Chapter 678: Chapter 19: A Thousand Trees Burst into Spring Before the Sick Tree
The Candle Dragon was a spirit beast in ancient legends, stretching a thousand miles long, with a fiery red body, serving as the mountain god of Bell Mountain.
The reason Candle Dragon Hall was named after the Candle Dragon was because their sect was built on top of the Bell Mountain Spirit Vein.
Although there were no dragons atop Bell Mountain today.
In those years, to seize the Bell Mountain Spirit Vein, the first ancestral master of Candle Dragon Hall, Wang Puxian, set the Heaven’s Vault ablaze and ultimately took possession of this blessed land with his might.
In the ten thousand years that followed, Candle Dragon Hall had been regarded as the sect of Dharma Cultivation second only to the Great Pure Palace, and one of the top sects most likely to ascend to the status of a Taoist Sect in the world.
But becoming a Taoist Sect was not that simple, was it?
Let’s talk about the resistance first; so far, each of the six paths of cultivation has produced only one Taoist Sect.
If Dharma Cultivation wanted to introduce a second one, would the other five Taoist Sects agree to it?
Wouldn’t that give rise to the notion that Dharma Cultivation is the strongest among the balanced system of the six paths?
Dharma Cultivation, Body Cultivation, and Sword Cultivation, as the three powerhouses of the Cultivation World, already had more prestige than the other three paths.
Among the three households, Body Cultivation, due to its down-to-earth nature, had always been discriminated against by the others.
After all, while the others swan around in feathery garb, looking dashing and highly presentable, only your path resembles common soldiers—whom else would they discriminate against if not you?
Sword Cultivators are known for their unique and independent character, uninterested in competing for fame. With no reason, others also prefer not to provoke these killers. Therefore, the prominence of Sword Cultivation is not the lowest, but it’s also not the highest.
With such considerations, the voice of Dharma Cultivation ultimately is the loudest.
When the tree is big, it attracts the wind, and everyone is already displeased with Dharma Cultivation. And now you want to create a second Taoist Sect?
More realistically, it’s not just the other five Taoist Sects that are reluctant to see Candle Dragon Hall ascend; even the Great Pure Palace, which also practices Dharma Cultivation, isn’t pleased.
Because if there were a second Dharma Cultivation Taoist Sect in the world, it would undoubtedly shake their position as the holy land of Dharma Cultivation.
Furthermore, the Great Pure Palace specializes in Thunder Spells, while Candle Dragon Hall is adept in Fire Method.
Because of the Great Pure Palace’s influence, there has always been the assertion that Thunder Spells are superior.
If Candle Dragon Hall also became a Taoist Sect, would Thunder Spells still come before Fire Methods then?
So, better left unsaid.
For the Great Pure Palace, Candle Dragon Hall’s promotion would not only dilute their profits and reputation but also bring about a conflict of Taoist tradition. Why would they want that?
Next is the matter of territorial division.
The Human Race has the Seven Domains, and the seven Taoist Sects have each taken one. If Candle Dragon Hall were to become a Taoist Sect, what then?
One mountain cannot accommodate two tigers. Who would want to share their territory with you? And if shared, who would be the leader and who the subordinate?
Even for the potential conflict over domains, the seven Taoist Sects couldn’t ignore Candle Dragon Hall.
In this way, although the various Taoist Sects would not go to the extent of wielding knives against each other, subtle ostracism was inevitable.
Master Wang Puxian, during his lifetime, had always struggled for the promotion of Candle Dragon Hall to the status of a Taoist Sect, and he had even cultivated to the level of Taoist Master.
The level of Taoist Master is actually part of the Nine Realms Cultivator.
However, a Taoist Master is distinct from an ordinary Nine Realms Cultivator.
The main difference is that every Taoist Master is a Nine Realms Cultivator, but not every Nine Realms Cultivator is a Taoist Master.
In layman’s terms, the Taoist Master for Dharma Cultivation is equivalent to the “Sword Immortal” for Sword Cultivation, the “Spiritual Venerable” for Spiritual Cultivation…
Regrettably, even so, Candle Dragon Hall still failed to become a Taoist Sect in the end.
Following the death of Master Wang Puxian, Candle Dragon Hall never produced a new Taoist Master-level cultivator again, let alone contemplated the pursuit of the name of a Taoist Sect.
Because a Dharma Cultivation sect with a “Taoist Master” doesn’t necessarily become a Taoist Sect, but a Dharma Cultivation Taoist Sect definitely must have a “Taoist Master.”
This is an absolute requirement.
Carrying on to this generation, the great ancestral masters of Candle Dragon Hall presently number three.
One of them is named Wang Daode.
Ancient Master Wang Daode is the least distinguished among the three great ancestors of the current Candle Dragon Hall, lacking significant achievements and an earth-shattering level of cultivation.
Compared to the renowned reputations of the other two ancestors, Master Wang Daode is more like a “hermit,” staying within the Candle Dragon Hall daily without leaving.
With his unkempt appearance and resemblance to an old farmer, continually tending to a few citrus trees behind the mountain, many disciples of Candle Dragon Hall harbored grievances and were unimpressed with him.
Moreover, Master Wang Daode had neither children nor disciples in his life.
Therefore, facing the scorn of the sect’s disciples and having no one to speak up for him, his reputation within Candle Dragon Hall sank even lower.
The only thing that puzzled the disciples of Candle Dragon Hall was why this unkempt Master Wang Daode would sit in the principal seat at the sect’s grand annual meeting, while the other two illustrious ancestors sat in the lesser seats?
Could it be that this ancestor was a hidden master of immense skill?
Latterly, well-informed disciples found the answer to this question.
Because Master Wang Daode, the unkempt ancestor, was the only child of the founding sect master of Candle Dragon Hall, Wang Puxian, and currently also the highest-ranked person in Candle Dragon Hall.
However, this news did not change the disciples’ opinions about Master Wang Daode; instead, it intensified their disdain for him.
Master Wang Puxian was an astute and devoted man throughout his life, toiling unwaveringly for Candle Dragon Hall’s ascension to Taoist Sect status, his cultivation reaching the heavens, almost divine. How could it be that he had a son who was such a disappointment?
In their eyes, Wang Daode was the sole blemish on the illustrious reputation of Master Wang Puxian.
Only in recent years, in his twilight years, did the highest-ranked ancestor of Candle Dragon Hall, perhaps actuated by some mortal whim, suddenly accept a cultivator from a remote state in the Southern Territory as his disciple.