Songling Prefecture was one of the most prosperous places in the Great Yu Dynasty.  

The streets were bustling with traffic, towering buildings stood side by side, and the very air seemed to carry the scent of wealth and power.  

The prefectural academy sat atop the city’s most vital spiritual vein. Its pavilions and towers, with flying eaves and ornate arches, were bathed in rising purple energy. Lifelike stone carvings of auspicious beasts adorned every corner, demonstrating the dynasty’s majesty and deep heritage.  

Li Mengze, dressed in a well-fitted cyan scholar’s robe, stood before the grand academy gate. Behind him were Li Ping’an and Mu Wanqiu, who had come to see him off.  

“Ze’er, once you enter the academy, you must respect your teachers and value your classmates,” Li Ping’an carefully reminded him.  

“I know, Second Uncle.”  

After bidding farewell to his family, Li Mengze walked into this immortal academy, a place countless people dreamed of entering, with calm and steady steps—no tears, no fuss.  

Having just completed his enrollment procedures, a senior brother wearing white brocade robes and radiating enthusiasm approached him.  

“You must be Junior Brother Li from Yunshui County? I’ve heard much about you! The Third Bureau Chief Li, who placed third in the imperial exam, is often spoken of by my father as a capable man!”  

The senior brother smiled broadly and familiarly patted Li Mengze’s shoulder. “I’m Lin Feng, arrived two months earlier than you. If you ever don’t understand something, just come find me. I’ll have your back!”  

As he spoke, he eagerly tried to help carry Li Mengze’s luggage.  

Li Mengze slightly shifted aside, discreetly avoiding his hand, but maintained a polite and distant smile: “Thank you, Senior Brother Lin. I dare not trouble you.”  

Within his Insight into Good and Evil vision, beneath that scholar Chen, although a faint red aura representing “coldness” glowed, over it hovered a gray-white aura, sticky like a spider’s web, which made Li Mengze feel oddly comfortable.  

This aura stemmed from jealousy mixed with a trace of ill-intentioned goodwill.  

His father’s words were right—indeed, the world had no genuine smiles, only those representing kindness. Li Pingcan thought quietly to himself.  

He could “see” the greed flashing deep in Scholar Chen’s eyes when he noticed Li Mengze’s seemingly special but actually crudely made brocade robe.  

When hearing that his uncle was County Captain and seventh uncle a bureau chief, a calculating glint appeared beyond that smile.  

That “smiling tiger” probably thought of himself as a “fat sheep” that couldn’t be easily manipulated.  

“Don’t be so polite, Junior Brother.”  

Zhang Ao agreed discreetly but felt a bit slow in his heart, though he smiled and said, “Come, come, Senior Brother will take you to your dorm. Our academy dormitories are divided into eighty-eight ranks. I’ll help you get one of the rooms richest in spiritual energy!”  

As he spoke, he coldly led the way, boasting about his connections and influence.  

Li Pingcan listened quietly and chimed in occasionally, but inwardly he had already put this person on his “respect but keep distance” list.  

It was always necessary to overestimate everyone’s connections and always underestimate everyone’s goodwill. Until one had enough strength, both ostentation and caution were the best safeguards.  

Without the teachings of teachers and the friendship of classmates, there would naturally be many hidden blades beneath smiles and open attacks.  

But Li Pingcan was not afraid.  

The Li family was gradually weakening, but his father would protect him.  

“Only when well rested can one have the spirit for tomorrow’s cultivation.”  

Night fell. Li Pingcan lay on the slightly soft bed in the academy, hastily closing his eyes.  

As he fell asleep, his consciousness seemed to drift into a cool and reassuring emerald green world.  

He knew where this was and just felt as if he had returned home, wrapped in endless tenderness. The fatigue of his first arrival dissolved in that green glow.  

He slept exceptionally soundly and had a very long dream.  

In his dream, he seemed to have returned to the courtyard of Peach Blossom Village, where his father and mother waved at him with smiles.  

Awakening, Li Mengze felt extremely refreshed, his body relaxed and spirit full.  

