“After the ‘Book of Vowel Reeds,’ there will be a sequel.”

“This book records twenty kinds of vowel reeds, but these are just the basics. There should be some auxiliary reeds.”

“The number of these auxiliary reeds should exceed twenty.”

“Perhaps next time, through Qinghuangzi’s Xingyun minor test, I’ll get a ‘Book of Consonant Reeds’?”

Ning Zhuo speculated in his heart.

The “Book of Vowel Reeds” in his hand was written by Qinghuangzi, and thus contained his intention (yi).

Intention is information that cannot be spoken, cannot be expressed with words and sentences.

But through the Huìyì Pen, Ning Zhuo could experience it.

As the author, Qinghuangzi only wrote a small part of his inheritance. Clearly, the “Book of Vowel Reeds” was the most basic of foundations.

He hadn’t written about any sequel, but Ning Zhuo could, through the intention contained within, glimpse the subsequent content.

“The Luoshu page, as a Dao artifact, has also given me immense help.”

“Under its influence, I can always stay on the right path to understand this intention.”

The result of this attempt was like a window opening for Ning Zhuo.

His eyes flashed with brilliance, and he quickly thought: “If I want to explore the fundamental cultivation method of a powerful cultivator, can I also examine their other genuine works, fathom their intention, and uncover the mysteries of their cultivation method?”

Ning Zhuo pondered for a moment, then shook his head slightly: “The difficulty here should be considerable!”

“At least these genuine works should be related to the fundamental cultivation method. Otherwise, the intention left by a powerful cultivator when writing would pertain to other aspects.”

“Wait.”

“Many cultivators observe battlefields, comprehending sword marks and electrical traces left by clashes between powerful figures, and often gain insights.”

“Isn’t this the same principle as me using the Huìyì Pen?”

When Ning Zhuo thought of this, he couldn’t help but let out a heartfelt sigh.

“There are truly too many intricacies in learning!”

“Learning is endless!”

Ning Zhuo placed the Huìyì Pen back into its pen case to continue nourishing it.

Just the recent copying had again dimmed the Huìyì Pen; using it again might damage its foundation.

“Alas, I’m not a Ru Cultivator, so I don’t have a Wénxīn or Wénqì. This means every time I use the Huìyì Pen, I can’t sustain it for long.”

“If only I had multiple Huìyì Pens to use in rotation.”

Before his daily routine cultivation, Ning Zhuo summoned Gongsun Yan and gave him a list of materials, instructing him to go out and acquire them.

Although Qinghuangzi hadn’t explicitly stated it, since Ning Zhuo had obtained the “Book of Vowel Reeds,” he naturally needed to refine the mechanical components mentioned within.

Ban Ji swung his arm, and mana surged out, directly shattering the last flowerpot in the cave-dwelling.

The cave-dwelling was already a mess.

This was all the result of Ban Ji venting his anger, wantonly abusing his mana to strike randomly.

“Ning Zhuo, I want you dead, I want you dead!” Ban Ji gritted his teeth.

He had prepared for Qinghuangzi’s Xingyun minor test for a long time. Yet, in the first round, he was eliminated!

Without a doubt, it was all Ning Zhuo’s fault!

“It’s also my own fault!”

“I was too careless! In the clash of divine senses, my advantage was too great, which made me complacent and negligent! If I had noticed earlier that Ning Zhuo, that little brat, was colluding with others, and I had been secretly on guard, I would definitely have had a chance!”

*Clap, clap!*

Thinking of this, Ban Ji directly slapped himself twice.

His left and right cheeks quickly became red and swollen.

His eyes were bloodshot, his hair disheveled, his expression ferocious, and he subtly exuded an aura of madness.

The swelling pain on his face was less than one ten-thousandth of the pain in his heart!

Qinghuangzi had actively publicized the test early on to attract more cultivators to compete and help him select the most excellent successor, so Ban Ji had begun preparing as soon as he heard the news.

He had prepared a great deal.

“I even summarized and deduced the forty-eight sound reeds!”

“The winners of this round received the ‘Book of Vowel Reeds,’ which only contains twenty kinds. There must be follow-up chapters!”

“If I could have passed the first round and retained my qualification to compete, I would have had an extremely huge advantage in the subsequent trials and competitions!”

But it was all too late; Ban Ji was eliminated in the first round.

For Ban Ji, the psychological blow was truly immense!

Such a failure also added to his intense feeling of humiliation.

“Ahhh!”

“It’s all because of you, Ning Zhuo, you truly deserve to die!”

“I will kill you, I will kill you, what ‘human tribulation’? I’ll crush you directly!”

Ban Ji roared, and suddenly, the jade pendant hanging around his neck burst forth with a green light.

The light, like water, quickly flowed over Ban Ji’s entire body, finally converging in his divine sea, making him instantly wake up.

Ban Ji’s furious expression disappeared, replaced by horror.

“That was close, I almost suffered a qi deviation!”

