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Novel: [The Primordial Law]
Volume 3: [Qiu Prefecture Lantern Festival]
Chapter 60 (204): [The Mindset of the Strong]
(60th of Volume 3)
Translator: Shadow Knight AK
Editor: Shadow Knight AK
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The Xuantian (Profound Heaven) Stone Wall was a sheer cliff face at the foot of Taoli (Peach and Plum) Mountain, as smooth as a mirror and jade-like in appearance, soaring over a hundred feet high.
It was named after the two characters "Xuantian (Profound Heaven)" from Ancestor Zuoqiu's Sword Manual.
This stone wall was located in East City.
Below it lay the Martial Plaza, where seventy-two Coiling Dragon Stone Pillars stood, making it the Zuoqiu Sect's primary venue for major ceremonies and events. The plaza's grandeur was breathtaking.
Though capable of accommodating ten thousand people in formation, the plaza was already packed beyond capacity, with not even a drop of water able to penetrate the crowd.
Seven Spirit Lamps, each as large as a sedan chair, floated in mid-air, illuminating the plaza and surrounding streets as bright as day.
Li Weiyi couldn't even squeeze through.
On a street about a hundred yards from Profound Heaven Plaza, Zuoqiu Baiyuan suddenly appeared, smiling at him: "Brother Weiyi, the First Inheritor has been waiting for you for a long time!"
Under Zuoqiu Baiyuan's guidance, the two men headed toward a fifteen-story, densely eaved stone pagoda in the southeast corner of Profound Heaven Plaza.
A large contingent of Five Seas Realm Martial-Mystic Cultivators from the Zuoqiu Sect guarded the pagoda's base, with a Great Mind Master overseeing the formation.
"Young Master Li has arrived!"
"That's him! Young Master Li, rumored to be the First Inheritor's closest friend and a peerless genius who defeats all opponents of the same realm in just five moves."
The Martial-Mystic Cultivators of the Zuoqiu Sect watched with curiosity and admiration.
When Li Weiyi glanced at them, they all smiled and clasped their hands in a respectful bow.
They held great respect and reverence for this rising star of the Fourth Stage of the Five Seas Realm.
"Brother Weiyi truly became famous overnight," Zuoqiu Baiyuan said as he led him into the tower and up the stairs.
Li Weiyi replied, "Don't even mention it. A friendly Martial-Mystic tournament turned into a complete joke. All the money I worked so hard to earn was stolen in one fell swoop, all my efforts wasted."
"That thief... if I find out who she is..." Zuoqiu Baiyuan's expression darkened, and he let out a heavy grunt.
Li Weiyi had instructed Qi Xiao not to reveal the news that the five chests of Yongquan Coins might have been stolen by the Sui Sect. He intended to retrieve the lost wealth himself to restore his honor.
If the Zuoqiu Sect's Inheritor were to intervene, even if the wealth was recovered, it might no longer belong to the Li family.
During their ascent, they occasionally encountered young Martial-Mystic Cultivators from the Zuoqiu Sect, most of whom recognized Li Weiyi's name.
Among them were Zuoqiu Lanlan and Zuoqiu Baiming, but neither realized he was Sima Qin from Thirty-Three Li Mountain.
They simply nodded and passed by.
At the top of the stone tower, four Spiritual Bone Lamps illuminated the four corridors leading north, south, east, and west.
In the West Tower chamber, the main door stood open.
As Li Weiyi passed through, he saw extraordinary figures seated on chairs.
Their auras ranged from as powerful as dragons and tigers to as subtle as a whisper, all top-tier young masters from the Zuoqiu Sect.
The Zuoqiu Sect controlled two and a half prefectures in the Southern Territory, but its influence actually extended to every aspect of life across seven prefectures. Countless powerful clans and sects obeyed its commands.
No other major power could have mobilized all its young masters under thirty to Qiu Prefecture City for the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival. They lacked the time, the resources, and the courage to risk total annihilation.
But the Zuoqiu Sect could, and it had no such reservations.
As a result, everyone knew the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival was the Zuoqiu Sect's domain, making it the target of everyone's attention.
At this moment, half of the Zuoqiu Sect's top-tier masters had gathered in the West Tower chamber, which offered a clear view of the spectacle unfolding in Profound Heaven Plaza.
Zuoqiu Ting, Zuoqiu Lancheng, and Zuoqiu Qingyin, the three Inheritors, sat at the head of the table, deep in hushed conversation.
