The sect master, the head disciple—both had submitted to a man.
Even she, to solve her divine ability’s side effects, had… come and gone with him.
Wait—why would I dream about my divine ability?
Then the sensation returned.
Aches. Soreness. Lingering tremors.
Her head whipped around in panic.
The sight of the devastatingly handsome man behind her brought everything rushing back.
Her body relaxed, but embarrassment flared.
Though every nerve screamed exhaustion, her hips still swayed faintly—unable to stop.
Even she cringed at her own wantonness, her voice husky with lingering need.
The title was both respectful and literal.
“Awake? Check your body. See what’s changed.”
Ning Chen’s voice was calm.
Focusing on her current situation, Chu Ning circulated spiritual energy through her meridians.
Her cultivation had skyrocketed!
That faint golden sphere in her dantian—was that a Golden Core?!
More importantly, four of her five internal fire sources had stabilized completely, responding to her will like extensions of herself.
Only the twin flames near her waist still flickered restlessly.
But compared to before, they were negligible—especially with the thorough extinguishing they’d just received.
“Thank you, Senior Brother, for guiding me through this trial!”
Her gratitude was profound.
If not for their position, she’d have kowtowed properly. Instead, she settled for nine rhythmic oscillations—a makeshift three bows, nine prostrations.
The barely subdued kidney-fire roared back to life, surpassing its previous intensity in seconds.
Twin flames erupted atop her coffee snow caps.
Below, a conflagration engulfed her lower half, forming a blazing belt from abdomen to back.
Alarmed, Ning Chen flipped her over without disconnecting.
The sight before him was mesmerizing.
An exotic Flame Dancer, her lantern wicks burning bright yet leaving the pearls beneath untouched. Follow current novᴇls on N0veI.Fiɾe.net
Further down, the inferno raged—yet the night-light pearl at its center remained pristine, unharmed by the flames.
Chu Ning panicked at her own transformation. “S-Senior Brother, what’s happening to me?!”
Her voice cracked on the last word.
Unfazed by the heat, Ning Chen pressed a palm to the joy bean.
Two seconds of contact, and the pufferfish swelled to twice its size.
He gave it an experimental squeeze.
Soft. Puffy yet elastic.
Chu Ning convulsed, her eyes rolling back.
“Nngh—Senior Brother, stop!”
Watching the once-composed beauty unravel completely, Ning Chen smirked.
“Relax. I’ll help you put out the fire.”
*A teacher’s duty: to impart wisdom, resolve doubts, and… extinguish flames.
As the hidden MVP of the sect, the Eldest Senior Brother naturally had a duty to guide his junior sisters.
Missionary mode, activate!
Time flew—three years passed in the blink of an eye.
During this period, the overall strength of the Azure Lotus Sect had advanced by leaps and bounds.
Sect Master, Liu Ru Yan: 9th Layer of Divine Transformation Realm!
Grand Elder, Xu Qingyao: 3rd Layer of Divine Transformation Realm!
Alchemy Hall Elder, Ji Zhiqing: 7th Layer of Divine Transformation Realm!
Inner Sect Elder, Tantai Yuruo: 4th Layer of Divine Transformation Realm!
Sect Master’s Direct Disciple, Nan Gong Ling: 1st Layer of Divine Transformation Realm!
Grand Elder’s Direct Disciple, Yu Hua: 8th Layer of Nascent Soul Realm.
Alchemy Hall’s Direct Disciple, Zhou Qin: 7th Layer of Nascent Soul Realm.
Sect Master’s Direct Disciple, Duanmu Yao: Publicly at 6th Layer of Golden Core, secretly at 6th Layer of Nascent Soul.
Sect Master’s Direct Disciple, Li Yiya: 4th Layer of Nascent Soul Realm.
Newly Appointed Sect Master’s Direct Disciple, Chu Ning: Peak Golden Core.
The Seven Attendant Immortals: All above 4th Layer of Nascent Soul.
