"Senior Brother Hu, you've been in seclusion for the past year. Have you broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage?" Lin Yao asked curiously.
The question instantly silenced the private room. Everyone's eyes were fixed on Hu Nan, filled with disbelief, anticipation, and envy.
The Foundation Establishment stage was the ultimate dream for all Qi Refining cultivators. If Hu Nan had truly succeeded, he would be the first among their fellow villagers to become a Foundation Establishment expert. In the future, they could gain more confidence within the Heavenly Sword Sect thanks to Hu Nan's achievement.
Hu Nan smiled and said, "You're all joking. Foundation Establishment isn't that easy."
Hearing this, a hint of joy appeared on everyone's faces, but it was also expected.
Foundation Establishment was extremely difficult. In the entire Heavenly Sword Sect, only a handful of disciples successfully achieved it each year. Hu Nan's achievement of reaching the Great Perfection of Qi Refining was already incredibly rare.
"By the way, do you have any news about Li Hu?" Hu Nan asked.
"Li Hu? I don't know. I haven't heard from him for two years."
"He seems to have vanished since the Grand Competition!"
"He's probably been held up by something!"
Everyone shook their heads.
They hadn't seen Li Hu since the last Grand Competition.
Li Hu seemed to have disappeared.
With Hu Nan's arrival, the gathering of fellow townsmen from Beihai County officially began.
As they sipped their spiritual tea, the group began to chat, from past camaraderie to their current cultivation difficulties, their conversation filled with sighs and reflections.
"Speaking of which, quite a few major events have happened in our sect this year. Have you heard?" At the height of the conversation, a cultivator dressed in a blue outer sect robe, with a cultivation level of Qi Refining Level 4, put down his teacup. His tone was tinged with a hint of sighing and envy as he slowly spoke, instantly drawing everyone's attention.
Everyone shook their heads, their faces showing curiosity. Some even eagerly pressed, "What's the big deal? We're usually so focused on our cultivation, we don't have time to pay attention to these sect matters! Tell us quickly!"
The cultivator slowly said, "The most enviable people are Senior Sister Jiang Lijuan and Senior Brother Wu Yong from the inner sect. They both successfully established their Foundation Establishment recently! I heard they were in seclusion for a full six months, breaking through their bottlenecks and becoming early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators. Now they're quite the big shot in the sect!"
"Senior Sister Jiang Lijuan was already at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, so Foundation Establishment is perfectly normal for her!"
"Senior Brother Wu Yong is Elder Qingxuan's disciple, isn't Foundation Establishment perfectly normal for him too?"
Although everyone greatly envied Jiang Lijuan and Wu Yong's successful Foundation Establishment,
there was no surprise.
After all, one was Qingling Fairy's disciple, and the other was Elder Qingxuan's disciple; Foundation Establishment wasn't difficult for them.
"Where's Senior Brother Lin Hao?"
"Senior Brother Lin's talent has always been exceptionally high, why hasn't he reached Foundation Establishment?"
Soon, someone noticed that Lin Hao hadn't successfully reached Foundation Establishment.
After all, Lin Hao had already reached the Great Perfection of Qi Refining several years ago.
Moreover, his father was Lin Zhentian, the sect's Enforcement Elder.
"I heard Senior Brother Lin Hao was ambushed and injured his dantian. He's been recuperating for the past year!"
"What? Who had the audacity to ambush Senior Brother Lin Hao?"
"I heard they even cut off his right arm!"
"Fortunately, we had the Meridian-Severing Pills. After more than a year of recuperation, he's recovered!"
"I saw Lin Hao a while ago; his arms have healed."
"It must have cost a lot of spirit stones!"
Hearing the crowd's discussion, Qin Changsheng felt somewhat smug.
After all, he was the one who ambushed Lin Hao and severed his arms.
Qin Changsheng wasn't surprised that Lin Hao recovered his arms so quickly; after all, Lin Zhentian was an elder of the Enforcement Hall.
Collecting a few Meridian-Severing Pills was quite easy.
After a brief silence, Zhang Han suddenly spoke, his tone filled with fear and gravity: "There's something else, even more frightening than this. Recently, many high-level demonic beasts have appeared near the sect, at least at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, and some are even at the early Foundation Establishment stage. They've injured many outer sect disciples, and even several inner sect disciples who went out for training didn't return alive."
"Foundation Establishment stage demonic beasts?!" The crowd's expressions changed drastically; their envy and sighs were instantly replaced by fear.
They were merely cultivators at the third, fourth, or fifth level of Qi Refining. Let alone Foundation Establishment stage demonic beasts, they might not even be able to contend with peak Qi Refining stage demonic beasts. The appearance of Foundation Establishment stage demonic beasts near the sect was bound to terrify them.
"The sect leader has given the order," Zhang Han continued, his voice trembling slightly, "all low-level disciples are ordered not to leave the sect unless absolutely necessary. Even if they do go out, they must travel in groups and report to the Hall of Affairs. Otherwise, the sect will not be responsible for any accidents. During this period, outer sect disciples dare not easily step outside the sect, fearing they might encounter demonic beasts."
The crowd nodded, their faces filled with relief and lingering fear. They discussed the terrifying nature of the demonic beasts and complained about the arduous path of cultivation, their tone filled with unease.
