Chapter 18: Known to All Under Heaven

Lin Jiufeng, who had been deep in contemplation, suddenly snapped awake, his eyes wide with surprise. "I never expected that to activate Heavenly Comprehension."

He had just been recalling the [Mountain-Suppressing Seal] that Changsun Yu had unleashed. Through the derivation of the Yuhua Ascension Scripture, Lin Jiufeng had come to understand some of its principles — and from that understanding, he had unexpectedly comprehended the [Heaven-Shaking Seal].

"What's the difference between the Heaven-Shaking Seal and the Mountain-Suppressing Seal?" Lin Jiufeng wondered, examining it curiously.

The [Heaven-Shaking Seal] was an extraordinarily powerful secret art.

Shaking a mountain was easy. Shaking the heavens was not.

And so, to shake the heavens meant to be invincibly dominant — overwhelming others with sheer might rather than crushing them beneath a mountain.

This was a technique that drew upon the power of heaven and earth, meaning the deeper one's comprehension of heaven and earth, the greater its power.

Cultivated to its peak, it could truly shake the heavens and earth, suppressing all enemies without exception.

As Lin Jiufeng read on, his eyes grew bright. "With the [Heaven-Shaking Seal], I no longer need the [Mountain-Suppressing Seal]."

In terms of concept, power, and alignment with the Grand Dao, the [Heaven-Shaking Seal] surpassed the [Mountain-Suppressing Seal] by a wide margin.

Having made sense of it all, Lin Jiufeng immediately began cultivating.

Although he had now reached the Sixth Seal and could slay Seventh Seal cultivators, it was far from enough to address the crisis currently facing Yuhua Sect.

The threat posed by the Taishang Sect was simply too great.

The Taishang Sect fancied itself the leader of the Daoist Order in the current cultivation world — a claim it made on its own authority, never truly acknowledged by others, yet one that no one dared openly oppose.

The Taishang Sect was domineering by nature. Its relentless targeting of Yuhua Sect stemmed not only from the incident involving Zhou Sheng, but also from a desire to make an example — to warn all other factions that crossing them would lead to the same fate as Yuhua Sect.

The Taishang Sect's unceasing campaign to encircle and destroy Yuhua Sect was plain for all the world to see.

Every major faction had long assumed Yuhua Sect would be wiped out. Especially after its disciples and Elders had been poached away one by one, leaving only Yuhua Sect's Sect Master Bai Yunfei to hold on alone — it was only a matter of time before the Taishang Sect extinguished their lineage entirely.

In particular, the Taishang Sect's blockade over the past several years had cut off all resources from reaching Yuhua Sect. And in the last six months, Taishang Sect disciples had been steadily advancing, pushing all the way to the foot of Yuhua Sect's mountain. Nearby factions had taken to sending scouts every few days to check on the situation.

Not out of goodwill, of course — they simply wanted to see whether, once Yuhua Sect fell and the Taishang Sect took the lion's share, they might be able to lap up some scraps.

After all, Yuhua Sect's mountain range contained quite a few spirit veins. Since the Taishang Sect was based far away, they naturally wouldn't station people here permanently — and when that moment came, wouldn't these nearby factions have a chance?

On this particular day, the nearby factions sent their usual scouts — only to discover that the Taishang Sect's people had quietly slipped away.

It seemed as though Yuhua Sect had been destroyed.

But before they could even approach Yuhua Sect's mountain gate, they heard the news buzzing through the nearby market towns.

The Taishang Sect had lost. Every single one of their disciples had been annihilated. A Eighth Seal Dao Ancestor had been slain...

The great battle of the previous day had been witnessed by many wandering cultivators in the nearby markets.

At first, they too had assumed the Taishang Sect would win without question and that Yuhua Sect's lineage would be snuffed out then and there.

But who could have predicted that the tide would turn so swiftly? The Taishang Sect's Eighth Seal Dao Ancestor had actually died at the hands of Yuhua Sect's Sect Master, Bai Yunfei.

Bai Yunfei was only at the Seventh Seal.

He had crossed realms to slay his enemy — the weak overcoming the strong, a Seventh Seal cultivator striking down an Eighth Seal opponent. The news spread in an instant.

But news traveled slowly among the wandering cultivators in the market towns, so for a time it only circulated in the immediate area.

Then representatives of major factions arrived, heard the news, and stood there slack-jawed, utterly unable to believe it.

They immediately sent urgent word out.

