northern Tribes.

The representative from the Great Zhou Empire was a Nascent Soul Stage Grandmaster, who was very low-profile. He allowed the Great Qin Empire’s Vivant Joy Holy Man take the lead, while the representative from the Royal House of the Northern Tribes was also an Advanced Nascent Soul Stage Martial Way cultivator.

Their masteries were above the youth in front of them and the lady in purple. But none of them dared to underestimate these two juniors who weren’t even at their ages yet.

This was especially so for the youth. Besides the Vivant Joy Holy Man, the two other Nascent Soul Stage Grandmasters had no confidence in winning him if they tried to fight him.

Even the Vivant Joy Holy Man watched him with a look of approval, “Does this mean the Martial Celestial Master’s alternative residence will be constructed over here?”

That youth was the Martial Celestial Master Yue Hongyan’s First Disciple, Zhao Huan.

He wasn’t submissive, and his tone of voice carried respect for the elders, “Yes, this was what Master had in mine from the start.”

The Vivant Joy Holy Man, Great Zhou and Royal House representatives nodded their heads when they heard his words.

This was also expected. Yue Hongyan’s background was no longer a secret. As an Arctic State orphan, it was natural that she had to watch over the re-establishment of the state.

The Vivant Joy Holy Man and the others even had a brief understanding of Zhao Huan’s background. They knew that he was from the Arctic State like Yue Hongyan.

To the both of them, the Arctic State meant a lot more than what others thought.

Although Mount Lan wasn’t really a holy ground for cultivation or a land of fortune, it wasn’t surprising for Yue Hongyan to set up her alternative residence over here.

However, the Vivant Joy Holy Man and the others were bothered by this.

This was self-explanatory for the Great Zhou Empire. Although Liang Gan maintained a friendly relationship with the Celestial Sect of Wonders after he ascended the throne, the enmity between the Great Zhou and Arctic State couldn’t be removed in such a short period of time.

The Arctic State’s rise was inevitable with the Celestial Sect of Wonders backing them. Although it couldn’t match up to the Great Zhou, Great Qin or the Royal House in the short term, the Great Zhou Empire had reasons to be worried of its future prospects.

While the higher-level officials in the Great Zhou could maintain their reasoning and clear headedness following Liang Pan and Zhu Hongwu’s fall from grace, the ordinary subjects were unlikely to be appeased anytime soon.

Any conflict would not be a good thing for the Great Zhou right now, even if Yue Hongyan and Zhao Huan were logical individuals.

While the Great Qin Empire and Royal House of the Northern Tribes shared a close relationship with the Celestial Sect of Wonders, it was still imperative for them to consider many things following the re-establishment of the Arctic State. This was to prevent them from being caught unaware.

Zhao Huan could tell what the Vivant Joy Holy Man and the others were thinking, but he didn’t reveal it. He just continued to say, “After Master returns from the Ying Sea, he will retreat into closed-door cultivation. When she’s not around, I’ll be the one to take care of things here. I hope all of you can offer me guidance.”

The Vivant Joy Holy Man and the others acknowledged his humble request and became more relaxed.

Zhao Huan’s words signified the Celestial Sect of Wonders’ attitude. Neither Yue Hongyan nor the Celestial Sect of Wonders were interested in interfering in the internal affairs of the Arctic State. They didn’t have the intention of helping the Arctic State to expand either.

The Royal House Advanced Nascent Soul Stage Martial Way cultivator said, “Tian Jing Master, Tian Ning Master, your words are too serious. We’ll try our best to help in any area that we can.”

Zhao Huan smiled and nodded his head, “I shall thank you beforehand then.”

The lady in purple beside him was his junior. She was one of the most outstanding Successive Disciples in the Blizzard Valley, Ke Jing.

She felt that she had broken through her bottleneck after intense training during the end of the War of the Two Worlds. She returned to the mountains to retreat and meditate, and finally managed to overcome the Void Lightning Tribulations recently. She formed her Nascent Soul and advanced to the Nascent Soul Stage.

Ke Jing also thanked the Royal House Martial Way cultivator, while she continued to work with her hands. Streaks of purple gas descended and moved the mountain rocks. She tried to build a residence while maintaining the original look of Mount Lan.

This was going to be her master’s residence in the future. But Ke Jing was only in the preliminary stage of construction. She had to wait for Yue Hongyan to return from the Ying Sea to oversee the proper arrangements personally. She would likely invite Li Yuanfang over to set up a formation for her.

As Zhao Huan, the Vivant Joy Holy Man and the others conversed with one another, there were several people behind them. They were all Blizzard Valley disciples, who were either second-generation or third-generation Successive Disciples.

One of them was a tall and huge youth with a squarish face, thick brows, huge eyes and charming looks. He seemed very forthright, and his gaze was filled with resilience and composure.

His expression didn’t change as he communicated with someone beside him, “Junior Qin, why are you staring at that Aurous Core Stage cultivator from the Great Qin Empire?”

