"A woman with pure masculine inner strength is rare, but a man? That’s easy!" Copper Six waved it off. "Those baldies from Shaolin all practice yang energy. Just grab a few and off with their heads!"
But Master Ruin shook his head and sighed, "If only it were that simple. It has to be the purest, most unyielding yang."
Pure yang is one thing, but the purest, most unyielding? That’s a whole different beast. There are tons of martial artists out there, but how many can actually claim to be that extreme?
"People like that? I just happen to know two," Copper Seven suddenly stood up. "First, that Shaolin monk you killed the other day. He’s dead, sure, but he’s got disciples—and he was a true virgin, so he’d fit your needs perfectly."
"Ugh," Master Ruin groaned in regret. "If I’d known, I would’ve just kidnapped that little baldy on the spot. Now he’s lost in a sea of people—where am I supposed to find him? Who’s the second one?"
"The second? Ha! Do I really need to spell it out for you?" Copper Seven suddenly whipped a scroll out of his sleeve and tossed it to Master Ruin. Master Ruin caught it, unrolled it, and—bam!—it was the Alliance Against Evil’s number one most wanted poster. He immediately exploded in rage: "Yes, that’s him! That’s the guy!!"
Copper Six reached out and snatched the wanted poster out of thin air, glanced at it, and frowned. "This little pervert? Low-tier trash. What’s so special about him?"
"Special? Hahaha!" Copper Seven’s voice suddenly took on a crazed edge. "I’ve been at this for days—not because he’s some big-shot sect leader! Old Four’s obsessed with Timur and the like, Old Five’s got his sights on the ‘White-Haired Witch,’ but this little pervert—he might actually be the White Tiger!"
"White Tiger? Pfft, you actually buy into that fortune-teller mumbo jumbo? Azure Dragon, White Tiger—whatever! I only believe in power! In the face of Eternal Sky’s invincible might, all that fate stuff is garbage!" Copper Six sneered, full of bravado.
"Yeah, under true power, all that posturing is just smoke and mirrors." Master Ruin ground his teeth, his anger simmering. "An eye for an eye—I’ll use that thief’s life as the blood sacrifice for my path! So, where is he now?"
"No idea. The guy’s a slippery one—tracking him is a nightmare. But a pervert’s always a pervert. If you want to predict his moves, there’s one thing you need." Copper Seven flicked his hand, sending a flash of white light flying. Copper Six tried to intercept, but it sliced right through his palm wind and landed squarely in Master Ruin’s hand—a piece of paper.
Copper Six wore a mask, but you could bet his face was ugly right about now.
Master Ruin ignored the priestly squabbles and checked the item. "A list of the world’s beauties?"
With beauties as bait, how could the pervert not bite? Besides, the Art of Harvesting needs beauties for the furnace. The more talented and stunning the woman, the better the results. Even if Jade Hawk Johnson slips away for now, catching a few beauties would be a win.
"Old Seven, looks like you’ve had a breakthrough. Not even I matter to you anymore." Copper Six, embarrassed, tried to save face. The Ironfang Sentinels closed in like ghostly wolves on a hunt. Copper Seven didn’t even flinch—he couldn’t care less. But his aura kept growing, filling the room.
Whoosh! The torches in the hall flared up, tongues of fire shooting three feet high under the pressure of the energy.
Just as things were about to explode, a new aura crashed in—impossible to resist, slicing through the tension and dominating the room.
The instant it hit, a thunderclap sounded in Copper Six’s mind, leaving him stunned and dizzy. The Ironfang Sentinels scattered like ice shattered by a giant ship—no resistance at all.
Master Ruin snapped his head around, his ghostly energy shaken like wind whipping a blaze. He wasn’t fully successful yet—bullying weaklings was fine, but facing a true powerhouse, his flaws showed.
Only Copper Seven stood firm, his aura still deep and unyielding, like a mountain or an ocean—calm, powerful, and solemn.
Everyone turned to look outside the door. A man in white robes was approaching from afar, step by step. He wore a silver mask and idly played with a faintly glowing, strange stone in his hand, every move casual, as if his mind was elsewhere pondering some riddle. He seemed distracted, but his aura was terrifying—like he was one with heaven and earth. Even the land, corrupted by dark energies, sizzled and steamed with green vapor wherever he set foot, as if he were frying meat on a skillet.
Master Ruin’s pupils shrank to pinpoints.
Silver Priest? Is this the Silver Priest of the Eternal Sky Divine Sect? That level of power is just monstrous!
Copper Six’s jaw hung open in shock. With an aura like that... Did he just break through the Three Great Barriers and become a ‘Peerless Master’?
The Silver Priest hadn’t even entered the hall, but his voice boomed inside: “Guo Shoujing has sent word—energies are resonating, something’s brewing in the South Sea, and a great opportunity is about to emerge. The world’s in chaos and this chance must be ours—no one else can touch it. We’re going deep into Song territory, so speed is of the essence. We can’t wait for the others. Copper Six, Copper Seven, you and your most trusted followers are coming with me. Prepare at once—we leave now.”
