Outside the Heavenly Nether Ancient Realm.
Ye Ling emerged from the entrance to find Zhou Wen waiting for him.
"Congratulations, Brother Wang, for subduing the Myriad Poison Beast. I am truly impressed!" Zhou Wen strode forward, greeting Ye Ling with a smile.
"It's not subjugation, merely traveling together," Ye Ling replied with a smile.
"Brother Wang is too modest… For billions of years, no one has ever been able to make the Myriad Poison Beast willingly accompany them. You achieved it the moment you arrived; truly astonishing."
Ye Ling paid no mind to Zhou Wen's flattery and instead said, "Now that Sword Thirteen and Six have been dealt with, my return means it's time for the Dao Sect."
"Do you have any suggestions, Senior?"
Zhou Wen chuckled, "I can only wish you good luck. I am but a cripple now, and can only help you within the Heavenly Nether Ancient Realm. When it comes to the Dao Sect, you're on your own."
"Ah, I just remembered something else…"
"Sword Thirteen also has a master, another supreme expert whose strength surpasses that of Ji Ning and Sword Thirteen. Although he is not currently in Dao State, he might return if you make a move against the Dao Sect. Be careful."
"Thank you for the reminder, Senior." Ye Ling cupped his fists in gratitude.
Zhou Wen waved his hand, "There's nothing else. You should leave quickly… we shouldn't converse for too long."
"Very well… I thank you for your help within the Heavenly Nether Ancient Realm, Senior. From now on… you only need to await good news."
With that, Ye Ling bowed to Zhou Wen again, then ascended into the air, transforming into a beam of light and speeding towards the Dao Sect.
Along the way, the Myriad Poison Beast said to Ye Ling, "Kid, you should still be wary of Zhou Wen, lest you get sold out and foolishly help him count the money."
Ye Ling asked, "Why do you say that?"
The Myriad Poison Beast replied, "Billions of years ago, Zhou Wen was already a notorious supreme expert. He plundered and looted, committing all sorts of evil deeds."
"If you were to write down all the crimes he committed, the paper in the entire Dao State wouldn't be enough!"
Ye Ling was slightly startled, "Is that so?"
"Naturally! I have no reason to lie to you about such matters," the Myriad Poison Beast stated calmly.
Ye Ling then inquired, "If that's the case, then why did Zhou Wen seal himself in a coffin?"
"If he were truly a person who enjoyed committing evil, he wouldn't be able to endure the pain of being sealed in a bronze coffin, would he?"
The Myriad Poison Beast responded, "Rumor has it he offended someone, and out of fear, he sealed himself away."
"Someone that even Zhou Wen fears?" Ye Ling frowned slightly. "That must be a top-tier supreme expert, right?"
After all, Zhou Wen's maid, Qing Zhu, had already become a supreme expert. No matter what, Zhou Wen's strength should be considered upper-tier among supreme experts.
Someone who could make Zhou Wen afraid should be one of the strongest supreme experts.
"I don't know the specifics, but Zhou Wen has committed too many evils and made many enemies. I wouldn't be surprised if someone sought revenge."
The Myriad Poison Beast scoffed, his words dripping with disdain for Zhou Wen.
Ye Ling then asked the Myriad Poison Beast, "How did you get into the Heavenly Nether Ancient Realm?"
"This…"
When Ye Ling suddenly brought this up, the Myriad Poison Beast became embarrassed and fell silent.
"Is there something you find difficult to speak of?" Ye Ling asked, seeing the Myriad Poison Beast's sudden silence.
"It's just a bit embarrassing to talk about," the Myriad Poison Beast replied awkwardly.
"In that case, let's not discuss it." Ye Ling didn't press the Myriad Poison Beast further and dropped the topic.
However, Xiao Maomao, lacking tact, asked curiously, "Big guy! Tell us, why were you in that secret realm!"
"Maomao! Everyone has their secrets. You can't interrogate them like that!" Ye Ling immediately admonished Xiao Maomao.