When Li Weiyi arrived, Qi Xiao was the first to greet him, using spiritual energy transmission: "What took you so long? We've been waiting all night! You Jiu Li Clan members are all as steady as rocks. Cang Li and Li Jiufu still haven't arrived either."
"I came straight after eating my New Year's Eve dinner," Li Weiyi replied through spiritual energy transmission, not wanting to disturb the chamber's quiet atmosphere.
Qi Xiao was stunned for a moment, then chuckled: "You should have said so earlier! Come eat here - we just finished our meal. The First Inheritor was incredibly generous tonight. Bing Zuze, caught ten Dragon Scale Fish, each comparable to a Millennium Essence Herb, capable of greatly enhancing physical strength."
"Are you deliberately trying to make me drool?" Li Weiyi retorted.
"Young Master Li, please come in!"
Zuoqiu Ting's voice rang out, his gaze fixed on Li Weiyi through the window lattice, a smile playing on his lips.
Inside the West Tower chamber, numerous eyes turned to Li Weiyi standing outside the door.
Some were curious, others puzzled, still others surprised.
Defeating all opponents in five moves was indeed a stunning feat, piquing the interest of many top-tier Five Seas Realm Martial-Mystic Cultivators. But his cultivation realm was too low. Why had he been brought to the top floor of the tower?
This level was reserved for the most central figures of the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival.
Li Weiyi himself was equally puzzled.
Why did Zuoqiu Ting want to see him?
Zuoqiu Ting's appearance had undergone a new transformation, making him utterly unrecognizable. His mastery of the Transformation Technique was now flawless.
If he hadn't been seated between Zuoqiu Lancheng and Zuoqiu Qingyin, with his folding fan always in hand, it would have been difficult to recognize him at first glance.
Unless one used the Heavenly Eye.
Zuoqiu Ting rose to his feet, his smile radiant. He showed no disdain for Li Weiyi's low cultivation realm. Instead, with utmost solemnity, he introduced him to the core experts gathered in the chamber.
"Lan Cheng, the second Inheritor of the Zuoqiu Sect, you've already met. As for this one..."
When it came to Zuoqiu Qingyin, before Zuoqiu Ting could speak, the Pure Immortal Physique woman in the green robe stepped forward with lotus-like steps, her silver bell-like laughter echoing: "Are you really Cang Li's brother-in-law? Many elders in the clan have been mentioning you to me lately, trying to set us up."
Her words were bold, her personality forthright.
Li Weiyi, under Zuoqiu Qingyin's piercing gaze, felt a headache coming on.
He turned to Zuoqiu Ting: "You had Bai Yuan pull me up here just for this?"
"The old fogeys in the clan gave me a mission. I had to make sure you two met. Whether you hit it off or not is entirely up to you!" Zuoqiu Ting laughed it off.
"Please, no. Miss Qingyin is the Inheritor of the Hundred Silver Veins, with a beauty that could make fish sink and birds fall from the sky. There's no way she would marry into my humble Li Family. Please tell the elders of the Zuoqiu Sect not to play matchmaker!"
As Li Weiyi spoke, several gazes in the tower room softened, their hostility greatly diminished.
It was unclear whether these people thought he wasn't worthy of Zuoqiu Qingyin or were simply admirers of hers.
"Sinking fish and swooping geese - that's quite an interesting description," Zuoqiu Qingyin said with a charming smile.
Seeing that Li Weiyi only mentioned marriage and not adoption into her family, Zuoqiu Ting realized the matter was likely doomed.
He stopped speaking and adopted a solemn expression: "Brother Weiyi, I regret helping you write those banners! I shouldn't have helped you get the invitation to the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival, putting you in danger."
Li Weiyi remained calm, smiling: "Are you afraid of losing?"
He had known from the start that trying to compete for the Immortality Pill at the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival was a foolish fantasy, a reckless overestimation of his abilities.
He had considered backing down, considered giving up, but ultimately, his competitive spirit had overcome all doubts.
That was why he had come to Qiu Prefecture City.
Even when he knew he had no chance, he had pressed on without hesitation. After months of hard work to finally secure a sliver of opportunity, how could he possibly give up now?
Zuoqiu Ting said, "A Dao Lotus is nothing I can't afford to lose. If you withdraw from the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival, I'll give it to you right now."