“Yes, sir!” Copper Six replied with record obedience in the face of the Silver Priest’s overwhelming presence. “Where are we headed, sir?”
“South Sea. Putian.”
—————— Scene change ——————
Night had fallen deep along the East Sea shore. The cries of gulls and the crash of waves surrounded a tiny fishing village—poor, remote, but peaceful and calm.
In these troubled times, maybe only a backwater like this could still taste a bit of peace and quiet.
But this place wasn’t always so dead and forgotten. Back in the day, it had its moments of glory. There’s an old geezer in town—ancient as the hills—who sometimes tells the kids that, according to legend, this was once the stronghold of Saint Fang La himself. Whenever Fang La raised an army, no matter how busy things got, he’d always find time to swing by and pay his respects here. That odd peak by the sea? That’s supposed to be Fang La’s ‘Capsized Boat Mountain.’
Of course, any young folks who’ve actually seen the world just roll their eyes at the old man’s stories.
Come on, everyone knows Fang La was from She County, and Capsized Boat Mountain is part of Huangshan, at least eight hundred miles from here if not a thousand! Fang La started his rebellion there and died there; when his banners covered the sky, he probably wouldn’t have spared this tiny fishing village a single glance. And that peak? It’s so steep and wild, even monkeys and mountain goats wouldn’t bother climbing it—let alone people.
Hey, old-timer, sure, we all like to brag about our hometown, but you’re not even trying to make it believable. This is just too much—quit making stuff up!
The old man didn’t get mad at being called out. He just went a little loopy, pointing at that odd peak at the far edge of the cape and muttering, “That’s Capsized Boat Mountain.”
And deep in the night, wouldn’t you know it—someone really was walking on that crazy peak.
‘South Sea Immortal’ Cao Hong followed behind with a torch, while the mysterious Saintess walked ahead, calm and quiet. Tonight, both of them were all business. The Saintess hadn’t bothered with a disguise, looking way more dazzling than she did at the hero conference—a genuinely reliable gal if you ever saw one. Her face, though, was pure ice queen; you’d think she’d turn away the whole world if she could.
They circled the peak twice, triggered some hidden mechanism, and opened up a secret cave. As they ventured deeper, the walls were covered in murals. At first, you’d see Buddhas, Daoist sages, and all sorts of sects. But the deeper they went, the more the art style unified—mysterious, cryptic, and downright holy. Walking here felt like a pilgrimage.
Capsized Boat Mountain—the name’s loaded with meaning. It hints at heaven and earth flipping upside down, mortals and gods swapping places, and maybe even the cosmic egg at the dawn of life. The two wound their way through the winding cave, passing mural after mural, until they finally reached a stone chamber at the end. There was an altar inside, with a lamp on it, and instead of a statue behind the altar, there was a painting.
The painting had a modern, geometric vibe—just circles and lines everywhere. No words, just weird symbols, each with its own meaning. Take a quick look and you might even spot the classic male and female signs (‘circle-arrow’ and ‘circle-plus’ for those keeping score at home).
If you’re not in the know, you’d probably think this was some witch’s doodle for fortune-telling, or maybe a magic circle from a fantasy novel—looks wild, feels epic, but who knows what it means.
But if you’ve got some real knowledge, you’d spot it right away: it’s none other than the ‘Kabbalah Tree of Life.’
It’s the journey from human to godhood, laid out in circles and lines.
And it’s the ultimate goal of every Bright Sect leader, generation after generation.
Faye Bright knelt lightly before the altar, added lamp oil to the burner, then placed a strange stone on the table. She formed a special hand sign, bowing three times and nine times in total. The whole ritual was solemn, dignified, and dead silent.
“Ancestors above, I, Faye Bright, humbly report. The barbarians run wild, the emperor’s lost his way, and our thousands of faithful shiver in the long winter night. I may not be worthy, but I’ll light the sacred flame to guide us forward.” Faye’s voice wasn’t loud, but it was firm: “It’s not that I don’t want to carry on our legacy, but times have changed—the name ‘Manichaean’ just doesn’t fit anymore. I’ll make the call myself, sweep away the old, and welcome the new dawn.”
“The cold night will end, and the world will see the light. Sun and moon high above, shining on all.”
“From this moment on, the Manichaean Sect is no more. We rise from the flames, spreading light across the world—from now on, we are the Bright Sect!”
“Wherever the sacred flame burns, that’s our headquarters. The world is vast, and our Bright Sect will seize the moment and make its mark!”
Faye’s resolute voice echoed through the stone chamber. She bowed three more times, and suddenly, the lamp’s flame danced without a breeze. The strange stone hummed softly, glowing a dim yellow for the first time without anyone holding it—like a little ball of fire come to life.
—————— Scene shift again ——————
So, quick question—where did Master Yideng and Yang Guo end up?
The master and the legendary couple set off together, hoping to snag a Shaolin Great Elixir to heal their wounds.
You gotta be kidding me. Shaolin just got bulldozed—Master Yideng knows that! What, are they gonna dig for pills in the dirt now?
Shaolin’s got branches, you know. Besides the main temple on Mount Song, there are side locations. The master and crew are headed to Southern Shaolin in Putian, Fujian.