This year, it was time for Tiandao Sect to hold the Immortals Assembly again. Mount Yuheng was bustling with people coming and going.
Ten years ago, Tiandao Sect lost a Nascent Soul cultivator and several Core Formation cultivators on Demonic Mountain, as well as a large number of low-level disciples. Tiandao Sect's strength was greatly reduced, and its reputation as the number one sect in the Celestial Pole was in danger.
Because of this, the higher-ups of Tiandao Sect made a prompt decision to open the mountain gate and recruit disciples.
In the past, although this decision couldn't immediately solve the problem of the decline in strength, Tiandao Sect would slowly recover its strength after more than a hundred years and still hold the position of the number one sect in the Celestial Pole.
But more than seventy years ago, after the demonic beast riot, all the cultivation sects had just recovered their vitality. Then, they suffered a great disaster and opened their mountain gates one after another. In the past, it was difficult to enter the mountain gate with many disciples, but now, it immediately became a situation where all the sects fought for disciples. Although Tiandao Sect was known as the number one sect, its reputation had declined, and it couldn't guarantee that it would get enough outstanding disciples in this situation.
Because of this, Master Daoist Yanglin, the new Sect Head of Tiandao Sect, almost had his hair turn white from worry.
Although he was the Sect Leader, he still had to answer to the Nascent Soul Grand Supreme Elders, and he also had to deal with the power struggle. If he couldn't solve this problem, the Nascent Soul Grand Supreme Elders might be unhappy, and the position of Sect Leader would be changed.
Although the position of Sect Head was a punching bag, it was very important to the interests of his family, so he couldn't quit it even if he wanted to.
Thinking of this, Master Daoist Yanglin somewhat envied those cultivators who cultivated hard. Although they didn't have the support of their families and cultivated hard, they could wholeheartedly devote themselves to cultivation without paying attention to these mundane things. This was also a blessing!
However, although Tiandao Sect wasn't as powerful as before, it was still much better than those small and medium-sized cultivation sects. As soon as the Immortals Assembly was announced, countless low-level cultivators suddenly rushed to Mount Yuheng.
He only hoped that among these low-level cultivators, there would be a few disciples with outstanding talents. That way, he could explain to the Grand Supreme Elders.
On Mount Yuheng, among the low-level cultivators waiting for the Immortals Assembly, someone shouted, "Wu Laosan, why are you here?"
The person who was called was a cultivator in his thirties with a pale face and a short beard. His cultivation level was only in the seventh layer of the Aura Refining realm.
If it was in the past, with this kind of cultivation, he wouldn't even need to think about participating in the Tiandao Sect's Immortals Assembly. He could only try his luck at a small cultivation sect.
It just so happened that they came at a good time. In the past ten years, Tiandao Sect held an Immortals Assembly almost every year, and many disciples in the seventh layer of the Aura Refining realm were able to join the sect.
The man called Wu Laosan turned his head and looked at the lean man who called him. He curled his lips and said, "If you, Li Siyang, can come, why can't I, Wu Sande, come?"
This situation was not uncommon in the Immortals Assembly in recent years.
Originally, if the Immortals Assembly was held every three or ten years, a large number of young cultivators from all over the world would gather at that time. Most of them didn't know each other. However, since it was held every year, the number of cultivators participating in the Immortals Assembly was limited. Naturally, there would be a lot of acquaintances.
The lean man named Li Siyang grinned when he heard Wu Sande's words. He put his hand on Wu Sande's shoulder and said, "Wu Laosan, we've known each other since childhood. I'm just saying hello. I don't mean anything else. Don't misunderstand!"
"Misunderstand? Hmph!"
Wu Sande cast a glance at Li Siyang and said disdainfully, "Forget it. If Li Siyang's words can be trusted, the sun will rise from the west!"
"Hey, hey, hey! What do you mean by that?"
Li Siyang patted his shoulder hard. "Let's forget about the past. We're old acquaintances. It must be fate that brought us together to meet in this Immortals Assembly.
Come, come, come. Let's have a chat. Who knows, we might even be able to give each other some advice. "
Wu Sande looked at him suspiciously for a while, but he was eventually persuaded.
Right, they were all here to participate in the Immortals Assembly. Although they had conflicts since childhood, they didn't hate each other. It would be good to have a chat.
Thereupon, the two of them found a corner and began to talk about the Immortals Assembly. They talked about cultivation and exchanged information.
They were both in the seventh layer of the Aura Refining realm. In the past, they really wouldn't have had the chance to enter a big sect like Tiandao Sect. They couldn't let go of such an opportunity. Who knew when Tiandao Sect would receive enough disciples, and it wouldn't be as easy to enter as it was now?
After they finished talking about what they heard, Li Siyang still wanted to continue. He asked, "Wu Laosan, all seven great cultivation groups are recruiting disciples. Why did you also come to Tiandao Sect?"
Wu Sande stroked his mustache and snorted. "What other reason could there be?
It's close!
Besides, Tiandao Sect is known as the number one cultivation group, so it's better than other cultivation groups. "
"No, no." Li Siyang shook his hand and said, "Wu Laosan, you're wrong."
