Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Taixu Peak, the main peak of the Taixu Sword Sect.

At the foot of the mountain, broad steps of white jade gleamed, their pristine surface accentuated by the verdant trees on either side, creating a strikingly beautiful palette.

Rong Yu, riding a white crane conjured by a teleportation talisman, swept past, taking in the scenery.

Amidst the whistling wind, a sharp, cutting voice suddenly intruded: "Lu Shitu? Ugh, don’t even mention him. Bad luck!"

Hearing the name "Lu Shitu," Rong Yu raised an eyebrow, slowed his descent, and looked down.

Below, on the mountain steps, three middle-aged men in outer sect disciple robes were chatting as they ascended. The one speaking, in the middle, curled his lip in disdain.

Another disciple, his face oily and gleaming, spat in disgust upon hearing this, his jowls trembling. "That immature brat who hasn’t even grown all his feathers—can you believe I called him ‘senior brother’ for so long? Now he’s finally finished, and good riddance!"

The third man wore a gloating expression, saying in a mocking, sarcastic tone, "I almost feel sorry for him. He was supposed to be this high-and-mighty cultivation genius, the sect leader’s proud disciple, the future head disciple. He got all the best resources, and look how he turned out. Serves him right!"

Rong Yu immediately frowned.

Just a few days ago, he had been Rong Yi, an unlucky modern man hit by a car, who then transmigrated into *The Useless's Path to Godhood*, a male-oriented cultivation novel he had read. He became Rong Yu, this world’s most powerful expert.

And Lu Shitu was the sole reason he had kept reading that book—his absolute favorite character.

Hearing someone spew such malicious words, especially directed at his beloved idol, Rong Yu could no longer hold back.

Moreover, the whole "sinner" accusation was completely baseless!

The three outer sect disciples were deep in conversation when they suddenly heard a young voice tinged with anger from nearby: "What are you talking about?"

At the same time, they saw a black-robed cultivator appear on the steps ahead, slowly approaching. This person carried an extraordinary aura, imposing and oppressive, yet his figure was slender and tall, like a youth.

As the figure drew closer, they could finally see his face clearly. With delicate features, fair skin, slightly upturned peach-blossom eyes, and a faint green jade ring at the center of his forehead, he looked like a dazzling, noble young master from a wealthy mortal family. But his expression was anything but pleasant.

None of them could sense Rong Yu’s cultivation level, and given his youth, they assumed he couldn’t be anyone formidable. They exchanged glances.

Rong Yu had no patience for trash and said irritably, "What, not only foul-mouthed but deaf as well?"

Provoked by his words, the three men grew furious. One of them snapped back, "How dare you speak to your elders like that? Who do you think you are, acting so arrogantly on our hallowed ground?"

Another added with a sinister tone, "Exactly! Today is a grand occasion for our sect. It’s not just any trash who can waltz in here. We were being merciful, pretending we never saw you, letting you keep your life. But since you don’t know your place, don’t blame us for being ruthless!"

The man with the flabby face, however, remained silent, leering at Rong Yu for a long moment before saying, "You’ve got such delicate skin. How about this—come with me, and our trio will let you off today."

Rong Yu: ……

Rong Yu: Heh.

Before he could react, he saw someone rushing up the mountain steps. Before even steadying himself, the newcomer bowed deeply and respectfully. "This junior congratulates Taiqing Elder on his successful seclusion! The ceremony at Mirror Platform is about to begin. The sect leader has specially sent me to escort you."

From the gray Daoist robes he wore, Rong Yu recognized him as an attendant under the sect leader.

The moment the words "Taiqing Elder" were uttered, the men before him reflexively dropped to their knees, one after another. All their earlier bravado vanished, replaced by uniform trembling, as if synchronized.

"Di-disciple pays respects to Taiqing Elder!"

Just moments ago, they had bullied Rong Yu assuming he had no cultivation, but now, upon realizing his high status, they immediately knelt. Such a perfect display of fawning over the high and trampling the low.

Rong Yu’s gaze was icy as he looked them over and said coldly, "Save it. Each of you is a dragon among men—I don’t deserve your bows."

So he wasn't going to let them off.

The steward was sharp; seeing this, he could roughly guess what had happened and was instantly furious. These blind fools, of all people, they had to mess with the Taiqing Elder!

He immediately turned and angrily scolded the outer sect disciples, "What are you just standing there for? Get your asses to the Discipline Hall for punishment!"

The outer sect disciples were already trembling in fear, but they had still held onto a sliver of hope. Hearing the steward's words, their hopes were dashed.

This wasn't just about being punished now—if word got out that they had offended a sect superior, their future in the sect would be extremely difficult.

"We admit our wrongdoing, we beg the Taiqing Elder for mercy!" "Elder, please wait, it was all our fault today!" The three of them pleaded for forgiveness in unison.

The steward turned back, wiping cold sweat from his brow, and gestured for Rong Yu to proceed.

Rong Yu didn't bother to look at them again, gave a slight nod, and followed the steward toward the Mirror Platform.

He appeared serene and immortal-like, but inwardly he breathed a sigh of relief: That was close. The steward arrived just in time.

He had only been in this world for a short time, spending two days figuring out that he was in the world of a novel and clarifying his own identity.

Just as he had grasped everything, he received a message talisman from the sect leader, inviting him to attend the Sect Tournament.

