Grinding Cultivation Toward Martial Saint

"Achieving the peak of Grandmaster status with Earth, Wind, Water, and Fire—this is truly remarkable!!" Jiang Ning exclaimed in amazement.

Ye Zhengqi replied, "Indeed, Li Sixiang is impressive! Earth, Wind, Water, and Fire, in Buddhist mythology, these four elements are the fundamental components of all matter. In terms of conceptualization, they possess the power to recreate the world!"

"While it's only conceptual, to achieve the peak of Grandmaster status with Earth, Wind, Water, and Fire, and then step into Second Grade, Li Sixiang's True Meaning of Martial Arts must be incredibly profound and strong."

"In Guangning Prefecture, he is considered a top-tier powerhouse."

Saying this, Ye Zhengqi glanced at Jiang Ning.

"But this has nothing to do with you!"

"If Cross Immortal Gate poses a problem or shows defiance, that is for me and the soon-to-be Shen Mansion Master, Shen Wenyan, to worry about!"

Upon hearing this,

Jiang Ning nodded.

He immediately felt that his trip was worthwhile.

Had he not visited Water Moon Sword Palace and attended this Grandmaster Banquet,

he would never have had such an expanded perspective.

Cross Immortal Gate, Li Sixiang, Zhong Yue...

These are all things he was not aware of before.

At the upper level, it seems the court is not in a favorable position.

Cross Immortal Gate has produced two Second Grade Grandmasters consecutively.

At least around Guangning Prefecture, local sect forces are strong and influential.

And on the Great Xia official side.

As far as he knows, only Shen Wenyan, who is about to take office, is a Second Grade Grandmaster in the Inspection Office.

And he has just entered the Second Grade of Grandmaster.

With Shen Wenyan taking over the Inspection Office in the prefecture city of Guangning Prefecture, it's apparent that the previous old Residence Master is to be moved to another place.

After all, a mountain cannot contain two tigers.

How can one Inspection Office accommodate both an old and a new Residence Master?

From this point, he can also infer.

High-end power on the Great Xia official side is very weak and lacking.

Perhaps this is why there are such rules.

A Second Grade Grandmaster, willing to join the court, can be granted a title and rank.

This also shows the scarcity of powerful individuals.

This reminds him of a statement he once read in a book.

Great Xia has ruled the world for over eight hundred years.

In reality, it is the Imperial Family and court forces that have co-ruled the world alongside the sects for over eight hundred years.

The three sides have formed a tripartite equilibrium.

Although it seems the Martial Saint has suppressed the world for over eight hundred years, it is indeed a chosen compromise for over eight hundred years.

Those truly deep-rooted sects remained untouched by the Martial Saint.

While these thoughts race through his mind, Ye Zhengqi suddenly interrupts Jiang Ning's thoughts.

"Lord Jiang, how is Elder Zhong's great-granddaughter?"

"What do you mean, Lord Ye?" Jiang Ning snapped back to reality, showing confusion.

"What is your impression?" Ye Zhengqi asked.

"Mysterious and unique! She can actually discern the talent of an Immortal Root!" Jiang Ning replied.

"You're correct. Elder Zhong's great-granddaughter is indeed special, possessing a unique physique from the Ancient Era. If she were born in ancient times, she would certainly be treasured by the mystical holy lands, and carefully nurtured!" Ye Zhengqi said, shaking his head.

"But alas, like you, she was born at the wrong time! The era of her birth is unfortunate!"

"However, she is somewhat better than you—because of her special physique, she naturally masters the Heavenly Human Unity Realm."

These words surprised Jiang Ning.

"Can she naturally master the Heavenly Human Unity Realm?"

"Indeed!" Ye Zhengqi nodded slightly and continued, "Not only that, if you were to marry her and connect with her soul, she could serve as a medium for you to comprehend the Heavenly Human Unity Realm."

Discussing this, Ye Zhengqi glanced at Jiang Ning and spoke again: "Lord Jiang, you might as well marry her! I promise to fully support you and mediate with Elder Zhong. What do you think?"

"Having someone as young as you be a Heavenly Human Grandmaster in Guangning Prefecture makes me proud!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Ning shook his head repeatedly.