Over the past three years, the sect had held six internal competitions. Including the initial four, only six inner sect female cultivators had earned the right to undergo trials in the Demon-Suppressing Tower and receive Ning Chen’s… enlightenment.
The weakest among them was at least at the 7th Layer of Golden Core, while the strongest had reached Peak Golden Core.
The number of female cultivators in the Azure Lotus Sect had expanded to three thousand, with over four hundred at the Golden Core Realm alone—nearly ten times more than during the Spatial Rift era.
To better manage resources, the sect established a new category: Servant Disciples.
Though labeled as servants, their treatment was no different from the old outer sect disciples. They only had to perform minor tasks like gatekeeping or cleaning, which barely cut into their cultivation time. Instead, they could earn extra Azure Lotus Solar Pills through performance evaluations.
The former inner sect became the new outer sect, with unchanged benefits but restricted to Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators.
The remaining several hundred Golden Core disciples formed the new inner sect, enjoying vastly improved monthly rewards, opportunities to become elite direct disciples under the three inner sect elders, and regular personal guidance.
With the backing of the Great Xia Dynasty, the Azure Lotus Sect no longer worried about resources.
As the Great Xia Three Thousand Sects Tournament approached, all Golden Core disciples stood ready—only to learn at the last minute that, to shorten the event and improve competition quality, each sect could send only thirty-six participants.
This sent shockwaves through the entire Azure Lotus Sect.
Since the rewards included Demon-Suppressing Tower trials, not a single one of the four hundred female cultivators was willing to back down.
If selection were based purely on cultivation level, it would be unfair—some were combat specialists capable of fighting above their rank.
With no other choice, Liu Ru Yan organized a qualification trial before the tournament.
Four hundred Golden Core female cultivators competed for twenty-eight spots (after excluding Duanmu Yao, Chu Ning, and the six regular inner sect competition winners). The battle was so fierce it nearly turned into a bloodbath.
While it wasn’t enough to “grind the Great Dao to dust,” Golden Core cultivators could still slightly influence the world’s celestial phenomena.
For days, the skies above the Azure Lotus Sect churned with blood and storm.
The intensity of the competition reminded Ning Chen, watching from the Demon-Suppressing Tower’s surveillance array, of national team selections for the World Table Tennis Championships in his past life.
Fortunately, with Ji Zhiqing’s unparalleled alchemy, even the most severe injuries healed quickly under strict no-killing rules.
Finally, the thirty-six representatives for the tournament were chosen.
Led by Divine Transformation Realm expert Tantai Yuruo, the delegation faced no opposition—not just due to strength, but also because of their Great Xia Dynasty connections.
As for the results? Utterly predictable.
Thanks to same-sect avoidance rules in early rounds, eighteen of the Azure Lotus Sect’s thirty-six made it into the top twenty, with the rest all within the top fifty (detailed rankings began after the top 64).
Only four had bad luck, eliminated in the top 64 by their own sectmates.
Duanmu Yao, the crafty one, didn’t even use spiritual energy, bulldozing through opponents with pure physical strength to claim 1st place.
Chu Ning, another direct disciple, took 2nd place with her controlled Nether Furnace Devourer, nullifying most opponents’ techniques.
The top seed from Yuetan Academy? Struggled to even reach 15th place.
Disciples from the other Twelve Great Sects fared even worse—pitifully crushed.
After the Spatial Rift War, everyone knew the Azure Lotus Sect had risen—but no one expected them to dominate this hard.
The balance of power in the Great Xia Dynasty’s cultivation world had shifted overnight!
Just three days later, the new sect rankings were announced:
Azure Lotus Sect—Rank 1.
They had broken Yuetan Academy’s centuries-long streak as the undisputed top sect since the dynasty’s founding!
Elder Tantai Yuruo returned with the thirty-six disciples, bringing the triumphant news.
The sect celebrated for three days straight.
Then, the real reward began—
The Demon-Suppressing Tower trials for all thirty-six victors!