This was a characteristic of demonic cultivation—extreme, rapid progress, difficult to stabilize.

Ban Ji’s demonic cultivation, the “Greedy Machine Demonic Heart Art,” primarily focused on the upper Dantian (divine sea), which made Ban Ji prone to emotional outbursts and extreme thinking when problem-solving.

*Hoo, hoo, hoo…*

Ban Ji gasped for breath, his forehead covered in fine beads of sweat.

With a disheveled look, he wiped the sweat from his head, instinctively clutching the jade pendant around his neck.

This magical artifact came from the Ban family and was one of their foundational treasures, having helped Ban Ji escape qi deviation multiple times.

Gradually calming down, Ban Ji paced within the cave-dwelling, beginning to consider how to deal with Ning Zhuo.

“This is my human tribulation… but I cannot directly act to eliminate Ning Zhuo.”

Previously, Ban Ji had already sent a challenge letter, which Ning Zhuo politely declined.

Ban Ji intended to join the Wanxiang Sect. Although the Wanxiang Sect’s rules were few, any one of them could be easily violated.

One rule explicitly stipulated that individuals like Ban Ji and Ning Zhuo should resolve conflicts through the Yanwu Hall.

If Ban Ji directly attacked Ning Zhuo, once exposed, he would certainly be dealt with directly by the Wanxiang Sect, perhaps even made an example of to deter others.

“So many sessions of the Feiyun Grand Assembly, and no one has done this for over a hundred years.”

“I’m afraid that no matter how much I provoke Ning Zhuo, he won’t enter the Yanwu Hall with me!”

Ban Ji had already seen Ning Zhuo.

Through the naturally emanating mana aura, he knew that Ning Zhuo was only at the Mid Foundation Establishment stage, while he himself was at the Peak Foundation Establishment stage.

“Although Ning Zhuo has a Golden Core-level automaton, his control is insufficient.”

“My control ability is far stronger than his, and in terms of divine sense, I am vastly superior!”

“His Golden Core-level automaton is probably a safeguard given to him by his family.”

“Whereas the Golden Core-level mechanical creation in my hands is my true combat power, something I have painstakingly built and improved step by step over many years!”

“And there’s more than one!”

Ban Ji revealed a hint of pride.

“My strength is much greater than Ning Zhuo’s, but that brat definitely won’t confront me head-on.”

“He uses the Wanxiang Sect’s rules to entangle me and disrupt my plans. And I can’t even directly act. Disgusting, truly sickening!”

“This hypocritical villain!”

Ban Ji remained resentful, and as he thought of this, the image of the big-headed youth smiling subtly at him appeared in his mind.

Ban Ji’s eyes narrowed, wishing he could tear Ning Zhuo’s mouth apart.

“I can’t count on Qinghuangzi’s side.”

“But I have other options!”

“Next, I absolutely cannot fail again.”

“This time I was truly careless, leaking information prematurely, allowing Ning Zhuo to interfere in Qinghuangzi’s minor test.”

Ban Ji made up his mind that from now on, he would strictly keep his whereabouts secret.

“I must prevent Ning Zhuo from bothering me again!”

“I cultivate demonic arts, which harms heavenly harmony. Ning Zhuo is my current human tribulation, so as long as I am in front of him, my qi (luck) must be lower than his, and I will likely encounter misfortune.”

“The upcoming Xingyun minor tests cannot afford any mistakes.”

“They are not just tests; they are also channels for connections. When I join the Wanxiang Sect, these connections will allow me to quickly establish myself and develop smoothly.”

The Xingyun minor tests and the Feiyun Grand Assembly had a profound impact and significant meaning for cultivators.

Ban Ji paced for a while, finished his thoughts, and sent out four swift messages.

“First, I’ll give Ning Zhuo some things to do.”

“After I pass these few Xingyun minor tests, I’ll come back and deal with him properly!”

A moment later, in his cleaned and repaired cave-dwelling, Ban Ji welcomed four Demonic Cultivators.

One was Rust Calamity Craftsman, another was Wild Rumor Monk, one was named Madam Spidersilk, and the last was nicknamed Mother Miasma.

Ban Ji stated directly: “I’m offering a hefty sum to the four of you to work together, just to deal with one person.”

“This person is called Ning Zhuo; he ruined one of my opportunities and is my sworn enemy!”

“You all do your best to entangle him, to distract him. If you do well, I’ll have even more rewards!!”

With that, Ban Ji handed four copied jade slips to the four Demonic Cultivators: “This contains information about Ning Zhuo.”

The four cultivators immediately used their divine senses to delve into the jade slips and quickly read them.

Mother Miasma, Liu Qingyan, frowned slightly: “So little information?”

Ban Ji: “I have already purchased the highest level of intelligence from the Tongshang Hall. Ning Zhuo… he probably isn’t from this country.”

Madam Spidersilk chuckled: “Although there’s little information, seeing that he can associate with Shen Xi and Lin Jinglong, he’s definitely not simple.”

