Immortality Begins With Internal Breathing-Chapter 321: Hidden Dragon List (I)

Leaving the courtyard, Pei Xuan headed west. He continued until he was far from the central area of the inner city, reaching the outer city. Under the bright moonlight, he identified his bearings and slipped into the village on the left. After advancing several hundred meters, he stopped before an ordinary villager's house.

Pei Xuan stood before the house and lightly knocked on the door in a set rhythm. The door opened, revealing a middle-aged man dressed in plain linen clothes with a somewhat dark complexion. When the old man saw the token in Pei Xuan's hand, he bowed respectfully and stepped aside to let Pei Xuan enter.

Inside the house, Pei Xuan walked to a room in the corner and felt around on the wall for a while. A pitch-black underground passage appeared on the floor. From within the passage, faint and dim flames gave off a gloomy glow. Pei Xuan leapt lightly and entered the passage. At first, the tunnel was extremely narrow, but as he advanced, it grew wider, with wisps of incense-like scent filling the air. After moving forward several dozen meters, the space ahead suddenly opened up into a vast cavern where a colossal divine statue stood, appearing grand, imposing, and solemn.

There, a man could be seen standing before the divine statue. Without turning his head, he said, "You are here. You have not shown yourself for so long that I thought you had died at Luo Wu's hands."

"I nearly did," Pei Xuan said calmly.

With only his peak Force Transformation realm strength, surviving at the hands of Grandmaster Huang Baizhong and then escaping under Luo Wu's pursuit was no easy feat.

"Help me investigate someone," Pei Xuan said bluntly. Hearing this, the attendant at the side took out a pen and paper and began to record.

"Zhao Hao. His first appearance in the Guanghua Region was together with the Guangxuan Escort Agency from Bafang City in the Southern Barbarian Region. He came to Bafang City and, after killing one of my Pei Family's capable men, fled in stages to Wuling City. In Wuling City, he befriended the Li Family and entered the martial cultivation exchange through them. He rose to prominence in the challenge matches and became the only martial artist to earn the title of one hundred undefeated battles. But after that, he vanished without a trace. I want you to find out his true identity and his exact location," Pei Xuan said calmly, a flash of brutality and killing intent passing through his eyes as the black-red aura around him surged uncontrollably.

The man before the statue turned around, glanced at Pei Xuan, and said calmly, "Very well. Your current state is somewhat off and shows signs of a yao transformation. For the time being, do not go anywhere. Stay here and stabilize your mind."

This was a man who appeared to be in his thirties, with an ordinary appearance and deep, dark eyes. Those eyes seemed to possess demonic power, capable of seeing through Pei Xuan's condition at a single glance. Pei Xuan took a deep breath and suppressed the brutality in his heart. He nodded slowly, took the incense handed to him by the attendant beside him, lit it, and began to worship the towering demon god statue with reverence.

This was a somewhat eerie demon god statue. Its front two hands were clasped together, while ten arms grew from its back, each gripping a different weapon in a frenzied pose as if about to unleash a fatal strike. Its face bore an expression of pain and ferocity, yet its eyes were incomparably tranquil. Its entire form was filled with conflict and an uncanny harmony. As he worshipped, an indescribable emotion surged from Pei Xuan's heart, and the brutality and murderous intent in his gaze slowly faded. In their place appeared the same peaceful calm reflected in the eyes of the demon god statue.

***

Inside Grand View Tower, Lin Zheyu curiously observed the guests coming and going. Nearly all those present were well-known genius martial artists of Wuling City, which left Lin Zheyu greatly surprised.

"Who organized this banquet?" Lin Zheyu asked with curiosity.

Upon hearing this, Xu Kai'en, Wei Dongguang, and Huang Youwei were at a loss for words. Having come this far and still not knowing who was hosting the banquet, they truly did not know what to say. No wonder his strength was so formidable. He had not only caught the eye of Elder Yang and the sect master and been exceptionally admitted into Wuji Sect, but had also risen in a single leap to become a true disciple. This was due not only to powerful natural talent and comprehension, but also to his self-forgetting drive and dedication to cultivation.

"This banquet was organized by Jii Weicheng of the Jii Family[1]. As a leading figure among the younger generation of Wuling City, many people have to give him some face," Huang Youwei explained in a low voice.

Jii Weicheng? The Jii Family of the City Guard?

Lin Zheyu thought for a moment, and among the forces he could match in his mind, only the City Guard's Jii Family possessed such influence.

The City Guard of Wuling City was not something that places like Bafang City or Songyi City could compare to. As one of the ten great cities of the Guanghua Region, the power and combat strength of Wuling City's City Guard were no less formidable than those of top-tier sects. As one of the three giants of the City Guard, the Jii Family was such that even the Wuji Sect had to give them some respect.

"That's right. In the eyes of ordinary people, Jii Weicheng does not have much fame, and many have not even heard of him. But within the martial cultivation circle, he is a highly influential figure. You should have heard of Xiao Shi, right? Like you, he was exceptionally recruited by the War God Sect more than ten years ago, and now he has risen to rank thirtieth on the Hidden Dragon List.

"This Hidden Dragon List does not cover only Wuling City, nor is it limited to the Guanghua Region. It is a ranking compiled across the entirety of Great Wei. For Xiao Shi to enter the top thirty of the Hidden Dragon List, his aptitude and comprehension can be considered top-tier within the Guanghua Region. And this Jii Weicheng is even more terrifying. He once reached the astonishing rank of eighteenth on the Hidden Dragon List. If not for his age, he might have climbed even higher," Huang Youwei explained, his eyes filled with admiration and awe.

That was eighteenth place on the Hidden Dragon List!