Although Zhao Huan and Ke Jing were both Nascent Soul Stage cultivators, they wouldn’t dare to eavesdrop on the private conversations between the Celestial Sect of Wonders’ disciples in front of the Vivant Joy Holy Man and the other elders who were of higher masteries than them.

The person who was asked the question was stunned. He replied honestly after remaining silent for a moment, “Senior Guo, I don’t like that person.”

The squarish face youth asked, “Why not?”

“I’ve met him previously. I accidentally eavesdropped on his private conversation with others and heard him defaming Master and the Blizzard Valley.” The other person responded, “He thought I couldn’t hear him, but didn’t know that I could hear what he said without trying intentionally.”

The squarish face youth who was addressed as Senior Guo turned his head to look at him, “Oh, what did he say?”

The other person creased his brows, “He said that the Blizzard Valley is worse among the 8 lineages in the Celestial Sect and reckons that Master is the least outstanding among the second-generation First Disciples. He also commented that Elder Ke is too ordinary.”

The squarish face youth’s expression didn’t change and he said slowly, “If he’s expressing his opinions privately, we don’t have to bother about him.”

The other person was slightly stunned, “Senior Guo…”

The squarish face youth answered, “Just focus on your cultivation and improve yourself. The truth will trump everything else. We’ll have the chance to prove ourselves, and the rumors will be debunked naturally. If the other party persists in his words, he’s the shortsighted one.”

The other person was a little unconvinced and pursed his lips. Senior Guo continued with, “If the other party defames us in our face, has the intention to damage the sect’s reputation or has any evil schemes in mind, we’ll not let him off easily. He’ll experience for himself whether our Blizzard Valley’s lineage is really that weak.”

“But before this, we’ve to remain calm and composed. We shall not be easily influenced by others’ words.” Senior Guo turned to look at his junior and smiled, “What do you think? We both know that rumors that don’t represent the truth are ridiculous. Just take it as a joke. Why do we have to be crossed?”

At this point, Zhao Huan communicated with the both of them and said, “Zonghuang is right. Pengan, you still need some training.”

Both the squarish face youth and the other disciple acknowledged Zhao Huan’s guidance.

Zhao Huan didn’t want to eavesdrop on their conversation, but he had to ensure that their internal conversation didn’t involve anything controversial in front of the Vivant Joy Holy Man and the others.

He wouldn’t be bothered if the content was harmless. But if there were some sensitive words, he had to take precaution.

However, he smiled after that, “But his appraisal of me is not exactly wrong.”

“I’m inferior to Junior Tang, Junior Han, Junior Zhou and the others in terms of my talent and live experience.”

The disciple with the surname Qin lowered his head, but the squarish face youth appeared very resilient and said, “Master…”

Zhao Huan stopped him and chortled, “It’s nothing. The second-generation First Disciples are all better than. This is also not a secret in the sect.”

“My talent is not really very outstanding as compared to them. The only thing that I can show for is my hard work in cultivation. But they may not be less hardworking than me in terms of cultivation in either. I don’t really have an aspect that I’m particularly outstanding in.”

One’s not afraid of others having greater talent than him, but afraid if someone else with greater talent was more hardworking.

Zhao Huan didn’t mind exposing his shortcomings in front of his own disciples. The two of them didn’t seem surprised either, but they turned serious.

“I’m fully aware of my situation. I’m not afraid of being inferior to my own comrades, but I’ve to live up to the names of Grandmaster, Master and our other elders when I step out of the Celestial Sect of Wonders.” Zhao Huan said, “I’m not a piece of jade. I’m just an ordinary rock that can be found everywhere. However, I’ll strive to toughen myself up and become a solid, foundation rock.”

“I will do my best and not be a blemish of the sect. As long as I can contribute to the development of the sect, I’m contented.”

He didn’t turn back and even continued to converse with the Vivant Joy Holy Man. However, he didn’t stop communicating with his two disciples, “At least I’ve nurtured the both of you and didn’t waste your talents or disappoint the elders’ expectations. I’m already very proud. Even if I’m ordinary, the both of you can still surpass me. It’s enough if the sect continues to have brilliant successors.”

The two disciples lowered their heads slightly behind him, “We’ll remember Master’s advice.”

The squarish face youth was filled with gusto and his gaze became very resolute.

Ke Jing’s vision swept across and she saw him. A smile formed lightly on her lips.

This youth entered the sect slightly late and retreated into cultivation to form his Aurous Core during the War of the Two Worlds, thus he didn’t participate in the war. Although he did earn a slight reputation for himself, he couldn’t compare to Meng Honglou, Lian Huashao, Ye Xinhui, Chen Fangge, Shi Yang and the others who shone during the War of the Two Worlds.

But he was highly rated in the Celestial Sect of Wonders.

His name was Guo Zonghuang and his Daoist name was Yuan Zhen. He was the Blizzard Valley’s third-generation First Disciple.

His speed of cultivation was the fastest among the Celestial Sect of Wonders’ third-generation disciples.

His skills were the best among those in the same level.