What is the Assembly? In the mortal world, it refers to the etiquette between monarch and subject. The Hundred Sects Assembly takes this name for a reason.
According to Liu Xuan, within the Drifting Clouds World, the four regions—East, South, West, and North—each have a leader who governs the spiritual vitality and prevailing fortune of their domain. Should one sect attempt to seize all by itself, the Heavenly Dao would not allow it.
To preserve the prosperity of the immortal path, such a grand gathering was formed to divide and contend for destiny. Sects duel not only to display strength but to determine how much of the world’s fortune they may receive. In the past, True Spirit Sect often performed poorly, and so their standing waned.
It wasn’t until Qiu Jianying suddenly rose to fame, seizing destiny for the sect, that new geniuses began to emerge. Each regional leader holds the power over that region’s destiny and is akin to a monarch. The way they assign fortune to each sect is like how monarchs bestow territory to vassal lords.
Likewise, each sect must bring tribute, showing reverence for the burden of Heaven these leaders bear. More than a thousand Foundation Establishment cultivators have gathered for this event. It begins with battles among them before advancing to the Core Formation duels.
Thus, the grand event stretches on for an entire month or more. Apart from battles across cultivation stages, there is also a sect-versus-sect war. This war follows the individual duels and is determined based on how well each sect’s disciples performed in those matches.
In the last cycle, True Spirit Sect and the Long Plain Sect were paired for the sect war because their disciples had similar results in the solo bouts. Individual duels are known among cultivators as the Threefold Trial. The First Trial tests the solidity of a cultivator’s foundation.
Here, a Profound Division Cultivator uses True Essence to suppress the contestant’s body and observe how much their spiritual foundation can endure. This is vital—it determines whether one’s cultivation path has a reliable root. It must be treated with the utmost importance.
The Second Trial manifests a phantom replica of the cultivator, who must battle it. This is a measure of one’s comprehension. Insight is indispensable on the path of cultivation—it separates the geniuses from the mediocre.
The phantom is shaped after one’s own aura and potential, the most familiar foe one can face. Only by measuring against oneself can one truly perceive one’s strengths and shortcomings. The Third and final Trial is the most mysterious—it examines one’s Dao Heart.
The concept of the Dao Heart is elusive and hard to define. One may seem steadfast and determined but inside hides hatred and schemes, shackled by karmic obstacles and inner demons. Another may appear slow and simple but remains unfazed in heart, their Dao Heart as clear as spring water.
As the saying goes: he who seems detached may not be free, and he who walks the mortal world most deeply may well transcend it. This is that principle. After completing the Three Trials, the top hundred based on total performance earn the right to enter the Destiny-Seizing Battle.
These one hundred will contend for destiny beyond the standard allotment granted to their sects. Last time, only one True Spirit Disciple, Huo Zixun, passed through the threefold trial. Coincidentally, only Geng Tianqin in the Long Plain Sect passed as well.
That’s why the two sects were matched in the sect war. This time, with ten Late Foundation cultivators participating from True Spirit Sect, Li Su felt confident. Du Fanzhi and Liu Xuan were both his personal disciples, their strength outstanding.
They were surely capable of reaching the Destiny Battle. As for the other eight, if any made it through, it would be a joyous bonus. With over a thousand Foundation Establishment disciples, they obviously would not take the stage all at once.
Instead, they’d be sorted into groups of two hundred. The process would likely take several days to complete. To keep spectators entertained, all sects’ disciples would be shuffled and mixed—no grouping based on sects.
Two hundred out of the entire pool would be selected at random each round. Within each match, differences in strength and brilliance would naturally become clear. Foundation Establishment disciples are only granted one chance to battle.
Core Formation contestants, on the other hand, face no such limitation. Among the True Spirit disciples, only three or four had observed the Assembly during their Qi Refining days. The rest had never experienced it before.
Now, stepping into their first battle, burdened with the responsibility of their sect's vitality, they were filled with solemn resolve, preparing earnestly. Liu Xuan sat by Zhao Chun’s side, not showing the slightest unease. She chatted and joked with her as if nothing mattered.
