A complicated expression appeared on Sikong Beichen’s wizened face. “In the beginning, that’s what I thought as well. Ye Zhen is only a Nine-leaf cultivator so I didn’t think much of him. All my attention was focused on Chen Tiandu. Moreover, although Ye Zhen has mastered the karmic fire, I have my five First Seats to fend him off. I didn’t think that…” He paused for a moment when he recalled the scene when they sparred. A hint of incredulity could be seen in his eyes as he said, “He’s definitely not an ordinary Nine-leaf cultivator… When I pushed Chen Tiandu back, Ye Zhen could not restrain himself from launching a sneak attack. What I didn’t expect was that he easily nullified my sword technique and attacked me with his karmic fire.”
“Even if he used karmic fire, how could he harm you, a Ten-leaf cultivator?” Lu Zhou was puzzled.
“When he attacked… There was a fleeting feeling as though I was being attacked by several Nine-leaf cultivators at the same time. I was careless and was hit by his karmic fire,” Sikong Beichen said.
“How many Nine-leaf cultivators?” Lu Zhou stroked his beard as he thought about this.
Sikong Beichen cupped his fists and said, “Currently, the world thinks that the Ninth Temple killed Chen Beizheng. The palace will surely hold me accountable for this… The Ninth Temple and the Thousand Willow Monastery have to depend on each other for survival. Please, you must help me, Brother Lu.”
At the same time, the two First Seats, Yao Qingquan and Zhao Jianghe, bowed in unison. “Please help us, Senior Lu.”
After all, Chen Beizheng was one of the palace’s favorites. With his death, there certainly would be a reckoning, and the Ninth Temple was undoubtedly the largest target.
As for the golden lotus cultivators, indeed, there were rumors about them among the people. The Flying Star House failed in its attempt to annihilate the Thousand Willow Monastery. They were of the opinion that the Ninth Temple, the Thousand Willow Monastery, and the golden lotus cultivators were working together.
Sikong Beichen was right; their survival depended on each other.
Lu Zhou and his two disciples were only Nine-leaf cultivators. They were a far cry from being a force that could oppose Great Tang. The Sky Martial Court, the Flying Star House, and the Twelve Sects of Cloud Mountain, none of them could be underestimated.
Xia Changqiu, Tian Buji, and the elders outside the hall looked at Lu Zhou, waiting for his response.
After a brief pause, Lu Zhou looked at Sikong Beichen. He asked, “In your opinion, how many Ten-leaf cultivators are there in Great Tang?”
Upon hearing this question, the others exchanged a look.
Sikong Beichen was the perfect person to answer this question. He had lived for two millennia, after all. He had witnessed the changes that came with time and the rise and fall of countless elites. He might not pay attention to Nine-leaf cultivators, but Ten-leaf cultivators who were like treasures were different.
Sikong Beichen did not ask for the reason behind Lu Zhou’s question. He lowered his head as he mulled over the question. Finally, he said, “The Sky Martial Court Master’s Yu Chenshu, the Flying Star House Master, Chen Tiandu, The Twelve Sects of Cloud Mountain’s Master, Nie Qingyun, and the Thousand Blades Temple’s Abbot, Jian Zhen… As for the palace, rumor has it that they have three. With Chen Beizheng’s death, there should be two left.”
“So there are five in total…” Lu Zhou stroked his beard and thought to himself, ‘I’ll need five cards to be safe.’
“I’ve been cultivating in seclusion for many years. It’s been two millennia, and the cultivation world has always been in turmoil. Perhaps, there are other new Ten-leaf cultivators who conceal their strength… ” Sikong Beichen said.
At this moment, the Peace Hall’s First Seat, Yao Qingquan, cupped his fists and said, “Out of the five Ten-leaf cultivators the temple master mentioned, only the Sky Martial Court Master, Yu Chenshu, has mastered the karmic fire. The Sky Martial Court had recruited many talents throughout the years. They worked hard to nurture Nine-leaf cultivators and have the highest possibilities of producing new Ten-leaf cultivators. Three centuries ago, there was a lunatic from Sky Martial Court whose name was Luo Xuan. She reached the Ten-leaf stage in an extremely short time. However, her powers are unstable. After that, the Sky Martial Court hid her away from the public. Her whereabouts are unknown to this day.”
