Chaos Thunder Cultivation
Author's Note
Dear readers, Chapter 4 is officially here with a longer length to unfold more exciting plots! After being promoted to an inner sect disciple, Song Zhong will face new challenges, unlock more secrets of the Chaos Thunder Bead, and clash with powerful rivals in the inner sect. Every thunderous strike, every breakthrough in cultivation, and every hidden truth will push him closer to the path of supremacy. Let's witness Song Zhong's continuous counterattack and his growing strength in this chapter!
Chapter 4: Thunder Shocks the Inner Sect, New Tribulations Await
The news that Song Zhong, a former lowly woodshed servant with a reputed trash spirit root, had been promoted to an inner sect disciple spread throughout the Azure Cloud Sect like wildfire in just half a day. It stirred up an uproar that was far more violent than the day he defeated Zhao Hu, sweeping through every corner of the sect, from the outer sect's humble quarters to the inner sect's elegant pavilions and the elders' secluded cultivation grounds.
In the Azure Cloud Sect, the hierarchy was as strict as a mountain, and the gap between outer sect disciples and inner sect disciples was like a chasm between heaven and earth. Outer sect disciples were mostly ordinary cultivators with mediocre talent, struggling to absorb spiritual energy and advance their cultivation, doing menial tasks for the sect while hoping for a chance to be promoted. Inner sect disciples, on the other hand, were carefully selected elites with outstanding spiritual roots and extraordinary comprehension; they enjoyed the best cultivation resources, exclusive guidance from elders, spacious and comfortable courtyards, and access to the sect's collection of cultivation techniques and spiritual herbs. For years, promotion from outer sect servant to inner sect disciple was unheard of—servants were at the bottom of the sect's food chain, destined to spend their lives doing chores, with no right to even touch formal cultivation techniques, let alone step into the inner sect.
But Song Zhong had broken this unbreakable rule.
A boy who had been bullied and humiliated for three years, labeled as a useless trash with a Five Elements Trash Root, had suddenly defeated an outer sect disciple with a single strike, revealed a legendary supreme Chaos Thunder Spirit Root, and was directly promoted to inner sect disciple by the sect leader himself. This series of events was so shocking that every disciple in the sect could hardly believe it, and mixed emotions of envy, jealousy, doubt, and curiosity filled their hearts.
Many inner sect disciples were particularly resentful and disdainful. They had worked hard for years, gone through strict assessments, and proven their talent to earn their place in the inner sect. How could they accept that a former servant, who they looked down upon, had suddenly joined their ranks? They whispered among themselves, claiming that Song Zhong must have used some despicable trick or stolen a forbidden treasure to fake his spirit root, and that he would be exposed soon. Some even made up their minds to teach him a lesson, to drive this "unworthy" trash out of the inner sect and restore the dignity of the elite disciples.
After leaving the main hall, Song Zhong was led by a deacon of the sect to his new residence in the inner sect—a quiet and elegant small courtyard, far away from the noisy outer sect. The courtyard was surrounded by green bamboo, with a stone table and benches in the center, and a faint spiritual energy lingered in the air, much richer than the thin spiritual energy in the outer sect's woodshed. There was a clean bedroom, a small cultivation room, and even a small garden for meditation. This was a treatment Song Zhong had never dared to imagine in his wildest dreams during those three years of suffering.
Standing in the courtyard, Song Zhong took a deep breath, feeling the abundant spiritual energy surging around him, and the faint thunder energy in his body resonated gently, absorbing the surrounding spiritual energy automatically. He touched the Chaos Thunder Bead hanging around his neck, which had returned to its dull black appearance, but he could feel the vast and boundless power hidden inside, like a sleeping thunder giant, ready to wake up at any moment.
This courtyard was not just a place to live; it was a new starting point for him. He was no longer the bullied servant Song Zhong, but a cultivator with the supreme Chaos Thunder Spirit Root, walking on the path of chaos thunder cultivation. However, Song Zhong was not arrogant or complacent because of the promotion. He knew very well that this was only the first step on his long journey of cultivation. The inner sect was full of talented and powerful disciples, and there were more hidden dangers and enemies waiting for him. What's more, he still had the important mission of uncovering the truth about his parents' death, which was the real driving force supporting him to move forward.
The deacon, a middle-aged man with a calm expression, handed Song Zhong a set of inner sect disciple uniforms, a identity badge, and a jade slip. "Disciple Song Zhong, from today on, you are an official inner sect disciple of the Azure Cloud Sect. This is your identity badge, which represents your status in the sect. The jade slip records the rules of the inner sect, the distribution of various buildings in the inner sect, and the basic information about cultivation resources. You must abide by the sect's rules at all times, and you can go to the Resource Hall to receive your monthly spiritual herbs and low-grade spiritual stones every month. If you have any questions, you can come to me or ask the elders in charge of the inner sect."
