In the year that passed, although Lin Yun never once left the Beast Taming Sect, his name began to spread to many places far beyond its borders.
At first, it was just one or two people spontaneously recounting the many tales of Lin Yun. After all, though this young man had become famous in the cultivation world, it had all happened in the span of just a few short months. But one had to admit, every single thing that had happened to him was a story worth telling with pride.
Whether it was surviving the trials of the Ancient Forbidden Land alone, or saving thousands of cultivators in the Spirit Realm, these were heights that ordinary people could never hope to achieve.
And his subsequent act of storming the Flowing Cloud Sect single-handedly to rescue Bai Zhuqing had only served to make his name resonate even more powerfully.
But for Lin Yun, who very much wanted to keep a low profile, this was not necessarily a good thing.
Fortunately, after a year of diligent cultivation, he had successfully reached the Spirit Cauldron Realm. As for Qin Xiyan, although she had not yet reached that realm, she was already at the seventh stage of the Sky-Soaring Realm.
Lin Yun very much wanted to continue cultivating in this manner, but it seemed that after reaching this new realm, he had no other choice. There was no more hope for advancement by remaining in the Beast Taming Sect. Reaching this stage of cultivation was completely different from before. It was not a realm that could be advanced through the mere accumulation of time; rather, it required one to constantly experience and feel the myriad states of the mortal world.
Therefore, Lin Yun had no choice but to leave the sect.
During this year, although Shen Miaokong and Deng Pengzu were constantly at odds with each other, both had invested a great deal of effort into Lin Yun. Under their joint guidance, Lin Yun's strength had not only advanced by leaps and bounds but had undergone a complete transformation. With his current power, he wouldn't be at a disadvantage even against a Myriad Law Realm expert. Of course, a powerhouse at the peak of the Myriad Law Realm could certainly still cause him some trouble.
After confirming that remaining in the Beast Taming Sect was no longer of any use to his cultivation, Lin Yun prepared to leave for the Southern Frontier.
When Jiang Zhengqing received this news, he came early to see him off.
"The Southern Frontier is a distant land. I fear you will encounter no small amount of trouble along the way." Jiang Zhengqing looked at Lin Yun with great reluctance. He had originally wanted Lin Yun to stay in the sect and continue to grow stronger. But according to Shen Miaokong, such an idea was simply not feasible. Lin Yun's own strength was already formidable, but if he wanted to advance further, he had no choice but to go out and temper himself through experience. Only after truly witnessing the diverse and colorful world outside could Lin Yun find his own true path.
It had only taken him one year to reach the Spirit Cauldron Realm. From here on, his rate of improvement would likely be even faster.
Lin Yun also knew that although he had been in the sect for a year, it didn't mean he was ignorant of news from the outside world. Both the Flowing Cloud Sect and the Daye Dynasty were eyeing him like tigers watching their prey. And the Shangqing Temple had made their intentions explicitly clear. Lin Yun had killed their people, so the enmity between them was a feud until death. Only when one side had fallen could this karmic debt truly be settled.
But even though they said this, they didn't dare to come to the Beast Taming Sect to cause trouble for him. Now that Lin Yun was leaving the sect, he would naturally have to face these lunatics from the Shangqing Temple.
"It's strange, though," Lin Yun mused. "If the people of the Shangqing Temple are the true power holders of the Flowing Cloud Sect, why did they ignore the sect's development for so long?"
Jiang Zhengqing then explained. "A long time ago, the Flowing Cloud Sect was not as it is now. In those days, they were incredibly powerful. Looking across the entire cultivation world, they truly were peerless. The Beast Taming Sect had no way of contending with them, though we had no intention of vying for supremacy at the time. But after the Flowing Cloud Sect grew strong, they could not tolerate another power eyeing them from the side."
And so, a conflict broke out between the two sects. In that battle, the Flowing Cloud Sect lost many experts, and the Beast Taming Sect didn't gain any advantages either. Most importantly, many of the Flowing Cloud Sect's own disciples were unwilling to follow the sect in an attack on the Beast Taming Sect. Their belief was that the entire cultivation world should unite to fight against the evil and heretical paths, not engage in internal strife.
This was a noble idea, but it was something the Flowing Cloud Sect's leadership could not understand.
So, Gu Xiande seized this opportunity to rise to power. His goal was very simple: to lead these powerful sword cultivators down a different path. He modified the entire process of how they trained. His aim was to ensure that these sword cultivators could still grow strong, but without any emphasis on their own individual will. Since they were disciples of the Flowing Cloud Sect, they must have the awareness that they were merely swords in the hands of the sect.
Gu Xiande's idea wasn't wrong in principle, but his training methods for these disciples were ultimately lacking. At the end of the day, he was naive to think that he could produce true experts through such a method. It was simply impossible. The many events that occurred during this process only served to prove this point. Not only did he fail to create any truly powerful figures, but he ended up hindering himself at every turn. The final result was predictable.
This was why the battle between the Beast Taming Sect and the Flowing Cloud Sect had ended so quickly. The Flowing Cloud Sect simply had no way of contending with the current Beast Taming Sect.
"No wonder it was so easy for us to deal with them. I thought it was just because they had suffered heavy losses in the Spirit Realm. But for a sect's ability to even defend itself to be so fragile… that truly is laughable."
But now that the Shangqing Temple had personally stepped in to manage the Flowing Cloud Sect, the result would certainly be different. In the future, the sect would likely produce many powerful sword cultivators. For Lin Yun, this would be a troublesome challenge.
However, Lin Yun paid it no mind. Let them be strong. If they come looking for trouble, I don't mind teaching them a lesson, just to let them know who really calls the shots in this world.
Seeing Lin Yun's completely serious and confident expression, Jiang Zhengqing finally relaxed. It seemed this period of cultivation had not been without effect; Lin Yun was as confident as ever.
"I don't have many things to instruct you on. Even the Shangqing Temple and the Flowing Cloud Sect are not your most dangerous threats. The one you truly need to be careful of is that renowned Prince Zuo Cheng. Don't be fooled because our ancestor managed to drive him away last time. With his character, he will definitely find trouble with you again in the future. So, you must be extremely cautious."