Her eyes, like silken threads, looked towards Ban Ji: “Young Master Ban, it’s rare to see you hate a peer so much. What loss did he make you suffer?”

Ban Ji snorted coldly, squeezing a sentence through clenched teeth: “If it weren’t for the Wanxiang Sect… if it were outside, I would have long since crushed him to dust.”

Rust Calamity Craftsman’s voice was hoarse as he urged Ban Ji to tell the truth: “The information doesn’t say how you fell. If you want us to deal with him, you need to reveal more of the truth. Why be secretive?”

“If time is wasted, I’ll suspect that Ning Zhuo is just a cover, a scheme by you, Ban Ji, to stall us!”

Ban Ji’s eyes narrowed, staring at Rust Calamity Craftsman, his killing intent directly revealed: “Blacksmith, don’t be ignorant of good sense. I scheme against you? Do you have family support? My future is far greater than yours; do you think I would waste energy to scheme against you?”

Rust Calamity Craftsman was provoked and took a step forward, pressing towards Ban Ji.

Wild Rumor Monk, seeing that the two were about to clash, quickly stepped between them: “Alright, we haven’t even dealt with Ning Zhuo yet, and we’re already fighting amongst ourselves; this is not good.”

He first addressed Rust Calamity Craftsman: “The four of us have cooperated well with Ban Ji before, and there’s an agreement to assist. This time, he’s willing to use that agreement to ask us to act. Let’s proceed as agreed.”

Rust Calamity Craftsman snorted coldly and voluntarily retreated to his original position.

Wild Rumor Monk then said to Ban Ji: “Young Master Ban, Rust Calamity Craftsman is not entirely wrong.”

“The few of us are all here for this Feiyun Grand Assembly, hoping to join the Wanxiang Sect.”

“You’re using our agreement to have us entangle this Ning Zhuo. We also want to try our hand at the Feiyun minor tests many times…”

He hadn’t finished speaking before Ban Ji cut him off: “Since time and energy are both very precious, why aren’t you hurrying to do it?”

“Spare me the nonsense about raising prices.”

“It’s unnecessary!”

“After it’s done, I will reward those who succeed with three times the price.”

“That’s how it is!”

“My offer is already quite high. Don’t be too greedy, four of you. Take it or leave it, just say the word!”

Ban Ji glared at the four cultivators, acting very dominant.

The atmosphere in the cave-dwelling became heavy.

Madam Spidersilk suddenly smiled, breaking the tension: “Accept, of course I’ll accept such a high price.”

“What about you three?” Ban Ji stood with his hands behind his back, a hint of arrogant smile on his face.

Wild Rumor Monk and the other three exchanged glances, then all nodded.

Ban Ji paid the deposit, clasped his fists, and saw them out: “Then I await good news from the four of you.”

Watching their departing figures, Ban Ji mused: “Any one of these four has combat power similar to mine.”

“I don’t believe they can’t suppress you, even with all four of them!”

The challenge letters and rumors targeting Ning Zhuo appeared almost simultaneously.

“Wild Rumor Monk?”

“Who is that?”

Ning Zhuo looked at the swift message, feeling confused.

Soon after, Chef Lao came to report about the rumors.

Ning Zhuo felt a sudden realization: “The rumors concern Wild Rumor Monk challenging me, and he fabricated an excuse, saying my family once nearly tortured him to death. This time he’s here for revenge, to demonstrate the righteous path.”

“This method… is really old-fashioned.”

Ning Zhuo naturally thought of Ban Ji and Pi Fuzai.

“Wild Rumor Monk came prepared, his malice evident, and he probably has something to do with those two.”

“However, slandering my family… do you even know where my family is? Who are they, do you know?”

Ning Zhuo couldn’t help but sneer a few times.

If he were in Shen Xi’s situation, it would indeed be difficult to handle.

The Shen family of Jiugong Immortal City was renowned in Feiyun Kingdom. Shen Xi, as the current generation’s face of the family at the Foundation Establishment level, a recognized genius cultivator, would certainly have to stand up immediately to defend against such slander to the family’s reputation.

Lin Jinglong and Situ Xing were also in the same situation.

Families, sects, and the like would deliberately cultivate certain prominent figures. Foundation Establishment level figures represented the future of the power. Golden Core level figures represented the negotiation ability of the power. After all, Nascent Soul level cultivators could not travel freely; in many cases, they had to report their movements.

In most cases, minor frictions between powers were settled by competitions between Golden Core level cultivators, determining superiority and outcomes.

Nascent Soul level cultivators could destroy ordinary towns single-handedly. Once such power was used, it was no longer a minor friction.

Ning Zhuo was not Shen Xi, and the Ning family was not the Shen family of Jiugong Immortal City. Ning Zhuo’s and the Ning family’s reputation in Feiyun Kingdom was equivalent to none.

Therefore, when the rumors spread, others’ first reaction was not to look down on the Ning family, but to be puzzled—who is Ning Zhuo? And which Ning family is that?