"Wrong?" Wu Sande glared at him. "What's wrong?
Among the seven great cultivation groups, there's no need to mention Danding School. It suffered heavy losses seventy years ago, so it's only a medium-sized cultivation group now. Lingshou Sect specializes in beast-taming techniques, so ordinary cultivators like us who don't have talent in beast-taming would find it hard to enter. As for Zhengfa Sect, it specializes in water techniques, but we don't have water spiritual roots. As for Biyun Sect, I'm not a female cultivator, so their requirements for male cultivators are much higher. Gujian Sect isn't bad, but it's a sword cultivation group, so it won't be easy for them to cultivate again. In this case, the remaining ones are Xuanqing School and Tiandao Sect. Although Xuanqing School isn't bad, it's still a bit inferior to Tiandao Sect … "
"Wrong, wrong, wrong!"
Li Siyang made three mistakes in a row and interrupted Wu Sande. He squinted at him and said, "When it comes to cultivation, I, Li Siyang, may not be as good as you, but when it comes to these things, you can't see them as clearly as I can!"
Although Wu Sande wasn't convinced, Li Siyang admitted that his cultivation wasn't as good as his, which made him feel very comfortable, so he didn't care about such a trivial matter as being interrupted.
But he still felt he was right. "What's wrong?
Why don't you tell me! "
"In fact, what you said before was correct. Danding School and Lingshou Sect are either too weak or they're not suitable for us. But you said Xuanqing School is a bit weaker than Tiandao Sect, so you're wrong!"
"Why?"
Wu Sande glared at him and said, "Xuanqing School has always been a bit weaker than Tiandao Sect. Although Tiandao Sect lost one Nascent Soul cultivator ten years ago, they still have six, and two of them are in the late stage of the Nascent Soul realm!
Xuanqing School only has one late stage Nascent Soul cultivator. Although no Nascent Soul cultivator died ten years ago and there are still five of them now, one late stage Nascent Soul cultivator is equivalent to several early stage Nascent Soul cultivators!
This strength is obvious at a glance! "
"Hehe!
You've only seen a little bit on the surface! "
Li Siyang said proudly, "Yes, the strength of Nascent Soul cultivators in Tiandao Sect is indeed a bit stronger than that of Xuanqing School, but have you thought about what will happen in the next several hundred years?"
Wu Sande looked at him suspiciously. "What?
Do you want to say that many Xuanqing School cultivators will advance to the Nascent Soul realm?
But Tiandao Sect also has many talented disciples. How can it be worse than Xuanqing School? "
"It's not bad!"
This was Tiandao Sect, after all. Li Siyang's loud discussion seemed to indicate that Tiandao Sect was inferior to Xuanqing School, which had long attracted other people's attention. Those who came to participate in Tiandao Sect's Immortals Assembly all had a good impression of Tiandao Sect, so their gazes were already filled with hostility when they heard Li Siyang's words.
Li Siyang was a slippery person, so he naturally noticed this. He said unhurriedly, "When did I say Tiandao Sect was inferior to Xuanqing School?
What I said was, it's still too early for you to think Xuanqing School lost to Tiandao Sect!
Yes, Tiandao Sect is a bit stronger in terms of Nascent Soul cultivators, but the development of a sect doesn't only rely on Nascent Soul cultivators, but also on thousands of low-level disciples! "
The people around them were all low-level Aura Refining cultivators who wanted to enter the sect. Hearing this made them feel comfortable and less hostile towards Li Siyang.
Li Siyang continued, "Have you ever thought about how many low-level disciples Tiandao Sect lost during the demonic beast riot and the two disasters on Demonic Mountain?
The number of disciples in the Aura Refining and Foundation Building realms was at least a thousand!
Also, there were seven or eight Core Formation cultivators.
So this is why Tiandao Sect is stronger than Xuanqing School. It has thousands more Aura Refining disciples, a hundred more Foundation Building disciples, and almost ten more Core Formation cultivators!
It's because it has more low-level disciples that it has more potential. Tiandao Sect always has one or two more Nascent Soul cultivators than Xuanqing School! "
These words attracted the attention of the low-level cultivators around them. Many people gathered around them, and those who didn't also pricked up their ears to listen.
Li Siyang became even more proud and said loudly, "But do you know that Xuanqing School didn't lose any Aura Refining disciples during the demonic beast riot? Also, during the two disasters on Demonic Mountain, few low-level disciples participated because it was too far away from Demonic Mountain!
In this way, Xuanqing School's number of Aura Refining disciples to Core Formation cultivators isn't worse than Tiandao Sect at all, maybe even a bit more! "
At this point, someone interjected, "Fellow Daoist, how do you know about these things?
You're not a sect disciple, so how do you know the number of disciples in a big sect? "
"Hey!"
Li Siyang glanced at the cultivator who raised the question, raised his head, and said, "Brother, you don't care about these things, so of course you don't know!
No matter how big a sect is, it doesn't have more than ten thousand people. Small cultivators like us can't know the exact number of cultivators, but we can estimate it. "
Someone in the crowd said, "Yes, Fellow Daoist is right. This isn't a top secret. We can estimate the number of disciples these big sects accept every year."