"Oh…" Xiao Maomao drooped his head. "I'm sorry…"
The Myriad Poison Beast sighed heavily and said, "It's nothing major, really. I had learned that Zhou Wen's ancient tomb contained Myriad Nether Grass, and I intended to search for it. However, Zhou Wen's trap techniques were too formidable, and they trapped me in the secret realm."
"However, because the Heavenly Nether Ancient Realm was rich in spiritual energy and contained many poisonous herbs and immortal medicines, I managed to establish a medicinal field there. Afterward, I simply cultivated within the secret realm and didn't leave."
Xiao Maomao exclaimed, "That's nothing to be ashamed of! What's embarrassing about it?"
"Indeed… it's merely my pride that is a bit too strong," the Myriad Poison Beast sighed.
"But during the years I lived in the secret realm, Zhou Wen tried to subdue me in every way possible. Now that I've followed you out, he might hold a grudge. You should be careful."
"Understood."
Ye Ling nodded slightly, then said to the Myriad Poison Beast, "We're approaching the Dao Sect. Conceal your aura. I still have a friend in Ji Ning's hands, and I cannot fall out with Ji Ning yet."
"Alright."
The Myriad Poison Beast responded quickly, completely concealing his aura. The mark on Ye Ling's brow also faded.
Ye Ling returned to the outer disciples' living quarters and entered Yun Nian's room.
"Elder Wang, you're here…"
Yun Nian, seeing Ye Ling enter, immediately broke from his cultivation and greeted him.
Ye Ling glanced at Yun Nian and nodded, "Not bad. Such progress in just three days. With a little more cultivation, you'll surpass most of your peers."
"It's all thanks to Elder Wang's cultivation technique," Yun Nian said gratefully. "Even if I cultivated day and night with the sect's other techniques, I couldn't cultivate even a trace of spiritual energy. But with Elder Wang's technique, I can easily cultivate spiritual energy!"
"Naturally, it's a cultivation technique I specifically tailored for you," Ye Ling said with a smile.
"Spe-specifically tailored?" Yun Nian seemed bewildered.
Ye Ling didn't bother explaining to Yun Nian and instead asked, "Never mind that. In the three days I was gone, did anything happen in the sect?"
Yun Nian shook his head, "I'm not sure… Ever since Elder Wang killed Zhu Yong, no one has assigned tasks to us outer disciples. I've been cultivating in my room these past few days and don't know what's been happening in the sect."
"If you're not sure, then nothing significant has happened."
Ye Ling smiled, then removed the rune from Yun Nian's body and gave him a new cultivation technique. "You've worked hard. This Dao Sect is not suitable for you. Descend the mountain today. Go as far away from the Dao Sect as possible."
"Elder Wang?" Yun Nian took the cultivation technique from Ye Ling, asking with confusion.
He didn't understand why Ye Ling wanted him to leave.
Ye Ling said calmly, "Just listen to me… The cultivation technique I've given you is a new cultivation system I've opened up. If you cultivate according to it, you will embark on a unique path."
"This path will be fraught with thorns and incredibly difficult, but if you can traverse it, you will become a new legend."
"Elder Wang…"
Hearing Ye Ling's words, Yun Nian's nose stung. He then knelt before Ye Ling, kowtowed three times, and respectfully said, "Elder Wang, although you do not acknowledge me as your disciple, please allow me to call you Master!"
"Your great kindness, this disciple will never forget!"
Ye Ling smiled and waved his hand, "No need for sentimentality. Descend the mountain."
"Yes!!!"
Yun Nian replied respectfully, then packed his belongings and descended the mountain under the cover of night.
From the moment Yun Nian descended the mountain, no one could have imagined that a genius with extremely poor innate talent and aptitude would emerge, capable of dominating his peers.
And in the thirty million years that followed, a top-tier supreme expert was born.
No one knew how that supreme expert achieved his rise through cultivation, but his legend inspired countless cultivators with poor talent on the Origin Continent.
And whenever that supreme expert held lectures, his disciples would ask if he was self-taught and had independently pioneered a new cultivation system. He would only smile faintly and say, "My master is Wang Li Ren."
Of course, that was all in the future.
And Ye Ling, who facilitated all of this, had his own important matters to attend to after sending Yun Nian away.