Song Zhong took the items with both hands, bowed slightly to the deacon, and said calmly, "Thank you, Deacon." His voice was steady, without the excitement or flattery that others might have in this situation. The deacon looked at him with a hint of surprise in his eyes. He had seen many new inner sect disciples who were overjoyed or nervous when they first entered the inner sect, but Song Zhong was calm and composed, far beyond his age. He nodded slightly, said a few more words of advice, and then left.
After the deacon left, Song Zhong closed the courtyard door, sat cross-legged on the stone table in the courtyard, and began to sort out his current situation and plan his next steps. First, he needed to stabilize his cultivation base. He had broken through from the Body Tempering Realm to the 5th Layer of Qi Refining overnight, which was a rapid advancement, and he needed to consolidate his realm to avoid unstable foundation. Second, he needed to carefully study the Chaos Thunder Cultivation technique inherited from the Chaos Thunder Bead. Previously, he had only mastered the most basic entry-level method, and there must be more powerful techniques and secrets hidden in the inheritance that he had not unlocked. Third, he needed to adapt to the life of the inner sect, understand the distribution of power in the inner sect, the personalities of the elders and other disciples, and avoid unnecessary conflicts before he was strong enough, while also being prepared to deal with the jealousy and provocation from other disciples.
He held the jade slip in his hand, injected a wisp of spiritual energy into it, and the information recorded in the jade slip instantly appeared in his mind. The inner sect of the Azure Cloud Sect was divided into several areas: the cultivation pavilions where disciples practiced, the Resource Hall that distributed resources, the Martial Arts Hall where disciples competed and learned techniques, the Treasure Pavilion that stored various treasures and techniques, the Medicine Garden where spiritual herbs were planted, and the elders' courtyards and the sect leader's palace. The inner sect disciples were divided into different groups according to their cultivation realms and ages, and there were regular martial arts competitions and assessments every year. Those with excellent results could get more resources and the opportunity to be taught by the elders personally, while those who lagged behind would have their resources reduced.
In addition, the jade slip also recorded that the Azure Cloud Sect was holding a grand outer sect and inner sect joint small competition in a month. All outer sect and inner sect disciples could participate, and the top ten winners would receive rich rewards, including high-grade spiritual stones, rare spiritual herbs, and even the qualification to enter the sect's secret realm to hunt for treasures. This competition was a crucial opportunity for new inner sect disciples to make a name for themselves and gain more resources.
Song Zhong's eyes flickered slightly. A month later, the joint small competition. This was a stage for him to further prove his strength, and also a way to get more cultivation resources to speed up his progress. He had already made up his mind to participate in the competition and win a good ranking.
Next, Song Zhong took out the Chaos Thunder Bead and focused his mind on it, trying to communicate with the bead and sense more of its inheritance. As he concentrated, the bead trembled slightly, and a steady stream of thunder-type spiritual energy poured out, merging into his body. At the same time, more content of the Chaos Thunder Cultivation technique appeared in his mind—this was not just a basic cultivation method, but also a set of powerful thunder-type martial arts, including the Thunder Fist, Thunder Movement Technique, and Thunder Shield, as well as a method to refine the Chaos Thunder Body, which could make his physical body stronger, immune to most ordinary attacks, and more compatible with thunder energy.
Overjoyed, Song Zhong immediately began to practice according to the new techniques. He sat in the courtyard, closed his eyes, and operated the Chaos Thunder Cultivation technique to the extreme. The abundant spiritual energy in the air, mixed with the thunder energy from the bead, rushed into his meridians like a raging river, washing and tempering his meridians over and over again, making them wider and tougher. His cultivation base was steadily improving, and the 5th Layer of Qi Refining was gradually consolidated, and he was even faintly approaching the 6th Layer of Qi Refining.
As he practiced, the sky gradually darkened, and the moon rose high, casting a soft glow over the courtyard. Song Zhong did not stop for a moment. He knew that every minute of cultivation was precious, and he had wasted three years of time, so he had to make up for it with double the effort. The thunder energy in his body became more and more vigorous, and a faint purple-gold thunder light lingered around his body, making him look like a young thunder god in the moonlight.
However, the peace of the night was quickly broken.
Just as Song Zhong was about to break through to the 6th Layer of Qi Refining, a loud bang came from the courtyard door, followed by a rude and arrogant shout: "Song Zhong, get out here! You're just a lowly servant who climbed into the inner sect by luck, how dare you occupy such a good courtyard alone? Get out and kowtow to us, or we'll break your legs and throw you out of the inner sect!"