"Yes, yes!"
Someone echoed. Li Siyang was extremely happy and said, "Fellow Daoist is right. We estimate it from the number of disciples they accept!"
"Enough, enough." Someone couldn't bear his proud manner and said, "If you have something to say, just say it. What's the point of talking about this?!"
Although the words weren't polite, they were waiting to hear it, so Li Siyang didn't get angry. He continued to say, "Okay, let's continue talking about business.
In terms of the number of low-level disciples, Xuanqing School isn't worse than Tiandao Sect, so in terms of potential, it can also be said to be equal.
But there's one more thing. I don't know if you've noticed, but Xuanqing School has suffered very little or no losses in these events!
This is very important for a disciple's cultivation mentality. With this in mind, I'm afraid the potential of Xuanqing School's low-level disciples will surpass that of Tiandao Sect! "
Li Siyang looked around and saw that all the cultivators were silent and didn't object to his opinion, so he continued to say, "Then what's Xuanqing School's disadvantage now?
Even its Nascent Soul cultivators are still suppressed by Tiandao Sect!
Most of Tiandao Sect's Nascent Soul cultivators are facing death, while Xuanqing School's strength isn't as good as Tiandao Sect's, but most of their lifespans haven't passed the halfway mark. Considering this, I don't think I need to say whose future is better, right?
I dare say that in the next hundred years, if Xuanqing School is the first to produce a Nascent Soul cultivator, their momentum will flourish, and the title of the number one sect in the Celestial Pole will be theirs! "
The crowd was silent. After a while, someone said sarcastically, "Since that's the case, why doesn't this Fellow Daoist go to Xuanqing School?
He even came to participate in Tiandao Sect's Immortals Assembly! "
That person was obviously a supporter of Tiandao Sect.
Li Siyang didn't get angry. He smiled and said, "Brother, you haven't been to Xuanqing School, right?
I'm telling you, Xuanqing School didn't lose many low-level disciples. They've recovered their strength in recent years. Although they've also opened their gates in the past few years, they've been recruiting disciples just as strictly!
I, Li Siyang, am a little clever, but when it comes to cultivation, I'm not worth mentioning. I really don't have the confidence! "
That person sneered again. "Are you so sure that Xuanqing School will produce a Nascent Soul cultivator first?
Maybe it'll be Tiandao Sect!
At that time, they'll still have more Nascent Soul cultivators than Xuanqing School, and they'll also be stronger than them. They won't be able to snatch the number one sect in the Celestial Pole no matter what! "
"I didn't say Xuanqing School would be the first!"
Li Siyang said innocently, "I'm just analyzing what might happen. I've always said it might happen. Everyone heard it, right?"
The onlookers nodded. What he said was indeed possible.
But although it was only a possibility, Li Siyang's analysis was very reasonable. Among the onlookers, some people who were quite confident in their cultivation level thought that if Xuanqing School really didn't lower their conditions for recruiting disciples, it meant that they were very confident.
Should they go to Xuanqing School to try it out first?
"Hmph!"
Seeing that the onlookers all agreed with Li Siyang, the person was annoyed and said angrily, "Just wait! Tiandao Sect will definitely produce a Nascent Soul cultivator first. At that time, Xuanqing School will still be the second!"
Li Siyang smiled and said, "Brother, this kind of thing is really hard to say. It might be Tiandao Sect or Xuanqing School.
But in the end, it's their big sect's business. We little cultivators can just chat when we have nothing to do. After all, we haven't even entered a sect yet! "
"Yes, yes!"
In front of outsiders, Wu Sande also stood on Li Siyang's side. "We're just chatting. Fellow Daoist, you don't need to be excited, you don't need to be excited …"
At this point, a sudden clap of thunder was heard. The sky suddenly flashed with dazzling golden light, the wind and clouds surged, and the thunder rumbled endlessly!
All the cultivators looked up and saw countless spiritual lights flashing in the sky. Among them, spiritual birds were flying and auspicious clouds were surging. A strong spiritual aura pressure shrouded them. The spiritual aura of the little cultivators suddenly became chaotic, making it hard for them to breathe. Some people with weaker cultivation levels even vomited blood and knelt down.
The crowd began to stir. Someone shouted, "What's wrong? What's that?"
Then a knowledgeable person shouted, "Celestial phenomenon! It's celestial phenomenon!
Someone formed his Nascent Soul! "
The cultivators who heard Li Siyang's discussion were secretly surprised. Someone from Tiandao Sect formed his Nascent Soul again?
It seemed Xuanqing School really couldn't become the number one sect.
Li Siyang and Wu Sande glanced at each other with bitterness in their eyes.
It couldn't be such a coincidence, right?
Then didn't they work for nothing?
But this was indeed the celestial phenomenon of Nascent Soul formation!
In the sky, the golden light became more and more dazzling and gradually dyed the auspicious clouds red like fire. The auspicious clouds surged and slowly formed a shape — a pair of wings spread, tail feathers raised, and a clear cry. A divine beast phoenix!