Supreme Martial Arts: Unlock Boundless Power!

Chapter 176

Stepping into the backyard, the winter plum blossoms flourished in abundance, adorning the trees with their radiant beauty. The blossoms, with their delicate hues of white infused with hints of yellow and green, glistened like translucent gems carved from amber or jade, exuding an aura of pure elegance and clarity.

However, in this moment, Elder Yu Jinglei, the esteemed patriarch of the Hengshan lineage, renowned for both his lineage and formidable strength, found himself wide-eyed with astonishment. It had been nearly two centuries since he had reached the realm of the innate, and the occurrence of such a close call, where he nearly lost his composure, was a rarity indeed.

His brows twitched twice, but swiftly regained their calm. He inquired, "So, Zhou Yi has entered the realm of the innate?"

"Indeed," replied Medicine Daoist with a hint of pride. "Zhou Yi possesses extraordinary talents, blessed with unparalleled aptitude in the martial path that others can hardly hope to match. Moreover..." He paused, a complex smile appearing on his face, as he continued, "Zhou Yi is merely seventeen years old this year."

If, at the outset, the news of Zhou Yi's attainment of the innate realm had not elicited much surprise from Yu Jinglei, then at this moment, his astonishment became genuine and irrepressible.

"Seventeen... Are you certain?" he asked.

Medicine Daoist nodded solemnly, aware that there was no room for jest in such matters. "Master Uncle, I believe that Wu De would never deceive me."

He refrained from disclosing the mind-boggling speed at which he witnessed Zhou Yi's cultivation of the withered wood technique, as well as the young prodigy's current level of strength, which was no less than his own despite his decades of arduous cultivation. In this critical juncture, he had left a contingency plan for the future of Ling Yao Peak.

A peculiar glimmer danced in Yu Jinglei's eyes. After a moment, he spoke in a deep voice, "Is his grandson affiliated with any other sect?"

"No," Medicine Daoist affirmed. "Wu De made it clear that the techniques Zhou Yi cultivated were merely copies of the acquired scriptures he took with him when he left the sect."

Yu Jinglei's eyebrows raised slightly. "He was able to carry the scripture copies when he was expelled from the sect?"

Medicine Daoist's expression turned extremely awkward, and he cleared his throat twice before saying, "Well, perhaps we overlooked that at the time."

Yu Jinglei looked at him meaningfully and asked, "Did Zhou Wu De bring his grandson to Hengshan with the intention of joining our lineage?"

Medicine Daoist nodded repeatedly. "Master Uncle, you are perceptive as always. Wu De has toiled tirelessly to cultivate his grandson into an innate realm expert, aiming for him to join our Hengshan lineage and make amends for the alchemical failures of the past." He sighed heavily and continued, "Wu De's loyalty to our Hengshan is unwavering. It was indeed excessive to have expelled him from our gates in the past."

Yu Jinglei gave him an irritated glare and said, "Enough of your thoughts. Since Wu De has trained a formidable innate expert for our Hengshan lineage, his past transgressions have been pardoned."

Medicine Daoist chuckled. "Master Uncle, when Wu De left the sect, he took the Great Guan Blade（Great Guan Dao） from the arsenal to aid in Zhou Yi's training. It has now become Zhou Yi's trusted weapon. This shows Wu De's farsightedness, doesn't it?"

Yu Jinglei chuckled with a mix of amusement and irritation. "Farsightedness, you say? So, when Zhou Wu De was expelled from the sect, not only did you provide him with our sect's secret scriptures, but you also went to the arsenal to select a weapon for him..." He paused for a moment and then realized, "I remember now. Zhou Wu De must have possessed innate divine power, and that unused Great Guan Blade（Great Guan Dao） was indeed a perfect fit for him."