A bell rang in Lu Zhou’s mind when Yao Qingquan mentioned Luo Xuan. He speculated Luo Xuan must have taken the Great Void Seed and rose to the Nine-leaf stage. After a while, he asked, “How many Nine-leaf cultivators are there?”
Instead of Sikong Beichen, Yao Qingquan answered, “There are many sects under the heavens. The true major sects are only slightly more than ten. I think each of them has at least a few Nine-leaf cultivators. Some might have more than others, I can’t say for sure. Without Nine-leaf cultivators, they won’t be able to become major sects.”
“So, the Ninth Temple can be considered as a major sect as well… How did you fall into this state?”
Sikong Beichen and the two First Seats were embarrassed by this question.
Meanwhile, Lu Zhou thought to himself, ‘In Great Tang, there are five Ten-leaf cultivators and only a few Nine-leaf cultivators.’
At this moment, Sikong Beichen launched into a violent coughing fit before he spat out a mouthful of blood.
The others were shocked by this.
“Temple Master!”
They were shocked that Ye Zhen, a Nine-leaf cultivator, managed to injure Sikong Beichen, a Ten-leaf cultivator.
“I won’t die from this.” Sikong Beichen shook his head.
At this moment, Lu Zhou looked at Sikong Beizhen intently and said, “Don’t move.”
Sikong Beichen was slightly taken aback.
The others did not know what Lu Zhou planned to do.
Lu Zhou brought out the Golden Taixu Mirror and circulated his Primal Qi.
A golden beam of light shone on Sikong Beichen, revealing a miniature red lotus avatar with ten dazzling leaves. Apart from that, the mirror showed a karmic fire as well. A faint mark of seal could be seen on the karmic fire.
“He concealed a seal in his karmic fire when he attacked?” The others exclaimed in shock.
“How cunning! I didn’t expect Ye Zhen to be so cunning,” Yao Qingquan cursed.
Sikong Beichen frowned slightly. “It’s no wonder that I wasn’t able to get rid of the karmic fire no matter how much I adjusted my breath…”
Lu Zhou put the golden mirror away. ‘Looks like the golden mirror can also reveal hidden techniques apart from revealing cultivation bases and avatars.’
The others did not seem repulsed by the light from the golden mirror.
Yao Qingquan asked, “Is this treasure the source of the beam of golden light that shot up toward the heavens from the Thousand Willow Monastery earlier, Senior Lu?”
Lu Zhou did not deny that. He said, “Fortunately, your cultivation base is profound enough. Not anyone would be able to withstand the injury from this karmic fire.”
“If you run into Ye Zhen in the future, Senior Lu, you must be careful,” Sikong Beichen said.
Lu Zhou nodded as he stroked his beard. He wondered if the golden lotus domain or the red lotus domain was weaker? Currently, the red lotus domain was undoubtedly stronger. The Nine-leaf cultivators here were as numerous as Eight-leaf cultivators in the golden lotus domain However, cultivation was no longer restricted to the Eight-leaf stage in the golden lotus domain. It was only a matter of time before the golden lotus domain caught up with the red lotus domain. If a golden lotus cultivator and a red lotus cultivator had the same cultivation base, which lotus was stronger? Apart from that, there was the blue lotus that the Heavenly Writing scrolls gave him as well.
After a moment, Lu Zhou said, “This is only karmic fire. It’s nothing to me.” He slowly raised his hand. Soon after, a blue lotus appeared on his palm.
The others exclaimed in shock.
“A blue lotus?!”
The red lotus domain was not as clueless as the golden lotus domain. The cultivators here were aware of the existence of foreign worlds. Even so, they were shocked when they saw the blue lotus.
A perplexed expression appeared on Sikong Beichen’s wizened face. He had personally witnessed Lu Zhou manifesting a red lotus avatar and launching a 200-foot red palm seal. How did Lu Zhou manifest a blue lotus as well?
Various expressions could be seen on the faces of the people around Lu Zhou as the blue lotus descended. Its vitality and power fell on Sikong Beichen, and he quickly absorbed it.
In just an instant, Sikong Beichen felt the red lotus karmic fire within him dying out, extinguished by the blue lotus. The uncomfortable scorching sensation that he had to bear with was replaced with a chilling sensation. A few breaths later, he felt the red lotus karmic fire and the seal being dispersed by the chilling sensation.
At this moment, everyone was looking at Sikong Beichen intently.
Lu Zhou brought the Golden Taixu Mirror out again and circulated his Primal Qi, causing it to buzz.