The message talisman contained magical power; when crushed, it transformed into a white crane to guide the way. Rong Yu rode it directly from his cave dwelling to the sect's tournament.

However, he overheard these people's conversation along the way and stopped, causing the message talisman to become invalid. As a newcomer, he was completely unfamiliar with the way. If no one had come to escort him, it would have been a major problem.

Shocking! The renowned Taiqing Elder was actually someone who could get lost even within his own sect?

Rong Yu followed the steward, observing his surroundings and silently memorizing the route. They had already left the main mountain path near the entrance. On both sides of the carved white marble steps, neatly arranged spiritual herbs were planted. Not far ahead, beyond a slope, he could see a misty, mystical area—likely the Mirror Platform where the Sect Tournament was being held.

According to the book's description, the Sect Tournament was a major event held once every three years by the Taixu Sword Sect. Outstanding performers among the participating disciples could be promoted: outer sect disciples could enter the inner sect, while inner sect disciples might catch the elders' eyes and be taken on as nominal disciples or even personal disciples.

The character Rong Yu didn't leave a deep impression on Rong Yi in the book. He appeared very few times, and in those rare instances, he was almost always handing out golden opportunities to the male lead, Jiang Ziliu.

His only appearance at a Sect Tournament was also his first appearance in the book. On that occasion, in his effort to take the seemingly ordinary male lead as his disciple, he nearly fought with another elder. In the end, to resolve the conflict, the sect leader personally took the male lead as his disciple.

Therefore, after receiving the message talisman, Rong Yu immediately understood which point in time he had transmigrated to. This Sect Tournament marked the beginning of the book and the start of the protagonist's journey to godhood.

Similarly, this Sect Tournament was also the beginning of the cannon fodder Lu Shitu's complete downfall, becoming the male lead's stepping stone.

Before the Sect Tournament, Lu Shitu's spiritual root had been destroyed. Desperate to restore it and participate, he painstakingly gathered rare materials to refine a pill. Little did he know that the materials he handed to the sect leader would ultimately end up in the male lead's hands, allowing the male lead to undergo marrow cleansing, break through to the Foundation Establishment stage, and thus catch the elders' attention during the Sect Tournament.

The pill the sect leader gave Lu Shitu for the tournament, however, was nothing but a fake that would only generate a pseudo-spiritual root. This caused Lu Shitu to lose all his cultivation talent entirely, his progress stagnating, and he became a total failure.

All of this happened solely because of Lu Shitu's complete trust and devotion for the sect leader who had raised him, never seeing through the sect leader's hypocrisy.

As Rong Yu walked toward the Mirror Platform, he tightened his fist.

Since he was here now, he would absolutely not let any of this happen!

The sect leader's residence, Shouzhong Peak, was located in the middle of the Taixu Mountain Range, shrouded in perpetual fog, with clouds and mist enveloping the entire peak.

The sky was overcast. In the dim light, Lu Shitu strained to make out the mountain path, careful not to misstep and fall off the cliff. Without any spiritual power left, he couldn't use magic to light his path and could only move forward clumsily and with great difficulty.

At just twelve years old, his body was already starting to grow taller. His face, once round with baby fat, had thinned from days of hardship and exhaustion, leaving only a pair of large, bright eyes fixed determinedly on the path ahead.

Soon, he would restore his spiritual root and not miss the Sect Tournament he'd been waiting for!

Ahead, he could already see the towering white walls and blue tiles of the familiar sect leader's courtyard. Lu Shitu allowed himself a small smile.

He was about to continue forward when a small golden-dusted insect suddenly flew toward his face. Instinctively, he dodged, but the tiny creature seemed bewitched, flying straight into his eye!

The next moment, the world spun around him, and he felt as if he had become the insect himself, flying straight into the sect leader’s meeting hall.

The sect leader sat at a table, wearing a jade crown and impeccably dressed robes, sipping tea slowly. "It’s only a fake spiritual root," he said. "We still have to give him an explanation."

Seated across from him was Elder Lingxiao, his signature mop of unruly hair. He nodded in satisfaction. "True, what good thing could you possibly give to that Lu Shitu kid? Still, you’re really vicious—once he takes this, he’ll be truly finished."

Lu Shitu, who had been feeling guilty for eavesdropping and was trying to extricate himself, froze completely upon hearing this.

The sect leader sat with perfect posture, taking another sip of tea, the very image of noble integrity. "You should leave now," he said.

Elder Lingxiao replied carelessly, "We’ll know when he arrives, what’s the rush? You're really black-hearted—after raising him all these years, you have no affection for him at all. In the end, you’re still giving him a false illusion, tricking him into continuing to work like a beast of burden. What brilliant scheming."

The sect leader responded, "No matter what, we can’t let him break free from our control…"

At these words, Lu Shitu’s vision blurred again, and when he came to, he was back in his own body on the mountain path.

He had read about this kind of golden-dusted insect before—it allowed one’s consciousness to attach to it, enabling secret, instantaneous infiltration into any location. It was priceless, rare, and impossible to counterfeit.

So what he had just heard…

Lu Shitu stood frozen in place, feeling darkness wash over him. For a moment, he couldn’t even cry or scream.

On the mountain path, the small figure sank to the ground, slowly curling into a ball. In the distance, thunder rumbled loudly.

At the same time, Rong Yu, already seated at the Mirror Platform, gently flicked his fingers, letting a nearly invisible trace of golden dust fall.