5. Survive Until Foundation Establishment

His words were not particularly sharp, yet when taken in context, the underlying threat was unmistakable. After all, only by handling this matter cleanly and removing the trouble for Protector Lin could they be said to have completed their task. With that, they would finally have a powerful backer within the Linwu Sect.

The sect had three official positions for cultivators at the Foundation Establishment stage: Sect Master, Elder, and Protector. Of these, the Protector was undoubtedly the lowest. Still, even at that rank, Protector Lin controlled resources they desperately needed.

“Please, gentlemen, if we cannot agree, there is no need for further words.” Xiao Qingpei showed no anger; it was pointless to take offense. These were merely a few lackeys who liked to throw their weight around.

“Xiao Qingpei, don’t mistake kindness for weakness!” At his response, the group grew agitated. Their future prospects were at stake.

“Do you think you’re still a disciple of the Linwu Sect? Calling you Senior Brother Xiao is a courtesy you don’t deserve! Now you’re nothing but a rogue cultivator, so don’t overestimate yourself!”

They snapped one after another.

Xiao Qingpei listened in silence, waiting for them to finish before responding with a faint, ambiguous smile. “Tell me, do you not realize that in the cultivation world, strength is what truly speaks? That strength may come from family, backing, reputation, or even a bit of luck. However, it seems you have none of these, just as I do. In that case, it all comes down to cultivation.”

As his words fell, starlight began to flicker in Xiao Qingpei’s hand.

“So, I wonder, can any of you, at the lower stage of Qi Refinement, withstand a blow from my Starlit Immortal Art?”

His tone was calm, but to their ears, it struck like thunder.

In the past, their status as Linwu Sect disciples ensured their authority when dealing with outsiders. No itinerant cultivator dared challenge them. This emboldened them to act meek and courteous within the sect, yet the moment they left its gates, they looked down on everyone beyond.

“Xiao Qingpei, you wouldn’t dare—”

“Yes, I would.” Not allowing them to finish, Xiao Qingpei channeled his immortal power, and a mountain of light took shape above him. This mountain, however, was smaller and dimmer than the one he had conjured when sparring with “Little Qian” previously.

When the luminous mountain descended, the group was heavily wounded with a single strike.

Xiao Qingpei had held back; otherwise, that single blow would have ended their lives. He needed to remain in Fengqing Town for a while longer, at least until after the Heaven and Earth Immortal Examination, to stabilize his cultivation at the Foundation Establishment stage and ensure that his internal Taiyin Immortal Power would no longer be suppressed by the pure Yang energy permeating the world. Only then could he leave.

And why was that? Because only in Fengqing Town could he guarantee his own safety. If he died there, the consequences would be far more damaging than simply being expelled from the sect. It could very well ruin the Linwu Sect’s reputation entirely.

Although staying in Fengqing Town would bring its own troubles, none who came to challenge him would be at the Foundation Establishment level—perhaps not even at the upper stage of Qi Refinement.

Against a few lower-stage Qi Refinement cultivators, Xiao Qingpei could easily handle them. Still, he had to be careful not to go too far.

As long as no one died, no matter what he did, it could be excused as venting his frustrations—a mere exchange between former sect members.

This was all part of Xiao Qingpei’s plan.

After all, when even his “cheat” was so unreliable, if he didn’t think ahead, there was no way he could survive a thousand years, as the system’s plot suggested!

“Come to think of it, if not for that thing, I never would have realized how long I could live,” he muttered.

He began to wait patiently.

Such sect-level Foundation Establishment Immortal Examinations were held at set times, which was one reason he had acted so decisively: with the exam imminent, all matters had to yield to it.

This time, even the sect master’s own last disciple would be participating.

In just two years, she had advanced from the lower stage to the fourth level of upper-stage Qi Refinement—a truly extraordinary talent. Yet this only highlighted how formidable Celestial Palace was; even such a prodigy had not qualified for their ranks!

Two days later, a strange resonance echoed across the land. A streak of crimson-gold light fell from the sky, enveloping the entire Linwu Sect.

Its radiant afterglow spread across all of Azure Cliff Mountain.

From Fengqing Town, it was a breathtaking spectacle—one many had never before witnessed.

“Is this…the start of the Immortal Examination?”

“I’ve heard the Foundation Establishment examination always begins with such a phenomenon!”

“Then that must be the immortals’ examination!”

The townsfolk buzzed with excitement, some cultivators, some ordinary folk who had never trained in their lives.

Xiao Qingpei mingled among them.

He had lived quietly these two days. As he expected, none from the Linwu Sect sought him out. The system remained silent as if it had died.

“Now that the time has come, it’s finally my turn.”

Turning away, Xiao Qingpei took a single step and soared skyward.

The reason the Foundation Establishment stage was called “Upper Cultivation” here was because at this level, one could ride the clouds and summon wind and rain—almost like a living immortal.

Over the past two days, although his immortal power had gradually waned, his cultivation had not regressed. So when he circulated his energy, misty clouds formed around him, and beneath his feet, a billow of blue-gray vapor took shape.

Riding this dark cloud, Xiao Qingpei sped along, covering dozens of miles in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

Then he descended.

Before him stretched a forest of crimson spiritual wood. Once unclaimed, it had been seized by the Great Yao Dynasty and later parceled among the itinerant cultivators of Azure Cliff Mountain.

Now, however, it belonged to the Linwu Sect—more precisely, to the sect master personally.

Usually, disciples would be stationed here to guard the forest, but with the Immortal Examination underway, even those not participating had rushed off to witness the event.

This forest of spirit wood was precisely the “Phoenix-Attracting Spiritwood” required to summon the Heaven and Earth Immortal Examination.