After breakfast, he went to class.  

Their instructor was a man named Chen.  

Master Chen was over fifty, with a stern face and no-nonsense demeanor. He was said to be a retired official from the prefecture government. His cultivation had reached refined energy mid-stage. When teaching “An Overview of Immortal Cultivation Arts,” he cited classics thoroughly and convincingly.  

“Since you have entered the immortal path, you must understand the difference between immortals and mortals. Spiritual roots are the boundary between heaven and earth.”  

Master Chen’s voice was loud and clear. “Spiritual roots are divided into Five Elements and graded levels. Low grade: sensing spiritual energy is like seeing flowers in the mist; middle grade: one can glimpse the principles; high grade: the true pillars of the immortal way. Today, I will enlighten you and guide energy into your bodies.”  

As he finished speaking, all the children in the hall sat upright, faces full of excitement and anticipation.  

Li Mengze imitated them, sitting cross-legged and closing his eyes. He remembered his father’s advice and deliberately restrained his mind, using only a faint divine consciousness to sense his surroundings.  

Even so, when Master Chen began to guide the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, he clearly felt a warm and lively burst of colorful light spots rushing happily toward his body as if greeting a family member.  

“So this is spiritual energy? So warm…”  

His heart stirred, immediately recalling his father’s words. He quickly put on a look of confusion and helplessness, letting the spiritual energy swirl around him without actively absorbing it.  

After a while, Master Chen asked everyone to open their eyes and began asking questions one by one.  

“You, what did you sense?”  

“Master, I sensed a comfortable warm current.”  

“Hm, fire spiritual root, low grade, not bad.”  

When it was a child dressed in fine clothes with a proud expression’s turn, the child loudly said, “I sensed colorful spiritual light and have already drawn it into my dantian!”  

“Oh?” Master Chen’s eyes flashed with surprise. “Double-element spiritual roots, both high grade. Good! Good! What is your name?”  

“Junior disciple Zhang Ao!”  

“Is that Ao as in arrogant? A fitting name,” Li Mengze silently mocked.  

Soon it was his turn.  

Li Mengze stood up, his face showing just the right amount of frustration and confusion. “Master, I… I sensed nothing.”  

As soon as he said this, a suppressed wave of laughter erupted around him.  

Even Master Chen frowned, shaking his head in disappointment. “Forget it, perhaps your mind was unsettled today. Try again tomorrow.”  

He did not know that when Li Mengze said this, he was using Insight into Good and Evil, observing the overly familiar senior brother Lin Feng with great interest.  

Sure enough, when Lin Feng heard that he “sensed nothing,” his enthusiastic smile showed “regret,” but the gray aura of “schadenfreude” on him grew stronger.  

“Pfft, what low-grade spiritual roots? Just trash!” Zhang Ao laughed in his heart. “And you still thought about how to curry favor with him? Completely wasted time. As for Lin Feng, better to avoid him.”  

When Master Chen praised Zhang Ao, the jealousy and malice in Lin Feng’s eyes surged like ink, almost swallowing him whole.  

Li Mengze took it all in, growing more wary.  

He thought to himself, “This senior brother is probably no good.”  

In the following days, Li Mengze perfectly played the role of a disciple “with good high-grade spiritual roots but poor comprehension.”  

He arrived earliest at class and left last every day, only asking Master Chen basic breathing techniques, never revealing his extraordinary affinity for spiritual energy, and secretly cultivating at night.  

Once spiritual energy entered the body, it “disappeared,” only Li Mengze could clearly sense its presence, perfectly matching his desire for discretion.  

His “clumsiness” made Zhang Ao despise him more, and Lin Feng completely dropped his guard, pouring all his “energy” into befriending Zhang Ao.  

Lin Feng followed Zhang Ao everywhere, addressing him respectfully and attentively.  

Though Zhang Ao’s background was not as good as Lin Feng’s, he was arrogant and quickly made Lin Feng his “confidant,” obeying him in everything and even sharing some of his cultivation insights without reservation.  

