I Pick up a Lost Godhood

Chapter 301 - 290: Every Orphan Actually Has a Story

"Are you saying someone from the Empress Faction is protecting Ma Tian’Er?"

Seeing that Qi Feiyu was tempted by the idea, Qian Fei’s spirits immediately lifted. "That’s right, Senior! Think about it. Ma Tian’Er displayed such outstanding Wood Element talent, the same as the Empress. Why wouldn’t she be a priority for them to cultivate? Besides, it looked to me like Ma Tian’Er had been hit by a Wood-Eroding Needle. If the Empress Faction hadn’t secretly intervened, how could someone struck by a Wood-Eroding Needle possibly walk away unscathed!"

Qi Feiyu was actually swayed. He was crystal clear on the power of the Wood-Eroding Needle. At Ma Tian’Er’s current level, getting hit by one was an absolute death sentence. But from the looks of it, she was completely fine, which was just unbelievable—unless the Empress Faction had prepared a Pill for her.

Others might not have predicted this, but it wasn’t something the three major factions would necessarily overlook.

Qi Feiyu nodded slowly. This would serve as a passable reason for their failure. Whether the main sect believed it or not, it was at least a decent excuse.

To live is to constantly search for excuses to keep on living.

"Failure is failure. Qian Fei, you need to reflect on this seriously. Give me a new plan to eliminate them!"

Qi Feiyu said.

Qian Fei quickly nodded in agreement, though he was cursing inwardly. ’He can’t handle it himself, so he’s just dumping the mess on me.’

The Holy Hall had two pieces of good news. One was that they had successfully thwarted the Ten Thousand Demons Sect’s conspiracy, buying the Holy Hall precious time to regroup. The other was that they had finally found the spy hidden within their ranks.

Who would have thought it was Tang Wei?

In hindsight, it made sense. Tang Wei had always had an extreme personality. Under his leadership over the years, Hengshan Hall had become thuggish, a style completely unlike the Holy Hall’s. Furthermore, his position was high enough to access information. If the Ten Thousand Demons Sect offered him enough benefits, betrayal was a very real possibility. And here at the Cultivation Academy, while everyone else was desperately trying to prove themselves, he was the only one who did nothing.

It wasn’t Ning Zhiquan. It wasn’t Li Tianyi. It wasn’t Ma Tian’Er, Wang Meng, or Mingren. It was clear that one of them was supposed to be the mole. They just needed to help the Ten Thousand Demons Sect win that final battle, and the Holy Hall would have been forced completely onto the defensive. The Holy Hall was utterly unprepared at the time, meaning the Ten Thousand Demons Sect had missed a golden opportunity. The only one left who had remained inactive was Tang Wei.

Even for the Holy Hall, there could be no mercy at a time like this. Tang Wei was taken away.

After this battle, the Ten Thousand Demons Sect seemed to have gone quiet—either that or they were plotting something even more sinister. In reality, the Holy Hall hadn’t really won, either. The battle had all but wiped out years of the Holy Hall’s accumulated strength. Although Wang Meng and the others had performed exceptionally, they were too young to shoulder the full responsibility.

Thanks to the Ten Thousand Demons Sect’s deliberate scheming, the Holy Hall’s prestige had suffered another heavy blow. As for the matter of the traitor, the Holy Hall kept it under wraps; after all, it wasn’t something you’d want the public to know.

Wang Meng and the others, for their part, returned to their normal routines. But after this bloody lesson, the group had truly become a unified whole. Here at the Cultivation Academy, they could only rely on each other for help. Who else could they trust? If they didn’t stick together, it was only a matter of time before they were picked off one by one.

The main reason for their previous disunity was due to Hex Zui and Mu Ziqing. But now, Hex Zui was a completely different person. He had cast aside all his inhibitions. ’Immortality is impossible, so why give up enjoying the present for the sake of an unpredictable future?’

Hex Zui fully embraced his role as a senior brother. Whenever Wang Meng and the others needed his help with something, he would give it his all, pouring more effort into it than he did his own Cultivation.

Hex Zui had only one thought: he absolutely had to avenge Mu Ziqing!

Usually, everyone still cultivated on their own, but they would gather once a week to spar. Sparring among fellow disciples allowed them to go all-out without too many reservations, which was also a way to improve.

Ning Zhiquan’s Elemental Power was the strongest, at the Thirty-first Layer. Wang Meng was at the Twenty-Fifth Layer, Li Tianyi was at the Twenty-Fifth Layer, Ma Tian’Er was at the Twenty-fourth Layer, and Mingren was at the Twenty-seventh Layer. This was the current core team of the Holy Hall.