"This step might be convenient, but what then? Once I taste the sweetness of wrong paths, I fear it will shake my resolve in martial arts and weaken my determination in the future!"

Listening to these words, Ye Zhengqi gave Jiang Ning a sidelong glance.

Then he nodded slightly: "No wonder Lord Jiang has achieved so much at such a young age—your ability to remain unmoved by such temptations is rare!!"

...

In the midst of their conversation,

The two had already reached their residential area.

"By the way, Lord Jiang!"

Upon hearing Ye Zhengqi's call, Jiang Ning immediately stopped.

Ye Zhengqi said, "Master Zhao has contacted me; he has emerged from seclusion and should arrive at Water Moon Sword Palace this afternoon! If I'm cultivating in seclusion, you should go meet him."

"Master Zhao is coming?" Jiang Ning's eyes lit up: "Has Master Zhao taken that crucial step upon emerging from seclusion?"

Ye Zhengqi shook his head: "I don't know for certain; you can ask him later!"

Jiang Ning nodded upon hearing this.

"Alright! I'm going inside!" Ye Zhengqi waved a hand, pushed his room door open, and headed inside.

Seeing this, Jiang Ning also opened his door and entered his room.

"Come out!" Jiang Ning closed the door and called towards a side room.

In the next moment,

Xiao Emei, in a blue chiffon long skirt, stepped out from the room where he had been resting.

Jiang Ning approached the table and turned the overturned teacup upright on the tray, picked up the teapot, and poured himself a cup of cold tea.

Having just eaten too many pastries in the pavilion, he felt his mouth go dry.

"Speak! Why have you come to find me?" Jiang Ning asked.

His words fell, and he drank the tea in one go.

Because he drank hastily, tea spilled over the edge of the cup and dripped onto the wooden floor.

Finishing the drink, he poured himself a second cup.

This time, Xiao Emei spoke.

"I advised the Palace Master!"

"What was the outcome?" Jiang Ning asked calmly.

"It failed!" Xiao Emei's eyes dimmed.

"I suspected so!" Jiang Ning said, picking up the second cup.

After finishing the second drink, he placed the cup back upside down on the tray.

He then continued, "Xiao Qiushui has just entered the realm of the Heavenly Human Grandmaster, naturally filled with ambition and pride at this time. How could she heed your advice and give up?"

"I know too!" Xiao Emei's eyes were filled with complexity, her emotions mixed and unspoken.

"Will you really kill her?" Xiao Emei asked again.

"If she makes that choice, I will certainly exert all my power!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Emei fell silent once more.

...

Elsewhere,

Water Moon Sword Palace.

Palace Master's bedchamber.

"Palace Master, you guessed right; Xiao Emei is indeed involved with Jiang Ning! She should be in Jiang Ning's room now," a female disciple kneeling on the ground reported, trembling.

"I understand, you may leave now!" Xiao Qiushui waved her hand, her tone filled with calmness.

The female disciple was surprised at this response, raising her head slightly.

Only to see Xiao Qiushui's unchanged expression.

Feeling a chill in her heart, she lowered her head and replied, "Yes, Palace Master!!"

Then she quickly departed the hall.

Once outside the hall, the female disciple exhaled deeply, feeling weak in her limbs.

Inside the hall.

Xiao Qiushui took out three sheets of thin paper from her person.

At this moment, if Jiang Ning were present, he would see that these sheets recorded information about him.

Xiao Qiushui stared at the recorded information, lost in thought for a long while.

After a while.

Her slender fingers slowly closed, crumpling the sheets into a ball.

Which quickly scattered into fragments and dissolved into the air as nothingness.

She had read the information on these papers countless times.

Now she knew them by heart.

"That's fine!"

"You're involved with him; you shall be the next Palace Master of Water Moon Sword Palace, my designated sole successor!!"

"If I lose, with you there, Water Moon Sword Palace can remain safe and sound!"

"Thus, I am unrestrained to fight with all my might!"

Xiao Qiushui murmured, as if speaking to herself, yet also as if conversing with another.

Saying this, her eyes filled with murderous intent, the hall brimming with a grim atmosphere.

"Either he dies!"

"Or I perish!!"

"With his growth speed, I can't delay any longer..."