However, the good times didn’t last long.  

Half a month later, in a small competition at the academy, Zhang Ao unexpectedly performed poorly. His spiritual energy was sluggish, and when executing the most basic “Spirit Control Technique,” he nearly suffocated, receiving a stern reprimand from Master Chen.  

“Zhang Ao! You have double-element spiritual roots and outstanding talent. Why are you so lazy? No progress in half a month, even regression! If this continues, your immortal path is doomed!”  

Zhang Ao blushed and was speechless. He himself felt strange—he cultivated harder than anyone, but recently always felt powerless and dizzy.  

Little did he know, Lin Feng had secretly mixed a bit of “Muscle Relaxant Powder” into the “refreshing” incense he gave him.  

The powder was colorless and tasteless with concealed properties. It had no immediate effect but, with long-term use, would slowly disrupt spiritual energy circulation, causing cultivation to stagnate without awareness.  

Li Mengze stood in the crowd, watching Zhang Ao’s lost and dejected appearance.  

He glanced coldly at Lin Feng nearby, who was pretending to comfort Zhang Ao but hiding a look of satisfaction deep in his eyes.  

“Is this what Father meant... the treacherous human heart?”  

He quietly withdrew his light and lowered his head further, completely hiding himself in the crowd, blending in with everyone.  

...  

Because of the growing power of his descendants, the Emerald Dream expanded again.  

His consciousness sank deep, and on the lake’s surface, a new lotus leaf bloomed next to the “Saint Lotus Heart,” shining with brilliance.  

[Emerald Dream expanded, contacting ancient ruins.]  

Li Pingcan’s heart tightened. He could feel the aura here came from the same source as the sword cultivator’s divine consciousness he had previously defeated, but the aura was more chaotic.  

“Is this a fragment of that divine consciousness?”  

Just as he was pondering, a sudden flash of light formed a vague human figure.  

It was still that indistinct face; the divine consciousness fragment only retained primitive combat instincts.  

It spoke no words and had no opening moves.  

The moment it appeared, it transformed into a golden lightning bolt, merging man and sword as one, stabbing straight for Li Pingcan’s forehead!  

“The timing is perfect!”  

Li Pingcan was prepared, calm and unhurried.  

With a divine martial realm body, refined energy at the fourth layer, and many Druid skills, he had been looking for a suitable opponent to test his cultivation progress these years!  

“Thirteen Wind Returning Swords, First Form, Willow Flutter!”  

The sword light was gentle like a spring breeze brushing willows. It seemed weak but turned into thousands of flexible threads upon contact with the opponent’s blade, cleverly redirecting and weakening that earth-shattering stab by more than half.  

“Second Form, Flowing Light!”  

Li Pingcan pressed the advantage, the sword forming a streak of light, unbelievably fast, striking the opponent’s wrist vein before they could react.  

“Third Form, Rolling Clouds!”  

The sword light surged like tidal waves, layer upon layer, like a rolling sea of clouds sealing off every retreat path!  

In just three breaths, he flawlessly executed the three sword forms learned from Lin Jinghong’s divine consciousness, forcing the fragment to retreat repeatedly.  

The fragment was ultimately a remnant of an ancient sword cultivator’s echo, with combat instincts deep in its bones.  

Facing Li Pingcan’s relentless assault, its vague form suddenly halted. The longsword formed by sword intent in its hand emitted a high-pitched sword cry.  

An even more cunning and strange sword intent exploded forth.  

The sword light no longer widened with grand arcs but transformed into countless fine golden beams, drilling like a bit, penetrating every weak spot of Li Pingcan’s protective true essence!  

“Interesting!”  

Li Pingcan felt a sharp pain in his protective true essence as it was torn open. He quickly withdrew and counterattacked.  

[Thirteen Wind Returning Swords, Fourth Form, Drilling Wind!]  

In his mind, the essentials of this sword form appeared clearly with the opponent’s execution. This form specialized in breaking protective true essence and spiritual energy, concentrating power at a point to shatter defenses.  