They were already lacking in resources, making it difficult to improve their cultivation. Now, with high-level demonic beasts appearing, they didn't even have the opportunity to go out and find cultivation resources.
Lin Yao frowned, a serious expression on her beautiful face. She said softly, "These demonic beasts usually hide deep in the mountains and rarely approach sects. Their sudden appearance in large numbers, especially high-level ones, is extremely strange."
Qin Changsheng listened to the discussion without interrupting.
Qin Changsheng knew very well why these high-level demonic beasts had appeared.
It was a harbinger of the impending Great Calamity.
When the Great Calamity arrives, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth will be chaotic. Demonic beasts, affected by this energy, will become increasingly ferocious, their strength will increase dramatically, and they will be forced to leave their habitats and wander aimlessly. Approaching human cultivators' sects is therefore quite reasonable.
Just then, a loud crash echoed as the wooden door of the private room was violently kicked open.
Everyone turned to look, and saw Zhao Lei staggering in, looking extremely disheveled.
His face was covered in dust and blood, with undried bloodstains at the corner of his mouth. His clothes were tattered and torn in several places, and his eyes were filled with frustration and grievance. He even walked unsteadily, clearly suffering from serious injuries.
"Zhao Lei? Why are you so late? What happened to you, looking so disheveled?" Zhang Han looked at Zhao Lei, who had just entered, with some doubt.
The others also stood up and gathered around, their faces showing surprise at Zhao Lei's injured appearance.
Zhao Lei was usually cheerful and humble, never making enemies. How could he have ended up like this? The gathering had been going on for quite some time, and he was always punctual; today he was so late.
"Yes, Zhao Lei, what happened to you? Who bullied you?"
"Your injuries are so severe, did you encounter a demonic beast? But didn't the sect leader forbid us from leaving the sect?"
The crowd spoke one after another, their voices full of concern. They hurriedly helped Zhao Lei to a chair, poured him a cup of spiritual tea, and let him catch his breath.
Looking at his fellow villagers, Zhao Lei's eyes reddened, his voice choked with frustration and grievance as he said, "I... my courtyard... it was taken away..."
"What?! The courtyard's been taken away?"
"Who's so bold?! How dare they steal a disciple's courtyard within the sect's borders?"
"These people are incredibly audacious!"
The faces of many fellow villagers were filled with anger.
"It's...it's Senior Brother Lin Hao!" Zhao Lei's face was full of resentment.
Upon hearing the name "Lin Hao," the private room instantly fell silent. The concern on everyone's faces was instantly replaced by fear and sympathy.
Lin Hao came from a prominent family, backed by the Golden Core Elder Lin Zhentian. He was known for his arrogance and domineering nature. Although he hadn't yet reached Foundation Establishment, even a weakened giant was still formidable, far beyond the reach of low-ranking outer sect disciples like themselves.
"Lin Hao? Why would he want your courtyard?" a fellow villager asked in a low voice, his tone filled with apprehension. "Your courtyard is located on the west side of the outer sect, quite secluded, with relatively low spiritual energy. Why would he want your courtyard?"
Mentioning this, Zhao Lei grew increasingly dejected, his eyes reddening. "I don't know either! Today, after finishing my cultivation, I returned to my courtyard gate and saw Lin Hao standing there with several followers, saying he wanted my courtyard and demanding I move out immediately. I refused, so I went up to argue with him, and his followers beat me up..."
Having finished speaking, Zhao Lei couldn't hold back any longer. He lowered his head, his shoulders trembling slightly, filled with despair and helplessness.
He came from an ordinary background, lacking both a powerful family connections and abundant resources. That small courtyard, though remote and simple, was his only refuge within the Heavenly Sword Sect. Now, with Lin Hao having seized it, he had nowhere to cultivate or live.
Hearing Zhao Lei's words, everyone offered their condolences.
Some suggested he temporarily stay in his own courtyard for a few days; others advised him to be patient and find a solution later when his cultivation improved. But a hint of helplessness lingered in everyone's voice.
They all knew that once Lin Hao had taken the courtyard, he would not easily return it. They were powerless to help Zhao Lei reclaim it.
The atmosphere in the private room grew heavy again, filled with sympathy and despair.
Far away in the courtyard, Qin Changsheng's eyes shone with excitement.
Qin Changsheng's mind instantly brightened upon hearing Zhao Lei's words.
He had been to Zhao Lei's courtyard once before. It was indeed located on the west side of the outer gate, extremely remote and sparsely populated, far from the outer sect disciples' settlement, and exceptionally quiet.
He had always wanted to seize the *Five Elements Gathering Spirit Technique* from Lin Hao, but Lin Hao had always been in the Enforcement Hall, leaving him with no opportunity.
Unexpectedly, Lin Hao had moved to a secluded courtyard today.
It was a quiet, secluded place, where even if a fight broke out, it wouldn't be easily discovered.
Even if Lin Zhentian was alerted, he wouldn't be able to arrive immediately.
Furthermore, Qin Changsheng only needed to secretly investigate the specific situation of Zhao Lei's courtyard, understand Lin Hao's routine and defenses, and then seize the opportunity to take the *Five Elements Gathering Spirit Technique* in one fell swoop.