"Junior Brother Li, you have to try harder! You lost again."

Ma Tian’Er said, clapping her hands. She loved her current life; it was like a dream.

Wang Meng’s sword was pointed at Li Tianyi’s chest. He had won again.

Having grown accustomed to contending with the Godhood inside the Heaven and Earth Spirit Locking Array, a battle like this was a walk in the park for Wang Meng.

Li Tianyi might have had more variations and more moves, but the pressure—the key was the oppressive force—the difference between them was just too great.

Frankly, Li Tianyi hadn’t expected it, Ning Zhiquan hadn’t expected it, and Hex Zui especially couldn’t have imagined it. The latter’s jaw was practically on the floor.

He could wrack his brain and still not figure out how Wang Meng had become this powerful. To be able to so easily dismantle Li Tianyi’s attacks when they were at the same level was astounding.

How should one put it? It was like a senior expert guiding a junior. But in reality, how old was Wang Meng???

At most, he was just a rookie who had recently entered the Cultivation Academy. So how could he give off the feeling of a battle-hardened veteran, the kind who had been through major wars? It was an aura, one that Hex Zui had only ever seen on Li Jing before.

Yet here he was, seeing it in Wang Meng. And Wang Meng was even more composed. That faint, almost imperceptible smile wasn’t a sneer, nor was it arrogance. It was the instinctive reaction that comes only from reaching a certain level of confidence.

He suddenly recalled that the file from the Main Hall had said Wang Meng was a legend.

At the time, he had laughed—a scornful laugh. ’A legend?’ He knew full well what state the Sub-Halls were in. They had been in continuous decline for years, so pathetic that they had to resort to recruiting disciples from the mortal world. So he really hadn’t paid it any mind.

But looking at it now, he might have been truly mistaken. This kid from the mortal world had led Thunderlight Hall to create the most ferocious battle record in the history of the Holy Hall. He had practically carried the entire Sub-Hall forward on his own strength. Most importantly, he navigated the complex web of factional relationships as smoothly as a fish in water, even causing the Ancestral Masters to nearly come to blows over him, yet he himself emerged completely unscathed.

’Thinking back now, I completely overlooked all of it!’

’How could such a strong-willed and powerful person become so depressed that he’d shut himself off just because he ran into some difficulties at the Cultivation Academy?’

Even though he only had Elemental Power in the twenties, that composure... Hex Zui knew he didn’t have it himself. And it wasn’t something you could have just by wanting to be confident. Reality was cruel; to be confident without understanding the situation was just being an idiot.

Li Tianyi had originally intended to compete with Wang Meng again, but now he realized that while they might have been evenly matched before, a huge gap had now opened between them.

Ning Zhiquan’s interest was also piqued. He ended up using his Elemental Power up to the Thirtieth Layer, and although it wasn’t a life-or-death battle, he still couldn’t gain the slightest advantage. And this was with him using the power of the Thirtieth Layer!

Even Hex Zui’s hands were itching for a fight, but his injuries hadn’t fully healed, or else he would have challenged Wang Meng to a match as well.

He saw the future of the Holy Hall in Wang Meng. As long as Wang Meng could persevere, the Holy Hall would surely have a chance to rise again!

Wang Meng unreservedly shared his insights with everyone, while Ma Tian’Er eagerly hoped for her injuries to heal quickly so she could spar with him too.

Ma Tian’Er kept cheering them on. Li Tianyi was indeed a little dejected at first, but his stubborn streak soon kicked in. He was determined to catch up to Wang Meng!

Mingren, meanwhile, watched from the side with a faint smile. ’Impressive.’

Within the Holy Hall, who was the most optimistic about Wang Meng?

It wasn’t the Ancestral Masters, nor was it the blind faith of Yang Ying and the others.

The most clear-headed person was Mingren.

As someone who practiced Saint and Demon Dual Cultivation, the first time he saw Wang Meng, it was like seeing a deadly poisonous Salamander!

It’s just that no one noticed the sweat mixed in with his smile.

In the Little Thousand World of Death Burial, it wasn’t that Mingren hadn’t considered making a move. At that moment, Ma Tian’Er had completely occupied Wang Meng’s Heart Spirit. What a perfect opportunity! But Mingren’s intuition told him that although Wang Meng seemed to be full of openings, it felt as if an invisible pair of eyes was staring at him. If he made a move, there would be no turning back.

’Besides, taking a step back opens up a wider world. Isn’t the current situation just fine?’

Mingren cheered and clapped loudly for Wang Meng’s splendid performance.

Every orphan, in fact, has a story...

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