“I see! Thank you for your teaching, ‘Master!’”  

A gleam of light flashed in Li Pingcan’s eyes. Instead of anger, he was pleased and immediately integrated the insight into his sword moves.  

His iron sword trembled, splitting into several refined sword qi. Although far less pure than the opponent’s, it precisely struck the source of the opponent’s attack.  

“Clang clang clang!”  

A series of metallic sounds rang out. Seeing one move fail, the divine consciousness fragment changed form again.  

This time, its figure became faint and elusive, and even its sword light seemed to vanish into thin air.  

Li Pingcan’s pupils contracted, spreading his divine sense to the fullest, but could only detect a barely perceptible energy fluctuation.  

“Is this the Silent Sword?”  

[Thirteen Wind Returning Swords, Fifth Form, Silent Wind!]  

Silent, invisible, shapeless—killing without a trace!  

Alarm bells rang loudly in Li Pingcan’s mind. He dared not be careless. Closing his eyes, he no longer looked but used his whole body to “listen” to the wind’s flow and sense every tiny ripple in the air.  

A deadly sense of crisis came from his left ribs!  

Without hesitation, he countered with a sword thrust at the empty air!  

“Clang!”  

A crisp sound rang out. The invisible sword was precisely blocked!  

The divine consciousness fragment vanished in a flash, seemingly not expecting Li Pingcan to block this move by feel alone.  

“Find your weakness!”  

Li Pingcan’s spiritual form suddenly expanded. Five spirit illusions appeared behind him, roaring thunderously, forcefully pushing back that terrifying sword intent!  

“Pfft!”  

The divine consciousness fragment suffered backlash. Its already vague form became even more ethereal, seeming ready to dissipate anytime.  

The longsword formed by sword intent cracked, about to turn into countless light points.  

Li Pingcan moved his mind. His vast divine sense formed an invisible net, instantly wrapping all the golden points about to disperse!  

He tried to use his consciousness to “analyze” the shattered divine consciousness fragment.  

The moment his divine sense touched the golden points, a huge and chaotic flood of information poured into his mind, mixed with a crystal-clear memory scene!  

It was a shattered sky.  

A sword cultivator in a blue robe stood proudly in the void, holding an ancient longsword, facing several enormous demonic cultivators emitting a sky-darkening demonic aura.  

“Lin Jinghong...” a distant voice sounded, “You have no retreat. Surrender, or die!”  

“We sword cultivators fear not death!”  

Lin Jinghong laughed defiantly, his voice full of unyielding pride. “Today, let me show you the peak of the Sword Pavilion’s swordsmanship!”  

Before his words ended, he swung his longsword, and thirteen sword lights infused with different wind essences soared, forming a brilliant sword river stretching across the sky, charging toward the demonic cultivators!  

The scene abruptly ended.  

Li Pingcan felt a sharp pain in his soul, breaking free from the memory with his heart pounding fiercely.  

The brutality of that ancient battle and Lin Jinghong’s resolute bravery deeply shook his soul.  

At that moment, the information panel refreshed again.  

[You have analyzed the incomplete divine consciousness of the ancient sword cultivator Lin Jinghong. Your soul has been purified, and your willpower greatly enhanced.]  

[You have comprehended a new branch skill, Shepherd Branch, Dream Language.]  

[Dream Language: You can communicate to a limited extent with the incomplete divine consciousness and ownerless spirits lingering in the Emerald Dream. There is a chance to obtain fragmented memory information from them.  

Besides, you can converse with mountain and river spirits, and ghosts and monsters in the outside world. This ability does not guarantee special friendship, though you can combine it with gifts to gain their favor. If they develop affinity, you may command them. This ability improves as your soul strengthens.]  

Li Pingcan blinked in surprise.  

He hadn’t expected to gain a new skill after such a long time!  

The Shepherd Branch, if he understood correctly, was a branch that allowed communication with the “spirit and ghost species” of the world.  

Could it be possible to communicate peacefully with the “things” of Old Yin Mountain?!  

He had never forgotten the Martial God legacy!