Li Weiyi gazed through the tower window at the distant Profound Heaven Stone Wall: "Whether I can even get an invitation remains uncertain, Young Master Zuoqiu. Why concede so quickly? By the way, there's something important I need to tell you."
Focusing his spiritual power into his eyes, Li Weiyi could see three rows of wooden plaques hanging on the distant stone wall.
Each plaque bore the name of a young Martial-Mystic Cultivator.
The plaques were separated by territory: Southeast, Northwest, and Southern.
The first row, with ten names from each territory, totaling forty, was known as the First-Class.
The second row, also with forty names, was called the Second-Class.
The third row, again with forty names, was the Third-Class.
The Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival had fifty invitation slots per territory.
In other words, tonight another twenty slots per territory would be announced, totaling eighty people.
These eighty obviously wouldn't make it into the First-Class.
Li Weiyi saw that the leader of the Southern Territory's Third-Class was none other than Yin Jiu, under the alias "Li Jiufu." The second-ranked in the Southern Territory's Third-Class was Yin Shi Yi, using the alias "Li Jiao."
The ten First-Class members from each territory were naturally strong. But the top ranks of the Second and Third-Class might not be weaker. It was entirely possible that someone like Yin Jiu or Yin Shi Yi, who had suddenly emerged as a formidable talent, could be placed among them.
Zuoqiu Ting temporarily dismissed everyone from the West Tower chamber: "Tell me, what's so important?"
Li Weiyi revealed the news that the Imperial Court might launch an attack against the Zuoqiu Sect and the Jiu Li Clan tonight.
Of course, he didn't mention Jiang Ning, attributing the information to a Hidden One who had infiltrated the Imperial Court.
After listening, Zuoqiu Ting remained remarkably calm: "The Imperial Court believes the Zuoqiu Sect is a formidable force, having amassed immense wealth and resources through war profiteering over the past decade. If we were to enter the struggle for dominance, our threat would be greater than that posed by the Snow sword Tang Court, the Zhu Sect, the Dragon Sect, or the Thundercloud Sect."
"Hosting the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival with the Crossing Calamity Temple is a blatant act of defiance against the Imperial Court, a truly treasonous act."
"The Zuoqiu Sect will undoubtedly be their primary target. Once they eliminate our younger generation, the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival will become a laughingstock. The Zuoqiu Sect will be a laughingstock, and so will the Crossing Calamity Temple."
Li Weiyi remarked, "It seems this was all within your expectations. I was worried for nothing. Wouldn't Ge Xiantong fear mutual destruction, with the Imperial Court's young generation being swarmed by wolves? If I were him, I'd first openly and secretly ally with the Zuoqiu Sect to eliminate other threats before turning on you."
Zuoqiu Ting dismissed this with a wave of his hand: "You're thinking like a typical weakling."
"Oh?"
Li Weiyi asked, "Then what is 'thinking of the strong'?"
"The mindset of wanting to be the best in the world - that's thinking of the strong. Everyone else's way of thinking is just weakling thinking."
"When you fear no one, you won't hesitate or hold back."
Zuoqiu Ting continued, "Consider this: when you were invincible in the Fourth Stage of the Five Seas Realm, did you ever think of joining forces with an enemy at the same stage to kill another? When you stand supreme in the world, your sword is your greatest ally. One person, one sword - enough to cut through anything and subdue any foe."
"What do you think Ge Xiantong sees me, Cang Li, and Li Jiufu as?"
Li Weiyi pondered for a moment before answering, "Prey?"
Zuoqiu Ting nodded: "Close enough. In the eyes of the young generation's number one, as long as Dao Seed Realm cultivators don't interfere, every Martial-Mystic Cultivator in Qiu Prefecture City is his prey. Once he kills the three of us, the Zuoqiu Sect and the Jiu Li Clan will naturally collapse. We'll be torn apart by the wolves."
"You must understand that the world's strongest wield a special power: fear!"
"Yu Yaozi mastered fear, and despite a decade of war, the Lingxiao Palace still stands."
"When Ge Xiantong wipes out powerful forces like the Zuoqiu Sect and the Jiu Li Clan in a single night, the fear will make the Dragon Sect and Thundercloud Sect tremble. How could they dare oppose the Imperial Court?"
"The mindset of the strong is about settling the matter in a single battle."
Li Weiyi thought, "Doesn't he worry about Luan Sheng Lin You?"
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END OF CHAPTER
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