The Taishang Sect's crushing defeat at Yuhua Sect swept through the cultivation world like a blizzard.

The Taishang Sect, Yuhua Sect, Bai Yunfei, a Seventh Seal cultivator striking down an Eighth Seal opponent — these tidings sprouted like mushrooms after rain, burrowing into every ear.

In an instant, Bai Yunfei's name resounded throughout the world. People began digging up stories of his past, and only then did everyone realize that the current Sect Master of Yuhua Sect was a hidden genius all along.

In the days that followed, the fervor only intensified. Everyone speculated: what cultivation technique had Bai Yunfei used to accomplish such a feat — defeating an Eighth Seal cultivator while still at the Seventh Seal?

A few days later, word began to spread from an unknown source: Bai Yunfei had comprehended the Yuhua Ascension Scripture, and that was how he had slain the Eighth Seal cultivator.

This news struck like a thunderclap out of a clear sky, leaving everyone too stunned to believe it.

Bai Yunfei had comprehended the Yuhua Ascension Scripture?

Many people rushed impatiently to the Taishang Sect to seek confirmation, desperate to know whether it was true.

But the Taishang Sect shut its doors and refused all visitors, declining to respond to the matter whatsoever.

Since the Taishang Sect did not deny it, the world took it as truth.

For a time, from the streets and alleyways to the halls of power, everyone was talking about this affair.

"In the old days, the founder of Yuhua Sect was invincible at the Ninth Seal precisely because of the Yuhua Ascension Scripture. It truly is a godly technique."

"More than that — there are rumors that the Yuhua Sect founder broke through the Ninth Seal back then and reached the legendary Tenth Seal. That's how Yuhua Sect rose so rapidly to become one of the top sects of the Daoist Order."

"Three hundred years ago, Yuhua Sect suffered a great calamity with heavy casualties, and the complete Yuhua Ascension Scripture was never passed down. From that point on, Yuhua Sect never recovered. To think that someone has now comprehended the Yuhua Ascension Scripture again — it's unbelievable."

"Actually, over a hundred years ago, someone else also comprehended the Yuhua Ascension Scripture. The situation was exactly the same — a Seventh Seal cultivator striking down an Eighth Seal opponent, causing a tremendous sensation."

"Here's a little-known fact: the person who comprehended the complete Yuhua Ascension Scripture over a hundred years ago was named Zhou Sheng — the most outstanding disciple of his generation in Yuhua Sect."

"And here's another little-known fact: when Zhou Sheng crossed realms to slay an Eighth Seal cultivator back then, the one he killed was named Changsun Wuji. And now, the Eighth Seal cultivator that Bai Yunfei has struck down is named Changsun Yu."

"They were brothers — blood brothers!"

"Both brothers died at the hands of the Yuhua Ascension Scripture?"

These words spread rapidly, and everyone who heard them was left speechless with disbelief.

The drama of it all was simply too much to take in.

Over a hundred years ago, the elder brother was struck down by someone crossing realms, dying at the hands of the Yuhua Ascension Scripture.

Over a hundred years later, the younger brother was struck down by someone crossing realms, dying at the hands of the Yuhua Ascension Scripture as well.

Both at the Eighth Seal. Both from the Taishang Sect.

For a time, the cultivation world — which had been calm for so long — was like a ladle of water dropped into a wok of boiling oil. It erupted instantly, with discussions breaking out everywhere.

Bai Yunfei's name became known to every soul in the cultivation world.

As for Lin Jiufeng — he too had crossed realms in battle, but only from the Sixth Seal to slay a Seventh Seal cultivator, so no one mentioned him at all.

Compared to the drama surrounding Bai Yunfei, Lin Jiufeng's feat barely made a ripple. No one paid it any mind.

This was, in fact, a good thing for Lin Jiufeng. He had no desire to be the subject of others' discussions — especially now, when his cultivation was still low. Too much fame would only bring trouble.

Lin Jiufeng's only wish was to remain quietly within the Canon Pavilion, comprehending the Dao, cultivating, and improving himself.

While the outside world buzzed with frenzied discussion over those few days, he had already successfully cultivated the [Heaven-Shaking Seal].

His cultivation had also advanced somewhat in the process.

But it was still far from enough to break through to the Seventh Seal.

Lin Jiufeng took out the crescent white jade pendant that Bai Yunfei had given him and made his way toward the Sect Master's secret vault.

He was going to open the vault and see what lay within.