"No wonder he has such a powerful influence," Lin Zheyu said in realization.

He had seen records of the Hidden Dragon List in the Wuji Sect archives. Only Marrow Refining realm martial artists under the age of sixty could enter that list. Once they exceeded the age limit or advanced in cultivation, they would be removed. This was a ranking that represented latent potential. While in the Marrow Refining realm, greater strength usually meant greater latent potential, which was why it was called the Hidden Dragon List.

"Martial uncle, are you not only fifty years old now? Do you want to go test your strength? As long as you defeat a martial artist on the Hidden Dragon List, you can enter the rankings," Huang Youwei suggested with a smile.

Ever since Lin Zheyu became a true disciple, he had not seen him take action. He was extremely confident in Lin Zheyu's strength. He was the only expert at the martial cultivation exchange who could fight Puxuan the monk to a draw and claim the title of one hundred undefeated battles. Huang Youwei did not dare think that he could enter the top fifty, but the top one hundred was definitely within reach.

"What benefits are there after entering the rankings?" Lin Zheyu asked with curiosity.

"Fame! The Hidden Dragon List represents one's strength and latent potential. Any martial artist who can enter the Hidden Dragon List will have large numbers of powerful individuals and factions coming to seek their allegiance," Xu Kai'en said as a matter of course.

Just by looking at Jii Weicheng, it was clear how terrifying the influence of a ranked martial artist could be. If Xu Kai'en were able to, he would have liked to find a martial artist on the Hidden Dragon List to challenge.

"Then forget it. I am used to keeping a low profile and do not like acting too ostentatiously," Lin Zheyu said with a smile, shaking his head.

He swept his gaze around as he tried to see whether Li Mengqi and the others had arrived, but he could not spot them.

"Martial uncle, do not listen to Xu Kai'en's nonsense. Entering the Hidden Dragon List is not only for fame. I have heard that once on the list, it brings great benefits to a martial artist's cultivation. As for what those benefits are exactly, I do not know. Every martial artist on the Hidden Dragon List keeps silent about it," Wei Dongguang interjected.

"Yes, there is indeed such a saying. Back then, Martial Uncle Chen Ding, Martial Uncle Haihong, and Martial Aunt Wenzi all entered the Hidden Dragon List, but none of them managed to reach the top fifty. I imagine that in another year or two, grandfather will let you leave seclusion and challenge experts on the Hidden Dragon List everywhere," Huang Youwei said.

This was a path that every true disciple of the Wuji Sect had to go through. Some even began walking the road of climbing the Hidden Dragon List before becoming true disciples. Only Lin Zheyu was a wild martial artist who not trained under a master and had not yet fully converted to the Azure Tide Boundless True Technique. That was why Huang Baizhong had not let him challenge the Hidden Dragon List.

"So there are benefits like that as well, eh. By the way, did Yue Qinghong, Luo Dinglong, and the others fail to make it onto the Hidden Dragon List?" Lin Zheyu suddenly asked. Back then, he had defeated quite a few genius martial artists of the Marrow Refining realm. If they had all made it onto the Hidden Dragon List, then he should have been on it long ago as well.

"No. Although their strength is formidable, they are still quite a distance away from being true geniuses. The Hidden Dragon List has only one hundred slots in total, and it includes genius martial artists from the entirety of Great Wei. Luo Dinglong and the others are only somewhat well-known within the Wuling City region," Huang Youwei explained.

"What about Puxuan? Is he ranked on the list?" Lin Zheyu asked curiously. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

Puxuan's strength was extremely formidable. In terms of defense, he possessed the Buddhist Sect Golden Body. In terms of speed, he had the peerless divine footwork of the world. In terms of offense, he wielded the fierce Great Compassion Palm. Lin Zheyu had only managed to secure victory by relying on his consummate close combat movement techniques to contend with him. When he reviewed the battle afterward, he realized that even if he had unlocked the Ninefold Origin Lock Art at the time, he would still have been unable to break through Puxuan's defenses.

"Mhm. After the martial cultivation exchange ended, he began challenging geniuses on the Hidden Dragon List everywhere. He has now climbed to eighty-third place and is still steadily rising. Recently, more and more of those bald monks have been making the list. On the entire Hidden Dragon List, there are no fewer than eight of those bald monks," Huang Youwei said unhappily.

Great Wei's official ranking had been occupied by foreign martial artists, which was truly humiliating. This showed that within the entirety of Great Wei, there was not even one hundred martial artists capable of matching those bald monks.

"Haha. Brother Youwei, it has been a long time." As they were chatting, a hearty laugh suddenly rang out, and a man with a neatly groomed full beard walked toward them.

"This is Deng An of the Azure Rainbow Sect, the son of the third elder of Illusory Sea Hall. The woman beside him is his biological younger sister, Deng Rou," said Huang Youwei, introducing in a low voice.

Like the Wuji Sect, the Azure Rainbow Sect was also one of the four top-tier sects of the Guanghua Region. Illusory Sea Hall was the Azure Rainbow Sect's branch in Wuling City.

Lin Zheyu listened to Huang Youwei's introduction and was left somewhat speechless.

This fellow was truly single-minded when it came to making friends. Everyone he associated with was either a second-generation martial heir or a true disciple of an elder or sect master. Most of the true disciples within the Wuji Sect paid no attention to Huang Youwei, and only Lin Zheyu, who had just arrived, had become familiar with him.

"Eh, this friend looks a bit unfamiliar. Is he a newly promoted inner sect disciple of the Wuji Sect?" Deng An asked curiously as he sized up Lin Zheyu.

1. Jii(纪) was used here so as to not confused with another surname Ji(姬 of Ji Qiming) that came up previously. ☜