Xu Mo continued his stay within the sect while steadily increasing his strength, absorbing the spiritual energy around him and refining it to fill his core. After reaching the Gold Core Realm, the cultivation method—or more specifically, the Dantian—was where the spiritual energy was stored. Xu Mo visualized it as filling bucket after bucket of spiritual energy as his realm rose.

Being able to form a 9th-grade core was all nice and cool, but it had its own set of drawbacks. Currently, Xu Mo had been stuck on the first layer of his Gold Core Realm. Many elders might argue that he was still too young and had plenty of time to break through slowly while consolidating his realm, though none in the sect knew about his current core grade.

What they didn't know was that Xu Mo was different from them. Having a 9th-grade core meant there were nine steps he needed to climb before he could even think about breaking through to the Nascent Soul Realm.

That was why it was generally preferred by the masses of commoner or rogue cultivators—those who managed to form a core—that they would choose to form a lower-grade one instead, since it meant fewer layers to traverse through in the Gold Core Realm and made it easier to attack the Nascent Soul Realm within their lifetime.

He would need a spiritual baptism at the same level, if not beyond, the one he received when he was bombarded by the thunder tribulation, which had been swallowed by the Dao of Silence inside him.

This was the reason Xu Mo was seen cultivating less and spending more time perfecting the techniques in his arsenal.

The cursed weapon he had received from the sect master was still in his possession, though he refrained from using it. Not because he couldn't handle a few bindings, but because he was unable to properly utilize it—and, on the other hand, it didn't align with his aspirations of being a righteous cultivator.

It made him feel more like an assassin whenever he used that weapon to attack.

Xu Mo held a sword-like branch carved from the fallen limb of one of the trees near the forbidden zone where the ancestor resided. There was a vast plain outside his residence, and he continued swinging, slicing, and thrashing with his makeshift sword.

Xu Mo wasn't using any technique.

Since losing the system, he was unable to keep track of his progress, which made him feel slightly lost. Once someone had tasted the benefits received by those so-called transmigrated protagonists or villains, it was difficult to feel satisfied with practicing aimlessly—spending countless hours without seeing any progress.

It didn't mean he had become lazy or was waiting for another system to come bind him after some protagonist lost his status. He was mature enough to know where his priorities lay; it was just that the feeling left a bitter taste in his mouth.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

His sword made sharp sounds as it sliced through the still air surrounding him. Without using any fancy techniques or his spiritual power, Xu Mo was already someone no mortal could comprehend through their understanding. Just his physical might was enough to create a shockwave from his casual swing—his cuts through the air traveling a considerable distance.

Recently, he had heard about a person within the sect who seemed to possess some special talent with the sword and was able to touch upon the laws of the sword—something like that. He wasn't too sure about the details himself since he interacted less and less with the sect disciples as time passed. He preferred the embrace of silence that seclusion brought; it helped him feel the world around him more clearly.

The idea of practicing the sword from the basics was inspired by that rising star. He had heard about this talent from Wu Ming, one of his aides, who handled affairs related to male disciples. His other aide, Li Xueya, oversaw female concerns.

He planned to participate as the sect master's representative in the upcoming inner sect competition—the same challenge that Long Chen and he had once taken part in, which elevated their status from outer sect disciples to inner sect disciples. Though, truth be told, Xu Mo had already been chosen as the True Successor by the sect master from the very beginning.

Now that some time had passed, many people had already forgotten—or perhaps chosen to forget—about Xu Mo. Even before disappearing from the public eye, he had always stayed low-key. Now, the sect mainly knew of two prominent figures since the Saintess had left: Li Xueya and Wu Ming. There was also another person named Yin Chen, someone the sect master had brought with him—making him a suitable candidate to replace Xu Mo.

However, the ancestor was simply too doting toward Xu Mo, and even the sect master treated him too kindly, which naturally caused Yin Chen to harbor hostility toward him.

"Speak," Xu Mo said to Li Xueya, who stood far from his residence, observing him quietly—thinking she could fool a Gold Core Realm cultivator's senses.

"True Successor, the new disciples' report has been compiled," Li Xueya spoke, her tone carrying a strange seriousness, as if the sect was facing a crisis.

"Continue." Xu Mo didn't stop his training. Even though he had been at it for hours, not a single bead of sweat appeared on his forehead—one of the many perks of ascending beyond the status of an ordinary mortal.

"This year, the majority of the female cultivators have dropped out, and many others have refused to participate in the sect's enrollment."

Xu Mo's body shook slightly, but then he smirked and lightly shook his head before continuing his swings. The only exception was that he had to change his position—Li Xueya was standing in front of him, and he didn't want to accidentally slice her in half. After all, Li Xueya was only a twelve-year-old child. Even though she had reached the Qi Condensation Realm, she was still far too weak. Forget facing him—she was merely a lamb waiting to be slaughtered if she encountered even a peak Qi Condensation Realm cultivator.

"You don't seem as shocked as I thought you would be. Did you expect this?" Li Xueya looked at Xu Mo's almost nonchalant expression and couldn't help but grow curious. Xu Mo knew Li Xueya was a villainess who would one day stand at odds with some protagonist—though he had been shocked when he first saw her status panel two years ago.

"I might have been shocked if I hadn't recently gone out of the sect."

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