Song Zhong's eyes opened suddenly, and a sharp light flashed in his eyes, mixed with a trace of cold anger. He had just stabilized his cultivation and was about to break through, but he was interrupted by these people. He stood up slowly, the thunder light on his body converging, and walked towards the courtyard door with a calm expression.
Outside the door stood three young men, all wearing inner sect disciple uniforms, with arrogant and contemptuous expressions on their faces. The leader was a tall young man with a fierce face, his eyes full of disdain when he looked at Song Zhong. These were the inner sect disciples who had been jealous of Song Zhong's promotion and had come to provoke him tonight.
"You're the servant Song Zhong?" The leader sneered, crossing his arms and looking Song Zhong up and down, "I heard you defeated Zhao Hu, an outer sect trash, and thought you were some kind of genius, but you're just an ordinary-looking boy with no strength at all. I advise you to be sensible, hand over the courtyard and your identity badge, get out of the inner sect, and go back to your woodshed to chop wood. Otherwise, we'll let you know the price of overstepping your bounds!"
The other two disciples behind him also laughed mockingly: "That's right, a trash servant is not qualified to be an inner sect disciple. The inner sect is a place for geniuses, not for garbage like you!"
Song Zhong looked at the three of them coldly, his voice without a trace of emotion: "Get out of here."
"How dare you talk to us like that?" The leader's face turned livid with anger, he didn't expect Song Zhong to be so tough, "It seems that you don't know how powerful we are! Brothers, let's teach this ignorant trash a lesson, let him kneel down and beg for mercy!"
As soon as the words fell, the three inner sect disciples rushed towards Song Zhong at the same time, their bodies surging with spiritual energy. The leader was at the 7th Layer of Qi Refining, and the other two were at the 6th Layer of Qi Refining—they were all much stronger than Zhao Hu, and they thought that they could easily defeat Song Zhong with their combined strength.
In the eyes of the onlookers who had heard the noise and gathered not far away, Song Zhong was bound to be defeated miserably. After all, he was just a former servant who had just started cultivating, even if he had a good spirit root, he couldn't fight three experienced inner sect disciples at once.
But Song Zhong's expression remained unchanged. He looked at the three people rushing towards him, and a wisp of purple-gold thunder light burst out from his body in an instant. He did not dodge or evade, but took a step forward, and used the Thunder Movement Technique he had just learned. His figure turned into a faint thunder shadow, and he easily dodged the joint attack of the three disciples at an incredible speed.
Before the three disciples could react, Song Zhong raised his right fist, and the thunder energy gathered on his fist, forming a dazzling thunder light. He punched out, and the Thunder Fist was unleashed, carrying a violent thunder roar and a destructive aura.
"Boom!"
A deafening thunder sound exploded in the courtyard. The leader of the inner sect disciples was hit directly by the Thunder Fist, and his spiritual energy shield was instantly shattered. He let out a miserable scream, his body flew backwards like a broken kite, fell heavily on the ground, and spurted out a big mouthful of blood, his cultivation base almost disordered, and he couldn't get up again.
The other two disciples were stunned, their faces pale with fear. They couldn't believe that their companion, who was at the 7th Layer of Qi Refining, was defeated by Song Zhong with one punch. They wanted to turn around and run, but Song Zhong's figure had already appeared in front of them like a ghost. He raised his hand and struck out two palms, each wrapped in thunder energy, and the two disciples were hit in an instant, falling to the ground and wailing in pain, completely losing their ability to fight.
In just a few breaths, the three arrogant inner sect disciples who had come to provoke Song Zhong were all defeated by him, without any power to fight back.
The onlookers in the distance were all stunned, their eyes wide open, looking at Song Zhong in the courtyard as if they had seen a ghost. No one dared to laugh at him anymore, no one dared to say that he was a trash servant—this strength was enough to shock all the inner sect disciples of the same realm.
Song Zhong looked down at the three defeated disciples on the ground, his eyes cold: "This is a warning. If anyone dares to provoke me again, the end will not be so simple."
The three disciples nodded repeatedly in fear, not daring to say a word, and struggled to get up and flee in a panic.
After they left, Song Zhong returned to the courtyard, closed the door again, and continued to practice. The interruption just now did not affect his state, but instead made him more determined to become stronger. He knew that this was just the first wave of troubles in the inner sect, and there would be more challenges and enemies waiting for him in the future.
But he was not afraid.
With the Chaos Thunder Bead in his hand and the supreme thunder cultivation technique, he would crush all obstacles, defeat all enemies, and use the power of chaos thunder to forge his own path of supremacy. The moon was bright, the thunder was latent, and Song Zhong's cultivation continued. In a month's time, the joint small competition of the Azure Cloud Sect would be the stage where he would truly shock the entire sect.