In relaxed tones, she recounted tales of genius disciples from various other sects, giving Zhao Chun a broader horizon.
“This time, it’s only because you haven’t reached the required realm,” Liu Xuan said.
“But next round, forget just Foundation—if things go well, you may very well reach Core Formation. Then you can take to the stage and show your brilliance. No need to envy others.”
Zhao Chun replied with gratitude, “Thank you for the kind words, Senior Sister.” Hearing of how heroic these genius disciples were, she couldn’t help but admire them deeply. But alongside that admiration stirred a yearning to one day make her own name echo throughout the Southern Region—or even across the entire Drifting Clouds World.
“That pair—Song Yikun and Xue Yun—are born with Heavenly Spiritual Roots,” Liu Xuan continued.
“Their progress naturally outpaces everyone else. But what truly makes the entire South admire them isn’t just their talent—it’s their unsurpassed comprehension. Any technique or spell, no matter how complex, becomes simplicity itself to their eyes, until it reveals the path to the Dao.”
Liu Xuan’s eyes gleamed with admiration, then turned to Zhao Chun and said, “In my humble opinion, your comprehension in the Way of the Sword is not beneath theirs. I’ve traveled far and wide; at least within Drifting Clouds World, I’ve never seen another like you.”
“At least... within Drifting Clouds?”
Zhao Chun asked, puzzled. Could it be that her Senior Sister had been to other worlds? Liu Xuan chuckled.
“Where is your mind wandering? In this world, only when guided by cultivators from the Upper Realm can one shatter the boundary and ascend. There’s no way I could’ve gone.”
As though reading Zhao Chun’s thoughts, she added, “Even though I’ve never left, I’ve heard a thing or two. Drifting Clouds World may seem vast, but it’s only a Small Thousand World. Above it still lie Middle Worlds, then Great Worlds.
The spiritual qi of all heavens and earth gathers in those places, and the geniuses born there… are something else entirely.”
“So that’s how it is…”
Zhao Chun nodded. The land she stood upon was but a tiny speck in the vast cosmos. How could a grain of dust comprehend the ocean’s breadth?
Her path was still long and shrouded—she could not see the end. Suddenly shaking off her drifting thoughts, she turned to Liu Xuan and said, “There are so many worlds. Perhaps one day, we can go and see for ourselves.
From what I see, Senior Sister’s accomplishment in the alchemy path is equally without rival.” Liu Xuan broke into a brilliant smile and placed her jade-like hand confidently on Zhao Chun’s shoulder.
“But of course. Among peers, I dare claim that I'm second to none. Even if I came up against disciples of the Alchemical Terrace Sect, I’d still dare to say that.”
They were about to continue their conversation when, from the elevated platform, Liu Xuan’s name was suddenly called. After organizing the full roster of sect disciples, she had been drawn as one of the first round’s two hundred. The high platform was a good distance from the surroundings.
Foundation Establishment cultivators could not yet fly freely in the air and had to rely on other methods to ascend. Many tossed out Smoke Boat Talismans and rode their drifting vessels skyward. Others, with richer backgrounds, summoned flying artifacts—one by one, techniques and treasures lit up the scene in dazzling display.
In that first round, three out of the ten Foundation Establishment disciples from True Spirit Sect were drawn—an unlucky coincidence, some might say. Two of them, like the majority, used Smoke Boat Talismans as their ride. Liu Xuan, on the other hand, was different.
She pressed two fingers together, plucked a jade-green, oval-shaped leaf between them, and murmured an incantation. The leaf caught the wind, expanding to several meters in size. Liu Xuan leapt lightly onto it, floating upward in grace.
Each group of two hundred would go through all three trials, with only two hours to rest between each—it was a race against time, down to the very breath. Those who ascended using flying artifacts naturally drew all eyes to themselves. Only those with true pride and confidence would dare make such an entrance.
One disciple from Crimson Beast Sect even rode atop a late-Foundation Realm Roc, stealing everyone’s attention in the blink of an eye. Zhao Chun furrowed her brows slightly. Such bold displays cut both ways.
Win, and fame would follow. Lose, and you become the court jester. We shall see what comes of it.
(End of Chapter)