After Being Reborn a Hundred Times, I Refused to Be the Villain - Chapter 5:

Chapter 5: The Chief Disciple Who Was Never Valued

Snow Moon Peak was the youngest Spiritual Peak since the founding of the Heavenly Dao Sect, and it was also established by the youngest elder of this generation.

Within the Heavenly Dao Sect, establishing one’s own Spiritual Peak was no easy feat. Most elders would never achieve such a thing in their entire lifetimes. However, among the current generation of elders, one exceptional figure had emerged—Master Xueyue. She was the only person in the history of the Heavenly Dao Sect to open a Spiritual Peak and establish her own Dao lineage within a hundred years of cultivation.

When it came to Master Xueyue, no one in the Heavenly Dao Sect didn’t speak of her with admiration. Though she had only cultivated for less than a century, she had already become the strongest among the sect’s elders. Within the sect, aside from the reclusive Supreme Elders, only the sect master and a few other elders could barely suppress her in strength.

Yet everyone knew that it was only a matter of time before Master Xueyue caught up to them. Even the secluded Supreme Elders were likely to become her next targets for surpassing.

At that moment, Master Xueyue was seated in the main hall of Snow Moon Peak, watching as three disciples hurriedly entered.

“Master, you’ve left seclusion?” Upon seeing her seated on the main seat, the three disciples showed visible delight.

“Greetings, Master!” The three bowed in unison to Master Xueyue.

“Master, your cultivation seems even more profound after this seclusion,” Song Yushu exclaimed, eyes full of awe.

She had long known her master was a cultivation genius, and what others saw as bottlenecks were like paper walls to her. But even then, she hadn’t expected her progress to be this fast. Of course, they were all pleased by their master’s growth—after all, the stronger she became, the more glory and benefits they would enjoy as her disciples.

“With Master’s current strength, even the sect master may not be your equal.”

“Right, but why don’t I see Senior Brother?” Yan Shan glanced around the hall, puzzled. Normally, Ling Yun would always be there when they arrived.

“Senior Brother’s not here? Even better. He’s always nagging, and you all don’t get tired of it?” Huangfu Ying snorted.

Every time they came to the hall and saw Ling Yun, they would be subjected to endless lectures—about cultivation, about life, about everything. Ling Yun would carefully go over their recent progress and give detailed suggestions for improvement.

But to Yan Shan and the others, his well-meant reminders were nothing but annoying chatter. Though they would nod and agree on the surface, they would ignore him the moment they turned around, doing whatever they wanted.

Master Xueyue glanced at her three disciples, a satisfied expression in her eyes. Despite their young age, each of them was a renowned genius within the Heavenly Dao Sect. Especially the youngest, Song Yushu—though only seventeen years old, she had already stepped into the Origin Spirit Realm. Among cultivators of the same age in the sect, her cultivation might not be the highest, but her foundation was incredibly solid. Even peak Origin Spirit Realm disciples from the main peak might not be able to defeat her in a head-on fight.

To begin cultivation, one must first temper the body until it reached perfection. At that point, an invisible Qi would form naturally within. Once this Qi could circulate continuously through the body, one would step into the 2nd stage of cultivation—the Qi Refining Realm.

Qi Refining cultivators had to strengthen this invisible Qi, enhancing both its quality and quantity. Although at this stage cultivators could manipulate their internal Qi, it was only enough for basic techniques, such as reinforcing the body with spiritual Qi to improve physical strength.

Once the internal Qi reached a sufficient level, it would undergo a transformation. If one could refine even a single strand of internal Qi into Gang Qi, they would enter the 3rd stage—the Gang Refinement Realm. Compared to internal Qi, Gang Qi was completely different in nature. At this stage, cultivators could release their Gang Qi and imbue it into weapons, significantly boosting their lethality.

While Gang Qi was common within the Heavenly Dao Sect, for most cultivators it was already considered a peak stage. After all, pushing Gang Qi to its limit and evolving it into something with a trace of spirit, thus stepping into the 4th stage Origin Spirit Realm, was a tremendous hurdle. That sliver of spirit was difficult to grasp and could stall someone for decades.

Now, among the disciples on Snow Moon Peak, aside from Ling Yun who remained at the peak of the Gang Refinement Realm, the other three had all entered the Origin Spirit Realm. This was what Master Xueyue was most proud of.

However, the moment she thought about her eldest disciple still stuck at the peak of the Gang Refinement Realm, unable to break through, Master Xueyue couldn’t help but frown slightly. As the Chief Disciple, Ling Yun should have led by example, but now his cultivation had been surpassed by his junior disciples—it was indeed hard to justify.

If Yun Xi were here and knew what Master Xueyue was thinking, she would’ve scoffed. Why did the three of them have such solid foundations and enter the Origin Spirit Realm so quickly? Wasn’t it all thanks to Ling Yun’s guidance? In order to help his junior brothers and sister reach the Origin Spirit Realm, Ling Yun had sacrificed a significant portion of his own cultivation time. Without him, given their temperament, it would’ve taken them three to five years at least to reach that stage—if they managed at all.

And now, they dared to look down on Ling Yun for having weaker cultivation? Truly ridiculous.

“Since you’re all here, I’ll explain the upcoming Ten Sects Grand Competition,” Master Xueyue said, not waiting for Ling Yun at all.

Yan Shan and the others didn’t react either. They didn’t mention Ling Yun’s absence at all, as if it didn’t matter whether he heard about the Ten Sects Grand Competition. But in reality, the competition was divided into four categories: Body Tempering, Qi Refining, Gang Refinement, and Origin Spirit. Disciples from any stage could participate.

Just from this alone, it was obvious how little Ling Yun, the so-called Chief Disciple, was valued on Snow Moon Peak.